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Jason Calacanis will pay $25,000 if he finds a genuine Theranos device At CES on Tuesday, All-In podcast host and investor Jason Calakanis joined McKinsey’s Bob Sternfels and General Catalyst’s Hemant Taneja to discuss the impact of AI on the workforce. I’ll be honest, I was a little dazed while the three of them were talking (it’s after hours here on the East Coast). Karacanis then pulled out a box containing outdated equipment for display. He caught my attention again when he showed off a miniature replica of a Theranos device. It was similar to miniLab, the disgraced product that…

The 9,500-year-old remains of a woman in Malawi set a new record and is Africa’s oldest evidence of intentional cremation, as well as the oldest known cremation of an adult still ‘in situ’, or in its original location, a new study finds.The crematorium is located in a hunter-gatherer cemetery at the foot of Mount Hora in Malawi, and the burials are thought to date from 8,000 to 16,000 years ago. This crematorium is the only crematorium known at this location. Analysis of 170 bone fragments from the cremated person revealed that she was less than 5 feet (150 centimeters) tall…

Parts of Greenland’s ice sheet completely melted about 7,000 years ago at temperatures close to those expected by the end of this century, a new study shows.Prudhoe Dome, a 1,640-foot-thick (500-meter) ice cap that currently covers 965 square miles (2,500 square kilometers) of northwestern Greenland, melted during warm temperatures during the early Holocene, exposing the sediments beneath.With similar temperatures predicted by the end of this century, significant ice loss is likely over time. Currently, the Greenland ice sheet is the largest contributor to sea level rise, and if all the ice melted, global average sea levels would rise by 24…

The mummified bodies of centuries-old indigenous Siberians reveal secrets about their genetics over a long period before, during and after the Russian conquest of their land, including that the female shaman buried in a red woolen dress had closely related parents, a new study has found.Archaeologists have recovered more than 100 naturally mummified bodies of indigenous Yakuts buried in Siberia between the 14th and 19th centuries. DNA analysis of their remains shows that the Yakuts resisted Russian conquest and Christianization attempts in ways not typically seen among indigenous peoples.Researchers detailed their archaeogenetic investigation in Yakutia (also known as the Sakha…

Smart home startup Quilt on Tuesday introduced a three-zone heat pump that promises to maintain efficiency under harsh conditions that hamper traditional incumbents. The 3-zone unit is exactly what it says on the label. As it is known in the HVAC world, one outdoor unit can now drive three indoor heads. It’s a product that makes large-scale installation easier and cheaper while minimizing the footprint outside the home, and is key to the startup’s expansion plans, recently bolstered by a $20 million Series B focused on growing sales. But the real story is how Quilt develops new products. Since our…

The geography of human origins is changing, with the discovery of 773,000-year-old fossils in a Moroccan cave that pinpoint the beginning of the modern human lineage in northwest Africa, according to a new study.In a study published in the journal Nature on Wednesday (7 January), a team of Moroccan and French researchers detailed an analysis of a small number of bones believed to represent the last common ancestor of modern humans (Homo sapiens), Neanderthals and Denisovans.Researchers discovered the fossils in a cave called Grotte à Hominidés (Hominid Cave) on the Thomas Quarry I site in Casablanca, Morocco. The bone consists…

Providing nerves with fresh mitochondria may help reduce chronic nerve pain, new research suggests.The study, conducted in mouse cells, live mice, and human tissue, revealed a previously unknown role for mitochondria, the powerhouses of cells. This shows that supporting cells within the nervous system can transport mitochondria to nerves that respond to pressure, temperature, and pain. However, problems with that transport process can deplete nerve energy stores and cause dysfunction.Normally, nerves send signals to the brain in response to some stimulus, but malfunctioning nerves “can fire spontaneously even in the absence of stimulation,” said study lead author Lu Long Ji,…

Spotify is adding more social features to prevent users from leaving the app to share music. The company announced Wednesday that it is introducing new messaging features. The feature will allow users to see what their friends are streaming in real-time and send a request to start a jam, the app’s collaborative listening feature. Users must first go to Settings and turn on the “Listening Activity” feature in the “Privacy & Social” section. Once that’s done, your listening activity will appear at the top of your Messages chat. Tap on your friend’s listening activity to play the track, save it,…

The bidding war between Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) and its vast library of hit TV shows and movies, including “Harry Potter”, “Game of Thrones” and DC Comics titles, drags on. The studio announced Wednesday that its board of directors unanimously rejected Paramount Skydance’s revised $108.4 billion offer, calling it a “leveraged buyout” that would leave the company with $87 billion in debt. In a letter to shareholders, WBD said Paramount would need to raise an “unusual amount” of debt, increasing the risk that the deal would fall through, and urged shareholders to reject the proposal and instead vote in favor…

The SAFELOOP project is working to develop safe, sustainable, high-performance lithium-ion (Li-Ion) batteries for the European EV industry. SAFELOOP (Safely Promoting Future EVs with Lithium-Ion Batteries Through Optimized Pathways) is a 36-month project launched in June 2024, bringing together 15 partners from 11 countries. SAFELOOP is funded by Horizon Europe, the European Union’s flagship research and innovation funding program. SAFELOOP has secured €5 million in funding from the European Commission. Figure 1: Project partners and location map The urgency for more efficient and reliable energy storage is growing In our mobile, fast-paced society, the demand for energy storage solutions has…