Updated 2025-03-11T13:50:32Z Read in app Pedro Pascal as Joel in "The Last of Us" season two. Liane Hentscher/HBO This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? Warning: This post contains spoilers for the second"The Last of Us" game and potentially season two.The show's second season is seven episodes long and will cover part of the second game.The first full trailer for season two confirmed "The Last of Us" will premiere in April. In 2023, HBO turned the narrative-driven video game "The Last of Us" into one of the year's biggest television hits.Starring Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal, the show primarily takes place 20 years after the cordyceps fungus evolves to infect humans, generating hordes of aggressive creatures. Joel (Pascal), a smuggler whose daughter died during the initial outbreak, is tasked with escorting Ellie (Ramsey), an orphan who's seemingly immune to the fungus, across the country in hopes of developing a cure.The show earned both Pascal and Ramsey nominations at the Golden Globes and Emmy Awards and turned them into household names. It also featured an award-winning performance from Nick Offerman, who stars alongside Murray Bartlett in the season's acclaimed third episode "Long, Long Time."A second season of the HBO hit is nearly here, and it's set to adapt part of the game "The Last of Us Part II." Here's everything we know about the new season.Kirsten Acuna contributed to a previous version of this article, which was first published in January 2024.'The Last of Us' season 2 will premiere on April 13, 2025On March 9, HBO released a full trailer that announced season two will premiere on April 13, 2025. The footage gave fans a better idea of what to expect from the show's sophomore season, including a large-scale battle in the snow against a horde of the infected.The trailer was watched 22 million times in 48 hours, which indicates that anticipation is high for the series.HBO previously released a trailer on "The Last of Us" day in September, showing Joel and Ellie as per usual in distress.Season two will have seven episodes, which Mazin described as "high-calorie" and "dense" in a February 2025 Entertainment Weekly interview. It will also include deleted material that wasn't included in "The Last of Us Part II."There will likely be a time jump and season 2 won't cover all of 'The Last of Us Part II'In an interview with Josh Horowitz on the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast in February 2023, Ramsey said that while they were playing a 14-year-old Ellie in the first season of "The Last of Us," Ellie would be closer to their own age in season two."I'll be 20, probably by the time we shoot that, and I'll be playing 19," Ramsey said. "So yeah, I will be closer to my age." Bella Ramsey as Ellie in "The Last of Us." Liane Hentscher/HBO Showrunner Craig Mazin also spoke about the possibility of a time jump with Collider, and said that there won't be any recasting as a result."Obviously, the time jump is important, to some extent," Mazin said. "It reflects the changing nature of Ellie's relationship with Joel, as she gets older."While "TLOU" season one covered the events of the 2013 game, the second season will not cover all of its 2020 sequel.Series co-creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, who also created the game series, told GQ in March 2023 that the events of the second game will take place over "more than one season."HBO has yet to renew the show for a third season. Mazin told EW in February, however, that he thinks it's "pretty likely" that the show has enough story material to carry it at least into a fourth season."We have a plan," Druckmann told EW. "We know what we need to do going forward, but we couldn't tell you right now exactly how many episodes or how many seasons it would take to get there."There are new cast members in season 2 Kaitlyn Dever will play Abby, a controversial character in "The Last of Us" video game franchise. Gilbert Flores/WWD via Getty Images) In January 2024, HBO announced three major season two castings.Dever will play Abby, the second protagonist of "The Last of Us Part II" and a playable character in the game. She's a member of the Fireflies and is driven by her desire for revenge.While Mazin and Druckmann remain tight-lipped about the details of Abby's character, Druckmann confirmed to EW that her physicality won't be as strongly emphasized in the series compared to the game. In simpler terms: she won't be as buff."I personally think that there is an amazing opportunity here to delve into someone who is perhaps physically more vulnerable than the Abby in the game, but whose spirit is stronger," Mazin told EW. "And then the question is, 'Where does her formidable nature come from and how does it manifest?' That's something that will be explored now and later.""Alien: Romulus" star Isabela Merced was cast as Dina, Ellie's love interest and eventual traveling companion who she gets to know in the Jackson settlement.And Young Mazino, a breakout star of the Netflix limited series "Beef," will play Jesse, Dina's ex and a community leader in Jackson. Young Mazino will play Jesse in season two of "The Last of Us." Elyse Jankowski/Variety via Getty Images; PlayStation/YouTube In March 2024, Max announced four more additions to the cast. Danny Ramirez will play Manny, Ariela Barer will play Mel, Tati Gabrielle will play Nora, and Spencer Lord will play Owen. The four characters are friends of Abby's from the Seattle settlement.HBO also announced in May 2024 that Jeffrey Wright ("American Fiction") would reprise his role from the games and play Isaac, the leader of the Washington Liberation Front, in season two. Per Entertainment Weekly, HBO describes Isaac as "the quietly powerful leader of a large militia group who sought liberty but instead has become mired in an endless war against a surprisingly resourceful enemy."Catherine O'Hara of "Schitt's Creek" also appears in season two, and can be seen in a trailer acting as a counselor or therapist to Joel.Druckmann told EW in February that there's still another high-profile casting that's yet to come."There is a pretty prominent character that is talked a lot about in the game, similar to what we did with Frank in season 1, that is in this season," he said. "There's a very, very cool casting that I hope we can talk about soon."Fans are concerned Joel could die in season 2 Joel (Pedro Pascal) cradles Ellie (Bella Ramsey) in the season one finale of "The Last of Us." Liane Hentscher/HBO "The Last of Us Part II" video game is controversial among fans because Joel is unexpectedly and brutally murdered by Abby toward the start of the sequel when his past catches up with him.In addition to playing as Ellie, gamers are forced to play as Joel's killer leading up to and after his death in the sequel. As a result, some players harassed and threatened the developers, Druckmann, and voice actors for its story.TV-Joel's fate is the question on every fan's mind since it's the major jumping-off point of the sequel game. Even Pascal has said his character's death is a possibility in season two. Pedro Pascal as Joel on season one of "The Last of Us." Liane Hentscher/HBO "It wouldn't make sense to follow the first game so faithfully only to stray severely from the path," Pascal told Esquire in April 2023."If that does take place in the show, I don't know that I'm emotionally ready for it," he added.However, Mazin told Entertainment Weekly in 2023 that fans can expect some changes from the sequel game in season two, saying, "It's going to be different, and it will be its own thing. It won't be exactly like the game."Maybe that means there's a chance Joel could live, or at least make it to the end of season two, due to Pascal's immense popularity.Since the second game became controversial, it's likely the show may flesh out Abby's character more before killing Joel off, if the show decides to go that route. But it would be difficult to envision season two straying from Joel's death entirely since it's the key motivation for Ellie's path in the sequel game.There will be more infected One of the infected. Liane Hentscher/HBO In the game, players constantly outmaneuver and kill many of the people who have been infected and taken over by the cordyceps virus. Though the infected show up in a few key scenes, they weren't a main fixture of season one, which placed a large emphasis on character relationships and world-building."It's quite possible that there will be a lot more infected later. And perhaps different kinds," Mazin said during a press conference for the finale in 2023.On HBO's "The Last of Us" podcast in 2023, Mazin added that season two will likely further explore the idea of the Cordyceps hive mind and how they can be a major threat together."I think this next season, the interconnectivity of them, and the risk of stepping on the wrong thing, that stuff is going to be brought forward more for sure," Mazin said.

Healthcare.gov, the government health insurance marketplace website, launched in October 2013 only to buckle under the weight of just 2,000 simultaneous users. As millions of Americans stared at error messages and frozen screens, a political crisis unfolded, but so did a new era of government technology. The result was 18F, an in-house digital services consulting agency that brought Silicon Valley expertise to government, challenging decades of outdated procurement practices and introducing a radical new approach to building digital public services. Founded on March 19, 2014, by Presidential Innovation Fellows, 18F was housed within the Technology Transformation Services department of the General Services Administration, or GSA. The name 18F was derived from the address of GSA headquarters: 1800 F Street. On March 1, 2025, just a few weeks shy of 18Fs 11th anniversary, the Trump administration eliminated the agency and laid off its staff. As a researcher who studies public administration and technology, I have observed the transformational role 18F played in government digital services. The units elimination raises the question of what the future of those services will look like. Impact of 18F 18F served a unique role as an in-house digital consultancy for the U.S. government, drawing on innovative strategies to improve public service through technology. Within 18F, teams consisting of designers, software engineers, strategists and product managers worked together with federal, state and local agencies to not only fix technical problems but to build, buy and share technology that helped to modernize and improve the publics experience with government services. Over nearly 11 years, 18F built an impressive portfolio of successful digital projects that transformed how people interact with the U.S. government. Even if the average person is unfamiliar with 18F, the odds are quite high that they have at least encountered one of its many products or services.18F staff describe the groups mission and work. For example, 18F supported the Internal Revenue Service in creating IRS Direct File, a free online tax filing tool that provides taxpayers with a simplified filing process. As of today, IRS Direct File is available in 25 states and is expected to serve 30 million eligible taxpayers during the 2025 tax filing season. 18F has been pivotal in modernizing and securing digital systems to help create more streamlined and secure user experiences for the public. For instance, Login.gov is a secure single sign-on platform that simplifies access to multiple government services for users.Perhaps the most notable of 18Fs modernization efforts that touches nearly every aspect of government today is the U.S. Web Design System. The comprehensive design system was developed in collaboration with the U.S. Digital Service in 2015. It helps support dozens of agencies and makes nearly 200 websites more accessible and responsive to user needs. How 18F worked What set 18F apart was its approach. Rather than spending years on giant information technology contracts that often failed to deliver, 18F championed agile development. Agile and lean methodologies have been popular in Silicon Valley startups and software companies for decades due to their flexibility and focus on rapid iteration. By applying agile development principles, 18F focused on breaking down large projects into manageable pieces with incremental improvements based on frequent user feedback. This approach allowed continuous adaptation spurred by user feedback and changing requirements while reducing risk.Another cornerstone of 18Fs innovative approach was its focus on user-centered design. By focusing on the needs of the people who actually used government services, 18F was able to go beyond merely satisfying technical requirements to design digital products that were more accessible and user-friendly. The idea was to understand the end users and the problems they encountered in order to effectively design products and solutions that addressed their needs. It also aimed to provide a consistent user experience and earn the users trust in the services. By prioritizing open-source development and collaboration, 18F also helped to make government IT more affordable. Making project code transparent meant that agencies could reuse the code and reduce the cost of duplicate development efforts across agencies and levels of government.18F also had a hand in helping agencies develop their own technology capacity, whether by teaching them how to build software using open-source development and agile methodologies or by teaching agencies how to hire and oversee technology vendors themselves. This model was especially beneficial for state and local agencies following 18Fs expansion in 2016 to provide services to state and local government agencies that receive federal funding. End of an era The elimination of 18F marks the end of an era, raising concerns about both current and future technology projects. As of now, there does not appear to be a succession plan, leaving many federal agencies without ongoing support for their digital transformation efforts. Critics also argue that the loss of 18F means the loss of significant technical expertise within the government. These changes come at a time when agencies are experiencing substantial personnel shifts, rendering digital services potentially even more critical. As agencies brace for more personnel cuts, the public may need to rely more on digital services to fill the gap amid growing staffing shortages.Since the news was announced, current and former 18F team members as well as advocates of the unit have taken to social media platforms, including X (formerly Twitter), Bluesky, and LinkedIn, to share stories of its successes, honor its legacy and share 18F resources. Kayla Schwoerer, Assistant Professor of Public Administration & Policy, University at Albany, State University of New York This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Lets do a little quick math on that amazingly fun karaoke night you and your friends love to indulge in. The cover charge, cocktails, and pub grub add up quickly. Even if your favorite karaoke bar is on the cheap side, its easily an over-$50 excursion.Karaoke machines for your home arent hard to find, but Vizio has blazed a new trail entirely with the MicMe 2.1 Karaoke Soundbar, because its also a great Dolby Atmos and DTS:X sound system for your TV when youre not making those highly questionable song choices. This newly released sound system is also a surprise limited-time Amazon deal at just $198 43% off the $350 retail price. (More quick math thats 4 karaoke nights back at your watering hole.)See at AmazonPic Up the Mic, Start the PartyWhen youre just using your TV for streaming or watching live shows, movies, or sports, the Vizio MicMe 2.1 is a high-end soundbar with cinema-quality sound and ClearDialog technology that fine-tunes voices so you can hear every word of dialogue. Vizios QuickFit system lets you attach the MicMe 2.1 directly to select Vizio TVs for a perfectly seamless look with no adhesives and no holes in your wall.Converting the MicMe 2.1 into a party machine only requires picking up one or both of the mics from the charging dock. The mics light up in one of nine LED colors, and you can use the Vizio MicMe app to access over 85,000 song to perform beautifully (or butcher). The MicMe 2.1 works with karaoke-friendly music apps like Apple Music which remove the original vocals, and you can also stream or cast popular karaoke apps like Kanto Karaoke, Stingray Karaoke, Smule, Party Tyme Karaoke, Yokee Karaoke, and YouTube.The Vizio mobile app controls the microphones and even has voice enhancements and effects to refine and amplify your voice. Even if youre not doing karaoke, the MicMe 2.1 lets you sing along with your favorite shows and movies.On-Demand SingalongsPulling out the home karaoke machine is all well and good, but when your TVs high-end soundbar can instantly transform into an amazing karaoke machine with far superior sound quality and features, and then go back to being a great sound system for your TV the rest the time, youre ahead of the game.At its usual $350 number, the Vizio MicMe 2.1 is priced competitively with other TV soundbars and also with home karaoke machines. But with this surprise limited-time Amazon deal taking that price down by 43% to an all-time low of just $198 for top-quality home cinema sound and on-demand instant party mode, your karaoke nights from now on will be in the comfort of your own home.See at Amazon

AI is Revolutionizing Construction 'Nows the Time to Lead the Change,' Says Pioneer Lilian HoSponsored ContentSave this picture!Leonardo.ai. AI-generated image by ZIGURAT Institute of Technology. Image :Courtesy of ZIGURAT"We stand on the brink of a revolution in construction. The introduction of Artificial Intelligence is set to inevitably transform a sector that has, until now, been traditional and scarcely digitalized. Soon, we will witness a paradigm shift in how we approach every stage of the construction process, and industry professionals must lead the change," warns Lilian Ho, BIM & Digital Leader in AEC industry.Lilian, who has recently been appointed to lead the Master's in Artificial Intelligence for Architecture & Construction at ZIGURAT Institute of Technologythe world's first online master's program entirely dedicated to AI in the AEC sectorexplains the imminent impact of Artificial Intelligence: "First, the advent of CAD transformed the industry; then came BIM, disruptively revolutionizing work processes; and now, Artificial Intelligence has arrived to transform every stage of the construction project lifecycle, from conceptualization to execution."Save this picture!Digitalization: an Inevitable OpportunityIn a sector historically rooted in conventional methods, AI is not merely optimizing processes; it is redefining the very essence of architecture and construction. We are witnessing a paradigm shift so profound that entirely new ways of thinking, designing and building will soon emerge. A complete transformation is on the horizonnot only in our methodologies but also in our very understanding of what's possible. The possibilities are beyond what we can currently imagine.That is why "Artificial Intelligence is challenging everything we knew about design, planning and the management of construction projects, opening the door to solutions for efficiency and sustainability challenges like never before," says Ho. Known for her deep understanding of emerging technologies in the sector, has taken the helm of a training program designed to transform industry professionals into leaders capable of implementing digitalization processes that will enable them to tackle some of the greatest challenges of our era, such as resource optimization and the creation of smart cities. The goal is clear: seize the opportunity that this transformation undoubtedly presents."The application of AI to architecture and construction transforms the entire construction process. In the Master's in Artificial Intelligence applied to Architecture and Construction by ZIGURAT we ensure that professionals are trained in each of these areas," explains Ho. The program, offered in a live online format, lasts one academic year and is delivered in three languages (Spanish, English and Portuguese). It is divided into four modules, covering everything from the fundamentals of AI and programming to its application in BIM, generative design, project management and smart cities. In addition, it delves into tools such as generative machine learning and natural language processing applied to architectural processes.Save this picture!Save this picture!Leading the Change Through AI TrainingDigitalization in construction is no longer optionalit is essential for creating a more advanced, sustainable, and humane industry.For Lilian, the digital revolution is not only transforming what we already know, but it is also set to radically change the future of the profession. In this regard, training and the acquisition of new skills are crucial. "AI is not simply another toolit is the foundation upon which the cities of tomorrow will be built. It offers us endless possibilities to move towards constructing more sustainable buildings, infrastructures and even cities through resource optimization and the reduction of our carbon footprint."According to Lilian, immersing oneself in AI is an indispensable step towards generating realistic solutions to the environmental, urban and economic challenges we currently face, and she asserts that "we are at a crucial moment to create a more responsible, efficient and future-ready architecture. It is in our hands to seize this opportunity." Indeed, with Lilian at the helm, professionals who are already beginning to master these disruptive technologies will have "the opportunity to experience a transformative journey, with a highly practical approach that provides them with tangible tools to bring innovation to their projects."Save this picture!Save this picture!Save this picture!The message is clear: AI is advancing rapidly, and those who embrace it today will be the pioneers in shaping the future. "The sector needs to adapt rapidly. Embracing digitalization is key to positioning oneself as a leader in the global industry. There is no doubt that those who prepare themselves today will be the ones to forge the industry of tomorrow, applying AI solutions that will forever redefine architecture and construction."Thus, the construction industry is headed towards a future where technology and creativity merge to build smarter, more responsible, and resilient cities. As Lilian concludes, "Transformation is underway. The future is now, and it is digital."For further information about the ZIGURAT Institute of Technology, follow this link.Image gallerySee allShow lessCite: "AI is Revolutionizing Construction 'Nows the Time to Lead the Change,' Says Pioneer Lilian Ho" 11 Mar 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1027492/ai-is-revolutionizing-construction-nows-the-time-to-lead-the-change-says-pioneer-lilian-ho&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save!ArchDaily?You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream

Desert X 2025 Exhibition Opens with 11 Art Installations in Californias Coachella ValleySave this picture!Desert X 2025 installation view of Sarah Meyohas, Truth Arrives in Slanted Beams. Courtesy of Desert X.. Image Lance GerberDesert X is a site-specific international art exhibition taking place this year across the Coachella Valley, California. Its fifth edition, curated by Artistic Director Neville Wakefield and co-curator Kaitlin Garcia Maestas, opened on March 10, 2025, featuring eleven installations by international artists integrated into the desert landscape. Artists were invited to propose alternative ways of perceiving a world "increasingly encircled by the transformational effects of nature and humanity," through physical installations in specific locations within the California desert. In this context, architecture is understood as the most visible evidence of human transformation, while immaterial elements, such as wind and light, highlight the transformative effects not only of human activity but also of nature itself. The exhibition is free and open to all, running through May 11, 2025. Below are images and descriptions of the eleven art installations featured in this year's Desert X exhibition.Unsui (Mirror) / Sanford BiggersSave this picture!Sanford Biggers' installation features two towering sequin sculptures set against the desert sky. Drawing on the study of Buddhism, these clouds or unsui ("clouds and water" in Japanese) embody unencumbered movement. Standing over 30 feet tall, the sequin clouds shift with sunlight and wind. They symbolize change and continuity, forecasting rain and storms while reflecting the interplay between natural phenomena and cultural symbolism. Biggers' installation is situated at the James O. Jessie Desert Highland Unity Center in Palm Springs, where a historic Black community was established in the 1960s after the forced displacement of residents of color from Section 14, a square mile of land near downtown Palm Springs. Activists whose families reside in Desert Highland Gateway Estates continue toward reparations efforts today. Related Article UNAM Sculpture Space: Integrating Art and Culture into Mexico's Natural Landscape The act of being together / Jose DvilaSave this picture!The marble blocks used in Jose Dvila's piece are unaltered extractions from a quarry a few hundred miles across the U.S.Mexico border. Moved by the invisible forces of unknown histories, they evoke the archeological relics of ancient civilizations and the potential future of life beyond this life. Drawing on Robert Smithson's concept of site/non-site dialectics, Dvila connects the two locations by highlighting the presence and absence of the rough-hewn forms. By taking the material from one place and adding it to another, he establishes a relationship between the void of its origin and the presence it creates in a foreign landscape. Like ruins in reverse, Dvila's marble formations suggest a suspended state of becoming, representing the end of something old and the beginning of something new.The Living Pyramid / Agnes DenesSave this picture!The Living Pyramid is both a monumental sculpture and an environmental intervention. Its hierarchical form echoes the idea of Sunnylands as the "Camp David of the American West," a place where political and thought leaders from around the globe have convened "to promote world peace and facilitate international agreement." At the same time, the pyramid constantly changes. Planted with native vegetation, its structure and appearance transform according to the slow growth cycles of the desert environment. This process reflects the organic development of nature as it interacts with the pyramid, one of the most iconic forms of human civilization. Activated through educational programs promoting environmental awareness and conservation, the installation represents a social construct that proposes a micro-society of people responsible for its construction, planting, and ongoing care.G.H.O.S.T. Ride (Generative Habitation Operating System Technology) / Cannupa Hanska LugerSave this picture!G.H.O.S.T. Ride expands Luger's Future Ancestral Technologies (FAT) series, which uses speculative fiction to envision sustainable, land-based futures. The series imagines Indigenous communities utilizing innovative technologies to live in attunement with land and water, challenging colonial paradigms of extraction and exploitation. Camouflaged in reflective vinyl, the vehicle merges with the environment, acting as a mirror and an extension of the landscape. It incorporates industrial detritus, ceramics, and a tipi, and is equipped with speculative water and light gathering systems. Visitors may encounter the vehicle's time-traveling occupants, a family from an undefined future, offering insights into possible survival modes. G.H.O.S.T. Ride invites visitors to reimagine coexistence among human and nonhuman realms, encouraging reflection on the enduring significance of land over the fleeting nature of human infrastructure.Five things you can't wear on TV / Raphael HeftiSave this picture!In this piece, Hefti uses a black woven polymer fiber, originally designed for light but durable fire hoses, coated on one side with a reflective finish. Tension holds this flat band of material overhead between two distant points, forming a single line or artificial horizon. The force held in the taut material causes it to oscillate in the wind. This vibration resembles a gently strummed guitar string, creating a visual harmonic that resonates with the surrounding landscape. The oscillating line blurs visitors' sense of spatial perception, scale, and distance in its kinetic movement. Wind, weather, and ambient light amplify this seemingly arbitrary movement, transforming it into an environmental condition. By splitting the air, Five things you can't wear on TV draws attention to the ongoing performance of light and space, expressing the poetry of a climatic phenomenon.Truth Arrives in Slanted Beams / Sarah MeyohasSave this picture!Sarah Mehoyas' immersive installation showcases "caustics," light patterns formed by the refraction or reflection of light through curved surfaces. While this optical effect often occurs naturally, such as at the bottom of a swimming pool, Meyohas transforms it using light-shaping technology, enabling visitors to project sunlight onto a ribbon-like structure cascading across the desert floor. The installation recalls ancient timekeeping technology like sundials and pays homage to 20th-century land art. Each mirrored panel, crafted using computer algorithms for light manipulation, features a unique pattern, spelling out the poetic phrase, "truth arrives in slanted beams." As visitors adjust the mirrors to sharpen the projected images, they encounter unexpected visual illusions (waves, moir patterns, or perhaps a mirage), stirring a longing for the desert's ever-present water.Adobe Oasis / Ronald RaelSave this picture!Architect, artist, and activist Ronald Rael presents traditional craft techniques in wood, stone, earth, and textiles as sustainable solutions for the future. His work engages with over 10,000 years of earthen building history, offering a counterpoint to the environmental impact of modern architecture. The advantages of adobe (low cost, energy efficiency, fire resistance, and non-toxicity) are enhanced in Rael's installation by technological advancements in additive manufacturing. Adobe Oasis was built using a 3D printing process, utilizing robotic programming to create structures entirely from mud. The corrugated earthen ribbons mimic the texture of palm trees, inspired by the legacy of Coachella Valley's palm oases, which have thrived on desert waters for millennia. For the artist, this land-based project serves as both an artistic endeavor and a research initiative, inviting visitors into a dynamic landscape, where passageways frame views of the land and sky, fostering solitude and connection.Soul Service Station / Alison SaarSave this picture!Soul Service Station reimagines a sculptural intervention the artist created in 1986 in Roswell, New Mexico. Drawing inspiration from gas stations that have populated the American West, the station offers more than practical services; it provides fuel for the soul. Inside the station, a handcrafted sculptural assemblage contains a collection of devotional objects. These community-crafted elements, combined with furnishings made from salvaged materials, form a sanctuary that merges collective dreams with Saar's vision of a spiritual oasis. At the center stands a life-size, hand-carved female figure, the guardian and healer of the site. Further enriching the experience, a repurposed gas pump plays poems by Los Angeles-based poet Harryette Mullen. Saar's Soul Service Station emulates a sanctuary for travelers, a place to pause, heal, and carry forward aspirations, histories, and voices.What Remains / Muhannad ShonoSave this picture!In this installation, Muhannad Shono presents a version of land without a fixed identity, continuously shaped and reshaped by nature's forces. He infuses long strips of fabric with the native sand, allowing them to move freely and amplifying the ever-changing state of the dunes. The fabric strips, orientated to align with the prevailing winds, follow the contours of the ground, fibrillating just above its surface. As the wind direction shifts, the natural process of aeolian transportation that forms dunes is interrupted, causing the fabric to tangle and form chaotic bundles. Shono describes his work as existing in "a state of tremor," suspended between the pull of gravity and the relentless force of the wind.To Breathe Coachella Valley / KimsoojaIn Kimsooja's To Breathe Coachella Valley installation, a glass structure defines a performance space, inviting the audience to interact with the essential elements of the desert: the texture of sand, the air, and the light. By wrapping the glass surface in an optical film, the artist transforms the physical architecture into a dynamic spectrum of light and color. According to the Kimsooja, "this diffraction film acts as a transparent textile, featuring thousands of vertical and horizontal scratch lines akin to warp and weft, and envelops the architecture in light." This installation references its counterpart located in the desert of AlUla, Saudi Arabia, nearly 8,000 miles away, while also acknowledging the origins of the Light and Space movement on the U.S. West Coast. Images of the installation, along with Kapwani Kiwanga's Plotting Rest exhibit, will be unveiled onPlotting Rest / Kapwani KiwangaThe pavilion explores themes of shelter and freedom, reminiscent of midcentury design in Palm Springs. Its triangular lattice roof allows light and shadows to shift, echoing quilting patterns related to the Underground Railroad and themes of migration and hope. The installation, along with Kimsooja's To Breathe Coachella Valley exhibit, will open onSave this picture!About the artists: Sanford Biggers, b. Los Angeles, CA, USA. 1970, based in New York, NY, USA Jose Dvila, b. Guadalajara, Mexico, 1974, based in Guadalajara, Mexico Agnes Denes, b. Budapest, Hungary, 1931, based in New York, NY, USA Cannupa Hanska Luger, Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara and Lakota, b. Standing Rock Reservation, North Dakota, USA, 1979, based in Glorieta, New Mexico, USA Raphael Hefti, b. Neuchtel, Switzerland, 1978, based in Zurich, Switzerland Kimsooja, b. Daegu, Korea, 1957, based in Seoul, South Korea and Paris, France Kapwani Kiwanga, b. Hamilton, Canada, 1978, based in Paris, France Sarah Meyohas, b. New York, NY, USA, 1991, based in New York, NY, USA Ronald Rael, b. Conejos Country, CO, USA,1971, based in Berkeley, CA, USA Alison Saar, b. in Los Angeles, CA, USA, 1956, based in Los Angeles, CA, USA Muhannad Shono, b. in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 1977, based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Image gallerySee allShow less

Languages evolve and change drastically over time. If you were to say street corn, nepo baby, or beach read three terms recently added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary to early English speakers, theyd likely think you were speaking a different language.English borrows a lot of words from different languages. Words include rendezvous, genre, and even lemon. English is more of a fluid language, picking up new words as it grows. However, this wasnt always the case, especially when the Vikings raided the British Isles. Though the Vikings established a strong foothold in the British Isles, the Norse languages didnt come to dominate.Though few words were adopted into standard English, there are still words used today that the Vikings left behind.Early Language Influences Humans have lived in the British Isles for thousands of years, but scholars are unsure which language people spoke 10,000 years or 5,000 years ago.When the Celts came to the British Isles about 3,000 years ago, they encountered Pictish speakers. Following the Celts, the Romans dominated Britain 2,000 years ago, but the empire collapsed and withdrew around 410 A.D. Latin had an indirect influence on English in that Latin-derived words like wall, kitchen, wine, and mile.English came to the British Isles as a German dialect when German tribes, including the Angles, Frisians, Jutes, and Saxons, arrived around 449 A.D. and continued to spread in the subsequent centuries.Old Norse and the English LanguageIn the late 700s, Norse raiders the Vikings invaded the British Isles, and as one historian describes it, the Vikings were unloosed for the next three centuries. The Norwegians went up to the northern and western edges of Scotland as well as Cumbria in the northwest of England.The Danes pushed their way into the east and Midlands, and by the 850s, they were the dominating force. Despite their power, few words at the time made it from Old Norse into the English language. Simply put, English wasnt a language that budged easily.At the time, English had about 25,000 words, and few were borrowed from other languages. Only about 200 Roman words were in use, and only a few Celtic words were on loan to English speakers. The Celtic words that made their way into the lexicon tended to be location-based. The river Thames, for example, is based on a Celtic word.Borrowing Building BlocksOnly about 150 Danish words slid into the English language while the Vikings were occupying the British Isles. Scholars, however, find three Norse words to be particularly noteworthy they, their, and them.This is really interesting, because while its pretty common for vocabulary to move from one language to another due to cultural contact, its less common for fundamental building blocks of a language such as personal pronouns to make that move, says Eleanor Barraclough, a senior lecturer at Bath Spa University in England and the author of Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking Age.Old English had used the third-person pronouns hi, hie, heira, and hem, but Middle English adopted the Norse form, and scholars see the shift begin in the north and then spread south. The complete adaption of the third-person pronouns indicated a similarity between Old Norse and Old English.It has been suggested that this is because Old Norse and Old English are both Germanic languages, and if you spoke one, you probably understood quite a lot of the other, Barraclough says.English speakers also adapted vocabulary from the Vikings.English has vocabulary that comes from Old Norse, including words that we might associate with the stereotype of Viking raiders, like ugly, knife, slaughter, anger and die. But others are more surprising, and I like them a lot more, words like guest, egg and cake, Barraclough says.And although many people might not associate such sparkly words with Viking invaders, glitter and glimmer are also from Old Norse.Some scholars estimate that about 1,000 English words derive from Norse languages. (For perspective, the average American English speaker knows about 42,000 words.)English Adaptations Although English speakers were okay with keeping glitter and glimmer, they wanted the Norse invaders off their island. In the late 870s, Alfred the Great rallied his fighters and claimed victory. The result was a division of land into Celtic, English, and Norse territories.So the Norse didnt pack up their belongings and ship out. Rather, they settled, and over time, marriage between ruling parties formed alliances between the territories.In the former Scandinavian territories, there are words that worked their way into the regional dialect.In areas of Britain that were heavily settled by Scandinavians for example, in the area that we today sometimes call the Danelaw even more Old Norse vocabulary survives as dialect words in areas such as Yorkshire in Northern England. For instance, a bairn or barn is a child, to leik or leck is to play, and a foss or force is a waterfall, Barraclough says.Although these words are regional and havent made their way into the standard English spoken by millions of people worldwide, they have a place of permanence in the former Norse territory because of town names.Town names that end with -by, like Derby, are common in the former Norse territory because by means abode or village. Similarly, -thorpe means village in Danish, and towns such as Althorpe reflect the influence. Both demonstrate how the Norse invaders eventually made themselves at home. Read More: When Did Humans Evolve Language?Article SourcesOur writers at Discovermagazine.com use peer-reviewed studies and high-quality sources for our articles, and our editors review for scientific accuracy and editorial standards. Review the sources used below for this article:Eleanor Barraclough. Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking AgeElly van Gelderen. A History of the English Language: Revised editionEmilie Lucchesi has written for some of the country's largest newspapers, including The New York Times, Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Missouri and an MA from DePaul University. She also holds a Ph.D. in communication from the University of Illinois-Chicago with an emphasis on media framing, message construction and stigma communication. Emilie has authored three nonfiction books. Her third, A Light in the Dark: Surviving More Than Ted Bundy, releases October 3, 2023, from Chicago Review Press and is co-authored with survivor Kathy Kleiner Rubin.

Cockroaches are vital to rainforests and can play an important role in ecosystems outside of your kitchen.Image: CSA Images via Getty Images ShareCockroaches have some of the worst PR in the animal kingdom. With a better agent, their story could be that of a hardy insect that has successfully thrived on every continent except Antarctica. People would talk of the incredible diversity of the 4,600 cockroach species and their elaborate behavioral rituals and social patterns. Instead, the couple dozen roach species that interact with human habitats have stolen the headlines. Cockroaches are instead bywords for filth and grime, with much of our knowledge of these bugs being on how to exterminate them from our homes.What makes cockroaches so successful, and why do the vast majority of these billions of bugs remain a total mystery to science?The most globally dispersed cockroach speciesthe German cockroachis a resilient domestic pest. Theyre just basically the perfect kind of species to take over, says Warren Booth, an urban entomologist. These hardy bugs have a long list of pest superpowers. If a pair of cockroaches enter a new home, they can start an infestation quickly. One female German cockroach can lay around 40 egg cases at once and will lay around 200-250 during her lifetime. Get the Popular Science newsletter Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. By signing up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.Its closely related cousin, the American cockroach, can go further. If a single female American roach wants to start a new family, she can do so without waiting for any male cockroaches to turn up. They can produce parthenogenically, meaning that fully-formed cockroach offspring can develop from an unfertilized egg.These things are incredibly robust, says Booth. Pest cockroach species can even regenerate severed limbs without much fuss. They can do that with their internal tissues. They could lose their entire trachea, and then that can regenerate, adds Booth. Finally, roaches can eat almost anything and can survive on waste alone.Faced with a rapidly reproducing, regenerative insect Terminator, humans reached for chemical weapons. The discovery of the insecticide DDT in the 1940s kickstarted what Booth calls an arms race between ever-more-deadly chemicals and the adaptable cockroach genome. The indiscriminate use of insecticides over subsequent decades succeeded in decimating populations of beneficial bugs like honeybees, accumulated poison inside larger wildlife with devastating health effects, thinned the shells of vulnerable bird species, and even hiked cancer risks in people exposed to the toxins as well as in their children. Despite the senseless scale of this collateral damage, the crushing chemical broadside made not even the slightest dent in the side of the Team Roach. Within a few years, cockroaches resistant to DDT started emerging. Modern-day cockroach populations resist virtually every insecticide cooked up between the 1940s and the 1990s. Booth explains that these cockroaches can produce detoxification enzymes that rapidly break down damaging chemicals.Part of the problem is the vast scale of cockroach communities. Booth explains that while some bee species rely on a single queen to reproduce, cockroaches can count on thousands of their kin reproducing at scale. This provides much more scope for helpful resistance gene mutations to emerge.Pest cockroach species have fully earned their reputation as unkillable insect juggernauts. But this scary surface masks a diverse world of much more delicate insects that play vital roles in our biosphere. Darby Proctor, a behavioral researcher at the Florida Institute of Technology, runs Roach Lab, an educational platform that teaches undergraduates how to conduct behavioral experiments using the discoid cockroach as a model species.Discoids arent a pest species and show surprising behavioral complexity. They can be trained to do simple tasks. Human psychology studies show that people complete tasks differently when onlookers watch them. In Proctors latest roach work, her students are testing whether pairs of cockroaches can complete maze tasks faster than when alone. Shes also investigating whether cockroaches have preferred social partners. If this were a primate, we would call that friends, she adds.These complex social dynamics are matched by the vast number of important roles cockroach species play. Roaches are a vital feed source for agri- and aquaculture, and are used for waste management in some Asian countries and even as cosmetic ingredients. Many species live in the rainforest, where they make up an incredible 25 percent of the biomass in the forest canopy. If we didnt havecockroaches, says Booth, rainforests fall apart because theyre the primarydecomposers. These non-pest species are also much more delicate animals that would die in a domestic setting, says Booth.Many rarer and more useful species live far from the human eye, whereas German cockroaches live only inside human dwellings. The common view, says Booth, is that a cockroach is always a cockroach pest. A deeper look at this incredible grouping of animals shows that this view, at best, fails to pay respect to pest animals that have survived through incredible resilience and, at worst, ignores essential contributions to our most precious environments. In her Roach lab, Proctor has at least gotten her small group of would-be entomologists to appreciate the value of these tiny bugs. If one of their cockroaches die, theyre real sad about it, she says.

Elated beyond imagination. Thats how Sandy Steers, executive director of Friends of Big Bear Valley, says that she and the team of mostly volunteers are feeling after watching three eaglets hatch last week. These were the first eggs to successfully hatch for internet-famous bald eagles Jackie and Shadow since 2022.I was optimistic, and I was feeling really good, like, this is going to be the time. But I kept tempering it because its been so hard the last two years that I didnt allow myself to get too excited, says Steers.Under the watch of a 24/7 livestreamed camera mounted above Jackie and Shadows nest in Southern Californias San Bernardino mountains, the first two eggs hatched on March 3 and March 4. The third egg hung in there a little longer, hatching on March 8.In the days since, thousands of people around the world have watched as the trio learns to eat, work out their wings, and projectile poopsometimes on each other. In some ways, the event was a complete reversal for those who watched as three eggs failed to hatch last year. Statistically, only 50 percent of bald eagle eggs successfully hatch and 70 percent survive their first year, according to the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.Now that they are out in the world, they will still face some challenges. According to Steers, weather is their biggest threat. Eaglets are born without their waterproof feathers and all of the down layers that keep warm air in and cold air out. The crucial waterproof feathers usually come in about six weeks after hatching and snowstorms are still forecast for the area.I know people are worried about the snow coming this week. Its actually better that it comes now, while the chicks are small, because they can all fit under Jackie and under Shadow and they can keep them dry, says Steers. The challenge comes when they get bigger and they cant fit under but they dont have their waterproof feathers completely.Winged predators in the area are also a threat. In 2023, Jackie and Shadows eggs were eaten by ravens, and the pair has been observed vocalizing and chasing ravens away from their nest and its eaglets.According to Steers, one thing that is not an issue is food. Big Bear Lake has rainbow trout, bass, bluegill sunfish, blue catfish, common carp, and more for the birds to eat. However, food in general does cause some sibling rivalry among the eaglets. The dominant chicks tend to eat first, while the smaller chicks wait around and find some creative ways to eat like tandem feeding and waiting for the dominant chicks to be too full to move around much.Weve seen them already bonking each other like that. Although at this age, theyre pretty harmless. That rivalry kind of calms down once its been shown that theres plenty of food and theyre going to get fed, says Steers.Jackie and particularly Shadow are also highly skilled in retrieving fish to bring back up to the nest from the lake.[ Related: Jackie and Shadows third eaglet has landed. ]Shadow actually has the record for fastest catch on the lake, and the fishermen laugh about it, says Steers. He left the nest, flew the quarter mile to the lake, and came back with a fish in one minute and a half.In the weeks to come, viewers can expect to see more eating, poop bursting out onto the nest, and wigersizing. The eaglets wingersize by flapping their wings up and down as a way to prepare to take to the sky when they are fully fledged. They should be ready to leave the nest in around 10 to 12 weeks. In that time, they will grow rapidly from about three inches up to three feet tall.As they grow, the eaglets will also become more curious about the nest and world around them. Those of us watching will also have the opportunity to suggest names for the eagles. Viewers will be able to submit names through an online portal and then a local third grade class gets the honor of voting for the official names for the eaglets.I love that people are learning about nature that theyre willing to just open up. We get to watch and see all the possibilities that are out there and be amazed, entertained, and curious, says Steers. Whatever happens, we get to observe it. And sometimes we have feelings, sometimes theyre sad. But all of it is nature, and we learn to connect.The post Bald eagle live cam team shares whats next for the 3 eaglets appeared first on Popular Science.

Nature, Published online: 11 March 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-00713-zFate of pistachio production in Iran holds lessons for the world

Nature, Published online: 11 March 2025; doi:10.1038/d41586-025-00756-2Top advisers in the Office of the Chief Scientist are among the first to go amid downsizing effort.