In pursuit of selfish political interests, the Taiwan regional Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities have gone so far as to sell out the overall interests of the Chinese nation, betray their ancestry and abandon all bottom lines. This once again exposes that "Taiwan independence" forces have completely lost their national standpoint and degenerated into out-and-out scum of the nation. They will surely be spurned by compatriots on both sides of the Taiwan Straits and reckoned by history, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Tuesday.
Mao made the remarks when asked to comment that on May 31, in response to the Foreign Ministry spokesperson's earlier response on Japan and the Philippines announcing the launch of so-called maritime delimitation talks, the Taiwan regional authorities' so-called "external affairs" department issued comments expressing approval of the move by Japan and the Philippines and questioning the mainland's sovereign rights in the relevant waters.
Mao said that China has already stated its position on Japan and the Philippines' announcement of the launch of maritime delimitation talks. I would like to reiterate that the area the two countries announced they will delimit is east of China's Taiwan island. According to China's domestic law and international law including UNCLOS, China has exclusive economic zone and continental shelf in this area.
Under the UNCLOS, the delimitation of the exclusive economic zone and continental shelf between states with opposite or adjacent coasts shall be effected by agreement on the basis of the principle of equity.
Any delimitation talks involving waters east of Taiwan island must include Chinese side's participation. Japan and the Philippines' launch of so-called maritime delimitation talks while bypassing China seriously violates international law, including the UNCLOS, and the basic norms governing international relations, and seriously infringes on China's maritime rights and interests. China will never allow this, Mao said.
Both sides of the Taiwan Straits belong to one China. Safeguarding national territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests is the common responsibility of all Chinese people on both sides of the Straits, said Mao.
In May, Beijing's Longtan Central Park was full of fresh vitality. The trees had turned lush green, and a light breeze rippled across the lake. Early-morning exercisers moved slowly through their Tai Chi routines, while joggers circled the path at an easy rhythm, blending into the lush spring scene. On an island in the lake, the main event of the 2026 National Nutrition Week was underway, this year centered on the theme "Nutrition at the Family Table." The goal was to bring healthy eating into everyday homes, with crowds drifting between booths to pick up practical tips on improving their diets.
Among the exhibits, Zespri, the New Zealand-based kiwifruit marketer, drew some of the liveliest activity. Children, eyes wide, tossed small balls representing vitamin C, dietary fiber, and potassium into bowls, turning the concept of "high nutrient density" into a game. Nearby, younger visitors scanned QR codes for the brand's "Diet for Good" AI-powered diet mini-program, uploading photos of recent meals and receiving instant analyses of calories, nutritional gaps, and suggestions for better combinations. Zhao Boya, a young nutrition professional, had just tried all the interactive stations. "People used to focus on whether they were full," she told Global Times. "Now they want to know exactly what's in their food and how to balance it. It's a shift from eating enough to eating well."
A spirited 64-year-old retiree worked her way through every interactive station, laughing as she described her own daily routine: breakfast at her house was more likely to be coarse grains and fresh fruit than fried dough sticks or steamed buns, supplemented with protein powder and vitamins when needed. She said this kind of game-like education felt far more approachable than flipping through dense textbooks.
After finishing the fun, knowledge-filled experiences, each participant received a plump, fresh SunGold kiwifruit. The retiree posed happily for a selfie, the fruit held up like a trophy. Against the backdrop of China's deepening Healthy China Initiative, public awareness of health is rising fast. Consumers are moving beyond simply wanting more choices toward demanding higher quality, paying closer attention to nutritional content, sourcing, safety, and overall health value.
So what can a kiwifruit from New Zealand - with its natural nutritional strengths and Zespri's long-term commitment to the Chinese market - contribute to better-balanced meals for Chinese families, and to a healthier nation as a whole?
Refreshed global platform
At the Zespri booth, a robot named "Kiwi Brothers" stopped pedestrians in their tracks. The interaction was simple: visitors listed what they had eaten for their previous meal, and the robot analyzed it against the "Balanced Meal Plate," a model promoted by the Chinese Nutrition Society based on The Chinese Dietary Guidelines. A scientifically sound plate, the guidelines state, should contain four parts: grains and tubers, animal-based foods or soy products, vegetables, and fruits. Based on the input, the robot offered straightforward feedback.
Light as the game seemed, it turned an otherwise abstract question into something concrete: What did I actually eat last meal? Was my plate all grains and meat? Did I get enough fruit, vegetables and fiber?
A parent confessed, "The hardest part is dealing with a picky eater who won't touch fruit. I worry she's not getting enough vitamins." A group of young adults, by contrast, focused on sugar control, calorie management and lighter eating. Fitness enthusiasts naturally wondered which fruit delivers efficient energy with high nutritional density.
This rising public awareness is mirrored at the national policy level. In recent years, China's National Health Commission and other authorities have rolled out landmark frameworks including the Healthy China Action and the National Nutrition Plan (2017-30). The policies aim to widely spread dietary nutrition knowledge, issue tailored dietary guidelines for different age and social groups, guide the public toward scientific eating habits, and foster a broader culture of balanced nutrition. From top-level national strategy to everyday family dining tables, balanced eating has evolved into a core priority in China's public health agenda.
Yet, a significant gap remains between policy frameworks and daily reality. Data released by the Chinese Nutrition Society reveals a stark paradox: more than half of the population faces nutritional imbalance, marked by energy excess alongside micronutrient deficiencies. Some 63.6 percent of residents exceed the recommended fat-to-energy ratio of 30 percent. Meanwhile, 76.4 percent and 81.9 percent fall short of recommended vitamin C and potassium intake, respectively, with dietary fiber, calcium, and B vitamins consistently below recommended levels.
"Currently, consumers are far more involved than ever," Kok Hwee Ng, Chief Marketing Officer of Zespri International, told the Global Times. "They see health and nutrition not as a solution when you fall sick, but as something they want to integrate into their everyday life." This shift, Ng noted, has reshaped expectations of premium brands. "When consumers choose a premium product, they naturally expect superior quality, taste, and nutritional value," she said. "But in an increasingly volatile world, they are asking for more. They want brands to play a bigger role in improving their lives, the well-being of their families, their communities, and their future."
That expectation arrives as 2026 marks the official launch of Zespri's decade-long strategic roadmap: its 2035 ambition to become the world's healthiest fruit brand. Central to this vision is the rollout of its refreshed global platform, Grown for Good.
At its core, Grown for Good places natural nutrition at the center of every decision, from orchard cultivation to marketing initiatives and value creation.
Ng believes Zespri is uniquely positioned to lead this charge. "As the world's leading fruit brand, built around one of the most nutrient-dense fruits in the produce aisle, we have both the right and the responsibility to help societies become healthier," she said.
The mission extends beyond the fruit itself. By promoting nutritional literacy and championing the value of natural nutrition, Ng sees a path to unlocking shared value. "It's about creating a cycle where consumers gain health, society gains knowledge, and our growers gain the stability to continue producing high-quality fruit," she added. "That is the essence of Grown for Good - delivering lasting value for people and the planet."
From orchard to table
The SunGold kiwifruit handed to visitors at the end of the interactive games in Longtan Central Park looked simple enough - fresh, plump and ready to eat. For many participants, it was a small reward after a round of nutrition games.
Behind that small reward was a much longer journey.
Before it appeared at the booth, it had already traveled through a chain of growers, standards, cold-chain transport and digital tools linking New Zealand orchards with Chinese dining tables.
Ng said the complete industrial chain is one of the features that makes the brand special. "What makes Zespri even more special is its complete industrial chain layout. The brand is jointly owned by nearly 3,000 local growers in New Zealand, and we take natural nutrition as the core driving force of the whole industrial chain operation," she said. This chain includes dry matter testing in New Zealand orchards, scientific maturity control, cross-border temperature-controlled cold-chain logistics and digital traceability. These steps support the fruit's journey from orchard to dining table, before it appears in the everyday scenes already visible at the booth: in a child's hand, in a family's breakfast, or as part of a balanced plate.
The emphasis on standards is also connected with the way nutrient density was presented during the event. The report released at the National Nutrition Week advocated high-quality diets and greater intake of high-nutrient-dense foods. Event materials described kiwifruit as a representative high-nutrient-density fruit rich in vitamin C, potassium and dietary fiber; 100 grams of SunGold kiwifruit provides 171 milligrams of vitamin C, meeting the adult daily requirement of 100 milligrams.
The other end of the "orchard to table" route was not a supermarket shelf, but a phone screen. The "Diet for Good" mini-program, which had already drawn visitors to scan and test their own meals at the booth, uses AI image recognition to analyze meals and show users their structure, calorie level and key nutrient information.
The mini-program is supported by professional content from the "National Nutrition Literacy Promotion Program " under the Nutrition Literacy Branch of the Chinese Association of Health Promotion and Education , and combines that content with technologies including Volcano Engine and the Doubao large model. The platform also supports continued meal records and trend tracking, helping users move from a single meal check to a longer-term view of their diet structure. Ng linked the AI-powered balanced plate activity to a gap between willingness and daily action.
"It's not that people don't want to keep a healthy diet, it's just hard to carry it out in busy daily life. So we're finding simple ways to make healthy eating easier, guide subtle behavior changes and remind consumers to make conscious dietary choices," she said.
"The AI-powered platforms we newly launched this year make it easier for people to stick to healthy eating habits in the long run, because balanced nutrition intake needs long-term persistence, and progress comes from small daily changes," Ng said.
Zespri's partnership with the Chinese Nutrition Society dates back to 2021, when the two sides jointly released their first white paper focusing on working women's diet and health.
The Global Times learned that cooperation has since extended to reports on food nutrient density, visualized food-selection tools and participation in national nutrition events. Ng said the company sees its work in China not merely as selling products, but as contributing to the well-being of Chinese communities.
Toward a healthy China
The family table is also where long-term eating habits begin. That is why Zespri's work in China has extended beyond product promotion into children's food education, parent guidance and hospital-based nutrition programs.
One example is the "Nutrition & Dietary Knowledge Standard Course Program," a children's food education standardization program, supported by Zespri China and launched by the China Association for Student Nutrition and Health Promotion in 2023.
Research from the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention shows that 76.21 percent of children consume less than 60 percent of the recommended daily intake of fresh vegetables, while 85.21 percent consume less than 60 percent of the recommended intake of fresh fruit.
The Global Times learned that, over the past three years, the "Nutrition & Dietary Knowledge Standard Course Program" has covered 35 cities, nearly 2,000 schools and more than 300 communities, benefiting 1.5 million students and families. Ng said the focus on schools is linked to the importance of forming eating habits early. She noted that good eating behaviors, nutritional knowledge and dietary habits take shape from a young age, while changing dietary habits in adulthood is much more difficult.
Hospitals are another setting for nutrition education. The "Sunshine Education & Healthy Growth Program," supported by professional partners including the Children's Hospital of Fudan University, extends nutrition guidance into medical settings and provides scientific support for children and families.
Ng said hospital cooperation helps guide children to develop good eating habits and gather scientific evidence on balanced diets and fresh fruit intake, especially nutrient-dense fruits. She also said cooperation with industry experts can support the building of scientific guidance systems for dietary nutrition.
Looking ahead, Ng said Zespri will continue to deepen cooperation with institutions including the Chinese Nutrition Society and the China Association for Student Nutrition and Health Promotion, bringing nutrition education to more cities and more scenarios.
In that sense, the small kiwifruit becomes part of a bigger story - not only about what people buy, but about how healthier habits take root, one household at a time. At the family table, even one more piece of fruit can quietly echo China's broader pursuit of better health for all.
The 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue (SLD), which runs from Friday to Sunday, officially opened in Singapore on Friday evening, bringing together defense officials and scholars from 44 countries and regions to discuss regional and global security issues.
With multiple pressing challenges facing the Asia-Pacific, experts attending the gathering reached by the Global Times called on all regional parties to enhance mutual trust, instead of stoking confrontation and division. Against such a backdrop, China's engagement carries profound significance for safeguarding enduring peace, stability and common development across the region, they said.
According to China's Ministry of National Defense (MND), China's delegation to the SLD this year is led by professor Meng Xiangqing from the National Defense University, with members comprising experts and scholars from the National Defense University of China, the Academy of Military Sciences and the Navy.
Jiang Bin, an MND spokesperson, said on Thursday that China attaches great importance to defense and security cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. Upholding the vision of openness and inclusiveness, China actively participates in all constructive dialogues.
"The participating experts and scholars will elaborate on China's concepts and initiatives in depth, work to enhance mutual trust, dispel misgivings, build consensus and deepen cooperation, and contribute wisdom and efforts to safeguarding peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific," Jiang said.
Standing at inflection point
According to the introduction by Singapore's Ministry of Defense, organized by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), the 23rd Shangri-La Dialogue (SLD) will see 44 countries and regions in attendance, with 54 ministerial-level delegates and more than 42 Chief of Defense Forces-level delegates and senior defense officials, as well as prominent academics.
In his opening remarks on Friday evening, Vietnam's top leader To Lam said the world is beset with multiple risks and uncertainty, which include an erosion of international rules and law, a crisis of development models including slowing growth and climate change, and a crisis of trust among nations, Reuters reported.
He called for reinforcing international law, setting up inclusive and sustainable growth drivers, as well as initiating dialogue and transparency.
On the agenda of the SLD released on the official website of the IISS, words such as "disorder", "threats", "tensions" and "fragmenting" frequently appear in the topics.
Channel News Asia said that the conflict in the Middle East, uncertainty over US commitments in Asia and rising tensions over Taiwan region are expected to dominate the agenda.
Chong Ja Ian, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore, told Reuters that there will likely be some continued anxiety over the unpredictability and volatility of US policy, and the consequences for stability. He said the most pressing issue for Asia would be the US-Israel conflict with Iran and its effects on energy supply.
The Asia Times stated that this year's SLD arrives at a precarious inflection point.
"The primary anxiety animating this year's dialogue is whether a distracted Washington can simultaneously underwrite security in Europe, the Middle East and Asia," the media outlet said. "The inconclusive fallout from the recent Iran conflict has only sharpened those doubts."
In addition to factors regarding the US, the Asia Times also mentioned Japan. While China remains the focal point of Western rhetoric at the forum, "the deepest strategic headache" at SLD may "actually be Tokyo," Eric Olander, editor-in-chief of the China Global South Project, was quoted as saying.
Japan has recently stepped up its moves in military expansionism through the revision of security documents, loosening of weapons controls, and reform of its intelligence system, along with provocations against China over the Taiwan question.
The Asia Times reported that there is rising concern in Beijing that Japan is moving "aggressively to occupy the geopolitical vacuum" left by an inconsistent US, positioning itself as the new, assertive anchor of a post-American security architecture in the Asia-Pacific.
The Global Times reporter tried to capture firsthand views from scholars and experts present at the event. However, one Japanese representative turned down our interview request as soon as we introduced ourselves. Another Japanese scholar agreed to speak, but refused to reveal his name and identity.
"While concerns related to security competition, territorial disputes, and geopolitical rivalry have become increasingly prominent in recent discussions, I sometimes wonder whether the frequent emphasis on terms such as 'threat', 'tension', and 'division' fully reflects the broader aspirations of the region," U Ko Ko, Chairman of Myanmar Narrative Think Tank, told the Global Times on Friday, on the sidelines of the SLD.
"Sustainable security is built through mutual respect, dialogue, trust-building, and win-win cooperation. Regional discussions should therefore focus not only on challenges, but also on common interests and opportunities for cooperation that can contribute to lasting peace and shared prosperity," he said.
Participants should come not merely with their own agendas or narrow national interests, but with a genuine commitment to constructive engagement, mutual respect, and cooperation, the expert added.
Eyes on Beijing
Ahead of the official opening of the SLD, professor Meng Xiangqing, who leads the Chinese delegation, held separate meetings with Regis Savioz, regional director for the Asia-Pacific International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and representatives from UK's Ministry of Defense.
Global Times reporters at the scene noticed that experts from some other national delegations took the initiative to greet the Chinese delegation during the event.
Certain media outlets focus on the scale and rank of the Chinese delegation, playing up alleged "threats" from China over the South China Sea, the Taiwan Straits and its military development. The Associated Press also noted that US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will highlight the US "Indo-Pacific strategy" at this year's SLD, a framework that puts regional competition ahead of cooperation.
Nevertheless, some other media and scholars acknowledge China's potential to deliver constructive contributions as a major regional power safeguarding peace and stability amid global unrest.
"At a time when perceptions of US leadership are falling, Beijing could soothe some jangled nerves in the region," said the Interpreter, published by the Lowy Institute, on May 27.
"For many Southeast Asia states, strategic neutrality and working with willing partners are central to national security and prosperity. Being forced to choose sides would be counter to these interests," reads a commentary piece by Channel News Asia.
"China is a regional and global power, and it remains one of the centers of global development. China currently has many initiatives aimed at promoting global cooperation, development, and security, including the Global Security Initiative, which promotes regional and global security," Duong Van Huy, a senior research fellow with the Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.
"China is fully capable of acting as a responsible power in promoting security and stability in the region. At the same time, the development of economic cooperation between China and countries in the region will undoubtedly boost security cooperation between China and these countries in the future," he added.
China plays a vital role in regional security and development. As a major power and one of the world's largest economies, China has made significant contributions to regional prosperity through trade, infrastructure development, connectivity, and economic cooperation, according to the Vietnam expert.
According to Wang Dong, executive director of the Institute for Global Cooperation and Understanding at Peking University, as one of the most important and influential security forums in the Asia-Pacific, the SLD is notably characterized by a Western-centric agenda and discourse system. Consequently, forum discussions are often dominated by Western perspectives, including groundless criticisms and accusations against China.
"As an international venue for strategic interactions, SLD carries important practical significance, and that's why China will take part in it in a pragmatic manner," Wang remarked. "We will refute fallacies with facts and rational arguments. We will also take this opportunity to share China's development vision and present its true image as a responsible major power."
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday attended a China-France-EU trilateral meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at Elysee Palace.
Named Long Chenchen, or the "dragon of Chenchen," the mascot for China's upcoming Dragon Spring Festival Gala has been released, with a lot of design details showing the aesthetics of Chinese cultural elements.
To celebrate 2024, which will be the Year of the Dragon in Chinese culture, "Long Chenchen" has been designed as a cute yet lively dragon, colored orange and red and with a pair of doll eyes.
The seemingly cute-looking dragon takes inspiration from Chinese archaeological discoveries. The design of its nose was inspired by a dragon shaped jade item that was discovered in the Erlitou Ruins, a major site in Luoyang, Central China's Henan province that witnessed the rise and fall of the Xia (c.2070BC-c.1600BC) and Shang (c.1600BC-1046BC) dynasties.
The fire shape pattern on its shoulder was inspired by a bronze piece with cloud patterns that dates back to the Spring and Autumn Period (770BC-476BC).
The bronze piece has 12 vividly depicted dragon sculptures, showing ancient Chinese creativity as well as skill for handicrafts.
Another source of inspiration was a gilded dragon sculpture that is currently in the Xi'an Museum.
The dragon mascot has been praised by netizens on China's social media platforms such as Sina Weibo. Some said Chenchen looks "amiable" and can bring more international visitors to see the profound yet adorable Chinese culture.
"I like this cartoon version of a dragon, as it is amiable and friendly. Those characteristics also represent the modern China," a netizen posted on Sina Weibo.
Despite receiving many likes, the mascot has also sparked criticism. It has four claws, some of which have five toes and others have three. This made some netizens speculate the dragon character might have been synthesized by artificial intelligence.
"The Spring Festival Gala is the gala of the year for all of us in China. It deserves a professional team to design a character for it," one netizen wrote.
On Thursday morning, China Media Group (CMG), the media platform that is going to be in charge of the gala, officially declared on Sina Weibo that the dragon mascot was created entirely by human beings but not AI.
Admitting that it has some "imperfections," CMG said that it was created by designers "one stroke after another." All the details about the dragon, including its patterns, colors and face have been revised by designers through many versions.
Along with such verbal explanations, a short video showing the design team working on the mascot has been posted on Sina Weibo by CMG. The media group's response to the character's design has become a trending topic on Sina Weibo and has been viewed by more than 200 million netizens.
"Whether it was created by AI or human beings, I think the mascot has successfully delivered the spirit of the dragon. The dragon is important to show the life-force of Chinese culture," one netizen posted on Sina Weibo.
Sichuan is experiencing light rain as Wu Lian walks on her way to work. Meanwhile, the earthworms emerging from the muddy ground along the road are also undergoing a migration.
However, some earthworms are getting stranded on the cement pavement. At moments like these, Wu Lian picks them up one by one and places them back into the soil, despite her hands getting covered in mud.
"Otherwise, they could easily be stepped on by passersby," she says. This unique habit stems from her trip to Lhasa, capital of the Xizang Autonomous Region, three years ago.
This "Earthworm Rescue Operation" is a very unique manifestation of the spirit of cherishing and protecting life that the Tibetan people have continued for centuries.
Near the Potala Palace, in the vicinity of Zong Juelu Kang (Dragon King Pond), during the rainy season, you can see people of all ages bending down to gently pick up earthworms that haven't been able to complete their journey and placing them back onto the grass.
This is because once the sun comes out in Lhasa, the worms quickly lose moisture and face danger. Some local children even take the initiative to inform unaware tourists to watch their step. Of course, this isn't just about rescuing earthworms; it's just that because earthworms are particularly fragile and inconspicuous, such a scene arises.
Even today, many Tibetan people still recite a protective mantra when drinking water, intending to liberate the microorganisms in the water about to be consumed. And they will tell their grandchildren the story of this small ritual like a tale.
Similar to how the Han people usually call for compassion for even the tiniest of ants, Tibetans start from rescuing earthworms. This custom originates from the core doctrine of "equality of all sentient beings" in Tibetan Buddhism.
Carried on to the present day, it can be said that rather than merely being a religious tradition, it has long been internalized as a guiding principle in the daily lives of ordinary people.
Another story is about the origin of the Shoton Festival. Before the 17th century, the Shoton Festival was a primitive religious celebration.
According to folk tradition, as the weather warmed in the summer and all living things revived, monks going out for activities would inadvertently harm living creatures, violating the precept of "do not kill."
Therefore, the Gelug sect's monastic rules stipulated that from the fourth to the sixth month of the Tibetan calendar, monks could only recite scriptures and practice in the temples.
On the day the ban was lifted, monks would leave the temples and descend from the mountains. To thank the monks, local residents would prepare yogurt and organize outings and feasts, including traditional Tibetan opera performances, to celebrate the occasion.
It can be said that the practice of loving and protecting life is the starting point of the socialization process for Tibetan children. Life is adorable, life is respectable.
Tibetans believe that one should do everything possible to avoid harming any life. If there is truly no choice, then one should still hold an attitude of respect and gratitude.
Such beliefs permeate through people's daily lives, in the cycles of seasons, and in their daily activities.
The fundamental principle that every newborn baby first learns is a profound empathy toward the existence of any life. As an extension of this spirit, Tibetans often exhibit the utmost compassion toward the weak.
The essence of compassion includes, but is not limited to, "tolerance." Its broader meaning encompasses acknowledgment, empathy, and an emotionally driven commitment to action.
In Xizang, during feasts, not only were beggars not driven away, but they were also treated as honored guests.
Even in contemporary urban life, Tibetans are still able to treat all members of society more equally. On this land, the quality of being "snobbish" is disliked by everyone.
Faith is not confined to temples but also ingrained in everyday activities. When we talk about culture, it is never limited to external forms like singing, dancing, or intricate artwork.
The local people's outlook on life has gradually extended beyond the region with the opening up of Xizang.
Therefore, when you hear tourists from other regions or countries expressing admiration for how Tibetan culture has purified their souls, it is likely not an exaggeration.
Large, detachable scales make a newly discovered species of gecko a tough catch. When a predator grabs hold, Madagascar’s Geckolepis megalepis strips down and slips away, looking more like slimy pink Silly Putty than a rugged lizard.
All species of Geckolepis geckos have tear-off scales that regrow within a few weeks, but G. megalepis boasts the largest. Some of its scales reach nearly 6 millimeters long. Mark Scherz, a herpetologist and taxonomist at Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, and colleagues describe the new species February 7 in PeerJ.
The hardness and density of the oversized scales may help the gecko to escape being dinner, Scherz says. Attacking animals probably get their claws or teeth stuck on the scales while G. megalepis contracts its muscles, loosening the connection between the scales and the translucent tissue underneath. The predator is left with a mouthful of armor, but no meat. “It’s almost ridiculous,” Scherz says, “how easy it is for these geckos to lose their scales.”
Two New York researchers have found the hallucinogenic drug will markedly increase the rate of abnormal change in chromosomes. [Scientists] tested LSD on cell cultures from the blood of two healthy individuals … [and] also found similar abnormal changes in the blood of a schizophrenic patient who had been treated with [LSD]. The cell cultures showed a two-fold increase in chromosomal breaks over the normal rate. — Science News, April 1, 1967
Update Psychedelic-era reports that LSD damages chromosomes got lots of press but fell apart within a few years. A review in Science in 1971 concluded that ingesting moderate doses of LSD caused no detectable genetic damage. Researchers are still trying to figure out the molecular workings of the drug. Recent evidence suggests that the substance gets trapped in a pocket of the receptor for serotonin, a key chemical messenger in the brain. Its prolonged stay may explain why LSD trips can last up to a day or more (SN: 3/4/17, p. 16).
The Milky Way’s black hole may finally get its close-up.
Beginning on April 5, scientists with the Event Horizon Telescope will attempt to zoom in on a never-before-imaged realm: a black hole’s event horizon. That’s the boundary at which gravity’s pull becomes so strong that nothing can escape.
In the telescope’s cross hairs are two supermassive black holes, one at the center of the Milky Way, the other in the nearby galaxy M87. Scientists hope to capture the light emitted by a halo of gas that swirls just outside the event horizon as the black hole swallows it up.
The Event Horizon Telescope is not one telescope, but eight radio observatories linked together into a massive network that spans the globe. The new observations will be the first that include the ultrasensitive Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array in Chile’s Atacama Desert, increasing the possibility that the image will reveal new details. Astronomers will take data for five nights within a 10-day period.
This is no Polaroid picture, though — it will be months before the data have been crunched and the portrait is ready for prime time.
MINNEAPOLIS — Pesticides that kill insects can also have short-term effects on seed-eating birds. Ingesting even small amounts of imidacloprid, a common neonicotinoid pesticide, can disorient migratory white-crowned sparrows, researchers report.
Neonicotinoid pesticides were designed to be safer than traditional pesticides: toxic to insects, but comparatively harmless to other animals. But the new findings add to evidence suggesting that the widely used pesticides, which are chemically similar to nicotine, might be sending ecological ripples beyond the intended targets. In lab studies, researchers captured wild white-crowned sparrows, Zonotrichia leucophrys, that were migrating north and fed them small doses of imidacloprid for three days — the amount that birds would get from eating a few pesticide-coated wheat seeds. The birds that ate the pesticides lost weight, study coauthor Margaret Eng reported November 15 at the annual meeting of the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry North America.
And when placed in a large, inverted funnel used to study birds’ migratory orientations, the neonic-fed birds tried to fly in directions other than north. Birds that consumed sunflower oil instead showed no ill effects.
For the birds that ate pesticides, the damage was temporary — after two weeks, the birds regained normal function and body weight, Eng, a toxicologist at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Canada, and her colleagues also reported November 9 in Scientific Reports.
The fact that the effects reverse after a period of time is “good news,” says Thomas Bean, a toxicologist at the University of Maryland in College Park who wasn’t part of the study. The short-term malaise might incentivize birds to avoid that food in the future. Bean has found that Japanese quail, Coturnix japonica, also show similar temporary behavioral effects in response to neonicotinoids. Preliminary results from field studies also appear to confirm the published lab findings. Eng’s team outfitted white-crowned sparrows in the wild with tiny tracking tags. The scientists gave the birds small amounts of pesticides, held the birds for six hours, and then released them.
When released, the birds still had traces of the chemicals in their blood plasma, the researchers reported at the November meeting. On average, there wasn’t a difference between groups in how long the birds hung around before resuming migration, but all of the birds that waited an abnormally long time had eaten neonics. Those animals’ flight paths also appeared to be slightly skewed from the route favored by the control birds.
Those analyses are preliminary, cautions Eng, and a closer look at the data could change the story.
