Physical

• Modern Health , a leading global workplace mental health platform, today announces the appointment of Samantha Meltzer-Brody, MD, MPH , as Clinical Advisor and Board member of Modern Health’s Professional Corporation entities, and Reena Pande, MD MSc , as Clinical Advisor.
• "We are incredibly honored to welcome esteemed clinical advisors like Dr. Pande and Dr. Meltzer-Brody to our team.
• I have been impressed with how Modern Health is redefining global workplace well-being,” comments Dr. Samantha Meltzer-Brody, Clinical Advisor at Modern Health.
• These exciting findings support the clinical effectiveness and sustainability of the Modern Health platform for improving and preserving mental health and reinforce the utility of digitally delivered mental health services.

• Cushman & Wakefield (NYSE: CWK), a leading global real estate services firm, announces that it has been appointed by Standard Chartered Bank (the Bank) to provide services to support its Asia workplace transformation, and Global Asset and Transaction Management for the Bank’s 11m square foot global real estate portfolio.
• The five-year mandate will encompass global Asset & Transactions Management and Property Services across Asia, including Integrated Facilities Management, Project & Design Management Services, Space Planning, Occupancy Management, Health, Safety and Wellbeing and Physical Security and will take effect from 1 July 2024.
• In support of delivering a best-in-class corporate, investment, wealth and retail banking experience, Cushman & Wakefield will be key in accelerating the Bank’s client strategy across its physical and digital networks.
• We are excited to strengthen joint capabilities to seize opportunities ahead and look forward to delivering excellence for the Bank and our clients in 2024 and beyond,” said Shelley Boland, Global Head, Property, Standard Chartered Bank.

• BRIDGEWATER, N.J., April 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CONTROLTEK , a global leader specializing in retail asset protection, RFID inventory and asset tracking solutions, and tamper-evident packaging, is thrilled to announce the appointment of Dan Davies, CFI as its new Director of Technical Operations.
• In his new role at CONTROLTEK, Dan will be responsible for driving customer advocacy, refining the Project Management process, and maximizing efficiencies across the organization's technical operations.
• "I am thrilled to be joining CONTROLTEK and to be part of a company that is at the forefront of innovation in retail and banking security solutions," said Dan Davies.
• Tom Meehan, CFI , President of CONTROLTEK, commented, "We are delighted to welcome Dan Davies to the CONTROLTEK team.

• Including more than 350,000 known species, they dominate the ecological system, shape food webs and play a vital role in oxygen production.
• Plus, many of them are valuable commercial crops – think of roses, grains and tomatoes.

• A step change in research is shaking up the way scientists think about plants: they are far more complex and more like us than you might imagine.
• But not all scientists agree it is an angiosperm, due to the different definitions of flower organs.
• This is the largest known amber-preserved fossil flower, measuring about 3cm across and about three times as large as most floral fossils, showing beautiful details of this ancient flower.

Jurassic or Cretaceous?

• The timing of flowers’ evolution is still a matter of debate between scientists, but most scientists are in one of two camps: Jurassic or Cretaceous.
• Analyses using molecular data (DNA or protein sequences) suggest flowers could be much older than the fossil record shows – a Jurassic (145 million years ago) or even Triassic origin (201 million years ago).

Deciphering the past by molecular data

• One technique scientists use to determine the timing of evolutionary events is the “molecular clock”.
• This concept originated from the understanding that genetic mutations tend to accumulate at a constant rate across both time and species.
• To construct a molecular clock, researchers analyse gene segments that have been conserved throughout a species’ evolution.

Piecing the puzzle together

• Scientists examine fossil plants and observe the gradual changes in structures such as leaves, flowers and seeds over time.
• Comparing their anatomy allows researchers to identify similarities and differences between extinct and still-living species, or species in different clades.
• Biological traits which appear similar may be a result of convergent evolution, indicating changes in characteristics for environmental adaptation, rather than genetic similarity.

Mathematical approach can also help

• There is also a mathematical approach to estimating the age of angiosperms – for instance, using the Bayesian Brownian Bridge (BBB) method.
• This statistical model is a scientific formula that uses the distribution of fossils through time to estimate the age of a group.
• By using the BBB method, an international research team found that the origin of angiosperms supports a pre-Cretaceous hypothesis.

Ruolin Wu does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.