Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals is the same, regardless of the species of origin, but ivory contains structures of mineralised collagen. The trade in certain teeth and tusks other than elephant is well established and widespread; therefore, "ivory" can correctly be used to describe any mammalian teeth or tusks of commercial interest which are large enough to be carved or scrimshawed.
A mammoth is any species of the extinct elephantid genus Mammuthus. They lived from the late Miocene epoch into the Holocene until about 4,000 years ago, with mammoth species at various times inhabiting Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America. Mammoths are distinguished from living elephants by their spirally twisted tusks and in at least some later species, the development of numerous adaptions to living in cold environments, including a thick layer of fur.
Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced by nuclear fission of uranium and plutonium in nuclear power plants. Nuclear decay processes are used in niche applications such as radioisotope thermoelectric generators in some space probes such as Voyager 2. Reactors producing controlled fusion power have been operated since 1958 but have yet to generate net power and are not expected to be commercially available in the near future.
Sentience is the ability to experience feelings and sensations. It may not necessarily imply higher cognitive functions such as awareness, reasoning, or complex thought processes. Sentience is an important concept in ethics, as the ability to experience happiness or suffering often forms a basis for determining which entities deserve moral consideration, particularly in utilitarianism.
Palaeoloxodon is an extinct genus of elephant. The genus originated in Africa during the Early Pleistocene, and expanded into Eurasia at the beginning of the Middle Pleistocene. The genus contains the largest known species of elephants, over 4 metres (13 ft) tall at the shoulders and over 13 tonnes (29,000 lb) in weight, representing among the largest land mammals ever, including the African Palaeoloxodon recki, the European straight-tusked elephant and the South Asian Palaeoloxodon namadicus. P. namadicus has been suggested to be the largest known land mammal by some authors based on extrapolation from fragmentary remains, though these estimates are highly speculative. In contrast, the genus also contains many species of dwarf elephants that evolved via insular dwarfism on islands in the Mediterranean, some like Palaeoloxodon falconeri less than 1 metre (3.3 ft) in shoulder height as fully grown adults, making them the smallest elephants known. The genus has a long and complex taxonomic history, and at various times, it has been considered to belong to Loxodonta or Elephas, but today is usually considered a valid and separate genus in its own right.
Gomphotheres are an extinct group of proboscideans related to modern elephants. First appearing in Africa during the Oligocene, they dispersed into Eurasia and North America during the Miocene and arrived in South America during the Pleistocene as part of the Great American Interchange. Gomphotheres are a paraphyletic group ancestral to Elephantidae, which contains modern elephants, as well as Stegodontidae.
Human extinction or omnicide is the hypothetical end of the human species, either by population decline due to extraneous natural causes, such as an asteroid impact or large-scale volcanism, or via anthropogenic destruction (self-extinction), for example by sub-replacement fertility.
Psychological thriller is a genre combining the thriller and psychological fiction genres. It is commonly used to describe literature or films that deal with psychological narratives in a thriller or thrilling setting.
Bánh xèo is a crispy, stuffed rice pancake popular in Vietnam. The name refers to the sound a thin layer of rice batter makes when it is poured into the hot skillet. It is a savoury fried pancake made of rice flour, water, and turmeric powder. It can also be called a Vietnamese crêpe. Some common stuffings include pork, prawns, diced green onion, mung bean, and bean sprouts. Bánh xèo is often served with sides. Usually, some commonly added ingredients include leafy greens like lettuces or perilla leaves, other herbs as flavor enhancers like mint leaves and Thai basil, cucumbers, and pickled vegetables, usually carrots and radishes. Lastly, its dipping sauce is nước chấm. Elements of each side and sauce add to the fresh-tasting fried Bánh Xèo.
Hitchcockian films are those made by various filmmakers, with the styles and themes similar to those of Alfred Hitchcock.
Bradley Tusk is an American businessman, venture capitalist, political strategist, and writer. He is the founder and CEO of Tusk Ventures, a venture capital fund focused on investing in early-stage startups in regulated industries. His foundation Tusk Philanthropies focuses on mobile voting and anti-hunger policy campaigns in the United States. He is also the former chairman of IG Acquisition Corp. Tusk is a columnist for Fast Company, and is the author of The Fixer: My Adventures Saving Startups from Death by Politics.
Poland currently operates a single research reactor, Maria. It has no operational nuclear reactors for power production, but is to start construction of a plant with three Westinghouse AP1000 reactors in 2026 that was originally planned to be completed in 2033-2036 but is currently expected to only be finished by 2040, and is also intending to build small modular reactors.
The Vietnamese Embassy in Washington, D.C. is the diplomatic mission of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam to the United States. Located in the Lion Building, the embassy was inaugurated on August 6, 1995, the same day as the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi. The current Vietnamese Ambassador to the United States is Nguyễn Quốc Dũng.
Oscar Sharp is a BAFTA-nominated British filmmaker best known for short films The Kármán Line, Sign Language and Sunspring, and upcoming television series The Human Conditions for HBO MAX, produced by Damon Lindelof and Matt Reeves.
Extinction Rebellion is a UK-founded global environmental movement, with the stated aim of using nonviolent civil disobedience to compel government action to avoid tipping points in the climate system, biodiversity loss, and the risk of social and ecological collapse. Extinction Rebellion was established in Stroud in May 2018 by Gail Bradbrook, Simon Bramwell, Roger Hallam, Stuart Basden, along with six other co-founders from the campaign group Rising Up!
Abigail Hing Wen is an American writer, film producer, lawyer and speaker. Her debut young adult novel, Loveboat, Taipei, was purchased in a multi-house auction by HarperCollins in a two-book deal, along with Loveboat Reunion. It debuted on the New York Times Bestseller List where it remained for multiple weeks and has been adapted for film by ACE Entertainment and released through Paramount+ as of August 10, 2023.
Reid Kikuo Johnson is an American illustrator and cartoonist. He is known for illustrating several covers of The New Yorker in addition to the graphic novels Night Fisher, The Shark King, and No One Else. In 2023 he became the first graphic novelist to receive the Whiting Award for fiction.
I Have Some Questions for You is a 2023 literary mystery novel by American writer Rebecca Makkai, published by Viking Press. The novel received universal acclaim from critics upon release, and spent six weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.
On May 30, 2023, hundreds of artificial intelligence experts and other notable figures signed the following short Statement on AI Risk:
Mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war.
P(doom) is a term in AI safety that refers to the probability of catastrophic outcomes (or "doom") as a result of artificial intelligence. The exact outcomes in question differ from one prediction to another, but generally allude to the existential risk from artificial general intelligence.
