adaptable

The following essay is reprinted with permission from The Conversation, an online publication covering the latest research.Coast redwoods – enormous, spectacular trees, some reaching nearly 400 feet, the tallest plants on the planet – thrive mostly in a narrow strip of land in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Most of them grow from southern Oregon down into northern California, snugged up against the rugged Pacific coast.They have grown by slowly responding to moisture and rich alluvial soil over millennia,…

Germany's Flowcamper has a history of launching some of the quirkiest but still functional camper vans humans have ever seen, from its original psychedelically nostalgic peace-and-love V-dub to its transforming wood cabin Sprinter. This time around, it's paying less attention to the humans and thinking like a dog. Its new VW T6.1-based Dog Van features a cozy design optimized for canine comfort and enhancing the man/dog road trip experience. Happier dog, happier holiday. Flowcamper officially names the new camper van…

The human brain’s ability to adapt and change, known as neuroplasticity, has long captivated both the scientific community and the public imagination. It’s a concept that brings hope and fascination, especially when we hear extraordinary stories of, for example, blind individuals developing heightened senses that enable them to navigate through a cluttered room purely based on echolocation or stroke survivors miraculously regaining motor abilities once thought lost.For years, the notion that neurological challenges such…

At the end of last month, a series of cryptic messages appeared on electronic billboards in east London. “With da Burna. Boy you know I’m masculine,” read one. “I made a comeback as a villain & made a movie so sit back & get the Popcaan my killy,” read another. These turned out to be advance publicity for Beautiful and Brutal Yard (BABY), their announcement of the album’s guest features forming part of a lengthy, mysterious promotional campaign.Everyone they were aimed at seemed to know straight away who they…

Image used for representative purpose onlyBritain plans to split responsibility for governing artificial intelligence (AI) between its regulators for human rights, health and safety, and competition, rather than creating a new body dedicated to the technology. AI, which is rapidly evolving with advances such as the ChatGPT app, could improve productivity and help unlock growth, but there are concerns about the risks it could pose to people's privacy, human rights or safety, the government said. It said it wanted to avoid…

In the late David Cavanagh’s definitive history of Creation Records, My Magpie Eyes Are Hungry for the Prize, the 80s indie band Felt are depicted existing in a continual state of luckless disarray. Their hugely original albums ultimately prove influential – on Belle and Sebastian, the Charlatans and Manic Street Preachers among others – and provoke a rabid cult following, but everything else goes wrong. Band members depart with alarming regularity, career-boosting magazine cover features are pulled at the last minute, a…

The SwitchEasy SwitchPaper is an innovative screen protector for iPad that attaches magnetically so you can put it on and take it off at will. I didn't even know this existed for iPads until I discovered this product, and it strikes me as a really smart solution for people who don't use their iPad primarily for drawing. Since the SwitchPaper has a paper-like feel that's great for drawing but not so great for gaming, many users prefer this convenient magnetic design. You just slap it on when it's time for writing or…