The investigation into reports of UFO sightings also concluded that there have been no efforts by US governments to keep the information of aliens hidden from the public. There is no evidence of aliens or extraterrestrial intelligence, a Pentagon report that examined the sighting of Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) over the last century said on Friday. The report concluded that most of the sightings reported were misidentified ordinary objects and phenomena, a conclusion that matches the assessment of past US governments into the claims. The report from the Defense Department's All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (ARRO) analyzed US government investigations since 1945 of UFO sightings. The study which followed a 2022 Pentagon announcement also said that there were no efforts by the US government or private firms to keep the information about them secret. Flying objects: White House says no sign of alien activity "All investigative efforts, at all levels of classification, concluded that most sightings were ordinary objects and phenomena and the result of misidentification," said the report, which was mandated by Congress. Why was the investigation conducted? Over the past several years, US authorities have received a slew of reports of UFO sightings. In 2021, a government report that examined 144 sightings held that no evidence of any extraterrestrial life was found and it called for better data collection. The issue was once again brought to the fore last year after a retired Air Force intelligence officer testified to Congress that the US government hides a longstanding plan that reverse engineers unidentified flying objects. The authors of the report said they wanted to meticulously investigate the subject which has occupied many American minds over the years. "AARO recognizes that many people sincerely hold versions of these beliefs which are based on their perception of past experiences, the experiences of others whom they trust, or media and online outlets they believe to be sources of credible and verifiable information," the report said.    

The hot spells in parts of Europe and the US would not have occurred without human-made global warming, researchers say. This month is likely the hottest the Earth has seen in about 120,000 years, according to some. Human-made climate change is overwhelmingly to blame for intense heat waves affecting several world regions this month, a study released on Tuesday said. In a rapid analysis of the current high temperatures, particularly in Southern Europe and the US Southwest, researchers from the World Weather Attribution group concluded that the deadly heat would have been virtually impossible without the continuing buildup of warming gases in the air. So far, the world has warmed 1.2 C (2.2 F) above pre-industrial levels, and scientists have warned that going beyond a 1.5 C rise will have catastrophic consequences for human civilization. What did the researchers say? Because of the warming climate, severe heat waves like the current ones can now be expected approximately once every 15 years in North America, every 10 years in Southern Europe and every five years in China, the researchers said. If the global temperature rises by 2 C (3.6 F) above pre-industrial levels, as could be the case if humans fail to rein in greenhouse gas emissions, they will occur every two to five years by around 2050, they said.  The heat waves have also been hotter than they would have been without climate change, according to the study. Climate change has made the heat wave in Southern Europe 2.5 C hotter, the one in the US and Mexico 3.6 C hotter and the one in China 1 C hotter, the study said.   Only the heat wave in China could have statistically occurred without global warming, the data used in the study showed, but was still made 50 times more likely by climate change. 'Overwhelming' role of climate change "The role of climate change is absolutely overwhelming," said climate scientist Friederike Otto of the Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment at Imperial College London. "As long as we keep burning fossil fuels we will see more and more of these extremes," she added. "The most important thing is that they [heat waves] kill people and they particularly kill and hurt and destroy lives and livelihoods of those most vulnerable," Otto said. Among other things, the current heat has driven devastating wildfires in Greece that have caused mass evacuations in some areas. The researchers used weather data and computer model simulations to compare the climate today with that of the past to see how far the current heat waves diverge from what would have been expected without global warming.  Although the results have not yet been peer-reviewed, the techniques used in the study are considered scientifically valid.

As the Centre and BJP workers celebrated 100 episodes of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's programme, "Mann Ki Baat" on Sunday, a study has said that the PM constantly used the radio platform to project the country's Northeast, its people, rich and diverse culture and its contribution to nation building by making references to the region at least 56 times.  "Notwithstanding the celebration of cultural diversity as well contextual peculiarities of the region, 'Mann Ki Baat' (MKB) have tried to frame a civilisational continuity that runs from Kashmir to Kanyakumari and Amreli to Arunachal Pradesh. It is rather also an attempt to renew the terms of engagement with the region and an endeavour to mainstream this representation of the region in the public imagination of India. Culture emerges as the source of unification and acts as the buckle that joins North East India with the rest of India," said the study, "Framing Civilisational Continuity: Modi’s 'Mann Ki Baat' and North East India." This was part of a study supported by the Indian Council for Social Science Research, New Delhi.  The paper on MKB's representation of the Northeast was headed by Vikash Tripathi, who teaches political science at Gauhati University. Poonam Kakoti Borah, an assistant professor of the women’s studies department at Gauhati University and Bagmita Borthakur, a guest faculty of political science at Dispur College are the two other authors of the paper. "Civilisation is presented as a natural and historic bond that binds Northeast India with the rest of India, it said. The study said that respondents in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Tripura and Manipur believed that it helped the Northeast as mainstreaming the region became a challenge due to its long problem of insurgency and communication bottlenecks.   The PM also used MKB to project the Northeast as a safe tourist destination due to a significant reduction in insurgency-related incidents, the organically grown local food products and the laurels the region's sportspersons brought for the nation, in the Olympics or other global sports events.   MKB also referred to the variations of rituals, festivals and languages that exist but a social pattern which unifies the territories across India, said the paper. The contribution of the Northeast to the country's freedom movement and celebration of such heroes was another highlight of 'Mann Ki Baat' so far, said the paper. It referred to the Indian National Army bases in  Manipur (a reference to Col. Shaukat Malik of INA in a village of Manipur who unfurled the National Flag before independence in Episode 79), young children aspiring to witness 100 years of India’s independence (a reference to the letter from Riddhima Swargiary in Episode 85), U.Triot Singh and his resistance to the Britishers who wanted to take control of the Khasi hills and destroy the culture of the region (with reference to his death Anniversary in Episode 91), besides others. Source: Deccan Herald

A testing program shows a string of new psychoactive substances in widespread use across the globe. Scientists believe criminals are developing substances slightly altered from illegal drugs to stay ahead of the law. An Australian-led team found new psychoactive chemicals — with similar effects to known street drugs — in wastewater from 16 countries, new research shows. The substances are drugs adapted to mimic the effects of established illicit drugs while evading legal restrictions that, in many countries, are tied to specific substances and chemical compositions. What the team discovered The University of Queensland-led team analyzed samples in 47 cities in Europe, the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, China, Brazil and South Korea over three consecutive New Year periods from 2019 to 2022. They detected 18 new substances that were analogous to mind-altering street drugs but with slight alterations to their chemical structure.  "These substances are synthesized to replace banned substances, which means they have a slightly different molecular structure to stay ahead of the law," Bade said. "They are generally manufactured in smaller quantities than traditional illicit drugs, making it difficult for law enforcement to control the circulation." What types of substances were they? The survey showed so-called new psychoactive substance (NPS) use across the globe, but uncovered strong regional trends. Synthetic cathinones — chemically related to the cathinone stimulant found in the khat plant — were the most prevalent class of NPS. One such chemical, 3-methylmethcathinone, was found in particularly high levels in Europe — especially in Spain and Slovakia. It was only found in Europe the first year, but spread to North American and Oceania subsequently. Also prominent were phenethylamines, which can have a similar effect to amphetamines, and designer benzodiazepines. The team found seven new psychoactive substances in Australia alone — mephedrone, ethylone, and eutylone — which all have a similar effect to ecstasy or cocaine. In the United States, the plant-based painkiller mitragynine was found in particularly heavy loads. The US Food and Drug Administration has repeatedly warned of the dangers of the plant, kratom, but mitragynine is not currently federally regulated.

An EU climate report has logged the most Alpine glacier retreat of any year and the continent's hottest summer on record in 2022. It also said the world's hottest year on record, 2016, might soon be eclipsed. More glacier ice melted in Europe's Alps last year than ever previously recorded amid the hottest European summer on record, the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service reported on Thursday.  The glaciers lost more than 5 cubic kilometers of ice (1.2 cubic miles), the organization said. It attributed this to low levels of snowfall the previous winter and then high summer temperatures and a prolonged melting period. Authorities in Austria recently reported the same phenomenon on the local level.  The report also found that 2022's summer, marked by drought and heat waves, was the hottest on record in Europe, 1.4 degrees Celsius (2.2 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than the recent average from between 1991 and 2020. It said Europe had been warming at double the global average in recent years. Western European temperatures drove the trend: for countries including the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Spain, 2022's average temperatures were the highest on record. For Germany, Belgium, Austria and others, they were the second highest. Last eight years the eight warmest on record The report also noted unusually high temperatures at both poles in 2022.  "During the latter half of February, Antarctic daily sea ice extent reached a new record low, bypassing the previous minimum reached in 2017," it said. Meanwhile, to the north in September, temperatures were 8 degrees Celsius higher than usual over Greenland. Overall, Copernicus classified 2022 as the fifth-warmest year, more than 1 degree Celsius higher than the pre-industrial era proxy figure, with the last eight years the eight warmest years on record. "The report highlights alarming changes to our climate, including the hottest summer ever recorded in Europe, marked by unprecedented marine heat waves in the Mediterranean Sea and record-breaking temperatures in Greenland," said Carlo Buontempo, director of the Copernicus Climate Change Service.  New hottest year ever in 2023 or 2024?  The monitoring group, based in Reading in the UK, said that it was also possible that the world's hottest year on record, 2016, might soon lose its crown if the El Nino weather phenomenon were to emerge for the first time in years. El Nino typically contributes to slightly elevated temperatures and reduced precipitation. The last few years' hot weather has taken place despite sister phenomenon El Nina contributing to cooler and wetter conditions. "El Nino is normally associated with record-breaking temperatures at the global level. Whether this will happen in 2023 or 2024 is not yet known, but it is, I think, more likely than not," Buontempo said. Signs of a winter drought in 2023 in Europe are already numerous, particularly in Spain and in France where authorities are warning of a tougher summer than last year. Good year for EU solar power, less so for wind Copernicus' Atmosphere Monitoring Service also reported regional record greenhouse gas emissions, specifically from wildfires caused by the hot summer.  "France, Spain, Germany and Slovenia also experienced their highest summer wildfire emissions for at least the last 20 years, with southwestern Europe seeing some of the largest fires on record in Europe," the report said.  The study also devoted some time to renewable power generation figures and the climate's effect on them, with Copernicus' deputy director Samantha Burgess saying that, "understanding and responding to the changes and variability in renewable energy resources, such as wind and solar, are critical to support the energy transition to net zero."  Because of record levels of solar radiation in much of Europe, solar power generation was slightly above average potential, part of a continuing trend. By the same token, wind power potential availability was slightly below average overall.

Only a third of adults today can digest lactose. For many years, researchers assumed humans adopted this ability when our prehistoric ancestors started drinking milk. A new study points to a different story. There is a good chance you have lactose intolerance. You are not alone 5,000 years ago, most humans were lactose intolerant too. A new study published on Wednesday in the journal Nature by University of Bristol and University College London researchers found that people’s ability to digest lactose became common almost 5,000 years later than the first signs of human milk consumption, which date back to around 6,000 BC. They also found, using new computer modeling methods, that milk consumption wasn’t the reason for the increase in lactose tolerance. Milk didn’t help at all, study author Mark Thomas, a University College London researcher, told DW. I’m excited about the statistical modeling method that we developed. As far as I’m aware, nobody’s done that before, said Thomas. What is lactose intolerance? All babies can normally digest lactose. But for most of them, this ability will start to wane after they wean off breastmilk. Today about two-thirds of people are lactase non-persistent, which means they can’t digest lactose, the main sugar in milk. People who are lactase non-persistent can’t produce an enzyme called lactase, which breaks down lactose. When this enzyme is absent, lactose is free to travel to the colon, where bacteria feast on it. This can cause unpleasant side effects, like cramps, farting or diarrhea. Together these symptoms are called lactose intolerance. Surprising results The results of this study are contrary to a widespread belief that our prehistoric ancestors consumption of dairy led to the evolution of a genetic variation allowing them to digest lactose even after adulthood. This assumption can be partly traced to the marketing of the alleged health benefits of lactose tolerance. For years, milk companies, doctors and even nutritionists have peddled milk and dairy as important supplements of vitamin D and calcium and good sources of uncontaminated water. But the researchers quickly dismissed these ideas after analyzing a huge set of DNA and medical information of people in the UK. They found that whether or not they could tolerate lactose had little effect on people’s health, their calcium levels or whether they drank milk or not, said Thomas. Why did lactase persistence evolve? Genetic studies show that lactase persistence is the most strongly selected single gene trait to have evolved in the last 10,000 years, said Thomas. At around 1,000 BC, the number of humans with the capacity to digest lactose, which is encoded in one gene, started to increase rapidly. After discovering that milk consumption was not behind this burst of growth, the researchers tested two alternative hypotheses. One hypothesis was that when humans became exposed to more pathogens, symptoms of lactose intolerance combined with the new infectious agents could turn deadly. We know that pathogen exposure would have gone up over the last 10,000 years as population densities increase, as people live closer to their domestic animals, said Thomas. The other hypothesis had to do with famines. When the crops sowed by lactose intolerant prehistoric populations failed, milk and dairy products became some of their only options for nourishment. If you’re a healthy person, you get diarrhea. It’s embarrassing. If you are severely malnourished and you give yourself diarrhea, there’s a good chance you’re going to die, said Thomas. The researchers used the same computer modeling methods to examine whether these ideas could better explain the evolution of lactase persistence. And they did, way, way better, said Thomas. All these theories that ultimately relate to milk use don’t seem to help. The study mostly focused on European populations, and more research is needed for other continents. Unfortunately, finding ancient DNA in African countries is trickier because it’s hotter, and heat is a big determinant of whether DNA survives, said Thomas.

The domestic electric vehicle industry will cross sales of 10 million vehicles by 2030, with an overall adoption rate of more than 30 per cent across different vehicle categories, says a study. According to a study by Arthur D Little released on Thursday, EV adoption for passenger vehicles is likely to be just 10 per cent by the end of the period, amounting to a strikingly small 5 per cent of total EV sales. The study titled, 'Unlocking India's electric mobility potential' noted that to attain more than 30 per cent EV adoption, India will require approximately 800 GWh of batteries by 2030. To meet this rising demand, India is accelerating plans to manufacture Lithium-ion cells within the country, anticipating USD 2.3 billion in government subsidies and more than USD 7.5 billion in investment potential, it said. In terms of investment, given Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow of nearly USD 6 billion in 2021, India's EV industry could attract further foreign investments of about USD 20 billion by 2030, to fuel the country's economic growth and help achieve required scale in this industry, as per the study.   "Despite the obstacles, India is one of the largest markets for EVs in Asia behind only China and surprisingly, ahead of Japan. "We can build on this position by acting to support product innovation, create reliable charging infrastructure, and provide subsidies to buyers and additional incentives to startups involved in battery R&D, among others," said Barnik Chitran Maitra, Managing Partner and CEO, India & South Asia at Arthur D Little. If India achieves its true EV potential of 50 per cent electrification, every 10th EV sold globally could be manufactured in India, making India a global EV powerhouse, he said. In the recent past, government support and investments made by auto-incumbents in the EV ecosystem have also bolstered private equity (PE) and venture capitalists (VC) confidence in the domestic EV space, as per the study. The study cites several factors for the low adoption of passenger EVs in the country including higher upfront costs compared to traditional vehicles, lack of models, dearth of charging infrastructure, low consumer confidence in the product driven primarily by range anxiety, exacerbated by product safety mishaps. It recommends that the private sector and the government should work together to remove the said barriers, and help India lift its EV game. Given India's massive scale as a market for vehicles in general, there is immense scope for EV demand as well, the study noted, adding, increasing awareness of environmental benefits has further prompted innovation from the private sector and support from the government in the form of its flagship FAME-II policy, which is aimed at boosting EV adoption. "We believe that India is well-positioned to make this transition. The solutions are evident, and the environment is conducive. With the needed impetus, India can achieve its aspiration of becoming one of the world's leaders in e-mobility," said Fabian Sempf, Principal and India Head of Automotive at Arthur D Little. The study further noted that besides the benefits of a cleaner environment, India's import bill is also expected to come down by almost USD 14 billion in 2030 itself. Besides, the adoption of EVs is expected to create 10 million new jobs in India by 2030, in turn boosting economic growth of the country, said the report. The report was launched in the presence of auto industry veteran and former MD and CEO Mahindra & Mahindra; Pawan Goenka, Mahesh Babu, CEO India and COO, Switch Mobility; Chetan Maini, Co-Founder and Chairman, Sun Mobility; Balbir Singh Dhillon, Head, Audi India; and Mr. Rajan Wadhera, Former President, SIAM, and Senior Advisor, Mahindra & Mahindra.   Source: The Economic Times

India’s digital payment market is expected to more than triple to $10 trillion by 2026, according to the latest study by digital payments firm PhonePe and  Boston Consulting Group (BCG). At present, the study said, 40% of all transactions in India are digital, and payments worth $3 trillion were processed by digital instruments in 2021. This does not include payments made for financial services, corporate business payments, and government payments. India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) continues to grow, clocking 5.95 billion transactions worth Rs 10.41 lakh crore last month.   According to the PhonePe-BCG study, UPI has supercharged India’s transition to non-cash payments, especially in person-to-person (P2P) fund transfers and low-value merchant (P2M) payments.   “UPI saw about a nine-fold transaction volume increase in the past three years, from five billion transactions in FY19 to about 46 billion in FY22, accounting for more than 60% of non-cash transaction volumes in FY22,” said the report. The study said UPI still has headroom to grow and will account for 73% of all digital payment volumes by FY26. In terms of acceptance, quick response (QR) codes have played a big part in expaning digital payment services in India, the report said. At present, QR-code payments are accepted by more than 30 million merchants in the country, a substantial increase from 2.5 million merchants five years ago. As QR-code adoption grows, total P2M transaction volumes on UPI have grown from 12% in 2018 to 45% in 2021, with further growth expected, it added.   “The major contribution for the digital payments’ growth would be from merchant payments, that are expected to significantly digitize in the next five years, increasing from 20% digital penetration by value today to about 65% by 2026, a seven-fold growth from $0.3-0.4 trillion digital merchant payments today to $2.5- 2.7 trillion by 2026,” the report said. Offline payments are expected to account for 75% of all digital payment transactions in the coming years, as more stores adopt QR codes, the report said. On challenges, the report highlighted know-your-customer (KYC) norms, frauds and UPI outages as possible bottlenecks in the growing acceptance digital payments. “Currently, KYC is one of the key bottlenecks discouraging merchants and customers from signing up for digital platforms and e-wallets. While digital KYC means [such as] OKYC (offline KYC), VKYC (video KYC) are enabled for many players, they still come with friction when it comes to end-to-end digital KYC. Full KYC requires either a video or a physical touch point with a biometric device,” the report added. It also said that due to scalability issues with bank infrastructure, technical declines continue to plague the high-growth UPI ecosystem.   “On average, banks and NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India, which runs UPI) face about 1.4% of technical declines in UPI transaction volumes due to unavailability of systems and network issues given the unprecedented UPI growth. Banking platforms have limited scalability and room to improve on service quality. Banks need to solve this by evaluating options outside core banking, including cloud,” said the report.   Source: The Economic Times

Deficiency of intestinal enzyme, Alkaline Phosphatase, is one of the leading causes of developing diabetes among people, according to a study revealed in Dhaka on Wednesday.  The study was published in the British Medical Journal recently and it (study) was revealed at a conference held at Birdem General Hospital.  Prof Dr AK Azad, President of Diabetic Association of Bangladesh (DAB), told BSS that, "Two factors -- genetic and unhealthy lifestyle -- are directly linked to developing diabetes among the people." The study found that unhealthy lifestyle is responsible for deficiency of intestinal enzyme named Alkaline Phosphatase, which causes diabetes, he added.    Diabetic Association of Bangladesh (DAB) coordinated the study led by Dr Madhu S Malo, a former faculty at Harvard Medical School in USA, and an advisor to the Diabetic Association. Bangladesh Medical and Research Council and the ministry of education funded the study. A team of researchers from multiple local and foreign universities revealed the cause through a five-year investigation on 674 non-diabetic people, aged 30-60. As per the study, people with the Alkaline Phosphatese deficiency have 13.8 times higher risk of developing diabetes than those who do not, Madhu S Malo  said. The researchers have also developed a home-based mechanism to test the deficiency of the enzyme. "Diabetes is one of the most prevalent non-communicable diseases globally.... the number of people with diabetes is increasing rapidly in Bangladesh," Dr AK Azad said.  Poor lifestyle is largely responsible for the rising cases of diabetes in the country; he said adding, unhealthy lifestyles include inadequate physical activity and fast food-dependent food habit.  "Roughly 85 lakh people are suffering from diabetes disease in the country. Of them, proportion of type-1 diabetes is five percent while 95 percent people are suffering from type-2 diabetes," Prof Azad added.  Explaining the nature of diabetes disease, he said most of the people are being affected by type-2 diabetes due to lack of awareness and insufficient knowledge on nutritious food.   The health expert said many factors including everyday lifestyle and genetic factors are associated with diabetes disease. "We can prevent 75 percent diabetes, if the people follow healthy living method... 25 percent patients could control this non-communicable disease through maintaining health rules." Source: BSS AH

Kashmiri scholars’ study that published recently has made several revelations about the ongoing armed conflict in Jammu and Kashmir. A research done by Dr. Asima Hassan from the University of Kashmir’s Sociology department reveals that in 21 per cent cases, the second member of the family/extended family joined militancy after the killing of their militant relative. Titled, “Effects of armed conflict on the families of slain members of armed groups in Kashmir: A sociological study” the paper has been published by the Journal of Emerging Technologies and Innovative Research (JETIR), a research journal. The researcher, who claims to have surveyed 100 families of slain militants across Kashmir for the paper, reveals that of these 21 percent, in four cases father and son or two brothers were militants and both got killed.“68 percent of the respondents in the study stated that before and after the death of the militant, they faced isolation from society,” the study found. “Before the killing of the militant, Government forces constantly raided their (militant) houses due to which relatives, neighbours and friends of the family would maintain distance with them leaving the family without any social support. It is believed that militancy generally has social acceptance in Kashmir and due to this reason none of the respondents apparently faced any social stigma,” it says.“However, during the intensive interactions with these families, it was observed that underneath the families of slain militants were facing several social issues; including finding a suitable match for their children,” the paper points out. The findings of the study have revealed that families of the slain militants are living in miserable and pitiable conditions. Source: TK