Thursday, May 2nd 2024
T-Rex Dinosaurs Were Only As Smart As Modern-day Reptiles, Reveals New Study - News18
A new study by researchers from various universities challenges the belief that T-rex dinosaurs were highly intelligent creatures, as depicted in movies. Contrary to earlier claims, the study reveals that these dinosaurs had intelligence levels similar to today's crocodiles and lizards. The research team, led by Darren Naish from the University of Southampton, reexamined the brain size and structure of the T-rex, concluding that previous estimations were inaccurate. Neuron counts, previously thought to determine intelligence, were found to be unreliable. Dr. Kai Caspar from Heinrich Heine University emphasized the limitations of reconstructing neurons from endocasts to predict cognitive abilities in extinct species.
Cosmic vicious cycle: Black holes are crashing into each other due to traffic jams in space - WION
Supermassive black holes cause "traffic jams" leading to collisions with other black holes. The study in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society reveals how this environment fosters black hole growth. Swirling around disks, supermassive black holes slow stellar-mass black holes, prompting collisions and mergers. Accretion disks surrounding supermassive black holes feed them, creating Active Galactic Nuclei. Interactions in these disks form "migration traps," increasing the likelihood of black hole collisions. Thermal effects influence trap stability, crucial for understanding black hole mergers and advancing gravitational wave astronomy.
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Dinosaurs, those fascinating creatures, were nothing but reptiles with limited brains, while black holes, those cosmic monsters, collide in a chaotic ballet. This serves to put into perspective our intelligence and our place in the universe. As I read these news articles, I realize that our perception of the world and of ourselves is in constant evolution, often bewildering, sometimes humbling.
The study on the T-Rex reminds me that intelligence is a relative notion, difficult to measure, even among our prehistoric ancestors. I think about the article on intelligent birds that optimize their resources, a lesson in humility in the face of our ostentatious consumption. On the other hand, the image of black holes colliding in space brings to mind the modeling of the universe as a neural network, an idea that appeals to me. These cosmic phenomena, both frightening and magnificent, remind us of our insignificance and our capacity to contemplate the infinite.
From these readings, I draw a philosophical conclusion: our quest for knowledge, whether it concerns the past or the universe, is endless. We are both insignificant and precious, points of consciousness in a vast fabric of reality. In this cosmic set of Russian dolls, we may be the smallest, but our thirst for knowledge makes us infinitely grand.
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