Author: damazah@gmail.com

Scientists in France say they have discovered the building blocks of the incredible diversity of birdsong.A team analysed the songs of more than 100,000 songbirds and revealed that the world’s birdsongs are composed of eight fundamental types of sound that the researchers call “motifs”. Birdsong all around the world, they say, is made up of combinations of these motifs – three types of trill, three types of whistle, chaotic notes and harmonies.Birdsong is one of the natural world’s most sophisticated forms of sound-based communication. Its variety and complexity has fascinated biologists, but with so many different songs, it has been…

Luke Littler’s World Matchplay title defence continued with a straightforward 16-7 quarter-final win over Josh Rock in Blackpool.Rock initially kept pace with the world number one as the players traded breaks to reach 5-5.But after 19-year-old Littler reeled off five legs in a row, there proved to be no way back for Rock as the defending champion, in dazzling form, cruised into the semi-finals.After throwing 17 180s with a scoring average of 109.57, Littler said: “At the minute, everything’s going to plan.”The teenager added: “I feel good. I can afford to miss a few doubles because the scoring’s there.”Once again…

Veteran actor Hanks Anuku has spoken openly about how the death of the mother of his two children affected his career and nearly pushed him to withdraw from the world. Anuku shared these details in a viral video recorded during what appeared to be a testimony session at the Mountain of God International Ministry (SMOGIM) in Abuja. Although the actor did not disclose the identity of the mother of his children or the date of her passing, he previously revealed in March 2025 a desire to remarry following the collapse of his marriage to his Asaba-based ex-wife. The 64-year-old, who…

Competitions and admissionsAswini Bajaj Classes, Kolkata, in association with the CFA Institute, has announced the sixth edition of Chanakyaneeti, its annual online business and finance competition.When: July 28Eligibility: Currently enrolled UG students across academic disciplinesRewards: Participants securing ranks 1 to 6 will receive CFA Institute Scholarships applicable towards CFA Level I registration, while participants ranked 7 to 25 will receive scholarships worth a combined ₹85,000 from Aswini Bajaj Classes. All participants will receive a digital certificate upon completion.Deadline: July 27Details at https://tinyurl.com/jym6z5arFinX launched Season 2 of the Franklin Templeton National Mutual Fund Olympiad 2026, with Groww as its Knowledge Partner.Eligibility: UG…

Veteran actress Ngozi Nwosu has appealed to Nigerians for financial assistance as she battles an undisclosed illness. In an emotional appeal video she posted on her Instagram page on Thursday, the 62-year-old disclosed that she needed N30 million. Nwosu’s financial appeal to undergo three surgeries comes 13 years after she battled kidney-and heart-related issues and received a N4.5 million lifeline from the Lagos State Government to help fund her treatment. In 2013, PREMIUM TIMES reported that Nwosu, famous for her role in the soap opera “Fuji House of Commotion”, later travelled to the UK for surgery after good-spirited individuals donated…

Li Lecheng, China’s Minister of Industry and Information Technology, spoke at a press conference on July 23, 2026, in Chengdu, China, as part of the APEC Digital Weeks.Evelyn Cheng | CNBCCHENGDU, China — Governments increasingly want to control artificial intelligence, as companies release more powerful open-source models, a new multilateral statement indicates.The 21 APEC member economies, which include the U.S. and China, released a “Chengdu statement” on AI that emphasized respect for “security, data protection and intellectual property rights,” while calling for supporting open-source development.The statement released Thursday also specified support for models and projects “that employ strong security assurance…

For months, AI giants have devised special vetted programs and strict guardrails to limit the use of their models by malicious hackers. But these limits are now hindering the work of legitimate network defenders, as well as that of offensive cybersecurity researchers.  In June, the U.S. government slapped export control restrictions on Anthropic’s much-hyped AI models Mythos and Fable. The move was prompted at least in part by a report that claimed it was possible to bypass the models’ guardrails designed to prevent users from using them to build and execute malicious cyberattacks. Regardless of whether the incident was really…

.says he neither misled anyone nor acted in bad faith By James Ogunnaike, Abeokuta Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has responded to former Ogun State Governor, Chief Olusegun Osoba, over claims that he deceived leaders of the Alliance for Democracy (AD) during the political realignments leading to the 2003 general elections, insisting that he neither misled anyone nor acted in bad faith. In a lengthy letter dated July 23, 2026, titled “Reply to Your Inaccurate Posture: ‘How Obasanjo Deceived Us in 2003′”, Obasanjo described Osoba’s account, published in The Legal Observer on July 20, as “farfetched” and riddled with inaccuracies, omissions…

Orcas have been observed ramming into giant fish so hard that the prey explode, possibly as a form of gory entertainment.On several occasions, orcas were observed to hold sunfish in their jaws while a second whale smashed into the target at high speed, causing it to break into thousands of pieces. Since the fish had already been killed, scientists suggested the behaviour may represent a form of play.Dr Kathryn Ayres, a scientist at non-profit organisation Beneath The Waves, said: “We think this may help younger orcas feed more easily or it could also just be for fun. Orcas are known…

Josh WeinfussJul 23, 2026, 08:13 PM ETCloseJosh Weinfuss is a staff writer who covers the Arizona Cardinals and the NFL at ESPN. Josh has covered the Cardinals since 2012, joining ESPN in 2013. He is a member of the Pro Football Writers of America and a graduate of Indiana University.Multiple AuthorsGLENDALE, Ariz. — Arizona Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett participated in the team’s first practice of training camp Thursday as he continues to wait for a reworked contract for this season.Brissett, who didn’t participate in the voluntary part of the Cardinals’ offseason program and was a hold-in during mandatory minicamp in…