Month: February 2017

Scientists have found a genetically unique population of miniature sharks off the coast of Belize. They described their results in the Journal of Fish Biology. 

The hammerhead shark family is made up of 10 known species, five of which are on the petite side (relatively speaking). One of those miniature sharks is the bonnethead, Sphyrna tiburo, which meanders through the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans feeding on crabs, shrimp, and little fish. Female bonnetheads are a bit larger than the males, maxing out at around four feet long.

Bonnethead populations appear to be pretty healthy at the moment, but like just about everything else in the ocean these days, their future is pretty uncertain. Researchers decided to assess the bonnetheads’ current situation at the smallest possible level—by looking at their DNA. They collected tiny skin samples from 239 live sharks in the waters off the Bahamas, Texas, Panama City (Florida), Tampa Bay, the Florida Keys, North Carolina, and Belize, then analyzed their genetic code to check up on the sharks’ health. 

The bonnetheads’ DNA looked good—but it also looked sort of odd. The samples taken in Belize were startlingly different from the rest of the bunch. 

Paper co-author Kevin Feldheim leads The Field Museum’s Pritzker Laboratory for Molecular Systematics and Evolution. He said he and his colleagues were quite surprised with their results. “We thought we were doing a standard analysis of a shark population,” he said in a statement, “and suddenly, whoa, we were looking at a whole new species.”

That’s the short version. The long version is that Feldheim and his colleagues have more work to do before they can be certain they’ve got a brand-new bonnethead on their hands 

“There’s no cutoff in DNA that indicates you’ve got a different species,” he said. “Determining when you have a new species is a tricky thing. But these sharks are living in a separate environment from their fellow bonnetheads, and they’re likely on their own evolutionary trajectory.”

New species or no, the sharks still need attention and protection. Co-author Demian Chapman of Florida International University said: “Now we have to define the range of each of these species individually and assess them independently against where the potential threats are … our finding of a new species in Belize highlights that there could be more undescribed ones out there, each one facing a unique set of threats.”

In 1966, two football leagues were vying for gridiron dominance: the venerable NFL and the sport’s newcomer, the AFL. On June 8, 1966, the two leagues announced their plans to merge, rather than compete over players and a split fanbase. This meant a new championship game had to be conceived that would show which was the dominant league every year. Today we know it as the Super Bowl—one of the most polished, extravagant events of the entire year. But on January 15, 1967, when the first AFL-NFL World Championship Game took place, it was something bordering on a disaster, with television mishaps, a dispute over the name, and thousands of empty seats marring the very first Super Bowl Sunday. To see how the big game nearly fell apart, here are eight facts about the first Super Bowl.

1. IT WAS ONLY CASUALLY KNOWN AS THE SUPER BOWL AT FIRST.

In 1966, meetings were going on about the first-ever championship game between the NFL and the upstart AFL set to be played in January of that next year. In addition to talking about location and logistics, the big question on everyone’s mind was what to call it. Though Pete Rozelle, the NFL’s commissioner at the time, suggested names like The Big One and The Pro Bowl (which was the same name as the NFL’s own all-star game), it was eventually decided that the game would be called … the AFL-NFL World Championship Game.

A name like that just doesn’t create much buzz, though, and the newly merged league needed something punchier. Then Lamar Hunt, owner of the Kansas City Chiefs, recalled a toy his children played with, a Super Ball, which led to his idea: the Super Bowl.

The name picked up support from fans and the media, but Rozelle hated it, viewing the word “Super” as too informal. By the time the game began, the tickets read “AFL-NFL World Championship Game,” but people were still offhandedly referring to it as the Super Bowl. By the fourth year, the league caved and finally printed Super Bowl on the game’s tickets. For Super Bowl V, the Roman numerals made their debut and stayed there every year except Super Bowl 50 in 2016. (The first three championship games have also been officially renamed Super Bowls retroactively.)

2. THE GAME WAS AIRED ON TWO DIFFERENT NETWORKS.

Since the first Super Bowl involved two completely different organizations, there was a bit of an issue televising the game. NBC had the rights to air AFL games, while CBS was the longtime rights holder for the NFL product. Neither station was going to miss out on its respective league’s championship game, so the first Super Bowl was the only one to be simulcast on two different networks. Rival networks also meant rival announcing teams: CBS used their familiar roster of play-by-play man Ray Scott in the first half, Jack Whitaker in the second half, and Frank Gifford doing color commentary for the entire game. Curt Gowdy and Paul Christman led the voices for NBC.

It turns out the competition between the two networks for ratings superiority was just as intense as the helmet-rattling game played on the field. Tensions were so high leading up to game day that a fence had to be built in between the CBS and NBC production trucks to keep everyone separate. The more familiar NFL broadcast team over on CBS won the ratings war that day, beating NBC’s feed by just a bit over 2 million viewers.

3. THE GAME DIDN’T COME CLOSE TO A SELLOUT.

The cheapest price for a Super Bowl 51 ticket is currently hovering around $2000, but frankly, you could probably charge people double that and the game would be a guaranteed sellout. The first Super Bowl, however, didn’t quite have that same cachet behind it. With tickets averaging around $12, the AFL-NFL World Championship Game couldn’t manage to sell out the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in 1967. It’s still the only Super Bowl not to fill up its venue.

Despite blacking the game out on TV stations within 75 miles of the Coliseum to get fans to the stadium rather than watching at home, about a third of the stadium’s seats were empty. Some fans balked at the steep $12 ticket prices, while others were so incensed at the blackout that they stayed away out of protest. Whatever the reason, the sight of tens of thousands of empty seats for what was supposed to be the most important game in both leagues’ history was not what Rozelle had in mind when the Super Bowl was conceived.

4. DIFFERENT BALLS AND DIFFERENT RULES WERE USED FOR THE GAME.

The overall product between the AFL and NFL weren’t that different, but there were a few hiccups when making the rules fair for both teams. The AFL’s two-point conversion rule, which it used for the entirety of its existence, was barred from the game, allowing only the traditional point-after field goal instead. When the AFL and NFL later merged, the two-point conversion was banished altogether until 1994, when it was reinstated league-wide.

The other big change for the game was the ball itself. The AFL used a ball made by Spalding, which was slightly longer, narrower, and had a tackier surface than the NFL’s ball, which was created by Wilson. To make each team feel at home, their own league’s ball would be used whenever they were on offense.

5. THE SECOND HALF KICKOFF HAD TO BE REDONE BECAUSE CAMERAS MISSED IT.

When the second half of Super Bowl I began, everyone was ready for the kickoff: players, refs, and the production crew. Well, one production crew was ready, anyway. It turns out NBC missed the opening kickoff of the second half because the network was too busy airing an interview with Bob Hope. The kickoff had to be redone for the sake of nearly half the TV audience; even worse, some poor soul probably had to break the news to Packers coach Vince Lombardi.

6. THE HALFTIME SHOW INCLUDED TWO DUDES IN JETPACKS.

Forget your Bruno Mars and Beyoncé performances; Super Bowl I’s halftime show was an affront to gravity itself as two men in what can only be described as jetpacks (though technically they were called “rocket belts”) flew around the field to give people a glimpse at what the future of slightly above-ground travel would look like. Very little video exists of the spectacle today, but this performance was later revisited at the halftime show for Super Bowl XIX, when jetpacks made their long-awaited return to gridiron absurdity.

In addition to airborne theatrics, the inaugural show also included some marching bands and the release of hundreds of pigeons into the air—one of which dropped a present right on the typewriter of a young Brent Musburger.

7. THE ORIGINAL BROADCAST FOOTAGE IS CURRENTLY IN LEGAL LIMBO.

Unlike today, where games are DVR’ed, saved, edited into YouTube clips, and preserved for all eternity, there is no complete copy of the broadcast edition of Super Bowl I. In 2005, a man from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, found a copy of the CBS broadcast in his attic, which had been recorded by his father on two-inch quadruplex tapes. However, the halftime show and parts of the third quarter are missing. The footage has been digitally restored and is currently locked in a vault at The Paley Center for Media in Manhattan. To this day, it hasn’t been shown to the public as Troy Haupt, the tape’s owner, is in legal limbo with the NFL over the exact worth of the footage.

8. THE NFL TRIED—AND FAILED—TO SHOW THE GAME IN SOME FORM IN 2016.

Perhaps as a way to show Haupt that they didn’t need his tapes, the NFL Network released a version of the game cobbled together not from CBS or NBC footage, but from video edited together from its then-nascent NFL Films division. With the game’s radio call played over it, every play from the game was aired in 2016, albeit not how it was originally seen in 1967. Unfortunately, the game also featured some questionable running commentary from the NFL Network’s current analysts during the entire broadcast. The re-broadcast was such as disaster that the NFL Network had to re-re-broadcast it without the intrusive commentary from its own analysts.

IBM Watson is best known for appearances on Jeopardy! and unlocking the secret to happiness, but now the artificial intelligence supercomputer is adding a new accomplishment to its resume: filing your annual tax returns, Mashable reports.

H&R Block has partnered with IBM to use Watson’s computing power to go through tax documents and receipts. Along with H&R Block staff, IBM’s software will use natural language processing to understand more than 70,000 pages of the United States federal tax code as well as up-to-date tax laws in order to find the best possible tax return for customers.

“IBM has shown how complex, data-rich industries such as healthcare, retail and education are being transformed through the use of Watson,” said David Kenny, IBM’s senior vice president for Watson, in a press release. “Now with H&R Block, we’re applying the power of cognitive computing in an entirely new way that everyone can relate to and benefit from – the tax prep process.”

IBM Watson will also learn more about the U.S. tax code as it continues to file more returns throughout the season, so it can be smarter and more efficient. The tax firm hopes that Watson will improve the way they file year after year.

H&R Block will officially launch IBM’s Watson at their 10,000 locations nationwide on February 5.

[h/t Mashable]

It’s hard not to feel inspired after watching one of the fantastical films of Hayao Miyazaki. According to Juxtapoz, 50 artists have channeled that spark into works of art celebrating the legendary director.

The “Miyazaki Art Show” at Spoke Art gallery in San Francisco will feature tributes to such films as My Neighbor Totoro (1988), Spirited Away (2001), Princess Mononoke (1997), and Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989). A variety of mediums will be represented (as you can see below, one sculpture is a tray of fake food inspired by the films).

The show runs from February 4 to February 25, but for a chance to meet some of the artists in person, fans should attend the opening reception on Saturday night—costumes are encouraged.

[h/t Juxtapoz]

All images courtesy of Spoke Art.

Pickles can be a divisive topic: You either love them or you hate them. But the people who love pickles really love pickles. Thankfully, devout fans of the brined cucumbers can celebrate their love with a whole slew of items that smell or taste like pickles.

1. LIP BALM; $6

Unfortunately, you can’t eat pickles all day long, but you can at least have the smell lingering on your lips with this novelty lip balm. The 2.5-inch tube boasts a strong dill flavor that may lead to some vinegary (but soft!) lips.

Find it: Amazon

2. MINTS; $6

Usually people eat mints to get rid of pickle breath, but who’s to say that you’d ever want to? Each green tin comes with 100 dill-flavored mints that will give your mouth a fresh-from-the-jar smell.

Find it: Amazon

3. POP ROCKS; $6

People who love both candy and pickles will want to pick up these off-brand Pop Rocks, which promise to be “not only a barrel of fun, but also dill-icious.”

Find it: Amazon

4. DORITOS; $9

Doritos may not have the flavor breadth of other brands—Lay’s, for example, continues to astound and alarm their fan base with flavors like wasabi and mango salsa—but they do have some quirks. This Intense Pickle flavor claims to “add some zing to your meal.”

Find it: Amazon

5. VODKA

Any fan of the pickleback knows that alcohol and pickles are a match made in heaven. Now you can get your booze and your pickle juice in the same shot glass thanks to Chilled Dills. The dill-infused vodka is meant to be enjoyed in Bloody Marys, mojitos, or just on the rocks.

Find it: Chilled Dills

6. A GUMMY; $11

Why settle for a boring bag of gummy bears when you can enjoy a 4.5 ounce gummy that looks and tastes just like a real dill pickle?

Find it: Amazon

7. SOAP; $7

Now shower time can smell like a New York deli with these realistic gherkin pickle soaps. They come in packs of 12, so every bathroom in your house can have one. (These soaps also come in a margarita scent.)

Find it: Etsy

8. CANDLE; $25

If you’re trying to set the right ambience for a date, might we recommend this pickle-scented candle? This green, 8-ounce candle come in a metal tin for easy storage.

Find it: Amazon

9. TOOTHPASTE; $10

This dill-flavored toothpaste is sure to raise a few eyebrows. Likely not a practical option for oral hygiene, the 2.5-ounce tube does make for a good gag gift.

Find it: Pickle Addicts

10. GUMBALLS; $4

Blow some green, salty bubbles with this novelty bubble gum. Each tin contains roughly 22 brined gumballs.

Find it: eBay

11. ICE POPS; $9

Cool down on a hot day with a pickle-flavored ice pop. Each bag comes with six pops that can be eaten frozen or unfrozen, and the snack is guilt-free: it has less than five calories and no sugar added.

Find it: Amazon

12. SPORTS DRINK; $13

Believe it or not, drinking pickle juice is an old-fashioned trick runners use to prevent muscle cramping. While it might seem counterintuitive to gulp down something so salty when you need to stay hydrated, there is some evidence that pickle juice really does help. These 8-ounce bottles come in groups of six and pack a salty punch.

Find it: Amazon

13. POPCORN; $45

OK, hear us out: Pickle popcorn is surprisingly good. The zippy dill taste works just as well as salt and vinegar works on chips. You can get a huge case of 12 bags of organic pickle popcorn online, because you’re definitely going to have to share.

Find it: Walmart

The hardest part of cooking a well-rounded breakfast is getting the timing right (after all, no one wants cold eggs or floppy bacon). Fortunately, there are plenty of innovations on the market to make cooking as efficient as possible. In addition to this all-in-one frying pan, there’s also the Nostalgia Electrics 3-in-1 Breakfast Station.

This retro, diner-esque appliance can cook a whole slew of different breakfast items and brew you a pot of coffee at the same time. Up top, there’s a griddle for eggs, sausages, and bacon, which is situated just above a toaster oven. To the left, there’s a coffee maker that makes up to four cups of java at a time. Everything is controlled with knobs in the front, so the chef can stand in one place while making the meal.

This one-stop breakfast station is perfect for creating elaborate meals in record time and saving a little counter space. City dwellers in cramped apartments know the value of kitchen space, so it’s important to make each appliance count.

Hungry chefs can get their breakfast fix with one of these devices over at Amazon.

[h/t Trend Hunter]

A casual fan’s guide to Super Bowl 51. If you’re only going to watch one football game this year, you may as well learn something about it.  
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18 Super Bowl Snacks That Make Watching Football Worth It. The best part of the game!
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10 Oddball Questions Scientists Have Genuinely Tried to Answer. Some lend themselves to experimentation, others are just weird.
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What Would Happen If You Never Got Up From Your Seat? After I read the answer, I felt the need to start a load of laundry, make the bed, and  walk around the yard.
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Would You Believe… the Get Smart Story. The TV show about an intelligence agency with no intelligence.  
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10 Must-Read Books for February. Feed your head something besides news and politics.
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Is Costa Rica the world’s happiest, greenest country? Diverting military funds to health and education paid off for them.
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15 Common Expressions Younger Generations Won’t Understand. They’re based on technology we no longer use.

Biologist Anthony Ambrose climbs the world’s largest trees, but he doesn’t do it for the endorphin rush. The University of California-Berkeley researcher studies how drought and climate change affect forest ecosystems—and right now, he’s concerned about how the state’s sequoia trees are faring under California’s ongoing drought.

Ambrose and his team of researchers check on the trees by measuring their water status, a.k.a. how much water is available for them to continue to function and grow. To do this, the biologist needs to take samples from the trees’ crowns, so he scales the 300-foot sequoias in the name of science.

“As water moves up the tree it’s fighting gravity and friction and the top of the tree is going to be the most stressed part of the tree. So in order to get a really good idea of how stressed they are, we need to go to the tippy top,” Ambrose explains.

Learn more about Ambrose’s research in the video above, courtesy of Great Big Story.

[h/t Great Big Story]

Banner image: iStock