Category Archives: Evolution

Silent Hill is filled with monsters that represent the deepest fears, regrets, and traumas of those who are unfortunate enough to be trapped inside. Of all the monsters, one of the types that has stuck with players and have presented themselves to the most protagonists is the Nurse.

Most people have been in a hospital at some point in life. It may have been to visit someone, to go to work, or even receive treatment. Due the many different types of memories people have in hospitals, the perception of nurses is different for every person.

RELATED:Silent Hill PS5 Reveal Expected This Week

The Nurses of Silent Hill have appeared since the very first game on the original PlayStation. Because of the constantly changing protagonists and the different themes of each Silent Hill, their appearances are different in most Silent Hill titles. Some changes are more obvious while others are more subtle. Players should note that there will be spoilers for the majority of Silent Hill games below due to plot elements being related to the symbolism behind these Nurses.

Far different from the Nurses commonly known by fans, the very first Nurses in Silent Hill are known as Puppet Nurses. These monsters appear are normal human female nurses that have parasitic growths on their backs. Puppet Nurses have a variety of different hair colors and clothing colors. Despite their appearances however, they are still very dangerous.

They are capable of ganging up on protagonist, Harry Mason, with one Puppet Nurse able to grab him while the others attempt to stab him. Puppet Nurses are additionally the only type of Nurse that has a male counterpart. These are known as Puppet Doctors. They are stronger, but slower than the Puppet Nurses.

Unlike other Silent Hill titles, the monsters in the original are not based on the protagonist, but are rather based on the traumas and memories of Alessa. Alessa Gillespie is a girl who was tortured by a cult known as the Order in Silent Hill so that she would give birth to their god.

The Puppet Nurses represent how Alessa saw the nurses in the hospital while she was kept alive after being burned alive. While the nurses weren't members of the Order, they were still being puppeted around by them through keeping Alessa alive. It is also possible that this is how Alessa saw herself with the Order's god being a parasite on her body.

The Bubble Head Nurses from Silent Hill 2are the most famous of the Nurse types and have influenced the designs of all later Nurses. These Nurses appear to have their heads wrapped in a wet vinyl that completely covers their faces. The bottom of their vinyl masks has the shape of the face of a baby, but this is sometimes blocked by one of Silent Hill's prominent Red Squares. As they walk, they are always twitching, giving a very unnatural look to them.

Bubble Head Nurses also have another variety that can be found in the Otherworld where their clothes are far more dirty with spikes driven through their masks. They additionally also have a fleshy protrusion coming out of backs and shoulders.

RELATED:10 Horror Games We'd Rather See Remade (Instead Of Resident Evil 4)

The Bubble Head Nurses have many meanings to them involving Silent Hill 2's protagonist, James Sunderland. The most obvious example being with how the vinyl masks covering the Nurses' faces causing them to unnaturally convulse referencing James killing his wife, Mary, by suffocating her in her hospital bed with a pillow. The masks also give the effect of how Mary's head was swelling while sick.

Another meaning to them is the sexual frustrations and possible adultery of James Sunderland. Due to not being able to be sexual with his wife while she lay dying in the hospital, it's very possible that he ogled the nurses that were taking care of Mary in the hospital. However, he did not see them as just beautiful women, he simply saw them as objects without a face, explaining the Bubble Head Nurse's covered face and exposed body. In development, the Bubble Head Nurses originally wielded a blood transfusion stand, but it was changed to a steel pipe as a callback to the weapon most used by Harry Mason.

Silent Hill 3combines the more human appearance and the sexualized outfit for their take on the Nurses. These Nurses are simply known as Nurses and all share the same black bob haircut, purple eye shadow, and purple lipstick. Their eyes are always shut and have a red stain around their mouths that is similar to the red squares of the Bubble Head Nurses. The Nurses here can carry iron pipes as in Silent Hill 2, but they can also use a revolver against protagonist, Heather Mason. They not only can shoot, but they are also capable of performing pistol-whips if too close.

Due to Heather being a reincarnation of Alessa, these nurses represent Alessa's memories in the hospital once more. However, their dark hair may serve as a reminder to Heather of what her original hair color was. The sexualization of the nurses could possibly represent Alessa's fears of becoming pregnant with the Order's god. According to designer, Masahiro Ito, the red stains around their mouths represent madness. These Nurses can also be seen as upgrades to the Puppet Nurses, due to there being a large red stain on their upper back where the parasite could have been. Their movement also suggests their movement being controlled by some sort of puppet strings.

Silent Hill 4: The Room didn't have any nurses of any kind, but the next evolution of the Nurse appeared in Silent Hill: Origins for the PSP and PlayStation 2. These Nurses are similar to the Bubble Head Nurses, but have stockings with garter belts, high heels, and a surgical mask that appears to be melted to their faces. The arsenals of the Faceless Nurses is similar to that of the Puppet Nurses with their only weapons being scalpels and syringes. They twitch a lot more than any other Nurses as well.

RELATED:Silent Hill on PS5 is Looking Likelier by the Day

Due to the protagonist, Travis Grady, possibly being a serial killer, the Faceless Nurses could represent his victims. The twitching of the Faceless Nurses could be representative of Travis's victims shaking in fear before dying. Even their names could be referencing that Travis saw the victims as faceless.

The Silent Hill movies had their own variety of Nurse based on the Bubble Head Nurses. These Nurses are known as Dark Nurses and were portrayed by dancers in the first Silent Hill film in order to get across their inhuman movements. Their faces seem to be made of of deformed flesh with each Dark Nurse having a unique and organic face. There are signs of burns or rotting in some of them, while others have faces that appear much smoother.

The Dark Nurses use pipes, knives, scalpels, and syringes, making these the Nurses with the largest variety of weapons. Dark Nurses additionally seem to be in larger clusters than in the games, making them extremely dangerous. Their movement appears mechanical with them being very sensitive to any light. It's possible that the Dark Nurses symbolize how Alessa saw her nurses as faceless, while additionally feeling self-conscious about her own deformities due to being burned alive. The Dark Nurses would be seen as beautiful and sexy women if it weren't for their monstrous parts, after all. It's also possible that Alessa felt jealous toward her nurses due to them being able to come and go as they pleased while she remained trapped.

In the sequel movie, Silent Hill: Revelation, the Dark Nurses make a return. Due to Heather's circumstances in the movie being similar to how they were in the games, it's possible that the Dark Nurses represent Heather's feelings on growing up into womanhood. They could also simply be the remains of her old memories coming back to haunt her.

Using many design parts from the Dark Nurses as well as the Bubble Head Nurses are Silent Hill: Homecoming's Nurses, which are known as Demon Nurses as labeled in their concept art. These Nurses have deformed and fleshy faces with sexual nurse uniforms made out flesh. They additionally wear high heels and can be seen growing a fetus inside them when lit up by any light source that isn't a flashlight.The DemonNurses react to light violently and are capable of making very fast slashes with their knives that can catch players off guard. However, they can be avoided completely if the player turns off their flashlight and passes by them quietly.

With the Demon Nurses being the first enemy that players will find while playing as protagonist, Alex Shepherd, in Silent Hill: Homecoming, they have a lot of roots within his character. Due to Alex Shepherd being institutionalized within a mental hospital for four years, he was stuck with only his sexual fantasies while also being surrounded by nurses. While there, Alex fantasized about being part of the military and in a military hospital instead.

He would write in his journal about how the military only hired attractive nurses with sexual uniforms to make the stay better, when it was actually what he wanted in the hospital. These Nurses likely represent a dark and twisted version of his fantasy with them being only faceless and sexual beings. Demon Nurses are additionally the only Nurses in Silent Hill to have jiggle physics.

RELATED:The Worst Licensed Horror Games Ever Released

The Demon Nurses being pregnant could symbolize a couple of things. They could symbolize Alex wanting to have sexual relations with women without care. They could also symbolize how Alex's life changed when his mother became pregnant with his younger brother, Joshua. With Alex killing the fetuses by killing the nurses, it could also symbolize how Alex killed Joshua.

Many players are waiting and hoping for a Silent Hill announcement from Konami for the PlayStation 5. While there is nothing confirmed as of now, it is interesting to think about what form the Nurses could take in the next title.

Based on the symbolism and analysis of all the Nurses above, it's probably best to have a new fresh Nurse. Most of the Nurses are based on the Bubble Head Nurse, and while it is an iconic design, it is limited in what kind of symbolism it can have. Not every protagonist of Silent Hill has to have a past involving sexual repression. There are so many possible things a Nurse could be to someone, so it might be time to let the Bubble Nurse and her sisters go on a well-deserved vacation.

Nurses can be mother figures to those who've been in the hospital at a young age. They can also be saviors to those who have survived terrible things. These thoughts can become twisted in the realm of Silent Hill into truly frightening monsters. A monster that believes that its healing when its actually harming can be very dangerous as well as scary.

New nurses don't necessarily have to go back to looking like humans, but there is so much variety in the monsters inhabiting Silent Hill that the Nurses can be changed. If the next Silent Hill wants to get into mind game territory with leaning on the fourth wall, the nurses could take on the faces of those players' galleries or something crazy like that.

There could even be Nurses that subvert the expectation of the look of Silent Hill Nurses by incorporating even more body horror, creating a very uncomfortable monster to look at. While some of the changes made over time, such as Homecoming's fetus, are very neat and add something new, the next Nurse should be completely new.

There is currently no new information on when or if a newSilent Hilltitle is coming out.

MORE:All Dead by Daylight Silent Hill Perks

The Last of Us 2: Everything You Need to Know Before Buying the Game

Sam is a guide writer for GameRant, as well as an independent game designer. Sam loves horror games most of all when it comes to making and playing. She however plays games from all genres and loves playing games most when it's with friends and family. Readers can follow her on Twitter @IceWoodrick

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The Evolution of Silent Hill's Nurses and Where They May Go - GameRant

"These new modes of transport promise to address the issues associated with the current travel modeslonger commute time, carbon emission, accidents, and traffic congestionand revolutionize the way people commute," said Joe Praveen Vijayakumar, Intelligent Mobility Analyst at Frost & Sullivan. "Additionally, a combination of Hyperloop, air taxis, and suborbital rocket could enable a traveler to reach any location on earth in 60 minutes. Suborbital travel is expected to become widely commercialized, mainly because of the short flight duration, relatively low cost and a whole host of applications including zero-gravity weddings and photoshoots."

Vijayakumar added: "Regulations, infrastructure, and technology required for mass commercialization of new modes of travel are still in nascent stages and are expected to become mature and standardized by 2050. Further, Maglev, Hyperloop, and air taxis are expected to be affordable inter- and intra-city modes of transportation in the future, whereas space-based travel modes are expected to be premium priced and aimed at the ultra-rich initially."

Companies offering new modes of transport should focus on the following growth opportunities:

Evolution of 3rd, 4th and 5th Dimensions of Travelis the latest addition to Frost & Sullivan's Aerospace & Defense research and analyses available through the Frost & Sullivan Leadership Council, which helps organizations identify a continuous flow of growth opportunities to succeed in an unpredictable future.

About Frost & Sullivan

For over five decades, Frost & Sullivan has become world-renowned for its role in helping investors, corporate leaders and governments navigate economic changes and identify disruptive technologies, Mega Trends, new business models and companies to action, resulting in a continuous flow of growth opportunities to drive future success. Contact us: Start the discussion.

Evolution of 3rd, 4th and 5th Dimensions of Travel

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Frost & Sullivan Analyzes the Evolution of 3rd, 4th and 5th Dimensions of Travel - PRNewswire

Take a look at thesocial mediafeeds of your favorite store or restaurant. For B2C brands, social media is, undoubtedly, a where-its-at customer service platform as much for networking or advertising as for engaging consumers with a personality and story that captures new customers and builds affinity. Now, imagine this same social care experience from your healthcare payer or provider. Why is this such an unlikely scenario?

Undoubtedly, healthcare has room to grow in providing a B2C-type social experience. And these organizations could use the help. Take, for example, the fact that there is a gap in perception between providers and consumers on the quality of experience currently beingprovided. In fact, anewreportfrom the American Customer Satisfaction Index states that satisfaction in hospitals saw a major drop, making it one of the worst sectors measured.

Is it possible that healthcares slow move to B2C social care is at the heart of this dissatisfaction? Two market pivots show even greater urgency to a sharpened social media focus:

Digital nativesMillennials and Generation Zexpect and typically prefer digital customer experience (CX) channels, from chat and text to social care.The seamless integration of these features transforms traditional CXs into new, lasting, and meaningful connections with current and prospective customers.Recent research cites growing evidence thatFacebook and online review sites such asYelp are swiftly becoming healthcare consumers preferred sources for researching doctors, hospitals, medical laboratories, and other medical service providers. Simply put, the data indicates that a majority of Americans share their healthcare experiences publicly online following visits with providers. And they use this information to choose a provider as well.In fact, 80% of adults in the U.S. look for health information online, according to the Pew Research Center.Social media provides these customersthe answers they need, providing a service while also establishing credibility in a public setting.

In 20172018, there were more than 200 mergers and acquisitions in healthcare, making it more challenging for independent health systems to acquire patients and increase the share of voice in their market. Faced with the heightened prioritization of customer needs, experience, and value-stream impact, these merging health organizations are increasingly seeking strategic insights, optimization, and efficiencies to achieve a new volume-to-value operational focus.

According to the2019 State of Digital Marketing in Healthcare Report, by Greystone and Klein & Partners, only 22% of healthcare digital marketers are confident in using the web and digital tools to attract new patients (down from 25% in 2015).Business process outsourcers (BPOs) and consultants can bring the latest process and technology innovation as well as customer care expertise required to meet the demands of todays members/patients. These experts can also address duplication of effort resulting from consolidation and bring cost reduction and innovation while helping the payer/provider achieve their financial goals.

As you consider your social media strategy, healthcare stakeholders might consider this:

Social media changes fast. Stakeholders might feel that they are all over social because they have presence on Facebook and Twitter. Dont put all your eggs in one network and be prepared to change direction if social trends change.

Social interactions are transparent. This CX tool is the opposite of a voice call, where only the customer and agent can hear the call. Interactions on social channels are generally transparent and visible to every other user, which provides great opportunities for people to share examples of great service. On the flip side, if you make a mistake, then that negative experience will also be shared.

Todays members and patients drive todays CX channels. It used to be that brands defined the phone number and email address. Now customers are deciding where and how they want to interact with brands and all you can do it monitor whats going on and then be there.

Omnichannel is not multichannel. You might offer support across chat, social networks, and voice, but thats really just multichannel support. If you want to offer a real omnichannel level of support, then you need to be comfortable connecting these channels together. With this support, a chat customer can hop to voice and an agent picking up a call will see that the customer recently emailed or sent a message on another channel.

Todays brand experience transcends mere customer service. You are designing the customer experience for members/patients, not just a customer service channel. Social interactions can be focused on sales or marketing or service interactions to the customer they are all the same thing. A customer commenting on your social post doesnt care which of your internal departments responds, just so long as there is a response and it is meaningful.

About Rik Silva

RikSilvais theClientServicesDirectoratHGSDigital, thedigitalconsultingservicesbranch ofHGS, a global business process outsourcing company.HGSDigitalhelps businesses across industries improve theirdigitalcustomer experiences, data-driven marketing, and cloud-enabledservices.

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Picking Up the Pace: Healthcare's Evolution to Social Media - - HIT Consultant

The viruss ability to change makes it likely that new human coronaviruses will arise

A team of scientists studying the origin of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that has caused the COVID-19 pandemic, found that it was especially well-suited to jump from animals to humans by shapeshifting as it gained the ability to infect human cells.

Conducting a genetic analysis, researchers from Duke University, Los Alamos National Laboratory, the University of Texas at El Paso and New York University confirmed that the closest relative of the virus was a coronavirus that infects bats. But that viruss ability to infect humans was gained through exchanging a critical gene fragment from a coronavirus that infects a scaly mammal called a pangolin, which made it possible for the virus to infect humans.

The researchers report that this jump from species-to-species was the result of the viruss ability to bind to host cells through alterations in its genetic material. By analogy, it is as if the virus retooled the key that enables it to unlock a host cells door in this case a human cell. In the case of SARS-CoV-2, the key is a spike protein found on the surface of the virus. Coronaviruses use this protein to attach to cells and infect them.

Very much like the original SARS that jumped from bats to civets, or MERS that went from bats to dromedary camels, and then to humans, the progenitor of this pandemic coronavirus underwent evolutionary changes in its genetic material that enabled it to eventually infect humans, said Feng Gao, M.D., professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Duke University School of Medicine and corresponding author of the study published in Science Advances.

Gao and colleagues said tracing the viruss evolutionary pathway will help deter future pandemics arising from the virus and possibly guide vaccine research.

The researchers found that typical pangolin coronaviruses are too different from SARS-CoV-2 for them to have directly caused the human pandemic.

However, they do contain a receptor-binding site a part of the spike protein necessary to bind to the cell membrane that is important for human infection. This binding site makes it possible to affix to a cell surface protein that is abundant on human respiratory and intestinal epithelial cells, endothelial cell and kidney cells, among others.

While the viral ancestor in the bat is the most closely related coronavirus to SARS-CoV-2, its binding site is very different, and on its own cannot efficiently infect human cells.

SARS-CoV-2 appears to be a hybrid between bat and pangolin viruses to obtain the key necessary receptor-binding site for human infection.

There are regions of the virus with a very high degree of similarity of amino acid sequences among divergent coronaviruses that infect humans, bats and pangolins, suggesting that these viruses are under similar host selection and may have made the ancestor of SARS-CoV-2 able to readily jump from these animals to humans, said lead co-author Xiaojun Li from Duke.

People had already looked at the coronavirus sequences sampled from pangolins that we discuss in our paper, however, the scientific community was still divided on whether they played a role in the evolution of SARS-CoV-2, said study co-lead author Elena Giorgi, staff scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory.

In our study, we demonstrated that indeed SARS-CoV-2 has a rich evolutionary history that included a reshuffling of genetic material between bat and pangolin coronavirus before it acquired its ability to jump to humans, Giorgi said.

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Evolution of Pandemic Coronavirus Outlines Path from Animals to Humans - Global Health News Wire

NEW YORK, June 1, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- This study provides a comprehensive overview of the new dimensions of travel which could have a major impact on the transportation landscape of the future. The report begins by introducing the current modes of transportation and the challenges associated with them.

Read the full report: https://www.reportlinker.com/p05903490/?utm_source=PRN

The need for new modes of transportation and the key drivers for them are also discussed. The 3rd, 4th and 5th dimensions of travel are clearly defined along with the vehicles associated with each of them.

A section is dedicated to each of these dimensions of travel.Firstly, the 3rd dimension of travel is discussed, capturing the key players, analyzing the various stages of product development that each company is at, and the major application areas for the different vehicles in this dimension.

Secondly, the 4th dimension of travel is analyzed, capturing the various vehicles involved, the salient features of each including high-speed rail (HSR), Maglev trains, and Hyperloop. A snapshot of major companies in each of the 4th dimension modes and the active projects is captured. The study also discusses the infrastructure required by each mode of transport. Furthermore, the report also compares the various vehicles in the 4th dimension of travel in terms of speed, passenger carrying capacity, and application avenues. Thirdly, the study focuses on the 5th dimension of travel breaking it down into 3 categories, namely Suborbital, Orbital, and Deep Space Travel. These 3 categories are defined clearly followed by a list of the major companies involved in these areas of transportation. Furthermore, the infrastructure required for space tourism, key milestones, major investments in this space, and future missions are also discussed. The report then proceeds to undertake a comparative analysis of the 3rd, 4th, and 5th dimensions of travel in terms of capital costs involved, ticket costs, ease of implementation, timeline, and application avenues. Finally, this study looks at how these new dimensions of travel will impact the transportation landscape of the future, including ushering in a zero era in transportation, new business models, a more effective public transportation system, and the rise of sustainable modes of transportation. The advent of new dimensions of travel poses a number of pertinent questions related to key 0new vehicle types, infrastructure required, application areas, and growth opportunities. Key Participants: Volocopter Ehang Aeromobil Terrafugia Lilium Kitty Hawk VRCO Vertical Aerospace Airbus Toyota Pal-V Shanghai Maglev TGV Eurostar Audi Porsche Hyundai Virgin Hyperloop One Hyperloop TT Transpod Zeleros Virgin Galactic Blue Origin SpaceX Boeing Space Adventures

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Financial planners are now finding it much easier to recommend reverse mortgages after the evolution of the product.Evelyn M. Zohlen, certified financial planner, founder of Inspired Financial and chair of the Financial Planning Association, discussed the evolution of the product during a recent Reverse Mortgage Dailypodcast.

"The last 17 years have brought pretty significant changes In the reverse mortgage and home equity spaces in some really positive ways," Zohlen says. "There have been bumps in the road on that journey, but I would say in the past five years we have seen more positives than bumps."

The product has become more transparent, costs associated with it are better to understand and the usage of the product is easier to explain, according to the report.

"Theres also been a better understanding of how a reverse mortgage does not have to be the solution of last resort, but may actually help the client if its incorporated into their planning process earlier," said Zohlen.

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Evolution Of Reverse Mortgages Make Them Easier To Promote - National Mortgage Professional Magazine

Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases play a fundamental role in protein translation, linking transfer RNAs to their cognate amino acids. But in the hundreds of millions of years that theyve existed, these synthetases (AARSs) have picked up several side jobs. One of these is to manage the development of vertebrate vasculature.

Multiple AARSs play roles in the development of the vertebrate circulatory system. During development, the serine enzyme SerRS downregulates the expression of vascularendothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), preventing over-vascularization.

In addition, a combo synthetase for glutamic acid and proline, GluProRS, links up with other proteins to form the interferon- activated inhibitor of translation (GAIT) complex to block VEGF-A translation.

A piece of the tryptophan synthetase TrpRS also contributes to dampening angiogenesis by binding and blocking VE-cadherin receptors on endothelial cells so they cant link together to form blood vessel lining.

Meanwhile, a fragment of the tyrosine synthetase TyrRS appears to promote the growth of blood vessels by stimulating migration of those endothelial cells.

According to Scripps Research Institute biochemist Paul Schimmel, the addition of accessory domains that perform such tasks parallels major events in the evolution of circulation. The first blood vascular system, which lacked the endothelium present in modern vertebrates, probably arose in a common ancestor of vertebrates and arthropods around 700 million to 600 million years ago. Around this same time, TyrRS acquired a glutamic acidlysinearginine motif that today is thought to promote angiogenesis. Then, around 540 million to 510 million years ago, an ancestral vertebrate evolved a closed vascular system, with blood pumping through vessels lined by endothelium. At some point around that same time period half a billion years ago, the TrpRS picked up a WHEP domain, which today regulates its ability to block angiogenesis. In addition, SerRS acquired a domain unique to this enzyme, which now prevents over-vascularization in developing zebrafish, and likely other vertebrates.

GluProRSs role in angiogenesis, on the other hand, doesnt seem to be so precisely timed to the evolution of vasculature. A linker protein tied together the AARSs for glutamic acid and proline enzymes around 800 million years ago, before circulatory systems existed.

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Infographic: Synthetases and the Evolution of Circulatory Systems - The Scientist

Cheetahs are majestic cats found in parts of Asia and Africa. Centuries ago, these magnificent runners roamed the Indian subcontinent, before they were forced into extinction by humans. They were hunted, kept captive and used by the Maharajas for hunting other animals, and by the mid-twentieth century, they became locally extinct. Today, in parts of Africa and Asia where these cats are found, the destruction of their habitatgrasslandsare threatening the surviving populations of wild cheetahs. In Iran, for example, the wild population of Asiatic cheetahs are struggling.

In a bid to reintroduce cheetahs in India, suggestions were made to bring in African cheetahs from Namibia to Indian forests. After a prolonged legal battle, in January 2020, the Supreme Court allowed the reintroduction of these foreign cheetahs. This move is thought to bolster conservation and tourism. But such decisions cannot be based on the rule of the land alone. One needs to have sufficient information and understanding of several aspects, including the evolution and genetics of cheetahs in a region, to succeed in such efforts.

Previous studies have shown that the now-extinct Indian cheetah was an Asiatic subspecies. However, we do not know how closely the Asiatic and African cheetahs are related. Now, a study published in the journal Scientific Reports has probed the evolutionary relationship between cheetahs. The study, consisting of a team of international researchers, included those from the Centre for Cellular & Molecular Biology (CCMB) Hyderabad, the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, and the Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Kolkata.

The researchers started by sequencing the mitochondrial DNA fragments, present outside the nucleus of a cell in an organelle called mitochondria, of an Indian cheetah and two African cheetahs. The African cheetah samples came from Southeast Africa and Northeasteast Africa, which were imported to India at different times. These three sequences were then compared against 118 published cheetah mitochondrial DNA sequences from various regions of Africa and Asia.

Based on previous studies, it was believed that the Asiatic subspecies of cheetahs diverged from the African subspecies only 5000 years ago. However, the genetic analysis of the current study found that this divergence is older than thought, and may have happened about 72,200 years ago. As a result, the populations today are genetically very different from each other, say the researchers, explaining the genetic uniqueness of Asiatic cheetahs. The study also found that the Asiatic cheetah and the Southeast African are more closely related to one another than to Northeast African cheetah.

The current study also sheds some insights into the origin of all cheetahs using the genetic analysis. It suggests that the common ancestor of all cheetahs is approximately 1,38,900 years olda number that is twice the previous estimate of 67,000 years.

The findings not only inform us about the evolutionary history of the cheetahs but also provides grounds on making an informed choice for their conservation. Phylogenetics, the study of evolutionary relationships, shows the differences in the genetic traits and characters and evolutionary history among species. The unique genetic makeup seen in these subspecies of cheetah not only help differentiate the populations from each other but also help determine their capacity to adapt to changing conditions.

In India, the results of the study have implications on what subspecies of cheetahs should be reintroduced. Some argue that reintroducing cheetahs could be a misplaced priority right now since Indias lions and tigers are in greater peril. Others opine that with the reintroduction, the countrys grasslands may be saved. The debate is still wide open, and science may soon help resolve it.

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New insights on the evolution of cheetahs may help decide the best move on reintroduction - Research Matters

Themurder of George Floyd, at the hands ofwhite police officerDerek Chauvin last Monday,prompted a surge of anger throughout the United States and across the world, as defiant voices spoke up demanding an end to police brutality,institutionalised racism and white supremacy. In the days since, this has spread across social media, calling for tangible action: for people everywhere to get onto the street and protest, donate, and, most importantly, relook at the very systems which allow for these oppressions to take place at both a micro and macro level.

The Black Power movement knew action: through protest, they demanded economic empowerment, their own black institutions and the end to police brutality, using force where necessary. Quotes and videos from some of the founders have circulated on social media, feeling evermore pertinent to our current moment: including one, much-Instagrammed video of Angela Davis citing the importance of revolutionary non-peaceful protest.

OnNOWNESS today, you can find out more about the movement withThe Black Power Mixtape 1967-75, directed byGran Olsson, which examines the evolution of the Black Power movement in American society, featuring archival footage of Angela Davis, Stokely Carmichael, Bobby Seale and Abiodun Oyewole. It is shown on NOWNESS as part of NOWNESS Picks, a selection of films they collate from across the web.

Head to NOWNESS to watch the full film.

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Watch a Documentary About the Evolution of the Black Power Movement - AnOther Magazine

Cheyenne Cuneo Home display. Photo courtesy of the Denver Art Museum, Native Arts Department

We track key moments in the changing relationship between curators and Native American tribes.

As part of its $150 million renovation of the Martin Building, the Denver Art Museum (DAM) held a ceremony in 2019 to install a Haida pole by famed carver Dwight Wallace. To ensure the event honored tribal customs, curators asked Wallaces descendants to help plan the occasionbut local institutions havent always respected Native Americans wishes. Here, we highlight key moments in museums journeys toward enlightenment.

1925: The DAM begins collecting American Indian art, becoming one of the first U.S. museums to focus on artistry instead of ethnography. But it continues to make gaffes, like showing stolen Zuni carvings known as war gods, or Ahayu:da.

1968: The Denver Museum of Nature & Science (DMNS) accepts 500 boxes of tribal objects, the foundation of its Native American collection, from a private collector. Gordon Yellowman, a Cheyenne chief, says such items were often stolen.

1973: The DMNS establishes the Native American Advisory Council, a first-of-its-kind consortium from Denvers tribal community that consults on exhibits. Unfortunately, says Chip Colwell, former curator of anthropology at the DMNS, the councils concerns were typically dismissed.

1980: After a two-year national campaign by the Zuni, public pressure convinces the DAM to return war god figures (its the first institution in the world to do so). Theyre placed in a secure, roofless sanctuary in New Mexico so they can disintegrate naturally, per Zuni custom.

1990: A new federal law, the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), enacts a system for tribes to request the return of human remains and certain objects. But curators can ultimately decide to keep items.

1991: The DMNS is praised for swiftly returning Zuni war gods found in storage. But the same year, a member of the Alaskan Tlingit tribe files a NAGPRA claim for Ket Saaxw, a ceremonial hat. The DMNS takes six years to give it back and is accused of stalling.

1994: The DMNS hosts Yankton Sioux activist Maria Pearson for its first NAGPRA consultation, inwhich curators display their inventories to tribes. Yellowman, a former NAGPRA official, says such meetings spurred communication by showing both parties cared for the objects.

2012: History Colorado Center opens a Sand Creek Massacre exhibit that draws criticism from the victims descendants, who object to its title, Collision, among other details. The museum admits it failed to adequately consult with the tribes and closes the exhibit indefinitely.

2017: Colorados Ute tribes are given veto power over every word, photo, and item displayed at History Colorados Ute Indian Museum in Grand Junction. The institution uses the same process for 2018s Written On The Land: Ute Voices, Ute History exhibit in Denver.

This article appeared in the June 2020 issue of 5280.

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The Evolution of Colorado's Museums - 5280 | The Denver Magazine