This year's charity event Prog The Forest takes place at The Fiddler's Elbow in Camden on December 1

Accomplished Swedish-American duo Silent Skies tap into pop and prog for second album Nectar

5 Prayers for Those Missing Their Mother on Mother’s Day

One pet dad is showing the world just how large his cat is by comparing the animal to his four-legged siblings. You’ll be suprised at how this feline measures up to some of the bigs dogs in his household! This huge cat, named Winston, is going viral online because of his owner’s YouTube video. We’re not sure what breed of cat he is, but we do know that he’s a big boy! “He has no idea how big he is either,” wrote the kitty’s dad in his caption. “Winston is literally the sweetest cat!” First, Winston is shown next to an absolutely massive black dog. Although the cat doesn’t look particularly giant in comparison, we need to remember that a regular-sized kitty would look way, way smaller! Screengrab from YouTube Next comes a clip of Winston cuddling in bed with another large dog. This time, it’s clearer that the cat is way closer in size to the giant, fluffy pooch than your average feline! Screengrab from YouTube Winston the giant cat looks huge next to other kitties! Of course, it’s not until we see the kitty next to one of his own kind that we realize just how massive he is. Winston towers over his smaller sibling, a black cat! Screengrab from YouTube Commenters on the YouTube video loved seeing Winston the giant cat next to his other four-legged family members. “I like that the giant cat and the giant dogs together just look like regular sized cats and dogs,” one user said. Another wrote, “I love how small he looked next to the dogs, but compared to the other cat he looked ginormous.” A third added, “No matter how big the kitty, he’s still a baby to the doggies.” Screengrab from YouTube Whether tiny or giant, all cats are the perfect shape for cuddles. Winston’s size means that there’s even more of him to love! You can find the source of this story’s featured image here. The post “What My Giant Cat Looks Like Next To His Siblings” appeared first on InspireMore.

Our partner Rob Brezsny, who has a new book out, Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicated weekly column appearing in over a hundred publications. He is also the author of Pronoia Is the Antidote […] The post Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ From Rob Brezsny appeared first on Good News Network.

If you’ve ever experienced those small, sometimes reddish bumps on your skin, you’re not alone; so-called “chicken skin” is so common it’s often considered a normal variant of human skin. In medical terms, it’s better known as keratosis pilaris (KP) – but what actually is this, and can it be treated?What is keratosis pilaris?KP is a harmless skin condition characterized by small, painless bumps on the skin, often found on the upper arms and thighs, but also the face and buttocks. These bumps can sometimes be red or brownish black in appearance depending on skin tone and might be accompanied by dry, rough-feeling skin.The bumps can look more red in color on paler skin and more brown on deeper skin tones.Image credit: sruilk/Tai Ketlakorn/Shutterstock.com; modified by IFLScienceFor some people with this condition, it can get worse during the winter, whilst others might experience itching that can also worsen at this time.There’s not a strict diagnostic test for KP, but doctors are usually able to diagnose it based on whether a person’s skin matches up with the features above.How common is it?If you’ve never had it yourself, chances are you know someone who has had it or still does. KP is thought to affect anywhere from 50 to 70 percent of teenagers – it often first appears during early childhood or as a teen – and around 40 percent of adults.What causes it?There’s a clue as to what causes KP in its name. “Keratosis” refers to when an excess of the protein keratin in the outermost layer of the skin causes “horny growths” – in the case of KP, small bumps.The buildup of keratin – which provides structural support to the skin – in KP occurs in the hair follicles, hence “pilaris” stems from the Latin term for hair, “pilus”. Under normal circumstances, keratin is sloughed off, but what exactly leads instead to the accumulation of keratin is unclear. KP is not contagious, so you can't catch it from other people. There are some known factors that can increase someone’s risk of developing KP:Having family members who have KPOther skin conditions such as dry skin, atopic eczema, or a rare condition known as ichthyosis vulgarisAsthma or hay feverExcess body weightThe fact that KP often runs in families indicates to scientists that there could be a genetic root to the condition. A good place to start is by looking at the genetics of conditions often associated with KP and this has primarily focused on ichthyosis vulgaris – which manifests as extremely dry, scaly skin – and atopic eczema.This led scientists to mutations in the gene (FLG) encoding filaggrin. This is a protein that, under normal circumstances, binds to fibers of keratin and helps to maintain the skin’s barrier. Changes to FLG have been associated with KP, though the pathways by which these mutations lead to keratin buildup are not yet established.Though a positive step, the search for a cause is far from over, and not just limited to FLG. Some scientists suggest that FLG mutations can’t account for all of the observable traits of KP, nor for the differences in those traits seen between people. In support of that, a small study of 20 people with KP found that only 35 percent had FLG mutations, although they note this is higher than the average European carrier frequency of 4 to 9 percent. Are there treatments for keratosis pilaris?KP doesn’t have a cure, but for many people, it clears up during adulthood. As mentioned, it’s also a harmless condition, so it doesn’t need to be treated unless someone wishes it to be. In such cases, some things can help to reduce the dryness or change the appearance of the bumps – though it should be noted that none are guaranteed to do so quickly.Which treatment is used depends on what feature of KP is being targeted, and speaking to a dermatologist can help you determine which option is best for you. For relieving any dryness or itching, it’s recommended to regularly apply moisturizers, particularly those containing urea or lactic acid, and to do so after getting out of the bath or shower.When it comes to reducing the appearance of its characteristic bumps, the main approach is exfoliation. This can be either mechanical, such as with a loofah, or with a chemical exfoliant like glycolic or salicylic acid. Topical retinoids, some of which can be prescribed by a doctor, may also help ease symptoms. When using topical retinoids or exfoliating acids, it's always a good idea to wear sunscreen during the day.Topical steroids can sometimes be prescribed if redness is a concern, though a 2021 review found that treatment with steroids, such as hydrocortisone and prednisone, had only limited potential. Other avenues to treat discoloration, or the bumps where other treatments have failed, can include using laser therapies.Regardless of the treatment avenue, it’s important to keep an eye on how the skin reacts; skin can get irritated with some of these approaches, so it’s best stick to the advice doctors provide about how much and when to use treatments, and stop if irritation occurs.All “explainer” articles are confirmed by fact checkers to be correct at time of publishing. Text, images, and links may be edited, removed, or added to at a later date to keep information current.  The content of this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of qualified health providers with questions you may have regarding medical conditions.

Working out the shape of the Milky Way Galaxy from the inside has been quite a challenge, but we’ve slowly found our place, which turns out to be in a minor arm. If you're looking at the night sky with eyes alone, most of what you can see is part of this same arm.Douglas Adams described Earth’s location as; “Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the western spiral arm of the galaxy…” We can only imagine what disdainful words Adams might have conjured had it been known at the time our location is not even in a major spiral arm, but a relatively puny offshoot?We will have to wait on making contact with alien species to discover its fashionably or otherwise, but Earthly astronomers don’t usually refer to spiral arms as east or west. Instead, arms are named after constellations in Earth’s skies.That’s an even more arbitrary designation if you think about it. Future galactic explorers may one day navigate based on weird patterns someone made up from the relative positions of stars that will make no sense to future galactic explorers. Not only do these constellations make no sense at all from a location significantly distant from Earth, since the stars will be arranged differently, even from here they will change with time as stars move or die.Why Orion?Nevertheless, constellation-based names at least sound more celestial, and so the two spiral arms that dominate the galaxy are known as the Perseus and Scutum-Centaurus Arms. Two other arms, probably smaller, are called, Sagittarius-Carina and Norma-outer. Although these four hold the bulk of the galaxy’s stars outside the central bulge and bar, in a galaxy this large there are still places for many more stars. This includes the Sun, which is part of a much smaller filament we have named Orion or Orion-Cygnus Arm.A reconstruction of how the Milky Way is thought to look, with prominent objects and the direction of major constellations marked. The Orion arm is near the bottom.Image Credit: Pablo Carlos Budassi CC By-SA 4.0The Orion Arm takes its name from the famous constellation because prominent objects such as Betelgeuse and the Orion Nebula lie within it. On the other hand, most of the stars we can see in other constellations are in it too. That’s almost inevitable when the arm is 10,000-20,000 light years long, and at least a thousand light years wide. Visible exceptions like the Lagoon Nebula and Eta Carinae both located in the Sagittarius-Carina Arm, are rare.The Orion Arm is one of many long, thin strands that are relatively densely packed with stars. Recent evidence suggests it’s bigger than we used to think, but it’s still probably smaller than the main arms.We can see from other spiral galaxies that smaller arms are a common feature – the perfect four-arm spiral is rare, and the Milky Way probably gets closer than most.Do We Owe Our Existence To The Orion Arm?An inevitable question as we ponder our place in the universe is whether our position in the galaxy is a coincidence, or if there is something about this location that has allowed our own evolution. Might it only be in backwaters such as minor arms that technological civilizations can appear?Current answers to such a question can only be speculative. Perhaps major arms are even richer hosts for life: we won't know until our capacity to study distant planets is far more advanced.Nevertheless, the Galaxy almost certainly has a habitable zone, just as individual star systems do. Close to the supermassive black hole at the heart of the galaxy, there’s probably too much radiation to allow life, or at least complex multi-cellular life. Moreover, close encounters with other stars would be very frequent, and the disruptions that produces probably prevent civilizations from developing – imagine if dinosaur-killer-sized impacts happened every few million years, resetting the evolutionary clock.On the other hand, stars in galaxies' outer reaches or the relative voids between arms are poor in metals. This probably prevents the formation of rocky planets like our own from their protoplanetary disks, presenting another obstacle to life. Arms are almost certainly the place to be.Other restrictions are more debated. Nevertheless, it’s possible the larger arms are too much like the galactic center for comfort. The main arms have a lot of hot young stars, which means more supernova explosions.If so, our appearance in the Orion Arm is no coincidence – it might be one of the very few places we could have survived to the point we get to map the galaxy and ask these questions.

Scientists witnessed the first stages of a common accent developing in Antarctica among its ever-changing population of scientists who spend months together at research stations on the isolated continent. Antarctica has no native population or permanent residents, but it does have a transitory community of scientists and support staff who live there for part of the year on a rotational basis. In the summer months, there are typically around 5,000 people living in Antarctica, but that drops to just 1,000 in the winter.While most scientists are there to study things like climate and biodiversity, this extreme living environment has created the perfect petri dish to research certain aspects of human behavior, culture, and sociolinguistics. In 2019, a team from the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich studied the phonetic change in accents among 11 “winterers” recruited from the British Antarctic Survey. This included eight people born and raised in England (five in the south and three in the north), one person from the northwest US, another from Germany, and lastly an Icelandic person. They recorded their voice at the beginning of the study, then made four more re-recordings at approximately six weekly intervals. During this time, they were working closely together, socializing with one another, and having limited contact with the outside world. Throughout the stay, the researchers noticed significant changes in their accents.One of the main shifts was how the study group started pronouncing their words with longer vowels. Furthermore, there was evidence of linguistic innovation in the group. Towards the end of their stay in Antarctica, the residents were pronouncing “ou” sounds – like those found in the words “flow” and “disco” – from the front of their mouth, as opposed to the back of their throats.The changes in accent were subtle, but significant enough to be acoustically measured and even predicted by a computational model."The Antarctic accent is not really perceptible as such – it would take much longer for it to become so – but it is acoustically measurable," Jonathan Harrington, study author and Professor of Phonetics and Speech Processing at the Ludwig-Maximilians University of Munich, told IFLScience."It's mostly an amalgamation of some aspects of the spoken accents of the winterers before they went to Antarctica, together with an innovation," added Harrington. "It's far more embryonic [than conventional English accents] given that it had only a short time to develop and also, of course, because it's only distributed across a small group of speakers."As this study shows, close contact and isolation create the ideal conditions for a new accent to rapidly evolve. The research also suggests that the winterers of Antarctica, all of whom arrived on the continent with their own regional accent, began to closely influence each other’s speech and behavior, whether they knew it or not. It’s effectively the same phenomenon that turned the English accent into the American accent (or Australian, Canadian, etc) albeit on a much smaller and shorter scale.It begs the question of what other novel accents might emerge in response to humans being introduced to new social environments. One scenario is the potential development of a Martian accent. "The study shows that if you isolate a group of individuals, then they will begin to show the beginnings of a new spoken accent whose form depends to a large extent on the accent characteristics of the speakers that went into the mixture," Harrington told IFLScience. "We'd expect the same thing to happen if astronauts ever went on a mission to Mars."If humans manage to travel to the Red Planet and establish a colony on its dusty surface, their close contact and isolation are likely to foster a new accent very quickly. Over the course of generations, it could become very distinct from Earth-bound accents. After centuries, perhaps even a new Martian language could evolve.An earlier version of this article was published in August 2023.

The gentle chime of the Oxford Electric Bell can barely be heard, but what it lacks in loudness, it more than makes up for in the durability of its battery. The bell has been ringing since 1840, making it one of the world’s longest running science experiments – though quite what’s kept it going for so long is something of a mystery.University of Oxford physics professor Reverend Robert Walker purchased the bell back in 1840 and it can now be found in the university’s Clarendon Laboratory, encased behind two layers of glass.In part thanks to its location and the other, the type of batteries it’s thought to be running on, the bell is also known as the Clarendon Dry Pile – dry piles are an early type of battery made up of stacks of metal discs. Why has it been running for so long?At least part of the reason why the bell has been chiming away for so long is thought to be because it doesn’t require much power in the first place, nor does a lot of energy get lost.“As it moves back and fore, what happens is the little lead bell touches the two bells either side. And it charges and discharges continuously,” Dr Robert Taylor explained to the BBC. “A small amount of charge trickles between the two ends and the only loss, basically, is the resistance of air.It might also have something to do with the batteries’ composition, but therein lies the mystery – though scientists have some reasonable ideas, no one knows exactly what they’re made of. It’s called a “dry pile” because of its resemblance to those made by Italian priest and physicist Giuseppe Zamboni.The Zamboni pile consisted of “about 2000 pairs of discs of tin foil glued to paper impregnated with zinc sulphate and coated on the other side with manganese dioxide.” The batteries in Oxford are also sealed with an outer coating believed to be sulfur, which ends up making them look more like candles.They’re definitely not candles, otherwise the bell wouldn’t work, but unless someone cracks the batteries open – which would obviously ruin the experiment – we can’t know for sure what’s inside them and thus how that might contribute to their longevity.When will it stop?Another option is to simply wait until the batteries finally run out. The bell has had an impressive run, but that run might soon be coming to an end.“It’ll keep going for about another five or 10 years possible, given the fact that it has slowed down noticeably in the last 40 years,” said Taylor. “The reason it’ll stop is that it’ll run out of energy.” “All batteries eventually run out of energy.”

It has mistaken diplomacy for statesmanship, in the process harming America’s national interests and those of our allies.