With 156 million followers on his own social network and a string of massively successful companies to his name, Elon Musk is not exactly a shy and retiring figure. 

Yet behind the bluster and bombast lies a complex and little-understood figure who emerged from a middle-class, but nonetheless rough, upbringing in South Africa to become the world’s richest man. 

A new biography by Walter Isaacson lays bare the wild eccentricities, remarkable successes, and fiery ‘demon mode’ outbursts of a man who makes other tech barons look like shy, retiring field mice. 

Isaacson gained unprecedented to Elon and his family during the writing of the 600-page book to produce an epic of truly Muskian proportions. 

We’ve read this impressive tome and collected together some of our favourite anecdotes about a billionaire who’s variously described as a ‘man-child’, a ‘great innovator’ and a ‘manic genius addicted to risk and drama’. 

Read on to journey into the mind of Musk…

Elon still has ‘demons’ from a violent childhood

These days, Elon’s most fearsome physical opponent is Mark Zuckerberg. Back in his youth in South Africa, he faced genuine violence which appears to have permanently shaped his outlook on life. 

Musk’s biography features graphic descriptions of vicious knife fights, gangs machine-gunning rivals and one memorable trip to a concert in which Elon had to step over a dead body with a knife sticking out of its head, spending the rest of the night walking around with his trainers covered in blood. 

Elon still bears the scars of a particularly awful fight in which a gang pushed him down concrete steps and kicked him in the head so many times that his face became a ‘swollen ball of flesh’ and his eyes were barely visible. 

Elon spent many years repairing the physical damage, getting corrective surgery decades later to repair damaged tissue in his nose.

The emotional scars may have proved even more difficult to heal. After the fight, his father reportedly sided with the attackers, claiming one of the boys had just lost his father and Elon had called him ‘stupid’ (more on this beloved Elon insult later). 

In the biography, we also hear of Elon clashing with his brother Kimbal throughout his life. One ‘rolling-on-the-office-floor’ altercation took place in a shared workplace during the founding of their company Zip2. 

History does not record whether any of these scraps ended in the Musk’s usual childhood fashion. Earlier in the book, we find out that fights between the youthful brothers ended with a swift kick to the testicles – which both siblings regarded as an unrecoverable finishing move. 

We do know that one office fight ended when Kimbal bit a chunk of flesh from Elon’s hand, forcing him to go to the hospital for stitches and a tetanus shot. 

The argument was about the name Zip2, which Elon hated. After literally taking his pound of flesh, Kimbal now agrees it was indeed a ‘s****y name’. 

These formative acts of extreme violence have given Elon an iron constitution which is not at all held back by the emotions felt by mere mortals. Elon himself says that adversity ‘shaped me’ and his pain threshold became ‘very high’. 

Zuck might like to take that as a warning!

Elon was almost called ‘Nice’

The billionaire was conceived in Nice, France, which was going to be his name.

Yet he ended up with the name Elon because it was the middle name of his grandfather on his mother’s side (and because his dad thought it sounded ‘biblical’).

The Elon was also the name of a character in a book called Project Mars, who runs a colony on the Red Planet – which is fitting for a billionaire who wants to nuke the poles of Mars and then die there, presumably after a long, fulfilling life as its libertarian billionaire overlord. 

We’re glad his parents didn’t follow a Beckham-esque naming convention. Nice Musk doesn’t have the same ring as Elon Musk (and sounds a just little too… fragrant).

Risk is its own reward for Elon Musk 

Peter Thiel, the billionaire co-founder of Paypal, says that his former business partner Elon appears to be ‘addicted’ to risk. 

This is something of a family trait. The Musks have a motto: ‘Live dangerously – carefully.’

His ancestors were early aviators, long before the days of business class and jumbo jets made flying safe and convenient. 

Joshua Haldeman, Elon’s maternal grandfather, removed the backseat from a plane and became the first pilot to fly from Africa to Australia.

However, he was also killed in an accident when his plane hit a power line. Elon was just three years old at the time. 

Since then, his attitude to accepting risk has seen him do the impossible by launching huge companies, SpaceX and Tesla, in two very difficult-to-crack industries.

He loves to call people ‘stupid’ 

Elon was a lonely boy at school and not a particularly high achiever – despite his obvious intellect. 

In the classroom, he first discovered his favourite insults: ‘stupid’ and ‘idiot’.

Ever since, he has hurled these epithets at anyone who incurred his wrath – including his former wives and anyone whose ideas he is not a fan of. 

The slur appears to have also been used by his father, who reportedly called Elon’s mum ‘boring, stupid and ugly’ before they divorced.

Today he’s regarded as a genius – but his teachers thought otherwise

At school, Elon had few friends and drifted off into a kind of trance during classes.

This spaced-out nature led teachers to think he was deaf, whereupon Elon’s adenoids (glands in the throat which can cause hearing issues) were removed to combat this non-existent problem. 

The surgical intervention didn’t make a difference. When Elon is thinking, he has little time for the outside world and meaningless things like human interaction, zoning out and going blank instead. 

Musk’s emerald miner father wasn’t quite as rich as you’ve heard

Musk detractors enjoy claiming that he basically turned up in America with a suitcase full of emeralds and bought his way to success.

This wild claim is far from the truth. Although Errol Musk did indeed own an emerald mine in Zambia, it was far from a jewel in his crown by the time young Elon decided to go west to Canada, and had lost much of its value. 

Elon arrived in North America armed with $2,000 in travellers cheques from his dad and a further $2,000 that his mum obtained by cashing out the winnings from a beauty contest she won as a teenager. 

After sleeping in a rundown youth hostel, he wandered the streets of Montreal in shock that there were no bars in the window before happily realising that ‘not everyone was a murderer’ – unlike South Africa, where he says ‘people will just rob and kill you’.

Unfortunately, the streets of Montreal were not immediately paved with gold and he lost his travellers cheques when a bus driver accidentally drove off without his suitcase on board. 

His chat-up lines are really cringey

When asking Elon’s wives and partners what first attracted them to the billionaire, we can rule out one explanation. 

It’s fair to say that Elon is not a seductive smooth-talker with a golden tongue.

When he went to a party with a young woman, his first question was about whether she liked electric cars. 

Then, after being introduced to actress Talulah Riley, Elon charmed her with talk of his rockets before asking if he could put his hand on her knee.

This stellar charm offensive culminated in Elon asking for Talulah’s number and admitting he was ‘bad at this’. Musk’s ungainly opening gambit led to him marrying Talulah not just once, but twice. 

Two weeks after the couple met, they agreed to get tie the knot with a handshake, because Elon hadn’t bought an engagement ring. 

After throwing caution to the wind, Talulah jokingly asked Elon what the worst thing was that could happen to a couple in love.

‘One of us could die,’ he responded. 

Which she found ‘romantic’. And who are we to say otherwise? 

Musk does not appear to be a fan of over-protective parents

Elon’s own mother and father were not the pushy helicopter parents of today. 

They bought him a blue and gold Yamaha motorcycle when he was just eight years old and left him playing alone in parks in strange cities. 

During one solo outing in Liverpool during the same year he was given a motorbike, Elon was found wandering the streets alone and was picked up by another family, who gave him a biscuit and phoned the police. 

Although Musk agrees it was ‘insane’ to leave him alone in a park, he appears to criticise overprotective modern parents in the biography and is depicted as letting his son X roam around a rooftop construction site.

He’s a dungeon master – and you’d better respect his authority 

Throughout his life, Elon has been a sci-fi nerd and hardcore gamer who disappears into virtual worlds for hours or even days at a time. 

He keeps as strong a rule over his imaginary realms as he does his real-life dominions. 

Elon usually took on the role of dungeon master whilst playing role-playing games. During one tournament, he was given a subordinate role and given the mission of figuring out which other player was the bad guy and then killing him.

Clever clogs Elon cracked this puzzle in moments and the organisers of the game claimed he was cheating, so initially refused to hand over his prize. 

Elon still regards these lesser dungeon masters as, you guessed it, ‘idiots’. 

The billionaire is a sober raver

There is no shortage of parties in Elon’s life. We hear of him hob-knobbing with celebs including Paris Hilton and Leonardo DiCaprio, as well as raving at the student get-togethers he threw in his younger days. 

However, although Elon enjoys organising parties, he seems to be rather restrained, admitting that he was stone cold sober at his student knees-ups – even though everyone else was absolutely off their chops. 

In fact, despite his famous weed-smoking session with Joe Rogan, Elon does not like taking drugs whatsoever, famously telling the New York Times: ‘Weed is not helpful for productivity. There’s a reason for the word ‘stoned’. You just sit there like a stone on weed.’

He also furiously denied taking LSD after Azelia Banks accused him of sending ill-advised tweets whilst ‘on acid’ – an allegation that is also clearly refuted in his biography.

Elon does like a drink, although he does not appear to be a grizzled boozehound. When he visited Russia to try to buy a rocket, he drank too much vodka with his new comrades and passed out with a bang as his head hit the table. 

Today the only thing Elon binges on, we learn in his biography, is video games. 

Elon really does have a teenage sense of humour

After buying Twitter, the billionaire announced his arrival by walking into the reception clutching a large bathroom fixture and tweeting the words: ‘Let that sink in.’

The biography confirms that this level of humour is actually rather more sophisticated than his usual fare. 

Today, he is convinced that wokeness is killing comedy – particularly the sort he prefers, which focuses on poos, farts, sex acts, bodily fluids and ‘topics that would crack up a dorm room of stoned freshman’. 

Naming a child X Æ A-Xii wasn’t the strangest thing about having a baby with Grimes

Elon and Grimes called their newborn baby X Æ A-Xii, which is a reference to the elven language and a spy plane called the Archangel. 

The name was not the most unusual thing about the birth. Elon reportedly snapped a picture of Grimes undergoing a caesarian and sent it to friends and family. 

The singer rushed to get the image deleted – even though Musk was ‘clueless’ about why it upset her. 

Elon’s staff issue ‘open-loop warnings’ during meltdowns and dread his ‘demon mode’ outbursts 

Life as a billionaire is not as easy as many people might expect. Elon is known for switching into ‘demon mode’ during times of particular stress, which is described as the polar opposite of the light, easy-going personality we observe through his Twitter, sorry, X profile.

Grimes, his former partner and mother of three of his children, says demon mode causes ‘chaos’ but gets the job done. 

During one incident, he went to a SpaceX facility called Starbase in Nevada, where staff were not at work because it was late on a Friday evening. 

This was unacceptable to Musk, who then ordered a surge of activity and asked for 500 workers to be flown in from across the US to ensure the booster and second stage of his Starship rocket were completed within 10 days. 

Staff also issue ‘open loop warnings’ when Elon appears to be facing a crisis of some sort. These alerts were unleashed during the incident in which the billionaire called a cave diver ‘Pedo Guy’ after he refused Musk’s offer of a submarine to help free Thai kids who were trapped in a flooded cave.

Another was issued during the purchase of Twitter. Open loop refers to a type of system that does not use feedback to control its outcomes. 

When applied to a human, it can usefully refer to billionaires who tweet out plans to sell stock in their company at $420. This now legendary incident involved Musk saying that he would take the company private at a price-per-stock which appeared to be a reference to 4/20, the date of a ‘Weed Day’ in which cannabis smokers congregate to get high in public places. 

This decision prompted claims it was a cannabis reference to amuse his then-partner Grimes – an allegation Musk denied when quizzed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SCA). 

He’s a ‘man-child’ who changed the world 

Walter Isaacson’s blockbuster biography closes with the following line: ‘Sometimes great innovators are risk-seeking man-children who resist potty training [and are] crazy enough to change the world.’

And man-children don’t come much bigger than Elon Musk.

Elon Musk by Walter Isaacson, published by Simon & Schuster, is available now

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A recent Virgin Galactic flight to the edge of space had some ancient and long-dead humans on board.

In a historic first, the fossilised remains of our human ancestors, Australopithecus sediba and Homo naledi, made the flight to space from Spaceport America in New Mexico.

South African-born billionaire Timothy Nash carried the fossils in a cigar-shaped tube.

However, many anthropologists and scientists have criticised the move, saying it is disrespectful to the fossils and to the people who came before us.

The fossils were chosen by Lee Berger, who was behind the discovery of both species.

One of the fossils was a fragment of the collarbone of a 2 million-year-old Australopithecus sediba, which was first discovered by Mr Berger’s son Matthew in 2008.

The other fossil was a thumb bone from Homo naledi, the 300,000-year-old hominin found in the Rising Star cave in 2013.

In a statement, Mr Berger said the feat was a ‘tribute to the contribution of all human ancestors and ancient human relatives for their part in making the ultimate gesture of human exploration and technological advancement possible – space flight’.

‘Without their invention of technologies such as fire and tools, and their contribution to the evolution of the contemporary human mind, such extraordinary endeavours as spaceflight would not have happened,’ said Mr Berger.

‘I imagine they never could have dreamed while alive of taking such an incredible journey as ambassadors of all of humankind’s ancestors.’

Many scientists were not happy about the decision to take the million-year-old fossils to space.

‘I am horrified that they were granted a permit,’ Sonia Zakrzewski, a bioarchaeologist at the University of Southampton, wrote in an X thread, noting she would use it as an example in her class about unethical approaches.

‘This is NOT science.’

Others highlighted the risk to priceless artefacts, should something go wrong.

Travelling onboard Virgin Galactic’s spaceship, VSS Unity, the two fossils were carried to an altitude of 45,000 to 50,000 feet, before VSS Unity separated from the mothership and ignited its rocket engine for the climb to suborbital space.

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Mysterious lights were spotted in Morocco minutes before the devastating 6.8 magnitude earthquake struck the country last week.

Social media users captured the odd lights in the sky that have since been the subject of much speculation and scientific debate.

In the video, a strange flash of blue light can be seen near the horizon.

There are several theories about what caused the flashes. One possibility is they were caused by earthquake lights, a phenomenon that has been observed in association with earthquakes.

Earthquake lights are thought to be caused near areas of tectonic stress, seismic activity or volcanic eruptions.

According to the United States Geological Survey, earthquake lights are generated by the shifting tectonic movement. They can appear as steady glows, balls of light, streamers or sheet lightning.

Another possibility is that the lights were caused by lightning. However, earthquake lightning is different from the usual thunderstorm ones by travelling from ground to cloud, activated by electric charges associated with seismic activity within the earth. 

The behaviour of electric charges during an earthquake can also explain why some animals exhibit odd behaviour before one.

People can also feel their hair stand up or feel a tingling sensation in their skin because of this.

This is not the first time people have spotted the strange lights before an earthquake which were later proved to be something else.

In 2017 and 2021, when the strongest earthquake in decades hit Mexico City, images and videos showing lights in the sky quickly went viral but later exposed as electric sparks reflected by clouds.

The epicentre of the Morocco earthquake was near the town of Ighil in Al Haouz Province, in the Atlas Mountains, roughly 43 miles south of Marrakech.

This is an unusual area to experience an earthquake, experts say, as previous quakes have taken place further north, closer to a tectonic plate.

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Apple is set to release some major software updates for its products in the coming days – coinciding with the release of the new iPhone 15.

iOS17 for the iPhone as well as WatchOS 10 will bring with them a raft of changes – with upgrades to the phone app as well as Messages – while some of the new features in the Apple Watch will appeal to fitness fans.

Just when is the update available though – and how can you get it for your device?

Here’s all the information you need to know…

When is iOS 17 released?

iOS 17 and WatchOS 10 will both be released on Monday September 18 – with both available as free upgrades.

However some users have already got their hands on it via early release beta testing.

Apple is also releasing an upgrade for its computers, MacOS Somona, although this won’t be available until September 28.

What devices will iOS 17 be available on?

iOS17 will be available for almost all devices able to run the updates – although it won’t be compatible with iPhone 8 or iPhone X.

What features will iOS 17 include?

Some of the features you can look forward to in the update include voicemail transcription – which allows users to read a transcript of voicemail messages instead of listening to them – and a new safety Check In feature, to inform family and friends when you’ve arrived at a place safely.

New FaceTime audio and video messages are also going to be available, along with a revamp to the Messages app, and a new functionality on the keyboard which makes it easier for the user to access popular apps.

Meanwhile, highlights of the Apple Watch upgrade will include improved fitness features such as cycling metrics and workout views onscreen.

The Compass app will also get a makeover while improvements to the Mindfulness app will allow users to log their daily moods.

How to get the iOS 17 update

1. Enroll your device in the beta program using the Apple Developer app.
2. On your iPhone, go to Settings > General > Software Update.
3. Tap on Beta Updates and select ‘iOS 17 Developer Beta’ on the next screen.
4. Come back to the Software Update screen and tap on the Download and Install option.
5. If downloading the beta version, make sure you’ve backed up your phone first.

Meanwhile, the iPhone 15 range is available for pre-order from Friday September 15 and will be available in stores from September 22.

MORE : Fears over radiation leads to ban on iPhone 12 sales

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WhatsApp users will now be able to receive updates from their favourite brands, sports teams, artists, and thought leaders via WhatsApp. 

WhatsApp Channels, which was first introduced in June in a handful of regions, will now be available in over 150 countries.

Channels are separate from chats, and who you choose to follow is not visible to other followers.

On Wednesday, Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg shared the news along with a link to his WhatsApp Channel.

‘We’re welcoming thousands of new channels to WhatsApp like Olivia Rodrigo, David Guetta, Billboard, MLB, Diljit Dosanjh,’ said Meta in a statement.

‘In the UK, look out for creators like Diary of a CEO and BOSH and football teams including Liverpool FC, Man City, and more.’

The tech giant said it was rolling out the feature globally over the next few weeks. If you can’t see it yet, you can join the waitlist to be notified once it is available.

How does WhatsApp Channels work?

Channels will be available in a new tab called Updates – where you’ll find Status and channels you choose to follow – separate from your chats with family, friends, and communities.

It is a one-way broadcast tool for admins to send text, photos, videos, stickers, and polls.

To help you select channels to follow, you have a searchable directory to find Channels related to your hobbies, sports teams, updates from local officials, etc.

You can also get to a channel from invite links sent in chats, e-mail, or posted online.

Users can also find channels to follow that are automatically filtered based on their country. They can also view new, most active, and popular channels based on the number of followers.

You can react using emojis to give feedback and see a count of total reactions. How you react will not be shown to followers. 

If you forward an Channel Update to chats or groups it will include a link back to the channel so people can find out more.

WhatsApp said it would add more features and expand Channels based on feedback we get from users. It added that it was working on making it possible for anyone to create a channel ‘over the coming months’.

To hear about more product updates directly from WhatsApp, they’ve also launched an official WhatsApp Channel for that.

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The UK’s leading UFO expert says Mexico’s unveiling of two ‘alien corpses’ could be ‘the greatest discovery of all time’ – if true.

Speaking the day after journalist and ufologist Jaime Maussan revealed what he reported were two 1,000-year-old fossilised ‘non-human’ beings, Nick Pope said he hoped scientific analysis proved they were evidence of aliens, but was not getting his hopes up.

‘I’m following this fast-developing story with interest,’ said Mr Pope, who previously ran the UK government’s UFO project.

‘It’s no surprise that the UFO community is excited about this, as it seems to verify the recent sworn testimony to Congress from US intelligence community whistleblower David Grusch, who stated that there have been crashes involving a non-human intelligence. 

‘However, there’s an old saying in the intelligence analysis community that when you come across a bizarre claim like this, you fall back on the assessment “interesting, if true”. That’s where we are here.’ 

The ‘bodies’ were revealed during a congressional hearing in Mexico which, like its US equivalent, took sworn testimony from witnesses. Videos of UAP – unidentified anomalous phenomena, formerly UFOs – were also shared.

Speaking during the hearing, Mr Maussan said: ‘These specimens are not part of our terrestrial evolution… These aren’t beings that were found after a UFO wreckage. They were found in diatom [algae] mines, and were later fossilised.’

The two specimens appear to be structured similarly to humans – two arms, two legs, a torso and head – but seem to be roughly two feet in length, with only three fingers and toes. The heads are short from top to bottom, but long from front to back.

Mr Maussan said carbon dating suggests the corpses are around 1,000 years old, while experts speaking under oath said x-ray analysis showed one of the bodies appeared to have ‘eggs’ inside.

In 2017, Mr Mausson alleged a mummified body found in Peru was an extraterrestrial being, but it was later found to be that of a child.

‘There’s not much middle ground here,’ said Mr Pope. ‘Either it’s a fake, or it’s the real thing, and DNA analysis and other scientific tests are the key to determining this. Such tests would have to be done under rigorous conditions, and the results peer reviewed. 

‘I’d be thrilled if this turned out to be true, as opposed to a hoax, as this would probably be the greatest discovery of all time. 

‘However, the principle of Occam’s razor tells us that the simplest explanation is usually correct, so I’m not getting my hopes up!’

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Following the high of yesterday’s iPhone 15 announcements, it’s bad news for Apple in France as the tech giant must stop selling its iPhone 12 model in the country due to high radiation levels.

France’s junior minister for the digital economy told the newspaper Le Parisien about the move in an interview.

The country’s radiation watchdog ANFR notified Apple of its decision to ban iPhone 12 sales after it had conducted tests showing that the smartphone’s Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) was higher than legally allowed, Jean-Noel Barrot told the paper.

Mr Barrot said a software update would be sufficient to fix the radiation issues linked to the phone which the American company has been selling since 2020.

‘Apple is expected to respond within two weeks’, he said.

Mr Barrot added that if the company fails to respond, he was prepared to order a recall of all iPhones 12 in circulation.

‘The rule is the same for everyone, including the digital giants.’

The European Union has set safety limits for SAR values linked to exposure to mobile phones, which could increase the risk of some forms of cancer according to scientific studies.

Limits are measured in watts per kilogram, with a high of 2W/kg when a phone is held near the head or torso, and 4W/kg when carried. Mr Barrot reported the iPhone 12 emitted 5.7W/kg when carried.

However, Mr Barrot said the EU had set its threshold ‘ten times lower than the level which, according to scientific studies, can have consequences for users’.

The French watchdog will now pass on its findings to regulators in other EU member states.

‘In practical terms, this decision could have a snowball effect,’ said Mr Barrot.

Apple said that the iPhone 12 has been certified by multiple international bodies and is recognized as compliant with all applicable SAR regulations and standards in the world. 

The company contests the results of the review made by the ANFR and said it would continue to work with the authority to show that it is compliant.

The iPhone maker was recently forced to switch to USB-C charging ports on its devices due to EU regulations.

In 2020, France widened regulations requiring retailers to display the radiation value of products on packaging beyond cell phones, including tablets and other electronic devices.

Metro.co.uk has reached out to Apple for comment.

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Brits are ‘ill-prepared’ for the ‘inevitable’ full-scale invasion of a killer insect that has already conquered parts of Europe – killing bees, people and threatening cycling, jogging and wine, experts have warned.

Experts say the wider public needs to ‘wake up’ to the dangers of the Asian hornet – that are ruining public events such as fun-runs and destroying grape crops in France.

Mainland Britain remains ‘uncolonised’ for now – but experts say it is only a matter of time until they establish a firm hold in Southern England.

This season a total of 37 nests have been found in 30 different locations in the UK – dwarfing figures from any previous year.

And in a presentation to the British Beekeeping Association, Cambridgeshire beekeeper Andrew Durham said lessons from the continent needed to be urgently learnt – and said public money would ultimately be needed to help fight the battle.

‘How long can our luck last?’ said Mr Durham. ‘Well with 37 nests in 30 locations as of today I guess our luck has run out.

‘It is a fundamental mistake to think the Asian hornet is only a problem for beekeepers because it misjudges the impact this invasion is going to have eventually on, not just on beekeepers, but undoubtedly on everyone.’

Mr Durham said in France they had seen the doubling of nests right across the country last year. Departments previously untroubled by hornets were reporting ‘significant activity’.

He said the hornet first arrived on European shores in 2004 when a patch of pottery was delivered to a garden centre housing a hibernating Asian hornet Queen.

‘Unfortunately, they did not know the impact the hornet was to have – there was very little published information so no alarm bells were ringing or any real attempt to do anything about it.’

He said this part of France was very favourable to the hornet and it quickly spread, reaching well into Normandy in the north of the country by 2012.

‘In the years that followed, the hornet spread to every French department – it has gone across into Italy, Switzerland, down into Spain and Portugal and up into Belgium and Holland. It has even been found in Germany and Switzerland,’ he added.

‘All from one hibernating hornet queen that was accidentally brought over.’

The Asian hornet was first spotted in the UK in 2016.

Mr Durham said not just beekeepers – but the general public – should heed the warning of what has already happened on the continent and up preparations of its arrival.

‘The hornet has become a major pest, ruining fruit harvests and stinging pickers,’ he said.

The wine industry has been hit hard as the hornets pose a risk to pickers – while a single bite from a hornet into grape skin can lead to grape rot.

‘People have had to get used to streets and towns getting close off while nests are destroyed. There have been some very unfortunate incidents with footballs and the like going into hedges where nests are located,’ he said.

‘Fun runs and cycle rides have come to grief, and emergency services have had to race to the scene.’

Mr Durham said there were obvious signs when a ‘surge’ year would be coming and warned in this instance it was especially vital for everyone to ‘strengthen their defences’.

He said the ‘triple whammy’ was a hot summer followed by an extended and warm autumn.

‘This year we started with a record number of queens. Now they are not just in trees – they are amongst people,’ he added.

Although the hornet is feared to be devastating for the native bee population, human deaths have been rare – but the danger does exist.

‘To describe it as a killer is overstating it. But sadly, there are those who die every year of the sting – often the victim’s health is compromised in some way – but it doesn’t make it any less tragic,’ said Mr Durham.

He outlined the deaths of Olivier Quesnot, who had gone to a house to confirm a nest when he suffered a mass attack with multiple stings and died shortly after. It later emerged he suffered from heart problems.

He also made paid tribute to Christine Dutois, who was stung in her garden by a single hornet and suffered a systemic reaction to the venom.

Spanish researchers in particular have been very worried about the anaphylactic reaction to the stings, he said.

Mr Durham said the invasion wasn’t just as ‘hitchhikers’ on freights and ferries, but said they were also able to fly over from the north of France.

‘I urge you to promote early detection by beekeepers and the public – it seems to be working very well in Kent at the moment,’ he added.

‘For every nest discovered, another one is out there. Far more nests are discovered when leaves drop. If they are in trees hiding in bushes we have to wait to see what’s there.’

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The bodies of two alleged ‘non-human’ beings were presented during a congressional hearing in Mexico City yesterday, a move that will cause shock and debate around the world.

Presented by journalist and ufologist Jaime Maussan, the ‘bodies’ were reported to be the 1,000-year-old fossilised remains of extraterrestrial individuals found in a Peruvian mine.

Mr Maussan, speaking under oath at the San Lazaro legislative palace, said: ‘These specimens are not part of our terrestrial evolution… These aren’t beings that were found after a UFO wreckage. They were found in diatom [algae] mines, and were later fossilised.’

The two specimens appear to have a roughly human structure – two arms, two legs, a mid-length torso and head, but seem to be roughly two feet in length, with only three fingers and toes. The heads are short from top to bottom, but long from front to back.

The extraordinary claims were made during an extensive congressional hearing on unidentified anomalous phenomena, taking place just a few weeks after the US held its own. However, events in the Mexican capital proved far more explosive.

Mr Maussan said the specimens had been analysed by the Autonomous National University of Mexico (UNAM), where scientists had been able to extract DNA and use radiocarbon dating to establish an age.

He reported that more than 30% of the specimens’ DNA was ‘unknown’, while experts at the hearing said one of the bodies appeared to have ‘eggs’ inside.

Metro.co.uk has asked UNAM for comment.

Unusually for fossils that have undergone extensive analysis, they were covered in a layer of what appeared to be sand.

‘The public has a right to know about non-human technology and non-human entities,’ said Mr Maussan. ‘We are talking about a topic that unites humanity, not separates us.

‘We are not alone in this vast universe, we should embrace this reality.’

It is not the first time the ufologist has presented alleged evidence of alien life. In 2017 his analysis of a mummy found in Peru near the Nazca Lines reported the body to be of a three-fingered alien, but the theory was later debunked and the corpse found to be that of a child.

The Nazca lines are a set of geoglyphs, or drawings, carved into the Nazca Desert, which some believe to be of alien origin.

Mr Maussan was joined at the hearing by Lt Ryan Graves, a former US Navy pilot who gave evidence at July’s US congressional hearing, and Professor Avi Loeb, professor of astrophysics at Harvard.

Professor Loeb shared the results of his recent investigation into spherules collected from a meteorite believed to have originated outside our solar system – which he argues may be evidence of alien technology.

Addressing the Mexican congress, he said it was ‘arrogant of us to think that we are alone’, and suggested perhaps there were other beings on the planet before humankind. 

He also recapped the case of Oumuamua, a curious cigar-shaped object that did not appear to look or behave like a normal comet, which the professor has previously proposed may have been a ‘light sail’ – an object propelled by sunlight designed by any alien civilisation. 

Earlier in the hearing military footage of multiple UAP was shown, including video of 11 individual lights floating above the clouds captured by a fighter jet.

There is widespread belief across both scientific and political communities that UAP exist, but significant divisions over their origin.

While some, including US congressman Tim Burchett, believe the objects have extraterrestrial origins, others argue they are more likely classified military operations.

Speaking at the US congressional hearing in July, UFO whistleblower David Charles Grusch alleged the government was hiding evidence of intact alien vehicles.

Lt Graves, executive director of Americans for Safe Aerospace, said UFOs were an ‘open secret’ among fighter pilots, and that two jets were once forced to make evasive manoeuvres to avoid a ‘dark grey cube inside of a clear sphere’ which stood ‘motionless against the wind’.

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Apple has unveiled the iPhone 15 series, Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 at its Wonderlust event.

As widely predicted following a series of leaks, the iPhone 15 series will have a USB-C charging port, replacing the traditional Lightning port, while the iPhone 15 Pro is encased in titanium.

The iPhone 15 offers a 6.1″ display, and iPhone 15 Plus 6.7″.

There are five colour options – pink, green, yellow, blue and black.

Today’s event kicked off the 15 series launch with updates to the Dynamic Island on the phone’s Super Retina display, with the iPhone 15 and 15 Plus offering brightness of up to 2,000 nits.

The 15 has a 48MP camera as part of its new advanced camera system, which includes a 2x telephoto option.

The series runs on Apple Silicon and is powered by Apple’s A16 bionic processor.

Apple was keen to stress its green credentials, with the aluminium frame made of 75% recycled material, and 100% recycled cobalt in the battery.

The switch to a USB-C charger was made to fall in line with EU regulations, and also means the new AirPods Pro 2 also have the same charging port.

The iPhone 15 will be available for $799 (£640), and the 15 Plus for $899 (£720).

As had been widely predicted thanks to a number of leaks, the iPhone 15 Pro comes encased in titanium, making it Apple’s lightest phone.

It also has the thinnest edge of any model.

The 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max offer 6.1″ and 6.7″ screens respectively.

The camera system offers ‘the equivalent of seven camera lenses in their pocket’. The Pro features a larger sensor for its 48MP camera and has better lowlight performance for portraits and night mode.

The main camera has a super high-res default setting, and shoots in 24mm, 28mm and 35mm length.

It also boasts 5x optical zoom at 120mm focal length with f2.8 aperture, and Apple’s most advanced stabilisation technology yet, with 10,000 micro-adjustments per second.

The 15 Pro comes in four colours – black, white, blue and natural.

iPhone Pro is powered by the new A17 Pro chip, which Apple says is the industry’s first three nanometer chip and will enable an advanced gaming experience.

The company also reports it is a more ‘repairable’ device.

The iPhone 15 Pro will be available for $999 (£800) and the iPhone 15 Pro Max for $1,199 (£960).

The iPhone 15 range is available for pre-order from Friday, and will be available in stores from September 22.

The event also gave a bit of a plug to the upcoming Vision Pro, Apple’s much-anticipated VR/AR headset that will apparently show off iPhone photos in stunning quality and enable users to step into iPhone videos. The Vision Pro is due out next year.

Apple’s new watches are powered by Apple Silicon, and boast extended battery life.

The Apple Watch Series 9 will be available in 41mm and 45mm sizes in pink, starlight, silver, midnight and red for the aluminium models, while steel comes in gold, silver and graphite.

One of the biggest upgrades on display is a new feature called Double Tap – by tapping their thumb and forefinger twice, users can control the primary button on the watch, enabling them to answer calls, scroll through notifications, snooze alarms and more.

This is thanks to the S9 chip, which has more transistors than its predecessor, and a faster GPU.

All of this comes in 100% recycled aluminium casing, with a 100% recycled cobalt in the battery and 82% recycled yarn in its sports strap. Apple has also paired up with Hermes to create four designer straps, and worked with Nike to create two new sports straps.

The team was keen to stress its environmental credentials, billing the Apple Watch Series 9 as its first ‘carbon neutral product’, a claim that has not been externally verified.

Ultra 2 offers a number of fitness and sports functions, including depth measurement for divers.

Apple reports it has a 36-hour battery life on a single charge with regular use, and 72 hours on low power mode.

The Apple Watch Series 9 starts from $399 (£319) and the Ultra 2 from $799 (£640). Both are available for pre-order from today, with delivery from September 22.

People over the age of 60 who spend a lot of time seated are more likely to get dementia, a new study warns.

American researchers using UK data found that senior citizens who spend higher than average amounts of time sitting watching television or driving are at increased risk of developing the degenerative condition.

The study showed the risk of dementia ’significantly increases’ among adults who spend more than 10 hours a day sitting. Americans spend an average of 9.5 hours each day seated.

The study also revealed the way sedentary behaviour is accumulated over the course of the day didn’t matter as much as the total time spent sedentary each day.

Study author Professor David Raichlen explained that whether spent in extended periods spanning several hours or spread out intermittently throughout the day, total seated time had a similar association with dementia.

‘Many of us are familiar with the common advice to break up long periods of sitting by getting up every 30 minutes or so to stand or walk around,’ said Professor Raichlen, of USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.

‘We wanted to see if those types of patterns are associated with dementia risk.

‘We found that once you take into account the total time spent sedentary, the length of individual sedentary periods didn’t really matter.’

Researchers used data from the UK Biobank database to investigate possible links between time spent seated and dementia risk.

More than 100,000 adults agreed to wear accelerometers, wrist-worn devices for measuring movement, for 24 hours per day for one week.

The research team focused on a sample of around 50,000 adults from the sub-study over the age of 60 who did not have a diagnosis of dementia at the outset.

The researchers then applied a machine-learning algorithm to analyse the large dataset of accelerometer readings and classify behaviour based on different intensities of physical activity.

The algorithm was able to discern between different types of activity such as sedentary behavior compared to sleeping.

The accelerometer data, combined with advanced computing techniques, provided researchers with a measure of the time spent engaged in different types of being seated.

After an average of six years of follow-up, the researchers used hospital records and death registry data to determine dementia diagnosis. They found 414 cases.

The team then adjusted their statistical analysis for age, sex, education level, race, chronic conditions, genetics and lifestyle characteristics – exercise, diet, smoking and alcohol use, self-reported mental health – that could affect brain health.

While large amounts of time spent sitting down were linked with increased risk of dementia, the researchers found that there were certain amounts of sedentary behaviour that were not associated with dementia.

‘We were surprised to find that the risk of dementia begins to rapidly increase after 10 hours spent sedentary each day, regardless of how the sedentary time was accumulated,’ said Professor Gene Alexander, of the University of Arizona.

‘This suggests that it is the total time spent sedentary that drove the relationship between sedentary behaviour and dementia risk, but importantly lower levels of sedentary behaviour, up to around 10 hours, were not associated with increased risk.’

Professor Raichlen added: ‘This should provide some reassurance to those of us with office jobs that involve prolonged periods of sitting, as long we limit our total daily time spent sedentary.’

The study, published in JAMA, builds on previous research, which used self-reported health data to investigate how certain types of sedentary behaviour – such as sitting and watching TV – affect dementia risk more than others.

‘Our latest study is part of our larger effort to understand how sedentary behaviour affects brain health from multiple perspectives,’ said Professor Raichlen.

‘In this case, wearable accelerometers provide an objective view of how much time people dedicate to sedentary behaviour that complements our past analyses.’

The team said further research is needed to establish whether physical activity can mitigate the risk of developing dementia.

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Robot dogs need forever homes too and Sony is launching a foster program for people to adopt preloved robots.

Aibo is a series of robotic dogs that mimic a friendly pet whose personality and behaviour evolve over time.

It can recognise its owner’s face, detect smiles and words of praise, and learn new tricks. It also loves to be petted.

Five years after releasing the ERS-1000 Aibo – a reboot of its popular line of ‘autonomous entertainment’ robot dogs from the late 90s – Sony Japan is now launching an ‘Aibo foster parent programme’ to help ERS-1000 owners to donate the gadget to a worthy cause.

These robot dogs will be given to medical facilities, nursing homes and other organisations to provide emotional support, according to a translated Japanese press release.

To become an Aibo ‘foster parent’, people will need to pay a fee, but Sony has not revealed the amount. Sony noted that some donations may be used to help maintain and repair other Aibo units, depending on their condition.

The first Aibo robot dog was launched in 1999 and marketed as an ‘intelligent and trainable robot companion’. It could walk, bark, whine, growl, wag its tail, and play with a ball while never requiring owners to clean up after it.

The first generation robots cost around £1,684 and sold out in 20 minutes.

Many online communities for Aibo enthusiasts are still active today, and some versions of the robot now sell on eBay for thousands of pounds.

In 2018, Sony launched a redesigned version of Aibo, Model ERS-1000 with advanced mechatronics and AI.

For people who can’t interact with a real dog, Aibo is a great alternative so this is a good way to retire pre-loved Aibos while reducing potential e-waste.

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A newly discovered spider in Australia has been named after actor Tom Hardy and his Marvel character Venom.

The new species dubbed Venomius tomhardyi were identified on an expedition to Tasmania.

The name comes from the 2018 Marvel movie Venom, starring British actor Tom Hardy.

In the movie, Mr Hardy portrays Eddie Brock and his alter-ego Venom, an antihero closely associated with Spider-Man, across two Marvel films and gives his name to the sole species of the new genus.

The distinctive black spots on the spider’s abdomen reminded the scientists of Venom’s head, inspiring them to select the unusual name.

In line with the name, the species is venomous, but it causes no harm to humans.

‘In fact, it is unlikely that its chelicerae [pincer-like claws] can pierce into human skin,’ Dr Pedro Castanheira, one of the authors of the study told Metro.co.uk.

This new genus of orb-weaving spiders was described by scientists from Australia and Brazil and published in the journal Evolutionary Systematics.

These spiders were collected in southern Australia, from Tasmania to Western Australia.

The researches described that this species builds a circular, vertical orb-web and often hide in silk-lined hollows in branches of trees when disturbed during the day.

The holotype of the new species was discovered and subsequently preserved at the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery following an expedition to Tasmania, Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia.

Supplementary specimens were also sourced from scientific collections, with the researchers examining approximately 12,000 records in Australian and overseas institutions.

‘It is really important to keep describing new spiders to assess the total biodiversity of these predators in Australia,’ said the study’s first author MSc Giullia Rossi.

The discovery was part of a long-term research aimed at documenting the entire Australian spider fauna, for conservation management plans in Australia and New Zealand.

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Autumn is upon us and so are armies of spiders invading people’s homes in search of a mate.

September marks the start of breeding season for these eight-legged creatures, so you might run into a few around the house in the coming weeks.

Spider season usually starts in the first two weeks of September and finishes by the first week of October.

You might already be sharing your home with female spiders who are typically shy and stay in their webs. However, in the autumn, males start venturing into homes on the prowl.

Females prefer breeding and nesting in cosy homes in the autumn because it saves them from having to build webs in cold, rainy gardens.

A pleasant location you might think, but unfortunately for some species, including the cellar spider, when they eventually find a female, they are likely to get eaten after they mate.

Small homes in the UK can often have up to 40 spiders living inside them. The number can be even higher for larger-sized Victorian properties with plenty of cracks and crevices in which to tuck themselves away – and unfortunately the old wives’ tale about conkers scaring them away is just that.

There are some are 650 types of spiders in the UK, but only 12 are actually harmful to humans.

So, even if you spot one of them in your home, you don’t need to worry about getting bitten.

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Nasa has sparked hopes of finding alien life after revealing traces of a molecule only produced by organisms on Earth may have been detected in a far-off exoplanet.

Dimethyl sulphide (DMS) is produced by life, primarily phytoplankton in oceans, rivers and lakes. 

However, a James Webb Space Telescope analysis of K2-18 b, an exoplanet around 120 light-years from Earth, suggests traces of DMS may be present in its atmosphere.

While the findings have yet to be confirmed, the JWST investigation also found evidence of carbon-bearing molecules including methane and carbon dioxide. These add further support to the theory that K2-18 b could be a ‘Hycean’ exoplanet – one with a water ocean-covered surface and a hydrogen-rich atmosphere.

The exoplanet is found in the habitable or ‘Goldilocks’ zone around its star, meaning it is not too hot or too cold to sustain liquid water. 

Many astronomers hope such Hycean worlds are promising environments for extraterrestrial life.

‘Our findings underscore the importance of considering diverse habitable environments in the search for life elsewhere,’ said Professor Nikku Madhusudhan, an astronomer at the University of Cambridge and lead author of the paper announcing the results. 

‘Traditionally, the search for life on exoplanets has focused primarily on smaller rocky planets, but the larger Hycean worlds are significantly more conducive to atmospheric observations.’

K2-18 b orbits K2-18, a cool dwarf star in the constellation Leo. The exoplanet is known as a sub-Neptune, and almost nine times bigger than Earth. Sub-Neptunes are rare in our cosmic neighbourhood and remain poorly understood, but the latest results from the JWST are hugely exciting.

‘Although this kind of planet does not exist in our solar system, sub-Neptunes are the most common type of planet known so far in the galaxy,’ said team member Subhajit Sarkar, of Cardiff University. 

‘We have obtained the most detailed spectrum of a habitable-zone sub-Neptune to date, and this allowed us to work out the molecules that exist in its atmosphere.’

Astronomers across the world are studying the atmospheres of exoplanets as part of the search for extraterrestrial life. However, it is not easy given they are literally outshone by their parent star, making them impossible to see. As such, many exoplanets are detected by tiny changes in  the star’s brightness as they pass in front of it.

In the case of K2-18 b, the JWST captured data from light passing through the planet’s atmosphere which enabled astronomers to analyse it – with more to come.

‘Upcoming Webb observations should be able to confirm if DMS is indeed present in the atmosphere of K2-18 b at significant levels,’ said Professor Madhusudhan.

‘Our ultimate goal is the identification of life on a habitable exoplanet, which would transform our understanding of our place in the universe.

‘Our findings are a promising step towards a deeper understanding of Hycean worlds in this quest.’

The study has been accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

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The fiery final moments of a pioneering satellite have been released by the European Space Agency, which made history earlier this year when guiding the craft on an ‘assisted reentry’.

Launched on August 22, 2018, the Aeolus satellite was designed to measure the winds sweeping across Earth. It carried just one instrument, a Doppler wind lidar known as Aladin, which played a vital role in improving weather forecasts and climate models.

By firing pulses of ultraviolet light towards the atmosphere and measuring the small fraction of light returned to the satellite, the wind speed of the bottom 30km of the atmosphere across the entire planet was recorded.

However, the satellite’s mission came to an end on July 28 as the craft ran low on fuel. Four assisted reentry manoeuvres were performed to ensure the 1,360kg satellite tumbled into the atmosphere over the Antarctic, away from populated areas, in case any debris survived the journey and fell back to Earth.

The exercise not only reduced the risk of falling debris by a factor of 150, but meant the time Aeolus was left in uncontrolled orbit – after the reentry manoeuvres were made – was shortened by a few weeks, reducing the risk of colliding with other orbiting satellites.

Now, the ESA has released an animation of the satellite’s final moments as it hurtled through the atmosphere, shortly before breaking apart and burning up.

The images were captured by the Space Observation Radar TIRA, a 34-metre antenna at Germany’s Fraunhofer Institute, two hours before Aeolus transformed into a fireball over the Antarctic.

‘With Aeolus, in a remarkable example of sustainable spaceflight and responsible operations, we stayed with the mission for as long as we could, guiding its return as much as it was possible to do,’ said Aeolus mission manager Tommaso Parrinello. ‘These images are our final farewell to the mission we all miss, but whose legacy lives on.’

Space debris, including satellites and parts of rockets, fall to Earth roughly once a week, but rarely cause any damage.

Last month, the flaming wreckage of an unmanned Soyuz-2 rocket blazed across the skies above Melbourne and Tasmania, while last year a three-meter long piece of wreckage from a SpaceX rocket landed in an Australian farmer’s field.

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Experts believe that you could game the Spotify royalty system and make a lot of money – but turns out it’s not so simple.

According to analysts at JPMorgan, if someone uploaded their own 30-second track to Spotify, and then programmed their phone to listen to it on repeat 24 hours a day, they would receive $1,200 a month in royalties.

Executives estimated that as much as 10% of all music streams are ‘fake’, generated by streaming farms, where numerous devices run services like Spotify on loop, as reported by the Financial Times,

However, Daniel Ek, the streaming giant’s CEO, has denied these claims, saying ’that’s not quite how our royalty system works’.

‘If that were true, my own playlist would just be “Daniel’s 30-second Jam” on repeat!’ said Mr Ek in a social media post.

The music streaming giant, created in 2008, works on a simple financial model where subscribers pay Spotify £10.99 a month to listen to ad-free music online.

In a statement on its website, Spotify said: ‘Contrary to what you might have heard, Spotify does not pay artist royalties according to a per-play or per-stream rate.

‘The royalty payments that artists receive might vary according to differences in how their music is streamed or the agreements they have with labels or distributors.’

The streaming giant has been plagued by amateurs, bots and white noise soundtracks that generated about $900mn in royalties last year, according to Goldman Sachs.

Recently, Swedish Newspaper Svenska Dagbladet reported that criminal gangs were using Spotify’s royalty system to launder money made through drug deals.

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Only a handful of people have spent over a year in space, and US astronaut Dr Frank Rubio is set to join the club.

On Monday, Dr Rubio broke the US record for the longest space mission by surpassing the previous record of 355 days, 3 hours and 45 minutes set by Mark Vande Hei in 2022.

This is just the first record set by Dr Rubio, as he is not scheduled to return to Earth until September 27 meaning – he will spend a total of 371 days in space, becoming the first American to spend a year in space.

However, Dr Rubio did not intended to stay in space for so long. As a member of the Expedition 69 crew to the International Space Station (ISS), he left Earth on September 21, 2022 on a Russian Soyuz MS-22 spacecraft.

Dr Rubio and his crewmates – Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Prokopyev and Dmitry Petelin – were supposed to return to Earth after six months on the space station.

However, after their Soyuz capsule sprang a coolant leak, it was ‘no longer safe to return a crew to Earth’.

In February, Russia sent a ‘rescue’ Soyuz and Prokopyev, Petelin and Dr Rubio’s stay was extended another six months.

‘Frank thought when he flew to space he would be here for six months,’ said Nasa astronaut Warren ‘Woody’ Hoburg, at a press conference. ‘And partway through his mission, he found out that it was extended to a year

‘His leadership up here has been incredible. He’s been amazing to work with and Frank is just making a huge sacrifice being away from his family for so long.’

In a recent interview with ABC’s Good Morning America, Dr Rubio said: ‘It’s an honour to be able to be considered one of the people that’s going to have spent a year in space.

‘I think this [duration] is really significant, in the sense that it teaches us that the human body can endure, it can adapt and – as we prepare to push back to the moon and then from there – onward onto hopefully Mars and further on into the solar system.

‘And for sure, this record will soon be broken again.’

Only six people have spent more than a year in space, and three of them were Russian cosmonauts.

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One of world’s most feared creatures is heading to Britain, warns new research.

The red fire ant, considered one of the most invasive species in the world – and the fifth most costly to combat – has already been introduced and established in Europe, reveals the study.

Its sting – described as ‘painful and irritating – can cause pustules and allergic reactions, and may even trigger potentially deadly anaphylactic shock.

Originally from South America, the red fire ant, also known as Solenopsis invicta, has had a massive impact on ecosystems, agriculture and human health in several countries around the world.

Now, researchers have identified 88 red fire ant nests spread over five hectares near the city of Syracuse on the Italian island of Sicily.

They say the colonies could have come from China or the US, where it is also an invasive species.

Ecological models developed as part of the study show ‘alarming’ predictions about the colonisation potential of the ant in Europe, which could be aided by climate change.

The invasive species could potentially establish itself across seven per cent of Europe, according to the study published in the journal Current Biology.

In less than a century, the ant has spread across much of the US, Mexico, the Caribbean, China, Taiwan and Australia, and has only been eradicated in New Zealand.

Its presence in the US has caused an estimated loss of more than £5 billion per year, while countries including Australia allocate millions to its eradication, but with little success.

Before the new study, red fire ants had been found occasionally among imported products in Spain, Holland and Finland, but its establishment on the continent had never been confirmed.

Using genetic analysis, researchers concluded that the population detected on Sicily probably originated in China or the US, but the route of entry is unknown. The colonies are located in a suburban area of the city of Syracuse, Sicily, comprising an estuary and a natural park.

‘It is an isolated area, so it is unlikely that it was the first point of entry to the island,’ said study leader Dr Roger Vila, of Spain’s Institute of Evolutionary Biology (IBE).

The team concluded that the entry point must have been a ‘transit’ area with human activity – such as the commercial port of the city of Syracuse.

Analysis of the wind direction indicate that some flying queen ants could have arrived from the north west, where the port of Syracuse is located and where the team has recommended monitoring for the ants.

‘The results suggest that half of the urban areas in Europe would be climatically suitable for the establishment of this invasive species,’ said Dr Vila.

‘Large cities such as Barcelona, Rome, London or Paris could be considerably affected by this invasive species, which can impact people’s lifestyles due to its abundance and aggressiveness.

‘Mediterranean coastal cities, highly connected by seaports, are the most suitable to S invicta, which could facilitate its spread.

‘Considering climate change predictions, the scenario could become much worse, as the species could potentially expand to other parts of Europe.’

He added: ‘Coordinated efforts for early detection and rapid response in the region are essential to successfully manage this new threat, before it spreads uncontrollably.’

First author Mattia Menchetti said: ‘The public could play a key role in the detection of S invicta, considering that it is frequently found in urban and adjacent areas.

‘It is possible to detect this ants due to its painful stings and the characteristic mounds of their nests, although confirmation of an expert is required.’

The team recommend that monitoring should be extended over a larger geographical area.

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If you’re a smartwatch wearer, you might be harbouring harmful germs that could get you very sick.

A study by researchers at Florida Atlantic University found that 95% of 20 different smartwatch wristbands tested were contaminated with bacteria capable of causing disease.

By analysing different types of wristband materials, researchers found that rubber and plastic bands had the most bacteria on them, while metal bands like gold and silver were virtually free from bacteria.

‘Plastic and rubber wristbands may provide a more appropriate environment for bacterial growth as porous and static surfaces tend to attract and be colonized by bacteria,’ said biological scientist Nwadiuto Esiobu from Florida Atlantic University.

The most common bacteria found were Staphylococcus, Enterobacteria (like Escherichia coli), and Pseudomonas. These bacteria can cause a variety of infections, including abscesses, pneumonia, and salmonella.

The researchers believe that the bacteria get onto the wristbands from the skin, sweat, and environment.

They also found that the type of activity the wearer engaged in affected the level of bacteria on the wristband. For example, wristbands from gym goers had the highest levels of staphylococcal bacteria.

Researchers warned that smartwatches could be a source of infection, especially for people with weakened immune systems.

They also recommend that people clean their wristbands regularly with soap and water or an alcohol-based disinfectant.

Our everyday tech gadgets might be the dirtiest things in our homes as we neglect to clean them.

Previous studies have shown that smartwatches are 30 times dirtier than toilet seats.

Another study suggested that the average smartphone screen is more than three times dirtier than a toilet seat.

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The scientists behind the world’s first cloned mammal, Dolly the Sheep, has died at the age of 79.

Professor Sir Ian Wilmut was a British embryologist and best known as the leader of the research group that cloned a mammal from an adult somatic cell, a Finnish Dorset lamb named Dolly.

He was appointed OBE in 1999 for services to embryo development and knighted in the 2008.

Dolly was the first mammal to be cloned from an adult cell, and her birth in 1996 was a major scientific breakthrough.

Sir Wilmut is considered a pioneer in the field of cloning and his work has had a profound impact on our understanding of genetics and biology.

He studied animal science at the University of Edinburgh and then went on to do a PhD in reproductive physiology at the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh.

In 1995, he led a team of scientists who successfully cloned Dolly from the cells of an adult sheep.

Dolly was born the following year and lived for six and a half years, producing six lambs of her own.

His work was controversial at the time, but it has since been hailed as a major scientific achievement.

Dolly’s cloning has paved the way for other cloning techniques, which could be used to create organs and tissues for transplantation, to preserve endangered species, and to develop new drugs and treatments.

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Nasa has managed to generate oxygen on Mars in a breakthrough that could change the future of human space exploration.

An oven-sized device on the Perseverance rover called MOXIE (Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment), has generated enough oxygen to sustain a small dog for 10 hours.

‘MOXIE’s impressive performance shows that it is feasible to extract oxygen from Mars’ atmosphere – oxygen that could help supply breathable air or rocket propellant to future astronauts,’ said Nasa Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy.

‘Developing technologies that let us use resources on the Moon and Mars is critical to build a long-term lunar presence, create a robust lunar economy, and allow us to support an initial human exploration campaign to Mars.’

Since Perseverance landed on Mars in 2021, MOXIE has generated a total of 122 grams of oxygen.

At its most efficient, the device was able to produce 12 grams of oxygen an hour at 98% purity or better.

On its 16th and final run last week, the instrument made 9.8 grams of oxygen.

MOXIE produces molecular oxygen through an electrochemical process that separates one oxygen atom from each molecule of carbon dioxide pumped in from Mars’ thin atmosphere.

As these gases flow through the system, they’re analysed to check the purity and quantity of the oxygen produced.

‘By proving this technology in real-world conditions, we’ve come one step closer to a future in which astronauts “live off the land” on the Red Planet,’ said Trudy Kortes, director of technology demonstrations, at Nasa.

This was the first demonstration of technology humans could use to survive on and leave the Red Planet.

In addition to sustaining life, an oxygen-producing system could be used as a source of rocket fuel for astronauts for their return trip home.

Rather than bringing large quantities of oxygen with them to Mars, future astronauts could live off the land, using materials they find on the planet’s surface to survive.

The next step for researchers would be to create a full-scale system that includes an oxygen generator like MOXIE and a way to liquefy and store that oxygen.

The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of Nasa’s Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet.

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After over a decade, the new iPhone 15 is likely to feature one of the smartphone’s biggest design changes.

Experts believe that the new iPhone will have a new charging port and cables for the first time in 11 years due to a European Union law requiring all phones to use the USB-C standard.

However, the new cable will be incompatible with the charging bricks used by current iPhone users.

So, if you decide to upgrade to the latest model, you will need to buy a £19.99 power adapter alongside the device.

That’s in addition to the nearly £2,000 price tag on the latest iPhone 15 as Apple no longer includes power adapters with its new iPhones.

This will be the first time iPhone users who upgrade from older models will find their existing adapters useless.

Apple is expected to unveil the iPhone 15 range on Tuesday evening during an event at the tech giant’s California headquarters.

This signals the end of Apple’s Lightning connector that was present on every iPhone since its introduction in 2007.

Future Apple devices are likely to have the USB-C port, which EU regulations have made the mandatory connection on all small electronics, and must be in place by the end of 2024.

USB-C is already widely used by most other smartphone and electronics manufacturers, and Apple uses it for its laptops and its more recent iPad models.

The move to make the connection the universal choice on small electronics is part of European Union regulatory efforts to cut e-waste and by reducing the number of different cables consumers need for different devices.

Apple executives have previously confirmed that the tech giant would comply with the change, despite expressing concerns over the approach.

In a statement after the EU proposals were first announced in 2021, the company warned that ‘mandating just one type of connector stifles innovation rather than encouraging it’, and that could ultimately harm consumers.

Industry expert Ben Wood, chief analyst at CCS Insight, said that while it was a ‘major change’ to switch the charging port and ‘arguably the biggest disruption to iPhone design for several years’, its presence within the Apple ecosystem already meant it was ‘hardly a dramatic move’.

‘The expected shift to USB-C could generate some friction for Apple customers who already have proprietary Lightning cables and docks around their homes,’ he said.

‘However, Apple has already transitioned other devices such as the iPad over to USB-C and will almost certainly include a new cable in each iPhone box or perhaps an adaptor.

‘Given how widely USB-C has been used in other devices, it’s hard to imagine that customers will be totally caught out by this switch, and in the long-term, it’s likely to benefit them, with a universal charging system having some very obvious upsides.

‘The rationale behind regulation forcing the use of USB-C is largely environmental, as one charging standard should result in fewer cables needing to be bought, helping to reduce material usage.

‘It still seems likely that most phones will ship with a cable in the box for the foreseeable future, but this could change too.

‘Apple was at the forefront of removing headphones from iPhone boxes – as it tried to drive people towards AirPods – as well as the charging brick, and the company has shown it is not afraid to challenge the status quo on this front.’

The live event is likely to see a number of other new Apple products announced, including a new version of the Apple Watch.

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Tropical paradise islands in the Caribbean and South Pacific are taking major polluting countries to court in a historic climate justice case to fight ‘the catastrophe unfolding before their eyes’.

Nations including the Bahamas, St Lucia, Tuvali and Vanuatu have launched the action as rising sea levels threaten their existence.

Small island states are responsible for less than 1% of carbon emissions, but are disproportionately affected by the effects of climate change.

In response, the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law (COSIS) is asking an international court to determine whether carbon dioxide emissions absorbed by the ocean should be considered pollution.

Under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), most countries are required to take measures to prevent, reduce and control pollution of the marine environment.

The ocean absorbs 25% of all carbon dioxide emissions produced by human activities, but excessive carbon levels in the sea leads to harmful chemical reactions such as acidification and deoxygenation. 

In addition, oceans absorb 90% of the excess heat caused by fossil fuel emissions, which causes a number of negative impacts including coral bleaching events and sea level rise – warmer water expands and takes up more space, while melting ice also increased the total volume.

A number of tropical islands, including Tuvalu and Vanuatu, face being completely submerged by the end of the century.

The COSIS hopes that the case, referred to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) in Hamburg, will result in major nations being required to prevent further pollution by reducing carbon emissions. If successful, it will also compel countries to assist in the protection of marine environments already damaged due to emissions.

‘Despite our negligible emission of greenhouse gases, COSIS’s members have suffered and continue to suffer the overwhelming burden of climate change’s adverse impacts,’ said Gaston Alfonso Browne, prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda.

‘Without rapid and ambitious action, climate change may prevent my children and grandchildren from living on the island of their ancestors, the island that we call home. We cannot remain silent in the face of such injustice.

‘We have come before this tribunal in the belief that international law must play a central role in addressing the catastrophe that we witness unfolding before our eyes.’

Small island nations are also at risk of hurricanes and tropical storms which, as the atmosphere warms due to climate change, are becoming increasingly frequent and more severe.

‘Sea levels are rising rapidly, threatening to sink our lands below the ocean,’ said Kausea Natano, prime minister of Tuvalu. 

‘Extreme weather events, which grow in number and intensity with each passing year, are killing our people and destroying our infrastructure. Entire marine and coastal ecosystems are dying in waters that are becoming warmer and more acidic. 

‘The science is clear and undisputed – these impacts are the result of climate change brought on by greenhouse gas emissions.

‘We come here seeking urgent help, in the strong belief that international law is an essential mechanism for correcting the manifest injustice that our people are suffering as a result of climate change.

‘We are confident that international courts and tribunals will not allow this injustice to continue unchecked.’

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In just over a fortnight, a shiny metal capsule will drop from space into the Utah desert. 

It is a human craft, but will be filled with alien material – samples scooped up from the dark and dusty surface of a near-Earth asteroid.

Named Bennu, it is currently a relatively close 75 million miles away, and will shed new light on the formation of our solar system 4.5 billion years ago.

However, we already know quite a lot about the early years of our neighbourhood thanks to another type of cosmic object – meteorites.

Meteorites are basically space rocks, ranging in size from dust particles to larger chunks of asteroid, that survive the fiery passage through Earth’s atmosphere.

And they’re amazing.

Nuclear scientist and meteorite fan Tim Gregory shares nine fascinating facts about these marvellous space travellers.

They’re basically time capsules

When the solar system formed, it was giant cloud of gas and dust – a nebula – similar to all these beautiful photos Hubble and the James Webb Space Telescope send back.

We were one of these giant interstellar clouds. And then, about four and a half billion years ago, a small clump of that cloud began to collapse in on itself. 

As the centre of that cloud became denser and denser, its gravitational field strength grew and grew, and so the collapse spiralled in a runaway. Most of that material, about 99.9% of it, formed the Sun. The leftovers formed the planets and everything else – moons, comets, and asteroids. 

But that’s just the general picture – there are a lot of nitty gritty details in how you get from a nebula to a solar system. There are two ways we can investigate that: telescopes, and meteorites.

Meteorites are the leftover debris from that era of planet formation. They’re small fragments of asteroids. They pre-date the planets, making them the oldest rocks in the solar system.

And in physics, what’s true for a cup of tea is true for an asteroid. Small objects cool down much quicker than big objects. Asteroids, therefore, lost their heat very quickly after they formed at the beginning of the solar system. Since then, they’ve remained virtually unchanged.

Meteorites are geological time capsules, and we can date them using the ‘radioactive clocks’ that exist naturally in all rocks. Radioactive elements – like uranium – decay into new elements at a rate determined by their half-lives. By measuring how much radioactive decay has happened in a meteorite, you can figure out its age. Using this method, we determined the solar system’s age: 4.6 billion years old.

Sometimes the Moon throws rocks at us

Almost all meteorites come from asteroids, but it’s very hard to say which particular meteorite came from which particular asteroid. 

However, sometimes we know exactly where they came from, like in the case of lunar meteorites. As the name suggests, they come from the Moon.

And the reason we know they came from the Moon is because we can compare them like-for-like to the rocks the Apollo astronauts brought back. We can compare the geology – and they turn out to be a perfect match.

But how do they get here? Because the Moon pretty much lacks an atmospheres, it’s a sitting duck for asteroid and meteorite strikes – as you can see from Earth by the many craters covering its surface. When it is struck, chunks of the Moon fly off, and if the angle is right, they crash down to Earth.

Some are more exotic

The second type of meteorite that we have a pretty good idea of where they came from are Martian meteorites. Yes, meteorites from Mars.

Now, while we don’t have samples of Mars to compare them to on Earth (yet), there are two major lines of evidence to tell us where they came from.

Firstly, their age. They’re much, much younger than almost all other meteorites, sometimes billions of years younger. They must have come from a celestial body that was geologically active in the relatively recent past – and there aren’t many of those in the solar system.

Secondly, although we haven’t brought samples of Mars back from missions yet, we’ve sent our robotic ambassadors to the surface of Mars: the landers and rovers. They’ve tested the chemistry of the atmosphere there, and it perfectly matches the chemistry of the gas in these meteorites.

I’ll never forget the first time I held one. I always thought it would be a future astronaut who touched the surface of Mars first, but we’ve done it decades earlier, which is kind of cool. 

The ingredients for life?

There is a rare type of meteorite called carbonaceous chondrites. Plain chondrites are actually the most common type of meteorite, the most primitive kind.

But carbonaceous chondrites are a very, very important type of meteorite – and my favourite. 

As the name suggests, they’re often rich in carbon, and the form of carbon we find in them is varied and complex.

But the most unexpected type of chemistry we find in them are amino acids.

And amino acids are the building blocks of life on Earth.

Now that’s not to say this is evidence of extraterrestrial life, although people suspected that when they were first discovered. But it does mean two things.

Firstly, meteorites could have delivered the building blocks of life to Earth from space.

And secondly, the building blocks of life are abundant in the solar system. To my mind, this vastly increases the probability that there’s life elsewhere in our solar system.

They smell

Nine years ago, I was an intern at Nasa’s Johnson Space Center, and my summer project was to study one of these carbonaceous chondrites, found in Antarctica in 1994.

I’d read accounts of how these meteorites can smell, so as soon as I cut it open, I took a deep breath – and it really did smell! It smelled kind of organic-y, actually a bit like a damp towel, a very musty sort of smell. 

Meteorites could be the waiter of the world

Anyone for a drink? 

There’s a prominent theory that the water on Earth was delivered by comets, but the isotopic composition of the ice found on them doesn’t match what we have in our rivers, oceans, and taps.

However, carbonaceous chondrites are chock full of water, and its composition is very, very similar to water on Earth.

Some of these meteorites are maybe 10 or 20 per cent water. But not water as we’re used to it – you can’t wring them out like a flannel. It’s bound up in crystal structures within the meteorite, but there’s still enough that they likely delivered water to the Earth which, of course, is vital for life. 

We have a lot to thank carbonaceous chondrites for!

A right royal head scratcher

Now, here’s a curious one. When they cracked open Tutankhamun’s tomb just over 100 years ago, wrapped alongside him in his linen was a foot-long dagger encased in this beautiful golden sheath.

But the blade from the dagger was made from iron, which was a bit of a head scratcher for the archaeologists who found it – because it predates the Iron Age.

And even stranger, the chemistry of the dagger perfectly matches the chemistry of iron meteorites.

This leads to the bizarre but inescapable conclusion that Tutankhamun’s dagger is made from an iron meteorite.

We’ll never know for sure if the person who made the dagger knew the piece of iron came from space. But what we do know is that, around the same time Tutankhamun lived, a new hieroglyph came into common usage – and its literal translation is ‘iron from the sky’.

There are literally tonnes of meteorites heading our way

What is the chance of being hit by a meteorite? Basically zero. 

However, about 40,000 tonnes of extra-terrestrial rock falls to Earth every year. Thankfully though, Earth is huge, so that 40,000 tonnes is spread very thinly.

Of course, sometimes big ones do hit the Earth and they can cause damage, such as the Chelyabinsk meteorite over Russia in 2013. 

And occasionally absolutely massive ones strike, perhaps most famously 66 million years ago in the Yucatán peninsula, which completely finished off the dinosaurs.

Another big one could be on the way

Extinction level asteroids are very infrequent, but there is the chance of a large one hitting Earth in the second half of next century. That sounds a long time in the future, but it’s not that far off, only about 150 years – a couple of generations.

The culprit? Asteroid Bennu, which Nasa has just visited to collect samples from. There’s about a 1 in 3,000 chance it will hit Earth. 

That would be like detonating many, many thermonuclear weapons simultaneously. All in one place. It would be pretty pretty bad.

But what’s almost poetic is that Bennu is a carbonaceous asteroid.

So carbonaceous asteroids and meteorites probably delivered the building blocks of life to Earth, and another might snuff quite a bit of it out.

Tim Gregory is a nuclear scientist working full-time in the heart of the British nuclear industry at Sellafield. He will be speaking at New Scientist Live at ExCeL London on Saturday, October 7. His debut book, Meteorite: How Stones from Outer Space Made our World, is available to buy now

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At some point during the pandemic, Sars-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid, spread from humans to white-tailed deer in the US.

In 2021, scientists revealed that 40% of white-tailed deer sampled in Michigan, Pennsylvania, Illinois and New York state had Covid antibodies.

Surveillance of these deer continues, and a new study by researchers at Ohio State University found that the virus is still spreading among the animals – and back to humans. And it is evolving rapidly.

The researchers looked at the prevalence of Covid in a small sample of white-tailed deer in north-eastern Ohio. The samples were taken between November 2021 and March 2022. From 1,522 nasal swabs, 163 tested positive for alpha and delta variants of COVID. The researchers also found that the virus had spread many times from humans to deer and from deer to humans (known as “spillover”).

Coronaviruses are covered in spikes and it is these spikes that latch on to our cells to gain entry and begin replicating. The particular part of our cells that the spikes latch on to is called the ACE2 receptor. This receptor is similar in deer and humans, and coronaviruses have lost little time in exploiting this.

Human contact with deer is common in parts of the US, where many millions of white-tailed deer live as wild, urbanised or farmed animals. In these habitats, deer may be exposed to human waste. They can carry bacteria with similar antimicrobial resistance patterns to local humans.

The Ohio researchers found that Covid multiplied and spread in deer over several months, causing no obvious illness or deaths in the animals. Migrating deer – males in particular – spread the virus as they moved across the county.

It is not known if other potential hosts such as skunks, squirrels or rodents contracted the virus too, but spread from deer back to humans was seen. How this exchange happened, though, is unclear.

Deer sampled on Staten Island, New York, over the same period showed evidence of spillover infection from humans by another Covid variant, omicron. Viral exchanges between communities and their deer are happening often.

Mutating three times faster in deer than in humans

By measuring changes in the Covid genomes in the deer using a new statistical method, the researchers in Ohio estimated that the rate of Covid mutation was three times greater than in humans. The types of genetic changes were not the same as those in human Covid. The mutations appeared to be adaptive responses that might have increased viral spread in its new deer hosts.

Covid showed early increases in its diversity in humans, too, which was perhaps more rapid in the first years after 2019.

Crucially, the spill-back of virus from deer to humans has not caused new human outbreaks that are making doctors lose sleep. Evolutionary changes in Covid in deer populations have not resulted in a virus that can evade our antibodies. So there is no current public health risk linked to this increased mutation rate.

As with humans, some deer are ‘super-spreaders’. Social network analysis shows this process in deer’s use of scraping sites, where males leave their scents to set up breeding groups. Human-made feeding or bait stations (for hunting) exacerbate the rate of viral spread, too.

White-tailed deer could be referred to as a new reservoir of Covid viruses. Animal reservoirs encompass a continuous process of viral division and change. Hosts impose selective pressures on viruses that influence the rate at which a virus’s genome changes. For example, influenza A evolves more rapidly in populations of birds or pigs than in people.

Probably, the lifespan of an infected animal, metabolic processes within its cells, immune actions, damage to viral RNA from host enzymes or other pathogens all force viral mutation. Whatever the reasons, these observations from Ohio raise the possibility that in those millions of white-tailed deer, Covid viruses might develop into a new strain or variant capable of spreading significant illness to humans.

Blood tests of UK deer in 2020-21 found no evidence of Covid in these animals. This could be because British deer species have distinctive ecological niches and Covid susceptibilities. But it is clear that this sort of ongoing surveillance provides valuable intelligence.

By Colin Michie, deputy lead, School of Medicine and Iain Richards, senior lecturer, Animal Life, University of Central Lancashire

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

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Good news for Londoners as more of London’s Tube network gets internet connection.

Today, mobile phone coverage was switched on in the Central line tunnels between Oxford Circus and Tottenham Court Road.

Phone coverage will also be available inside Tottenham Court Road tube station’s ticket hall and escalators, as well as on the Northern line platforms.

Currently, internet connectivity is available on the Jubilee line between Westminster and Canning Town.

The Central line between Holland Park to Queensway and the Nothern line between Archway to Kentish Town also has phone coverage.

The first Elizabeth line stations that will get 4G connectivity were also named on Friday.

Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon and Liverpool Street stations on the Elizabeth line will join Transport for London’s high-speed mobile data network by Christmas.

The line’s seven other stations and tunnels between Paddington, Abbey Wood and Stratford will be completed by the end of April, with a pledge to all central London stations connected by next Spring.

TfL also announced progress with the ongoing roll-out of 4G – and even faster 5G – on the London Underground.

Commuters will be able to access the internet in the ticket halls, on the platforms and in the tunnel between stations.

‘This means Londoners and visitors can now access the latest travel information or social media, check their emails, make calls, and stream videos whilst on the move underground,’ said Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London.

As part of the ongoing roll out by major network operators Three UK, EE, Vodafone, and Virgin Media O2 (VMO2), speedy new network coverage will also 33 other stations and their adjoining tunnels.

‘We are committed to delivering this programme which will allow customers to be more connected underground and get the latest travel information and news, as well as stay in contact with work, friends and families while travelling on our network,’ said Andy Lord, London transport commissioner.

Earlier this year, some Northern Line and Central Line stations were among the first on the Tube network to receive 5G as part of a wider rollout. 

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Whether you’re a fan of WhatsApp or can’t stand the thought of being added to yet another group chat, using it to share your location can be massively handy at times.

It saves endless calls trying to describe where you are and can make sure you head straight for your mates rather than lurking outside the wrong pub.

Best of all, you can choose exactly when to share your location, so you don’t have to worry about being tracked every moment of the day and night.

Plus you can choose to share with individuals or an entire group.

So how do you do it?

Let’s find out.

How to share your location on WhatsApp

Step 1 is to go to your phone’s settings.

Tap apps – or on the iPhone you can scroll down to them – and select WhatsApp.

You might see ‘location’ straightaway, if not choose ‘permissions‘ and then ‘location‘.

Touch ‘location’ and choose how long you’d like to share your location for (in general).

The choice is ‘Never/ask next time or when I share’/while using the app/always.’

Now open WhatsApp, and choose a group or individual chat.

Press the + button on the bottom right of the chat to bring up a menu, and choose ‘location’.

You will then have the option to ‘share live location’.

And your recipient will be able to see your live location on a map.

How to stop sharing your location

To stop sharing in a specific group or individual chat, open the chat and click ‘stop sharing’, then ‘stop’.

To stop sharing for all chats and groups, open your WhatsApp settings by clicking on the wheel on the botton right of the app, select ‘privacy’ and ‘then ‘live location’ and touch ‘stop’.

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A metal detectorist has made an unprecedented discovery in Norway, finding a hoard of gold dating back to the 5th century.

Hailed as Norway’s ‘largest gold find of the century’, the find was made by 51-year-old Erlend Bore on the southern island of Rennesøy.

Bore, who bought the metal detector after his doctor told him to get more exercise, unearthed nine gold pendants, three rings, and ten gold pearls.

‘I first looked around the shore, but only found scrap and a ten ring. Then I chose to go a little higher up in the terrain, and then the metal detector beeped immediately,’ said Mr Bore.  

‘At first I thought I had found chocolate money or Captain Sabertooth coins. It was completely unreal.’

To find so much gold at the same time is extremely unusual, according to Ole Madsen, director at the Archaeological Museum at the University of Stavanger. 

According to associate professor Håkon Reiersen at the Archaeological Museum, the gold pendants date from around 500 AD, during the migration period in Norway. 

The gold pendants might look like gold coins, but are actually decorations called ‘bracteaters’.

According to Professor Reiersen, the gold pendants were made by skilled jewellers and were probably worn by society’s most powerful.

‘In Norway, no similar discovery has been made since the 19th century, and it is also a very unusual discovery in a Scandinavian context,’ said Reiersen. 

Many of the large bracteate finds made in Scandinavia were hidden in the ground towards the middle of the 5th century, right at the end of the Migration Period. This was probably a time of crisis, with bad years, climate deterioration and plague.

The many abandoned farms in Rogaland from this time may indicate that the crisis hit particularly hard here, explained Reiersen.

Based on the location where the find was made, experts assume it was either hidden valuables or sacrifices to the gods during such a dramatic time.

According to Professor Sigmund Oehrl at the Archaeological Museum, approximately 1,000 golden bracteaters have so far been found in Scandinavia. 

But these gold pendants featured a horse motif that differed from previously discovered ones.

Usually, symbols on the pendants showed the god Odin healing the sick horse of his son Balder. In the Migration Period, this myth was seen as a symbol of renewal and resurrection, and it was supposed to give the wearer of the jewellery protection and good health, said Professor Oehrl.   

The horses on these gold pendants had their tongue hanging out with a slumped posture and twisted legs showing injury. 

Like the Christian symbol of the cross, which spread in the Roman Empire at exactly this time, the horse symbol represented illness and distress, but at the same time hope for healing and new life, explained Professor Oehrl.  

All objects from before the year 1537, and coins older than the year 1650, are considered state property and must be handed in. 

Although Mr Bore had to turn over the gold to the museum, he and the landowner will receive a reward for the find. However, The National Antiquities Authority is yet to decide the fee.

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Another day, another chilling warning about Artificial Intelligence (AI) from an expert in the field.

Mustafa Suleyman, a former Google executive and AI pioneer warned that artificial intelligence (AI) could be used to create a deadly plague.

Speaking on a recent episode of ‘The Diary of a CEO’ podcast, he said that AI could be used to design new viruses or bacteria that are more deadly and resistant to treatment.

These viruses could ‘spread faster or [be] more lethal,’ said Mr Suleyman, ultimately causing ‘more harm’ and potentially even killing people ‘like a pandemic.’

‘We are working with dangerous things,’ he continued. ‘We can’t let just anyone have access to them. We need to limit who can use the AI software, the cloud systems, and even some of the biological materials.’

Mustafa Suleyman is a British artificial intelligence researcher and entrepreneur. He is also the co-founder and former head of applied AI at DeepMind, an AI company acquired by Google.

Mr Suleyman is not the only one who is concerned about the potential dangers of AI. A number of other experts have also warned about the possibility of AI being used to create bioweapons.

In March, researchers warned that artificial intelligence could be repurposed to create new biochemical weapons. They said their experience should serve as a ‘wake-up call’ to those using AI technologies for drug discovery.

Even the companies creating these AI technologies have acknowledged the potential harm posed by it.

In May, the CEOs of OpenAI, Google DeepMind and Stability AI signed a statement calling for the mitigation of ‘the risk of extinction from AI’ to become a global priority.

Dr Geoffrey Hinton, widely regarded as the ‘godfather of artificial intelligence’ who recently resigned from Google while warning of the dangers of the technology, is also among the prominent signatories.

The short statement, posted by the Center for AI Safety, reads: ‘Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war.’

It has been signed by more than 300 AI researchers, engineers, academics and technology professionals.

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