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Category Archives: Evolution

Evolution of managed services – BetaNews

Posted: November 1, 2021 at 6:35 am

The world as we know it has changed significantly in the past couple of years, and so have managed services. While IT infrastructure and security continue to be more important than ever with large numbers of companies across the globe implementing remote and hybrid working policies, this situation has created the need for additional services that go beyond the standard managed services package. As the future of work continues to evolve, so too will the offering of experienced managed service providers (MSPs).

Prior to the global pandemic, MSPs were primarily focused on IT security and infrastructure. Companies would often outsource all or part of their IT in order to keep costs low and ensure that they had the crucial expertise and systems at hand without having to hire in-house specialists. Ensuring that their IT systems are secure and working at optimal capacity makes it possible to focus on other tasks that will help move the needle and big-picture goals. This is why MSPs are still very popular with businesses of all sizes. Despite large in-house IT teams, an estimated 90% of Fortune 1000 companies use MSPs for part of their IT management.

Managed services 2.0: people-centric approach

As stay-at-home mandates fell into place throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, businesses were left scrambling to adjust their IT infrastructure to support remote and hybrid work environments. The focus of MSPs shifted to support this new infrastructural setup as well as the additional security concerns associated with a dispersed workforce. Once the infrastructural needs were settled, it became clear that companies were now facing other challenges, such as how to monitor productivity and better support their team members during these big changes. As a result, managed services began offering services with a more people-centric approach.

The move to remote or hybrid work was a big transition for most people. For example, managers had to quickly figure out how to manage a team from a distance and individual employees had to learn how to keep themselves motivated and productive without the accountability of being in the office. In response, some MSPs developed productivity and monitoring tools. These tools make it possible for managers to collect the data and insights needed to understand how their team is operating and performing without overstepping.

Remote work tends to lead to overworking as it blurs the line between work and home life. With this new technology, managers can have a better understanding of how much time their teammates are putting in and encourage a healthier work/life balance. Individual employees can also benefit from the productivity and monitoring tools some MSPs now offer. They are able to leverage these tools for tangible proof of their performance when it comes to negotiating promotions or receiving recognition. These tools can also be used to monitor their own performance, enabling them to identify potential areas for improvement.

Managed services to managed experiences

Heading into 2022, we expect to see a continuation of this shift. While its essential for companies to have secure and reliable IT setups, its the people behind the screens who are the beating heart of the company. Research from Gallup found that organizations with highly engaged employees see 21 percent greater profitability, and MSPs are making this outcome more achievable by providing wider managed experiences.

Going beyond managed services, managed experiences enable a remote or hybrid workforce with the IT tools and resources they need, provide comfort and security by ensuring there are no data breaches while your team is working from anywhere, make it easier to optimize by measuring and illuminating workplace performance. Through offering a complete managed experience, MSPs can provide your team with the space, comfort, and time to focus on the work that matters most for moving your company forward.

Photo credit: Artem Samokhvalov / Shutterstock

Dean Lentz is Netsurits Managing Director -- New York. Prior to joining Netsurit, Dean was a founding partner and the CEO of Cyber City, Inc. where he pioneered IT services for the SMB market in New York City. For over twenty years and with expertise in a wide range of technology solutions, he has guided world-renowned businesses using dated business solutions to making digital transformations and beyond to leveraging the power of the modern cloud. Deans core strength is his focus and understanding of his customers businesses. He has helped startups get off the ground as well as being a critical partner in transitioning matured companies into the M&A space.

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The ongoing evolution of electrification and battery-powered equipment – Rental Management Magazine

Posted: at 6:35 am

Mobile elevating work platforms (MEWPs) have changed through the years thanks to technological advances, resulting in zero emission alternatives for compact and mid-size diesel aerial lifts and telehandlers.

In part, thanks to the development of lithium-ion battery technology in the automotive sector, it is now possible to replace a diesel or gas engine in an aerial lift with batteries, without any compromise in performance, says Matthew Elvin, CEO,Xtreme Manufacturing and Snorkel, Henderson, Nev.

Focusing on high-reach equipment, this is currently concentrated in the compact and mid-size aerial lift and telehandler, which is a sweet spot from a weight versus power ratio perspective, Elvin says.

Since November 2019, Snorkel has launched and commenced production of nine lithium-ion battery-powered models, which are available globally.

Elvin says lithium-ion batteries and the electric motor require zero maintenance, and if comparing to lead-acid batteries, lithium batteries do not require regular inspections or top-ups, adding that lithium-electric machines have low noise and retain full four-wheel drive capabilities.

This makes them ideal for both indoor and outdoor use, Elvin says. With zero emissions and powerful rough terrain performance, lithium-electric lifts can be rented to a wider range of customers for an increased range of applications, maximizing potential utilization.

Zach Gilmor, product manager,Genie, A Terex Brand, Redmond, Wash., says historically, the MEWP market was split between diesel and electric applications because there wasnt one machine that could do it all. He says with the development of high-performance electric and hybrid equipment, there has been a shift to greater acceptance of battery-powered equipment in a broader number of applications.

Simplicity is another major benefit of electric motors and battery power, Gilmor says. The versatility of electric equipment increases fleet utilization for rental companies by opening up rental opportunities in specialized applications, such as city centers or job sites with noise or emissions restrictions, while also being able to work in traditional applications previously reserved for diesel-powered equipment.

Jennifer Stiansen, director of marketing,JLG Industries, McConnellsburg, Pa., says battery-powered lifts have been around for a long time, but in recent years, battery technology has been rapidly advancing.

If you look at the construction industry today, as well as adjacent industries, youll see cues that represent a continued drive towards electrification, Stiansen says. The evolution of batteries plays a big role in this.

As an example of recent advances, the JLG DaVinci AE1932 lift, introduced in early 2021, is a fully electric scissor lift. The battery source selected for the DaVinci lift is a single, 24V lithium-ion battery with an expected 10-year battery life.

Elvin says Snorkel lithium-powered lifts can complete a minimum of a full eight-hour shift on a single charge, and in some cases, up to one week between charges, subject to usage.

And, as battery-powered equipment plays a greater role in aerial equipment, manufacturers likeSkyjack, Guelph, Ontario, Canada, prevent downtime via telematics that can provide rental companies with measurable benefits, according to Malcolm Early, Skyjacks vice president of marketing.

Skyjacks optional ELEVATE BMS (battery management system) targets the largest cost of ownership on electric scissor lifts, providing the operator with charging advice, and, Early says, providing the rental company with the ability to manage the cost of battery replacement using accurate data. On electric machines, the state of health, battery life percentage and last charge date are shown.

Jiarui Cao, an engineer forZoomlion Heavy Industry Science & Technology Co., Changsha, China, says electric MEWPs maintain environmental advantages. At the same time, Cao says the electric drive system is easily upgraded.

However, the construction machinery industry does not set general standards for battery charging function, Cao says. Since the rental market is complex and diverse, different charging conditions require different charging functions. The standard charging station is not flexible enough. Manufacturers are also actively looking for charging solutions. Battery safety is especially important because of the complex construction environment.

As for the future, Cao says diesel and gas engines are developing as well in the direction of green, efficiency and intelligence.

They will remain the mainstream among all types of engines for a relatively long time into the future, Cao says. Also, continuously large power output is the biggest advantage of the internal combustion engine. Hybrid technologies are also the research direction in the future.

Elvin believes that ultimately, as time allows, engines will be phased out. The timeline for this, he says, is dependent on the affordability and performance of the chosen replacement(s).

Hybrid technology has been embraced as an interim solution, however in the construction sector, it is not uncommon for hybrid machines to be predominantly operated on the diesel engine, ultimately negating the emissions benefits, Elvin says. For this reason, hybrid construction equipment, including aerial lifts, are not permitted in some low or zero emission zones and green cities.

Gilmor says as equipment gets larger and heavier, the onboard energy storage needs to increase.

At this time, we have to look at other options besides full electric to deliver the power needed to ensure the performance that modern job sites demand, Gilmor says. With electric, in those cases, the technology isnt quite there yet.

Gilmor says as for new technologies on the horizon, ideas have been floated around for the future such as hydrogen for both engines and fuel cells.

However, this is not yet developed enough for MEWP applications, he says.

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The ongoing evolution of electrification and battery-powered equipment - Rental Management Magazine

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How Did Elephants and Walruses Get Their Tusks? Its a Long Story. – The New York Times

Posted: at 6:35 am

Elephants have them. Pigs have them. Narwhals and water deer have them. Tusks are among the most dramatic examples of mammal dentition: ever-growing, projecting teeth used for fighting, foraging, even flirting.

So why, across the broad sweep of geologic history, do such useful teeth only appear among mammals and no other surviving groups of animals? According to a study published Wednesday in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, it takes two key adaptations to teeth to make a tusk and the evolutionary pathway first appeared millions of years before the first true mammals.

Around 255 million years ago, a family of mammal relatives called dicynodonts tusked, turtle-beaked herbivores ranging in stature from gopher-size burrowers to six-ton behemoths wandered the forests of the supercontinent Pangea. A few lineages survived the devastating Permian extinction period, during which more than 90 percent of Earths species died out, before being replaced by herbivorous dinosaurs.

They were really successful animals, said Megan Whitney, a paleontologist at Harvard University and the lead author of the study. Theyre so abundant in South Africa that in some of these sites, you just get really sick of seeing them. Youll look out over a field and therell just be skulls of these animals everywhere.

To work out how these animals evolved their tusks, Dr. Whitney and her colleagues collected bone samples from 10 dicynodont species, among them the tiny, big-eyed Diictodon and the tank-like Lystrosaurus. They looked at how their canines attached to the jaw, whether they regularly regenerated lost teeth, like many reptiles do, and for indicators that their teeth grew continuously.

Many mammal families have evolved long, saber-toothed fangs or ever-growing incisors for gnawing. Several early dicynodonts also had a pair of long canine teeth poking from their beaks. But these teeth, like most animal teeth, are composed of a substance called dentine, capped by a hard, thin covering of enamel. Tusks have no enamel, Dr. Whitney said, and grow continuously even as the comparatively softer dentine gets worn away.

Examining the dicynodont skulls, the team found that a shift occurred midway through the groups evolution: the appearance of soft tissue attachments supporting the teeth, akin to the ligaments present in modern mammals. And like modern mammals, dicynodonts didnt continuously replace their teeth.

Both of these shifts laid the groundwork for the development of an ever-growing, well-supported tooth a tusk. Afterward, Dr. Whitney said, late dicynodonts developed tusks in at least two different lineages, and possibly more.

This evolutionary pathway is reminiscent of another group of tusked animals: elephants. Early elephant relatives had enlarged canines that were covered with enamel, Dr. Whitney said. Later members of the family reduced the enamel to a thin band on one side of the tooth, like a rodent incisor, allowing the tooth to grow continuously. Finally, they ditched the enamel entirely.

Youre providing the means for a tusk to evolve if you unlock the evolution of reduced tooth replacement and soft tissue attachments, Dr. Whitney said. Once you have a group that has both conditions, you can go a long time of animals playing with different tooth combinations, and you start to see these independent developments of tusks.

The reason that tusks are currently limited to modern mammals, then, lies in a specific arrangement of teeth that mammals inherited from the broader family of synapsids, the group that includes mammal forerunners like dicynodonts.

Even with those prerequisites, Dr. Whitney said, an adaptation like tusks isnt inevitable. But it is available, and multiple mammal groups elephants, whales, deer, pigs and walruses have found uses for them.

Mammals are kind of stuck with our teeth, unlike something like a shark, which has a conveyor belt of terror, Dr. Whitney said. So an ever-growing tooth is pretty brilliant if youre only replacing your tooth once.

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The evolution of transatlantic flying in photos – Business Insider

Posted: at 6:35 am

For decades, transatlantic flying had been dominated by wide-body jets designed for high capacity long-haul travel. Historically, these twin-aisle planes were efficient because they could carry more passengers and cargo at lower operating costs, effectively pushing down ticket prices.

Source: Interesting Engineering

However, since the rise of enhanced single-aisle jets with long-range capabilities, the industry is shifting and airlines are starting to put narrowbody aircraft on flights across the Atlantic.

Source: Interesting Engineering

Jet-powered transatlantic flying, however, did not start with widebody aircraft, but rather with the de Havilland DH.106 Comet 4 operated by British Overseas Airways Corporation. The single-aisle plane flew the first regularly scheduled commercial flight across the Atlantic in 1958.

Source: International Civil Aviation Organization

The plane, which was the world's first commercial jet airliner, had one aisle and an 81 passenger capacity.

Source: Duxford Aviation Society

Soon after, Boeing launched its first long-haul narrowbody jet, the four-engine Boeing 707, using the lessons learned from the Comet 4. The aircraft's first transatlantic journey was operated by Pan Am from New York to Paris.

Source: Duxford Aviation Society, Britannica

After the start of the jet age, there was a surge in demand for air travel in the 1950s and early 1960s. To handle the increase, manufacturers realized they needed to design bigger aircraft, thus beginning the era of widebody jets.

Source: Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

The first widebody jet was the famous Boeing 747, which revolutionized long-haul air travel. The jumbo-jet doubled the capacity of the 707 and solved the problem of congested airports packed with travelers.

Source: Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Boeing

Pan Am was the first operator of the 747, which was configured with a 347-passenger capacity. The airline launched the aircraft on a route from New York to London's Heathrow Airport.

Source: Boeing

The 747 ignited the widebody market, which focused on engineering wider aircraft that could accommodate more passengers while also lowering fares. The airliner had four engines, a second level above the nose, and the lowest seat-mile cost in the industry at the time.

Source: Deutsche Welle, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

The 747 was operated by dozens of airlines, like British Overseas Airways Corporation...

Source: Boeing

Delta Air Lines...

Source: Delta Flight Museum

After the 747 came the wide-body trijet McDonnell Douglas DC-10 in 1971, which was engineered after airlines like American and TWA asked manufacturers to come up with a smaller, yet still high-density, long-range aircraft to meet demand.

Source: Aerotime, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

The aircraft was smaller than the mammoth 747 but could still carry 250-360 passengers. American was its launch customer.

Source: Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

While the original DC-10 was designed mostly for domestic flying, later variants, including the DC-10-30 and DC-10-40, were intended for long-haul routes.

The DC-10's competitor was the Lockheed L-1011 TriStar, which was the third widebody to enter commercial operations in 1972 with a capacity of up to 400 passengers and a range of over 4,000 nautical miles (4,603 miles).

Source: Aero Corner

Commercial aircraft with three engines became standard in the industry after the FAA implemented the 60-minute rule, which restricted twin-engine jets from flying further than 60 minutes from the closest suitable diversion airport.

However, the rule was waived for trijets, opening the door for carriers, like Delta Air Lines, to operate routes that twin jets could not legally serve. Delta used the L-1011 on its first transatlantic flight from Atlanta to London Gatwick Airport in 1978.

Source: Delta Flight Museum

After the success of the trijet, engineers wanted to take transatlantic flying to the next level and began engineering the famous supersonic Concorde jet. The aircraft had four engines that could propel 100 passengers across the ocean in less than four hours.

Source: Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

While the idea of riding on the Concorde was thrilling, its high operating costs, extremely high fares, and environmental and safety concerns forced the plane to stop flying in 2003.

Source: Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum

After years of flying trijets across the Atlantic, manufacturers and airlines realized the need for more efficient twin-engine jets. The trijet's design proved to be too complex and maintenance issues arose frequently due to the middle engine being mounted on the stabilizer.

Source: AvGeekery

In 1972, Airbus revolutionized air travel with the world's first twin-engine widebody aircraft, the A300B. However, twin jets were still unable to fly over oceans due to the FAA's strict 60-minute rule, but that changed with the introduction of the Boeing 767.

Source:Airbus

Throughout the 2000s and 2010s, widebody twin jets reigned supreme for transatlantic travel, though there were a few exceptions.

Source: Simple Flying

And TAP Air Portugal's A321LR from Lisbon to Montreal, Canada. TAP said the aircraft's low fuel consumption allows it to "operate profitability in smaller markets that cannot be regularly served by larger widebody aircraft."

Source: Business Traveler

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How we covered the evolution of computing – MIT Technology Review

Posted: at 6:35 am

February 1969

From Man, Machine, and Information Flight Systems: The flight of Apollo 8 to the moon involved obtaining and processing more bits of data than were used by all fighting forces in World War II. The technological achievement in developing advanced rockets for flying to the moon is reasonably well known. Much less understood, but perhaps of even greater significance, is the information management system. The work of thousands of people in real time, and the data processed by many powerful computers, is organized, processed, filtered, and channeled through one to three people in the cockpit in understandable and digestible form. With this information the pilots can take action with confidence knowing that they are in league with powerful logic systems and an overwhelmingly large number of cells of memory storage.

From The Multiprocessor Revolution: Harnessing Computers Together: By harnessing many relatively inexpensive VLSI processors together into a multiprocessor system we may significantly reduce the cost of achieving todays fastest computing speeds. Many of us harbor expectations that this new breed of machines will make possible some of our most romantic and ambitious aspirations: these new machines may recognize images, understand speech, and behave more intelligently. Even anthropomorphic evidence suggests that if computers are to perform intelligently, many processors must work together. Consider the human eye, where millions of neurons cooperate to help us see. What arrogant reasoning led us to believe that a single processor capable of only a few million instructions per second could ever exhibit intelligence?

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From Splatterhouse to Resident Evil, horror games found the fun in fear – Digital Trends

Posted: at 6:34 am

Horror is one of the most popular gaming genres out there today. Scary games are an especially big hit with the streaming generation, who love to watch their favorite content creators freak out. However, we wouldnt have those countless jump scare reaction videos featuring the Resident Evil 2 remakes Mr. X without years of fear-filled trial and error. Throughout the past few decades, there have been many trendsetters that built upon innovators of the past. That trend continues even now with games like Resident Evil 7, with its clear P.T. inspiration.

And it all started back in the 1970s.

The world of video game horror spans many different subgenres birthed throughout the years. Many see the 1972 title Haunted House for the Magnavox Odyssey as the earliest fear-filled gaming experience if you even consider a screen overlay a horror game. There were other very early attempts at the genre throughout the 70s and early 80s including various text-based games, pixel-filled movie adaptations for the Atari and NES like Friday the 13th and Halloween, and of course, legendary IPs like Castlevania and Ghosts n Goblins. But no game perfectly translated the feeling of a horror movie to the virtual playground until Splatterhouse.

Splatterhouse is a 1988 arcade beat em up that is best described as an 80s B-horror movie made into a video game. You play as Rick Taylor, a man on the brink of death who partners up with a symbiotic demon mask called the Terror Mask. Together, you slice, bash, and brutalize your way across a giant mansion to save your kidnapped girlfriend whos to be sacrificed in some ungodly ritual.

The game was the goriest thing many had ever seen, and that gore was its main selling point. It was unheard of, especially in a time before the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB). Its TurboGrafx-16 port sported a parental advisory warning and a message on the box reading: The horrifying theme of this game may be inappropriate for young children and cowards.

Today, Splatterhouse lives on as a cult classic of the past, the beginning of a classic horror series of games, and one of the forefathers of the horror gaming genre.

While Splatterhouse laid the groundwork for gore and monsters in the world of gaming horror, it was mostly an action game, with the only survival element being to not get hit. The origins of the most famous horror genre, survival horror, can be traced back to the early 80s with NECs PC-6001s Nostromo, Ataris Haunted House, and Sinclair Researchs ZX81s 3D Monster Maze. These three titles introduced the world to a new type of game where things couldnt be solved with violence, but through passive progression, with an emphasis on solving puzzles and using stealth to make your way past the assailant.

The elements introduced by these titles finally came together on the Nintendo Entertainment System with Capcoms 1989 game,Sweet Home. This classic JRPG based on a Japanese horror film of the same name presents the player with a party of five filmmakers exploring an old mansion full of ghouls, ghosts, and specters. Theres just one objective: Escape with your life.

To do this, players find items to place in their limited inventory and solve puzzles throughout the mansion while fighting or avoiding creatures of the dark. One wrong play and a party member can permanently bite the dust, leaving one less member to help on the journey out. This game is cited as one of the first to tell a long horror story and does so with diary pages found throughout the game.

If a lot of these details sound familiar, its because many of Sweet Homes features were direct inspiration for what would become the king of horror games, 1996s Resident Evil, which was originally meant to be a Sweet Home remake for a new generation.

All the glory for inspiring the groundbreaking Resident Evil seriescant be credited to Sweet Home however. There are also EAs Project Firestart and Infogrames Alone in the Dark. These games further fleshed out classic survival horror tropes. Features like full-on storytelling, dynamic music, limited ammo that barely fazes hard-to-kill monsters, pre-rendered backgrounds, and a simple human main character are all here. And no one can forget 1995s Clock Tower, which introduced the world to Scissorman, as well as more stealth elements in the genre, and pushed the idea of multiple endings, which was also showcased in Sweet Home and 1993s Splatterhouse 3.

Finally, in 1996 the king took to his throne and Resident Evil hit shelves everywhere, coining the term survival horror. New genre elements were all brought together, with multiple pathways, various endings, a mansion setting, optional character deaths, diary entry-driven stories, puzzles, optional enemy encounters, limited ammo, pre-rendered backgrounds, and so much more being put together into one amazing Jill sandwich.

So with so much taken from other games, what did Resident Evil bring to the genre? The tank control scheme, which has grown to be a horror staple seen in many Resident Evil clones that followed. Those games brought the world into a new age of digital horror an age that birthed many bold titles of the horror genre and rebirthed others into juggernauts as well.

After Resident Evil, there were titles like Square Enixs Parasite Eve and the Dreamcast exclusive beat em up/shooter/horror mash-up Blue Stinger. Notable among the various Resident Evil-inspired titles was 1996s Corpse Party. This indie horror title invited players into the world of psychological fear. The game stepped away from the typical Western B-movie horror that many of these games favored and took an approach more inspired by Japanese film.

This style was taken even further with 1999s Silent Hill, which put atmosphere before everything, with its strongest asset being its screen-obscuring fog and dark narrative. Its Japanese horror influence brought rise to series like Fatal Frame, another unique horror game that involved taking photos of ghosts.

The Western market took a stab at the horror genre as well. Games like The Thing and Doom gave a new take on fear. Once again, the genre returned to what Splatterhouse brought to the table, as the American entries in the survival-horror genre had a heavy emphasis on action and being able to fight opposing forces head-on. This caught on with Japanese markets as well when Resident Evil 4 changed the genre by putting an emphasis on action.

No one could miss Resident Evil 4 and how it was changing the genre when it released. Suddenly, survival horror meant you could gun down creatures as long as your inventory was right. You were no longer helpless. Other titles followed in its bloody footsteps, like 2008s Alone in the Dark. Many saw the genre becoming less horror and more action until F.E.A.R and Dead Space released in 2005 and 2008 respectively, showing that cinematic action and true horror could still play together and deliver a scary product.

The following years saw the genre continuing in that action vein until the indie scene started returning the genre to its roots in the 2010s. True survival-horror games like Amnesia, Slender, and Nightfall threw aside action-packed gore and took the John Carpenter Halloween approach by focusing on atmosphere and fear of the minds eye. This was also seen with 2014s Five Nights at Freddys, the current lord of indie-horror franchises.

That same year would also be when the genre saw another massive innovation with the release of Konamis canceled Silent Hill project, a playable trailer for a future title that fans dubbed P.T. The demo introduced the world to another evolution of the genre, taking elements from classic Japanese horror, mixing them with the first-person nature of games like Slender, and giving them the production value of a AAA Western title with Hollywood star Norman Reedus in the starring role to boot. Even with the title canceled shortly after the demos release, PT was memorable enough to change the horror gaming world immediately. Its formula was even used in Resident Evil 7, a title that brought the series back to its roots and its throne. Even the founding forefathers of video game horror are still influenced by their peers.

Now were back where we started with the Resident Evil series being the star of horror innovation and others following behind. Other subgenres have taken rise throughout the years, such as the multiplayer horror genre as seen in Nightmare on Elm Street, Left 4 Dead, and Back 4 Blood.

Like any genre, horror is always evolving, and I cant wait to see how developers will find the next way to make us scream.

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Animal Evolution: Fossil Discovery Hints First Animals Lived Nearly 900 Million Years Ago – Singularity Hub

Posted: at 6:34 am

Ever wonder how and when animals swanned onto the evolutionary stage? When, where, and why did animals first appear? What were they like?

Life has existed for much of Earths 4.5-billion-year history, but for most of that time it consisted exclusively of bacteria.

Although scientists have been investigating the evidence of biological evolution for over a century, some parts of the fossil record remain maddeningly enigmatic, and finding evidence of Earths earliest animals has been particularly challenging.

Information about evolutionary events hundreds of millions of years ago is mainly gleaned from fossils. Familiar fossils are shells, exoskeletons and bones that organisms make while alive. These so-called hard parts first appear in rocks deposited during the Cambrian explosion, slightly less than 540 million years ago.

The seemingly sudden appearance of diverse, complex animals, many with hard parts, implies that there was a preceding interval during which early soft-bodied animals with no hard parts evolved from simpler animals. Unfortunately, until now, possible evidence of fossil animals in the interval of hidden evolution has been very rare and difficult to understand, leaving the timing and nature of evolutionary events unclear.

This conundrum, known as Darwins dilemma, remains tantalizing and unresolved 160 years after the publication of On the Origin of Species.

There is indirect evidence regarding how and when animals may have appeared. Animals by definition ingest pre-existing organic matter, and their metabolisms require a certain level of ambient oxygen. It has been assumed that animals could not appear, or at least not diversify, until after a major oxygen increase in the Neoproterozoic Era, sometime between 815 and 540 million years ago, resulting from accumulation of oxygen produced by photosynthesizing cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae.

It is widely accepted that sponges are the most basic animal in the animal evolutionary tree and therefore probably were first to appear. Yes, sponges are animals: they use oxygen and feed by sucking water containing organic matter through their bodies. The earliest animals were probably sponge-related (the sponge-first hypothesis),and may have emerged hundreds of millions of years prior to the Cambrian, as suggested by a genetic method called molecular phylogeny, which analyzes genetic differences.

Based on these reasonable assumptions, sponges may have existed as much as 900 million years ago. So, why have we not found fossil evidence of sponges in rocks from those hundreds of millions of intervening years?

Under the right conditions, soft sponge tissue made from spongin fibres can create a distinctive fossil. Image Credit: Elizabeth C. Turner, author provided

Part of the answer to this question is that sponges do not have standard hard parts (shells, bones). Although some sponges have an internal skeleton made of microscopic mineralized rods called spicules, no convincing spicules have been found in rocks dating from the interval of hidden early animal evolution. However, some sponge typeshave a skeleton made of tough protein fibers called spongin, forming a distinctive, microscopic, three-dimensional meshwork, identical to a bath sponge.

Work on modern and fossil sponges has shown that these sponges can be preserved in the rock record when their soft tissue is calcified during decay. If the calcified mass hardens around spongin fibers before they too decay, a distinctive microscopic meshwork of complexly branching tubes results appears in the rock. The branching configuration is unlike that of algae, bacteria, or fungi, and is well known from limestones younger than 540 million years.

I am a geologist and paleobiologist who works on very old limestone. Recently, I described this exact microstructure in 890-million-year-old rocks from northern Canada, proposing that it could be evidence of sponges that are several hundred million years older than the next-youngest uncontested sponge fossil.

This may be an 890-million-year-old sponge fossil. Image Credit: Elizabeth C. Turner, author provided

Although my proposal may initially seem outrageous, it is consistent with predictions and assumptions that are common in the paleontological community: the new material seems to validate an extrapolated timeline and a predicted identity for early animals that are already widely accepted.

If these are indeed sponge fossils, animal evolution can be pushed back by several hundred million years.

The early possible sponges that I describe lived with localized cyanobacterial communities that produced oxygen oases in an otherwise low-oxygen world, prior to the Neoproterozoic oxygenation event. These early sponges may have continued living in similar environments, possibly unchanged and unchallenged by evolutionary pressure, for up to several hundred million years, before more diverse animals emerged.

The existence of 890-million-year-old animals would also indicate that biological evolution was not substantially affected by the controversial Cryogenian glacial episodesso-called snowball Earththat began around 720 million years ago.

My unusual fossil material may provide a new perspective on Darwins dilemma. However, radical new ideas are generally not fully accepted by the scientific community without vigorous discussion; I expect lively controversy to ensue. At some point, probably years in the future, a consensus may develop based on further work. Until then, enjoy the debate!

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Image Credit: Elizabeth C. Turner, author provided

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OverActive Media Reveals Evolution of Its Design for Performance Venue – GlobeNewswire

Posted: at 6:34 am

TORONTO, Oct. 29, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- OverActive Media (TSXV:OAM) today unveiled the evolution of its plan for its previously announced performance venue, and secured lease terms approval from the Exhibition Place Board of Governors in Toronto, paving the way for a final review and approval by Toronto City Council later this year.

Over the past eight months, we have worked hand in hand with all of our city partners to bring our collective vision for the venue to the next level, and we could not be more excited to finally be able to share our latest plans with our fans in Toronto and the world, said Chris Overholt, President and CEO of OverActive Media. Toronto is one of the best entertainment markets in the world. We have worked closely with our partners to begin to realize the immense potential of this region of the city while furthering Torontos position as a global esports hub. Our vision is to create an unparalleled experience for fans and entertainment artists alike.

Located in the heart of the historic Exhibition Place, the theatre-style entertainment venue and hotel complex is a strategic element of the approved master plan for the region previously established by city officials. Positioned on the north side of Lakeshore Blvd., and across from Ontario Place, the venue is expected to become the epicentre for what is starting to emerge as Torontos future meeting place for sports, media and entertainment.

"Today, we are embracing an exciting vision of the future by approving OverActive Media's plan and secured lease terms, said Exhibition Place Board Chair and Councillor Mark Grimes. On behalf of Exhibition Place's Board of Governors, we will continue to build on our rich history and showcase innovative spaces in our ongoing evolution. I proudly welcome OverActive Media to create an engaging space to meet the needs of our diverse and dynamic community."

With a projected completion date of 2025, the 7,000-seat venue is designed to be a destination at its core. The facility plans to host more than 200 events a year, driven primarily by premium music and entertainment bookings. It will also serve to attract major city-wide conventions, corporate events and product launches, awards shows and naturally, a full slate of esports events increasing over time. Additionally, it will provide a home for the citys two professional esports teams, Toronto Ultra of the Call of Duty League and Toronto Defiant of the Overwatch League. Prior to the pandemic, OverActive Media had scheduled sold-out live events for its Overwatch League franchise, Toronto Defiant. As live events continue to return, there is a demand amongst premium acts of the world for the size and type of venue it plans to deliver.

We took a bold step forward together today toward realizing our vision to build a preeminent performance venue in the city of Toronto, one that we believe will serve as a new home for the biggest music and entertainment acts of the world and a favourite venue for todays generation of fans, added Overholt.

Developed by global design firm Populous, the designs are purposeful, intended to create an engaging space for all fan activations, events and programming. Key design features and highlights include:

Over the past several months, weve had the opportunity to engage with OverActive Media, the Exhibition Place Board of Governors and the City of Toronto to carefully choreograph the relationship between the venue, the hotel and a new urban room that connects the two, said Jonathan Mallie, Senior Principal and lead designer for Populous. The design has evolved to further integrate a dynamic building program and expression into the fabric of Toronto.

For more information, please contact:

Leah Gaucher, Director, PR & Communications, OverActive Media(647) 924-2614lgaucher@oam.gg

ABOUT OVERACTIVE MEDIA

OverActiveMedia (TSXV:OAM)is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, with operations in Madrid, Spain and Berlin, Germany. OverActives mandate is to build an integrated global company delivering sports, media and entertainment products for todays generation of fans with a focus on esports, videogames, content creation and distribution, culture, and live and online events. OverActive owns team franchises in (i) the Overwatch League, operating as the Toronto Defiant, (ii) the Call of Duty League, operating as the Toronto Ultra, (iii) the League of Legends European Championship (LEC), operating as the MAD Lions, (iv) the Superliga, operating as the MAD Lions Madrid, and (v) Flashpoint, operating as MAD Lions Counter Strike:Global Offensive (a franchised league operated by B Site Inc., a company in which OverActive holds a minority interest), as well as other non-affiliated CS:GO tournaments and leagues. OverActive also operates both live and online events, operating as OAM Live and maintains an active social media presence with its fans and community members, operates fan clubs, and other fan-related activities that increase the reach of its brands.

ABOUT POPULOUS

Populous is a global design firm that designs the places where people love to be together, like Yankee Stadium, the London Olympics, and the Super Bowl. Over the last 38 years, the firm has designed more than 3,000 projects worth $40 billion across emerging and established markets. Populous comprehensive services include architecture, interior design, event planning and overlay, branded environments, wayfinding and graphics, planning and urban design, landscape architecture, aviation and transport design, hotels and hospitality, and sustainable design consulting. Populous has 18 offices on four continents and more than 600 employees with regional centers in Kansas City, London and Brisbane.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This press release contains statements which constitute forward-looking statements and forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, forward-looking statements), including statements regarding OverActives proposed development of a venue and its plans, intentions, beliefs and current expectations with respect to future business activities and operating performance. Forward-looking statements are often identified by the words may, would, could, should, will, intend, plan, anticipate, believe, estimate, expect or similar expressions.

Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not based on historical facts but instead OverActive managements expectations, estimates or projections concerning future results or events based on the opinions, assumptions and estimates of management considered reasonable at the date the statements are made. Although OverActive believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, such statements involve risks and uncertainties, and undue reliance should not be placed thereon, as unknown or unpredictable factors could have material adverse effects on future results, performance or achievements of the OverActive. Among the key factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements include the following: the potential impact of OverActives qualifying transaction on relationships, including with regulatory bodies, employees, suppliers, customers and competitors; changes in general economic, business and political conditions, including changes in the financial markets; changes in applicable laws and regulations both locally and in foreign jurisdictions; compliance with extensive government regulation; the risks and uncertainties associated with foreign markets; and other risk factors set out in OverActives filing statement dated July 2, 2021, a copy of which may be found under OverActives profile at http://www.sedar.com. These forward-looking statements may be affected by risks and uncertainties in the business of OverActive and general market conditions, including COVID-19.

Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described herein as intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Although OverActive has attempted to identify important risks, uncertainties and factors which could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be others that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended and such changes could be material. OverActive does not intend and do not assume any obligation, to update the forward-looking statements except as otherwise required by applicable law.

Neither the TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Photos accompanying this announcementare available at:

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/5d2a3117-be94-4d50-ba1f-1986eeec9252

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/cc959f8c-9c52-40df-8956-2665fb587bfd

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/fcdfc4f0-6ede-4776-ac89-df6fef814232

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Special Report: Pension Fund Stabilization and the Evolution of LDI – Institutional Investor

Posted: at 6:34 am

Most pension plans across the U.S. are still following the same incremental de-risking plan they adopted in the years immediately after the global financial crisis. Specifically, replacing return-seeking assets such as equity with long-duration fixed income that seeks to match the liability. In re-evaluating these glide path strategies in the current environment, it appears that most plans have de-risked far enough to avoid serious risks and to continue would simply increase costs and inefficiency with no discernable benefit, says Jared Gross, Managing Director and Head of Institutional Portfolio Strategy for JP Morgan Asset Management. II recently asked Gross to describe the course correction hes urging pensions to make before they face the consequences of an outdated investment approach.

Jared Gross: Prior to early 2000s, plan sponsors were focused on generating high returns with a traditionally diversified asset allocation mainly stocks and core bonds. In many respects, this approach was appropriate given the rules in place at the time. Accounting and regulatory standards were mild, with only a limited pass-through from funding changes to required contributions or the financial statements. Pension investors generally didnt consider liabilities when allocating assets. After all, a long period of strong returns had left most plans in a surplus position.

This era ended with the tech bust in the early 2000s, and the decline in interest rates that rapidly followed. The fallout led to a massive downturn in the funding of defined benefit plans; most went from being overfunded before 2000 to significantly underfunded just a year or two later. That was the first wake-up call. No one really had to confront the asset-liability mismatch in pensions before. Not too many years later, the global financial crisis delivered another blow, and sponsors began responding by starting to re-risk their asset allocations, closing and freezing defined benefit plans, and moving employees to defined contribution plans that offered the promise of more predictability.

I think we have seen two broad phases of pension de-risking with liability driven investments, and I believe we are about to enter a third.

The first phase, which I refer to as LDI 1.0, involved moving from shorter to longer duration bonds during the period immediately following the global financial crisis. With LDI portfolios offering high levels of yield, this was an unusual opportunity to reduce risk while also increasing return. Within a few years, most plan sponsors had moved their fixed income to a long-duration benchmark, often starting with the Long Government Credit Index.

Since then, we have seen a long process of patient de-risking that I refer to as LDI 2.0 or the Glidepath Era, in which plans have just been waiting for incremental improvements in funding before shifting capital from return-seeking strategies to LDI strategies. Theyve developed increasingly customized hedging strategies, many of which involve custom fixed income benchmarks, derivative overlays, and completion management. While the complexity of these hedging strategies has increased, their diversification has not. Most plans have reached a point where the exposure to investment grade corporate credit is the largest risk in the asset allocation.

Today, however, we need to reconsider the glide path approach for two reasons. First, higher funding levels and lower volatility asset allocations have reduced pension risk to a very low level already. And second, the rules that govern mandatory plan contributions have been dialed back to the point that contribution risk is minimal, if not nonexistent. It is very hard to see the value in further concentration in long-duration bonds.

Given this backdrop, plan sponsors need a course correction. Theyve already done an enormous amount of de-risking consider that volatility is dramatically reduced even in plans that are only 50% hedged. Pushing further down the glide path rapidly becomes inefficient. That last mile is very expensive; giving up significant returns to reduce volatility only slightly makes it an extremely costly form of hedging. If the risk of large mandatory contributions was a serious concern, this behavior might be justified, but it is not.

This brings us to an inflection point in pension strategy. What I think of as LDI 3.0, or as we describe it to our clients, Pension Stabilization, is a more balanced approach than traditional LDI. It aims for a long-term blend of modest excess return and low volatility but not the lowest possible volatility. Its definitely not a journey back to 1999 when plans were seeking high returns and ran 12-15% annualized funding volatility. A stabilization strategy begins when a plan approaches full funding and adopts a sensibly de-risked and diversified asset allocation, allowing for the gradual improvement in funding across time while preserving numerous positive financial benefits for the sponsor. I expect that many sponsors will see the appeal of taking this off-ramp from an outdated glide path.

Simply put, its impossible to perfectly hedge pension liabilities with financial assets. For starters, you cant hedge the actuarial risks around participant behavior and people living longer. The sponsor must bear these costs through increased returns or contributions.

Additionally, the fixed income portfolios that are used to hedge liabilities will experience downgrades and defaults. The liabilities wont change, but there will be performance drag across time. A more diversified stabilization strategy can still out-earn the liabilities over the long run and that drag from credit losses will just be noise. But when assets are concentrated in fixed income, the drag becomes more difficult to outrun. This is the critical flaw in most hibernation strategies. An LDI portfolio comprised of long-duration corporate bonds and Treasuries will slowly burn through its excess capital.

We really need to get away from the notion that, as the hedge portfolio grows in size it should become more and more concentrated in corporate credit. The exact opposite is true. Hedge portfolios need to become more diversified. Treasuries certainly have a role to play, though their lack of yield is a concern. Long-duration, securitized fixed income and high yield bonds are also useful options, but the list doesnt end there. Its instructive to observe the investing behavior of life insurance companies, who are managing the risks of annuity portfolios that are quite similar to pension liabilities; these firms are large holders of securitized assets, crossover portfolios that incorporate high yield bonds, structured credit and mezzanine debt.

The other path to de-risking begins in the return-seeking portfolio. Investors today have access to a far more diverse set of low-to-moderate volatility alternative asset classes that can deliver stable excess performance versus liabilities without the high volatility and low correlation of equities. Many of these asset classes are also capable of delivering a high level of distributable income, which is a valuable resource for a benefit-paying institution.

I hope so. The historical volatility of defined benefit pensions and the uncertainty surrounding contributions convinced many sponsors that they were too risky to maintain. This is simply untrue. A well-funded and prudently managed DB plan has powerful benefits that a DC plan simply cannot replicate. When we consider the recovery in DB plan funding and the evolution of pension asset allocation over the past 20 years, there should be a conversation in corporate America about preserving what remains of the DB system. While I am not convinced we will see closed plans reopen or new plans created, its worth considering. In a period of rising wages and highly competitive labor markets, the original purpose of defined benefit plans comes back into focus: proving a tax-advantaged, investment-driven vehicle for delivering competitive benefits to employees.

I would love to see pension stabilization evolve to become the standard model. Im encouraged because I do see many well-funded plans adopting elements of this approach. Consultants are getting behind this trend as well, although some continue to view the pieces independently rather than as a holistic framework that can challenge the glide path/hibernation/termination model.

I think we may be close to the high-water mark for traditional LDI strategies. With current interest rates and credit spreads, managers know that a dollar put into a traditional LDI strategy today is almost never going to outperform liabilities going forward. Conditions may change, but from where we stand today, its hard to envision those LDI frameworks remaining static. There are just too many better ways develop a risk-efficient pension strategy outside of them.

JP Morgan has a 150-year history of serving as a fiduciary to our clients; I cant overstate the importance of that legacy to the present-day JP Morgan Asset Management. We also have the broadest cross-section of investment strategies of any manager in the business, each of which is built around the premise that highly skilled, independent investment teams can deliver specialized strategies while drawing on the collective resources of the broader organization. Unlike some firms that implictly guide clients to the particular strategy in which they specialize, we want clients to make the best possible strategic decision because we are confident that we will find a way to partner with them in implementing it.

With respect to pension stabilization, the merits of the approach speak for themselves. As clients look to implement this type of program, they will need to reconsider their exposures to traditional hedging and return-generating assets as well as new forms of diversifiers. For hedge portfolios, weve been at the forefront of long-duration securitized investing and have a long history of success in high yield and mezzanine debt. Within the realm of alternative diversifiers, we tend to highlight the powerful income generation and diversification benefits of core real assets with a very strong platform across real estate, infrastructure, and transportation.

JP Morgan also has a long history of working with institutional clients in discretionary management and delegated solutions. Pension plans may not have the internal resources and operational flexibility to execute a sophisticated asset allocation that takes advantage of the full investment opportunity set. A number of sponsors are currently using our delegated platform and its full spectrum of assets to outperform liabilities in a risk-aware manner, and we think this business model will continue to grow.

The current path to hibernation and termination is a dead end. Specialized LDI managers arent going to give plan sponsors the unbiased advice that they need. Diverse, forward-thinking managers and consultants can help redirect clients to change course with full-spectrum strategies that maintain positive returns while still managing volatility. We want plans to get fully funded and stay fully funded. Pension stabilization can achieve both and help ensure their pensions are once again able to be a source of value.

Learn more about pension stabilization strategies.

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The evolution of Arab Cinema – Euronews

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The El Gouna Film Festival (GFF) pulled off an incredible two-week programme of film screenings, masterclasses and workshops for their 5th edition. The fortnight of films culminating in a glamourous red-carpet awards ceremony. The annual event is a key platform for Arab Cinema and it also continues to attract submissions from international filmmaking talent.

There were questions as to whether the event would go ahead after a fire broke out just 24 hours before the opening in the Festival Plaza. As the world of Arab Film descended on El Gouna attention was focused on Arab cinema and its evolution.

Mohamed Hefzy is the producer of Feathers, which won the Best Arab Narrative Film at the closing ceremony. He said the Arab Film world is rapidly developing in terms of both features and documentaries.

We're feeling more support for Arab cinema now with new festivals and new funds that are being created. We're also seeing, a new industry coming out in Saudi Arabia, and an audience that is quite huge in terms of not just population, but in terms of passion for cinema and spending power.

He also told Euronews that it opens up the market to a bigger audience.

So, it's an exciting time to be a filmmaker or a content creator from the Middle East, he said.

Egyptian Actress, Sara Abdulrahman, said over the last 10 years, things have really taken off in Arab Cinema.

Now there's a lot of smaller, shorter formats that are being made, and this is great for the industry because that means there are more productions and more stories to be told.

Arab Cinema has a continued reputation for breaking down barriers and stereotypes, and often at times, making a political statement. Many countries also experienced a spike in film production after they gained independence.

Costa Brava, Lebanon, is a family drama set against the backdrop of a climate crisis. It received two awards at the festival.

Lebanese actress Yumna Marwan who plays Alia said making the film was cathartic as she had already left Lebanon due to instability in the country.

I came to do the film and it was literally also me returning to my country and having to face everything the character does, adding,

So just this whole journey, after the blast to come back to Lebanon and be with them. That was the most important thing. I think it sheds light on a lot of things that are happening locally, but it's also very global and what it's trying to say.

'Captains of Zaatari' is a tale of two friends who are Syrian refugees in a camp, with big dreams of becoming footballers. On winning the Best Arab Feature Documentary award, Egyptian director Ali El Arabi said it was emotional for the whole team.

This is not just for me, it's for the many thousands and thousands of refugees around the world. And I'm happy because I'm in my home country and all the people loved and watched the film and gave me amazing feedback.

The consensus of the industry over the festival was that great work was happening in the Arab Film industry but more support was needed at a grassroots level.

British-Egyptian Actor, Amir al-Masri, said he would like to see more platforms that help up and coming directors and writers and nurture new talent.

They are doing that, but I'd like to see more of it, for sure. Across the board, not just here in the Middle East, but everywhere around the world.

Feathers producer, Mohamed Hefzy said going forward he would like to see more support for Arab Cinema and independent filmmakers from their respective governments. He told Euronews that would like to see the films do well outside of the festival circuit.

Commercially speaking, in terms of audiences embracing it, for example, what happened with Parasite, that great film from South Korea, I mean, we would love to have another film that does something like that.

He also said he would like to build on recent success and drive Arab cinema forward.

I think that's the next step. And I'm hoping that with more films being produced and better films being produced that that's going to happen soon.

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