Joni Ernst Angst

A new study suggests that animals like goats and dogs could play a crucial role in predicting natural disasters, potentially saving thousands of lives each year. Scientists have long suspected that animals possess a kind of “sixth sense” that allows them to detect subtle signals of impending events such as earthquakes or volcanic eruptions. To test this, researchers plan to tag thousands of animals, including farm animals, and monitor their movements via satellite for signs of unusual behavior. “Ultimately, we aim to launch a fleet of satellites to create a global observation network,” said Martin Wikelski of the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior in Germany. This network would track wildlife movements and health while identifying behavioral patterns linked to natural phenomena. Earlier research on Mount Etna in Sicily revealed that goats became restless and avoided higher pastures before an eruption. “Goats are surprisingly reliable at predicting large volcanic eruptions,” said Wikelski. “They somehow sense what’s coming, though we don’t yet understand how.” Similarly, studies near Rome’s Abruzzo mountains found that dogs and farm animals reacted in ways that accurately predicted earthquakes 7 out of 8 times over 12 years. If scaled globally, such monitoring could offer early warnings, giving communities more time to prepare and potentially saving countless lives. In addition to disaster prediction, the project may also shed light on how animals adapt to environmental changes caused by global warming. “Similarly, we will be able to study animal populations to determine how they are responding to habitat changes triggered by global warming,” Wikelski added. The research offers hope for harnessing animal behavior as a natural early-warning system, blending technology with the instincts of nature. The post Some Animals May Help Predict Natural Disasters, Study Finds appeared first on Anomalien.com.

Establishmentarians are desperate to prevent decorated Army veteran Pete Hegseth from becoming President-elect Donald Trump's defense secretary. Opposition from Democrats, defense lobbyists, and the liberal media is surmountable; however, Hegseth will require the support of most Republicans going into the 119th Congress. Sources close to the Senate confirmed to Blaze News this week that Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa has been actively lobbying against Hegseth's nomination. One source indicated that Ernst is serving as a "useful proxy" for the likes of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) and what remains of the old guard. When looking into possible reasons why Ernst might want to spike the nomination, critics found that Ernst has a disparate vision for the U.S. military — one not so different from the woke and alienating reality that manifested under the current Democratic administration. Turning Point USA CEO Charlie Kirk was among the critics who highlighted an August interview wherein the Iowa senator advocated for the continued presence of medical transvestites in the military and rejected the suggestion that the military is woke. Kirk wrote, "Maybe this is why she's leading the charge against Hegseth?" Ernst, who served for over two decades in the Army Reserve and the Army National Guard, told the titular host of PBS' "Firing Line with Margaret Hoover" in August that "we have transgender people serving in our military. They will bleed red just as the rest of us." The senator, recently touted by ABC News as a possible candidate to replace Hegseth, has long defended permitting medical transvestites to serve in the military on the condition that they can meet physical requirements. Blaze News previously reported that whereas mentally ill recruits, individuals reliant on medications, women with abnormal uterine bleeding, men with deformed genitals, those with chronic anxiety, and those who have committed self-harm are routinely barred from joining the military, similar prohibitions have apparently been relaxed under the Biden administration for those claiming to be "transgender." '[The DOD] committed a Bud Light.' Ernst told Hoover that there are certain situations in which it makes sense not to integrate transvestites, giving the example of keeping a male transvestite who has yet to complete his sex change out of women's barracks. However, the senator signaled continued opposition to Trump's previous and potential blanket bans on transvestic service members, stating, "If they bring value to our unit, if they have specialties that we can use, especially if we want to maintain an all-volunteer force, we want to bring that talent into our services." Significant doubt has been cast in recent years on the corresponding value proposition. Then-Secretary of Defense James Mattis stated in a Feb. 22, 2018, Pentagon memo that in "the Department's best military judgment, the Department of Defense concludes that there are substantial risks associated with allowing the accession and retention of individuals with a history or diagnosis of gender dysphoria and require or have already undertaken a course of treatment to change their gender." Thomas Spoehr, former director of the Heritage Foundation’s Center for National Defense, concluded in 2021 that the Biden administration's "decision to change U.S. military policy and allow unrestricted service by transgender individuals — without regard to whether they suffer from gender dysphoria — will result in a direct negative impact on military readiness linked to service members who are less able to deploy and perform their individual missions." Hegseth may be amenable to a transvestite ban. "I think we're at a 's*** or get off the pot' moment. We are at a tipping point for total institutional corruption, and Trump has a chance to reverse that," Hegseth recently told the "Shawn Ryan Show." "[The DOD] committed a Bud Light. In search of a non-traditional constituency, they offended their core constituency." Hegseth suggested on the "Take It Outside with Jay Cutler and Sam Mackey" podcast that medical transvestites in the military are "not deployable" because they are "reliant on chemicals." Trump's pick for defense secretary has also questioned having female service members on the battlefield, telling Shawn Ryan, "It hasn't made us more effective, hasn't made us more lethal, has made fighting more complicated." 'If you vote against him, primaries will ensue.' Ernst, who has voiced support for requiring women to register for the draft and previously voted to confirm President Joe Biden's defense secretary pick, Gen. Lloyd Austin, has emphasized that "women are perfectly capable of contributing in combat, whether it's combat arms or someone like me that was supporting combat operations with the movement of goods up into combat zones." Ernst similarly pushed back on the suggestion that the military has been "marred with a sentiment of wokeness, some social experimentation," telling Hoover, "Our military is not woke. I would say that there is civilian leadership of thee military that is woke. ... There is a difference between the leadership and those that serve in uniform." Rebecca Grant, vice president of the Lexington Institute, told Bloomberg that Ernst's reluctance to back Hegseth may also have something to do with a 2017 sexual assault allegation against the Fox News host. Even though no charges were ever filed and Hegseth's attorneys have repeatedly stressed that the allegations were false, Grant suggested that the nominee will have to once again rebut the allegations to reassure Ernst, who was reportedly raped in college. After meeting with Hegseth Wednesday, the Iowa senator noted on X, "I appreciate Pete Hegseth's service to our country, something we both share. Today, as part of the confirmation process, we had a frank and thorough conversation." BlazeTV host Liz Wheeler tweeted, "Why is Joni Ernst a GOP Senator? Supports trans in the military. Supports gun control. Supports giving Ukraine more $$. Votes Dem 38% of the time. Voted for Lloyd Austin, Biden Sec Def who oversaw deadly Afghanistan withdrawal. If she won't vote Pete, time to fire Joni." "This is a direct attempt to undermine the President and his voters," wrote Kirk. "Pete Hegseth is the redline. If you vote against him, primaries will ensue." When asked whether she was leading the charge against Hegseth, Ernst told RealClearPolitics, "There is absolutely no campaign against Pete." "I just want to make sure the process is able to play out and that we’re thoroughly vetting him. I do believe that Pete deserves to have a hearing. All the rumblings out there are absolutely false. My role as a senator is to make sure that we are putting to bed any rumors, any anonymous whatever," continued the senator. "We just need to make sure that he is thoroughly vetted and that he has his opportunity to go in front of the committee, recount his service, and rebut any allegations." Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

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Every company is trying to copy Spotify these days. | Image: Google The Google Photos app is rolling out a throwback experience that highlights some of your most memorable moments from this year. The “2024 Recap” presentation feature announced today combines a collection of photos and insights with graphics and cinematic effects that summarize what users have been doing over the last 12 months — a similar concept to Spotify Wrapped. The 2024 Recap insights include information like how many photos you snapped, the longest photo streak length, most photographed colors, who you took the most photos of, and the people you smiled the most with. Google says that “select users in the US” who have Gemini enabled in the Photos app can also opt-in to receive a version of Recap that adds personalized captions highlighting the “two biggest moments from your year.” Gif: Google Here’s an example of the Wrapped-like insights that appear in Recap. The Recap will appear in the Google Photos Memories carousel throughout December before relocating to the photo grid in January, and can be shared to messaging and social media apps. There are some caveats though — Recap is only available to Photos users who have the Face Groups setting enabled, which uses facial recognition to identify and group similar faces together. This feature has some regional restrictions, so the end-of-year highlights won’t be available globally.

With the year almost over, you're probably shopping for the holidays. To give this experience something extra, Apple always features an Easter egg hidden in its Apple Store app. There, if you search for “Let it snow,” there’s a lovely animation of snow falling while you browse some Apple products. This holiday season’s Easter egg isn’t new. Still, it's a nice touch while you do some regular shopping for a bunch of iPhone 16 models, AirPods 4, and maybe some high-end M4 Max MacBook Pro in 16-inch versions, right? While you purchase a new Apple product for yourself or to gift others, Cupertino has changed its return policy during this holiday season. According to the company, “eligible products at the Apple Store Online that are received between November 8, 2024, and December 25, 2024, may be returned through January 8, 2025." That said, all purchases made after December 25, 2024, are subject to the Standard Return Policy. Apple also notes that iPhone purchases that are carrier-financed are not eligible and are subject to the standard return policy. Users can purchase, during this holiday season, iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and accessories using this extended return policy. Apple notes that opened software, electronic software downloads, and Gift Cards are among the products that can’t be returned. Apple has a long article explaining how return and refunds work, so you don’t have to worry about buying a product from others and then needing to send it back to Apple. Although the holiday season has barely started, you can keep checking BGR for the best prices of your favorite tech products. We’ll keep you posted on the latest deals. In addition, you can check what Apple will likely release next year as New Year's Day fast approaches. Don't Miss: Apple is done releasing new products in 2024 – here’s what’s coming in 2025 The post The Apple Store app is hiding a holiday Easter egg – here’s how to find it appeared first on BGR. Today's Top Deals 70mai has the best 4G dash cam deals of Black Friday 2024 Best deals: Tech, laptops, TVs, and more sales Early Black Friday deals: $719 Black Apple Watch Ultra 2, 15% off PS5 consoles, $38 Sony headphones, more Cyber Week deals: $510 MacBook Air, $170 AirPods Pro 2, $99 Bose speaker, 53% off Echo Show 5 bundles, more

President-elect Donald Trump says Pete Hegseth "is a winner" who has received "strong and deep" support despite mainstream media reports the defense secretary nominee faces an uphill battle to be confirmed by the Senate.