Modern software engineering faces growing challenges in accurately retrieving and understanding code across diverse programming languages and large-scale codebases. Existing embedding models often struggle to capture the deep semantics of code, resulting in poor performance in tasks such as code search, RAG, and semantic analysis. These limitations hinder developers’ ability to efficiently locate relevant code snippets, reuse components, and manage large projects effectively. As software systems grow increasingly complex, there is a pressing need for more effective, language-agnostic representations of code that can power reliable and high-quality retrieval and reasoning across a wide range of development tasks.  Mistral AI has introduced Codestral Embed, a specialized embedding model built specifically for code-related tasks. Designed to handle real-world code more effectively than existing solutions, it enables powerful retrieval capabilities across large codebases. What sets it apart is its flexibility—users can adjust embedding dimensions and precision levels to balance performance with storage efficiency. Even at lower dimensions, such as 256 with int8 precision, Codestral Embed reportedly surpasses top models from competitors like OpenAI, Cohere, and Voyage, offering high retrieval quality at a reduced storage cost. Beyond basic retrieval, Codestral Embed supports a wide range of developer-focused applications. These include code completion, explanation, editing, semantic search, and duplicate detection. The model can also help organize and analyze repositories by clustering code based on functionality or structure, eliminating the need for manual supervision. This makes it particularly useful for tasks like understanding architectural patterns, categorizing code, or supporting automated documentation, ultimately helping developers work more efficiently with large and complex codebases.  Codestral Embed is tailored for understanding and retrieving code efficiently, especially in large-scale development environments. It powers retrieval-augmented generation by quickly fetching relevant context for tasks like code completion, editing, and explanation—ideal for use in coding assistants and agent-based tools. Developers can also perform semantic code searches using natural language or code queries to find relevant snippets. Its ability to detect similar or duplicated code helps with reuse, policy enforcement, and cleaning up redundancy. Additionally, it can cluster code by functionality or structure, making it useful for repository analysis, spotting architectural patterns, and enhancing documentation workflows.  Codestral Embed is a specialized embedding model designed to enhance code retrieval and semantic analysis tasks. It surpasses existing models, such as OpenAI’s and Cohere’s, in benchmarks like SWE-Bench Lite and CodeSearchNet. The model offers customizable embedding dimensions and precision levels, allowing users to effectively balance performance and storage needs. Key applications include retrieval-augmented generation, semantic code search, duplicate detection, and code clustering. Available via API at $0.15 per million tokens, with a 50% discount for batch processing, Codestral Embed supports various output formats and dimensions, catering to diverse development workflows. In conclusion, Codestral Embed offers customizable embedding dimensions and precisions, enabling developers to strike a balance between performance and storage efficiency. Benchmark evaluations indicate that Codestral Embed surpasses existing models like OpenAI’s and Cohere’s in various code-related tasks, including retrieval-augmented generation and semantic code search. Its applications span from identifying duplicate code segments to facilitating semantic clustering for code analytics. Available through Mistral’s API, Codestral Embed provides a flexible and efficient solution for developers seeking advanced code understanding capabilities.  vides valuable insights for the community. Check out the Technical details. All credit for this research goes to the researchers of this project. Also, feel free to follow us on Twitter and don’t forget to join our 95k+ ML SubReddit and Subscribe to our Newsletter. Sana HassanSana Hassan, a consulting intern at Marktechpost and dual-degree student at IIT Madras, is passionate about applying technology and AI to address real-world challenges. With a keen interest in solving practical problems, he brings a fresh perspective to the intersection of AI and real-life solutions.Sana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Off-Policy Reinforcement Learning RL with KL Divergence Yields Superior Reasoning in Large Language ModelsSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/This AI Paper from Microsoft Introduces WINA: A Training-Free Sparse Activation Framework for Efficient Large Language Model InferenceSana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/Apple and Duke Researchers Present a Reinforcement Learning Approach That Enables LLMs to Provide Intermediate Answers, Enhancing Speed and AccuracySana Hassanhttps://www.marktechpost.com/author/sana-hassan/National University of Singapore Researchers Introduce Dimple: A Discrete Diffusion Multimodal Language Model for Efficient and Controllable Text Generation

FX’s The Bear returns to Hulu for a fourth season on June 25. This season will once again test Carmy (Jeremy Allen White), Sydney (Ayo Edebiri), and the rest of The Bear crew as they try to push their restaurant, and each other, to be the best they can be. The original docuseries Call Her Alex arrives on June 10, following podcast host and media mogul Alex Cooper as she prepares for her first tour. This docuseries also tells the story of how Cooper went from the host of a successful podcast to the CEO of a media empire, all within six years. Here’s everything that’s coming to (and leaving) Hulu in June. Hulu New Releases – June 2025 June 1 Adam (2019)Alien (1979)Alien 3 (1992)Alien Resurrection (1997)Alien vs. Predator (2004)Alien: Covenant (2017)Aliens (1986)Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (2007)Beasts Of The Southern Wild (2012)Before Midnight (2013)Betsy’s Wedding (1990)Beverly Hills Ninja (1997)Big Eden (2000)Big Fish (2003)The Big Hit (1998)Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son (2011)Blue Jasmine (2013)Boy Meets Girl (2014)Breakin’ All the Rules (2004)The Bronze (2016)Bubble Boy (2001)Bugsy (1991)Cedar Rapids (2011)The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Voyage Of The Dawn Treader (2010)Cold Pursuit (2019)Cyrus (2010)Daddy Day Care (2003)Death on the Nile (2022)Deja Vu (2006)Delivery Man (2013)Dude, Where’s My Car? (2000)Edge of Tomorrow (2014)Elena Undone (2010)Freddy Got Fingered (2001)The Girl Next Door (2004)Grown Ups (2010)Grown Ups 2 (2013)Happy Gilmore (1996)The Heat (2013)Hitchcock (2012)Hurricane Bianca (2016)Idiocracy (2006)Independence Day (1996)The Joy Luck Club (1993)Just Go With It (2011)Kung Fu Panda 3 (2016)Let’s Be Cops (2014)Loving Annabelle (2006)Mamma Mia: Here We Go Again! (2018)Mamma Mia! (2008)The Mask (1994)Me And Earl And The Dying Girl (2015)Mirrors (2008)The Namesake (2007)A Perfect Ending (2012)Pineapple Express (2008)Predator (1987)The Predator (2018)Predator 2 (1990)Predators (2010)Pride + Prejudice + Zombies (2016)Prometheus (2012)Reno 911! Miami: The Movie (2007)Sordid Lives (2000)28 Weeks Later (2007)The War of the Roses (1989)We’re The Millers (2013)Working Girl (1988)You Don’t Mess With The Zohan (2008) June 3 I’ve Somehow Gotten Stronger When I Improved My Farm-Related Skills: Complete Season 1 (DUBBED & SUBBED)Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Complete Season 1 (DUBBED & SUBBED)The Quiz With Balls: Season 2 PremiereSo I’m a Spider, So What?: Complete Season 1 (DUBBED & SUBBED)Wise Man’s Grandchild: Complete Season 1 (DUBBED & SUBBED)Yuri on Ice: Complete Season 1 (DUBBED & SUBBED)Presence (2025)June 4 The Great House Revival: Complete Season 5June 5 National Anthem (2023)June 6 Not Her First Rodeo: Complete Season 1Predator: Killer of Killers: Film PremiereBorat: Cultural Learnings Of America For Make Benefit Glorious Nation … (2006)Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo (1999)Hot Shots! (1991)Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993)Shallow Hal (2001)The Ringer (2005)June 7 Gypsy’s Revenge: Complete Season 1I (Almost) Got Away With It: Complete Season 3Kids Baking Championship: Complete Season 12Murder in the Heartland: Complete Season 1Naked and Afraid: Last One Standing: Complete Season 1Sister Wives: Complete Season 12June 8 Scream (2022) June 9 Beyblade X: Season 1B Join our mailing list Get the best of Den of Geek delivered right to your inbox! June 10 Call Her Alex: Complete DocuseriesAnd Then We Danced (2019)Clifford the Big Red Dog (2021)June 11 The Snake: Series PremiereGran Turismo (2023)June 12 The 1% Club: Season 2 PremiereJune 13 Atsuko Okatsuka: Father: Special PremiereAbsolution (2024)June 14 90 Day Fiance: Complete Season 590 Day Fiance UK: Complete Season 2Guy’s Grocery Games: Complete Seasons 32 & 33I’d Kill For You: Complete Season 3Joel McHale: Live from Pyongyang (2019) June 16 My Happy Ending: Complete Season 1 (Sub)Black Christmas (2019)June 17 SALLY (2025)Skincare (2024)June 19 The Quiet Ones (2024)June 20 The Bravest Knight: Season 2BOut Come the Wolves (2024)June 23 Barbara Walters Tell Me Everything: Documentary PremiereHelck: Complete Season 1 (DUBBED & SUBBED)My Instant Death Ability is Overpowered: Complete Season 1 (DUBBED & SUBBED)My Isekai Life : Complete Season 1 (DUBBED & SUBBED)June 24 Survive (2024) June 25 FX’s The Bear: Complete Season 4June 27 F*ck Marry Kill (2024)June 29 The Bachelor: Complete Seasons 27 & 28June 30 Boonie Bears: Time Twist (2024)Texas True Crime: Complete Season 5The Actor (2025)Leaving Hulu – June 2025 June 1 Christmas with the Campbells (2022)June 2 The Amazing Maurice (2022) June 4 Intrigo: Dear Agnes (2019)June 8 Indemnity (2021)June 10 Here Before (2021)Warhunt (2022)June 11 Intrigo: Samaria (2019)June 13 The Worst Person in the World (2021)June 17 Ted K (2021)The Ledge (2022) June 22 The Burning Sea (2021)June 24 Big Gold Brick (2022)Gasoline Alley (2022)June 25 The Desperate Hour (2022)June 30 Transfusion (2023)

French startup Mistral AI on Wednesday unveiled Codestral Embed, its first code-specific embedding model, claiming it outperforms rival offerings from OpenAI, Cohere, and Voyage. The company said the model supports configurable embedding outputs with varying dimensions and precision levels, allowing users to manage trade-offs between retrieval performance and storage requirements. “Codestral Embed with dimension 256 and int8 precision still performs better than any model from our competitors,” Mistral AI said in a statement. Codestral Embed is designed for use cases such as code completion, editing, or explanation tasks. It can also be applied in semantic search, duplicate detection, and repository-level analytics across large-scale codebases, the company said.“Codestral Embed supports unsupervised grouping of code based on functionality or structure,” Mistral AI added. “This is useful for analyzing repository composition, identifying emergent architecture patterns, or feeding into automated documentation and categorization systems.” The model is available through Mistral’s API under the name codestral-embed-2505, priced at $0.15 per million tokens. A batch API version is offered at a 50 percent discount, and on-premise deployments are available through direct consultation with the company’s applied AI team.The launch follows Mistral’s recent introduction of the Agents API, which the company said complements its Chat Completion API and is intended to simplify the development of agent-based applications. Enterprise interest in embeddings Advanced code embedding models are gaining traction as key tools in enterprise software development, offering improvements in productivity, code quality, and risk management across the software lifecycle. “Models like Mistral’s Codestral Embed enable precise semantic code search and similarity detection, allowing enterprises to quickly identify reusable code and near-duplicates across large repositories,” said Prabhu Ram, VP of the industry research group at Cybermedia Research. “By facilitating rapid retrieval of relevant code snippets for bug fixes, feature enhancements, or onboarding, these embeddings significantly improve maintenance workflows.” However, despite promising early benchmarks, the long-term value of such models will depend on how well they perform in production environments. Factors such as ease of integration, scalability across enterprise systems, and consistency under real-world coding conditions will play a crucial role in determining their adoption. “Codestral Embed’s strong technical foundation and flexible deployment options make it a compelling solution for AI-driven software development, though its real-world impact will require validation beyond initial benchmark results,” Ram added. Further reading Vector Institute aims to clear up confusion about AI model performance When LLMs become influencers Researchers reveal flaws in AI agent benchmarking What misleading Meta Llama 4 benchmark scores show enterprise leaders about evaluating AI performance claims How CIOs navigate generative AI in the enterprise

Discover how Steamroller Animation achieved a 2D, 1980s-cartoon aesthetic in Unreal Engine for animated show Spice Frontier—and expanded the universe of the story with a Fortnite island made in UEFN.

Monster Train 2 is a superlative sequel that takes everything that made the first game great and amps it up with smart new systems and even more replayability - here are our thoughtsTech17:09, 27 May 2025Ready to get back on the track?There’s nothing quite like a good roguelike deckbuilder . Whether you’re into Slay The Spire, Inscryption, or Monster Train, you’re not short of options either.So, how does a studio brute force its way into the conversation? By dropping not only a sequel to one of the aforementioned holy trinity , but also by making it possibly the best example of the card-based genre in years.‌Monster Train 2 is that rare sequel that expertly weaves new ideas into the fine-tuned locomotive engine of its predecessor, all while keeping many of the original parts. The result is one of the most moreish games of 2025, and even the last half-decade.‌This time, we're working upwardMonster Train debuted back in 2020, and its appeal came from its much more expansive art style than its contemporary, Slay The Spire’s simpler art direction, as well as the fact that its ludicrously-addictive card-based combat loop works on multiple levels (literally).Racking up the units to protect the top tier of your train added an element of positioning and a layer of tactility to combat, while also providing foes with an opportunity to outplay you.Article continues belowThankfully, Monster Train 2 doesn’t so much change that system as it buffs it to a shine while adding a whole host of small tweaks around it.There's a seemingly infinite amount of build diversityThis time around, your train isn’t headed for hell, but is instead sent speeding into the heavens as you plot your route and pick your battles, unlocking cards as you go and using them to see how long you can keep your violent voyage going.‌That simple change of direction from the deepest depths to the highest heights means you can now pick your crew from angels, demons, and everything in between, and it’s all done with just as much charm (and a little more character) than it was in the first game.Enemies arrive, and you funnel them through your train while protecting the heart of the engine with card-based attacks that you level up and collect over the course of a run. Do you go all out to protect the top level, or aim to wear down the foes at the base level first? Cards can be played on multiple levels, and that means there’s much more choice at play than in similar titles.It may look like Monster Train 1, but there's more going on‌With cards to play, units to assemble, and many of them having unique interactions, it’ll be a long, long time before you’ve seen everything Monster Train 2 has to offer, which will be mana from heaven for anyone still logging into the first game five years after its launch.That’s before we get into more complex systems, too, like which items to grab and when, or whether your equipment cards are best served to power up your own cleaving commuters, or to be dropped onto your foes to debuff them.With primary and secondary factions to choose from, each with their own starting units and customisation options, Monster Train 2 is the kind of game one could feasibly start playing at 9 AM and keep chipping away at until the small hours of the next day. In fact, that’s exactly what happened more than once in my playtime, especially since it’s a model citizen on the Steam Deck.‌We won't spoil the surprise, but the clan variety is amazingWant to hoard gold to be able to splurge on reinforcements? The dragons are your best shout, but you can also use the Underlegion to essentially outnumber your foes with the power of, um, fungus.The Lazarus League, on the other hand, are like a hand grenade that’s just as liable to go off in your hand as it is to do damage to your opponents, bringing units back to life with randomised bonuses that can make or break a run.‌Mixing a pair of these factions together and attempting to essentially break the game’s carefully measured combat system with a mix of random card additions, buffs, and plain old luck is a rush that saw me racking up the runs night after night.Then there’s Endless Mode, which lets you take your custom deck from a winning run and keep testing it. In essence, you just keep going, battling until your Pyre Heart goes out, but with positive and negative modifiers to keep adding more and more layers to its delicious mix of mechanics.The VerdictArticle continues belowMonster Train 2 is a game that will sap your free time if you let it, and if you have a Steam Deck, we’d give it a 6 out of 5 if we could.It really is that good, that addictive, and that fun that we may struggle to go back to the incredible original–high praise, indeed.Reviewed on PC. Review code provided by the publisher.‌‌‌

Every item on this page was chosen by an ELLE Decor editor. We may earn commission on some of the items you choose to buy.At the recently reopened Wayfare Tavern in San Francisco, a custom, hand-painted mural hangs above the dining room tables. And across the country, in The Otter, opened in late 2024 in New York’s Manner Hotel, a regal mural spreads out above the restaurant’s banquettes. If you haven't noticed, restaurant murals seem to be making comeback. And for good reason. These one-of-a-kind, site-specific works add something to a space that no replica, or digitally crafted work, ever could. “Hand-painted work carries emotions and warmth that printed graphics simply can’t replicate,” says Mirim Yoo, a visual artist and creative director of Shirukuro restaurant. Opened this spring, Shirokuro caused a splash online with its fully hand-painted interior—not just the walls but the floors, chairs, and tables—that made it look like a 2D illustration. “There’s a human rhythm in every brushstroke,” says Yoo. “That’s something no machine or print could ever mimic.”Courtesy Yeon J YueDetail of a wall, tables, chairs and floor in Shirokuro, hand-painted by Mirim Yoo. ’Murals on restaurant walls are nothing new. For decades, tourists have flocked to spaces famous for them. Like the King Cole bar, in New York, whose mural was painted by Maxfield Parrish in 1906, originally for John Jacob Astor’s hotel The Knickerbocker (and later moved to its current location, the St. Regis, in 1920). Likewise, Bemelmans Bar, inside the Carlyle, opened in 1947, is famous for walls decorated by its namesake, Ludwig Bemelmans, the writer and illustrator of the Madeline books. But works like these were made in or around what some consider a heyday for the mural, when artists were commissioned to decorate the walls of fine dining rooms and other commercial spaces such as banks and building lobbies. For years, the practice was largely dormant as other trends like wallpaper, faux-finishes, or just bare-bones walls (minimalism and its endless hangover) dominated. William Jess LairdA mural by artist Matthew Benedict is painted around the walls of the dining area and bar on the first floor of Izzy’s Steaks and Chops, in San Francisco. In the last few years, however, there’s been a noticeable uptick in large-scale murals in restaurants and bars. In San Francisco, the recently updated Izzy’s Steaks and Chops has one that depicts the owner and other notables, painted by renowned artist Matthew Benedict above its dining room and bar. At Cecchi’s, opened in 2023, in New York, a mural by rising star Jean-Pierre Villafañe inflects the space with Art Deco grandeur.By Yeon J Yue courtesy ShirokuroDetail of a wall in Shirokuro, painted by Mirim Yoo. Though these murals take cues from the ancient tradition of telling stories through large-scale paintings, a new class of mural-makers is going about it in new and innovative ways. For example, the hand-painted wallcovering in the Wayfare Tavern was custom made by De Gournay, with input from the restaurant's designer, Jon de la Cruz of DLCID, who wanted to tap into local history—in particular, old San Francisco, the Barbary Coast, and the California Gold Rush—through the painting’s narrative. Starting with one of their design templates, called Voyage of the Pacific, de la Cruz and team worked with De Gournay to craft a custom scene, which was then painted directly onto gold, gilded paper. “So the installation process was as direct as conventional rolled wallpaper,” de la Cruz tells us. Likewise, for The Otter, Spanish architect-turned-painter, Elvira Solana made what would become the restaurant’s mural on canvas in her studio in Madrid. When it was done, the canvas was rolled, shipped and mounted by a crew inside the restaurant. ELLE Decor A-Lister Hannes Peer’s design for the space was inspired by “1960s French Riviera with Italian Mediterranean modernism,” according to his website, and Solana’s mural draws on the mediterranean-modernist palette through its shapes and colors. View full post on Instagram At Shirokuro, Yoo’s work puts a spin on classical mural-making by covering the entire interior of the space. The original concept for the restaurant was inspired by Take On Me, the ‘80s music video by the band A-ha, and a 2D cafe that owner and founder James Eunsuk Lim visited in Korea. Yoo leaned on these references as she sketched and refined the design in a notebook. “Since the restaurant first opened as a sushi-focused omakase, I incorporated drawings inspired by Japanese culinary culture,” says Yoo, as well as Japanese sumi-e ink paintings. From start to finish, it took Yoo just under three months to complete the painting inside Shirokuro. The result is impressive, but not without the inconsistencies only a human hand could make. And that’s the point. “The hesitation when I was afraid of making a mistake, the slight imperfections, the uneven lines—all of that holds emotion,” says Yoo. “I think guests can truly feel my presence in the space. It creates a more personal, more alive experience.”Artist Erin Lynn Welsh feels similarly. “To me, a mural is not just decoration—it’s an emotional extension of a space,” she says. “A painted wall can be beautiful, but it often serves a more surface-level or aesthetic purpose. A mural, on the other hand, tells a story. It’s site-specific, intentional, and rooted in both the architecture and the cultural context of the environment.” By Alan Tansey, Courtesy Erin Lynn WelshArtist Erin Lynn Welsh at work on the Anagram Nomad Hotel lobby mural. One of Lynn Welsh’s first major murals was made inside the lobby of the Anagram Nomad, in New York. Another is in the Hotel Lucile, in Los Angeles, opening in July. In all of her work, she draws inspiration from the landscape, particularly that of Southern California, and florals, especially arrangements made by Fox Fodder Farm. Ultimately, though, it’s the architecture of a building, and the light inside it, that informs what she’ll paint there. “I approach each mural site-specifically so that the work doesn’t end up feeling like generic wall art. My goal is always to create something unique, truly responsive, and fully integrated into its surroundings.”“Murals are part of the woodwork of a building—there’s no hiding, no taking them down,” she continues. “You have to make the right decisions in real time or embrace the flaws and transform them into something meaningful.”As we careen toward a digital future filled with AI everything, the palpable presence of an artist’s hand—the choices made, and the mural's integration with the constraint's of a space—is only going to become more precious, and desirable. “In our fast-paced, high-tech world—where everything is instantly accessible—there’s something profoundly special about hand-painted murals,” says de la Cruz. “They’re slow, intentional, and completely bespoke.”

Marvel's under-wraps TV project Vision Quest — another spin-off from hit MCU series WandaVision — is being made by a team of veteran Star Trek writers and production staff.The series, which has quietly been in development now for over a year, was previously announced as having gained Star Trek: Picard writer and later showrunner Terry Matalas.Matalas took over running Star Trek: Picard for its third (and best) season, and quickly set about reuniting the character with more of his former Star Trek: The Next Generation cast. PlayNow, Matalas will act as showrunner for the Paul Bettany-starring Vision Quest — and reunite with a number of other Star Trek writers in the process.As detailed this week by Vision Quest's listing on the Writer's Guild of America website, fellow Picard writers Chris Monfette, Cindy Appel, and Matt Okumura have also joined the new Marvel project. (It's worth noting that all of these people worked on the latter half of Picard, alongside Matalas, rather than the show's shakier first season.)Most interesting of all, perhaps, is confirmation that Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek: Deep Space 9, and Star Trek: Voyager writer Michael Taylor is also working on Vision Quest. The 25 Best MCU HeroesTaylor wrote more than a dozen episodes of Voyager and is responsible for some of the very best episodes of DS9, including In the Pale Moonlight and The Visitor, the latter of which featured the late Tony Todd as a grown-up alternate version of Jake Sisko in an alternate timeline.Filming for Vision Quest began earlier this spring, primarily based at Pinewood Studios in London (though a location shoot in Scotland has also been spotted).Marvel is yet to detail the series' story, though fans expect it will reveal the fate of Paul Bettany's White Vision, last seen flying away at the end of WandaVision. Curiously, the series is also expected to include the return of James Spader's Ultron (last seen being destroyed at the end of 2015's Avengers: Age of Ultron) and the character of Raza from the original Iron Man, who kidnapped Tony Stark and stuck him in a cave.Vision Quest is expected to be released on Disney+ at some point in 2026. And, if you're keeping track, that means it'll almost certainly now arrive before the delayed Avengers: Doomsday — although after Spider-Man: Brand New Day.Tom Phillips is IGN's News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social

The Smithsonian Transfers Rare 2,300-Year-Old Silk Manuscripts to China The Zidanku Silk Manuscripts were smuggled into the United States in the 1940s. Scholars say they provide remarkable insights into ancient Chinese philosophy and religion Newly transferred fragments of the Zidanku Silk Manuscripts on view in Beijing on May 18 Fu Tian / China News Service / VCG via Getty Images In the early hours of May 18, an airplane touched down in Beijing carrying precious cargo: fragile fragments of 2,300-year-old philosophical texts, which were making a long-awaited homecoming. The Zidanku Silk Manuscripts arrived from Washington, D.C., where the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art (NMAA) had formally deaccessioned them several days earlier during a ceremony at the Chinese Embassy. The museum transferred the artifacts to China’s National Cultural Heritage Administration, ending their 79-year voyage overseas. “As a museum of Asian art, much of our work engages with cultures around the globe,” Chase F. Robinson, the director of the museum, tells Smithsonian magazine in an email. “We value the work that we do with our international partners. These relationships allow us to serve as a global and national resource for understanding the arts and cultures of Asia and their interaction with America, past and present.” The museum acquired the manuscripts in 1992, when it received fragments known as Volumes II and III in a bamboo basket as a gift from an anonymous donor. Volume I is privately owned and was not included in the recent transfer. Dating to around 300 B.C.E., the Zidanku Manuscripts are the oldest known silk manuscripts found in China and the only ones from the Warring States period. They’re thought to be a divination guide that offers rare insights into ancient Chinese philosophy and religion. Fragments of Volumes II and III of the Zidanku Silk Manuscripts National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution Volume II, also known as “Wuxing Ling,” contains lunar calendar illustrations and accompanying text that explains “seasonal taboos and auspicious practices,” per the Chinese news agency Xinhua. The texts in Volume III, or “Gongshou Zhan,” are arranged in a rare circular pattern and are read clockwise. They may offer guidance for attacking and defending cities. “The Dead Sea Scrolls are foundational to understanding the religious roots of Judaism and Christianity,” Li Ling, a scholar of Chinese studies at Peking University, tells the Chinese broadcaster CCTV, per South China Morning Post’s Luna Sun. “The Zidanku manuscripts are no less vital to Chinese civilization. They speak to our ancient knowledge systems, our understanding of the cosmos and the details of everyday life.” In the 1940s, the manuscript fragments were looted from a tomb near the city of Changsha in China’s Hunan Province. A Chinese collector gave them to John Hadley Cox, an American collector who brought them back to the United States. Arthur M. Sackler, a pharmaceutical marketer and art collector, bought Volume I, the most complete portion of the manuscript, in 1965. Questions surrounding how the other two volumes arrived at the Smithsonian remain largely “unsettled,” Robinson tells the Art Newspaper’s Gabriella Angeleti. “In the case of these particular manuscripts, there are gaps,” he adds. “Our colleagues in China have done an excellent job of piecing together whatever evidence there is.” Museum officials say the transfer resulted from a collaboration with China’s National Cultural Heritage Administration. Because the decision wasn’t based on provenance research, it was processed through the museum’s standard deaccession protocols.While the fragments never went on display at the museum, they have been “documented, researched, diligently preserved and undergone scientific analysis,” according to a statement from the museum. They have also been the subject of scholarship, including Li’s two-volume monograph The Chu Silk Manuscripts from Zidanku, Changsha (Hunan Province), published in 2020 and 2025. Efforts to secure the transfer of the manuscript fragments began in 2022, after the Smithsonian issued a new ethical returns policy that detailed how to handle objects in its collections that it “would not have acquired under present-day ethical and professional standards.” “This transfer reflects a carefully considered decision, grounded in our focus on sound stewardship and the belief that these materials belong in dialogue with their cultural and archaeological context,” Robinson says in the statement. While the physical manuscripts have returned to China and will go on view at the National Museum of China in July, the Smithsonian will retain digital versions of the documents for further research. At last week’s ceremony, Xie Feng, China’s ambassador to the U.S., noted that more than 40 artifacts had been returned to China from the U.S. since the beginning of this year, per the South China Morning Post. “The return of the Zidanku manuscripts reflects a national revival as lost treasures of Chinese civilization make their way home,” he said. Get the latest stories in your inbox every weekday.

By Nick Butler Fox News Published May 22, 2025 6:42pm EDT close New space capsule just changed the game for bringing stuff back from orbit A European startup successfully completed the first orbital test flight of its Phoenix 1 re-entry space capsule. NASA revived roll thrusters on the 47-year-old Voyager 1 that were thought to be dead for two decades.According to the space agency, scientists at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of NASA, located in Southern California, have reactivated a set of thrusters on the spacecraft.The roll thrusters have not worked since 2004 and are long believed to have been out of commission.These thrusters are important because Voyager's main thrusters appear to have some residue forming that could cause them to clog. Scientists estimate those thrusters could fail as early as Fall 2025.NASA ASTRONAUT REVEALS THEY NEARLY FAILED TO DOCK BOEING STARLINER TO INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION Voyager 1 had its thrusters revived after nearly two decades of being thought dead and out of commission. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)The antenna on Earth responsible for sending commands to both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 will be offline for several months.Deep Space Station 43, a 230-foot-wide antenna in Australia, will be offline until February 2026 due to needed upgrades.While that antenna is being upgraded, the team at NASA will not be able to communicate with the twin space probes.NASA FINALIZES STRATEGY FOR HUMAN PRESENCE IN SPACE The NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The JPL has been working on restoring the thrusters on the Voyager 1. (NASA/JPL-Caltech)Suzanne Dodd, Voyager project manager and director of the Interplanetary Network at JPL, said these upgrades are important for future Moon missions."These antenna upgrades are important for future crewed lunar landings, and they also increase communications capacity for our science missions in deep space, some of which are building on the discoveries Voyager made," Dodd said in a press release.Each Voyager has a set of primary thrusters that control movement in all directions as well as smaller thrusters for what is called roll control.Using the smaller thrusters allows the Voyager’s antenna to stay aligned with Earth, so the scientists can communicate with it. NASA's deep space antenna in Australia is currently going through upgrades causing any communication with Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 to go dark until 2026, when the Antenna is reactivated. (STEFANI REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images)While there is a third set of thrusters, which were brought back online in 2018 and 2019, Voyager does not have the capability to perform the roll adjustments needed to keep a connection with Earth.If Earth happened to lose connection with Voyager 1, it would be nearly impossible to restore communication.CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPVoyager 1 was launched in 1977 and has traveled nearly 15 billion miles away and is currently exploring interstellar space, which is beyond our Solar System.Both Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 have traveled farther than any other human-made objects. Voyager 1's notable discoveries include finding a thin ring around Jupiter, along with 2 moons orbiting the Solar System's largest planet that had not been seen before. It also discovered five moons orbiting Saturn, along with a previously unknown ring around the gas giant.  Nick Butler is a reporter for Fox News Digital. Do you have any tips? Reach out to Nick.Butler@Fox.com. Nick Butler is a Breaking and Trending News Writer for Fox News Digital.

The orbits of a potential dwarf planet called 2017 OF201 and the dwarf planet SednaTony Dunn A potential dwarf planet has been discovered in the outer reaches of our solar system, orbiting beyond Neptune. Its presence there challenges the existence of a hypothetical body known as Planet 9 or Planet X. Sihao Cheng at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, and his colleagues first detected the object, known as 2017 OF201, as a bright spot in an astronomical image database from the Victor M. Blanco Telescope in Chile. Advertisement 2017 OF201 is about 700 kilometres across – big enough to qualify as a dwarf planet like Pluto, which has a diameter about three times as big. The object is currently about 90.5 astronomical units (AU) away from us, or roughly 90 times as far from Earth as the sun is. Because 2017 OF201’s average orbit around the sun is greater than that of Neptune, it is what’s known as a trans-Neptunian object (TNO). It passes through the Kuiper belt, a disc of icy objects in the outer solar system beyond the orbit of Neptune. The researchers looked back over 19 observations, taken over seven years by the Canada France Hawaii Telescope, to determine that the closest 2017 OF201 gets to the sun – its perihelion – is 44.5 AU, which is similar to Pluto’s orbit. The furthest it gets from the sun is 1600 AU, way outside the solar system. Voyage across the galaxy and beyond with our space newsletter every month. Sign up to newsletter This far-flung orbit may be the result of an encounter with a giant planet, which ejected the candidate dwarf planet out of the solar system, say the researchers. “It’s a really cool discovery,” says Kevin Napier at the University of Michigan. The object would go so far outside the solar system that it could be interacting with other stars in the galaxy just as strongly as it interacts with some of the planets in our solar system, he says. The orbits of many extreme TNOs seem to cluster in a specific orientation. This has been interpreted as evidence that the solar system contains a ninth planet hidden in the Oort cloud, a vast cloud of icy rocks encircling the solar system. The idea is that Planet 9’s gravity pushes the TNOs into their specific orbits. But the orbit of 2017 OF201 doesn’t fit this pattern. “This object is definitely an outlier to the observed clustering,” says team member Eritas Yang at Princeton University. Cheng and his colleagues also modelled simulations of the object’s orbit, and how it might interact with Planet 9. “In the one with Planet X, the object gets ejected after a couple of hundred million years, and without Planet X, it stays,” says Napier. “Certainly, this is not evidence in favour of Planet 9.” But until there is more data, the case isn’t closed, says Cheng. “I hope Planet 9 still exists, because that’ll be more interesting.” The candidate dwarf planet takes roughly 25,000 years to complete an orbit, which means it spends only about 1 per cent of its time close enough to Earth for us to detect it. “These things are really hard to find because they’re faint, and their orbits are so long and skinny that you can only see them when they’re really close to the sun, and then they immediately head right back out and they’re invisible to us again,” says Napier. That means there might be hundreds of such objects out there. The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, due to go online later this year, will look deeper into space and will potentially detect many more objects like this, which should tell us more about them – and whether Planet 9 actually exists. Reference:arXiv DOI: 10.48550/arXiv.2505.15806 Topics:planets