Are Dogs Colorblind? Here’s the Science Behind What Dogs Can See

A lot of us have been taught that dogs, our four-legged friends, can only see the world in black and white. That they will never be able to see the beautiful colors that exist around us. It’s honestly sad to consider.

But is this true? Or is it just a thing people told their children?

Photo Credit: Pexels, Lum3n.com

Not exactly true, as it turns out.

The myth originated in 1937, per the American Kennel Club:

“It’s likely that all the external world appears to them as varying highlights of black and gray,” Rudy wrote in his 1937 manual, Training the Dog.

The phrase that catches my eye is: “It’s likely…” Okay, so there is some doubt expressed, but let’s dig deeper. The AKC also talks about a 1960 finding that may have supported Rudy’s claim:

“In the 1960s, other researchers hypothesized that the only mammals that can discern color are primates. There was little research to back up this assertion, especially in dogs; nevertheless, it soon became common knowledge that our canine pals are color blind.”

Again there is some doubt: “There was little research to back up this assertion…”

Can Dogs See Color?

The short answer is yes. Sort of.

Dr. Zay Satchu, a Chief Veterinary Officer of Bond Vet, talked with Reader’s digest:

“Yes! Dogs can see color. Both humans and animals have different types of cells in the back of our eyeballs—called rods and cones—that help us see. Rods detect motion and help with nighttime vision, and cones help with color and detail in what we see. Humans have three kinds of cones, meaning we see color and detail very well, while dogs have two kinds, meaning they can still pick up on colors, but probably can’t differentiate between forest and lime green as easily.”

But don’t go getting rid of Fido’s yellow tennis balls just yet! Dogs may not have the spectrum of color like us humans, but they can discern between certain ones.

What Colors Are Visible to Dogs?

Photo Credit: Pexels, Skitterphoto

“Most dogs can’t see much of red or green at all,” says Dr. Satchu. “The other ‘color’ that exists that humans can’t see but dogs can is ultraviolet, meaning ‘beyond violet.’ We’re still evaluating the true purpose of this vision, but we think it has to do with the ability to pick up on the kinds of substances that contain ultraviolet light, like urine and blood, that help with tracking out in the wild.”

He also says that blues and yellows are the showrunners in the rainbow that our canine friends see. Hence, the delight with the yellow tennis balls. Also, how interesting is it that a doggos’ vision goes beyond humans’!

So are you wondering why dog toys are brightly shaded in oranges, purples, and other colors? Well, here’s my take: The toys are eye-catching for humans, not pups. When we stroll down the pet aisle the manufacturers know who they’re selling too.

But as long at those toys make your dog happy, all’s well in dogland.

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Learn Some Great New Information with These 10 Facts

Ready to exercise that brain? Ready to learn?

Then let’s get to work!

1. I need one of these

Photo Credit: did you know?

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2. Where the bodies were buried

Photo Credit: did you know?

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3. That makes sense

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Source 1 Source 2

4. Ouch…

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Source

5. Nice and quiet

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6. WOW

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7. Improvement

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8. No more, no less

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Source 1 Source 2

9. Double rainbows!

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Source 1 Source 2

10. Wild animals

Photo Credit: did you know?

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That was some good learnin’!

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Learn Some Great New Information with These 10 Facts

Ready to exercise that brain? Ready to learn?

Then let’s get to work!

1. I need one of these

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source 1 Source 2

2. Where the bodies were buried

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source 1 Source 2 Source 3

3. That makes sense

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source 1 Source 2

4. Ouch…

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source

5. Nice and quiet

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source 1 Source 2

6. WOW

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source 1 Source 2 Source 3

7. Improvement

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source 1 Source 2 Source 3

8. No more, no less

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source 1 Source 2

9. Double rainbows!

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source 1 Source 2

10. Wild animals

Photo Credit: did you know?

Source 1 Source 2 Source 3

That was some good learnin’!

The post Learn Some Great New Information with These 10 Facts appeared first on UberFacts.

A Huge Tick That Can Hunt Humans Through the Forest Is Expanding Its Territory. Run!

You know what? Ticks are absolutely terrifying. These little buggers end up embedded in your body without you knowing it, which is disgusting right off the bat. I remember picking them off of me (and my dog) after taking a stroll through the woods when I was a kid. Just a stroll! And not even through high grass or anything!

And if you don’t get them out of your body in time, you run the risk of Lyme disease, which can be an absolute nightmare.

Well, I’m here to tell you it gets even worse. Your typical ticks recognizes you (and any animal) by the carbon dioxide you exhale, and they wait until you walk by their leaf or whatever before they  jump on for a ride.

Hyalomma ticks, however, can recognize an animal or a human from up to 30 FEET AWAY, and they will run along the ground to get to a potential host. They also track footstep vibrations and body heat to follow humans and animals.

It gets worse: Hyalomma ticks can and will follow you for 10 minutes or more and will walk up to 325 feet to hunt you down and jump onto your body.

Sounds like a horror movie, doesn’t it?

Oh, and one more thing: they’re also TWICE AS LARGE as the ticks we’re used to seeing. Hyalomma ticks live mostly in the Mediterranean, but they’ve now been confirmed in Germany, the Netherlands, Hungary, and Russia because they can catch rides on migratory birds. That means THEY’RE SPREADING.

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Parasiten: Die Hyalomma-Zecke ist heimisch geworden 😱⠀ ⠀ Sie sind wesentlich größer als die hier bekannten Zecken, sie können Menschen wittern und Dutzende Meter weit verfolgen. Nun haben Hyalomma-Zecken aus Afrika und Südeuropa das erste Mal nachweislich in Deutschland überwintert.⠀ Die Hyalomma-Zecke ist deutlich größer als die Zecken, die normalerweise in Deutschland heimisch sind. Sie ist gut an ihren gestreiften Beinen zu erkennen.⠀ ⠀ > weiter lesen: https://buff.ly/2RMIoZ4?fbclid=IwAR1T3J7BslwNOud3GZv3515m6fNhOe_UsSF36m-bHALpOf2t0RCZcWHe2Q0⠀ ⠀ Quelle: Pharmazeutische Zeitung⠀ .⠀ ..⠀ …⠀ #zecke #riesenzecke #hyalomma #parasiten #infektion #infektionskrankheiten #krankheitsüberträger #fsme #viren #lymeborreliose #bakterien #impfung #FSMEimpfung #apotheke #gesundheit #beratung #service #selb #neueapo #instapotheke

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I guess the only comfort you can take from this is that if you live in the United States, Hyalomma ticks are nothing to worry about…yet.

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People in Georgia Worked Together to Save a Stranded Pod of Whales on a Beach

When a group of beachgoers in Georgia spotted a pod of whales in trouble, they had the chance to really make a difference and be heroes of the hour.

It happened in mid-July on St. Simons island; people out enjoying the sun noticed not one, but an entire pod of whales that had swum too close to the shore and become stuck on the sand.

The beachgoers leapt into action, wading into the sea and pushing the smaller whales back into deeper waters while they waited for rescuers from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources to arrive with more help.

Then the volunteers continued working alongside trained rescuers and were able to save all but two of the whales. And according to the Glynn County Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency’s Facebook page, most of the cephalopods were totally unharmed when they returned to the sea.

At this time we would like to thank the many volunteers and first responders that stepped up to help the large number of…

Posted by Glynn County EMA and Homeland Security on Tuesday, July 16, 2019

“This has been an unusual occurrence, but events like these can really show the level of care and support from our community. Thank you to everyone that helped those that couldn’t help themselves today.”

Scientists don’t really understand why beaching events happens, or why an entire pod might find themselves in trouble, but they posit that perhaps one sick whale wandered too close to the shore and inadvertently led the rest into danger.

They plan to conduct autopsies on the two whales who did not survive the event in the hopes they might learn something that could help whales in the future.

So, there you go – be the hero you want to see in the world… even if you don’t get a cape for your efforts.

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A Texas Movie Theater Lets You Bring Your Dog and the Ticket Includes Bottomless Wine

This is what I’m talking about! And I have a feeling I’m not alone.

In fact, I’m willing to bet that armies of millions are lined up behind me in their overwhelming excitement about this news: there’ is now a movie theater where $15 buys you a ticket to the show and you can bring your dog with you. Oh, and you get unlimited wine or four whiskeys with that ticket.

Boom!

K9 Cinemas in Plano, Texas, is the name of the joint, and it opened in late 2018. There are only three rules people need to follow at the cinema: no more than two dogs per person (it costs $5 to bring an extra pup), you need to bring valid papers from your dog’s vet the first time you visit, and you need to clean up after your best friend. Also, you can buy snacks for yourself (obviously) and treats for your furry friend, too.

Eric Lankford, who founded K9 Cinemas, said, “I can’t believe we are breaking ground with a new niche nobody has done before — dogs and movies! We are excited to spread the smiles across your whole families faces, furry included, at a K9C near you coming soon!”

Lankford said about the business and beloved dog, Bear:

“Little did Bear and I know we would soon be published in every major publication you can name both nationally and worldwide. Turns out when you start a passion project with a decade of experience building businesses and turn that experience on to something you sincerely love, something special happens. I simply want to make other people as happy as Bear makes me. When our customers come through our doors it’s nothing but smiles and laughter.”

The theater doesn’t show first-run films yet, but instead screens one-off movies and hosts theme nights. And, of course, you better believe the theater has hosted Game of Thrones viewing parties.

Genius idea! I smell a franchise brewing…

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15 Facts That Are Totally Disturbing

Ready for some disturbing facts?

Facts can be cool, interesting, and fascinating without being fun, and that’s exactly the sort of thing people were sharing on this Reddit thread.

So, if you’re looking for facts that are weird, strange, disturbing, and/or gross while still being super interesting, well – you’ve come to the right place.

15. When I throw up I want to die, soooo.

Horses can’t throw up.

If they need to throw up, they’ll die.

14. I can see this.

The smell of vomit comes from butyric acid, as does the smell of parmesan cheese.

When given a sample of butyric acid to smell, test subjects were disgusted or pleased depending on whether they were told it was puke or parm.

13. Just say no.

Heroin overdose is so prevalent (and dangerous) because of how fast tolerance bounces back.

So let’s say an addict gets arrested and is in jail for a few days, weeks, whatever.

If they’re a heavy user even half the dose they last used could kill them.

12. Nasty.

Gingivitis is contagious.

11. Just one more reason the prison system is screwed up.

Criminals that are considered unattractive usually receive a 50% longer jail time than attractive criminals.

10. Horrifying but interesting.

“For generations, the indigenous peoples of South American used blow darts laced with paralytic plant extract to hunt their prey.

In the 1800s, English physicians who interacted with these indigenous South Americans recognized the possible uses of this paralytic agent, now known as tubocurarine, as an anesthetic agent for surgeries. Physicians noticed that animals under the influence of tubocurarine would become temporarily immobilized but would recover after a period of paralysis.

According to these physicians, this discovery would revolutionize surgery as an anesthetic agent. So confident were they in their discovery that one of the physicians volunteered to undergo surgery under the influence of tubocurarine to demonstrate its effectiveness.

Unfortunately, he failed to realize that, although the drug was an effective paralyzing agent, it did not have any effect on the sensory receptors of the body, so he felt every cut of the surgery without being able to move or do anything about it. “

9. Color me shocked.

The TSA missed 96% of contraband during an inspection in 2015.

8. Nature, man.

Crabs eat their babies and sloths can die from starvation with a full stomach.

7. The loneliest whale in the world.

There is a whale called 52 Blue who sings at such a strange frequency he is unable to communicate with other whales.

6. A ray of sunshine.

When it comes to heart disease, the VERY FIRST symptom in roughly 1/3 of all cases is sudden death.

Meaning you could be perfectly healthy and drop dead because you had heart disease and didn’t know it.

Check your family history people.

5. Can never un-know.

Male bed bugs impregnate female bed bugs by penetrating the females abdomen with his hypodermic dick.

4. In today’s sad facts…

When another elephant dies, its pack make a little funeral for it. They pick rocks and put it around the body, and stand there for a while before they keep the way.

3. Human technology and nature are not friends.

If you shine a flashlight/smartphone on a newborn sea turtle for too long (which could be only minutes), it will start crawling around in circles. Known as the “Ring of Death”, it means that the turtle’s eyesight has been permanently damaged due to mistaking your lights for the moon that guides it to the sea.

By doing this, you have doomed the sea turtle to death right after birth.​

Edit: Information was given to me by the Sea Turtle Preservation Society in Indialantic, Fl during a presentation.

2. Only the strong will survive.

If any apocalypse happens, anyone who takes medication daily is f*cked.

1. No scuba for you.

If you have a pneumothorax (collapsed lung), even once it’s resolved you can never go scuba diving.

Also, there’s a one in three chance it will happen again within 12 months.

But yeah, I can never, ever, go scuba diving…

Delivered as promised!

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The Worst Shark Attack on Record Happened During World War II

When you think of shark attacks, you probably imagine surfers, divers, or other people who choose to be in the water with the giant predators when they’re mistaken for food – but the worst shark attack in history is actually the result of an event far more sinister.

And in this case, the sharks weren’t making mistakes – the humans beings treading water were, in fact, their intended prey.

The USS Indianapolis had delivered components of the atomic bomb that would later level Hiroshima before leaving Guam. It sailed alone toward the Leyte Gulf in the Philippines, where it was supposed to meet the USS Idaho and prepare for an invasion of Japan.

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The USS Indianapolis (CA-35) was a heavy cruiser of the United States Navy in World War two. The ship was named after the City Indianapolis and was a ship of the Portland-class. The commissioning was on the 15th of November 1932 and had a length of 186m, a width of 20m and a draft of 7m. With her 8×White-Forster boilers, she had a maximum speed of 32.7 knots (60.6 km/h; 37.6 mph) and had a displacement of 10,110 tons. USS Indianapolis had a armament of 3×3-203mm guns, of 8×127mm AA guns, of 16×28mm AA guns, of 24×40mm AA guns, of 14×20mm AA guns and of 2×3-pounder 47mm guns. ======================================= After her commissioning, the ship was under the command of Captain John M. Smeallie and had a lot of training maneuvers, for example off the Chilean coast or in the Guantánamo Bay. She also escorted President Franklin Delano Roosevelt on three different cruises, one trip to the Campobello Island, one trip to a naval review and one trip to South America. During the last cruise, President Roosevelt underwent his crossing the line ceremony on the 26 November 1936 with the words: "an intensive initiation lasting two days, but we have all survived and are now full-fledged Shellbacks". After the beginning of World War two, USS Indianapolis operated together with carrier task forces in the South Pacific and supported the New Guinea campaign with the attacking of Lae and Salamaua. Then the ship was transferred in Alaska area and supported the Aleutian Islands campaign with the attacking of Kiska Island and other operations, for example the conquest of Amchitka. In February 1943, she was on a patrol with two destroyers in the near of Attu Island and had sank the Japanese cargo ship Akagane Maru (3,150 t). Later in 1943, USS Indianapolis became the flagship of 5th Fleet and took part in many operations, for example the conquest of the Gilberts, Marshalls and Marianas Islands. The ship also took part in a lot of attacks on Japanese positions, for example the bombarding of the Kwajalein Atoll in January 1944 and participated in the Peleliu invasion in September 1944. 👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇

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A day later, shortly after midnight, a Japanese torpedo ripped the ship in half.

It sank in under 12 minutes, sending the 900 survivors (of 1196 crew) into the water.

There weren’t enough life rafts to hold everyone but there were life vests to go around, and as the men formed groups and began going through rations and trying to maintain some kind of order, they surely believed rescue would come – and soon.

They were wrong.

Instead, the sharks appeared, likely drawn by the blood and bodies in the water, ready to attack live victims. Their reported aggression leads most historians and experts to believe the sharks in question were oceanic whitetips – a particularly aggressive species that lives and feeds in open water.

The sailors did what they could, pushing the men who died away from the groups to draw sharks and moving away from anyone with an open or bleeding wound. The first person to open a can of SPAM paid the ultimate price, and the rest of the meat rations were tossed after that harrowing spectacle.

Days passed and the Navy did nothing, believing that reports of the ships sinking had been planted in an attempt to draw rescue ships into open water. The survivors dwindled, dying from thirst, heat, drinking seawater and suffering from salt poisoning. Those who were not in their right minds dragged healthy men into the water when they jumped, dooming even more to the depths.

After four-plus days in the water, a Navy pilot spotted the survivors and radioed for help, and when a second plane arrived, it dropped rafts and supplies before landing and attempting to gather the men most at risk – disobeying orders in the process.

Twelve hours later, the USS Doyle arrived and pulled 317 men from the water – nearly 600 had perished in the four days it took the Navy to respond. Not all of them were killed by sharks, with salt poisoning and exposure claiming lives, along with lack of access to clean water, but none of those men would have had to die had the Navy been quick to send rescue teams after the attack.

Lessons learned? Don’t expect that help will be there soon, and don’t mess with the oceanic whitetip shark.

And don’t eat SPAM, but you probably already figured that out on your own.

Also also, Nic Cage starred in a 2016 movie about the disaster called USS Indianapolis: Men of Courage.

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A Group of Heartbroken Scientists Wrote a Eulogy to Iceland’s First Disappeared Glacier

Scientists everywhere are in agreement that the climate of the world is changing rapidly, and that the results, should the problem go unchecked, will be disastrous. One of the first casualties are the world’s glaciers, like Iceland’s Okjokull (aka Ok), which officially melted away back in 2014.

Scientists at Rice University will install a plaque containing a eulogy for Ok, which will no doubt serve as a reminder for generations to come that there were those among us who tried very hard to do something.

Cymene Howe produced a 2018 film titled Not Ok that documented the glacier’s demise.

“This will be the first monument to a glacier lost to climate change anywhere in the world. By marking Ok’s passing, we hope to draw attention to what is being lost as Earth’s glaciers expire.”

Image Credit: Rice University

The plaque reads:

“Ok is the first Icelandic glacier to lose its status as a glacier.
In the next 200 years all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path.
This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done.
Only you know if we did it.”

The plaque will also mark 2019 as the year the world hit 415ppm Co2 levels.

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Not Ok. ⁣ After a rocky climb to the summit of Ok yesterday, I stood amidst a vast field of newly exposed volcanic rock, staring at this icy blue puddle in the central crater. It was hard to fathom that just a few years ago, a glacier named Ok (pronounced ‘awk’) existed right here in the surrounds of this crater. ⁣ ⁣ In 2014, Okjökull was first Icelandic glacier to officially lose its glacial status as a result of human induced climate change, and is now considered only as a mountain. A new memorial plaque will soon be placed at the summit with the following words: ‘In the next 200 years all our glaciers are expected to follow the same path. This monument is to acknowledge that we know what is happening and what needs to be done. Only you know if we did it’.

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Not Ok‘s co-producer, Dominic Boyer, has high hopes that awareness can still be raised in time to make a difference.

“We wanted to create a lasting memorial to Ok, a small glacier that has a big story to tell. Ok was the first named Icelandic glacier to melt because of how humans have transformed the planet’s atmosphere. Its fate will be shared by all of Iceland’s glaciers unless we act now to radically curtail greenhouse gas emissions.”

According to the research done for the film, all of Iceland’s 400-ish glaciers could face the same fate as early as 2200.

Glaciers are the largest freshwater reserves on Earth and are also invaluable for the insights they provide into Earth’s atmosphere. The Arctic is warming twice as fast as other parts of the world, and record temperatures are being recorded all over the globe. Wildfires are becoming common from Siberia to Greenland and sea ice is decreases rapidly, putting different animal species in danger.

“One of our Icelandic colleagues put it very wisely when he said, ‘Memorials are not for the dead; they are for the living,” said Howe. “With this memorial, we want to underscore that it is up to us, the living, to collectively respond to the rapid loss of glaciers and the ongoing impacts of climate change. For Ok glacier it is already too late; it is not what scientists call ‘dead ice.’”

Here’s hoping that when people read the plaque 100 years in the future, it marks the beginning of serious, focused action to reverse climate change and not the beginning of the end of the world as we know it.

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The Sunscreen You Wear May Be Harming the Environment

There are a lot of sunscreens that are claiming to be “reef friendly” these days.

Photo Credit: Public Domain Pictures

A new label on sunscreens allows consumers to see at a glance how safe the product is for ocean life. If you see the words “reef friendly” printed next to an image of a coral, then the sunscreen should be lacking damaging chemicals. Should be…

A couple of years ago, a report about the effects of sunblock use in the oceans was published by the Environmental Contamination Toxicology journal. According to the study, the common sunscreen ingredients octinoxate and oxybenzone are capable of contributing to bleaching in coral reefs.

Since then, Palau, Hawaii and Key West, Florida, have banned consumer use of these sunblock ingredients. Other tropical locations popular with vacationers, like Mexico, advise visitors about the potential of damage.

Photo Credit: Pixabay

Out of concern for the reefs, many companies like ThinkSport and All Good Sport offer coral friendly formulas. Other brands, such as Coppertone (for their Water Babies line) and Alba Botanical use minerals as a blocker. Thankfully, these sunscreen alternatives are easy to find.

Everyone should want to keep coral reefs from bleaching because the phenomenon is devastating to ocean health. But before you throw out all your drugstore sunscreen and suntan lotions, something to note: some environmentalists and scientists have come out against the report.

This is because Coral reef damage is caused more by environmental factors, such as climate change and pollution, than beach-goers slathered in sunscreen. Even if octinoxate and oxybenzone were successfully eliminated from the ocean, the damage would continue.

Photo Credit: Flickr

Also, the reef-friendly labeling itself is an issue. As is typical with other kinds of labeling—for example, food sold as all-natural or whole grain—there are no set standards. Consumers may be misled to believe they are using a reef safe sunblock because any manufacturer can make the claim. Consumer Reports also consistently finds mineral based sunscreens as not matching their SPF claims.

But because tropical beaches and diving spots do test for elevated levels of sunscreen, it wouldn’t hurt to use products without octinoxate and oxybenzone. Even if there are larger issues than sunscreen in the decline of the world’s coral reefs, every little stressor adds to the cumulative effect. So using reef-safe sunblock may not solve the issue, but it prevents you from being a direct contributor. Plus, they’re not even that expensive.

From an environmental standpoint, small changes sometimes result in big wins.

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