If your dog cries in the presence of a high-value treat or toy, know they’re following their natural instincts.

Square Enix has killed 'Just Cause: Mobile' but a fifth game in the franchise is in development

A 200 million-year-old parasite has been discovered in fossilised poo, in the latest not-at-all-scary instance of scientists unearthing a species which blighted the Earth in ancient times. Researchers found that the earliest predators on the planet were infested with roundworm, also known as nematodes, among multiple other parasites. The fossilised poo, which is known to palaeontologists as coprolite, is thought to belong to a type of semi-aquatic phytosaur, which was a crocodile-like predator. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter It comes weeks after another team revived a prehistoric worm – the catchily named Panagrolaimus kolymaensis – which was found dormant in the Siberian permafrost in a state of “cryptobiosis”. The latest study saw researchers from Mahasarakham University, Thailand, analyse a three-inch-long portion of ancient poo and discover five types of parasitic remnants. The group sliced open the parasitic egg fossils with a diamond saw using a “standard thin section method,” their report said. The ultra-thin slices allowed the palaeontologists to look at cross-sections of the ancient infectious microbes under a microscope. One was identified as a nematode worm egg, while the others are thought to be either more eggs, protozoan cysts or spores from moss and ferns. While modern parasites are often an important part of ecosystems, it is usually more difficult to work out what their ancient equivalents did, because there are so few examples in the fossil record. The creatures often inhabited the soft tissues of their hosts, but are rarely preserved as fossils, making the latest discovery all-the-more significant. This fossilised late Triassic-era coprolite (the poo), was shielded from the elements in the Huai Hin Lat geological formation in Thailand, which is over 200 million years old. It was found by local villagers, according to the study's lead author, paleontologist Thanit Nonsrirach. “The peculiar appearance of these findings intrigued the villagers, who considered them potentially auspicious and capable of bestowing good luck if repurposed as talismans,” Nonsrirach told news outlet Inverse. “In 2010, our team received word of this discovery and embarked on a field expedition, guiding the villagers to the actual fossil site.” The discovery is the first record of parasites in a terrestrial vertebrate host from the late Triassic period in Asia, and provides a rare look at the life of an ancient creature that was infected by multiple species. This discovery also adds to the few known examples of nematode eggs preserved within the coprolites of Mesozoic animals. “Parasites of several species, including Ascaridida (roundworm) eggs were found in a coprolite, probably produced by a crocodile-like reptile and possibly a phytosaur,” said Nonsrirach, who works at Mahasarakham University's Palaeontological Research and Education Center. “This is therefore the first discovery of Ascaridida eggs and evidence of multi-infection in a host assignable to the Crurotarsi from the Late Triassic of Asia. “Coprolite is a significant palaeontological treasure trove, containing several undiscovered fossils and expanding our understanding of ancient ecosystems and food chains. “These findings are therefore a significant contribution to scientific understanding of the distribution and ecology of parasites of the distant past.” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Audiophile. Just using the word makes some of us cringe because it implies an air

PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 22, 2023--

Samuel Umtiti FIFA 23 Shapeshifters SBC is now live during Team 1. Here's how to complete the SBC and if it's worth it.

Payment services Cash App and Square have been hit by a major outage. The problems left customers unable to pay and see their balance as a result of what appeared to be serious technical issues. Both companies said their services were mostly back online. But some customers were still seeing issues many hours after the problems began. Customers first started reporting problems on Thursday. They acknowledged that there were widespread issues that could affect the basic features of both apps. “We are currently experiencing issues with multiple Square services,” Square said on X, formerly known as Twitter. “We understand how important it is for your business that our services be up and running, and we are actively working toward a fix.” Cash App said much the same. Both are under the same parent company, Block. On Friday, the companies said that the issues were fixed but that some problems could remain. Some said that they been able to get back onto the app – but that certain transfers or other updates appeared to have gone missing. “We are continuing to resolve the outage. Our services are mostly back online. You may experience brief delays with certain services. If you experience a delay, there is no need to reattempt,” the company said on its status page on Friday. Read More Could China be about to take a big bite out of Apple’s iPhone business? Update your iPhone immediately First photo emerges of Elon Musk and his baby twins with Neuralink director

Oracle founder Larry Ellison is reaping the benefits of artificial intelligence popularity, edging past Microsoft founder Bill Gates to land the number four spot on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index on Monday, according to Bloomberg.

The long-term prospects for artificial intelligence-linked semiconductors is making Morgan Stanley even more bullish about chip stocks in

JAKARTA Indonesia's central bank said on Thursday it had started a trial of cross-border QR code payments with

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun 6, 2023--

A young girl who was bullied for being autistic may have a higher IQ than Stephen Hawking or Albert Einstein. Adhara Maite Pérez Sánchez, an 11-year-old from Tláhuac, Mexico, is being described as a prodigy by many after recently graduating with a degree in Systems Engineering. She is now going on to study industrial engineering. The extraordinary girl has a passion for astronomy and space, expressing the dream to become the first Mexican woman to travel to space as an astronaut and has given talks about her interest and knowledge of aerospace. She intends to become an astronaut at NASA, and is currently taking courses in astronomy and gravitational waves at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), which is widely regarded as a top research university. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Adhara has also had her achievements recognised in 2021 by the Senate of the Republic, as well as being declared one of Mexico’s 100 most influential women, and appearing on the cover Marie Claire Mexico. However, life hasn’t always been easy for Adhara, who struggled with being bullied by her classmates. Often labelled as a ‘weirdo’ for her autism. Adhara was diagnosed with Asperger’s at 3 years old, but has succeeded greatly with it. Recently she has begun developing a bracelet designed to monitor the emotions of children such as herself in order to improve their communication skills. But she hasn’t let the negativity bring her down. Determined to succeed and achieve her goals in spite of what others say about her. Her inspirations include late physicist, Stephen Hawking, and Carmen Félix, a Mexican engineer currently developing a plan to launch a manned mission to Mars. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.