List of All Articles with Tag 'a'

The reality of what lies within our oceans has fascinated people since time immemorial, so it’s no wonder we’ve created countless myths about the watery depths. But step aside, Atlantis, scientists have discovered a real Lost City beneath the waves, and this one is teaming with life. The rocky, towering landscape is located west of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge mountain range, hundreds of metres below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean, and consists of massive walls, columns and monoliths stretching more than 60 metres (200ft) tall. To be clear, it’s not the home of some long-forgotten human civilisation, but that doesn’t make its existence any less significant. The hydrothermal field, dubbed the “Lost City” upon its discovery in the year 2000, is the longest-lived venting environment known in the ocean, Science Alert reports. Nothing else like it has ever been found on Earth, and experts think it could offer an insight into ecosystems that could exist elsewhere in the universe. For more than 120,000 years, snails, crustaceans and microbial communities have fed off the field’s vents, which spout out hydrogen, methane and other dissolved gases into the surrounding water. Despite the absence of oxygen down there, larger animals also survive in this extreme environment, including crabs, shrimps and eels. Although, they are, admittedly, rare. The hydrocarbons produced by its vents were not created by sunlight or carbon dioxide, but by chemical reactions way down on the seafloor. This is how life on our planet may have originated some 3.7 billion years, and how it could be formed on others. "This is an example of a type of ecosystem that could be active on Enceladus or Europa right this second," microbiologist William Brazelton told The Smithsonian back in 2018, referring to the moons of Saturn and Jupiter respectively. "And maybe Mars in the past." The tallest of the Lost City’s monoliths has been named Poseidon, after the Greek god of the sea, and it measures more than 60 metres high. Meanwhile, just northeast of the tower, is a cliffside where the vents “weep” with fluid, producing "clusters of delicate, multi-pronged carbonate growths that extend outward like the fingers of upturned hands", according to researchers at the University of Washington. There are now calls for the Lost City to be listed as a World Heritage site to protect the natural phenomenon, particularly given humans’ propensity to destroy precious ecosystems. Back in 2018, it was confirmed that Poland had won the rights to mine the deep sea around the thermal field. And whilst, in theory, the Lost City would not be touched by such works, as Science Alert notes, the destruction of its surroundings could have unintended consequences. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings

Microsoft has announced that it's hired Sam Altman and another co-founder of ChatGPT maker OpenAI after they unexpectedly departed the company days earlier in a corporate shakeup that shocked the artificial intelligence world

Poland’s largest refiner Orlen SA agreed to purchase oil and gas producing assets on the Norwegian continental shelf

Taiwan’s export orders contracted at the slowest pace in more than a year, delivering an encouraging sign for

Osaka Digital Exchange Co. will begin Japan’s first trading of digital securities next month in the form of

Monday's football transfer rumours, with updates on Luis Diaz, Leroy Sane, Raphinha, Ivan Toney & more.

The Nigerian artists are the first winners in the new category at the Billboard Music Awards in the US.

A TikToker has opened up about the “scary” dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning after she was hospitalised with it from lighting scented candles. Scented candles are a common household item that helps to improve a space’s ambience. But many TikTok users were left shocked after content creator Emy Moore revealed she ended up in hospital. In the video, Moore could be seen pulling monitor stickers from the hospital off her body as she explained exactly what happened. She said: “I had like five candles, scented candles, going on in my room for hours yesterday and then blew them out right before I went to sleep.” Moore explained that as she tried to fall asleep she started to feel very strange and felt like her “body dropped”. The TikToker said the sensation felt like her body separated and there were two halves of her. She also revealed she started to lose her sense of self and had a rapid heartbeat. @emymoore3 never buying a candle EVER again After being taken to hospital by her parents, Moore said she kept forgetting what she had just said and was shaking as though she was on the cusp of having a seizure. Some of her other symptoms included a headache, dizziness, confusion, dehydration, shortness of breath, chest pain, blurred vision and high blood pressure. Moore explained to doctors about the candles and was hooked up to oxygen which made her feel better and her symptoms go away after a few hours. “I literally had no idea you can get carbon monoxide poisoning from candles,” one person commented. Another said: “I’m glad you’re ok, but 5 candles AT ONCE??” Someone else commented: “I also had carbon monoxide poisoning and I too had that second sense that something wasn’t right. It’s crazyyy.” “It says not to leave candles burning for more than 3-4 hours depending on the candle for this reason to everyone in the comments…” someone else warned. How to join the indy100's free WhatsApp channel Sign up to our free indy100 weekly newsletter Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

PARIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 20, 2023--

Israeli forces engaged in heavy fighting with Hamas in the northern Gaza Strip overnight as the US said

Chinese regulators are drafting a list of 50 developers eligible for a range of financing, according to people

China congratulated Javier Milei for winning the presidential election in Argentina, even after he questioned the need to