Latest news with #NewAtlas
The Verge
10-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Verge
Robot coyotes are protecting the Blue Angels from airport pests.
Posted Jul 10, 2025 at 1:33 PM UTC Robot coyotes are protecting the Blue Angels from airport pests. Built atop a 20 mph Traxxas RC car, the UGVs are upgraded with plastic coyotes to make them more intimidating and cost around $3,000 each, according to New Atlas . Testing is still under way, including at the Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida where the Blue Angels call home.
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Wild cockatoos are learning how to use water fountains
Animals constantly adapt to their environments, but keeping up with humanity's dramatic influence on the natural world poses unique challenges. While this unfortunately ends in disaster for many species, some populations are figuring out new ways to navigate urban spaces. Back in 2022, wildlife biologists confirmed that a community of wild, sulfur-crested cockatoos in Sydney, Australia had learned how to open the lids of curbside trash bins on garbage day in order to snack on locals' leftovers. But that's not all these birds can do. A similar group of Australian 'cockies' are also figuring out the mechanics of drinking fountains in public parks. This isn't simply pressing a button to get a drink, either. The local park's fountain design requires constant pressure to enable water flow from the tap necessitating the use of both feet. The latest behavioral discoveries were recently documented in the journal Biology Letters. 'Overall, these observations showed that individuals operated the drinking fountain using coordinated action with both feet, with one (most often the right) foot on the twist-handle (valve) and one foot gripping the rubber spout (bubbler) or both feet on the valve,' the team wrote in their paper. 'The weight of the bird would then be lowered to turn the twist-handle clockwise and keep it from springing back and the head turned to access the flowing water.' As New Atlas explained on June 4, the study developed after lead author Barbara Klump at the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior witnessed the behavior firsthand. Klump wondered how often the cockatoos engaged in the adaptation, and enlisted collaborators from Western Sydney University, the Australian National University, and the University of Vienna to help investigate. After identifying the fountains that the birds stopped at most frequently (as evidenced by beak bitemarks on their plastic outlets), the team installed cameras nearby to monitor the hotspots. Next, they flagged 24 regularly visiting cockatoos and marked them with temporary red dots. The team then stepped back and watched the park's birds do their thing. After 44 total days of recording, Klump's team observed that the cockatoos attempted to use the drinking fountains 525 times over at least the last two years. These attempts weren't surefire ways to receive water, however. While the cockatoos showcased multiple strategies when trying to use the fountains, the most common moves that led to both success and failure were virtually identical. Approximately 41 percent of the birds successfully utilized the fountains. That said, the regulars marked with the red paint evidently learned a bit better through trial and error, achieving their goal about 52 percent of the time. Interestingly, the team's previous study on the garbage bin-opening cockatoos indicated a nearly identical success rate in their marked birds. The team theorizes this suggests parallels between either the physical difficulty of both tasks, or the time it takes to learn the behavior. Researchers also noticed another fascinating detail after they compared their previous observations on the garbage bin-opening cockatoos with their water fountain brethren. 'In contrast… where the bin-opening was heavily biased towards males, we observed no sex bias in attempts to use, or success at, the drinking fountain,' they wrote in the study. 'This might suggest that innovativeness per se does not vary between sexes, but rather is the result of an extrinsic difference between the resources.' The study's authors suggest bin lids might necessitate more physical strength from the birds, thus requiring 'modifying the cost-reward trade-off for smaller females.' Another possibility is that competition for the limited garbage resources may lead to favoring dominant males, whereas an essentially endless water supply allows more equal access for all the birds. Regardless, the researchers believe both the fountain and trashcan adaptations illustrate how innovation may be a 'key mechanism' for certain parrot species to continue adapting in the face of human-induced change. Given how clever they have already proven to be, these likely won't be the last adaptations we see from them.
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Experts celebrate as trail camera captures rare footage of elusive species not seen in decades: 'Such a large and striking animal'
A researcher has made history after securing the first-ever scientific observation of an animal that had eluded scientists for decades. During a six-month expedition on the island of Papua New Guinea, František Vejmělka, a doctoral candidate from the Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences and the University of South Bohemia, spotted the Mallomys istapantap, also known as the subalpine woolly rat. As IFL Science noted, Vejmělka documented the sighting in a study published in the journal Mammalia According to New Atlas, the woolly rat is one of the largest murine rodents in the world, and the study said it is the largest rodent of the Australian and Oceanian zoogeographic regions. Murine rodents are a large group of "Old World" rats and mice that comprises over 500 species, per Animal Diversity Web. As one of the largest murine rodents, the woolly rat had never been scientifically discovered in the wild since the species was first described in 1989 using a historic specimen from a museum. Vejmělka utilized camera traps and help from indigenous hunters to obtain the rare footage of the woolly rat. "The combination of modern and traditional detection methods enriched by the immense traditional hunting knowledge of Indigenous communities resulted in the first specimen records of this remarkable rodent in over 30 years and the first scientific observations of living animals," the study read, per IFL Science. In a statement, Vejmělka acknowledged the significance of the discovery and the importance of research ventures. "It's astonishing that such a large and striking animal has remained so poorly studied," Vejmělka said. "How much more is there to discover about the biodiversity of tropical mountains?" Thanks to trail cameras, many research expeditions can obtain vital information that not only captures rare sightings but also helps gauge the health and function of secluded ecosystems and habitats. This can go a long way in studying delicate food chains without interfering or interacting with nearby wildlife. Do you think more places of worship should embrace clean energy? Yes — it sets a positive example Only if it saves money No opinion Absolutely not Click your choice to see results and speak your mind. Conservation efforts can significantly impact our well-being by preserving natural resources and promoting healthy ecosystems. Conservationism can also directly benefit human health by ensuring healthy food chains. Join our free newsletter for good news and useful tips, and don't miss this cool list of easy ways to help yourself while helping the planet.
Korea Herald
29-05-2025
- Automotive
- Korea Herald
Volkswagen Atlas: Big on space, smooth on road
VW rolls out flagship SUV in Korea, targeting Hyundai-dominated segment Volkswagen has rolled out the Atlas, its largest three-row SUV, in the South Korean market for the first time, catering to the country's strong appetite for family vehicles. All eyes are on how the German automaker will penetrate the SUV market currently dominated by Hyundai Motor Group and recover its annual sales to 10,000 units. First introduced in the US in 2017, the all-wheel-drive family SUV is one of Volkswagen's four new car models launching this year, including the Golf hatchback, ID.5 electric SUV and Golf GTI. Competing with Hyundai Motor Company's Palisade SUV, which sold over 6,000 units in the first quarter, the New Atlas boasts German precision engineering -- highlighting a comfortable and stable driving experience. The Korea Herald was able to try out the SUV in a recent media test drive covering some 136 kilometers across Seoul and Incheon. The most noticeable feature of the vehicle is how smoothly it navigates the road. Despite its large body size, it maintained firm handling with little vibration even on sharp turns. The car's appeal extends beyond its stability. Powered by Volkswagen Group's turbocharged 2.0 TSI EA888 evo4 engine -- also found in performance models such as the Golf GT -- the Atlas delivers impressive performance. It took on hills with ease accompanied by a powerful engine sound that added a hint of sportiness. On highways, however, the noise felt louder and a little more irritating. The Atlas also features Volkswagen's latest advanced driver assistance system, the This reduces fatigue during long-distance driving with Travel Assist, by automatically adjusting the car's speed, maintaining a safe distance between vehicles and keeping the vehicle within its lane. The Adaptive Cruise Control supports stop-and-go from 0 to 200 kilometers per hour, blind spot monitoring, rear traffic alert and emergency braking. Volkswagen stressed that the New Atlas has the largest body size in its segment in the Korean market, measuring 5,095 millimeters in length, with a width of 1,990 millimeters and a height of 1,780 millimeters. It also has a class-leading trunk capacity of up to 2,735 liters. Folding the second and third-row seats also creates ample floor space, making it ideal for camping and other outdoor leisure activities. The SUV accentuates a motorsport-inspired design package, with LED headlamps and an illuminated central logo for a bold look. The rear sports connected LED lamps, an illuminated logo and a body-colored bumper. The spacious interior is also emphasized by the driver's seat, which includes a 10.25-inch digital cockpit and a windshield head-up display. The New Atlas comes in a single trim and is available in six- or seven-seater configurations, priced at 68.5 million won ($49,800) and 67.7 million won, respectively.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
After a Single Concussion, Kids Are 15 Percent Less Likely to Go to College
More concerning news from the traumatic brain injury (TBI) front: a new study shows that kids who experience just one concussion are 15 percent less likely to end up going to college — the latest research to ring alarm bells about various ways that the long-term impacts of TBIs might manifest. The study, published last week in the European Journal of Epidemiology, was conducted by a cohort of Finnish scientists and physicians. Using data from the Finnish Care Register for Health Care, they analyzed data collected from patients aged 17 and under who received hospital-level care for a brain injury, ranging from emergency visits to the ER for seemingly mild concussions to treatment for more severe head traumas. What they found, according to lead study author Julius Möttönen, was alarming. "A mild, single concussion is often considered a relatively harmless event, but our research suggests that it can have long-term effects on learning and cognitive abilities," Möttönen, a doctoral researcher at the University of Tampere in Finland, told New Atlas of the study's findings. "This should get more attention in both healthcare and schools." According to New Atlas, the researchers obtained the records of 136,828 patients from the Finnish registry; 24,039 of those records, they found, contained details regarding higher education for patients over the age of 26. Within that group, researchers found that 8,487 received hospital treatment for pediatric TBIs, or "pTBIs." About 7,600 patients in that cohort were treated for more generalized concussions, while the remainder had a "specific intracranial injury" like brain bleeding, according to the study. The average pTBI patient age at the time of their treatment was 13 years old. The pTBI group was then compared against a reference group of 15,552 pediatric patients who, instead of a head injury, had received hospital-level treatment for limb injuries like broken ankles and wrists. The results were fascinating — and troubling. Overall, the scientists concluded that individuals from the pTBI cohort attended higher education at a 15 percent lower rate than their non-brain-injured counterparts. Within that group, the small cohort that experienced a specific cranial incident like a brain bleed were even less likely to engage with higher education, entering college and university at a rate 22 percent lower than those who experienced concussions. And even when someone with a pTBI did go to college, they were 19 percent less likely than their peers to go on to receive an advanced degree. "People with pTBI had lower education attainment at all higher educational levels than the reference population with orthopedic injuries," reads the study, noting that the level of "education attainment" achieved by pTBI folks "was lower regardless of the injury severity." In other words, even a mild concussion was correlated with a lower likelihood of pursuing education beyond high school. Of course, the decision to seek higher education is complicated, and layered in factors like a person's socioeconomic background and identity. (That said, we should note that Finnish universities — and all Finnish education — is free for Finnish citizens, as well as citizens of the European Union, European Economic Area member states, and Switzerland.) But while the study's findings remain correlative, they add to an ever-growing body of scientific literature revealing the long-term consequences of brain injuries — from seemingly low-level concussions to life-threatening traumas — and their connection to learning disabilities, mental health challenges and disorders, behavioral changes, and long-term impairments in cognitive function. Hopefully, the Finnish paper leads to further study of how even comparatively minor head injuries may continue to impact someone's life years after their incident — and how kids grappling with life after a TBI might be best supported by schools and leaders in education. "For future monitoring of pTBI patients," write the study authors, "it is important to pay attention to the possible long-term negative cognitive impact that can lead to lower educational attainment." More on brain injuries: One Out of Three Former NFL Players Think They Have CTE, the Traumatic Brain Disease Linked to Murders and Suicides
