Blackview's Tab 90 is on sale for just $110, but the 11-inch display looks like a much more expensive device.

Infostealer malware is a real and present danger to your passwords.gettyUpdate, Feb. 23, 2025: This story, originally published Feb. 22, has been updated with a new warning from the head of engineering at NordPass about how AI is coming for your passwords next and how to protect against the threat. Considering just how many infostealer malware warnings have been issued recently, from macOS-specific threats, to those targeting a broad sweep of Gmail and Outlook email users, there can be little doubting that cybercrime actors are coming for your passwords. Now the true reach of the infostealer malware threat has been laid bare by a threat intelligence agency which specializes in leveraging dark web data, and the picture it paints is a scary one. Heres what you need to know.Infostealers Behind 3.9 Billion Stolen Passwords Shared By HackersMore than 4.3 million machines were infected by infostealer malware across 2024, responsible for an astonishing 330 million credentials being compromised, according to the latest KELA state of cybercrime report, published Feb. 20. And if you thought that was a shocking number, I hope you are sitting down as it gets even worse. The KELA analysts said they had observed 3.9 billion passwords shared in the form of credentials lists that appear to be sourced from infostealer logs. Just three strains of this insidious malware threat, Lumma, StealC, and Redline, were responsible for 75% of all infected systems. Underground economies, from malware-as-a-service to stolen credential marketplaces, contributed to a powerful infrastructure supporting a range of malicious activities, David Carmiel, CEO at threat intelligence analysts KELA, said.Malicious activity that includes the likes of both ransomware attacks and espionage campaigns. Infostealers appeal, the report suggested, lies in their efficiency and scalability, enabling attackers to compromise large volumes of accounts, both personal and corporate. By doing so, this particular malware menace becomes something of a self-fulfilling password theft prophecy, with lists of compromised credentials being sold on underground criminal marketplaces that are used to aid further attack campaigns and garner more credentials that can be sold and so on. Almost 40% of the infected machines to be found within KELAs data lake included credentials for sensitive corporate systems such as content management systems, email, Active Directory Federation Services, and remote desktop. In all, accounting for nearly 1.7 million bots and 7.5 million compromised credentials. Based on KELAs analysis, the report stated, the dataset primarily (almost 65%) contained personal computers that had corporate credentials saved on them and thus obtained by infostealer malware.To help mitigate the threat from infostealer malware, KELA recommended that multi-factor authentication be implemented across all accounts, critical systems isolated to limit the opportunity for lateral movement by attackers, and advanced email filtering solutions deployed to prevent phishing attempts. If you value your accounts and your data, then you better take action sooner rather than later. The threat actors certainly arent waiting and KELA analysts only expect the infostealer threat to your passwords to increase during 2025.The AI Threat To Your PasswordsEver since a story about an AI-powered hack targeting Gmail users that was published here at forbes.com Oct. 13, 2024, went viral, there has been no doubting the real-world threat that AI poses to your passwords. Now, Ignas Valancius, the head of engineering at password manager NordPass, has warned that while weak passwords can be cracked in just a matter of seconds, AI can crack even stronger ones in the same amount of time. Large language models can and will, Valancius said in an email conversation, be used to brute force passwords and organize dictionary attacks more often.Advising that we should all be mindful that the time it takes to guess, socially engineer, or just go nuclear and brute force passwords is going to drop dramatically across 2025 due to the use of AI tools, Valancius said, Im not saying that super long, random 18-character passwords are at immediate risk. But shorter ones they could be in danger. This is why its vital to make sure you look after your passwords properly, and that includes everything from their creation to their management and use.Valancius recommended the following when it comes to password hygiene:The longer it is, the better. Just be sure not to use your name or other personal information.Since long random passwords are very hard to remember, creating a passphrase might be a good workaround.Use different passwords for different accounts and never reuse them.Another option is switching to passkeys. They combine biometric verification with cryptographic keys, offering a safer and more convenient alternative to passwords.

Mercedes-Benz CLA Shooting BrakegettyMercedes shares dived more than 5-1/2% as it slashed costs and forecast weaker profits for 2025 but analysts had been bracing for worse numbers and reckoned the company was doing well compared with other German automakers.Successful electric vehicles are key to any recovery, while an unexpected turnaround in internal combustion engine vehicle sales will boost profits short-term.BMW gets the nod from one analyst as being in a strong position, thanks to its leadership in electric vehicles.Meanwhile, Mercedes share price had been had been advancing, despite investors expecting the auto industry to face severe problems in 2025. European sales appear headed for stagnation at best, and competition from China is increasing, especially with EVs. Tightening European Union CO2 emissions rules will require strong EV sales. Tariff threats from the Trump administration were a big worry, not least because of the impossibility of predicting the scale of the possible hit.Mercedes shares rallied from a low of 51.21 in mid-November to 61.94, until news Thursday lower profits are expected, and it plans to cut production costs by 10% through 2027. On Friday the shares closed at 58.24 in Europe, according to Reuters.Mercedes said its car-making profit margin dropped to 8.1% last year from 2023s 12.6% and would dip to between 6 and 8% in 2025. That compares with a more bullish future expected as recently as 2022 which included a long-range profit forecast of up to 14% in good times and no less than 8% in tougher ones.Last years biggest problems were weakness in China and the German home market where the withdrawal of government subsidies crippled EV sales. Global sales in 2025 are expected to be less than 2024s 1.98 million. Later this year Mercedes will launch a new C-Class CLA, and next year an updated S-class limousine.Mercedes-Maybach S680 luxury sedan, based on the Mercedes Benz S-class (Photo by Sjoerd van der ... [+] Wal/Getty Images)Getty ImagesTo ensure the companys future competitiveness in an uncertain world, we are taking steps to make the company faster, leaner, and stronger, said CEO Ola Kallenius in statement.Professor Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer, director of Germanys Center for Automotive Research, said Mercedes has less problems than some other German automakers.There are other German manufacturers that have more to worry about than Mercedes. The efficiency and savings program is making Mercedes stronger in terms of costs, the new C-Class with the CLA is important for 2025 and the renaissance of the combustion engine in the USA and Europe is making Mercedes more profitable. However, it could be a temporary high if future electric cars do not attract more attention from customers. China and the electric car in China is the big challenge for Mercedes, Dudenhoeffer said in an email.Other big automakers in Germany include BMW, Volkswagen and its spun-off Porsche subsidiary. President Trumps decision to scale back U.S. government mandates, which would have forced manufacturers to make and sell more EVs, has been scaled back. This will revive the U.S. market for ICE vehicles. In Europe, the strict rules forcing more EVs on the market are expected to be diluted by the EU, leading to a revival of ICE technology here as well.Frank Schwope, Automotive Industry lecturer at the University of Applied Sciences FHM Hannover, said Volkswagen and Porsche have already initiated cost-cutting programs but BMW seems to be more secure.Only BMW seems to be in a better position. BMWs openness to technology combined with its advantage in electromobility shows the companys strengths. In addition the Neue Klasse will be launched at the end of the year, which could become a new milestone for the Group, Schwope said in an email.BMW Vision Neue Klasse concept car (Photo by Yi Haifei/China News Service/VCG via Getty Images)China News Service via Getty ImagesMercedes hosted a meeting for potential investors last week (a so-called CMD or Capital Markets Day) when it announced a 5 billion ($5.23 billion) share buyback and gave a preview of 15 upcoming electric and combustion vehicles being launched through early 2028.Investment researcher Bernstein was impressed but not overwhelmed.The CMD was certainly a tour-de force, and we came away more confident that Mercedes has credible technology and product responses to the significant challenges faced by legacy auto. But with most of these new products only having a positive impact from 2027, it is clear that 2025-26 will remain challenging. We therefore are not sure we see any immediate catalysts that move the stock near term, Bernstein said in a report.

TL;DR: The cybersecurity community just gained unprecedented insight into the operations of one of the world's most active ransomware groups. As researchers delve into the wealth of information this leak provides, it is likely that new revelations about Black Basta's tactics, targets, and internal dynamics will come to light. In an unprecedented breach, over a year of internal communications from the notorious ransomware syndicate Black Basta have leaked online, exposing the inner workings, strategies, and internal conflicts of one of today's most active and dangerous cybercriminal groups.The leak consists of over 200,000 messages exchanged by Black Basta members on the Matrix chat platform between September 2023 and September 2024. The source of the leak remains unknown it was posted by a user called "ExploitWhispers" on MEGA and later on Telegram but the individual responsible claims the action was taken in retaliation for Black Basta's attacks on Russian banks. It is unclear whether the leaker is an insider or an external actor who managed to gain access to these confidential communications.Black Basta's reputation as a formidable threat to global cybersecurity is well-established. In 2023, the FBI and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency reported that the group had targeted 12 out of 16 critical infrastructure sectors in the United States, with attacks on 500 organizations worldwide. Their high-profile victims include Ascension, a major U.S. healthcare provider, Hyundai Europe, U.K. outsourcing firm Capita, the Chilean Government Customs Agency, and Southern Water, a U.K. utility company.The leaked communications reveal significant internal tensions within the group, particularly following the arrest of one of its leaders. This event has heightened fears among members about potential exposure to law enforcement. The current leader, believed to be Oleg Nefedov, has come under fire from his subordinates for decisions that have put the group at greater risk, including targeting a Russian bank. // Related StoriesResearchers analyzing the Russian-language texts have uncovered details about other key members of Black Basta, including two administrators known as Lapa and YY, and a threat actor named Cortes, who has links to the Qakbot ransomware group.The leaked communications also confirm what many cybersecurity researchers have discovered or theorized about the group. It typically initiates attacks through phishing emails containing malicious links, often using password-protected zip files that, when opened, install the Qakbot banking trojan. This trojan establishes a backdoor and deploys SystemBC to create an encrypted connection to a command and control server.Once inside a network, Black Basta uses Cobalt Strike for reconnaissance and to deploy additional tools across the compromised network. The group also uses legitimate remote access software to maintain persistence, while disabling antivirus and endpoint detection systems. For data theft and exfiltration, they rely on tools like Mimikatz and Rclone.The ransomware deployment phase involves encrypting files with the ".basta" extension as part of a double extortion strategy. Interestingly, Black Basta doesn't immediately present ransom demands, instead giving victims a 10-12 day window to make contact before potentially leaking stolen data. The group has also adopted social engineering techniques, including making phone calls to establish initial contact with company personnel, similar to methods used by other cybercriminal groups like Scattered Spider.Black Basta's target selection process is methodical, maintaining a spreadsheet of potential victims rather than choosing targets randomly. They leverage business intelligence platforms like ZoomInfo to research and select their targets, demonstrating a calculated approach to their operations.Taking advantage of this treasure trove of information, security firm Hudson Rock fed the chat transcripts into ChatGPT. The result is BlackBastaGPT, a new resource to assist researchers in analyzing Black Basta's operations more effectively.

Politics can be ugly In war against DEI in science, researchers see collateral damage Senate Republicans flagged thousands of grants as woke DEI research. What does that really mean? Teresa Carr and Margaret Manto, Undark Magazine Feb 23, 2025 7:20 am | 7 Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) at a hearing on Tuesday, January 28, 2025. Credit: Getty Images | Tom Williams Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) at a hearing on Tuesday, January 28, 2025. Credit: Getty Images | Tom Williams Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreWhen he realized that Senate Republicans were characterizing his federally funded research project as one of many they considered ideological and of questionable scientific value, Darren Lipomi, chair of the chemical engineering department at the University of Rochester, was incensed. The work, he complained on social media, was aimed at helping throat cancer patients recover from radiation therapy faster. And yet, he noted on Bluesky, LinkedIn, and X, his project was among nearly 3,500 National Science Foundation grants recently described by the likes of Ted Cruz, the Texas Republican and chair of the powerful Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, as woke DEI research. These projects, Cruz argued, were driven by Neo-Marxist class warfare propaganda, and far-left ideologies.Needless to say, Lipomi wrote of his research, this project is not espousing class warfare.The list of grants was compiled by a group of Senate Republicans last fall and released to the public earlier this month, and while the NSF does not appear to have taken any action in response to the complaints, the lists existence is adding to an atmosphere of confusion and worry among researchers in the early days of President Donald J. Trumps second administration. Lipomi, for his part, described the situation as absurd. Others described it as chilling.Am I going to be somehow identified as an immigrant that's exploiting federal funding streams and so I would just get deported? I have no idea, said cell biologist Shumpei Maruyama, an early-career scientist and Japanese immigrant with permanent residency in the US, upon seeing his research on the government watch list. Thats a fear.Just being on that list, he added, is scary.The NSF, an independent government agency, accounts for around one-quarter of federal funding for science and engineering research at American colleges and universities. The 3,483 flagged projects total more than $2 billion and represent more than 10 percent of all NSF grants awarded between January 2021 and April 2024. The list encompasses research in all 50 states, including 257 grants totaling more than $150 million to institutions in Cruzs home state of Texas.The flagged grants, according to the committee report, went to questionable projects that promoted diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) tenets or pushed onto science neo-Marxist perspectives about enduring class struggle. The committee cast a wide net, using a programming tool to trawl more than 32,000 project descriptions for 699 keywords and phrases that they identified as linked to diversity, equity, and inclusion.Cruz has characterized the list as a response to a scientific grantmaking process that had become mired in political considerations, rather than focused on core research goals. The Biden administration politicized everything it touched, Cruz told Undark and NOTUS. Science research is important, but we should want researchers spending time trying to figure out how to cure cancer, how to cure deadly diseases, not bean counting to satisfy the political agenda of Washington Democrats."The ubiquity of these DEI requirements that the Biden administration engrafted on virtually everything, Cruz added, pulls a lot of good research money away from needed research to satisfy the political pet projects of Democrats.Others described the listand other moves against DEI initiatives in researchas reversing decades-old bipartisan policies intended to strengthen US science. For past Congresses and administrations, including the first Trump term, DEI concepts were not controversial, said Neal F. Lane, who served as NSF director in the 1990s and as a science adviser to former President Bill Clinton. Budget after budget was appropriated funds specifically to address these issues, to make sure all Americans have an opportunity to contribute to advancement of science and technology in the country, he said. And that the country then, in turn, benefits from their participation.At the same time, he added: Politics can be ugly.Efforts to promote diversity in research predate the Biden administration. A half a century ago, the NSF established a goal of increasing the number of women and underrepresented groups in science. The agency began targeting programs for minority-serving institutions as well as minority faculty and students.In the 1990s, Lane, as NSF director, ushered in the requirement that, in addition to intellectual merit, reviewers should consider a grant proposals broader impacts. In general, he said, the aim was to encourage science that would benefit society.The broader impacts requirement remains today. Among other options, researchers can fulfill it by including a project component that increases the participation of women, underrepresented minorities in STEM, and people with disabilities. They can also meet the requirement by promoting science education or educator development, or by demonstrating that a project will build a more diverse workforce.The Senate committee turned up thousands of DEI grants because the broad search not only snagged projects with a primary goal of increasing diversitysuch as a $1.2 million grant to the Colorado School of Mines for a center to train engineering students to promote equity among their peersbut also research that referenced diversity in describing its broader impact or in describing study populations. Lipomis project, for example, was likely flagged because it mentions recruiting a diverse group of participants, analyzing results according to socioeconomic status, and posits that patients with disabilities might benefit from wearable devices for rehabilitation.According to the committee report, concepts related to race, gender, societal status, as well as social and environmental justice undermine hard science. They singled out projects that identified groups of people as underrepresented, underserved, socioeconomically disadvantaged, or excluded; recognized inequities; or referenced climate research.Red flags also included words like gender, ethnicity, and sexuality, along with scores of associated terms female, women, interracial, heterosexual, LGBTQ, as well as Black, White, Hispanic, or Indigenous when referring to groups of people. Status also made the list along with words such as biased, disability, minority, and socioeconomic.In addition, the committee flagged environmental justice and terms that they placed in that category such as climate change, climate research, and clean energy.The committee individually reviewed grants for more than $1 million, according to the report.The largest grant on the list awarded more than $29 million to the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, which contributes to the vast computing resources needed for artificial intelligence research. I don't know exactly why we were flagged, because we're an AI resource for the nation, said NCSA Director William Gropp.One possible reason for the flag, Gropp theorized, is that one of the projects aims is to provide computing power to states that have historically received less funding for research and developmentincluding many Republican-leaning statesas well as minority-serving institutions. The proposal also states that a lack of diversity contributes to embedded biases and other systemic inequalities found in AI systems today.The committee also flagged a grant with a total intended award amount of $26 million to a consortium of five institutions in North Carolina to establish an NSF Engineering Research Center to engineer microbial life in indoor spaces, promoting beneficial microbes while preventing the spread of pathogens. One example of such work would be thinking about how to minimize the risk that pathogens caught in a hospital sink would get aerosolized and spread to patients, said Joseph Graves, Jr., an evolutionary biologist and geneticist at North Carolina A&T State University and a leader of the project.Graves was not surprised that his project made the committees list, as NSF policy has required research centers to include work on diversity and a culture of inclusion, he said.The report, Graves said, seems intended to strip science of diversity, which he views as essential to the scientific endeavor. We want to make the scientific community look more like the community of Americans, said Graves. Thats not discriminating against White or Asian people, he said: It's a positive set of initiatives to give people who have been historically underrepresented and underserved in the scientific community and the products it produces to be at the table to participate in scientific research.We argue that makes science better, not worse, he added.The political environment has seemingly left many scientists nervous to speak about their experiences. Three of the major science organizations Undark contactedthe Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, the National Academy of Sciences, and the American Institute of Physicseither did not respond or were not willing to comment. Many researchers appearing on Cruzs list expressed hesitation to speak, and only men agreed to interviews: Undark contacted eight women leading NSF-funded projects on the list. Most did not respond to requests for comment, while others declined to talk on the record.Darren Lipomi, the chemical engineer, drew a parallel between the committee report and US Sen. Joseph McCarthys anti-communist campaign in the early 1950s. Its inescapable, said Lipomi, whose project focused on developing a medical device that provides feedback on swallowing to patients undergoing radiation for head and neck cancer. I know what Marxism is, and this was not that.According to Joanne Padrn Carney, chief government relations officer at the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Republican interest in scrutinizing purportedly ideological research dovetails with a sweeping executive order, issued immediately after Trumps inauguration, aimed at purging the government of anything related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Whether and how the Senate committee report will wind up affecting future funding, however, remains to be seen. Between the executive order on DEI and now the list of terms that was used in the Cruz report, NSF is now in the process of reviewing their grants, Carney said. One immediate impact is that scientists may become more cautious in preparing their proposals, said Carney.Emails to the National Science Foundation went unanswered. In response to a question about grant proposals that, like Lipomis, only have a small component devoted to diversity, Cruz said their status should be determined by the executive branch.I would think it would be reasonable that if the DEI components can reasonably be severed from the project, and the remaining parts of the project are meritorious on their own, then the project should continue, Cruz said. It may be that nothing of value remains once DEI is removed. It would depend on the particular project.Physicist and former NSF head Neal F. Lane said he suspects that DEI has simply become a politically expedient targetas well as an excuse to slash spending. Threats to science funding are already causing huge uncertainty and distraction from what researchers and universities are supposed to be doing, he said. But if there's a follow-through on many of these efforts made by the administration, any damage would be enormous."That damage might well include discouraging young researchers from pursuing scientific careers at all, Carney saidparticularly if the administration is perceived as being uninterested in a STEM workforce that is representative of the US population. For us to be able to compete at the global arena in innovation, she said, we need to create as many pathways as we can for all young studentsfrom urban and rural areas, of all races and gendersto see science and technology as a worthwhile career.These questions are not just academic for cell biologist and postdoctoral researcher Shumpei Maruyama, who is thinking about becoming a research professor. Hes now concerned that the Trump administrations proposed cuts to funding from the National Institutes of Health, which supports research infrastructure at many institutions, will sour the academic job market as schools are forced to shutter whole sections or departments. Hes also worried that his research, which looks at the effects of climate change on coral reefs, wont be fundable under the current administrationnot least because his work, too, is on the committees list.Corals are important just for the inherent value of biodiversity, Maruyama said.Although he remains worried about what happens next, Maruyama said he is also weirdly proud to have his research flagged for its expressed connection to social and environmental justice. Thats exactly what my research is focusing on, he said, adding that the existence of coral has immeasurable environmental and social benefits. While coral reefs cover less than 1 percent of the worlds oceans in terms of surface area, they house nearly one-quarter of all marine species. They also protect coastal areas from surges and hurricanes, noted Maruyama, provide food and tourism for local communities, and are a potential source of new medications such as cancer drugs.While he also studies corals because he finds them breathtakingly beautiful, Maruyama, suggested that everyoneregardless of ideologyhas a stake in their survival. I want them to be around, he said.This story was co-reported by Teresa Carr for Undark and Margaret Manto for NOTUS. This article was originally published on Undark. Read the original article.Teresa Carr and Margaret Manto, Undark MagazineTeresa Carr and Margaret Manto, Undark Magazine 7 Comments

Positively radiant Flashy exotic birds can actually glow in the dark The birds, known for their showy displays, look even more colorful than we thought. Elizabeth Rayne Feb 23, 2025 7:20 am | 2 Credit: TeeJe Credit: TeeJe Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreFound in the forests of Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, and Eastern Australia, birds of paradise are famous for flashy feathers and unusually shaped ornaments, which set the standard for haute couture among birds. Many use these feathers for flamboyant mating displays in which they shape-shift into otherworldly forms.As if this didnt attract enough attention, weve now learned that they also glow in the dark.Biofluorescent organisms are everywhere, from mushrooms to fish to reptiles and amphibians, but few birds have been identified as having glowing feathers. This is why biologist Rene Martin of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln wanted to investigate. She and her team studied a treasure trove of specimens at the American Museum of Natural History, which have been collected since the 1800s, and found that 37 of the 45 known species of birds of paradise have feathers that fluoresce.The glow factor of birds of paradise is apparently important for mating displays. Despite biofluorescence being especially prominent in males, attracting a mate might not be all it is useful for, as these birds might also use it to signal to each other in other ways and sometimes even for camouflage among the light and shadows.The current very limited number of studies reporting fluorescence in birds suggests this phenomenon has not been thoroughly investigated, the researchers said in a study that was recently published in Royal Society Open Science.Glow-upHow do they get that glow? Biofluorescence is a phenomenon that happens when shorter, high-energy wavelengths of light, meaning UV, violet, and blue, are absorbed by an organism. The energy then gets re-emitted at longer, lower-energy wavelengthsgreens, yellows, oranges, and reds. The feathers of birds of paradise contain fluorophores, molecules that undergo biofluorescence. Specialized filters in the light-sensitive cells of their eyes make their visual system more sensitive to biofluorescence.To find out just how many species of these birds fluoresce, Martin screened specimens of adult males and females in a dark room by shining blue and ultraviolet light on them. Most species ended up glowing green or yellow-green. Males had the most biofluorescent plumage, which was observed on the head, neck, chest, and abdomen. Even the skin on their feet and the insides of their mouths would fluoresce in blue and UV light.Females had fewer biofluorescent feathers, usually on the chest and abdomen. Birds of paradise are highly sexually dimorphic, meaning males and females look very distinct, so this isnt a surprise. This made sense to Martin because it is thought that biofluorecence in these birds evolved largely through sexual selection, with the males that can show off more fluorescent feathers being more likely to land a mate.Biofluorescence also depends on habitat. Most birds of paradise live high in the forest canopy, while some dwell closer to the ground. The amount of high-energy radiation that filters in through the foliage can vary greatly between habitats, some of which are heavily shaded by leafy canopies, while others are more open and allow more sunlight in.ShowoffHow the birds move can also affect the way their fluorescence shows up. Direct light from larger gaps in the canopy makes it more obvious, while incident light that does not hit the feathers directly has a more subtle effect. Sometimes the bird can change its degree of fluorescence just by moving into areas with more or less light. Females tend to use this for camouflage, while males use it to show off.Take the mating display of the Western parotia (Parotia sefilata). The male will clear an area on the forest floor, which the researchers think may be a way to reduce visual background noise so his plumage stands out even more. He can even change his eye color from blue to a striking yellow by contracting his bicolored irises. He dances and flashes his fluorescent patches until the female decides whether he has enticed her.Something that is immediately noticeable about the Western parotia and many other birds of paradise is that most of their feathers are a shade of black so dark and impenetrable that Martin and her team call it super black. It is thought to be the ultimate contrast to their brighter colors generated by bioluminescence. Species without these super black feathers were found to be lacking in biofluorescence.While it may be hard not to notice the bizarre beauty of birds of paradise, the researchers wonder whether biofluorescence may be a more widespread phenomenon among birds. There are a handful of parrot, owl, nightjar, penguin, and puffin species that are known to have biofuorescent feathers or patches of skin.But not all biofluorescence necessarily comes associated with ultra-dark feathers. "The presence of white or light-colored feathers (i.e., that may contain fluorophores that result in fluorescence) in the majority of avian lineages indicates that fluorescence may be far more widespread in birds than what has been reported in the literature to date, the researchers said in the same study.It is possible. The Moluccan cockatoo, which is mostly white except for the coral feathers in its crest, is endemic to the Moluccas, islands off the east coast of Indonesia that are also home to some species of birds of paradise. Whether this parrot species is biofluorescent is unknown for now, but it might be a good species to test the researchers hypothesis.Royal Society Open Science, 2025. DOI: 10.1098/rsos.241905Elizabeth Rayne Elizabeth Rayne is a creature who writes. Her work has appeared on SYFY WIRE, Space.com, Live Science, Grunge, Den of Geek, and Forbidden Futures. She lurks right outside New York City with her parrot, Lestat. When not writing, she is either shapeshifting, drawing, or cosplaying as a character nobody has ever heard of. Follow her on Threads and Instagram @quothravenrayne. 2 Comments

Weather-resistant sneakers are practical and fashion-forward.There's a good variety of hiking sneakers on the market. BLACKDAY/Shutterstock If you spend a lot of time outdoors, Pilar Scratch recommends opting for a sneaker/boot hybrid.The celebrity wardrobe stylist told BI that a winter-specific sneaker gives you the cold-weather-ready edge while still offering fashionability."Think sturdy, winter-ready soles, waterproof uppers, and extra insulation for those cold, wet days," Scratch said. "These are sneakers you can actually wear outside without feeling like you'll slip and fall on your face."Make your sneakers pop with unconventional animal prints.Snakeskin sneakers are a little bolder than leopard or zebra print. Esther Barry/Shutterstock Animal prints have been a prominent status symbol in fashion for centuries. Cheetah, zebra, and leopard remain timeless staples, but some less conventional patterns are also popping up this season.Kamaria Davis, a footwear designer at Mykos, said prints that mimic Dalmatian spots, deer speckles, and owl feathers are becoming especially popular on sneakers.To balance out the boldness of the print, the designer suggests focusing on soft, coordinating colors for the rest of your outfit.Suede offers the perfect cozy vibe.Brands like Puma and Adidas offer a few different suede styles. LUCKY4UU/Shutterstock Suede seems to be taking over all footwear this season, and Lunden Olin II told BI that sneakers are no exception.The fashion designer and creative director of Looks by Lunden said the material is both cozy and cool right now."It's the perfect mix of luxe and laid-back like a varsity jacket for your feet," Olin said. "Rock 'em with jeans, joggers, or even a tailored suit."Give your sneakers some bling this winter.Shoelace charms, pearls, bows, and rhinestones are popping up on sneakers. frantic00/Shutterstock Olin said maximalist sneakers are in. The maximalism trend has been resurging across the fashion and design worlds for the last year or so, and it's a great way to incorporate more self-expression into your look."Forget just accessorizing your outfit your sneakers need love, too," he told BI.Get creative by adding your own personal touches, like mismatched laces, bows, charms, and even brooches.Make a bold fashion statement with a metallic sneaker.Sneakers with a metallic hue are in this winter. Jeremy Moeller/Getty Images Olin said silver, gold, and chrome sneakers are staying in style for another season.If you're captivated by street-style outfits on runways or social media but aren't ready to completely revamp your style, a metallic shoe is a great jumping-off point."They're flashy without being over-the-top, making them the perfect way to dip your toe into bold fashion literally," the designer told BI.On the other hand, platform sneakers have been done to death.Platforms are being replaced by sleeker silhouettes. Tricky_Shark/Shutterstock Davis told BI that platform sneakers are overdone. The trend has been prevalent across different footwear styles heels, boots, loafers but the bulky look is being pushed aside.This season, people seem more interested in a narrower silhouette that offers a more polished aesthetic.An array of popular sneaker brands, from Adidas to Converse, offer flat-sole designs that follow the sleek trend.Plain white sneakers are being replaced by bolder colors and unique textures.White doesn't match the maximalist sneaker trends. andersphoto/Shutterstock Olin said it's time to say goodbye to all-white and nude sneakers to ditch the dull and embrace the vibrant.The push toward maximalism means bright, bold colors and unique textures are in. Colorful sneakers are also a great way to liven up an outfit on a dreary winter day.High-tops could be taking a backseat to sleeker styles.High-tops have been around for a while, but the trends are leaving them behind. Edward Berthelot/Getty Images Davis told BI that basketball sneakers and other mid-to-high-top styles are waning in popularity. If you're not into low-top versions of those shoes, consider investing in a pair of "dressletic" sneakers instead.The designer said the style, which blends the stylish look of dress shoes with the comfort and functionality of athletic sneakers, is especially popular this season.In addition to following the trends toward sleek, aesthetically pleasing looks, the dressier sneakers can also be a good option for people who are spending more time back in the office.Trade in your slip-ons for a warmer alternative.Vans and other slip-on sneakers are great in summer but not as much for winter. Nor Gal/Shutterstock Although classic slip-on sneakers like Vans are ideal for warm weather, they can fall short in cooler temperatures and rough winter terrain.If you're a big fan of the comfort and practicality of a slip-on, though, fear not. Scratch just recommends looking for a fleece-lined version of the shoe.You can also opt for a sturdier outdoorsy sneaker with a flexible opening for ease of wear.

My kids are college-age, in the prime of their lives, and thriving in every way.Meanwhile, I'm struggling with the woes of midlife, and I feel envious of their youth.I am persistently trying to accept this and find the silver lining.I recently found a gray hair in my eyebrow, and my heart skipped a beat.I suppose it might be comical to those who have accepted aging and the speed at which life passes us by, but that's not me not yet, anyway. No one ever told me that eyebrows turn gray. I suppose no one really had to. I mean, I'm sure I've seen gray eyebrows before, but I never imagined I would fall victim to this atrocity especially not so soon.This unexpected gray hair just like every wrinkle, hot flash, and new joint pain was a reminder that there was still so much I wanted to do and even more that I wish I had done already.And just as I angrily plucked that sucker right out of its place, my daughter walked in. "Are you almost done? I need to curl my hair."My beautiful, young daughter, Nora, is about to decide where she will attend college next fall. She is excited about prom, graduation, and her upcoming senior night for hockey. Her hair is thick and gray-less. The world is her oyster and she doesn't even know it.Molly is my oldest daughter. She is about to study abroad in Spain. She is dedicated to fitness, has correctly identified her deepest passions, and is pursuing them with ambition and confidence. She is one of the bravest people I know. I look at her and see nothing but a vibrant, fulfilling future. The world is her oyster, too, and she just may know it.To be honest, I'm jealous of my daughters. They have everything ahead of them, and it feels like my life is behind me.I often find myself envious of my daughters' youthfulnessI am so incredibly proud of my girls. They have grown into such dynamic, wonderful young women, and the world is a better place because they are in it.If I am being honest, though, I can't help but feel a pang of envy when I observe them living their best lives. They have youth and time and their whole lives ahead of them. Sometimes, I want to warn them that before they know it, they will wake up with gray eyebrows and an ex-husband.Other times, I find myself selfishly living vicariously through them as if their experiences are indeed my do-over at life. I often yell at them, "Show me pictures from that party last night," "Let's find a fun place for you and your friends to go dancing this weekend," or "You should major in this and not that."I'm worried I wasted my youthI often say I have no regrets in life, but this gray hair reminded me that I do. At times, I am desperate for a rewind button.I wish I could go back to my teenage years and choose a different college, complete a different major, and take a new journey altogether. I dream of going back to the days when I consistently weighed 138 pounds so that I could appreciate that as skinny and fit rather than berating my young self for being "fat."I also want to redo my love life. I want to take the wisdom I have gathered from every failed relationship. I want to say "no" to those who caused me pain and "yes" to those who had the potential to love me the right way.I want to prioritize financial wealth because, as an 18-year-old, I naively thought my husband would take care of "all that stuff." As a result of that false belief, I now live paycheck to paycheck.I'm finding ways to accept and appreciate my agingDon't get me wrong, I am often happy. But at times, life is hard. What's even harder is looking into the mirror and realizing that I have lived more years than I have left.I often wonder: Are my best years behind me? Did I take them for granted? If a genie granted me a wish, would I truly go back in time, and if so, would I cherish the gift of time more?Of course, there is part of me (maybe a very big part) that would love to be 16 again but I want to be 16 with the wisdom of a 46-year-old. I suppose that proves aging isn't all bad, thanks to everything I have learned.I do know one thing, though: Today, I am the youngest I will ever be. I suppose there is a 75-year-old version of me in the future, with a full set of gray eyebrows, wishing she could be 46 again. Or perhaps my 75-year-old self will fondly remember 16 and 46 while feeling joyful to be 75, living in the present, and appreciative of all that is possible.I think my 46-year-old self would be wise to listen to her.

Government websites have undergone massive changes since President Donald Trump returned to office.Some of the changes are routine like swapping out the current president and vice president for their predecessors on the White Houses official site.But other changes go much further. Several sites like USAID.gov, ReproductiveRights.gov, and the Spanish-language version of WhiteHouse.gov have gone offline. Remaining sites have been scrubbed of certain data and terminology in order to comply with Trumps executive orders targeting gender ideology and DEI. Its an acceleration of a problem known as digital decay or linkrot. Large quantities of the internet are disappearing as media outlets go under, companies upgrade their web infrastructure, or organizations take down information they believe is no longer valuable or relevant. A recent Pew Research Center study found that 38 percent of webpages that existed in 2013 are no longer available. Because so much of our culture now happens online, losing those pages means losing part of the record of ourselves. Mark Graham, director of the Wayback Machine, joined Sean Rameswaram on Today, Explained to talk about digital decay, what his team is doing to combat the problem both generally and during Trumps second term, and why internet preservation is so important. Below is an excerpt of the conversation, edited for length and clarity. Theres much more in the full podcast, so listen to Today, Explained wherever you get podcasts, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher.For people who have maybe stumbled upon your website but dont really know what you do, can you give them a sense of the things that you guys have saved in 30 years? Where do I begin? Its like walking into a very large library and saying, Show me your favorite book. Last year, there was a big news story that MTV News was shut down. The founding editor wrote about it on LinkedIn, and there were a lot of other editors talking about it: My God, all of our articles are gone. Theyre missing. And I just casually waded into the conversation and went, Hi, um check the Wayback Machine. They were like, Oh my God, you guys got it all. What did you do? We didnt do anything when the site went down because weve been doing our job all along. Weve been working to archive the public web, as its published, on an ongoing continuous basis. If we have to start paying attention to something after its gone down, that means we screwed up. So what are you guys doing in advance of these sites going down to make sure that people can find out what Everlast was singing about in 2004? We set our web crawlers and archiving software out on a mission every day to identify and to download web pages and related web-based resources. We bring in millions and millions of URLs every day that are signals of where new material is being published on the web. And we make sure that we archive all of those URLs and all the web pages associated with those URLs. Then, we look at those pages, and we identify links to other pages. And then we go to those pages and we archive them. Thats where you get this metaphor of crawling like a spider throughout this web. The net result of it is that we add more than a billion archived URLs to the Wayback Machine every day. This material thats added to the Wayback Machine is indexed and its immediately available to people who go to web dot archive.org and enter in a URL. They are then able to see a history of archives that we have of that web page that was available from the URL at any given time. Thats where you get this metaphor of crawling like a spider throughout this web. I want to talk about government websites, because thats the reason were having this conversation today. I think most people probably think the government will take care of archiving government websites. But here we are in a new administration and websites are disappearing, coming back online, and people are worried. When you an archivist of the internet see this happening, how do you react to that? Is it better or worse than regular, non-governmental websites going offline?Well, as an American, my tax dollars help pay for some of this stuff and much of it is a benefit to people. Certainly my first reaction is: That might not be such a good thing. I do want to underscore that the National Archives and Records Administration does do archiving as well, and the Library of Congress. So its not like were the only game in town. But for whatever reason, we seem to be one of the main players in the space of trying to archive much of the public web, including and right now, especially US government websites and making those archives available in near real time. Were you caught off-guard when you saw the new administration removing web pages, removing websites?In some respects, this is normal and expected. Its whats happened, frankly, for each administration in the time that weve been working on this effort. I mean, look, its under new management, right? You wouldnt expect the WhiteHouse.gov website under any new presidential administration to be the same as it was before. Youre going to see the bios of the people that are part of the current administration, the news of that administration. We go out of our way to try to anticipate the frequency in which web pages should be archived so that we have a pretty good shot at getting those changes. Youre saying that the WhiteHouse.gov site obviously changes administration to administration. I think to some degree people understand that: Joe Bidens administration probably wouldnt have been posting trolly Valentines about immigration to their Instagram account a year ago. But what were seeing here is websites that people need websites that record public health information going offline briefly, permanently, what have you. Is that a different degree of erasing the historical record or messing with the historical record than weve seen? Thats true. It is. Its different. Its certainly different in terms of the number [of changes] seemingly! Were still in the early stages of this administration, but yeah, Id say on the face of it, youre right. Historically, we havent seen major US government websites taken offline like we did, for example, with regard to USAID. But Im going to leave that kind of analysis to others, and really just focus on trying to archive the material.The Wayback Machine and the Internet Archive are mostly funded through donations: the generosity of people, institutions, even governments. Is that going to be enough to archive the internet to the extent that future generations will want and need?Enough is a very subjective term. As an archivist, for me, its never enough. I dont know, and no one knows, what is going to be of use, value, importance in the future maybe even the near future of tomorrow, much less the very far-off future. Since millions of people use our site on a daily basis, we get a lot of feedback from them. It motivates us, but it also helps direct us and inspires us to continuously try to do a better job at being the best library that we can be.As an archivist, for me, its never enough.You guys have been at this for nearly three decades. Certainly, youve saved a lot of stuff. Certainly, a lot of stuff has fallen through the cracks. I wonder, is there something that slipped through the cracks that might suggest to our audience what is lost when we cant archive to the extent we want to, or need to?Okay, I got one! This is just in recent history. Apparently there was a page up on the CDC website about bird flu last week that was only up for a few minutes, and no one got it. And by losing that fleeting web page, that one maybe minor, maybe major web page about bird flu on the CDC website, what are we losing?Well, were losing part of the story, right? Were losing part of our understanding of the evolution of arguably a significant health issue. We dont know where this is going to go. I guess thats the other point, right? You dont know now what is going to be very important in the near or longer term. In the time of Martin Luther, there were raging debates. Much of that debate took the form of things that were written on pamphlets. The pamphlets at the time were considered of little value: People read them and they shared them, but they didnt necessarily save them. So today, a scholar of that time or someone like me, who is strangely curious what I would give for a collection of those pamphlets. You are comparing, in a way, a CDC website to the Protestant Reformation. But I think you mean it, dont you? I do! Because I dont know. One really cant know without the benefit of the long historical view. Thats not something that we have access to today. Why? Because we dont have a real time machine.See More:

By Adam Kovac Published February 23, 2025 | Comments (0) | Something about this image makes you want to start singing "Holy Diver," doesn't it? Ostroda Museum When a group of amateur treasure seekers set out on an expedition in Poland at the end of January, they werent sure what theyd find. On previous trips, while sweeping the ground with metal detectors, they found fascinating trinkets, including thirteenth-centuryCarolingian dynasty coins. This time around, they found something more mighty: a big honking sword from the Middle Ages. The giant blade, which was clearly meant to be handled with two hands, was found alongside two axes in the countrys Nowomiejskie district. The discovery was made by members of a group that calls itself GRYFBiskupieckie Stowarzyszenie Detektorystyczne, which Google translates to the Diocesan Detection Association. Alas, this is not a band of plucky private eyes, but rather a group of history enthusiasts and treasure hunters, according to their Facebook page. The club actually sounds pretty rad, with fun activities planned, including an upcoming hunt for Napoleonic-era artifacts. If youll be in Poland when it happens, you should definitely join in. Theyve also done some good in the community, having organized a cleanup of a forgotten Jewish cemetery in the woods close to the town of Lubawa in November. The January search was conducted in conjunction with the Ostroda Museum, which will eventually make the weapons part of its permanent display. We are starting to work on their permanent security, proper preservation is preceded by a series of x-rays, the museum said on its Facebook page. This year we plan to present the monuments as part of our permanent exhibition.The sword, which measures just under 3.2 feet (1 meter), was, as you would expect, extremely rusted and weathered by the centuries, but is otherwise well preserved, with its blade, pommel, and handle all intact. The axe blades were in similarly good condition, albeit less complete. Details about the weapons origins are scant, as the museum didnt specify their age or who might have wielded them. All thats known is that they are Medieval in origin, though thats vague, as the Middle Ages lasted roughly 1,000 years, from the fifth to the fifteenth century. According to a paper published by University of Lodz associate professor Anna Kowalska-Pietrzak, Poland during that time was largely inhabited by a number of Slavic tribes, though there was an invasion by Teutonic Knights in the fifteenth century. AsArchaeology News reported, the swords design is similar to hand-and-a-half weapons that were popular in Western Europe during the Late Middle Ages, and were crafted to stab through armor. The publication cited unnamed experts who said that, as the weapons were found near the Osa River, they may have spent centuries underwater, which would have contributed to their remarkably preserved state. See, kids? Cool things happen when you put down the cellphones and go outside.Daily NewsletterYou May Also Like By AJ Dellinger Published February 20, 2025 By Matt Novak Published February 5, 2025 By Passant Rabie Published December 28, 2024 By Isaac Schultz Published December 2, 2024 By Isaac Schultz Published November 26, 2024 By Kyle Barr Published August 7, 2024