The 'Peter Pan' tadpoles have voracious appetites for their fellow hatchlings and toad eggs. Credit: Etienne Littlefair Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Genetically modified, cannibal tadpoles may be the solution to Australia’s nearly century-old invasive cane toad problem. According to researchers, removing a single gene that controls production of a hormone called thyroxine can create swarms of tadpoles incapable of their usual metamorphosis into adult amphibians. Cane toad tadpoles have ravenous appetites already, so prolonging this life stage allows the modified hatchlings to devour as many as three times the toad eggs than normal. “We seem to have ended up with these sort of quite large, relatively long-lived voracious cannibals that are just ideally suited to control the numbers of their own species,” Rick Shine, an evolutionary biologist and ecologist at Australia’s Macquarie University, explained to Australia’s ABC News. Researchers also tested their methods by introducing a solution to knock out the tadpoles’ pigment gene. Credit: Etienne Littlefair It’s been about 90 years since Australia introduced tropical cane toads (Rhinella marina) onto Queensland farms. Around 2,400 toads were released into the wild in 1935 in an attempt to rein in agricultural pests. But instead of controlling destructive sugar cane beetle populations, the amphibians quickly became their own ecological catastrophe. With no major predators and a devastating effect on native reptile species, the cane toad turned into a case study for invasive species. Today, an estimated 200 million cane toads are hopping across northern Australia with no signs of slowing down. Female cane toads lay upwards of 30,000 eggs per clutch twice a year. Researchers theorize that genetically modifiying even a fraction of those clutches could significantly curb overall numbers. Unfortunately, Shine’s team still faces a bit of a conundrum: If their Peter Pan tadpoles never grow up, then they aren’t able to reproduce more cannibalistic offspring. The team’s current process requires manually injecting individual frog eggs with a solution that neutralizes the thyroxine hormone, which isn’t possible to scale. Shine and colleagues are already working on some potential solutions. One option may involve adding thyroxine into a body of water after releasing the genetically modified tadpoles, thereby allowing some of them to grow into adulthood. Those cane toads would in turn eventually produce their own Peter Pan hatchlings, allowing researchers to repeat the cycle. Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. “If we could raise those young toads to adult size and breed them, then we would have 20,000 or 30,000 Peter Pan tadpoles per clutch,” Shine explained. “It wouldn’t really take very many adult toads with that genetic change for us to have a vast supply of the sorts of tadpoles we’d like.” Work still needs to be done to produce healthy adult Peter Pan toads, but Shine’s team believes further research will produce the desired effects. Meanwhile, the project will require rigorous evaluation by Australian regulatory authorities before trials can begin in the wild.

Nature, Published online: 09 April 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-00911-9Porous crystals have been engineered to trap ‘oily’ molecules — enabling X-ray structures to be determined for these compounds that defy standard crystallographic analysis.

An analysis of star movements from the Gaia spacecraft reveals that the Small Magellanic Cloud — a satellite galaxy bound to the Milky Way — is being torn apart by its larger neighbor.

Quick face tracking test in Blender. Essentially, it’s just an ordinary talking head scene — but with some dynamic face action and head turns to keep things interesting. Made with FaceTracker add-on. submitted by /u/nord_little [link] [comments]

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Acer smartphones will launch in India next week. E-commerce website Amazon India has teased the launch date of Acer smartphones in the country. The Taiwanese-based brand originally planned to unveil the devices last month, but this was postponed for unknown reasons. Although Acer is yet to disclose the official names of the upcoming models, previous leaks stated that the Acerpure Acerone Liquid S162E4 and Acerone Liquid S272E4 smartphones will debut in the country. They are likely to run on MediaTek chipsets.An Amazon listing for the upcoming Acer smartphones reveal that they will be unveiled in India on April 15. The teaser showcases a large camera module with the tagline "The next horizon."Acer smartphones were originally scheduled to land in the country on March 25, but that did not happen. The Amazon microsite didn't include the names of the upcoming handsets, but it is speculated that Acer will launch the Acerone Liquid S162E4 and Acerone Liquid S272E4 smartphones. These two models previously surfaced on the Acerpure India website, revealing specifications. They are anticipated to come with AI-based features.Acerone Liquid S162E4, Liquid S272E4 SpecificationsAs per the listing, the Acerone Liquid S162E4 has a 6.5-inch HD+ (720 x 1,600 pixels) LCD screen with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection. It runs on the MediaTek Helio P35 SoC. It is listed to have a 16-megapixel primary rear sensor alongside a 0.08-megapixel sensor.The Acerone Liquid S272E4 was spotted with features including a 6.7-inch display, 20-megapixel main rear camera sensor, and a 0.3-megapixel secondary sensor. It is likely to use a customised version of the MediaTek Helio P35 chipset.Both Acerone Liquid S162E4 and Acerone Liquid S272E4 are listed with 5-megapixel selfie shooters. They run on the Android 14 operating system and offer 4GB of RAM alongside 64GB of onboard storage. They pack a 5,000mAh battery.Affiliate links may be automatically generated - see our ethics statement for details. For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube. Further reading: Acer, Acer Smartphones, Acerone Liquid S162E4, Acerone Liquid S272E4 Nithya P Nair Nithya P Nair is a journalist with more than five years of experience in digital journalism. She specialises in business and technology beats. A foodie at heart, Nithya loves exploring new places (read cuisines) and sneaking in Malayalam movie dialogues to spice up conversations. More Related Stories

News Palworld Studio’s CEO Would “Never Allow” an Acquisition – Communications Director The CEO of Pocketpair might consider an acquisition when he's older, but Buckley believes that the company is too busy for it now. Posted By Joelle Daniels | On 10th, Apr. 2025 While Palworld developer Pocketpair has been gearing up to start publishing games, the company’s communications director and publishing manager, Jon Buckley, spoke about how the CEO would never allow the company to be bought out. Speaking to IGN, Buckley answered a question about what would happen of Pocketpair were offered an acquisition deal. “Our CEO [Takuro Mizobe] would never allow it,” responded Buckley. “He’d never allow it. He’d never allow it. He would never, never allow it. He likes doing his own thing and he likes being his own boss. He doesn’t like people telling him what to do.” Buckley believes that if Pocketpair were to be acquired, it would likely only happen once Mizobe were to start thinking about retirement. However, he doesn’t believe that it would be happening anytime soon. Rather, because Pocketpair is involved in quite a few things, including Palworld as a major IP, the company will be quite busy for a while. “So I would be shocked,” continued Buckley. “Maybe when [Mizobe]’s old, and he might just sell it off for money. And that would be sad, but in my lifetime, I probably won’t see it. No, it’ll be interesting to see where the two paths go. We, Pocketpair, are obviously only involved in where the game path is going. Palworld as an IP, we are involved, but it’s very much in the hands of Aniplex and Sony Music who are steering that ship right now. We are just offering our advice and thoughts as they take that.” Interestingly, Buckley’s statement run counter to ones made by Mizobe back in March 2024, when he said in an interview that while the studio was happy with its independence, it would be “open to consider offers for partnership or acquisition”. When it comes to the success of Palworld and it becoming a major IP, Pocketpair announced a joint venture with Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) and Aniplex back in July 2024. Dubbed Palworld Entertainment Inc., the venture would focus on further developing the IP, including potentially global merchandising and licensing. Buckley has also previously spoken about bringing Palworld on to the Nintendo Switch 2. In an interview, he revealed that the studio would start considering it once more details about the console were revealed, and if it turned out to be powerful enough to run the game. “We haven’t seen those specs yet,” said Buckley back in March. “Like everyone else, we’re waiting. I’m walking around GDC hoping someone will tell me them, but everyone I’ve spoken to says they haven’t even seen them.” “If [Switch 2]’s beefy enough, it’s 100% worth considering,” he said about the technical hurdles the studio might face. “We did a lot of optimization for Steam Deck, which we were really happy with. Still work to do, but we’re really happy with how it turned out. So we would like to get it on more handhelds if possible.” Alongside working on Palworld, Pocketpair is also working with Tales of Kenzera: Zau developer Surgent Studios on its next title. The game doesn’t yet have a name, but has been described as “short and weird”. The studio and publisher have also confirmed that it will be a horror game. Tagged With: Atomfall Publisher:Rebellion Developments Developer:Rebellion Developments Platforms:PS5, Xbox Series X, PS4, Xbox One, PCView More Monster Hunter Wilds Publisher:Capcom Developer:Capcom Platforms:PS5, Xbox Series X, PCView More South of Midnight Publisher:Microsoft Developer:Compulsion Games Platforms:Xbox Series X, PCView More Amazing Articles You Might Want To Check Out! Palworld Studio’s CEO Would “Never Allow” an Acquisition – Communications Director The CEO of Pocketpair might consider an acquisition when he's older, but Buckley believes that the company is ... Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Trailer Highlights Monoco and His Monster-Copying Skills The ineffable Gestral can copy techniques from Nevrons for use in battle and obtain different benefits dependi... Shigeru Miyamoto Fought Against Wii Sports Being a Pack-In Game on the Wii – Reggie Fils-Aime In light of the backlash towards Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, Reggie Fils-Aime recounts a story about Wii S... Former Nintendo PR Managers Believe It Should “Eat the Cost” of Tariffs for Switch 2 Launch Former Nintendo of America PR managers Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang believe that Nintendo is in a unique position... The Crew – Ubisoft Argues in Lawsuit That Players Never Had Ownership of the Game Ubisoft is currently in the midst of a lawsuit by fans of The Crew who have accused the company of breaking co... Physical Nintendo Switch 2 Edition Titles Won’t Require an Additional Download While first-party Switch 2 Edition games will not need additional downloads for the physical release, third-pa... View More

Messofanego Member Oct 25, 2017 29,298 UK OT subtitle courtesy of aidan​ 🛒Platform(s): PC - Steam | PlayStation | Xbox 📦Subscription: PC Game Pass, Xbox Play Game Pass, PlayStation Plus ⚙️Demo: No (Steam Next Fest 2024) 🗓️Release Date: April 10th 2025 🧬Genre: Puzzle, mystery, adventure, deck builder, metroidbrainia, roguelite 💳Price: $26.99, 26.99€, £22.49 👲🏾Player(s): 1 💽Format: Digital 🧑🏾‍💻Developer: Dogubomb (10) 📢Publisher: Raw Fury 🗺️Location: Hollywood, California 💾Size: 6 GB ⏳Game length: 15-200 hours Welcome to Mt. Holly, the mysterious manor with shifting rooms. In Blue Prince, you embark on a genre-defying experience, filled with a unique mix of mystery, strategy, and puzzles that weave together to create an unpredictable journey. Will your explorative steps lead you to the rumored Room 46? Upon reaching a closed door in Mt. Holly, you decide what room appears behind it and each decision shapes your path as you navigate through the manor. Every door can reveal new and exciting chambers that contain their own unique challenges and secrets. But be careful how you draft, for each day the manor's floor plan resets and the rooms you saw today may not be the same rooms you see tomorrow. Your progress each day is shaped by the rooms you select to draft and the tools you find within them. Items in the game can be used in a number of creative ways to fuel your exploration deeper into the house, allowing you to adopt unique strategies to combat the challenges that each day brings. Yet, tread wisely – the house resets each dawn, erasing all but the permanent upgrades to your estate blueprint. That is, if you were clever enough to find one! As the heir of Mt. Holly, you have been tasked to explore its shifting halls in search of Room 46. Yet as your journey takes you further into the mansion's depths, you start to discover that there is more lurking under the surface than a missing room. Investigate a past woven with the threads of blackmail, political intrigue, and the mysterious disappearance of a local children's book author. The deeper you venture, the more you realize that the past is closer than it appears. ReviewsReview Thread Opencritic (91, 95% critics recommend) | Metacritic (92, Universal Acclaim) Media View: https://youtu.be/W2hB9PjugK0?si=spcOEemSBukAuQB1 ​  Last edited: 53 minutes ago Belker Member Oct 27, 2017 785 Great title, OP.   colorboy Member Apr 5, 2025 11 I am having trouble to find the point of this game without reading too much to keep surprises. The idea of "roguelike puzzle adventure" sounds counterintuitive to me   Mau Member Oct 25, 2017 3,494 Yay! Here for this   Doomburrito Member Feb 9, 2018 1,316 It's wild how I've gone from, "the demo did nothing for me" to "I'm having trouble sleeping because I'm so excited to play this"   Westbahnhof The Fallen Oct 27, 2017 10,735 Austria I played the demo so long ago I can't even remember WHY I loved it. I just know it's been on my wishlist and I'm excited for the exploration. Haven't read any reviews or anything besides scores.  ara Member Oct 26, 2017 13,607 Very excited to give this a try with the SO later today. Not sure if I should ignore this thread and only pop in when I have a question, cause I suspect I'll have lots of those, but otherwise I'd like to discover everything on my own. Or our own, if the SO is into it too.   Linkin Member Nov 4, 2024 70 Seems like a great title. I'm glad its a day one on PS Plus.   Westbahnhof The Fallen Oct 27, 2017 10,735 Austria colorboy said: I am having trouble to find the point of this game without reading too much to keep surprises. The idea of "roguelike puzzle adventure" sounds counterintuitive to me Click to expand... Click to shrink... The demo isn't available anymore, right? That's too bad, I feel you could really tell what the base premise of the game is in there, giving you a non-spoiler (since it's basically the real game) idea of how the roguelike mechanic works, and what you're trying to achieve.   Titantodd Member May 3, 2023 2,697 Hell yeah! Great OP. So excited to dive in tonight. Absolutely loved the demo, bit I was fully on board for the concept when a trailer got shown at Day of the Devs last summer. Can't believe we're getting this and Promise Mascot Agency on the same day, and I'm stuck here at work till 5pm like a chump.  Uzupedro Member May 16, 2020 13,477 Rio de Janeiro Excited to dive in 👁 Haven't seen anything about the game beyond the SoP trailer and the same few screenshots.   manustany Unshakable Resolve Member Oct 27, 2017 4,640 The Space Mildly excited for this game. Will give it a go when I'm done with South of Midnight.   toythatkills Member Oct 26, 2017 2,166 London, UK Sorry OP, but I'm not reading your post. Partly because I want to go in as blind as possible, partly because I'm busy refreshing all the store pages waiting to see which one unlocks first. Thank you though!  Ohlando Member Aug 24, 2024 1,020 It's cool that this is on the subscription plans, there'll be a lot more people getting in on this.   Westbahnhof The Fallen Oct 27, 2017 10,735 Austria toythatkills said: Sorry OP, but I'm not reading your post. Partly because I want to go in as blind as possible, partly because I'm busy refreshing all the store pages waiting to see which one unlocks first. Thank you though! Click to expand... Click to shrink... I wish I could do the same, it's even my day off, but life has had other plans for me and I got tickets for the Burgtheater in Vienna today, so I can't be playing. Ironically, and this is why I'm bringing this up, we're seeing "No exit" by Jean-Paul Sartre, when the Blue Prince gameplay loop is all about exiting rooms.  lojo Member Oct 27, 2017 766 Nice OP, Messofanego. Cant wait to start this after South of Midnight.   Aaron D. Member Oct 25, 2017 10,072 Great thread, OP! Looking forward to diving in tonight. Many thanks to Jaded Alyx for reminding users of Steam Notes feature in the Review Thread. Jaded Alyx said: You can also pin them to the screen while playing Click to expand... Click to shrink... Jaded Alyx said: They're handy. You can change the transparency when pinned: They also appear on the game's Library page: And you can access them on the web too: Sign In steamcommunity.com Click to expand... Click to shrink... Perfect use-case scenario for this one.  Creamium Member Oct 25, 2017 10,357 Belgium Guy from the Digital Spy review really did have 200 hours huh, that's crazy. So it's a real addictive roguelike experience then. May have to slot this in when I feel like I can dedicate the time to it   tucah Member Oct 25, 2017 1,459 I wasn't necessarily blown away by the demo but far too many people whose opinions I trust can't stop raving about the game so it's an instant pickup. Let's hope the full game does as much for me !   Zyrox One Winged Slayer Corrupted by Vengeance Member Oct 25, 2017 5,125 All the glowing reviews put this game on my radar. Gonna get it today. Love the variable game length in the OP lol   TheGuySpelunky Member Oct 5, 2024 24 Very excited. Was hoping to finish Khazan before this came out, but fell probably around 5 hours short. Will be interesting to hop back and forth between the two games.  Doomburrito Member Feb 9, 2018 1,316 Creamium said: Guy from the Digital Spy review really did have 200 hours huh, that's crazy. So it's a real addictive roguelike experience then. May have to slot this in when I feel like I can dedicate the time to it Click to expand... Click to shrink... I wouldn't say it's a "addictive rougelite" in the sense that something like Balatro or Binding is Isaac is, it's more that there's a ton of secrets and puzzles that need a lot of exploration and experiments  Fizzgig Uncle Works at Nintendo Member Oct 30, 2017 1,866 Clueigi's Mansion (just popped in my head) Anyhoo, looking forward to trying this out on Gamepass  Kadzork Has got mad skills!! Member Oct 27, 2017 23,544 I'm buying a notepad on my way home. I ran out of scrap paper whilst playing Lorelei and the Laser Eyes.  Creamium Member Oct 25, 2017 10,357 Belgium Doomburrito said: I wouldn't say it's a "addictive rougelite" in the sense that something like Balatro or Binding is Isaac is, it's more that there's a ton of secrets and puzzles that need a lot of exploration and experiments Click to expand... Click to shrink... Yeah I know, that's what I'm expecting. But I think this one has 'one more run' energy while still being a Obra Dinn/OW style puzzle game which is very interesting and a type of gameplay cocktail we haven't really seen before. It's definitely going to be dangerous for me as I love all those games and card roguelikes like Spire. Seeing that this has a drafting mechanic has me even more interested.   funo Member Oct 27, 2017 477 Thank you for the OT - best title choice won! Can't wait for the game to finally hit Game Pass in 2 hours...  InspectorJones One Winged Slayer Member Oct 28, 2017 1,891 Very excited to try this one today! I got some sticky tack to use in the office earlier this week and I was joking that I'm going to have Chatlie Kelly like notes hanging all around my room if the games puzzles prove to be that challenging.  Barrel Cannon It's Pronounced "Aerith" The Fallen Oct 25, 2017 10,966 I'm interested in getting the game but the lack of price scares me lol Edit: it's only $30!  Last edited: Today at 9:04 AM Dust C H A O S Member Oct 25, 2017 40,223 Really curious about this one. Waiting for PS5 store to update.   Doomburrito Member Feb 9, 2018 1,316 Barrel Cannon said: I'm interested in getting the game but the lack of price scares me lol Click to expand... Click to shrink... 30  Dermee Member Dec 16, 2017 218 Barrel Cannon said: I'm interested in getting the game but the lack of price scares me lol Click to expand... Click to shrink... A quick google says $29.99  Kadzork Has got mad skills!! Member Oct 27, 2017 23,544 I might pick up Talos Principle today too and give my brain a real workout.   LProtagonist Avenger Oct 27, 2017 8,748 Gonna buy it on Steam for my Steam Deck as it seems like a good game for that with a notebook next to me. Just cancelled Game Pass anyway, and I wanna support games like this. I'll probably try to avoid as much as possible. I have at least one other friend that will play so we'll probably give each other hints and clues throughout and hopefully we'll have enough brainpower to unlock some of the secrets here. I didn't get down to the super super in-depth levels of Animal Well or anything, so I'm not sure how "deep" into this I'll go, but I expect this game is going to occupy a part of my brain for a few weeks at least.  TheFormerPliskin Member Oct 26, 2017 3,685 Got a notepad prepped and ready for this one, sounds like I'm going to need it from what I've heard.   raspberrymousse Member Mar 19, 2021 5,207 Cannot wait, will be my Steam Deck game for the foreseeable future!   ANNeFRANKxGOKU Member Oct 25, 2017 2,018 where game   nny Member Oct 25, 2017 4,891 I wish I could just forget the world and cozy up with this game for a few days.   StarPhlox Member Oct 25, 2017 5,398 Wisconsin Excited to play this as my monthly co-op game with my wife. Seems like once you get the hang after a few hours it becomes a relaxing puzzle game rather than a stressful one   Koyaannis Member May 5, 2021 380 Great OT. Can't wait !   DiceHands Member Oct 27, 2017 4,765 anyone know if its on gamepass PC?   Patitoloco Member Oct 27, 2017 27,491 Kadzork said: I might pick up Talos Principle today too and give my brain a real workout. Click to expand... Click to shrink... You're going to be galaxy brained by the end of the weekend.   funo Member Oct 27, 2017 477 DiceHands said: anyone know if its on gamepass PC? Click to expand... Click to shrink... it is, releases in 1hr 15 mins   MANTRA Member Feb 21, 2024 887 DiceHands said: anyone know if its on gamepass PC? Click to expand... Click to shrink... It is   DiceHands Member Oct 27, 2017 4,765 funo said: it is, releases in 1hr 15 mins Click to expand... Click to shrink... ahhh thank you! it wasnt showing up on the homepage so i thought it might be console only. thanks!  ced Member Oct 27, 2017 3,340 10 EST release?   Kadzork Has got mad skills!! Member Oct 27, 2017 23,544 Patitoloco said: You're going to be galaxy brained by the end of the weekend. Click to expand... Click to shrink... Or curled up sobbing in a corner 😅   Retrosmith Member Mar 2, 2020 971 1 hour to go I think. Excited. Still can't buy from PS Store.  Ganepark32 Member Nov 21, 2021 2,573 One of my most anticipated games is but a few hours away now. Can't wait to play it. I played a bunch of the demo but luckily, I don't remember much so it'll be as close to fresh as can be. Even though it's on both Gamepass and PS+, this is one that I'll be buying (alongside Promise Mascot Agency). Great day for games.  Barrel Cannon It's Pronounced "Aerith" The Fallen Oct 25, 2017 10,966 Doomburrito said: Dermee said: A quick google says $29.99 Click to expand... Click to shrink... Thanks. I can definitely stomach that this month!   Vico Member Jan 3, 2018 7,991 Can't wait to jump in. I'll try to play it with my partner. Hopefully this works great.