National university

A 380-million-year old predatory fish from Central Australia is finally named after decades of digging

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 6, 2024

More than 380 million years ago, a sleek, air-breathing predatory fish patrolled the rivers of central Australia.

Key Points: 
  • More than 380 million years ago, a sleek, air-breathing predatory fish patrolled the rivers of central Australia.
  • Known from at least 17 fossil specimens, Harajicadectes is the first reasonably complete bony fish found from Devonian rocks in central Australia.

Meet the biter

  • This group had strongly built paired fins and usually only a single pair of external nostrils.
  • Tetrapodomorph fish from the Devonian period (359–419 million years ago) have long been of great interest to science.
  • They include the forerunners of modern tetrapods – animals with backbones and limbs such as amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals.

A long road to discovery

  • Packed within red sandstone blocks on a remote hilltop were hundreds of fossil fishes.
  • The vast majority of them were small Bothriolepis – a type of widespread prehistoric fish known as a placoderm, covered in box-like armour.
  • These included a lungfish known as Harajicadipterus youngi, named in honour of Gavin Young and his years of work on material from Harajica.
  • There were early attempts at figuring out the species, but this proved troublesome.
  • Then, our Flinders University expedition to the site in 2016 yielded the first almost complete fossil of this animal.

A strange apex predator

  • Likely the top predator of those ancient rivers, its big mouth was lined with closely-packed sharp teeth alongside larger, widely spaced triangular fangs.
  • It seems to have combined anatomical traits from different tetrapodomorph lineages via convergent evolution (when different creatures evolve similar features independently).
  • Similar giant spiracles also appear in Gogonasus, a marine tetrapodomorph from the famous Late Devonian Gogo Formation of Western Australia.
  • They are also seen in the unrelated Pickeringius, an early ray-finned fish that was also at Gogo.

The earliest air-breathers?


Other Devonian animals that sported such spiracles were the famous elpistostegalians – freshwater tetrapodomorphs from the Northern Hemisphere such as Elpistostege and Tiktaalik. These animals were extremely close to the ancestry of limbed vertebrates. So, enlarged spiracles seem to have arisen independently in at least four separate lineages of Devonian fishes.

  • The only living fishes with similar structures are bichirs, African ray-finned fishes that live in shallow floodplains and estuaries.
  • It was recently confirmed they draw surface air through their spiracles to aid survival in oxygen-poor waters.


Brian Choo receives funding from the Australian Research Council and is employed by Flinders University. Alice Clement receives funding from the Australian Research Council and is employed by Flinders University. John Long receives funding from The Australian Research Council.

NUS research develop AI-powered 'eye' for visually impaired people to 'see' objects

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, February 6, 2024

This is particularly vital for visually impaired people as environmental sounds provide essential information for decision-making, especially in situations involving safety considerations.

Key Points: 
  • This is particularly vital for visually impaired people as environmental sounds provide essential information for decision-making, especially in situations involving safety considerations.
  • "At present, visually impaired people in Singapore do not have access to assistive AI technology of this level of sophistication.
  • Therefore, we believe that AiSee has the potential to empower visually impaired people to independently accomplish tasks that currently require assistance.
  • NUS student Mark Myres, who helped to test AiSee as a visually impaired user, commented, "A lot of time, assistive devices seem very targeted at totally blind people or visually impaired people.

Blue California completes groundbreaking human clinical trial on ErgoActive® ergothioneine intervention for cognitive function, memory, and sleep

Retrieved on: 
Monday, February 5, 2024

Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., Feb. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Blue California , an industry leader in science-driven ingredient development, announced the successful completion of a groundbreaking human clinical trial of ergothioneine.

Key Points: 
  • Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., Feb. 05, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Blue California , an industry leader in science-driven ingredient development, announced the successful completion of a groundbreaking human clinical trial of ergothioneine.
  • A double-blinded placebo-controlled clinical trial sponsored by Blue California has shown that ErgoActive® ergothioneine supports aspects of cognitive function, memory, and sleep in healthy elderly subjects with subjective memory complaints.
  • "Blue California is proud to have sponsored such an important human study,” said Linda May-Zhang, Ph.D., VP of Science and Innovation at Blue California.
  • Today, Blue California has made a substantial advancement by sponsoring a double-blinded, placebo-controlled clinical study conducted at a national research institution.

National University Receives $4M Grant to Improve Outcomes for Nontraditional, Working, and Military Students

Retrieved on: 
Thursday, February 1, 2024

SAN DIEGO, Feb. 1, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- National University (NU) — a nonprofit Minority Serving Institution (MSI) that serves 50,000 degree-seeking students and 80,000 workforce and professional development students annually — today announced that it has received a $4 million federal grant to create the NU Peer Navigator Network, a large peer-to-peer support system allowing students at all degree levels of the university to get help from more experienced schoolmates on everything from academics to work-life balance.

Key Points: 
  • "National University's mission is to provide accessible, world-class student experiences to non-traditional, working, and military-affiliated learners," said Dr. Mark D. Milliron, NU president and CEO.
  • "National University's mission is to provide accessible, world-class student experiences to non-traditional, working, and military-affiliated learners," said Dr. Mark D. Milliron, NU president and CEO.
  • "This grant will allow us to deploy expanded peer support to our learners provided by successful students who personally relate to these diverse and unique backgrounds.
  • Two-thirds of NU students and graduates are Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC).

National University Partners with California Community Colleges Classified Senate to Support Employee Advancement Opportunities

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, January 30, 2024

SAN DIEGO, Jan. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- National University(NU) — a nonprofit Minority Serving Institution that serves more than 130,000 learners annually through its degree and professional training programs – and the California Community Colleges Classified Senate, a nonprofit organization representing over 38,000 California community colleges classified professionals, today jointly announced a new partnership to provide pathways to possibility for community college professionals to pursue bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees at NU.

Key Points: 
  • National University is perfectly aligned to help the dedicated, hard-working California community college professionals who champion student success.
  • "The partnership between National University and the California Community Colleges Classified Senate will open the door to community college professionals and allow them to excel in their careers through advanced degrees," said Dr. Gerardo de los Santos, vice president of community college relations at National University and recent inductee into the American Association of Community College Leadership Hall of Fame.
  • Our partnership with the California Community Colleges Classified Senate enables National University to give back to current and future dedicated community college leaders."
  • "The California Community Colleges Classified Senate (4CS) has long been a champion for professional development.

Driven by responsibility and innovation, China’s Zhejiang University leverages academic prowess to promote SDGs

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, January 30, 2024

HANGZHOU, CHINA - Media OutReach Newswire - 23 January 2024 - Every winter, Davos, a small Swiss town clad in snow and ice, awaits elite representatives from all walks of life worldwide. They gather in the well-known resort for the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, where the latest economic trends and solutions to global challenges would be discussed. Zhejiang University released its first-ever SDG report during the annual meeting of the WEF As the center of knowledge production, the cradle of talent training and the source of innovation, the academia is an important force in the WEF. From Jan. 15 to 17, leaders from top universities and research institutions around the world met for the Global University Leaders Forum (GULF), a community to address educational, scientific and research agendas to support WEF's mission of improving the state of the world. How universities and the private sector can work together to address major global challenges in sustainable development is the theme at the GULF 2024, and for Prof. Jiangfeng DU, President of Zhejiang University and Chair of the Association of University Presidents of China (AUPC), this is an effort that the university he is leading has relentlessly committed to. According to The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2023 released last July by the United Nations, half of the SDGs were moderately or severely off target, and more than 30 percent of the goals have made no progress or even retreated. There is much to be done to further upgrade research and action to drive sustainable development policies and practices, and Zhejiang University in east China is one of the pioneers. During the annual meeting of the WEF, Zhejiang University released the Zhejiang University Sustainable Development Goals Report 2023, which is the first time for this renowned Chinese university with more than 120 years of history to introduce its sustainable development policies and practices in an open report. The report shows the efforts and contributions made by faculty members and students of Zhejiang University in 17 SDGs in 2023. In 2023, the University held an advanced seminar on anti-poverty issues in developing countries, sharing innovative and effective practices in absolute poverty eradication, rural revitalization and new-type urbanization with officials from 13 countries including Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan. Last year, Prof. Baojing GU from Zhejiang University won the inaugural Frontiers Planet Prize for his research contribution to mitigating PM2.5 air pollution. Gu is one of the prize's four recipients and the only Chinese scientist. Meanwhile, Xuehong ZHAO, deputy director of the Nursing Department at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University's School of Medicine, won the Florence Nightingale Medal for the year. This is the honor that nursing staff in Zhejiang Province have received again after a gap of 14 years, and she is also the first nursing staff at Zhejiang University to claim this honor. Zhejiang University, together with Cambridge University, National University of Singapore, Kyoto University and other universities at home and abroad, has established a number of international alliances focusing on sustainable development, such as the International Digital Equality Alliance and the Sustainable Smart Livable Cities Alliance. On November 14, 2023, Zhejiang University played host to the third Sino-German Sustainable Development Forum in Berlin, Germany. Featuring in-depth discussions encompassing critical themes such as climate change and governance, technology and sustainability, global health and well-being, the forum sought to explore effective pathways for Sino-German cooperation in promoting sustainable development. Besides 2023, Zhejiang University have been making contributions to global sustainable development for a long time, with remarkable achievements made in fields like scientific research, talent training and open development. Sustainable development is a key field of scientific research in Zhejiang University. Over the past five years, Zhejiang University faculty published over 82,500 academic papers covering 17 SDG project areas, with specifically abundant output in SDG3 (Good Health and Well-being), SDG11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities), SDG7 (Affordable and Clean Energy). In order to cultivate more talents in the field of sustainable development for China and the world, Zhejiang University has strengthened its education in related disciplines, and also held the SDG Global Summer School for two consecutive years. Focusing on key modules such as carbon neutrality, inclusive development, smart city, data visualization and networked autonomous systems, the summer school attracted the participation of more than 2,000 outstanding young students from over 420 universities in 80-plus countries and regions. Zhejiang University has also become an active advocate for the sustainable development of university services. In 2021, Zhejiang University rolled out its sustainability action plan--A Global ZJU for Social Good, and launched the Joint Statement of Global University Leaders on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. So far, the initiative has received positive responses from over 60 universities from 31 countries and regions, including Harvard University, Yale University, University College London, University of Sydney, University of Toronto, Peking University and other universities from six continents, and many of them have also participated in the GULF. Among the plethora of sustainable development issues facing the world, global warming is one of the prominent challenges, which directly relates to whether Davos will still be such a snowy fairy-tale place in winter in the near future. In the past decade, Zhejiang University has generated more than 10,000 research papers related with net-zero emissions, ranking among the best in terms of global academic output. It has established the Institute for Carbon Neutrality, which seeks to build a high-level carbon neutrality sci-tech talent center and a high-tech innovation highland via interdisciplinary integration and collaborative innovation. "Higher education institutions, as the bank of talent and hub of scientific research, play an essential role in addressing the pressing challenges brought by climate change. Zhejiang University has actively answered the call of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Global Development Initiative, and will continue working with its global partners to address the urgent challenges facing the world," Du said. Hashtag: #ZhejiangUniversity

Key Points: 
  • The report shows the efforts and contributions made by faculty members and students of Zhejiang University in 17 SDGs in 2023.
  • Last year, Prof. Baojing GU from Zhejiang University won the inaugural Frontiers Planet Prize for his research contribution to mitigating PM2.5 air pollution.
  • On November 14, 2023, Zhejiang University played host to the third Sino-German Sustainable Development Forum in Berlin, Germany.
  • Zhejiang University has also become an active advocate for the sustainable development of university services.

Driven by Responsibility and Innovation, China's Zhejiang University Leverages Academic Prowess to Promote SDGs

Retrieved on: 
Tuesday, January 23, 2024

The report shows the efforts and contributions made by faculty members and students of Zhejiang University in 17 SDGs in 2023.

Key Points: 
  • The report shows the efforts and contributions made by faculty members and students of Zhejiang University in 17 SDGs in 2023.
  • Last year, Prof. Baojing GU from Zhejiang University won the inaugural Frontiers Planet Prize for his research contribution to mitigating PM2.5 air pollution.
  • On November 14, 2023, Zhejiang University played host to the third Sino-German Sustainable Development Forum in Berlin, Germany.
  • Zhejiang University has also become an active advocate for the sustainable development of university services.

Rejuvant Emerges as No. 1 Longevity Solution in TruMe Labs DNA Methylation Test Results

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, January 24, 2024

The revelations stem from an in-depth analysis by TruMe Labs , uncovering the impact of various compounds on lowering biological age.

Key Points: 
  • The revelations stem from an in-depth analysis by TruMe Labs , uncovering the impact of various compounds on lowering biological age.
  • With more than 5,000 entries encompassing nearly 900 disclosed compounds used by TruMe Labs’ customers to reduce their biological age, this data release of DNA methylation test results provides consumers with crucial insights into which substances are truly effective in turning back the clock.
  • The following represent a few selected entries from TruMe Labs data, in their ranked order:
    “Among those taking Rejuvant, which were 10% of our customers, we observed remarkable results,” said Yelena Budovskaya, Ph.D., co-founder and CEO of TruMe Labs.
  • His results, documented in Popular Mechanics last year, could potentially be among the first recorded human instances of this significant longevity milestone.

Brian Krzanich Joins SES AI Board of Directors

Retrieved on: 
Monday, January 29, 2024

SES AI Corporation (“SES AI”) (NYSE: SES), a global leader in the development and manufacturing of high-performance Li-Metal batteries, is pleased to announce that Brian Krzanich, who served as Chief Executive Officer at both Intel Corp. and CDK Global Inc., has joined the board of directors as an independent director, effective January 26, 2024.

Key Points: 
  • SES AI Corporation (“SES AI”) (NYSE: SES), a global leader in the development and manufacturing of high-performance Li-Metal batteries, is pleased to announce that Brian Krzanich, who served as Chief Executive Officer at both Intel Corp. and CDK Global Inc., has joined the board of directors as an independent director, effective January 26, 2024.
  • View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240129746465/en/
    Brian Krzanich, former CEO of Intel Corp. and CDK Global Inc., joins SES AI Board of Directors.
  • “Brian brings extensive leadership experience in the commercialization of next-generation technologies for automotive applications,” said Qichao Hu, founder, Chairman and CEO of SES AI.
  • “I am excited to join the Board of SES AI, a leader in next-generation battery technology that will bring new experiences and range to our electrified world," Mr. Krzanich said.

MNTN Announces Full Integration With Rockerbox, Offering Marketers Enhanced Cross-Device Measurement and Transparency Into Performance TV Campaigns

Retrieved on: 
Wednesday, January 24, 2024

MNTN , the Hardest Working Software in Television and a trailblazer in Performance TV advertising, today announced a full integration with leading marketing analytics platform Rockerbox .

Key Points: 
  • MNTN , the Hardest Working Software in Television and a trailblazer in Performance TV advertising, today announced a full integration with leading marketing analytics platform Rockerbox .
  • With this integration, Rockerbox’s clients gain enhanced cross-device measurement and the ability to attribute MNTN’s proprietary Verified Visits™ and business outcomes generated by their Connected TV (CTV) campaigns accurately in the Rockerbox platform.
  • "Rockerbox's MNTN integration meets this need, and since it's cookie-less, marketers have the peace of mind that they're relying on a future-proof solution."
  • The knowledge gained has enhanced confidence as we scale our CTV campaigns.”
    To learn more about MNTN’s integration with Rockerbox, please visit https://mountain.com/ .