Cave pearls the size of tennis balls feature in the Planet Earth III episode “Extremes”‚ which dives into Hang Son Doong Cave‚ a sprawling limestone cave located in Phong Nha-K Bàng National Park in Vietnam. As one of the largest caves on Earth‚ it’s a portal to a world of oddities including animals living in zero light conditions‚ and unique geological formations. It’s also a hot spot for cave pearls.Cave pearls‚ also known as oolites‚ are spherical rock formations unique to limestone caves. This is because limestone caves are uniquely formed by water eroding rock‚ and water plays a key role in the formation of glossy cave pearls. A type of speleothem (structures formed in caves by the deposition of minerals from water)‚ they’re made up of layers of the minerals calcite or aragonite‚ both crystalline forms of calcium carbonate.Just like regular pearls‚ the calcium carbonate layers are organized in concentric layers because of the way a sphere allows for the greatest amount of deposition on the smallest surface. They’re also similarly glossy due to the moving water that keeps them nice and smooth‚ but they can quickly degrade once dry.Their smooth‚ spherical pearliness is the result of the unique way in which they form from a small nucleus‚ which might be a single grain of sand or a mineral crystal. Over time‚ that nucleus gets coated with layers of calcium carbonate that comes from mineral-rich water drops falling from the cave ceiling. The drops of water mean the nucleus is constantly moving‚ never quite affixing to the cave floor and forming in a spherical shape similar to pearls that develop inside oysters.Cave pearl formation is a slow process that can take thousands of years‚ and depending on how long it’s been‚ they can be tiny specks‚ or – as in the case of Hang Son Doong – giant pearls the size of tennis balls. While their oyster artisan counterparts have been used in jewelry‚ cave pearls appear in fashion items less often‚ but there are some examples – such as this antique cave pearl necklace.The spherical formations come in many colors‚ including lime green cave pearls that were discovered in Yemen’s fabled “Well of Hell”. They were discovered on what’s thought to be the first-ever human expedition into the natural sinkhole‚ leading to the discovery of cave pearls‚ dead animals‚ and snakes.Hang Son Doong came with its own unique challenges‚ taking the Planet Earth III team 200 meters (650 feet) deep underground where they camped for 18 days‚ making it the longest expedition ever into the sprawling limestone cave. Fancy taking a look around? You can catch Extremes on BBC iPlayer now.

Japan has a lot of islands. So many‚ in fact‚ that when it last did a recount in February this year‚ it found that it has approximately 14‚125 islands‚ rather than the 6‚852 they previously thought. That's a lot of islands – but they still keep coming‚ thanks of course to volcanic activity. On October 21‚ 2023‚ an underwater eruption hit just off the coast of the island of Iwo Jima‚ with jets reaching up to 50 meters (164 feet) into the air. The eruption‚ which also threw out rocks several meters in diameter‚ birthed a new island named "Niijima"‚ which translates as "new island".The new island‚ formed from volcanic ash and rock‚ was photographed from space at the end of October. Before and after the new island made an appearance.Image credit: ESA/USGS.Since then‚ the island has continued to grow‚ and it now measures 8.6 kilometers (5.3 miles) in the northeast-southwest direction and 5.6 kilometers (3.5 miles) in the northwest-southeast direction‚ according to the University of Tokyo. IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external sites.Footage from the eruption‚ shared by Japan's coast guard."It is estimated that eruptions are occurring in at least two locations‚" the university added in a translated press release‚ "the crater where the phreatomagmatic explosion occurs‚ and the vent where the rock masses that make up the island are ejected"."The location of this eruption is almost the same as the 2022 eruption‚" the statement added‚ "and is thought to indicate the resumption of magma activity on Iwo Jima."[H/T: Space.com]

The sea pigs of the Scotoplanes genus are very strange holothuroideans that can be found at the bottom of the ocean. They are firm friends of juvenile king crabs‚ which have been seen “surfing” sea pigs swimming through the water column.Sea pigs hanging out with king crabs was an observation first made by Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) marine biologists piloting Doc Ricketts‚ the remotely operated vehicle (ROV). They had sent the ROV down to see what marine life had made a home for itself in a sunken shipping container‚ but were surprised to find lots of small crabs hitchhiking on the backs and bellies of sea pigs.To see if king crabs surfing sea pigs was a widespread behavior‚ they reviewed footage of 2‚600 Scotoplanes and found that around a quarter were carrying crabs. They were mostly juvenile king crabs‚ Neolithodes diomedeae‚ that were around 1.4 centimeters (1.5 inches) across. Reviewing observations of juvenile king crabs at sea pig depth revealed that 96 percent of them were riding on Scotoplanes – but they were often very hard to spot‚ being so small in size and often riding on the pigs’ underbellies. This could indicate that the behavior is an effective strategy for evading predators because if it’s hard for nosy humans to see you‚ it’s probably not that easy for fish either.King crabs need protection in their youth because there’s nowhere to hide or burrow on the abyssal plains where the Scotoplanes represent “the largest benthic structure available as shelter‚” said the MBARI researchers. They are also particularly vulnerable following a molt‚ as their bodies are soft for a short period‚ making them a very convenient snack for predatory fish – or cannibalistic king crabs. Fortunately‚ at depths of 1‚000 to 6‚000 meters (3‚300 to 19‚500 feet)‚ trawls of sea pigs can be found in large groups‚ with as many as 600 individuals having been observed by ROVs.These peculiar deep-sea blobs get even more blob-like when they're brought to the surface.Image credit: Image credit: Jackson_chu via iNaturalist‚ CC BY-NC-SA 4.0These walking shields are therefore a valuable hiding place‚ and acting like accommodation for other marine critters is something the sea cucumbers are quite famous for. Who could forget the strange tenancy agreement that’s been forged between these “walking colons” and pearlfish‚ who will swim eagerly into their open anal sphincters to seek sanctuary inside their rectums? This is also something that remoras are partial to doing to whale sharks.Sea pigs arguably have it easy simply carrying the crabs on their backs‚ then‚ but it’s also possible they glean some benefit from the relationship as the crabs may clear them of parasites. Cannibalistic crabs surfing sea pigs – who’d have thought it?

There has been increased interest in unidentified flying objects (UFOs) ever since the Pentagon’s 2021 report revealed what appears to be anomalous objects in US airspace‚ dubbed unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP). Fast forward to 2023‚ and Nasa has already formed a panel to investigate the reports and appointed a director for UAP research. A newly founded Pentagon desk has also released footage of mysterious metallic orbs. What is perhaps most remarkable is that David Grusch‚ a former intelligence officer‚ testified under oath before the US Congress‚ stating that he had interviewed around 40 people involved in secret programmes dealing with crashed UFOs. I am interested in searching the sky for alien‚ physical objects which may one day tell us whether we are alone in the galaxy. Consider this: within our own Milky Way galaxy‚ there are 40 billion Earth-sized‚ potentially habitable planets. Human ingenuity has enabled us to engineer and launch probes like Voyager and Pioneer‚ capable of reaching the closest stars. We’ve initiated efforts such as the Breakthrough Starshot programme which aims to reach nearby star Alpha Centauri in just a few decades by exploring innovative propulsion methods. Sending a probe may be more economical than sending out radio or laser communication if there is no need to hurry. An alleged photo from the Project Blue Book files shows a cylindrical UFO believed to hover over New York City on March 20‚ 1950. Credit: ufosightingshotspot.blogspot.com Not about breaking news. Not about unfounded opinions. If humans can send a probe to another star‚ why couldn’t another civilisation send a probe to our Solar System? Such a probe could make it to the main asteroid belt and lurk on an asteroid. Or‚ it could make its way to the Earth‚ entering our atmosphere. If observed‚ it would be branded as a “UFO”. A civilisation capable of producing and sending probes could dispatch millions of them on exploratory missions throughout our galaxy. Some may argue that such probes could only exist if they adhere to the laws of physics and engineering as we understand them today. However‚ humanity is a relatively young civilisation‚ and our knowledge is constantly evolving. While humans have dreamt of flying for millennia as we gazed at the skies‚ it has only been 120 years since the Wright brothers achieved the first powered flight. That’s about as long ago as Albert Einstein published his theory of special relativity. Is it really so difficult to imagine that a civilisation that is hundreds of thousands years older than ours might have learned more about the laws of physics or developed a few more engineering tricks? If a civilisation were to evolve into artificial intelligence (AI)‚ it might survive for millions of years. This could mean it would casually regard slow to a neighbouring star as nothing more than a leisurely stroll. That said‚ few astronomers felt impressed by the US Navy videos or government reports. We need significantly better evidence and data than what has been presented so far. Image of one of the UFOs on the infrared radar screen. The object may be an alien probe – one of hundreds sent to explore the Earth and near-Earth space. Unveiling UFOs How can we test whether there are extra terrestrial probes near Earth‚ and whether they can be tied to the possible UFO phenomenon? There are many options. Analysing materials from potentially crashed UFOs could give irrefutable proof. This would require state-of-the-art techniques to determine if these wrecks exhibit exotic or distinctly different characteristics of manufacture. Obtaining such exotic samples‚ if they indeed exist‚ may prove challenging – they are rumoured to be in the hands of private companies. But newly proposed legislation might offer a solution to that problem in United States by mandating that all artificial materials from any non-human intelligence be surrendered to the US government. In the projects I lead‚ we are searching for artificial non-human objects by looking for short light flashes in the night sky. Short flashes typically occur when a flat‚ highly reflective surface — such as a mirror or glass — reflects sunlight. It could‚ however‚ also result from an artificial object emitting its own internal light. Such short light flashes sometimes repeat and follow a straight line as the object tumbles in space during its orbit around the Earth. This is why satellites often appear as repeating light flashes in images. Historical photographic plates taken before the launch of Sputnik 1 in 1957 have revealed the presence of nine light sources (transients) that appear and vanish within an hour in a small image‚ defying astronomical explanations. In some cases‚ the transient light sources are even aligned‚ just like when short flashes come from moving objects. The three disappearing stars. [Edited‚ higher-resolution version of Fig 2 in paper by Solano et al. (2023)(academic.oup.com/mnras/advance-article/doi/10.1093/mnras/stad3422/7457759)]‚ CC BY The most recent finding of this kind shows three bright stars in an image dated July 19‚ 1952 (coincidentally‚ the same time as the famous Washington UFO flyovers). The three stars were never seen again. Searching for alien probes in the modern night sky presents a serious but necessary challenge. A new research programme‚ known as ExoProbe‚ searches for short light flashes from potential alien objects with the help of multiple telescopes. To verify the authenticity of each flash‚ it must be observed in at least two different telescopes. Since these telescopes are separated by hundreds of kilometres‚ any light flash caused by an object within the inner Solar System enables the measurement of parallax — the apparent shift in the position of an object as seen from two different points — and the calculation of the distance to the object. The ExoProbe project also uses its own methods to filter out light flashes from the millions of space debris fragments and thousands of satellites cluttering the sky. By adding a telescope taking real-time spectra (the wavelength distributions of the light) of the objects in a wide field‚ you can analyse the transients before they vanish into nothingness. Finally‚ increasing the number of telescopes further enhances accuracy in measuring parallax and determining the actual three dimensional location of the object. Ultimately‚ the goal is to identify any potential alien object and bring it back to Earth for further study. Some 60 years of searches for extraterrestrial civilisations in the radio frequencies have yielded no candidates whatsoever. We find ourselves at a moment in time when new paths must be explored. That means we can finally focus our attention closer to home. Regardless of the outcome‚ this journey is certainly an homage to our insatiable curiosity. Beatriz Villarroel‚ Assistant professor of Physics‚ Stockholm University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. The post UFOs: how astronomers are searching the sky for alien probes near Earth appeared first on Anomalien.com.

Have you ever seen a dog do something truly amazing? Beyond the usual tricks like playing dead or rolling over‚ some dogs and their trainers take things to a whole new level. They perform intricate routines that include weaving‚ standing‚ and even dancing. In the UK‚ one dog trainer stands out from the rest: Mary... The post Adorable dogs steal the show with their charming dance to ‘Singin in the Rain’ appeared first on Animal Channel.

Wednesday’s White House press briefing took a dark turn when an Arab reporter lashed out at Israel as “a terrorist state” inflicting “collective punishment” on Gazans and “killing...civilians” and “journalists” just moments after a reporter from the Saudi-funded Alarabiya asked whether the U.S. finds it “acceptable” and “positive” that “the ratio of killing Hamas fighters is equivalent to two civilians.” On both counts‚ the National Security Council’s John Kirby wasn’t having it. In the case of the former‚ he began by kvetching about the plight of the Lebanese army‚ which isn’t particularly sterling given the country’s largely run by the Iranian-backed terrorist group‚ Hezbollah.     Kirby wouldn’t bite‚ so the reporter moved on and slammed Israel by claiming its inflicting “a collective punishment” on Gazans by carrying out military operations in the south‚ meaning‚ in his minds‚ “there’s no safe zones.” The White House official calmly responded to this one‚ arguing the U.S. doesn’t “want to see a single more civilian killed” or “injured” or “civilian infrastructure like hospitals and...we’ll continue to make that case to our Israeli counterparts.” The Arab reporter dramatically turned up the heat by lecturing Kirby that’s “nothing is changing on the ground” and “over 60 journalists died on the ground‚ even in south Lebanon”‚ so he demanded Kirby explain “what’s really happening.” He then dropped the smear against Israel as a country of terrorists: “So‚ if we call Hamas a terrorist group‚ killing civilians as a non-state actor player‚ isn’t it also Israel acting like a terrorist state‚ killing humans — civilians‚ armed people‚ journalists every day.” Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre interjected to try and have Kirby either move on or call it a day‚ but Kirby told her it was “okay” before launching into a thorough schooling of this pro-Hamas stooge. “Hamas — Hamas deliberately slaughtered and murdered some 1‚200 people on the seventh October and it seems like we’re all willing to forget that. Deliberately. And that was their intent. And to take hostages‚” Kirby began. Reiterating the U.S. has “been very honest with our Israeli counterparts” in demanding they “be very careful‚ cautious‚ deliberate‚” Kirby also emphasized Israel has both “a right and responsibility to defend themselves against that very genocidal threat.” Growing increasingly agitated with the question‚ Kirby stated plainly “it is not the Israel Defense Forces’s strategy to kill innocent people” and “it’s not like the Israelis are sitting around every morning and saying‚ ‘hey‚ how many more civilians can we kill today? Let’s go bomb a — let’s go bomb a school or a hospital or a residential building and just cause civilian casualties?’” Kirby had even more to say‚ calling out Hamas setting up its operations amid innocent civilians and thus making it “very difficult” for anyone to hold them to account for their barbarism. With that said‚ Kirby asked the reporter if he thinks that’s the “right” thing to do‚ but the reporter ignored it. In turn‚ Kirby moved on (click “expand”): KIRBY: They’re not doing that. They’re trying to go after Hamas and it’s very difficult when Hamas — oh‚ by the way‚ in addition to deliberately slaughtering people — is deliberately hiding themselves in residential buildings‚ in hospitals‚ in tunnels‚ making it — putting the innocent people of Gaza directly in the crossfire. Now‚ you tell me: Is that right? ARAB MALE REPORTER: Now‚ is that right to kill — let’s — let’s — please — sorry — KIRBY: I think we gotta move on. JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah. We’re going to — nope‚ we’re going to move on. ARAB MALE REPORTER: — they killed [INAUDIBLE NAME]. She was an important life. She was. Before this charade‚ Alarabiya’s Nadia Bilbassy-Charters continued her penchant for asking questions tilting heavily toward Gazans.  Claiming an “Israeli army spokesman said that the ratio of killing Hamas fighters is equivalent to two civilians”‚ she did some math where‚ hypothetically‚ 35‚000 dead Hamas terrorists would equal 70‚000 civilians could be killed. “Is this rate acceptable? He actually said it’s a positive rate. Is this acceptable to the U.S.‚” she asked before tacking on a second question about whether he’d finally come around to accepting death tolls from the Hamas terrorists as fact. Kirby kept it short and sweet: “I can’t verify the — the number. And the right number of civilian casualties is zero.” She argued he didn’t answer the first question about the ratio‚ but Kirby said he did other than to say “the right number of civilian casualties is zero” and he couldn’t verify a specific number other than the general consensus that “many‚ many thousands have been killed.” To see the relevant transcript from the December 6 briefing‚ click “expand.” White House press briefing [via ABC News Live subfeed] December 6‚ 2023 3:24 p.m. Eastern NADIA BILBASSY-CHARTERS: The Israeli army spokesman said that the ratio of killing Hamas fighters is equivalent to two civilians. So‚ that means if Hamas has 35‚000‚ that means 70‚000 civilians could be killed. Is this rate acceptable? He actually said it’s a positive rate. Is this acceptable to the U.S.? And‚ second‚ John‚ if you allow me‚ the Israelis also saying that 15‚000 Palestinians have been killed‚ which is more or less mirror what the Ministry of Health said. So‚ would you take now what the Palestinians said as a credible figure? JOHN KIRBY: I can’t verify the — the number. And the right number of civilian casualties is zero. BILBASSY-CHARTERS: Okay‚ well‚ the first question about the ratio. KIRBY: That is — that’s the answer to your — both your questions. I can’t — I can’t — the right number of civilian casualties is zero. I’m not going to speak to the ratio that the IDF is putting out there. The right number of civilian casualties is zero and I can’t verify the 15‚000 number. We’ve said many‚ many thousands have been killed. ARAB MALE REPORTER: Thank you‚ Karine. Admiral‚ is the Lebanese army — there is support by the U.S. We receive millions of dollars over the years of military aid. Is it part of the war? Is it part of the conflict? Because the Israelis carried out an attack against the Lebanese army base in southwest Lebanon and killed some soldiers. Is it acceptable? KIRBY: I — I didn’t follow the first part of your question. ARAB MALE REPORTER: An Israeli airstrike — carried an attack against the Lebanese army in the south. Is it — is it acceptable? KIRBY: I’ll let — as I’ve said many times before — I’ll let the Israeli Defense Forces speak to their airstrikes‚ to their military operations. ARAB MALE REPORTER: Is the Lebanese army —  KIRBY: I will let them — ARAB MALE REPORTER: — are they part of the conflict? KIRBY: — I will let them speak to their operations. I’m not going to armchair quarterback their operations here from this podium. We’re going to make sure that they have the security assistance that they need to defend themselves. ARAB MALE REPORTER: So‚ do you then express that there’s no safe zones in the south and now‚ Israel is encouraging to move more to the south‚ so is it a collective punishment and are we going to see more civilians in the south? Are there no safe zones? KIRBY: We don’t want to see — we don’t want to see a single more civilian killed. We don’t want to see a single more civilian injured. We don’t want to see damage to civilian infrastructure like hospitals and we have made that case and we’ll continue to make that case to our Israeli counterparts. ARAB MALE REPORTER: But don’t you see nothing is changing on the ground? A CNN producer lost nine members of his family today. Killing journalists — over 60 journalists died on the ground‚ even in south Lebanon. They were not a target. They were clearly journalists. What — what’s really happening? So‚ if we call Hamas a terrorist group‚ killing civilians as a non-state actor player‚ isn’t it also Israel acting like a terrorist state‚ killing humans — civilians‚ armed people‚ journalists every day? KIRBY: So‚ again‚ we don’t want to see civilian casualties. [KJP TRIES TO HAVE HIM MOVE ON] Sorry‚ just one more point. It’s okay. I don’t know if it’s going to answer your question. Hamas — Hamas deliberately slaughtered and murdered some 1‚200 people on the seventh October and it seems like we’re all willing to forget that. Deliberately. And that was their intent. And to take hostages. They actually — that was the purpose of the whole thing on the seventh. Now‚ we’ve been very honest with our Israeli counterparts. We want them to be very careful‚ cautious‚ deliberate. We don’t want to see anymore civilians harmed by this‚ but they have a right and responsibility to defend themselves against that very genocidal threat and it is not the Israel Defense Forces’s strategy to kill innocent people. It’s happening. I admit that. Each one’s a tragedy‚ but it’s not like the Israelis are sitting around every morning and saying‚ “hey‚ how many more civilians can we kill today? Let’s go bomb a — let’s go bomb a school or a hospital or a residential building and just cause civilian casualties?” They’re not doing that. They’re trying to go after Hamas and it’s very difficult when Hamas — oh‚ by the way‚ in addition to deliberately slaughtering people — is deliberately hiding themselves in residential buildings‚ in hospitals‚ in tunnels‚ making it — putting the innocent people of Gaza directly in the crossfire. Now‚ you tell me: Is that right? ARAB MALE REPORTER: Now‚ is that right to kill — let’s — let’s — please — sorry — KIRBY: I think we gotta move on. JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah. We’re going to — nope‚ we’re going to move on. ARAB MALE REPORTER: — they killed [INAUDIBLE NAME]. She was an important life. She was.

In September‚ the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released new guidelines for the nation’s foster care system which would limit the ability for Christians to foster children in the system by mandating LGBTQ-identifying youth would be placed in homes that would encourage‚ celebrate and help facilitate any progressive identities or delusion.  “The proposed rule would protect LGBTQI+ youth by placing them in environments free of hostility‚ mistreatment‚ or abuse based on the child’s LGBTQI+ status. And the proposed rule would require that caregivers for LGBTQI+ children are properly and fully trained to provide for the needs of the child related to the child’s self-identified sexual orientation‚ gender identity‚ and gender expression‚” the text stated. As a result‚ a family in Massachusetts‚ the Burkes‚ actually had their application to become foster parents denied after they noted that they would not help a child transition or identify with something that they are not‚ explaining that they're Catholic and those sorts of delusions don’t align with their views. According to the new HHS guidelines‚ they would not be allowed to foster. In response‚ Representative Jim Banks (R-Ind.) this week proposed a new bill called the Sensible Adoption for Every (SAFE) Home Act‚ which would prevent child welfare agencies from blocking interested foster families who intend to raise children in ways “consistent with the minor’s biological sex‚” as Fox News reported.   Related: Catholic Couple Banned in Mass. from Fostering Children Over Religious Beliefs Essentially‚ the SAFE Home Act “would prevent child welfare agencies and related groups that receive federal funding from getting those funds if they refuse prospective parents who insist against the child’s stated LGBTQ status‚” Fox News Digital reported. “The Biden administration is cruelly preventing countless children in the foster care and adoption system from going to loving homes just because parents are opposed to irreversible sex change procedures on kids‚” Banks told Fox News Digital‚ adding‚ “This isn’t a liberal or conservative issue. This is just plain wrong‚ and every sane person knows it.” Presently the HHS would rather have children remain orphans than have them enter homes that run based on Christian values.  It’s showing that our administration thinks it’s more important for kids to be pushed down a path of delusion than it is for them to have a roof over their heads.  Follow us on Twitter/X:  Ron DeSantis pledges one million dollars to sue the CFP for keeping Florida State out pic.twitter.com/an4LgmZ1kC — MRCTV (@mrctv) December 7‚ 2023

A gunman fatally shot three people and left a fourth critically wounded Wednesday at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. The shooter‚ whom police successfully eliminated‚ has been identified as a disgruntled business professor who was recently turned down for a job at the institution. The shooting Sheriff Kevin McMahill of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department indicated that at approximately 11:45 a.m.‚ police received reports of an active shooter at the UNLV campus. Both metropolitan and campus police raced to the scene. The gunman reportedly began his rampage on the fourth floor of the building wherein the university's Lee Business School operates. Responding to the crackle of gunfire‚ UNLV professor Kevaney Martin took shelter in a classroom along with another faculty member and three students‚ reported the Associated Press. "It was terrifying. I can't even begin to explain‚" said Martin‚ who took cover under a desk. "I was trying to hold it together for my students and trying not to cry‚ but the emotions are something I never want to experience again." Jordan Eckermann‚ 25‚ noted that a loud bang followed by an alarm interrupted his business law class. His professor urged the class to remain calm‚ but students nevertheless panicked. Eckermann recalled scoping out the hallway and encountering a law enforcement officer in tactical gear who instructed him to exit the building. Minutes after exiting‚ Eckermann said he heard a score of gunshots. The shooter had stalked several floors of the building before campus police engaged him in a shootout outside Beam Hall. Officers swiftly eliminated the shooter‚ according to Adam Garcia‚ director of University Police Services Southern Command. The all-clear was given roughly 40 minutes after the first report of shots fired. Three individuals were confirmed dead‚ and a fourth victim was taken to Sunrise Hospital. McMahill noted the fourth victim had been upgraded to stable condition by the early evening. Four other people were reportedly taken to a hospital suffering "panic attacks‚" and two officers were treated for minor injuries. The victims have not yet been identified by police. — (@) "What happened today is a heinous‚ unforgivable crime‚" said McMahill. "But I want y'all to know something‚" continued the sheriff. "It's a crime that we train for each and every day. When there's an active shooter threat‚ the men and the women of the Southern Nevada first responder community — police‚ fire‚ and EMS — come together quickly and decisively with zero hesitation." The sheriff alluded to the October 2017 massacre where 60 people were gunned down at a country music festival in Las Vegas and 400 more were wounded‚ intimating that the LVMPD has worked hard to ensure that atrocity at such a scale would never again strike the city. McMahill noted that the actions of one police officer in particular ensured that no harm came to the large gathering of students at a Lego exhibit outside the hall where the shootings occurred. Classes at the university have been canceled for the remainder of the week. The shooter Law enforcement sources told ABC News that the dead shooter was a 67-year-old academic who had unsuccessfully applied for a college professorship at UNLV. According to his LinkedIn profile‚ the alleged suspect worked as an associate professor at East Carolina University in North Carolina from 2001 until 2017. It appears he also briefly taught at the University of Northern Iowa and the University of Georgia. Although he received a doctorate in philosophy at the University of Georgia‚ he largely taught business classes. Newsweek reported that the former ECU professor's personal website features a section titled "Theories Regarding Various Mysteries &; Puzzles‚" containing a document wherein he claimed he decoded the Zodiac Killer's cryptic messages. In addition to listing leftist billionaire George Soros and "Open Society" advocate Karl Popper among the "Great Minds of the Twentieth Century" on his website‚ the alleged suspect also had a section listing "Powerful Organzations [sic] Bent on Global Domination!" such as the Rothschild family‚ the U.N.‚ and the Illuminati. Officials Provide New Details on the Active Shooter Incident at UNLV youtu.be Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

President Biden announced another round of federal student loan debt cancellation on Wednesday despite the Supreme Court's rejection earlier this year of the administration's previous $430 billion forgiveness program.The White House stated that the administration plans to cancel $4.8 billion in federal student loan debt for an additional 80‚300 borrowers. "This brings total approved debt cancellation by the Biden-Harris Administration to $132 billion for over 3.6 million Americans‚" the White House boasted in a Wednesday press release.The latest round of debt cancellation aims "to fix Public Service Loan Forgiveness‚ so teachers‚ members of the military‚ nurses‚ and other public service workers get the relief they have earned‚" Biden stated. "And it's because of actions my Administration took to make sure that borrowers who have been in repayment for at least 20 years – but didn't accurately get credit for student loan payments – get the relief they are entitled to."Biden's announcement bragged about the administration's achievements for students and borrowers‚ much of which has been at the expense of American taxpayers."Today's announcement comes on top of all we've been able to achieve for students and student loan borrowers in the past few years‚" the press release continued. "This includes: achieving the largest increases in Pell Grants in over a decade to help families who earn less than roughly $60‚000 a year; fixing the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program so that borrowers who go into public service get the debt relief they're entitled to under the law; and creating the most generous Income-Driven Repayment plan in history – the SAVE plan."In June‚ the Supreme Court struck down the administration's plan to implement sweeping student debt forgiveness that would have canceled $10‚000 of debt for individuals earning less than $125‚000 yearly and married couples earning less than $250‚000 yearly. Borrowers who received Pell Grants would have been eligible to have an additional $10‚000 of their debt canceled under the administration's program. "In the wake of the Supreme Court's decision on our student debt relief plan‚ we are continuing to pursue an alternative path to deliver student debt relief to as many borrowers as possible as quickly as possible‚" Biden stated Wednesday.A November report from the Government Accountability Office‚ a federal watchdog‚ found that the administration's unilateral loan cancellation plan failed to implement safeguards to protect against potential fraud. Before the Supreme Court blocked the program‚ the administration had automatically approved 26 million borrowers to be eligible to receive the debt cancellation‚ the GAO found. Over 12 million of those applicants were reportedly approved without submitting any income documentation. Another 2 million of those borrowers were automatically approved based on income reported on previous financial aid applications or loan repayment plans that contained potentially outdated information‚ the watchdog's report stated."[The Education Department] and GAO have both previously identified problems with people underreporting their income on these forms‚ but the department did not take any steps to verify incomes for these borrowers before automatically approving them for relief. Federal internal control standards state that managers should take steps to mitigate fraud risks‚ but Education did not deploy any tools to verify these borrowers' incomes or ensure they were eligible for relief‚" the GAO reported.In August‚ the administration provided $72 million in debt cancellation to 2‚300 borrowers who were "misled and deceived" by Ashford University‚ which is based in San Diego‚ California. According to a lawsuit filed in 2017‚ the school "made numerous substantial misrepresentations" of its institution.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

I used to slip nonsense into my college essays — often lines from Lewis Carroll’s “Jabberwocky” — to prove that my papers weren’t really being read. After receiving glowing but vacuous praise on a Psych 101 essay but no interaction with any of my ideas‚ I started cribbing from Lewis Carroll: Beware the Jabberwock‚ my son! The jaws that bite‚ the claws that catch! Beware the Jubjub bird‚ and shun The frumious Bandersnatch! And so on. Perhaps on some Jungian level I felt compelled to slay the dragon of the slothful prof. Or perhaps I really meant Freudian? I don’t know. I never worked very hard on the psychology aspect after that first essay. And now‚ when I face a sea of papers from my bright-eyed university sophomores‚ I confess to feeling a little anxious‚ wondering whether someone will try to do to me what I did to my own professor decades ago. Certainly‚ I now have more compassion for that professor than my youthful hubris allowed. Reading an endless pile of essays hammered out at 2 a.m. the night before is a correspondence course in Sisyphean suffering. But mostly I’ve discovered‚ in grading 25 years of essays‚ that it’s largely quotidian drivel. Students grind out the work‚ taking no pleasure in the effort‚ and it’s a rare (but delightful) student seeking intellectual swordplay with the teacher. Maybe for this reason‚ above all others‚ I’m dreading what artificial intelligence is about to do to my students. There’s no personality where there’s no person. Artificial intelligence is unlikely to make us smarter even as it helps us generate unimaginable terabytes of new text. Once I had a hard meeting with a young member of a fraternity when I noticed his rough draft‚ attached to a cleaner final‚ had been printed on a daisy-wheel printer‚ some prelapsarian floss of technology that I had seen in my youth‚ and it had been ancient even then. Suspicion piqued‚ I took a closer look at his citations. He there claimed to have interviewed a certain “Carol Schmidt” for the essay when the lad might have been 18 months old. Precocious little punk! When we met‚ I asked him how Carol was doing. He had no idea who I was talking about. His confession was nearly immediate: He had drawn the essay from a filing cabinet his fraternity house maintained to help members avoid work. The Greek youth had required enough pluck to retype the essay and change the dubious dates along the way. At least he would have had to read the old essay. He had to keep a straight face when he handed it‚ physically‚ to me. AI requires less input and substantially less initiative. A human being placed this section header here If you’ve not tinkered with some of the AI engines‚ they can write about as well as any B- college student. You need to feed an AI a decent prompt. Some‚ such as ChatGPT‚ will warn you that they are able only to fabricate sources. But others‚ like Agent GPT‚ will happily embed research and cite it using both signal phrases and in-text citations. And they are currently undetectable ... in the sense that universities won’t back a professor who knows it’s AI. That is not proof in the litigious world of university education. Even in the case of plagiarism‚ universities for several years have often balked at enforcing their own bans and consequences‚ despite overwhelming proof. Each engine has its own tells‚ identifiable quirks‚ and favored words‚ but the tells change as the AI engines are updated. In my decades of teaching‚ subject headers interrupting the body text announcing the topic of the next major section were exceedingly rare. Textbooks did that‚ sure‚ but not student writers. Then‚ this past summer‚ probably a third of the essays in my two online classes suddenly sported bold section headers. Turns out that’s how ChatGPT likes to structure its essays. You can tell it not to‚ of course‚ but that was its standard move. When I mocked this habit to a composition class this fall‚ the headers disappeared abruptly. What do you know‚ really? It's hard to blame the students. They are being told that AI is a near-perfect good. Sure‚ there are copyright questions about the content it’s allowed to digest‚ but we see only the feeblest gestures toward the long-term intellectual damage that outsourcing writing to AI will cause. In a STEM culture that normally prostrates itself before the word and thought of Francis Bacon‚ for his defining of the scientific method‚ I have only been met with silence when I remind my administration that Bacon also declared‚ “Reading maketh a full man; conference a ready man; and writing an exact man.” Without reading‚ you’ve got nothing to digest‚ like ChapGPT with no content. Without discussion and debate‚ you cannot see the weaknesses in your own thinking. And without writing‚ your thinking is imprecise and embryonic. So the wager average students now face is this: I can get an 85% score without trying. If I try‚ I score in the 70% range. That’s my best. The below-average student faces even greater temptation: I could fail if I try. I will pass if I don’t. The top performers are the only category of student who might benefit from AI in the way that it is being championed. Such a student could take the AI’s evidence and logic and improve upon it. At least‚ that’s how most professionals are using AI. We use it for suggestions‚ for sketches of ideas‚ for summaries of possibly tangential influences‚ and then we follow those leads. Wielded well‚ AI functions like the cadre of researchers and writers who supported James Michener or the veritable factory of writers in Alexandre Dumas’ studio. To properly wield AI‚ however‚ you need the capacity to recognize good writing and to tweak competent writing into something better. You also need to recognize baloney. For example‚ Open AI’s Dall-E image generator refused to produce an image for me in the style of Vermeer. When I asked why‚ it explained that “creating an image in the style of a specific artist whose latest work was created after 1912‚ such as Johannes Vermeer‚ is not permitted according to the content policy.” It admitted it was wrong when I pointed out that Vermeer had died in 1675 but nevertheless continued to refuse to mimic that particular style. Behind the veneer of false promises Even if talented students might use AI to improve themselves — doing more‚ reaching farther — the fact remains that many talented students are groomed to see the arts as mere obstacles to their STEM careers. A recruiter at a top engineering school my daughter recently visited bemoaned that the stereotype of engineers was sometimes true and that many talented students nevertheless needed to improve their soft skills. Barely a minute later‚ and without a trace of irony‚ he encouraged my daughter to “get rid of” those pesky required humanities classes before graduating from high school so she could get straight to the engineering content as a university student. Artificial intelligence is unlikely to make us smarter even as it helps us generate unimaginable terabytes of new text. It will prove a valuable tool for the intellectual elite to work faster to produce texts that will‚ increasingly‚ be unread by the nouveau éduqué who will come to their credentials in the era of AI. But don’t take my word for it. I asked AgentGPT to write a research-backed essay on AI's negative impact on student writing. It offered the following research-supported concerns about the potential negative impacts of AI upon student writing. Other than a few trims‚ I made no changes to the verbiage of this selection from that piece: Research by Dr. Joel Garza‚ an associate professor at Stanford University‚ shows that students who frequently utilize AI for writing tend to replicate pre-existing content. This imitation hampers the cultivation of their individual writing styles and limits the development of their voice ( Garza‚ 2018[JB1] ). AgentGPT opted to use the American Psychological Association method for in-text citation‚ which is a little odd given the field of writing would prefer the Modern Language Association style‚ and the research behind AI would likely have used the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers’ style or something equally technical. AI's ability to generate content may inadvertently encourage plagiarism or discourage students from putting in the effort required to express their thoughts uniquely. AgentGPT chose to use a numerated list‚ and I selected only its latter points here. I might have advised a student to rely on more embedded text cues to reveal the structure‚ but as you will see‚ the writing is clear and uses evidence well. 3. Limited Feedback and Personalized Guidance: Contrary to popular belief‚ AI's automated feedback systems may not provide students with the personalized guidance needed for improving their writing skills. A study conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) found that AI-powered tools provide generic feedback‚ often missing the nuances of individual writing styles and unique strengths and weaknesses (MIT‚ 2020). Such generic guidance fails to address specific areas for improvement‚ inhibiting students' growth in writing proficiency. 4. Over-Reliance on AI Algorithms: The increasing availability of AI algorithms in educational settings risks fostering an over-reliance on automated systems‚ leading to a passive approach to writing. A report by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) argues that excessive dependence on AI threatens to detach students from the writing process by turning writing into a mechanical task rather than a creative endeavor (NCTE‚ 2017). Bonus points available if you can identify some troubling things about that passage from AgentGPT. Here’s a hint: No one named Joel Garza appears to work at Stanford. Second hint: A study conducted at MIT should nevertheless have an author whose name would be cited. Ditto NCTE. But kudos for their prescience‚ divining that excessive dependence on AI in the writing process could be detrimental all the way back in 2017‚ five years before ChatGPT made its public debut. If we needed a better metaphor for the false promise of AI‚ I’d be hard-pressed to invent one. It’s clean. It’s persuasive. It seems plausible. Reasonable even. But it’s safe‚ not near the fringe where you might doubt anything it says. It’s middling‚ in fact. Not bland‚ but well inside the lines. Taupe. Anne Murray. Delaware. Perfectly fine. And it’s lying through its horrid‚ artificialis dentes. Beware! The jaws that bite‚ the claws that catch!