[ozswede]

Dangerous red-bellied black snake refuses to leave Newcastle woman’s ute

A woman has given up trying to remove a dangerous red-bellied black snake from her car after four snake catchers failed to finish the job.

The snake has likely been stuck inside Lisa Kournelis’s car for more than a month and despite efforts to have it removed, the stubborn reptile refuses to leave.

Ms Kournelis, who works in civil construction, suspects the snake snuck into her ute while she left the door open at a construction worksite west of Newcastle, where she was working in March.


A red-bellied black snake has been stuck inside Lisa Kournelis’s car for a month.

She said she got quite a shock when she spotted the snake’s iconic black and red scales against the dark fabric of her car’s back seat.

She said she drove off, knowing the snake was in her ute, as she did not want to leave the vehicle there in case it got vandalised at the worksite and had limited transport options available to get to and from work.

Four snake catchers have tried and failed to remove the reptile.

“One catcher had it by the tail but unfortunately let it go,” Ms Kournelis told The Project.

“He didn’t want to pull at it because it might hurt the snake. He let it go and he thought it would go straight into the bag but it whipped around.”

She said she also had her car’s interior pulled out twice and cameras inserted to locate the snake, but every day she returns to her car, the snake is sitting on her back seat.


She said she had given up trying to get the snake out of her car.

Rather than let it scare her, she has decided to nickname it “Fluffy” and continues to drive the car with it in the back seat. (I love the name! )

" I don't really have any other choice. It hasn't hurt me, but it potentially could one day," she said.

To avoid injury, she said she has been wearing woollen pants and other protective gear when driving on the advice from one of the snake catchers.

"I'm very lucky actually that I haven't been bitten, but if it does bite these woollen work pants that I wear will take most of the venom."

She said the snake constantly made its presence known, setting off car sensors and alarms.

"So just random times from about 11 o'clock in the morning, my car alarm will go off. I wasn't sure what it was at first, but then I clued on," she said.



Snake catchers have said the snake should be removed urgently before it entered winter dormancy known as brumation.

"The snake will slow down, he will want to stay in the car because it's a nice hiding spot to get warm, it's going to go off its food and probably settle in," he said.

The Australian Museum said red-bellied black snakes were one of the most frequently encountered snakes on the east coast of Australia, and were responsible for a number of bites every year.

"They are a shy snake and will generally only deliver a serious bite under severe molestation," a spokesperson said.

While venomous, red-bellied black snakes are considered one of the least dangerous snakes in Australia and there are no recorded deaths to date as a result of their bite.

“Many bite victims experience only mild or negligible symptoms; however, a number also end up hospitalised,” the Australian Museum says on its website.

“The health risks to children and pets are greater due to their smaller size. As individual reactions to envenomation can vary, all suspected bites should be treated as serious and medical attention sought as soon as possible.”

[Fatima99]

Town Saves the Threatened Bum-Breathing Punk Turtle–a 9lb Wonder Found Only in the Mary River



Australia is filled with wild and wonderful critters, but few surpass the novelty of the Mary River turtle—which was once one of the continent’s most endangered.

Now however, the dedication of 800 residents in the town of Tiaro is seeing the turtle repopulate the river from which it draws its name, a point of pride for the locals, and the nation as they both celebrate a conservation win.

The Mary River turtle, (Elusor macrusus) is also known fondly as the “Bum-breathing punk” for its peculiar evolutionary capacity to breathe through its cloaca which allows it to stay underwater for three days without surfacing.

One of Australia’s largest turtle species, the MR turtle can weigh in at close to 20 pounds and grow 20 inches nose to tail. Also sometimes called the green-haired turtle, it collects algae on its head and shell over time, making it seem like it’s sporting a dyed-green mohawk, hence the name ‘punk.’

Also unique to the MR turtle is the tail. It has haemal arches, an osseo feature typically used to identify sauropod dinosaurs but which has been lost in all other modern turtles. In short, the MR turtle is unique in modern evolution.

This species, which lives entirely in the Mary River and five tributaries in southeast Queensland, was incidentally brought to the brink of extinction by turtle egg hunters looking to sell baby turtles at various venues.

They were called ‘penny turtles,’ and the marketing effort was all done without realizing the species that the eggs were coming from was so unique and sensitive.

Starting in 2001, the town of Tiaro launched a program to protect the turtle’s nests and eggs in situ. During nesting season, volunteers are up early to locate new nesting sites and fence them off, protecting them against livestock and invasive egg filchers like foxes.

Recently, a scientific analysis has shown that not only did the program bear fruit in terms of the number of turtles present on the Mary and what the survival rate of hatchlings is, but also in terms of the quantity of scientific data gathered by the locals.

But the success didn’t happen overnight. The town raised money to fund scholarships for students to study the turtles at university and buy research equipment by selling homemade chocolate turtles as a fundraiser.

In 2006, photographer Chris Van Wyk captured iconic imagery of the turtle’s green ‘hair’ which went as viral as they could have done back then, also helping to raise awareness of the reptile.

The turtle remains endangered, but not only have the turtle’s numbers rebounded, but the research efforts of the citizens of Tiaro have created protocols for local water resource planning and strategic development to always take into account the watershed and habitat of the turtle when making any decisions.

[Alessa9]

This Italian Town Identified As Possible Birthplace Of Mona Lisa

Ann Pizzorusso proposes that the landscape behind Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa resembles Lecco, Italy, based on geological evidence.


The Mona Lisa is a portrait painting by Italian Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci.

Geologist and Renaissance art historian Ann Pizzorusso has proposed a solution to the long-standing mystery surrounding the landscape depicted in Leonardo da Vinci's famous painting, the Mona Lisa.

According to a report by The Guardian, Pizzorusso suggests that the backdrop of the painting bears a striking resemblance to the town of Lecco, situated on the shores of Lake Como in northern Italy's Lombardy region.

Pizzorusso identifies specific features in the painting that align with landmarks in Lecco, including the 14th-century Azzone Visconti bridge, the mountain range overlooking the area, and Lake Garlate, which Leonardo is known to have visited 500 years ago.

She emphasises the undeniable similarities between these elements, expressing her excitement at what she perceives as a significant breakthrough.

Citing geological evidence, Pizzorusso points out that the rocks depicted in the painting match the limestone formations found in Lecco, noting that Leonardo accurately rendered them in a grey-white colour, consistent with the rock type prevalent in the region.

Importantly, she highlights the absence of a lake in alternative locations like Bobbio or Arezzo, further reinforcing her argument in favour of Lecco. Pizzorusso is set to present her findings at an upcoming geology conference in Lecco, as reported by The Guardian.

But focusing on the bridge, she said, wasn't enough. "The arched bridge was ubiquitous throughout Italy and Europe, and many looked very similar. It is impossible to identify an exact location from a bridge alone. They all talk about the bridge, and nobody talks about the geology." "Geologists don't look at paintings, and art historians don't look at geology," she added.

"Art historians said Leonardo always used his imagination, but you can give this picture to any geologist in the world and they'll say what I'm saying about Lecco. Even a non-geologist can now see the similarities."

[rflash8]

Punxsutawney Phil’s babies are named Shadow and Sunny. Just don’t call them the heirs apparent


Punxsutawney Phil’s offspring now have names that just might help the famed weather-forecasting groundhog to predict when spring will begin. The two kits born to Phil and his partner, Phyllis, are named Sunny and Shadow. Sunny is a female, Shadow a male.

PUNXSUTAWNEY, Pa. (AP) — Punxsutawney Phil’s offspring now have names that just might help the famed weather-forecasting groundhog to predict when spring will begin.

Phil’s human handlers chose Mother’s Day to announce that the two kits born this spring to Phil and his partner, Phyllis, are named Sunny and Shadow. Sunny is a female, Shadow a male.

Each spring, Phil makes a prediction about the length of the remaining winter. According to tradition, if he sees his shadow there will be six more weeks of cold. This year, Phil did not see his shadow and therefore predicted an early spring.

“These kits of his are not replacements, they’re not the heir apparent,” Dan McGinley, vice president of the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club Inner Circle, said in a phone interview Monday. “Sunny and Shadow will not be part of the ceremony — it’s still Phil’s job. There’s still only one Punxsutawney Phil.”

The club received hundreds of suggestions for the pups’ names. The final decision emerged after a one-on-one between Phil and the club’s president, Tom Dunkel.

“Today the first family of groundhogs has grown, Punxsutawney Phil and wife Phyllis have two kits of their own,” McGinley read from a scroll announcing the names of the pups “born to royalty” in a video posted on social media on Sunday.

The babies were discovered in March by a club member who was feeding fruit and vegetables to Phil and Phyllis. The groundhog family lives in a climate-controlled burrow at the local library.

[PennySerenade]

Hamilton, Ontario couple finds over 800 real Group of Seven landscapes



If a picture's worth a thousand words, to Jim and Sue Waddington, a painting's worth a thousand miles.

For nearly five decades, Jim and Sue Waddington have hiked, portaged and paddled rapids around Canada, all to track down and photograph over 800 landscapes that inspired the Group of Seven's works.

They've given more than 300 talks on their travels, published a best-selling book, and are now the subject of a short documentary narrated by their granddaughter Emma.

Now, in their eighties, the two are still at it.

"It keeps us busy," Sue told CBC Radio's The Current this week.

The Group of Seven were Canadian landscape painters who formed from 1920 to 1933, often depicting the country's raw, natural beauty in their works. They included A.Y. Jackson, Lawren Harris, Franklin Carmichael, Frank Johnston, Arthur Lismer, J.E.H. MacDonald and Frederick Varley.

A passion formed from a love of the outdoors, not painting
Neither Sue nor Jim come from an art background. But like the famous painters, they love to canoe and camp, and in 1977, they set out with a specific goal in mind.

Sue says the first location they found was the subject of A.Y. Jackson's 1933 painting, "Hills Killarney, (Nellie Park)". She'd discovered the painting during a course at Mohawk College, and wondered if the place really existed.

"And we looked at the map of Killarney Park where we had been canoeing a couple of years and saw Nellie Lake and decided maybe we better go and see if it was there," she said.

After a week of portaging, they found it.

"We were quite surprised that we could actually find it and that it actually looked almost identical," Sue said.


A.Y. Jackson (1882 - 1974), Hills, Killarney, Ontario (Nellie Lake), c. 1933, oil on canvas, 77.3 x 81.7 cm, Gift of Mr. S. Walter Stewart, McMichael Canadian Art Collection, 1968.8.28 (McMichael Canadian Art Collection)

That began a lifelong obsession.

"After we found that first place, we thought, well, there must be a lot more that we could find," said Jim.

The couple consulted art galleries, topographic maps and artist notes to narrow down where they might find the artists' original vantage points. They carried the artists' sketches on their trips, which were more realistic than the paintings the artists later produced in studio, Jim says. He says the puzzle of it has kept them going.

"The artists often gave us enough clues to show where the painting might be," Jim said.

A country-wide hobby
The pair have since travelled all around the country in search of these places, even returning to Nellie Lake for their new documentary, Hidden Secrets of the Canvas: One Couple's Lifetime Quest to Uncover a Century, available on YouTube.

After decades of trips, Jim says they've been lucky to have experienced so much rare beauty they wouldn't have without their unusual hobby.

"Canadians have grown up with these paintings and it's their idea of what Canada is," Jim said. "The Canada that most of us are familiar with is not like that at all; it's cities and towns."

Of all the places they've been, Jim says one trip to Algoma in northern Ontario stands out. At 75, he says a friend convinced them to take their first whitewater canoe trip in order to find a landscape painted by J.E.H. MacDonald.

"It was really exciting for us," Jim said. "He could take us exactly to the places that they sat. We could see exactly the same rocks in the river."

Still going strong
Artist and art historian Michael Burtch says the Waddingtons will likely be able to continue their hobby for as long as they're physically able.

"It could take several lifetimes," he said in an interview. "They were extraordinarily prolific."

Burtch was part of a similar documentary to the Waddingtons', Painted Land: In Search of the Group of Seven, that also followed pilgrimages to the spots the Group of Seven painted.


The Waddington's photo of a landscape A.Y. Jackson painted. His painting that appears to depict the same spot is entitled Shoreline Wawa, Lake Superior. (Submitted by Jim and Sue Waddington)

Not only are there thousands of sketches and paintings, he notes they depict landscapes from coast to coast to coast and everywhere in between.

"Parts of the country where footprints can't be found," he said.

But the Waddingtons are still trying to find them. They take off for another canoe trip in Ontario's Killarney Provincial Park on Thursday.

Asked how the couple manages the trips now that they're in their eighties, Sue said, "Jim carries the lightweight canoe and I carry the wine."

[goldie0608]

Mom and Daughter Celebrate Graduating Together from Same University: 'It Has Brought Us Closer'

"I never thought in a million years I'd be graduating with my daughter," the mother of six said of the accomplishment



A mother and daughter are sharing a once-in-a-lifetime moment: graduating from college together!

Over the weekend, Latonya Johnson, 43, and Laila Birchett, 21, celebrated their graduation from Rutgers School of Social Work.

Johnson, a divorced mother of six, told ABC affiliate WABC that before she enrolled at Rutgers University, she was dividing her time raising her kids, working a full-time job and taking classes part-time. It was actually Birchett, then a Montclair State student, who suggested the two go to school together. They both enrolled in September 2022.

“It’s kind of surreal but it has brought us closer because we connected on a level that I never thought I’d connect with my kids,” Johnson told the university.

According to Rutgers, Birchett was interested in pursuing an educational program that involved helping others, including the homeless and the elderly. Johnson, who worked as a drug and alcohol counselor, particularly wanted to finish her education, so she quit her part-time job to take on the Rutgers program full-time.

During their experiences at Rutgers, Johnson and Birchett shared one teacher and had different classes, WABC reported. Along the way, the two leaned on each other for support from computer technology to real-life experience.

"There were times when I struggled through school," Birchett told WABC. "But I always thought if my mom can do it, I can."

Johnson also cited the Rutgers community for its support in her efforts to finish her education. “College is my lifeline,” she said, per the school’s website. "The same way it takes a village to raise a child, it also takes a village to support a nontraditional student."

Dr. Dewayne Battle of the Rutgers School of Social Work highlighted the mother and daughter's efforts, telling WABC: "In some ways, Laila inspired her mom to finish school. Latonya has inspired Laila to be [an] independent person."

Their educational journey is not finished. Johnson and Birchett will be enrolling in Rutgers' Master of Social Work program this fall.

“Her journey has been truly inspiring,” Birchett told Rutgers about her mother. “It’s encouraged me to work harder in college.”

"It's such a blessing doing this journey with my daughter," Johnson said, via WABC. "I never thought in a million years I'd be graduating with my daughter."

[DaveLDaveL]

'My OAP neighbours sunbathe half-naked in their garden - I'm sick of the sight'


A woman has claimed her neighbours love nothing more than to sunbathe half-naked in their garden - and they always do it facing her house so she can't avoid looking at them

There's nothing better than enjoying the sun in your garden - but just be mindful of who might be able to see you.

The weather over the weekend saw many of us rush outside to make the most of the sun, but one woman was left furious as it meant her neighbours would once again start spending all their time in their garden - with hardly any clothes on. The anonymous woman claimed her neighbours are a retired couple who "love" the sun and often spend the entire summer lounging in their garden.

For the first few summers, this wasn't a problem for the woman, but now they've had work done to raise their patio - and they can see over her fence. Now, she has no choice but to look at her neighbours while they sunbathe, and they can't help but stare into her garden, which makes her feel uncomfortable.

In a post on Mumsnet, she explained: "When we moved in several years ago they would sit for hours in the sun at the end of their garden staring at our house. On every sunny day, they would be there. After lockdown they had their terrace/patio redone and it is now several feet higher and wider and it is HUGE. When they walk onto the patio they can see over the fence as the terrace is so high that their head and shoulders are now above the fence

"This year they have positioned their tables and chairs up to the fence and sit either here with their sun loungers facing our garden (looking directly at us) or at the back facing our house (looking directly at us). If the sun is out, they are out. They sit with their shirt off (husband) and in a swimsuit (wife). I find them intriguing and annoying in equal measure."

The woman added that she gets no respite from her neighbours because she works from home and can see them through the windows of her house. Commenters on the post, however, couldn't agree on the subject. Some said the neighbours were free to do whatever they wanted in their garden, while others agreed it would annoy them too.

Most, however, said the woman should look into getting a taller fence or planting "fast-growing bamboo" that would help to block their view of her garden - and her view of them. One person wrote: "People sunbathing in their garden is very normal. Being annoyed by people looking into your garden is also very normal, as is planting something or putting up a trellis for privacy."

Another said: "I doubt that the neighbours waste as much attention on you as you do on them, no matter in which direction they are facing." And a third posted: "If they love the sun, they are facing it and not specifically facing your house to stare at it. The sun is in their eyes love, they ain't staring at you."

[midgemental]

Bottoms up! Here’s the aperitif that aligns with your zodiac sign

Cheers to National Aperitif Day; here's the drink that sings to the spirit of your sign.

Although I’ve been a booze hound since puberty, here’s something I was today years old when I learned: An aperitif is a drink designed to stimulate the appetite.

The word aperitif is French, you can tell by the smugness and vowel count. Known in Italy as an “aperitivo,” both words trace to the Latin “aperire,” meaning “to open, or uncover.” They’re intended to open the appetite but in many cases uncover all manner of regrettable impulses and rogue nipples.

On May 16, we raise a glass to the glass on National Aperitif Day. Power Pisces, sommelier and beverage broker Shawna Allen tells The Post that an aperitif is “anything that gives you that tingle in your jaw, that’s your brain telling your body ‘I would like some food with this.’”

Erring to the dry rather than the sweet, the first mention of an aperitif comes courtesy of the 5th-century Christian ascetic and total buzz kill Diadochos of Photiki who wrote, “People who wish to discipline the sexual organs should avoid drinking those artificial concoctions which are called ‘aperitifs’ — presumably because they open a way to the stomach for the vast meal which is to follow.”

Here’s to unruly organs and catching a buzz before dinner. Read on to learn more about the classic aperitif that aligns with your zodiac sign.

ARIES (March 21 – April 19)
Negroni

Drink with gin, campari martini rosso and orange. The origin of the Negroni is hotly contested, just the way an Aries likes it.

Aries is ruled by Mars, the red-hot, temper-short planet of action and aggression. In kind, or war, the battle over the Negroni’s origin story is nothing short of a barroom brawl and every bit as entertaining. If you’re looking for a perfect, acrimonious accompaniment to a Negroni cocktail, saddle up to this Wikipedia talk page.

TAURUS (April 20 – May 20)
Bourbon and Blood

Bourbon and Blood, a luxe mix for the people of the bull.

Taurus is represented by the horned and horny bull and when provoked, both sign and totem go for gore. Enter the Bourbon and Blood, a strong drink gussied up with a tarragon sprig, perfect for these fancy leaning people. To boot, and for the unrepentantly bougie bull, this particular recipe comes courtesy of the Ritz Carlton in Maui.

GEMINI (May 21 – June 20)
Vodka martini
A Gemini decrees that martinis are best consumed in pairs.

This one is in honor of my martini-tipping double Gemini mother who imparted to me the poetic advice that, “Martinis are like t–s: three is two many, one is not enough, and two is just right.” True of a martini, true of the dual nature of the people of the twin.

CANCER (June 21 – July 22)
Ouzo

Ouzo, like Cancer, comes on sweet and leaves you reeling.

Cancer folks are ruled by the moody a– moon and as a result can be hard to predict and difficult to handle, much like the taste and effect of this anise-based aperitif. Black licorice forwards, ouzo has a relatively high sugar content, and the sweet taste hides a heavy hit and a sneaky hangover. Coming on sweet before leaning into punishment? A Cancer poem.

LEO (July 23 – August 22)
French 75

The French 75 was made famous in the 1943 film “Casablanca.” Shutterstock

Ever looking for someone or something to celebrate and never afraid to be the occasion themselves, Leo is the champagne of the zodiac, a crucial component in this classic cocktail. Leo rules the heart and the silver screen and in kind, is equal parts romantic and dramatic. Fittingly, the French 75 rose to fame after a floozy ordered it in the sweeping love story/gin joint propaganda film “Casablanca.”

VIRGO (August 23 – September 22)
Pimm’s Cup

Pimm’s, like Virgo, seems prim but low-key loves to party. Brent Hofacker – stock.adobe.com

Virgos, like most Brits, are covert deviants that come across as proper, prim and more than vaguely judgmental. Enter Pimm’s, an English-born aperitif chock full of vegetal notes, complex herbal tones and floral nuances. Virgo rules the guts and a Pimm’s Cup is said to soothe them, Virgo is also known to be fantastical about their temple bodies and this cocktail is garnished with an entire salad.

LIBRA (September 23 – October 22)
Vesper

Vesper martinis say yes to excess.

Libra is a sign that struggles to decide and can easily be convinced to tip toward excess. Enter the Vesper, which answers the drunkard’s dilemma “vodka or gin” by insisting on both. Add an effervescent lemon twist and you’ve got yourself the pre-dinner equivalent of an air sign.

SCORPIO (October 23 – November 21)
Last Word

Scorpio is a sign that would rather die than apologize and will take the last word even if they have to etch it on their gravestone. Enter this cocktail that looks like Ursula’s afterbirth and tastes bittersweet. Scorpio loves a secret, a cloak and dagger, and a trap door and this aperitif was born during Prohibition when alcohol could only be sold in private clubs.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22 – December 21)
Gimlet

The Gimlet is an optimist’s aperitif.

Sagittarius is where opportunity meets optimism, it’s the sign of making something out of nothing, a billion dollars out of a breakup, lemonade out of lemons, and a great cocktail out of a high seas disease.

History holds that the drink’s namesake, naval doctor Rear-Admiral Sir Thomas Desmond Gimlette, (Jesus Christ put that on a hand towel) suggested combining the medicinal ration of lime juice, used to prevent scurvy, alongside the allotted ration of gin to mask the taste and make the medicine go down a little easier. Seafaring and booze-slinging? What archer dreams are made of.

CAPRICORN (December 22 – January 19)
Carpano Antica Americano


Capricorn is daddy energy, it likes a club chair, a robust stock portfolio and being right. Enter Carpano Antica Formula vermouth. Well-rounded and rich, which is coincidentally what every Capricorn aspires to be, this vermouth describes itself as par excellence (eye roll) and ideal for making refined, exclusive cocktails like the Americano. Better than everyone else and reserved for the worthy? An aperitif with a superiority complex perfectly matches a sea goat.

AQUARIUS (January 20 – February 18)
Bitter Giuseppe (Cynar Manhattan)


Aquarians will see themselves in the weird ingredients and defiant advertising of Cynar.
The calling card of every Aquarius is being weird and Cynar is made with the essence of artichoke — if strange is a contest, match point. Add to it that Cynar is an abbreviation of Cynara, a mythical nymph who chose her independence over being Zeus’s concubine — a very Aquarian power play. She was later turned into an artichoke for her choice, a very Aquarian punishment. The aperitif was first hawked by Italian water bearer Ernesto Calindri using the resolutely Aquarian tagline of “Cynar, against the attrition of modern life”.

PISCES (February 19 – March 20)
Aperol Spritz

Aperol Spritz, like Pisces, is a gateway drug.

Like the average Pisces, an Aperol spritz comes across as a breezy, benign way to wile away the afternoon, perhaps under the glorious shade of a striped umbrella entertaining delusions of Capri but make no mistake, both sign and drink are a gateway drug. Five deep and you’ll wake up in an alley in Fort Lauderdale with neither shoes, shirt, nor dignity and only a receipt from a strip club ATM and a weird bruise to keep you company.


Astrologer Reda Wigle researches and irreverently reports back on planetary configurations and their effect on each zodiac sign. Her horoscopes integrate history, poetry, pop culture, and personal experience. She is also an accomplished writer who has profiled a variety of artists and performers, as well as extensively chronicled her experiences while traveling

https://nypost.com/astrology/national-a ... your-sign/

59-year-old Man Who Had Type 2 Diabetes for 25 Years is Cured by Stem Cells


Regular insulin and a syringe from ampoules and vials of medicines

Stem cells are being used more and more widely in treatments across the spectrum of medicine, but a recent breakthrough from Shanghai promises the best may still be yet to come.

A senior who had suffered from type-2 diabetes for 25 years hasn’t taken insulin for 33 months after he received a regenerative islet cell transplantation.

Diabetes, particularly type 2—the form that can develop in one’s life because of poor diet and lifestyle choices—is one of the most prevalent non-communicable diseases on Earth.

China in particular is one of the world’s diabetes hotspots, with 140 million people unable to make their own insulin, and so suffer from kidney problems, blindness, amputation, and cardiovascular problems.

But this new breakthrough, coming after 10 years of research and testing, may change this paradigm of sickness forever.

Yin Hao, a leading researcher on the team and director of Shanghai Changzheng Hospital’s Organ Transplant Center, said they took the patient’s own peripheral blood mononuclear cells and used existing methods to reprogram them back into pluripotent stem cells for injection into the pancreas.

“Our technology has matured and it has pushed boundaries in the field of regenerative medicine for the treatment of diabetes,” Yin, told China Daily whose team conducted the research with scientists from the Center for Molecular Cell Science at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Existing transplant treatments for type-2 diabetes are hindered by a lack of donor cells, and the complexity of pancreatic islet cell isolation technology.

Pancreatic islet cells are the major insulin-producing cells in the body, and the patients’ were almost completely inhibited. He relied on multiple insulin injections daily in addition to a kidney transplant.

After receiving the manufactured stem cells in 2021, he was weened off of external insulin over 11 weeks, after which his disease seemed to be largely gone.

“Follow-up examinations showed that the patient’s pancreatic islet function was effectively restored, and his renal function was within normal range,” Yin said. “Such results suggested that the treatment can avoid the progression of diabetic complications.”

The paper was published in Cell Discovery on April 30th, and future studies, the authors wrote, should explore the pharmacology of drugs that might provide off-the-shelf equivalents for islet transplantation.

[Misstee]

Photographer’s Image of ‘Smiling’ Black Bear Overlooking Pasadena Goes Viral
Johanna Turner's now-viral image showcases the coexistence of wildlife and urban areas in California
Published on Monday, May 13, 2024 | 6:34 am





A captivating photograph of a black bear appearing to smile while overlooking Pasadena has become a viral sensation on social media. The image, captured by Los Angeles wildlife photographer Johanna Turner, highlights the proximity of wildlife to urban areas in California.

In an exclusive interview with Pasadena Now, Turner, who lives in Reseda and has friends in the Pasadena area with private property where she has cameras set up, shared her inspiration behind the photograph.

“I’m always looking for ways to show how close wildlife is to Los Angeles and the city,” she explained. “This spot is a ridge line that as I’ve hiked it, I’ve seen a lot of animal tracks, so I know that animals use it and the view lends itself perfectly to the kind of image I’m trying to get.”

Turner’s initial interest in the spot was to photograph mountain lions, which are her favorite subject. She set up her trail camera, a regular Canon handheld camera with a motion sensor, on April 21. The camera uses a long exposure, with the shutter open for about 30 seconds, and only triggers once when an animal approaches, unlike camera traps that take a burst of photos.

“The animal approaching triggers the camera to go off and a person is nowhere near. I am at home in bed when the photo gets taken,” she said.

While there wasn’t much wildlife activity over the winter due to cold and rainy conditions, Turner noted that now that springtime is here, the animals are definitely up and about. She also mentioned that wildlife will be roaming everywhere this spring because of the water availability in streams and canyons from a good rainy winter, as opposed to drought conditions.

The bear’s relaxed appearance in the photograph has caught the attention of many. “It’s the relaxed face, which people take it as a smile, which is not really something a bear would be walking around smiling in the middle of the night, but that’s what catches our eye because that’s a familiar look,” Turner noted.

“But to that point, this is a very relaxed animal who’s healthy and not stressed.”

Turner’s work aims to raise awareness about the diverse wildlife in the San Gabriel Mountains, including mountain lions, bobcats, gray foxes, striped skunks, and several kinds of owls.

“What I hope to do is show people what we have because they might not be aware how beautiful and great and how rich in wildlife our mountains are,” she said.

As bears become more active this spring, Turner believes that fostering a connection with these animals can help prevent conflicts.

“I believe that the more we can have a connection with an animal and see them as beautiful or valuable rather than a pest, people will be more likely to take steps to keep their trash secured and not leave food outside that would attract bears and get them into trouble,” she explained.

Turner collaborates with conservation groups such as the Cougar Conservancy and Arroyos and Foothills Conservancy to identify and preserve critical wildlife corridors. She also sells her wildlife photos and contributes a portion of the proceeds to various animal conservation groups.

“We’re working on identifying where animals are crossing and preserving that land before it gets pinched off and preventing that natural flow,” she said.

Baristas with special needs serve up smiles, drinks at Lincoln coffee shop
Source: 1011 Now



People come to Rose Cat Coffee Co. & Reading Society in Lincoln for drinks, books and the smiles behind the counter. Sometimes the baristas even give out hugs.

"We employ individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, giving them opportunities for equitable, meaningful employment," said Brenda Kasaty, the owner. "It is my hope and my dream that this becomes a place where Lincoln as a whole gets to know our employees, relationships are built and community is built."

Elissa Fuelberth, a barista with Down syndrome, greets people three days a week. Kasaty is a trainer at CrossFit Lincoln. That's where she got to know Fuelberth and asked if she'd like to apply for a job.

"I love working here and seeing everyone's smiling faces," Fuelbert said. "It's surprising that everyone came and support everyone here. I really love to see everyone."

On Mondays, Fuelberth is joined by Courtney Roth behind the counter. Roth has her own hurdles to overcome, but she doesn't let it get in the way of her job.

"I help customers. I cash them in and out. I clean," Roth said. "I sometimes get frazzled and stressed around people. It's something that people are going to just learn how to cope and handle. I feel like it's going to make my confidence go back up."

Kasaty called the business Rose Cat to pay homage to a friend of the owner's daughter - Ellia Westburg. A muscular disorder kept her in a wheelchair, but Westburg gave herself the alter ego name of Rose Cat.

"She would put on cat ears and a cape, and Rose Cat would do all of the things that maybe her body couldn't do," Kasaty said. "It was her way of having fun."

In October of 2022, Westburg passed away, but Rose Cat lives on to help others like her. Kasaty even installed a small library in the coffee shop because Westburg loved to read.

Kasaty is a social worker by education and has experience working with people that have special needs.

"And so the dream kind of started there because once they age out of the public school system at age 21, there's really just not a lot of options."

The first official step began when Kasaty filed for an LLC in March of 2023. She spent a year studying other businesses with similar models, learning how to make coffee and looking for a place to set up shop.

Now Roth and Fuelberth list options for customers every day, asking for their names and if they prefer decaf or regular.

"I think it's cool to be a part of something that gives them this opportunity," said Kyra Boesiger, a shift manager who's known Fuelberth for about a decade. Fuelberth held her friend's hand and slightly swung them. "Because they're perfectly capable of doing anything that everyone else is."

People can fill out job applications on the Rose Cat Coffee Co. website or they can come in to the shop and talk to her. Kasaty said she meets people where they're at when working with them.

"I really want the community of Lincoln to realize how incredible they are - to build a community here that goes out and it just kind of spreads," Kasaty said.

Rose Cat Coffee Co. & Reading Society is located at 5600 48th Street, south of Nebraska Parkway. You can say hi to the baristas, order coffee or relax with a good book from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Model suggests subluminal warp drives may be possible


Energy condition evaluation for the constant velocity Warp Shell. The direction of motion is along +X. The cross-section along Z is aligned with the bubble center. The minimum value across all observers is shown. Positive (blue) and zero (white) are physical and negative (red) is violating. Units are in [J/m3]. Credit: arXiv (2024). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2405.02709

A team of physicists from the University of Alabama in Huntsville and the Advanced Propulsion Laboratory at Applied Physics, in New York, has developed a model that shows it might be possible to create a subluminal warp drive.

In their paper published in the journal Classical and Quantum Gravity, the group describes the physics behind their approach and why they believe it shows that warp drives may not have to be relegated to science fiction stories.

Warp drives, made famous by the television series "Star Trek," are imagined engines that could push vehicles through space at speeds that are currently impossible—perhaps even at the speed of light.

Such speeds are attainable in the science fiction realm, due to compression of the space in front of a spaceship, the ship passing through, and then expanding the space behind it back to its natural state.

According to current theory, it would not be possible to construct warp drives in the real world. But current theories may have to be amended if the work by the team on this new effort pans out.

The work builds on work done by Miguel Alcubierre, who, back in 1994, published a paper that used physics to describe how a warp drive might work—unfortunately, the paper included the need for negative energy, which may or may not exist.

In this new study, the team has built a model that draws similar conclusions, but without the need for negative, or any other types of exotic energy.

The team blends both new and traditional physics techniques based on gravity to describe the creation of a warp bubble around an object, allowing it to travel at speeds that are far beyond those that have been proposed to date—though, not at or above the speed of light.

The engine behind the technology, the researchers suggest, would involve combining a shell made of stable matter with a "shift vector distribution" similar in design to that described by Alcubierre.

They further suggest such an engine could allow for speeds near the speed of light. But they also note that building such an engine is still far beyond current technology capabilities, which means if such an engine can be built, it will not happen for a very long time.

More information: Jared Fuchs et al, Constant velocity physical warp drive solution, Classical and Quantum Gravity (2024). DOI: 10.1088/1361-6382/ad26aa (paywalled). On arXiv: DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2405.02709 (open access)

[HogwartsExpress]

Tourists flock to 1,000-year-old cedar tree resembling Studio Ghibli's Totoro



Local and foreign tourists are reportedly flocking to a rural Japanese village to see a cedar tree that looks like Totoro from the Studio Ghibli film “My Neighbor Totoro.”

The "Kosugi no Osugi" cedar tree, located in the town of Sakegawa in Yamagata Prefecture, is over 1,000 years old.

The tree first gained popularity after appearing in Japan Railways Group posters and TV programs over 30 years ago.

It has attracted a new wave of tourists following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions.



The “Kosugi no Osugi” (“The Great Cedar of Kosugi”) cedar tree, known to locals as a tree of matchmaking and fertility, stands 20 meters (65.6 feet) tall with a trunk circumference of 6.3 meters (20.7 feet).

Due to its resemblance to the character Totoro from “My Neighbor Totoro,” the tree also became known as the “Totoro Tree.”

After the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, it has seen an influx of both local and foreign tourists. More than 800 came to visit between May 3 and May 7 alone last year.

Temporary parking lots have been taken to accommodate the increasing tourists. One resident reportedly started selling drinks from a kitchen car, creating a social space for visitors.

Despite requests for trimming to maintain its appearance, the local government maintains that the tree is considered sacred, particularly in the indigenous Shinto religion.

src: https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/tourist ... ccounter=1

[Zbignieww]

The Mystery Of The "Hanging Pillar" Of Veerabhadra Temple
There are 70 pillars at the temple. One appears not to touch the ground.



At the Veerabhadra Temple in Lepakshi, Andhra Pradesh, India, there are hundreds of ornate features, carved out in the 16th Century CE.

At the complex, as well as a monolithic bull (carved from one giant slab of granite) in the image of the Hindu god Shiva's mount, there is one particular feature that draws the attention of tourists. One pillar among many appears not to touch the ground. Visitors attempt to pass thin pieces of cloth, paper, and other objects under the pillar, but as you can see below the stone does touch the ground on one corner.

The temple is so well-designed that legends have sprung up, crediting the architects with making it deliberately look like it was floating, and other legends stating that it was dislodged into its current resting position by a British engineer during the British Empire era.

"The architectural and ornamental elements such as sculptures; pillars of natya- mandapas elaborately carved with the figures of musicians, gods and goddess, and dancers portray a remarkable concentration of skills of 16th Century artists and crafts workers of South India," UNESCO writes of the site.

"The unique sculptures of the temple, carved out of granite boulder like Nandi (monolithic bull) and Naga-sivalingaare significant for the use of material and its scale. The property thus bears a witness to human artistic and creative endeavors."

However, it is unlikely that the pillar was made to rest only on one corner by design. Similar legends have sprung up about the Windsor Guildhall in England, which contains pillars that don't quite make it up to the ceiling. There were rumors that architect and astronomer Sir Christopher Wren knew pillars were unnecessary for keeping the building up, but was forced by the council to place them there after they became concerned about building collapse.

According to the legend, Wren placed pillars there but defiantly left them a little short of the ceiling to prove an architectural point, or as a joke. However, they were likely not there in Wren's day, and were merely placed there as a decorative feature in 1829.

Similarly, the pillar at Veerabhadra Temple was likely moved into its seemingly-floating position by seismic activity, or a mistake during construction.

https://www.iflscience.com/the-mystery- ... mple-74209

[johngriffen]

I sometimes get REALLY DEPRESSED reviewing the news these days.
It's always about a global pandemic threatening life as we know it,
protests around the world, stupid politicians, natural disasters,
or some other really bad story.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH

Welcome to The mobi weekly news magazine
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​Naked sunbather chases wild boar through park after it steals his laptop bag

A naked sunbather was seen chasing wild boar through a park after it stole his laptop bag.
Amusing photographs from Germany show the man running after the animal to try and claim the plastic bag back.
But the cheeky boar and its two piglets appear to be too quick for the sunbather, who can't keep up with their speedy little trotters.
As the incident unfolds, groups of friends and family sat on the grass watch on and laugh.
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The incident happened at Teufelssee Lake - a bathing spot in the Grunwell Forest in Berlin, Germany.

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