Category Archives: Evolution

Ruben Fleischer may have been the seventh man to take the reins of the Uncharted movie (the likes of David O. Russell, Travis Knight, and Dan Trachtenberg were attached to direct at different points), but he certainly wasnt a last-resort pick.

The Zombieland filmmakers knack for buddy comedies and fizzing banter and his close relationship with Sony made him a snug fit to adapt Naughty Dogs classic PlayStation series about swashbuckling treasure hunters Nathan Drake (Tom Holland) and Victor Sully Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg).

However, video game movies have been here before and have too often fallen flat at the cinema. Why is that? And how can Uncharted reverse that trend?

We put those questions to Fleischer. Speaking over the phone from Rome, the director revealed how heavily Naughty Dog was involved in production, how Tom Holland grew as a performer during Uncharted, and how Nathan Drakes video game actor Nolan North influenced the finished product. Plus, we touched on a certain Jak and Daxter movie. The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.

GR: The history of Uncharted is a long and winding one, with various names attached to it. When you came in, what was the stamp you wanted to put on the project? What did Ruben Fleischers version of Uncharted look like?

Ruben Fleischer: The thing I'm most proud of about this movie is, when I read the script, it honestly had all these incredible action sequences that had the spirit of Uncharted. But what I feel like I focused on was the relationship between Nate and Sully and the dynamic between them. The dynamic that was created is so great. And thats what makes the game so special.

[Sully actor] Mark [Wahlberg] and Tom were both cast before I was involved. But I really wanted to cultivate that relationship and lean into the comedy. I mean, I can't help it. I just love the combination of comedy and action. And that's apparent from everything I've done going back to Zombieland.

So I would say the thing that I really focused on and that I'm most proud of contributing to the film, was that buddy dynamic between the two and all the comedy that we were able to manufacture on the day. Mark and Tom are both incredible improvisers. And they brought so much to it. And I think collectively, we really made that relationship feel real.

You mention Tom Holland as a great improviser. Its easy to forget hes only 25. Hes been around for so long as a lead already. You get the impression that his ceiling is so high hes still learning and developing. In that respect, how did he grow as a performer during Uncharted?

I hope this doesn't sound too patronizing, but I really think this character was Tom's evolution from playing a boy to playing a man.

You can tell by his physique, his physicality, the way he walks, the way he holds himself, that this is very clearly not Peter Parker. The Nathan Drake of the video games is a cocky kind of swaggering character. While we wanted to show his evolution he's certainly not at that full Nathan Drake level yet this is the beginning of that character.

I feel like Tom brought that swagger and that confidence to his performance that really evokes the spirit of Nathan Drake. And I think for audience members, they're not watching a high school kid anymore. They're watching a man on screen. Tom really stepped it up here.

Its always an odd curiosity to me that video game movies haven't exploded in the same way that comic book movies have, for example. Why do you think that is?

I think a mistake of some video game movies past is just trying to recreate the video game, one for one.

Because the experience of playing a video game is so immersive and so active, especially on the newer consoles, it feels like you're starring in your own movie. And if you want to go left to go left, you want to go right, you go right; youre in control. Whereas a movie it is an inherently passive experience. You're sitting there for two hours watching something that somebody else just made for you to consume.

So it doesn't matter how much it looks like the video game. If the story at the center of it is not compelling and you're not invested in the characters, then no matter how authentic it is, it doesn't matter.

I was really focused on making sure that the movie could stand on its own two feet. Whether you're the biggest fan of Uncharted or you've never even heard of it, it has to be a compelling story with a great emotional center and a real relationship to invest in.

A decision that was made prior to my involvement is that they chose to tell a chapter of the Nathan Drake story that hadn't been featured in the games, so it didn't feel like we're just reliving the experience of the games. We're actually telling a different story and getting greater insight into this character we love, but seeing a different moment in time for him.

I'd love to know more about the working relationship between yourself and Naughty Dog on this movie. I don't know whether it was a case of them handing you like a bible of do's and don'ts with the franchise, or did you have a bit more free rein with that?

Naughty Dog, [executive producer] Neil Druckmann, and PlayStation were all incredible partners on this film. They really were like our godfathers who were shepherding us through the experience. Obviously, their history with the game is much longer than ours and there's no greater fans of the material than them because they created their baby.

They had to sign off on all aspects of the movie. We weren't doing anything that they didn't approve. It wasnt a bible of do's and don'ts. There were certain watch outs or please feature this and there's Easter eggs scattered throughout the film that they helped contribute to.

At the same time, they gave us the freedom because we were telling a chapter of the story that was different from the games. They were both kind of the safe keepers, as well as giving us the license to really just make a great movie. Because that's what we're here to do. And they were supportive every step of the way, whether it was the script, they watched dailies, they saw cuts of the film along the way, and gave us feedback every step. Their insight was really helpful, honestly.

You had Nathan Drakes game actor Nolan North on set. How did his presence shape your understanding of the Drake character?

Something I was really excited to learn was that so much of the dialogue from the games is improvised. Nolan and [Sully video game actor Richard McGonagle], a lot of their back and forth in the games is all improvised. Its really true to their spirit as actors.

We took a similar approach with Mark and Tom. So much of their dialogue is improvised, because it allows the performer to really make it their own. And I think that's why, in the video game, it feels so real and natural. In our film, their relationship feels so real and natural, because the performers are really able to make it their own.

So, Nolan North, just offered so much insight into the process and the experience. But he also was so pumped that it was Tom who was going to be taking on the movie version of Nathan Drake. It really felt like a passing the baton when he and Tom were together, which was super, super cool.

You have spoken about making a Jak and Daxter movie. I know its very early stages, but I did want to know what sold you on that idea what aspect of the franchise? Because it has been dormant for so long, almost 15 years now, and its a bit of a surprise to see that being brought to the big screen.

My heyday as a gamer and playing PlayStation was really the [PS1]. I cant say that Ive evolved with all the titles, so Im a little bit stuck in the past. [Jak and Daxter] was always a game that I just loved.

Similar to Uncharted, what makes Jak Jak and Daxter so special is the buddy relationship at the center of it. They are a team and they help each other out and they make sacrifices for one another. And that is I think the key to a great comedy.

Its a little funny to hear, but the two movies for that kind of inspired the film adaptation of Jak and Daxter are Midnight Run and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Because we have this kind of pairing of these two guys who are stuck together on a journey, not by choice but more out of necessity. And I think that's a classic genre of buddy action movies. These kinds of adversarial pairs that, over the course of the film, develops an appreciation for one another. And that's, that's how we've approached Jak and Daxter.

The landscape of the world, the ether, all the specifics of it. Ive always wanted to make a movie that didnt take place on Earth, like more of a world-building experience.

Having such a great experience working on Uncharted with Playstation and Naughty Dog, I was excited to find another project to work together and they were too. So when we're just talking about different things, Jak and Daxter was always a game I really loved and I was excited that they were willing to let me take a crack at it. Weve hired writers who are in the process of writing the script and partnered with Naughty Dog in PlayStation in the development of it.

I cant wait for that. Im a huge Jak and Daxter fan and Im excited to see that come to fruition

I think it's a really cool version. This is so bizarre to me Just by coincidence, somebody forwarded me an article where Tom Holland was asked if he could make any video game a movie, which would it be. He said Jak and Daxter and so, when I saw him earlier this week on this tour, I said, You know, Tom, someone told me that you want to make that movie. I'm actually trying to make it So there's the possibility that we could partner again on that one.

Uncharted is exclusively in cinemas on February 11 in the UK and February 18 in the US.For more on what's still to come this year, check out ourmovie release datesguide.

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Uncharted director talks Tom Holland's "evolution" and the biggest mistakes that video game movies make - Gamesradar

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford is questioned by reporters as he returns to the council floor at city hall in Toronto on Jan. 30, 2014.Chris Young/The Canadian Press

It all began with Rob Ford, this tolerance for a Canadian populism that is uncouth, unruly and suspicious of facts, government and regulations. Before the U.S. embraced Trump, Toronto embraced Rob Ford, a right-wing, for-the-people populist whose train-wreck term as mayor ended, and he passed away, but his influence as a symbolic Canadian figure did not.

What were seeing in Ottawa is a pack of Ford-type hosers holding the city hostage. Were seeing hoser-extremism and, somehow that extremism has become normalized. Some embrace it, the majority are wary of it and the media, especially TV, doesnt know what to do with it.

Ford did a performative hoser routine. Rumpled, inarticulate and full of bluster, he got really mad about the gravy train at city hall in Toronto. Sometimes this gravy train merely amounted to a tray of sandwiches arriving when councillors sat late into the evening. He loathed reporters, shouted at them, blocked the access of some of them and, at the same time, liked making a show of himself on TV. This ringing any bells in the matter of the Ottawa situation?

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We struggle with the term hoser these days. But lets say this the hoser figure has evolved since Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas played Bob and Doug McKenzie on SCTVs The Great White North segments all those years ago. Back then, they simultaneously celebrated and mocked a heightened Canadian clich of dumb loutishness by guys in parkas, plaid shirts and toques, to our national delight. (The online Canadian Encyclopedia has an excellent entry on this matter.) Since then, the figure has morphed through Red Green and Trailer Park Boys into a more unsettling national type, seen especially in boorish incarnations such as Don Cherry and Rob Ford.

Bob and Doug McKenzie were TV constructs, an emanation of the popular culture that stuck in the public imagination, and then the world changed. While Bob and Doug were lovable, the newer incarnations can be troubling. But we, and TV coverage in general, are reluctant to see beyond that lovable quality. Those Conservative politicians who pander to hoser-extremism want the touch of authenticity that comes with consorting with lovable hosers.

But arent many of these protesters merely in costume? Look long enough at the coverage across various media and under the costumes of parka, plaid shirts and toques youll find extremism; white-supremacists, anti-Semitism and misogyny.

Whats happening in Ottawa is a sinister costume party; its malevolent theatre, and the trick being played in this theatre is the visual trick of making the truckers and pretend-truckers seem like the majority of Canadians. Theyre no such thing. Any more than Bob and Doug were ever the majority of Canadians.

Gas cans line the street in front of Parliament Hill as truckers and supporters continue to protest against COVID-19 vaccine mandates in Ottawa on Feb. 9.BLAIR GABLE/Reuters

It is the internet that changed everything, of course. Imagine Bob and Doug McKenzie existing in the cacophony of Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and right-wing blogging. They would be as the Ottawa protesters are: petulant, narcissistic and in-denial, thriving in that near-medieval world of babble, rumour and misunderstanding. They want to unseat an elected government for heavens sake, based on wild conspiracy theories, hatred and spite.

Its time we recognized this. The Ottawa protesters present themselves as mainstream, using an iconography thats mere construct. Bob and Doug had, as props, a map of Canada, bottled beers and a frying pan for the bacon. Among many Ottawa protesters the props are Confederate flags, Trump flags, Nazi swastikas and handwritten signs with delusional antisemitic assertions about vaccine mandates.

On TV we see reporters and camera people being harassed while doing their jobs. Their jobs are to present images and attempt a coherent narrative. Naturally, the camera is drawn to the familiar iconography and, visually, this means presenting the protesters as regular folks merely fed-up with vaccine mandates. Its when the TV journalists are screamed at, abused and jostled, you realize were not looking at dopey, dozy Bob and Doug any more.

Think back to the time that the now-disgraced Don Cherry introduced Ford at his swearing-in ceremony, with a rant about bicycle-riding left-wing pinkos, and an assertion that Ford represented lunch-pail, blue-collar people. Cherry, a millionaire, was talking about a millionaire professional politician who faked being a hoser. It was a few years before everybody saw through the image, thanks mainly to Fords appalling personal behaviour. How long before everybody sees though the Ottawa protests for the fakery they are?

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From Rob Ford to the Ottawa protests: The evolution of hoser-extremism - The Globe and Mail

I was once in a building that had six lifts in the lobby. Of those six lifts, one was for Bomba and therefore inaccessible to the general public. Of the remaining five, two were under repair and thus unusable for the time being. Of the remaining three, two were reserved for VIPs in the building. This left one lift, out of six, for everyone else in the building. If the building was only four storeys tall, it would not be that big of an issue. But imagine if the building were 50 storeys.

Malaysia leads the world in power distance, a national culture measure created by Dutch social psychologist Geert Hofstede. Power distance is defined as the degree to which the less powerful members of a society accept and expect that power is distributed unequally People in societies exhibiting a large degree of power distance accept a hierarchical order in which everybody has a place and which needs no further justification. In thinking about how this may be reflected in day-to-day life in Malaysia, I find that this anecdote of the lifts is an excellent representation.

Another way to think about this is traffic, particularly in the Klang Valley. There are always construction projects going on, thereby necessitating the blockage of a road or two, akin to the above-mentioned lifts under repair in the lobby. Then, of course, we also have vehicles such as ambulances and fire trucks that, rightfully, deserve every right of way on any road, just like the lift for Bomba. And then we have those with police outriders it would be interesting to see, on a cross-country basis, how many in other countries, apart from their heads of state, heads of government and so on, are entitled to have police outriders.

I have made the point in a previous article in this newspaper that Malaysias power distance or VIP culture will be a factor holding us back from achieving a much higher economic development trajectory. I stated, We will not achieve a true merdeka of self-determination for our country if we, at the societal level, do not ourselves possess a merdeka of our spirits. The reason is simply because innovation, creativity and progress require questioning everything, including the authority of those in power, and the authority of the past. Indeed, there are arguments that such a mindset was a crucial ingredient in why the Industrial Revolution occurred in Western Europe, versus, say, China and India.

However, we are where we are we lead the world in power distance. And yes, ideally, I would love to have this completely reversed. But before we can go about doing that, we must do a couple of things. First, we need to understand what function power distance plays in our society and why it has survived with such prominence for so long. Second, we need to understand what the realm of possibilities may be for reversing this trend.

A helpful way of thinking about these questions is the field of cultural evolution. If we believe that culture matters for economic development, and there is a rapidly growing body of evidence that it does, then we need to understand why different countries or societies have different cultures. After all, as argued by Harvard anthropologist Joseph Henrich, how well a society functions depends on its package of social norms.

So, what is cultural evolution? In general terms, cultural evolution is the idea that cultural changes changes in socially transmitted beliefs, knowledge, norms, skills, customs and so on can be described as a Darwinian evolutionary process that is similar in key respects, though not necessarily identical, to genetic evolution. To put it another way, if Darwinian evolution tells us that humans evolved into having large brains because they helped us survive and thrive in our environment, cultural evolution tells us that particular cultural variants evolved because they help us and the groups we belong to survive and outcompete other groups. Whether or not the cultural variant is good or bad is not the point; what matters is its usefulness.

Therefore, if Malaysia is the world leader in power distance, we need to understand why that is. Casually dismissing it as some undesirable part of our culture will not get us anywhere closer to addressing it. Thus, we must investigate why power distance and our VIP culture has persisted for so long, and continues to persist. What benefits did it bring Malaysia, as a whole, such that it was this particular variant, as opposed to a more egalitarian one, that persisted? Moreover, even if we believe that this cultural variant benefited only a few at the expense of the many, why did our society continue to let it thrive instead of letting it die away?

Now, suppose we have found some convincing answers for the fitness of this cultural variant, and if we believe this cultural variant is not conducive to long-term economic development, the obvious question is how can we reverse it? And herein lies a tremendously difficult problem. In genetic evolution, path dependence way leading on to way as Robert Frost would put it means that as we climb an evolutionary mountain path, it is essentially physically impossible to move back downhill. Genetic evolution does not allow it, given that we have evolved particular traits that beat out other traits lower on the mountain to make us fitter for our environment.

In the social world, while it is not physically impossible to move back downhill, it is still extremely difficult. Jeffrey Ely, an economist at Northwestern University, coined this scenario as a kludge, which he defines as an improvement upon a highly complex system that solves an inefficiency but in a piecemeal fashion and without addressing the deep-rooted underlying problem the kludge itself because it makes sense only in the presence of the disease it is there to treat intensifies the internal inefficiency

In the public policy arena, while it is possible to move downhill and to abolish previous policies, what typically happens, as Harvard economist Nathan Nunn writes is, political parties choose not to move downhill by removing old rules, but instead only choose to add new rules. This occurs because as policies become more complex the rules become entangled in one another. And so removing an unfavourable rule involves also removing favourable rules if they are entangled. Thus, when policy complexity is high, there is entanglement and a bias towards adding rather than deleting rules

And there we have it. Our VIP culture and power distance is our kludge. And it is hard to go back downhill, especially after years and years of it being a crucial characteristic of our society. Policies preserving it almost overwhelmingly put in place by folks in the status quo have made it more entangled with a whole bunch of things. But this is the challenge we face. Power distance and our VIP culture, which may have worked in different instances in the past or indeed in the present for a given objective, is unlikely to be conducive to future economic development objectives. But in order to reverse it, we first have to understand why it persists before we can think of moving back down the kludge.

Nicholas Khaw is an economist and head of research at Khazanah Nasional Bhd

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My Say: Lifts in a lobby, cultural evolution and power distance in Malaysia - The Edge Markets MY

Article by KOSEC - Kodari Securities CEO, Michael Kodari.

DeFi defined

De-centralised Finance (DeFi), in general terms, is a concept emerging from blockchain utility, which uses de-centralised ledgers of information to remove any prior reliance on central banking authorities. Operating through its own dedicated and de-centralised community of processors, a blockchain DeFi project provides immutable security and fast transaction ability to its network of users.

By removing the middlemen, DeFi protocols confer a higher degree of efficiency when it comes to transacting value. DeFi also confers greater transparency for financial transacting and holds the potential to enable greater access to financial services amongst the 1.7 billion people without bank accounts.

Anonymity, regulation and risks

As a relatively nascent technology, blockchain ledgers have raised questions as to whether the anonymity it provides would serve only to attract illegal activity. Similarly, a DeFi protocol would also present as a platform through which dubious financing could be carried out without a central authority to vet against it.

DeFi protocols have seen a rapid uptake among cryptocurrency investors and enthusiasts as an exciting and novel idea. However, this interest has garnered just as much attention from market regulators, especially in the case of national bans on cryptocurrency trading, as seen within countries like India and China.

Transactional transparency

Apart from the issues of security and legal compliance, issuers and lenders within traditional finance have yet to embrace and leverage the many objective benefits brought about by blockchain ledger technologies.

Among such benefits include providing a marked degree of transparency and efficiency compared to traditional finance methods. To dig into this concept deeper, DeFi removes the need for intermediary processing, which otherwise focuses on tasks like background checks, application vetting and other anti-laundering procedures.

Instead of requiring final approval from loan managers and bank employees, any similar transaction occurring on a DeFi protocol will simply be validated by authorised nodes on its network.

This ability to maintain transparency through its network has been touted by some as the ideal solution to ensure regulatory malpractice can be rooted out thus preventing market calamities like the 2008 global financial crisis from happening.

A revolutionary new frontier

DeFi presents a revolutionary new frontier for opening fresh opportunities in improving the global finance markets. From a utility perspective, its technology alone presents improved speed and security to facilitate financial transactions internationally. Moreover, this use case alone is a highly-developed feature that sees constant pursuit of uptake and improvement by popular cryptocurrency projects such as Stellar (XLMUSD).

Additionally, DeFi sets a fascinating new precedent for enabling access to financial services. While bank accounts are the expected norm within most developed societies, the World Bank estimates that up to 1.7 billion people in the world do not have access to an account of their own.

As a result, the emergent term within discussions around DeFi sees its examples championed by those in favour of enabling access among users who dont transact via traditional bank accounts, now commonly referred to as the unbanked.

As the concept continues to evolve, the question of how DeFi can be regulated will no doubt continue to be a pressing topic globally. A key example of how this conversation is taking place is in the current World Economic Forums digital currency governance consortium.

While such a growing call to regulate and integrate this new technology into existing financial practices might dampen the red hot interest many enthusiasts keep for DeFi projects, it could also stand to provide a greater outcome as it enables greater global access to basic financial services.

DeFi: the great banking disruptor?

The numbers dont lie. According to a detailed report, the leading accounting firm recognised growth in DeFi from just under US $1 billion in June 2020 to over US $98 billion in September 2021.

Among the projects that continue to enable such staggering growth are crypto derivatives trading and yield farming platforms. These allow users to pursue profitable gains either through active market trading or by passively staking the value of their tokens to earn interest over a term.

Its no wonder there is such increasing interest in the DeFi space by regulators such as EY and the attention that it is gaining among institutional bodies globally.

Article by KOSEC - Kodari Securities CEO, Michael Kodari.

Excerpt from:

Is DeFi signalling the great financial evolution? - SecurityBrief Asia

After senior guard Amy Dilk went down with a long-term injury in the season opener, senior guard Danielle Rauch slid into the starting spot. At first, she did fine. Rauch filled the point guard role well and prevented the Wolverines season from sliding off the tracks.

As the season has progressed, Rauch has, too. Her confidence in conducting the offense has grown, and wins have followed.

I talk to Danielle Rauch about that all the time, Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico said after the Wolverines win over Indiana last Monday. Being our point guard is such a tough job. If you score buckets, thats additional, but run our team and handle the pressure.

Thats exactly what Rauch has done. Despite averaging just 5.4 points per game, she leaves an indelible mark on the offense.

Take Sundays win against Iowa, for example. If an offensive set didnt work, Rauch would run to the ball, call for it, dribble back to half court and initiate a new set, saving numerous Michigan possessions.

This tendency to spot problems and immediately try to fix them isnt something Rauch frequently displayed when she first stepped into Dilks role. Now, its an integral part of the Wolverines offense.

While shes always been a leader off the court, Rauch has recently become one on it.

Our senior leadership is incredible, Barnes Arico said after Michigan fell to Louisville on Dec. 2. Emily and Danielle are (leading) the way along with Naz and they just have a refuse-to-lose mentality regardless of what the scoreboard says. I think thats whats made them so successful in their life and in their career.

While orchestrating the offense, Rauch racks up assists. Against Iowa on Monday, she notched seven, with a pair of bounce passes to the rim highlighting her acute vision.

Recently, Rauch has tacked on another element to her game, aggressively crashing the rim at any opportunity. Despite being listed at just 5-foot-8, she managed to pull in eight rebounds against Iowa. Whenever a shot ricocheted off the rim or clanked off the backboard, Rauch seemed to find the ball, slithering past taller players to grab it.

Danielles player always covers back when a shot goes up, Barnes Arico said after Indiana. Everybody else on our team is blocking out, shes covering back in transition. That leaves Danielle free. Danielle is running in there every single time and cleaning up all those rebounds.

And on the rare occasion that Rauch is focused on scoring, she does so with swagger.

Against Iowa on Sunday, Rauch opened the scoring for Michigan. When connecting on a 3-pointer from the top of the key, she held her follow-through while backpedaling down the floor, exuding confidence.

This same swagger appeared again later in the game, as she emphatically swatted a driving Hawkeye with both hands proceeding to quickly flex, celebrate with her teammates and get ready for the next play.

Three years of limited minutes havent affected Rauch. While she has seen a steady increase in playing time over the course of her career, Rauch was never quite an essential part of the rotation.

Now, she has risen to the occasion and played her part in whats shaping up to be the best season in program history.

Danielles story is so special in its own right, Barnes Arico said. I think each kid appreciates their teammates story, and what sacrifices and what commitment theyve made to our program.

As Rauchs confidence increases, her impact does as well. Shes no longer just keeping Michigans season on track. Shes grabbed the wheel and is helping steer it to historic highs.

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Rauchs evolution integral to Wolverines offensive growth - The Michigan Daily

How to evolve Eevee is once again a question of friendship, times of day, and unusual rocks.

As has been the case for a little while now, there are total of eight 'Eeveelutions' in Legends: Arceus, each with their own method. Most of these remain unchanged from traditional main series Pokmon games, but there are a couple of minor tweaks here and there.

We'll explain all of this below, in our guide on how to get Umbreon, Sylveon, Espeon, Leafeon, Glaceon, Flareon, Vaporeon and Jolteon in Pokmon Legends: Arceus.

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Pokmon Legends: Arceus Eurogamer Reviewscast

Broadly, there are several kinds of Eevee evolution method in Pokmon Legends: Arceus. For three of the Eeveelutions it involves giving Eevee a specific Evolution Stone. For two it's taking Eevee to a specific location (or a couple of other Evolution Stones).

For the final three, it's about a combination of a few things: Happiness, time of day, and what moves it knows. Here's how that latter three work, for Sylveon, Espeon, and Umbreon.

Note that if Eevee knows a Fairy-type move and has high enough Happiness to evolve, it'll always evolve into a Sylveon, regardless of the time of day you choose to evolve it. To get Espeon or Umbreon, you need to remove any Fairy-type moves it knows first (done via selecting Eevee in your bag menu and then 'Change Moves').

To raise Eevee's Happiness meanwhile, there are a few things you can do, namely keeping it in your party for a little while. It's difficult to confirm exactly, but battling with it lots, not letting it be knocked out in battle - and, if it is knocked out, heal it up again quickly - and using it to collect items from trees and crystals will all seem to increase friendship over time.

You can check your Eevee's Happiness level from a man called Belamy in Jubilife Village, who's by the pastures - but you'll need to complete a quick request called Measuring your Compatibility, first. To be happy enough to evolve into either of the above three, Eevee has to be at least at the "fast friends" level, in the words of Belamy.

To evolve Eevee into Glaceon and Leafeon, you actually have a choice of two different methods, similar to how you have a couple of methods for Evolving Eevee in Pokmon Go.

You can evolve Eevee into the Ice-type Glaceon by either:

You can evolve Eevee into the Grass-type Leafeon by either:

Here's where you can find the Icy Rock in Alabaster Icelands:

And here's where you can find the Mossy Rock in Obsidian Icelands:

Our Pokmon Legends: Arceus walkthrough will guide you through this new adventure! It begins with selecting your starter Pokmon, before youre tasked with completing the Hisui Pokdex by completing Research Tasks, and tackling your first boss fight against Kleavor plus how to evolve Scyther into Kleavor and Scizor. Similarly, here's a list of all new or changed evolution methods and how to evolve Eevee into all Eeveelutions, too! Dont forget to increase your Star Rank and complete Requests too, such as Strange Happenings at Night and Wisp locations. You can also make your Pokmon more powerful by increasing their Effort Levels.There are also new Hisui regional variants to catch and having save files from Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl, Sword and Shield, along with Lets Go Pikachu and Eevee will unlock additional rewards.

Last but not least are the three original Eeveelutions, Flareon, Vaporeon, and Jolteon. These are the simplest of them all, simply needing you to use a specific Evolution Stone on your Eevee to get the evolution of choice. Here's how it's done, if you haven't already guessed it:

And that's it! Good luck and have fun with your many, super-cute Eeveelutions. For more evolution methods meanwhile, our main Pokmon Legends: Arceus evolution methods list has you covered.

Excerpt from:

Pokmon Legends Arceus Eevee evolution: How to evolve Eevee ...

Rapid erosion of supermountains released large amounts of nutrients, which were eventually carried into the oceans.

Giant mountain ranges at least as high as the Himalayas and stretching up to 8,000 kilometers across entire supercontinents played a crucial role in the evolution of early life on Earth, according to a new study by researchers at The Australian National University (ANU).

The researchers tracked the formation of these supermountains throughout Earths history using traces of zircon with low lutetium content a combination of mineral and rare earth element only found in the roots of high mountains where they form under intense pressure.

The study found the most giant of these supermountains only formed twice in Earths history the first between 2,000 and 1,800 million years ago and the second between 650 and 500 million years ago. Both mountain ranges rose during periods of supercontinent formation.

Lead author, ANU PhD candidate Ziyi Zhu, said there are links between these two instances of supermountains and the two most important periods of evolution in Earths history.

Theres nothing like these two supermountains today. Its not just their height if you can imagine the 2,400 km long Himalayas repeated three or four times you get an idea of the scale, she said.

We call the first example the Nuna Supermountain. It coincides with the likely appearance of eukaryotes, organisms that later gave rise to plants and animals.

The second, known as the Transgondwanan Supermountain, coincides with the appearance of the first large animals 575 million years ago and the Cambrian explosion 45 million years later, when most animal groups appeared in the fossil record.

Co-author Professor Jochen Brocks said: Whats stunning is the entire record of mountain building through time is so clear. It shows these two huge spikes: one is linked to the emergence of animals and the other to the emergence of complex big cells.

When the mountains eroded they provided essential nutrients like phosphorous and iron to the oceans, supercharging biological cycles and driving evolution to greater complexity.

The supermountains may also have boosted oxygen levels in the atmosphere, needed for complex life to breathe.

The early Earths atmosphere contained almost no oxygen. Atmospheric oxygen levels are thought to have increased in a series of steps, two of which coincide with the supermountains, Ms. Zhu said.

The increase in atmospheric oxygen associated with the erosion of the Transgondwanan Supermountain is the largest in Earths history and was an essential prerequisite for the appearance of animals.

There is no evidence of other supermountains forming at any stage between these two events, making them even more significant.

The time interval between 1,800 and 800 million years ago is known as the Boring Billion, because there was little or no advance in evolution, co-author Professor Ian Campbell said.

The slowing of evolution is attributed to the absence of supermountains during that period, reducing the supply of nutrients to the oceans.

This study gives us markers, so we can better understand the evolution of early, complex life.

The research has been published in Earth and Planetary Science Letters.

Reference: The temporal distribution of Earths supermountains and their potential link to the rise of atmospheric oxygen and biological evolution by Ziyi Zhu,Ian H.Campbell, Charlotte M. Allen, Jochen J. Brocks and Bei Chen, 28 January 2022, Earth and Planetary Science Letters.DOI: 10.1016/j.epsl.2022.117391

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Giant Supermountains Stretching Across Entire Supercontinents Controlled the Evolution of Life on Earth - SciTechDaily

Pokmon Legends Arceus allows its players to evolve their Eevee into all of its available evolutions, Vaporeon, Jolteon, Flareon, Espeon, Umbreon, Leafeon, Glaceon, and Sylveon. But among all the Eevee evolutions you can add to your team in the newly released Pokmon Legends Arceus, which one is the best?

In true Pokmon fashion, all of Eevees evolutions have their own strong and weak suits. Stats-wise, among all evolutions, Flareon has the highest base Attack, Leafeon has the highest base Defense, Vaporeon has the highest base HP, Umbreon has the highest base Special Defense, while Glaceon and Espeon tie with the highest base Special Attack among all evolutions. Looking solely to speed, Jolteon is the best of the loot.

That aside, taking into account their moves, as well as their base stats, the best all-rounders among all Eevee evolutions are Leafeon and Sylveon, depending on which type of attack you plan to focus on, with Jolteon falling slightly behind on stats but leaving the two on the dust on the speed department. On the other hand, if you are looking for an evolution capable of dealing extremely high damage, Flareon would be our choice, thanks to their high base attack and good Special Attack. With that said, its important to point out that the way you build your Pokmon can dratically affect their performance, so its vital that you focus on their strong suits. That aside, it is also important to say, yet again, that each evolution has its own strengths and weakness, with all of them being capable of exceeding while in the right matchups.

Now that you know what Eevee evolution can be considered the best in Pokmon Legends Arceus, dont forget to check out where to catch Eevee, as well as how to evolve them into Vaporeon, Jolteon, Flareon, Espeon, Umbreon, Leafeon, Glaceon, and Sylveon.

You can playPokmon Legends Arceusright now, exclusively on the Nintendo Switch. You can check out our review of the newly released gamehere.

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Pokmon Legends Arceus - Which Eevee Evolution is the Best - Attack of the Fanboy

The new year in Niskayuna brought with it a change in government, so it seems an appropriate time to consider Niskayunas town government historically.

Like all towns in New York state, Niskayuna is bound by the powers granted by the state. Early on these were fairly minimal, mostly dealing with the collection of taxes and dispensation of justice.

Town boards of the 19th century and even into the 20th century consisted of a supervisor and town justice. With increasing responsibility and modernization came the separation of the legislative and judicial branches and the election of council members.

The primary role of the town supervisor, other than presiding over the Town Board, was to manage financial accounts and serve as the towns representative on the county Legislature, which typically addressed more significant business.

When the town was more rural, the needs of a continually operating government were less common, but as the responsibilities of the day-to-day running of government became more involved, the role of the supervisor evolved increasingly into a town administrator.

As we look back at the history of town supervisors in Niskayuna, it is not unlike those of other small towns in the Northeast. In the 1800s, the term of office was one year and most supervisors served one term, almost as if it were a shared stewardship.

During that time, Niskayuna primarily had a rotation of supervisors from the early families of the settlement: Vroomans, Van Antwerps, Van Vrankens, Pearses and not much else.

Contrary to popular belief, in the 1800s Niskayuna supervisors were from a range of parties, including Federalists, Democrats, Whigs and, later, Republicans.

In our first 100 years, Niskayuna had 42 supervisors, while in our second century we had only 16. Much of that shift started after the Civil War, likely due to a combination of increasing political partisanship and industrialization.

As society advanced away from farming, the issues facing the supervisor required a broader scope of knowledge for day-to-day operations and more strategic planning for the years ahead than could be had from an annual rotation.

This becomes quite evidentin the historical record around the turn of the century, when most news reporting shifted from a statement of the budget balance to concerns about sewer expansion, bus routes, radioactive waste and state comptroller audits.

In reviewing the historical record of former supervisors, there was nothing very detailed to draw from. In many cases there was more written about their pending mail and their wives parties than the business of government.

Early on, town supervisors were primarily farmers and merchants, while more recently Niskayuna supervisors have been engineers, marketing executives and teachers.

One individual with a most distinct historical record that deserves mention was our first town supervisor, Lawrence Vrooman. Documents show that Vrooman was a surveyor in the area and served in the militia led by Capt. Jellis Fonda. With several postings in the area, he was stationed briefly at Saratoga during the fighting until he was sent home with an illness.

Just a year before his death, the federal government passed a pension reform for revolutionary veterans. Records show himself, his widow and his son engaged in a decades-long quest to obtain the pension, which was never paid. Like many of his successors, Vrooman represented the area in thestate Assembly after serving as supervisor.

Looking back through history, our supervisors do have some interesting experiences. For the first of these supervisor facts, it would seem being first ran in the family. Lawrence Vroomans father, Isaac, was the first mayor of Schenectady.

Some other interesting supervisor facts:

Ben Spear is chairman of theNiskayunaHistorical Committee. The committee encourages any past or present town residents to contact theNiskayunatown historian at [emailprotected] regarding any information, resources or stories they might like to share aboutNiskayunas distinctive history.

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GLEANINGS FROM THE CORN FLATS: Town government's evolution and expansion over time The Daily Gazette - The Daily Gazette

New research suggests that stellar radiation is stripping away the "fluffy" atmospheres of exoplanets slightly smaller than Neptune, leaving behind their rocky cores and transforming them into worlds more closely resembling Earth.

In the 1990s, astronomers confirmed the existence of planets outside the solar system. Known as exoplanets, they are one of the most fascinating subjects of modern astronomy. Spacecraft such as NASA's pioneering Kepler observatory and Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) have scanned the skies searching for periodic dips in the brightness of nearby stars. This blinking is a sign that a star is hosting a planet, which has crossed the face of the star and temporarily blocked its light.

Now that astronomers have collected thousands of exoplanet signatures, they are getting a better idea about the range of planetary sizes. One useful way astronomers have been labeling their findings is by comparing these worlds to the familiar planets living in our cosmic backyard; existing exoplanet categories include "super-Earths" and "mini-Neptunes."

Related: The 10 biggest exoplanet discoveries of 2021

Two new studies point to peculiar possibilities for planetary evolution, one of the key motivating factors behind exoplanet research.

Some exoplanets detected by astronomers are small, rocky worlds like Mars, and others are large gaseous planets such as Saturn and Jupiter. But researchers have also found worlds with no close analogs in our own solar system. For example, they've discovered exoplanets that are between the size of Earth and Neptune, which is about 3.9 times wider than our planet.

It turns out that these mini-Neptunes might be shedding their "fluffy" outermost shells and shrinking into super-Earths, according to the new research. This instability and transition may explain why it is relatively rare to detect exoplanets that are between the size of Neptune and Earth.

"A planet in the size-gap would have enough atmosphere to puff up its radius, making it intercept more stellar radiation and thereby enabling fast mass loss," Michael Zhang, lead author of both studies and a graduate student at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, said in a Feb. 3 statement describing the papers. "But the atmosphere is thin enough that it gets lost quickly. This is why a planet wouldn't stay in the gap for long."

According to Zhang, this process has never been caught until now. But astronomers have suspected for some time that small mini-Neptunes have evaporating atmospheres.

The researchers used the Hubble Space Telescope and the W.M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii to observe four mini-Neptunes. They noticed that two of their subjects one called HD 63433c located 73 light-years away from Earth, and another called TOI 560.01 found 103 light-years away had fast-moving gas in their atmospheres.

"The speed of the gases provides the evidence that the atmospheres are escaping," said Zhang. "The observed helium around TOI 560.01 is moving as fast as 20 kilometers [12.4 miles] per second, while the hydrogen around HD 63433c is moving as fast as 50 kilometers [31.1 miles] per second."

"The gravity of these mini-Neptunes is not strong enough to hold on to such fast-moving gas," Zhang added. "The extent of the outflows around the planets also indicates escaping atmospheres; the cocoon of gas around TOI 560.01 is at least 3.5 times as large as the radius of the planet, and the cocoon around HD 63433c is at least 12 times the radius of the planet."

Zhang and his team aren't ruling out other possible scenarios. Maybe super-Earths never had a thick blanket of gas to shed in the first place, for instance.

"As exoplanet scientists, we've learned to expect the unexpected," Heather Knutson, a planetary scientist at Caltech and Zhang's advisor, said in the statement. "These exotic worlds are constantly surprising us with new physics that goes beyond what we observe in our solar system."

The papers describing the TOI 560.01 research and the HD 63433c observations were both published on Jan. 17 in The Astronomical Journal.

Follow Doris Elin Urrutia on Twitter @salazar_elin. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or on Facebook.

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Exoplanet evolution? Mini-Neptunes may shed their atmospheres and become super-Earths - Space.com