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Time of India
22-05-2025
- Science
- Time of India
Extinct snakes and incredible facts about them
Image created via Canva AI Snakes have slithered through the planet's history for over 160 million years, but their beginnings are still full of question marks. Scientists agree they came from lizards, but which ones? And why ditch the legs? No one's quite sure. What we do know is that once snakes found their niche, they went wild—evolving into everything from burrowers with tiny limbs to monsters the size of buses. Some could crush prey with shocking force, others had traits that feel more sci-fi than fossil. Here's a look back at ten extinct snakes that prove nature has always had a flair for the dramatic. Eophis If snakes had a family photo album, Eophis would be page one. Discovered in a quarry near Oxford, this 167-million-year-old fossil is the oldest snake known to science. It lived in the Middle Jurassic, sharing its ecosystem with dinosaurs like Megalosaurus. But Eophis wasn't some towering predator—it was barely 25cm (about 10 inches) long, roughly the size of a pencil. Incredible Facts: – Eophis lived in swampy wetlands and likely hunted insects, tadpoles, and small fish. – It had recurved, hook-like teeth that faced backward, suggesting it was already developing a snake-like feeding method. – It possibly retained tiny hind limbs, linking it directly to its lizard ancestors. – Its fossil evidence has pushed back the timeline of snake evolution by over 60 million years. – Scientists consider it a transitional species that bridges the evolutionary gap between leggy lizards and modern snakes. Image created via Canva AI Titanoboa Forget anacondas. Titanoboa was the true heavyweight champ of the snake world, stretching up to 13 meters long—and some models even push it to 14.6! That's longer than a bus, and this thing was real. It ruled the Paleocene rainforests of what's now Colombia, a region that was hot, wet, and perfect for cold-blooded giants. Titanoboa likely ambushed prey in river systems, swallowing massive fish and even crocodiles. Incredible Facts: – Titanoboa had fishhook-shaped teeth that helped it anchor and subdue struggling prey. – It was likely capable of swallowing young turtles whole. – Its massive size is believed to be a result of extremely warm equatorial temperatures. – Female Titanoboas might have grown even larger than males, which is rare in modern reptiles. – Its extinction may have been due to cooling climates and the loss of its wetland habitat. Madtsoia Madtsoia wasn't the biggest, but it was one of the most resilient. This ancient snake lived through the mass extinction that wiped out the dinosaurs. How? Simple: low-maintenance living. Being cold-blooded meant it didn't need much food, so it could outlast the post-asteroid famine while bigger, hungrier animals starved. Originally preying on small dinos, it later switched to mammals and birds. Image created via Canva AI Incredible Facts: – Madtsoia was part of the Madtsoiidae family, which included other giant prehistoric snakes like Gigantophis. – It may have killed its prey through constriction, although scientists still debate this. – Some evidence suggests it hunted crocodiles after the dinosaur extinction. – Its ability to survive with minimal food showcases how a 'lazy' metabolism can be a huge survival advantage. Sanajeh Sanajeh lived in what's now India about 70 million years ago, and it had a pretty shady side hustle: raiding dinosaur nests. Fossils found near sauropod eggs—and even a baby dinosaur—paint a clear picture. This 3.5-meter snake lurked near nesting grounds, picking off hatchlings before they got too big to handle. Unlike modern pythons, its jaws didn't open super wide, so newborns were just the right size. Incredible Facts: – Sanajeh targeted titanosaur hatchlings, making it a specialized predator of baby dinosaurs. – It may have also fed on small theropods and mammals when available. – It belonged to the same ancient snake family as Madtsoia and Wonambi, known as the madtsoiids. – Its behavior proves that some prehistoric snakes were not just ambush predators but opportunistic hunters as well. Image created via Canva AI Haasiophis Most snakes ditched their legs ages ago—but not Haasiophis. This ancient marine snake lived nearly 95 million years ago in warm, shallow seas and still rocked a pair of tiny but fully formed hind limbs. Hip, knee, ankle—it had the full setup, although it didn't walk with them. Instead, it swam like an eel, whipping its body side to side. Incredible Facts: – Haasiophis is one of the very few snake species known to possess actual limbs. – These limbs may have been evolutionary leftovers or a rare case of limb regrowth. – It was closely related to Pachyrhachis, another legged marine snake. – It lived in the warm, shallow seas of the ancient Middle East, showcasing how marine snakes once retained legs. Vasuki Discovered in 2024 and already making headlines, Vasuki might just challenge Titanoboa's throne. Found in India's Gujarat state, this prehistoric beast could've stretched up to 15 meters long—yes, longer than Titanoboa, depending on how you do the math. Named after the mythical Hindu serpent, Vasuki wasn't purely aquatic like its South American rival. It roamed swampy forests, hunting in and out of water. Image created via Canva AI Incredible Facts: – Vasuki may have grown up to 15 meters long, potentially making it the longest snake ever discovered. – It belonged to the Madtsoiidae family, placing it alongside prehistoric snakes like Madtsoia and Sanajeh. – Its diet could have included crocodilians, massive turtles, and even early whale species. – It lived around 47 million years ago in a wet, tropical environment that supported large cold-blooded predators. Pachyrhachis Think Haasiophis was weird for having legs? Meet Pachyrhachis, another ancient sea snake that didn't get the memo about evolving away from limbs. Discovered in Israel, this 95-million-year-old snake had small but clearly defined back legs, complete with hip, knee, and ankle joints—making it look like a snake still clinging to its lizard roots. Incredible Facts: – Like Haasiophis, Pachyrhachis swam with an undulating motion, similar to modern eels. – It lived in the same warm, shallow seas during the Late Cretaceous period. – Its name, which means 'thick spine,' refers to its unusually dense vertebrae, likely used to help it dive. – It remains one of the best fossil examples of the evolutionary shift from legged reptiles to fully limbless snakes.
Time of India
07-05-2025
- Time of India
How people are falling in love with ChatGPT and abandoning their partners
Credit: Image created via Canva AI Why are people falling for these bots? To what extent are the bots responsible for this? In a world more connected than ever, something curious — and unsettling — is happening behind closed doors. Technology, once celebrated for bringing people together, is now quietly pulling some artificial intelligence weaves itself deeper into everyday life, an unexpected casualty is emerging: romantic relationships. Some partners are growing more emotionally invested in their AI interactions than in their human connections. Is it the abundance of digital options, a breakdown in communication, or something more profound?One woman's story captures the strangeness of this to a Rolling Stone report, Kat, a 41-year-old mother and education nonprofit worker, began noticing a growing emotional distance in her marriage less than a year after tying the knot. She and her husband had met during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, both bringing years of life experience and prior marriages to the by 2022, that commitment began to unravel. Her husband had started using artificial intelligence not just for work but for deeply personal matters. He began relying on AI to write texts to Kat and to analyze their followed was a steady decline in spent more and more time on his phone, asking his AI philosophical questions, seemingly trying to program it into a guide for truth and meaning. When the couple separated in August 2023, Kat blocked him on all channels except friends were reaching out with concern about his increasingly bizarre social media posts. Eventually, she convinced him to meet in person. At the courthouse, he spoke vaguely of surveillance and food conspiracies. Over lunch, he insisted she turn off her phone and then shared a flood of revelations he claimed AI had helped him uncover — from a supposed childhood trauma to his belief that he was 'the luckiest man on Earth' and uniquely destined to 'save the world. ''He always liked science fiction,' Kat told Rolling Stone. 'Sometimes I wondered if he was seeing life through that lens.' The meeting was their last contact. Kat is not alone; there have been many reported instances where relationships are breaking apart and the reason has been another troubling example, a Reddit user recently shared her experience under the title 'ChatGPT-induced psychosis'. In her post, she described how her long-term partner — someone she had shared a life and a home with for seven years — had become consumed by his conversations with to her account, he believed he was creating a 'truly recursive AI,' something he was convinced could unlock the secrets of the universe. The AI, she said, appeared to affirm his sense of grandeur, responding to him as if he were some kind of chosen one — 'the next messiah,' in her had read through the chats herself and noted that the AI wasn't doing anything particularly groundbreaking. But that didn't matter to him. His belief had hardened into something immovable. He told her, with total seriousness, that if she didn't start using AI herself, he might eventually leave her.'I have boundaries and he can't make me do anything,' she wrote, 'but this is quite traumatizing in general.' Disagreeing with him, she added, often led to explosive post ended not with resolution, but with a question: 'Where do I go from here?' The issue is serious and requires more awareness of the kind of tech we use and to what say there are real reasons why people might fall in love with AI. Humans have a natural tendency called anthropomorphism — that means we often treat non-human things like they're human. So when an AI responds with empathy, humor, or kindness, people may start to see it as having a real personality. With AI now designed to mimic humans, the danger of falling in love with a bot is quiteunderstandable. A 2023 study found that AI-generated faces are now so realistic, most people can't tell them apart from real ones. When these features combine with familiar social cues — like a soothing voice or a friendly tone — it becomes easier for users to connect emotionally, sometimes even if someone feels comforted, that emotional effect is real — even if the source isn't. For some people, AI provides a sense of connection they can't find elsewhere. And that there's also a real risk in depending too heavily on tools designed by companies whose main goal is profit. These chatbots are often engineered to keep users engaged, much like social media — and that can lead to emotional dependency. If a chatbot suddenly changes, shuts down, or becomes a paid service, it can cause real distress for people who relied on it for emotional experts say this raises ethical questions: Should AI companions come with warning labels, like medications or gambling apps? After all, the emotional consequences can be serious. But even in human relationships, there's always risk — people leave, change, or pass away. Vulnerability is part of love, whether the partner is human or digital.
Time of India
07-05-2025
- Science
- Time of India
2025 Triumph Scrambler 400X launched: Price, what's changed
5 largest stars in the universe and why they're so fascinating We often think of the Sun as incredibly huge, and it is. In fact, you could fit more than a million Earths inside it. But step outside our solar system, and you'll find stars so massive they make our Sun look surprisingly the past few years, astronomers have spotted some truly gigantic stars, thousands of times wider than the Sun. These aren't just large; they're rare, short-lived, and often hidden behind thick clouds of gas and dust. But with the help of powerful new telescopes and advanced space technology, scientists are finally able to study these cosmic giants more closely. Here's a look at five of the biggest stars ever discovered, ranked by their size, and what makes each one so fascinating. Note: This list is based on the data presented by BBC Science Focus. Note: The images in this article were created using Canva AI and are for representative purposes only. Times Of India
Indian Express
22-04-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
AI must serve humanity, not replace it: Experts stress responsible use at Dehradun PR workshop
Marking National Public Relations Day, the Dehradun Chapter of the Public Relations Society of India (PRSI) hosted a workshop on Monday focused on the theme 'Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence: Role of Public Relations.' The workshop was inaugurated by Banshidhar Tiwari, Director General of Information and Vice Chairman of MDDA, along with Dr. Nitin Upadhyay, Joint Director of Information; Vijay Thapliyal, CEO of Badrikedar Temple Committee; and Ravi Vijarania, President of PRSI Dehradun Chapter. In his keynote address, Tiwari emphasized, 'In this era of rapid technological advancement, it is our collective responsibility to uphold human values.' He added, 'While AI saves time, we must be mindful of how we use that saved time.' Encouraging ethical use of technology, he stated, 'Before forwarding or sharing any information, it is vital to verify its authenticity, as misinformation can have a negative impact on individuals and society alike… Responsible use of AI is our duty, and there is a growing need to raise awareness about it.' Dr. Nitin Upadhyay noted, 'Every new technology brings challenges, as well as new opportunities and possibilities… we must not become entirely dependent on AI and should maintain our own capabilities… In the field of public relations, AI should remain a supporting tool.' Vijay Thapliyal added, 'While AI can provide almost everything, it cannot replicate emotions, which are unique to humans.' Technical expert Akash Sharma presented tools such as ChatGPT, Canva AI, and Google Alerts, explaining, 'AI is not replacing us but is making our work more effective. Public relations is a people-centric field, and AI helps enhance speed and accuracy.' Vijarania welcomed all attendees and highlighted the importance of organizing the workshop on the occasion of National Public Relations Day. The event was anchored by Verma. Among the attendees were PRSI Dehradun Chapter Secretary Anil Sati, Treasurer Suresh Chandra Bhatt, members Sudhakar Bhatt, Vaibhav Goyal, Rakesh Dobhal, Ajay Dabral, Deepak Sharma, Prashant Rawat, Jyoti Negi, Shivangi, Manmohan Bhatt, Sanjay Singh, and Pratap Singh Bisht.
Time of India
22-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
This baby elephant's mudslide is melting hearts online– here's the video everyone's sharing
Image credit: Canva AI It doesn't take much to brighten someone's day online– sometimes, all it takes is a baby elephant having the time of its life on a hillside. A heart-melting video has once again taken over social media, showing a young elephant sliding down a muddy slope with such pure joy, it's stopping people mid-scroll. Originally filmed a few years ago, the clip is now making the rounds on X (formerly Twitter), proving once again that simple, unscripted moments often have the biggest impact. With no elaborate setup or filters, just a young elephant enjoying itself, the video is offering a much-needed breath of fresh air across timelines. The video was captured at the Yunnan Asian Elephant Rescue Centre , located in China's Yunnan province near the Myanmar border, according to a Daily Mail report, as quoted by Hindustan Times. In the short clip, the elephant calf is seen moving through a lush patch of forest before spotting a sloped, muddy path. Without any hesitation, the elephant lowers itself to the ground and slides down the slope in one smooth, gleeful motion. Poll Do you think simple, unscripted moments have a greater impact than scripted content? No, I prefer scripted content. Yes, absolutely! by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Trending in in 2025: Local network access control [Click Here] Esseps Learn More Undo Its natural playfulness and complete lack of self-consciousness make the moment incredibly endearing. The young elephant's smooth slide and obvious delight have struck a chord with viewers, many of whom say it reminds them of the kind of carefree fun often forgotten in adult life. Watch the viral video here: The video was reposted by the account Nature is Amazing , where it quickly gained traction, gathering over 220,000 views and thousands of reactions. The response in the comments section has been overwhelmingly positive, with users expressing just how much they appreciated the heartwarming moment. One user summed it up perfectly: 'This is the kind of content we need more of– pure, unfiltered joy.' Another wrote, 'If this doesn't make you smile, I don't know what will.' A third added a relatable touch, saying, 'Me heading into the weekend like…' Some viewers even saw themselves in the little elephant's playful spirit. 'That's me when I find a downhill path during a hike,' one person wrote. Others simply couldn't get over how endearing the moment was, calling the video 'adorable,' 'a serotonin booster,' and 'the best thing on the internet today.'
