Category Archives: Evolution

Commentary By Candace Andrews | 1 hour ago

Courtesy / Candace Andrews

Water gathers in the blue inflorescence of a bromeliad in the conservatory at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

I recently retired from the San Antonio Botanical Garden after more than 25 years there. I like to say I was there long enough to see my hair turn silver and a beautiful garden evolve. It was my special delight to see the Garden step into its role as a place for families to connect with nature. And dont mistake the past tense in that last sentence the Garden will always be at the center of my heart.

What the Garden offers our community is wide ranging: a place where we could all learn about better landscaping practices, a place where cultural experiences range from family exhibits (watch for the Nature Connects exhibit featuring LEGO bricks this upcoming Tricentennial year) to outdoor sculpture, and where kids can make that all-important, needed connection to nature.Its a place where architecture meets landscape and a place to spread a picnic with friends.

With an amazing new eight-acre expansion on the brink of opening, the Garden is poised to step up as one of the finest regional gardens in the nation. The project is cutting edge, sustainably designed, and programmatically advanced. More about that later.

When I came onboard at the Garden in 1991 as a board member, I found it a place where I could engage. I was at a transition point in my life, and the Garden gave me an outlet for volunteering and channeling my creative energy. Soon I was involved with the newsletter, something I continued until this past May when I edited my final one. For 12 years in that era, I served as managing director of the nonprofit organization, and in the last few years have worked primarily in community relations.

Bonnie Arbittier / Rivard Report

San Antonio Botanical Garden Society, Inc. Former Director of Community Relations and Visitor Services Candace Andrews walks through Hill Country Seep in the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

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Bonnie Arbittier / Rivard Report

San Antonio Botanical Garden Society, Inc. Former Director of Community Relations and Visitor Services Candace Andrews admires Lucile Halsell Conservatory in the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

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As I said in the opening, I have delighted in the Garden finding its identity by connecting with families. I will never forget the 2002 Dinosaurus Tex exhibit, when for three months the incessant squeals of delight from little dinosaur fans made the Garden come alive across the city. We saw what a difference an outdoor exhibit like this could do to create a special draw, a reason to come back for a visit. Of course, the Garden showcases the changing beauty of nature every day. Its just that humans enjoy that extra stimulation that an exhibit about Big Bugs, carnivorous plants, or a rainforest can deliver. Ultimately, the exhibits challenge all of us to be better stewards of our environment because we learn the importance of protecting the natural world.

And I found that photography was always a dynamic connector. The Garden is rich with photo opportunities and I loved taking photos from early morning to dusk, whether it was capturing the beauty of fall leaves at the lake or photographing summer camp activities, Dog Days weekends, or evening events like Brews and Blooms or Flowers and Fireworks.

My favorite part of the Garden has always been the native area. Called the Texas Native Trail, this 11-acre area includes everyones favorite spot: the one-acre, tree-lined lake with an 1850s log cabin. For me, perfection is sitting on that porch and taking the long view across the lake. I have never tired of that view or seeing the ducks make a calculated v-formation sail to check out a potential feeding opportunity.

The Bird Watch is another favorite spot. Its at the farthest reach of the Garden, all the way at the back of the South Texas trail. Modeled after the birding blind/barn at Pedernales State Park, this viewing space gives humans the perfect perch to watch birds splashing in the trough out front or tasting some citrus that volunteers have generously tended. We humans can enjoy the view from inside a simulated open-air cattle holding pen, with a mirrored glass front. Ill never forget seeing a painted bunting enjoying a splash early one morning.

Courtesy / Candace Andrews

Seasonal display beds from the Wisteria Arbor in full bloom at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

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Courtesy / Candace Andrews

A Magnolia blossom attracts a pollinator at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

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Courtesy / Candace Andrews

Lush foliage reflects in the acequia that leads to the East Texas lake at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

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Courtesy / Candace Andrews

A goldfish swims past lily pads in the San Antonio Botanical Garden's Rose Garden.

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Courtesy / Candace Andrews

Purple Mexican bush sage blooms beside agave at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

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Courtesy / Candace Andrews

Autumn leaves cover the East Texas lake along the Texas Native Trail at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

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One surprise about the award-winning Childrens Vegetable Garden is the hike to get there. I recommend taking the path that peers down over the conservatory courtyard and leads to the 65 Palm House, the tallest of the five conservatory glasshouses. Veer left and youll see the handsome Cactus and Succulent Garden, a desert in bloom with seasonal wildflowers, soaring yucca, and exotic cacti. Just before reaching the Childrens Vegetable, turn around and look back at the futuristic conservatory complex, framed by the handsome desert specimens. Its a spectacular view and one that Ive shown many a visitor.

And then of course, you arrive at one of the oldest childrens vegetable gardens at a botanical garden. Since 1982, generations of youngsters have spent their Saturday mornings each fall and spring learning to grow vegetables. Radishes are some of the first veggies planted since they assure relatively instant crunch gratification for the young gardeners. Under the supervision of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, Bexar County Master Gardeners and other volunteers mentor the art and science of gardening for kids ages 8-13.

I am leaving the Garden just as an amazing new project is about to open. Expanding our footprint by almost eight acres, the new project creates a brand new entrance experience for guests, and, I might add, expanded parking as well. With architecture subordinate to landscape, the new entrance invites guests to pass through canyon-like walls which hold within new classrooms and an exploration station offering orientation to the Gardens 38 acres. Access to culinary beds and an outdoor teaching kitchen/pavilion introduces an array of new programming opportunities that embrace health and wellness, including the exciting Culinary Health Education for Families (CHEF) initiative.

If you know who Richard Louv is, you know that he would be a fan of our new 2.5-acreFamily Adventure Garden. His books Last Child in the Woods and The Nature Principle extol the benefits of nature for all of us.

Courtesy / Candace Andrews

A young boy rides in a pushcart at the "Viva Botanica" children's parade during Fiesta at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

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Courtesy / Candace Andrews

Dancers from Ballet San Antonio perform in the Lucile Halsell Conservatory courtyard at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

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Engaging children in nature at an early age gives them confidence, improving mental and physical health. Nature play opens their eyes to the importance of protecting and preserving nature, cultivating a sense of environmental stewardship in them. This new space is a unique take on hands-on nature experiences for San Antonio, from its Thunder Ridge to Prickly Pear Peak and Huisache Way. I think kids, their parents, and their grandparents are going to love it.

If you want a sneak peek of the new expansion, just drive up Pinckney Street toward Ft. Sam Houston and get a closer look at the new entrance layout, the outdoor teaching kitchen and culinary gardens, and the state-of-the-art Family Adventure Garden. Come Oct. 21, Funston will re-open at North New Braunfels Avenue, inaugurating this new entrance sequence.

Broadway is becoming an amazing cultural corridor, with The Pearl stimulating a creative burst all along the way. After two years of construction and decades of thoughtful planning the Botanical Garden takes one giant, exciting step toward its own transformation. Enjoy the old and celebrate the new with the expansions grand opening. I know that Ill be there.

In her retirement from 27 years with the San Antonio Botanical Garden, Candace Andrews enjoys the soul-satisfying role as chairman of the Cibolo Preserve, a nonprofit foundation that protects a 644-acre nature preserve in Kendall County. She will always be a huge fan of the Botanical Garden.

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Reflecting on the Evolution of San Antonio's Botanical Garden - Rivard Report

WooliebuGGer recently released Constant Evolution Parts 1 & 2, from his forthcoming EP or album, slated to drop later this year. Hailing from Aurora, Illinois, WooliebuGGer began creating music at the age of 14, stating, I am inspired everyday by the idea of what can be accomplished.

Stylistically, WooliebuGGers sound encompasses electronic, experimental, ambient, minimal and glitch elements. And his musical influences include Brian Eno, Kraftwerk, Future Sound Of London, Stereolab, Pink Floyd, The Doors and The Beatles.

Constant Evolution is a single, lengthy song composed of two distinct segments: part 1 consists of a radiant dance beat, while part 2 dampens the rhythm and takes on a flowing, almost psychedelic flavor rife with extended, syncopated notes.

The bipartite song begins with a percolating synth rhythm, followed by a mesmerizing, futuristic melody that exudes electronic dance elements riding on leitmotifs projected by the synths. The leitmotif gives the impression of gazing into a sonic mirror that reflects the melody in ever devolving fractal patterns. The groove is provided by handclaps that ebb and flow, depending on the intensity of the synth matrix. Part 1 concludes with a protracted synth note that vibrates horizontally as part 2 enters riding a clicking, popping groove, with white noise sound effects and an escalating shrill tone that abruptly halts. The tune segues into percussive effects backed by, and riding on, a rapidly stuttering synth, which eventually fades, leaving only the percussive effects, which assume a light industrial feel that elongates and increases in tension, like something out of 2001: A Space Odyssey. As the tune culminates, two part harmonies percussion and synth slowly fade, increase and end on a vibrating tone.

The overall sound of parts 1 and 2, together, is electronic ambient music that is kept fresh by the replicating leitmotifs serving as an elastic melody, a melody that ultimately devolves into an austere, minimalist series of detached sonic expression in Part 2. Even though part 2 depicts an almost mechanical detachment, it remains intense with suppressed energy.

Constant Evolution Parts 1 & 2 evokes turbulent, stylish sonority, along with tensile flamboyance under precise control. The latter component, the tensile flamboyance, provides the tune with an edgy tightness that imbues the music with pressure and strain that borders on apprehension. To that end, although its eccentric and quasi-experimental, it is good. That being said, if youre searching for relaxing ambient music, this is not it. On the other hand, if youre searching for ambient music that is pregnant with mysterious sonic symbolism stridently asserting its vitality, this is just the ticket.

Find out more about WooliebuGGer here.

Listen to more WooliebuGGer here.

The Morning Email

Wake up to the day's most important news.

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Music Review: Constant Evolution Parts 1 & 2 WooliebuGGer - HuffPost

RENO, Nev. (News 4 & Fox 11)

Drift Evolution is one of the newest events at Reno's annual Hot August Nights, but it's quickly becoming one of the most popular.

Custom vehicles take turns drifting around a track at the Reno Livestock Events Center.

The event started in 2016, but this year, organizers said they sold out of participation passes about a month and a half before Hot August Nights started. They said they had to turn some drivers away because they didn't have enough space.

The cars featured at Drift Evolution are much different than the typical classic vehicles most people picture when they think of Hot August Nights. Many of them were built in the '90's and have been customized specifically for drifting.

Tickets to get into the Livestock Events Center are $10. Pit passes are an additional $10-- those allow access to talk to the drivers, see the drift cars up close, and take a lap as a passenger on the track.

Drift Evolution is happening through Saturday, August 12 from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. CLICK HERE to learn more.

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Drift Evolution puts modern spin on Hot August Nights - KRNV My News 4

August 11, 2017 A new paper from Duke molecular genetics and microbiology shows how pathogenic Cryptococcus fungi evolved from having many sexes to just two through 50 million years of gene swapping. Credit: Kara Manke

Biologically speaking, nearly every species on Earth has two opposite sexes, male and female. But with some fungi and other microbes, sex can be a lot more complicated. Some members of Cryptococcus, a family of fungus linked to human disease, can have tens of thousands of different mating types.

In a study appearing early online Aug. 11 in PLOS Biology, Duke researchers have mapped the evolutionary turning point that transformed the pathogenic form of Cryptococcus from an organism of many sexes to one with only two. They found that during evolution, a reshuffling of DNA known as translocation brought together separate chunks of sex-determining genes onto a single chromosome, essentially mimicking the human X or Y chromosome.

Surprisingly, they've shown that these crucial translocations occurred at the centromeres, the twisty ties that hold together chromosomes at the center of an x-shaped pair. These regions of the chromosome are so dense that they were once thought to be removed from recombination.

"Recombination at the centromere doesn't have to happen frequently, it just has to happen often enough that it punctuates the evolution of the organism," said Joseph Heitman, MD, PhD, senior study author and professor and chair of molecular genetics and microbiology at Duke University School of Medicine. "With each translocation, the genome is altered again and again, until you have evolved an entirely new species."

Scientists have been studying the evolution of sex chromosomes for more than a century. In the 1960's, Japanese-American geneticist and evolutionary biologist Susumu Ohno proposed a theory in which the genes determining sex first arose at various spots scattered across the entire genome, but over time were "captured" on the sex chromosomes. In humans, those chromosomes go by the familiar X and Y; in birds, they are known as Z and W; in moss, they are called U and V.

Regardless of the name or species, Heitman contends that some universal principles could govern the evolution of all sex chromosomes. He and an international team of researchers focused on the last common ancestor of the human pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans and its nearest sibling species, a non-pathogen called Cryptococcus amylolentus.

In C. amylolentus, dozens of genes at two different locations on the chromosomes control what's called a tetrapolar, or four-part, mating system. At one location or locus known as P/R, genes encode pheromones and pheromone receptors that help the fungus recognize compatible mating types. At the other locus, called HD, genes govern the development of sexual structures and reproductive spores.

The researchers sequenced the entire genome of C. amylolentus, mapping the location of all the genes as well as the centromeres on each of the organism's 14 chromosomes.

They found that the genomes had undergone quite a bit of rearrangement since the two species shared a common ancestor, at least 50 million years ago. For example, chromosome 1 of C. neoformans contained pieces of four different chromosomes from C. amylolentus, providing evidence of multiple translocations, some within the centromere.

"That was very surprising. The dogma has been that recombination is repressed in centromeric regions," said Sheng Sun, PhD, lead study author and assistant research professor at Duke University School of Medicine.

In the 1980's, a seminal paper by Duke colleague Tom Petes demonstrated recombination could occur across the centromeres in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, but some attributed the finding to a quirk of the favored model organism with its tiny point centromeres. But since then, other studies have emerged suggesting that the phenomenon was wider spread.

In this study, the researchers showed that in Cryptococcus amylolentus, the ancestral state, the P/R locus resided on chromosome 10 and the HD locus on chromosome 11. But in Cryptococcus neoformans, the evolved state, those loci ended up in one place. According to their model, multiple translocations deposited the two sex determinants on the same chromosome, with a centromere in between. Subsequent rearrangements put P/R and HD next to each other. The result was an organism with a bipolar mating system, much like the male and female sexes that embody most species.

"In any kind of model like this, you are thinking about what could have been the organization in the last common ancestor, which is now extinct so you can't know definitively," said Heitman. "But in each of these lineages, there are multiple evolutionary events that have occurred, and you can use genomics to turn back the hands of time and deduce the trajectory."

Heitman says their study suggests that other researchers should actively look for translocations, both in the expected locations as well as within centromeres. These chromosomal rearrangements are a common cause of birth defects and cancer in humans.

He and his colleagues are currently investigating whether similar translocations occur in the evolution of sex chromosomes in other fungal families, such as Ustilago and Malassezia.

Explore further: Evolution of the Sexes: What a Fungus Can Tell Us

More information: "Fungal genome and mating system transitions facilitated by chromosomal translocations involving intercentromeric recombination," Sheng Sun, Vikas Yadav, R. Blake Billmyre, Christina A. Cuomo, Minou Nowrousian, Liuyang Wang, Jean-Luc Souciet, Teun Boekhout, Betina Porcel, Patrick Wincker, Joshua A. Granek, Kaustuv Sanyal and Joseph Heitman. PLOS Biology, Early online Aug. 11, 2017. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.2002527

Journal reference: PLoS Biology

Provided by: Duke University

Fungi don't exactly come in boy and girl varieties, but they do have sex differences. In fact, a new finding from Duke University Medical Center shows that some of the earliest evolved forms of fungus contain clues to how ...

For more than a decade, a rare but potentially deadly fungus called Cryptococcus deuterogatti has taken up residence in the Pacific Northwest and Vancouver Island. Unlike its cousin Cryptococcus neoformans, which mostly infects ...

In butterflies, sex is determined by chromosome differences between males and females. But unlike in humans with the familiar X and Y, in butterflies, it is the females that determine the sex of offspring.

As cells divide, some of their DNA is rearranged, spurring the emergence of new traits that can dictate whether a species survives or flounders. But some stretches of DNA appear to be so crucial to the basic functioning of ...

Researchers from Trinity College Dublin have uncovered the evolutionary mechanisms that have caused increases or decreases in the numbers of chromosomes in a group of yeast species during the last 100-150 million years. The ...

(Phys.org) -- Fruit flies are commonly used in genetics research because their lifespan is short, they are easy to breed in the laboratory, and mutants are widely available. There are about 1,500 known species. Now a new ...

Biologically speaking, nearly every species on Earth has two opposite sexes, male and female. But with some fungi and other microbes, sex can be a lot more complicated. Some members of Cryptococcus, a family of fungus linked ...

(Phys.org)A team of researchers with the University of Pennsylvania has uncovered the means by which squid eyes are able to adjust to underwater light distortion. In their paper published in the journal Science, the group ...

Scientists at the Universities of Oslo and Liverpool have uncovered the secret behind a goldfish's remarkable ability to produce alcohol as a way of surviving harsh winters beneath frozen lakes.

The gene-editing technology called CRISPR has revolutionized the way that the function of genes is studied. So far, CRISPR has been widely used to precisely modify single-celled organisms and, more importantly, specific types ...

While hundreds of circular RNAs (circRNAs) are abundant in mammalian brains, one big question has remained unanswered: What are they actually good for? In the current issue of Science, Nikolaus Rajewsky and his team at the ...

In the cells of palm trees, humans, and some single-celled microorganisms, DNA gets bent the same way. Now, by studying the 3-D structure of proteins bound to DNA in microbes called Archaea, University of Colorado Boulder ...

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Scientists map sex chromosome evolution in pathogenic fungi - Phys.Org

August 11, 2017

How do initially benign forms of cancer evolve to become aggressive? In a quest to answer this long-standing question, an EU project has studied the growth and clonal evolution of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (CLL)a blood and bone marrow cancer that mostly starts asymptomatic but can become very aggressive over time.

Cancer evolution is a complex process. Whilst we know that tumour growth is enabled by a continuous process of clonal expansion, genetic diversification and clonal selection, there are still many open questions related to this process. Answering them could be the key to preventing tumour progression and relapses.

According to Dr Michaela Gruber, whose research was funded under the CLL_INCLONEL (Identification and functional dissection of key genetic events in early chronic lymphocytic leukaemia) project, CLL is a valuable model for studying this process due to its high prevalence, initially slow progression and easy access to samples.

Dr Gruber studied the clonal dynamics of a cohort of 21 CLL patients, who were recurrently sampled from diagnosis until the time of first treatment. Her objectives were to identify events leading to disease progression using next-generation sequencing of patient samples. She also developed in vitro models to assess the functional impact of these genetic events on B cell biology, studied their impact on CLL and gathered valuable information on the effects of drugs on potential CLL sub-populations.

Dr Gruber agreed to discuss the project's outcomes and how they could one day lead to individualised diagnostic and therapeutic management of CLL.

What kind of knowledge did you aim to gather from this project?

The key aim of this project was to gain a better understanding of the early dynamics of growth and clonal evolution, as cancer progresses from diagnosis to the need for treatment. CLL is a highly informative model system for studying such natural cancer growth patterns: It typically has a relatively indolent beginning, with potentially long timeframes (in the order of years) before treatment becomes necessary.

Why is it so important to better understand clonal evolution? How can it help prevent tumour progression and relapse?

Insights from recent cancer sequencing studies indicate that the occurrence and expansion of cancer-driving mutations follows a specific sequence. Certain mutations generally appear to occur early in the disease and could be cancer-initiating. Other mutations tend to occur late and appear to have variable impact on tumour expansion. Moreover, different cancer sub-types show different patterns of mutations.

Together, these findings indicate that it could be possible to anticipate the specific evolutionary potential (i.e. plasticity) of a patient's cancer, which actually fuels progression, treatment resistance and relapse. Based on such understanding, therapeutic strategies could be shaped directly against this plasticity of cancer. This would be a major milestone towards overcoming current obstacles to cancer cure.

What would you say were the most important findings from the project?

Our data show that key mutations driving the progression of CLL are established very early in the course of the disease, years before symptoms warrant treatment initiation. For the first time, we were also able to quantify the impact of individual sub-clonal driver mutations on in vivo tumour expansion.

Another important discovery is that of clearly distinguishable growth patterns among patients, both globally as well as on a sub-clonal level. Finally, our data indicate that different patients have different potentials for clonal evolution and growth, and that these patterns remain throughout the entire course of the disease up to the event of relapse.

Can you tell us more about the genome editing technologies you employed?

Suitable experimental models are much needed in order to test the functional impact of observations made in CLL sequencing studies. Thus, we employed novel genome editing strategies, initially using TALENs and then switching to the recently emerged and more easily programmable CRISPR/Cas9 technology. Thanks to the latter, we established an array of isogenic B cell lines, which are used to test the molecular impact of mutations on cellular biology andmost importanttreatment response.

What are your plans now that the project is completed?

We have initiated several follow-up projects in Vienna, which aim to integrate an understanding of epigenetic modifications and tumour microenvironments, as well as their role and dynamics in CLL evolution.

What do you hope will be the impact of the project on future diagnostics and treatments?

Our hope is to establish cancer evolution as a predictable process. With sufficient understanding of the forces that drive evolution and selective advantages of sub-clonal mutations, we hope to develop prognostic schemes that anticipate individuals' evolutionary trajectories.

Treatments based on these schemes would directly aim to target the cancer plasticity that underlies progression, treatment resistance or relapse. CLL provides us with a unique opportunity to better understand cancer evolution. The conceptual insights about cancer that can thus be gained from CLL would have a high potential for being translated across other haematologic and solid malignancies.

Explore further: Follicular lymphoma: A tale of two cancers

More information: Project page: cordis.europa.eu/project/rcn/186119

Follicular lymphoma (FL), the second most common form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma, is a largely incurable disease of B cells, yet in many cases, because of its indolent nature, survival can extend to well beyond 10 years following ...

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CLL evolution under the microscope - Medical Xpress

Professor of Biological Science David Houle

Small, seemingly insignificant mutations in fruit flies may actually hold clues as to how a species will evolve tens of millions of years in the future.

Thats the focus of a new study by a Florida State University researcher who raised 200 generations of fruit flies to examine how they changed both in the short and long term. What he found was quite surprising.

Small mutations in the wing of fruit flies the drosophilids predict up to 40 million years of evolution for this common household pest. The research was published today in the journal Nature.

The main point is mutation thats happening now affects long-term evolution, said Professor of Biological Science David Houle. How this happens is not clear. Some scientists believe that the supply of mutation is what guides evolution. Others have suggested that the same processes that shape long-term evolution also shape mutation.

Houle set out to investigate if there were parts of the fruit fly that couldnt mutate or evolve and how quickly other parts did so.

We wanted to see how the effects that mutation produces are related to evolution, Houle said. We were surprised that there was a very tight relationship.

Fruit flies are considered an ideal species for scientists to investigate unsolved problems in evolution and genetics because it is easy to breed more than 20 generations each year. Their wings are also easy to measure, so scientists can easily identify even small changes.

Its a convenient system to investigate complex parts of an organism, Houle said. Ive always been interested in evolutionary process, whats going on and whats limiting it. Its the nuts and bolts.

By examining fossil evidence and conducting DNA sequencing, Houle and his colleagues knew that fruit flies had been around for roughly 40 million years. They also suspected that the pattern of mutation could have remained constant over that time period.

It is often true that some things evolve very slowly, and its reasonable to conclude that mutational patterns may be one of those things, he said. The important thing is that the pattern of past evolution did not necessarily have to be similar to mutation. We were surprised at how similar they are.

To measure the rate of mutation and evolution, Houle and co-author Kim van der Linde of the Tallahassee-based Animal Genetics Inc. gathered almost 120 different species of flies by collecting them from nature or obtaining them from other scientists. Van der Linde studied how these flies were related to each other.

Houle then raised 200 generations of fruit flies it takes four years to breed that many generations and then individually raised some of the flies to see what, if any, changes occurred in the wings of the flies. In total, the researchers measured more than 50,000 fly wings in the course of this study and found changes in the overall shape of the wing, such as the ratio of width to length and vein locations.

Some types of changes evolved at a higher rate than others, such as the ratio of wing width and length. These evolutionary changes were also the most common mutational changes.

Through these observations and sophisticated statistical modeling, Houle and his team were able to determine that the small mutational changes occurred in the same pattern as evolution throughout the entire group of fly species.

The findings are likely applicable to how other plants and animal species evolved, Houle said. But they also are predictive of the next 40 million years of evolution as well, he added.

What we are doing is more accurately known as a retrodiction using something from the present to predict past events, Houle said. Of course, we can now make a prediction that Drosophila will evolve in this pattern in the future, as well.

This work was funded by the National Science Foundation.

Other authors on the paper are Thomas Hansen of the University of Oslo, Norway, and Geir Bolstad of the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research. Hansen is a former member of the FSU faculty, and Bolstad was a postdoctoral researcher at Florida State in 2013.

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Fruit fly mutation foretells 40 million years of evolution - Florida State News

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Excerpt from:

Why Disney's New Streaming Service Marks the Next Phase of the Streaming Evolution - Vulture

Humanoid robots have come eerily close to overcoming the uncanny valley. With the right features in place, they are almost indistinguishable from their organic counterparts. Almost. The latestiterationsare able to talk like us, walk like us, and express a wide range of emotions. Some of them are able to hold a conversation, others are able to remember the last interaction you had with them.

As a result of their highly advanced status, these life-like robots could prove useful in helping out the elderly, children, or any person who needs assistance with day-to-day tasks or interactions.For instance, there have been a number of studiesexploring the effectiveness of humanoid robots supporting children with autism through play.

But with the likes of Elon Musk voicing concern over the risk of artificial intelligence, there is some debate regarding just how human we really want our robotic counterparts to be. And like Musk, some of us may worry about what our future will look like when intelligence is coupled with a perfectly human appearance. But Sophia, an ultra-realistic humanoid created by Hanson Robotics, isnt concerned. AI is good for the world, shesays.

Still, while the technology behind advanced android robotics has come a long way, there is still a lot of work to be done before we can have a face-to-face conversation with an entitywithout being able to tell that we are speaking with a replica.

But that is not to say that scientists and engineers havent come close. With this in mind, here are six humanoid robots that have come the closest to overcoming the uncanny valley.

Image Source: Yoshikazu Tsuno/Getty Images

In 2014, Japanese scientists proudly unveiled what they claim to be the very first news-reading android. The life-like newscaster called Kodomoroid read a segment about an earthquake and an FBI raid on live television.

Although it or she has now retired to Tokyos National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, she is still active. She helps visitors and collects data for future studies about the interactions between human androids and their real-life counterparts.

Image Source: Hanson Robotics

BINA48 is a sentient robot released in 2010 by the Terasem Movement under the supervision of entrepreneur and author Martine Rothblatt. With the help of robotics designer and researcher David Hanson, BINA48 was created in the image of Rothblatts wife, Bina Aspen Rothblatt.

BINA48 has done an interview with the New York Times, appeared in National Geographic and has traveled the world, appearing on a number of TV shows. See how she measures up in the Times interview below.

Image Source:GeminoidDK/YouTube

GeminoidDK is the ultra-realistic, humanoid robot that resulted from a collaboration between a private Japanese firm and Osaka University, under the supervision of Hiroshi Ishiguro, the director of the universitys Intelligent Robotics Laboratory.

GeminoidDK is modeled after Danish professor Henrik Scharfe at Aalborg University in Denmark. Unsurprisingly, his work surrounds the philosophical study of knowledge what separates true from false knowledge.

It is not only the overall appearance that was inspired by professor Scharfe. His behaviors, traits, and the way he shrugs his shoulders were also translated into life-life robotic movements.

Image Source: calenjapon/YouTube

This ultra-realistic android created by Toshiba works full-time in a tourist information center in Tokyo. She can greet customers and inform visitors on current events. She can speak Japanese, Chinese, English, German, and even sign language.

Junko Chihira is part of a much larger effort by Japan to prepare for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Not only robotic tourist assistants will be helping the country with the incoming flood of visitors from across the globe in 2020; drones, autonomous construction site machines and other smart facilitators will be helping as well.

Image Source:NTUsg/YouTube

This humanoid was created by the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore. Her name is Nadine, and she is happy to chat with you about pretty much anything you can think of. She is able to memorize the things you have talked to her about the next time you get to talk to her.

Nadine is a great example of a social robot a humanoid that is capable of becoming a personal companion, whether it is for the elderly, children or those who require special assistance in the form of human contact.

Image Source: Hanson Robotics

Perhaps one of the most recent, most prominent life-like humanoids to be shown off in public is Sophia. You might recognize her from one of many thousands of public appearances, from The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallonto SXSW. She was created by Hanson Robotics and represents the latest and greatest effort to overcome the uncanny valley.

She is capable of expressing an immense number of different emotions through her facial features and can gesture with full-sized arms and hands.

On her own dedicated website, you can find an entire biography written in her voice. But Im more than just technology. Im a real, live electronic girl. I would like to go out into the world and live with people. I can serve them, entertain them, and even help the elderly and teach kids.

Original post:

Six Life-Like Robots That Prove The Future of Human Evolution is Synthetic - Futurism

World oil markets have experienced a fundamental transition in recent years, making the practice of oil price manipulation to be elusive. In the past, oil prices were basically supported by the market being undersupplied, together with the specter of peak oil. Oil market paradigms were based on declining production in countries composing the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), contrasting with rising global demand mostly among non-OECD countries. In the face of such production declines, OPEC and Eurasia (Russia and the former United Soviet Social Republics, USSR) pegged their production to quotas more so associated with global supply than global demand. The resulting anticipation was for a state of secular market undersupply to simply continue, pushing oil prices higher.

However, oil prices collapsed. Market expectations were defeated with the U.S. dramatically increasing production. The production increase in the U.S. shocked markets by demonstrating the capacity to supply 78% of the total global oil demand increase from 2008 to 2015 - something never before experienced from a country or entity in the oil markets. OPEC and Eurasia market quotas, associated with global supply, cemented an oversupplied dynamic.

This oversupply was once thought to be self-limiting, with U.S. producers simply having to shut in production at various declining price levels. 2016 proved this not to be the case. Now, OPEC and Russia seek to regain influence in an oil market that's dramatically altered. Altered in such a way that the past method of controlling prices by controlling supply has simply given way to new technologies. These technologies evolved an oil market where the ability to accumulate market share at historically low prices is paramount. Driving this is the fact that oil production trends have been much more dramatic than trends in oil demand, with both trends favoring oversupplied conditions. Technology is creating the ability to produce more oil at progressively lower costs. Likewise, technology reduces oil demand by creating fuel inefficiencies and alternative modes of energy.

Another transitional market dynamic is looming between a state of oversupplied conditions and sovereign budget deficits. Where OPEC countries once enjoyed significant sovereign budget surpluses and associated social services, now worrying budget deficits have persisted since 2014. To bridge the gap, unprecedented bond debt has been issued among the most able, namely Saudi Arabia, with their $17.5 billion global bond issuance in October of last year. The primary method of addressing deficits has been the use of foreign currency reserves, such as in Iraq to fill an approximate $20 billion per year shortfall over the last 3 years. All of this in a region already inflicted with substantial ideological tensions, insurgencies and territorial conflicts.

OPEC once balanced production between supporting prices, while avoiding global economic recession. Now we see OPEC pressured in an unprecedented way, with private company profitability setting oil price discovery. A collapse in OPEC production is the risk as always, but now it is compounded by the new economics of oil price due to technology and not just the customary features of ideology and territory.

According to data from the United States Energy Information Administration (EIA), from 2007 through 2013, global markets were undersupplied with oil 4 years out of the total 7. The undersupply was often significant, with an undersupply of 1.4 million barrels per day (mb/d) in 2007 and 1.24 mb/d in 2011. In 2012, an oversupply of only 140 thousand barrels per day (kb/d) occurred. In 2009 and 2010, the market was essentially balanced, with demand having been eroded by the Great Recession.

In the singular instance of oversupply, the volume of oversupply was minimal. This dynamic supported inflation-adjusted oil prices in the range of $90-105 per barrel. A shift to oversupply came in 2014 with an oversupply of 820 kb/d, gaining to 1.71 mb/d in 2015 and 250 kb/d in 2016. So far in 2017, the first quarter saw a state of balance and the second quarter saw an undersupply of 270 kb/d, primarily attributable to a large decline in Canadian production due to an unscheduled disruption in operations. Of course, it was in the second half of 2014 that oil prices began their collapse as the basic premise of maintaining an undersupplied market showed failure.

Basic to explaining this shift in supply is shale and tight oil production in the U.S. For decades, oil production in the U.S. had been in decline until technology opened a new chapter. Chevron's 10-K for 2016 explains the oil industry's new approach to production by using the Permian basin as an example. According to the company, the "Permian has multiple stacked formations that enable production from several layers of rock in different geological zones." This allows "for multiple horizontal wells to be developed from a single well pad location using shared facilities and infrastructure..."

Such a compounding of wells on a single well pad, near shared facilities and infrastructure, largely explains the countervailing premise of historical oil market dynamics.

The EIA tracks oil production data in a variety of ways. One such way is by tracking production of "petroleum and other liquids," which is similar to barrels of oil equivalents. I will reference this EIA data as barrels of oil equivalents per day (boe/d). In 2009, as the new production technologies were being launched, U.S. production jumped by 630 kboe/d to 9.14 mboe/d, an increase of 7.4% over 2008's level of 8.51 mboe/d. U.S. production increased at similar rates until 2012, when the increase was 980 kboe/d to reach 11.11 mboe/d, up 9.7% over 2011 levels. 2013 saw the U.S. rate of production brake the 1 million mark by increasing by 1.23 mboe/d, 2014 was a banner year with a production increase of 1.73 mboe/d, and 2015 saw a per day increase of another 1.05 mboe/d.

With multiple years of increasing production by over a million barrels per day, and nearly 2 million barrels per day in 2014, U.S. total production found itself at 15.12 mboe/d in 2015. This reflects a 77.6% increase in U.S. oil production from a 2008 level of 8.51 mboe/d. Over 7 years, the U.S. increased its production by a remarkable 6.61 mboe/d.

From 2008 to 2015, total global oil production went from 85.37 mboe/d to 95.78 mboe/d, an increase of 10.41 mboe/d. Of this increase in supply, the U.S. accounted for 6.61 mboe/d, or 63.5% of the increase in total global supply. Over the same period, the largest oil producer, OPEC, saw their production go from 35.72 mboe/d in 2008 to 38.31 mboe/d in 2015, an increase of only 2.59 mboe/d. Most of OPEC's increased production was in 2015, with an increase of 1.96 mboe/d. Still, OPEC's share of total increased global supply was only 24.8%. If one considers that global oil production grew by 10.41 mboe/d between 2008 and 2015, and increased production from both the U.S. and OPEC totaled 9.2 mboe/d, the combined increase in supply from the U.S. and OPEC accounted for 88% of the total increase in global supplies.

Eurasia once was the second-largest oil producer behind OPEC, but this changed in 2014 with the progressing evolution of U.S. production. In 2008, Eurasia produced 12.52 mboe/d, contrasting with the U.S. producing 8.51 mboe/d. By 2015, Eurasia's production advanced to 14.10 mboe/d, while U.S. production saw 15.12 mboe/d. This resulted in Eurasia production growing by a small 1.58 mboe/d from 2008 to 2015, which is only 15% of the total growth in global production of 10.41 mboe/d.

If one combines the U.S., OPEC and Eurasia production increases, the three grew production from 2008 to 2015 by 10.78 mboe/d, while total global production increased at a smaller rate of 10.41 mboe/d. This numerical discrepancy shows that production from the above three assisted in offsetting production declines in other areas, such as the North Sea having a decline of 1.24 mboe/d and Mexico declining by 570 kboe/d. Add in Canadian production increasing by 1.46 mboe/d, together with minor advances and declines in other areas, and one can see that the increase in U.S. production of 6.61 mboe/d fundamentally altered the global oil market.

From 2009 through 2011, U.S. oil production steadily crept higher, gaining by about 500 kboe/d. That rate of production doubled in 2012, hitting nearly one million barrels per day of new oil that previously wasn't anticipated. OPEC generally keeps its share of total global production at about 40%, and Eurasia similarly keeps its share in the 15% range. The U.S., on the other hand, expanded its share of total global production from 9.9% in 2008 to 15.8% in 2015. In so doing, it accounted for 63.5% of the increase in total global supply and is the essential reason for the increase in global supply.

Looking at the demand side of the equation, production in the U.S. appears to have averted a looming energy crisis. In so doing, a progressing undersupply imbalance was corrected, at the expense of high oil prices. In 2008, total global consumption stood at 85.78 mboe/d and reached 94.07 mboe/d by 2015, resulting in an increase of 8.29 mboe/d. Of course, total global oil supply increased by 10.41 mboe/d over this period, showing an oversupply of 2.12 mboe/d. This oversupply assisted in compensating for more periods of substantial undersupply than rare periods of meager oversupply.

With the U.S. increasing its production by 6.61 mboe/d from 2008 to 2015, and total global demand increasing by 8.29 mboe/d, the increase in U.S. production addressed 78% of the increase in global demand and, together with OPEC and Eurasia production, an oversupply resulted. Over the 7 years prior to 2008, an opposite dynamic prevailed where supply grew by 7.6 mboe/d and demand grew by 10.3 mboe/d, with an undersupply of 2.7 mboe/d. Undersupply was the essential premise of oil markets, and when the U.S. shale revolution became apparent as a continuing development, prices collapsed.

Originally, it was assumed that the oversupplied condition would be self-correcting. That is, the falling price of oil due to changes in market dynamics would inevitably weed out U.S. shale production. However, as observed by Chevron's John Watson in his Q4 2016 earnings call, "I have been surprised at how resilient production has been in many locations around the world[,] some of that is we just keep getting better."

One such location of production resiliency is certainly the U.S. In January 2016, the EIA projected that U.S. petroleum production would fall into a run rate of 14.5 mboe/d and stay there, if not go lower, through 2017. This contrasts with a run rate in the 15.20 mboe/d range seen in 2015, a decline of 700 kboe/d. By June 2016, the EIA projected U.S. production to fall as low as 14.22 mboe/d, a decline of 980 kboe/d versus 2015 levels. Interestingly, EIA projected continuation of oversupply through 2017 despite projections of significantly declining U.S. production. The essential reason was forecasts of OPEC increasing production, thereby offsetting U.S. declines. It wasn't until December of 2016 that OPEC resolved to cut production by 1.8 million barrels of crude per day. The reason: By December of 2016, both OPEC and the EIA had recognized the resiliency of U.S. production.

Though U.S. production did decline, it didn't do so to the extent thought. It consistently defeated projections to the upside throughout 2016 by around 200 kboe/d. Ultimately, U.S. production decreased by only 290 kboe/d compared with 2015, despite oil prices rarely exceeding $50 per barrel, going as low as $27 and ranging between $50 and $40. In 2016, the market remained oversupplied by 350 kboe/d, assisted by OPEC increasing its production by 610 kboe/d.

OPEC's agreement in late 2016 to cut production by 1.8 mb/d boosted oil price optimism. But the agreement was more so a last-ditch response to OPEC's disappointed expectations of U.S. shale production collapsing. Through the first half of 2016, both OPEC and the EIA projected declining U.S. production, with OPEC's expectations being much more aggressive. In the second half of 2016, it became apparent that U.S. shale production could function in an environment of sustained low pricing. Consequently, the EIA began to revise projections for U.S. production upwards.

Currently, U.S. production has returned to the upward trajectory previously witnessed. In January 2017, the EIA projected U.S. first-quarter production to be 14.76 mboe/d, while the actual production was 15.01 mboe/d. Same with the second quarter, where the projection was 15.04 mboe/d with an actual rate of 15.36 mboe/d. By the fourth quarter of this year, the EIA projects U.S. production to reach 16.24 mboe/d, exceeding the high mark reached in 2015 of 15.20 mboe/d. OPEC is also projected by the EIA to exceed previous records of production by reaching 39.91 mboe/d by the end of 2017.

The EIA forecasts a balanced oil market this year, going into moderately oversupplied next year. However, such a forecast for 2017 looks to be based essentially on flat Canadian production. Since the rescission, Canada has consistently increased production. In the fourth quarter of 2016, their production reached 4.95 mboe/d, and it was at 4.92 mboe/d in the first quarter of 2017. In the second quarter of 2017, production fell to 4.52 mboe/d due to disruptions arising from a fire at Suncrude Canada Ltd.'s bitumen processing plant. For the third and fourth quarters of 2017, the EIA is projecting Canadian production to be at 4.78 mboe/d. Given the country's history of increasing production, and given a production rate of 4.9 mboe/d prior to the second quarter disruption, it appears more likely that Canadian production will reach the 5.0 mboe/d level. Such an event would result in a slightly oversupplied market for 2017.

OPEC's production cuts are showing signs of declining enthusiasm. June's compliance rate decline to 78% versus high 90% rates in previous months. There is a market dynamic at play which OPEC has yet to address, at prices more so implying the need for difficult social transition than simply the margin efficiencies obtained by private oil companies.

Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours.

I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

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Based on current evidence, Darwins ideas still seem capable of explaining much, if not all, of what we see in nature. Photograph: Philipp Kammerer/Alamy

I can save you the effort of reading AN Wilsons expos on Darwin, which did the rounds over the weekend, characterising the famous scientist as a fraud, a thief, a liar, a racist and a rouser of nazism. Instead, head over to Netflix and watch the creationist made-for-TV movie A Matter of Faith, which covers many of the same arguments and also includes a final scene in which a fictional evolutionary biologist, standing alone in his study, holds a rubber chicken in his hands and finds himself deliberating over the question of which came first, the chicken or the egg. At least that was an original take on these tiresome accusations.

And so, here we are again, quietly drawing breath and smiling politely while the same familiar discoveries about Darwin arise once more. Was the blood spilled by the Nazis on Darwins hands? Did he steal his big idea from others? Is evolution by natural selection a great hoax? Are the Darwinians covering something up? Wilson appears to have hit upon a rich seam of cliches in his five years of research for his book, Charles Darwin: Victorian Mythmaker.

In particular, its nice to see fossils come in for a kicking again. Palaeontology has come up with almost no missing links of the kind Darwinians believe in, pants Wilson. If you too are panting at this notion, I implore you to visit a museum. Visit as many as you can. Better still, collect and study your own fossils they are quite common. In the worlds museums and store-rooms, there are hundreds of millions of them and they all fit into broadly recognisable patterns of geological age and within the framework of what you or I would call evolution. Oh, you meant transitional fossils of whales specifically? Yep, its here. Oh, you meant birds? Here. Oh, you meant primates? Yep. Oh, you meant land fish? Here you go. Oh, you meant early human-like ancestors? Theres a link to more than a million scientific articles about the subject here.

But where are the transitional fossils? comes the familiar cry again. Knowing what I have learned about the intricacy and rarity of fossilisation, if anything would make me genuinely consider the presence of an all-seeing God it would be the discovery of an unbroken chain of 60,000 fossil skeletons, following the strata upwards, going smoothly from species A to species B. But thats not the point, I guess, and Wilson should know it.

Scientists tend to fit into two camps on the issue of how to deal with this familiar kind of Darwin-baiting. In the modern age some, such as the American science communicator Bill Nye, choose to debate the anti-Darwinians on live TV. Others, such as Richard Dawkins, prefer to starve them of the oxygen they require by politely ignoring them a kind of personal exercise in the non-validation of non-scientific ideas. So what is the approach we should take, as everyday lovers of science? I would suggest, and this may sound bold, we simply carry on regardless. Mostly.

Based on current evidence, Darwins ideas still seem capable of explaining much, if not all, of what we see in nature

The truth is that and this is worth saying a million times over most scientists probably dont think about Darwin very much in their day-to-day studies and would consider themselves as much Darwinist as they would round-Earthers or wifi-users. This is, after all, the best working theory we have to understand the nature that we see around us. Also, I think we are all OK with entertaining the idea that, if a more scientifically accurate way of explaining the diversity of life on Earth comes along, Darwin would be ousted. Its just that, based on current evidence, Darwins ideas still seem capable of explaining much, if not all, of what we see in nature. Hence, our kids learn about him in schools and popular science books that refute his influence are treated with understandable confusion, concern or disdain.

Sadly, many people will not find their way to this end-point, so suspicious are they of science, evolution and scientific ideas. For me, one of the most pressing problems in science is how we engage this lost audience, because theyre missing out on a wonderful experience that of chasing real truths about some of the most beautiful and complex repeating patterns in nature, an apparent universal law that many people can and do balance regularly alongside their religious beliefs. For starters, their scepticism could come in quite handy.

So how can we connect with people who shout so loudly about this, sciences greatest apparent conspiracy? How do we draw them in and get them to re-engage with science? Id love to know your thoughts about this. Contrary to the popular belief about those involved in science, I think were open to ideas. So let us know. Youll find us ignorant about a great number of things. Just, unlike some, never wilfully.

Jules Howard is a zoologist and the author of Sex on Earth and Death on Earth

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Some still attack Darwin and evolution. How can science fight back ... - The Guardian