A rock that’s over 2 billion years old may change how scientists understand the evolution of life on Earth. Researchers, in a study published in Microbial Ecology, found living microbes trapped inside the ancient stone. It’s “the oldest example of living microbes being found within ancient rock so far discovered,” according to a press release. “We didn’t know if 2-billion-year-old rocks were habitable,” said Yohey Suzuki, lead author and associate professor at the University of Tokyo. “Until now, the oldest geological layer in which living microorganisms had been found was a 100-million-year-old deposit beneath the ocean floor, so this is a very exciting discovery.” In some ways, this rock acts like a time capsule. The earliest forms of life on Earth appeared roughly 3.5 billion years ago, while humans have only existed for a few hundred thousand years. The microbes inside the stone evolved extremely slowly over the millennia. This suggests that studying their genetic material could provide groundbreaking insights. “By studying the DNA and genomes of microbes like these,” said Suzuki, “we may be able to understand the evolution of very early life on Earth.” The stone was found deep underground in South Africa’s Bushvelt Igneous Complex. The international research team believes that studying these ancient microbes could also aid in the search for life on other planets. NASA’s Perseverance mission, for example, aims to bring back samples from Mars that could be as old as this Earthly rock. Suzuki shared his excitement, saying that the discovery of these ancient microbes might be a preview of what could be found on Mars. The post Scientists Cracked a 2-Billion-Year-Old Rock and Found Living Microbes appeared first on Anomalien.com.

It's another day, and that means new Deadlock patch notes. This time Valve nerfs Wraith's card trick to stop it from steamrolling you, reduces Shadow Weave's fire rate increase, and does its best to stop all the accidental wallhacks that are ignoring terrain. Deadlock is still very much in its infancy, but that doesn't mean Valve isn't hard at work. Continue reading New Deadlock patch notes nerf Wraith and remove accidental wallhacks MORE FROM PCGAMESN: Deadlock release date , Deadlock crosshair, Deadlock characters

The tabs feature is rolling out now but may take a few weeks to appear. | Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Tabs are being added to Google Docs to make it easier to organize and find information in longer documents. The feature was originally announced in April, and is now gradually rolling out to all Google Workspace users and personal Google accounts, though it may take a few weeks to appear. “You can now use tabs to draft and build content in a way that makes it possible for you to find what you’re looking for quickly and stay on task,” Google announced in its latest Workspace update. “Plus, readers can navigate through your document with ease and focus on sections that matter most to them.” GIF: Google The new tabs feature makes it easier to jump to specific sections within longer documents instead of creating... Continue reading…

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge Uber is holding its annual Go-Get conference in London today. As part of the event, the company is rolling out a number of changes to its ridehailing and delivery business to reflect the fact that more drivers and couriers are using electric vehicles. Uber Green, the company’s EV and hybrid ridehailing product, is going fully electric in several select cities. Uber says Uber Green is now an EV-only service in 40 cities and states. Previously, Uber Green featured both electric and hybrid vehicles, offering an extra per-trip fee (usually $1) to drivers who used any vehicle with less tailpipe pollution. Now, the service is going to exclusively feature battery-electric vehicles, a reflection of the fact that more drivers are using EVs on the... Continue reading…

This 2014 satellite photo shows a cloud of haze sitting in the Kashmir Valley in the Himalayas. The ethereal "lake" consists mainly of smog and other pollutants from nearby factories.

We've spotted the joint lowest-ever price on what we call the best star projector for aesthetics in this October Prime Day deal: Good looks and scientifically accurate star projections at home.

Using NASA's exoplanet-hunting spacecraft, TESS, astronomers and citizen scientists have discovered a record-breaking system of three tightly bound stars that could fit between the sun and Mercury.

The Ukrainian counter-offensive in 2023 delivered a grim lesson in the brutal effectiveness of counter-mobility operations. Advancing Ukrainian forces found themselves in vast Russian minefields in the…

"Through the roof."