A decade after the onset of a sea star wasting disease (SSWD) epidemic considered the largest ever documented in the wild, researchers have identified the microbial culprit responsible: a strain of the bacterium Vibrio pectenicida.
In 10 years, the bacterium has ravaged sunflower sea stars (Pycnopodia helianthoides), a large sea star or starfish, along the western coast of North America, with a loss of 5.8 billion since 2013 – or 90% of the total global population. The sunflower sea star is on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s red list of critically endangered species.
Previous studies had tested for V pectenicida in tissue samples and yielded inconclusive results. Instead, by examining the sea stars’ coelomic fluid, which acts like blood, researchers were able to confirm with certainty V pectenicida’s role in causing SSWD due to its high abundance there.
A sunflower sea star reduced to goo by sea star wasting disease at Calvert Island, British Columbia, Canada, in 2015. Photograph: Grant Callegari/Hakai Institute/AP
Infection with the V pectenicida strain FHCF-3 begins with exterior lesions, leading to limb loss and contortion, and ultimately kills afflicted individuals by melting their tissues into a white, mucus-like paste. Identifying the disease in afflicted sea stars was impossible without a known pathogen, as sea stars can respond with similar visual signals to other stressors such as low oxygen, salinity variation and extreme heat. The indirect link between rising ocean temperatures and SSWD remains a key area of interest, since V pectenicida is known to proliferate in warm water during seasonal variations and anomalous marine heating events.
The research, published this week in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution, was led by Dr Melanie Prentice and Dr Alyssa Gehman, of the Hakai Institute in British Columbia, Canada, as part of a four-year international collaboration involving the University of British Columbia, the University of Washington and the Nature Conservancy, among other parties.
The decline of sunflower sea stars has ramifications for marine ecosystems beyond the loss of a single species. “Identifying the cause of SSWD is incredibly impactful,” Prentice said. “In the absence of sunflower stars, [kelp-eating] sea urchin populations increase, which means the loss of kelp forests, and that has broad implications for all the other marine species and humans that rely on them.”
Without predatory sunflower sea stars, sea urchins proliferate in Hakai Pass, British Columbia, Canada, in 2019. Photograph: Grant Callegari/Hakai Institute/AP
Kelp forests provide a habitat for thousands of marine creatures, support local economies through fisheries and recreation, and are culturally important for First Nations and tribal communities. They also stabilise sediments, protect coastlines from storms, and are an important carbon sink for sequestering carbon dioxide.
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Though the epidemic is still ongoing, the hope is that this breakthrough will aid recovery and treatment efforts for various sea star species across the world and the ecosystems affected by their decline. Methods being explored include captive breeding for resistant individuals and developing probiotic solutions that can be introduced to ecosystems.
“Now that we have found the causative agent of disease, it makes me hopeful that we might actually be able to do something for sunflower sea stars,” says Gehman. “We can be really targeted in how we work with them, and I think that’s going to help us move a lot faster and to try to tackle SSWD.”
As well as stealing metal pipes, vandals smashed glass and poured paint over the floors
A youth club that had its government funding for a £1.4m rebuild project withdrawn has been dealt another blow after the building was broken into and vandalised.
Thieves stole metal pipes and caused damage to toilets, fire doors and windows at the Lifstan Boys Club in Southend-on-Sea.
“They’ve smashed it to bits,” said committee member Danny Neville.
The club has been without a home after moving out in anticipation of the rebuild, as has the Southend Amateur Boxing Club.
Stuart Woodward/BBC
Danny Neville – who is also head coach at Southend Amateur Boxing Club – said the vandalism was “gutting”
“They’ve flooded our disabled toilets, which were still running when we went there,” Mr Neville said.
“They’ve smashed the urinals off the walls, loads of copper has been ripped out – they’ve pulled the water tanks out.
“It’s just gutting, isn’t it? We’re already up against it.”
Other damage included paint thrown over the floors and walls, carpets ripped up and a table football set broken.
The club had been awarded £1.4m of funding from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s Youth Investment Fund to build a new premises at the site.
But after spending £200,000 on preparatory work and surveys, the rest of the funding was withdrawn by Social Investment Business, which distributes the grants on behalf of the government.
Volunteers said they were hopeful the funding would be restored to avoid having to try to renovate the existing building.
Stuart Woodward/BBC
The Lifstan Boys Club building – which the club moved into in the 1960s – was only meant to last 30 years
“The damage they’ve caused is probably going to double the cost of the refurb,” Mr Neville explained.
He added that the response from the local community and tradespeople to the break-in – offering to help clean up the damage – had been “overwhelming”.
“I’ve had so many messages and phone calls, people commenting on the post,” he said.
The Department for Culture Media and Sport previously said it had invested £145m into youth programmes for 2025-26.
Social Investment Business said it had to be confident projects could be delivered on time and represent “good value for money”.
An innovative study led by researchers from the Harbin Institute of Technology has unveiled a substantial development in wastewater treatment technology. Published in Engineering, the research introduces an innovative approach to improving denitrification in constructed wetlands (CWs) by utilizing a novel biochar-based substrate, known as β-cyclodextrin-functionalized biochar (BC@β-CD). This breakthrough addresses a critical challenge in wastewater treatment: optimizing nitrogen removal in conditions where traditional methods falter due to low carbon-to-nitrogen (C/N) ratios.
Constructed wetlands are recognized for their potential to treat effluents from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), yet their effectiveness is often hampered by low C/N ratios in the influent, leading to suboptimal denitrification and insufficient nitrogen removal. The study, led by Xiao-Chi Feng and Nan-Qi Ren, provides new insights into overcoming these limitations through advanced material science and biochemical engineering.
The research team compared three different CW systems: traditional (control), biochar (BC), and β-cyclodextrin (BC@β-CD). The study aimed to assess their performance in treating wastewater with low C/N ratios, specifically ratios decreased from 4 to 2. The findings reveal that the BC@β-CD system outperformed the other configurations, demonstrating a 45.89% and 42.48% higher nitrogen removal rate compared to the traditional system. Additionally, nitrous oxide (N2O) emissions, a potent greenhouse gas, were reduced by 70.57% and 85.45%, respectively.
The researchers employed a range of analytical techniques, including metagenomics and enzymatic assays, to understand how BC@β-CD enhances denitrification. These analyses showed that BC@β-CD promotes carbon metabolism and increases denitrification enzyme activities without altering the microbial diversity within the CWs. Notably, BC@β-CD was found to enhance electron generation and transport, crucial for effective denitrification, by increasing the activities of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) dehydrogenase and the electron transfer system (ETS). Further investigation using structural equation modeling confirmed that BC@β-CD’s primary advantage lies in its ability to reallocate more carbon metabolism flow towards denitrification. This strategic reallocation supports denitrification processes even when carbon sources are limited, thereby enhancing nitrogen removal under low C/N ratio conditions.
The study’s results highlight the transformative potential of BC@β-CD in wastewater treatment. By optimizing carbon metabolism allocation, this biochar-based substrate not only improves nitrogen removal efficiency but also reduces greenhouse gas emissions. This advancement offers a practical solution to a prevalent issue in wastewater treatment, providing a more sustainable approach to managing low-carbon influent.
The researchers emphasize that the successful application of BC@β-CD in CWs represents a significant step forward in the field of environmental engineering. It offers a promising avenue for developing more effective and eco-friendly wastewater treatment technologies. Future research will focus on scaling up this technology and exploring its application in diverse wastewater treatment scenarios. As the world seeks more sustainable environmental solutions, this study offers a hopeful path forward for cleaner, more effective wastewater management.
The paper “Enhanced Denitrification in Constructed Wetlands with Low Carbon/Nitrogen Ratios: Insights into Reallocation of Carbon Metabolism Based on Electron Utilization,” authored by Hong-Tao Shi, Xiao-Chi Feng, Zi-Jie Xiao, Chen-Yi Jiang, Wen-Qian Wang, Qin-Yao Zeng, Bo-Wen Yang, Qi-Shi Si, Qing-Lian Wu, Nan-Qi Ren. Full text of the open access paper: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eng.2024.07.020. For more information about the Engineering, follow us on X (https://twitter.com/EngineeringJrnl) & like us on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/EngineeringJrnl).
When the final leg of the World Surf League (WSL) regular season begins in Tahiti this week, Kelia Mehani Gallina will make history. Just 12 years old, the Tahitian local won the event trials last month to book a spot in the main draw, making her the youngest competitor in WSL history. She will face the current world No 1, Molly Picklum of Australia, and American star Lakey Peterson in the opening round, before celebrating her 13th birthday midway through the event.
The contest site, Teahupo’o, is renowned as being among the heaviest waves in the world. But Gallina is a regular – she speaks to the Guardian by phone with her father, Ryan, from their home in Teahupo’o village. “We can see [the wave] from our bedroom,” says Ryan, who is originally from Hawaii (Kelia’s mother is Tahitian). Such is her local status that Kelia’s Instagram handle is simply @MissTeahupoo.
Gallina surfs a local wave in Tahiti. Photograph: Wendy Cowan
“I’m pretty surprised,” the youngster admits after her trials victory. “I just can’t wait.” Her father shares these emotions. “We’re in shock,” he says. “We always visualised this happening, but not at all did we think it would happen so soon.”
Kelia started surfing when she was three, at the suggestion of her father – himself a passionate surfer. “It’s always fun,” she says. “I have a lot of friends who surf every day too, so I’m just with them, all day, every day.” Barely a decade later, Kelia will surf against the best in the world.
In recent years, Kelia has been a regular participant in Rising Tides – a WSL program that sees pro surfers guide and mentor young locals during a competition stop. “My birthday is 10 August, so it’s always been around my birthday,” she says. “It’s the best birthday present ever. It’s super inspiring to surf with [defending world champion] Caity Simmers, Molly Picklum, all those girls. I’m excited to have them in a heat.”
WSL Rising Tides participants before the 2023 Tahiti Pro at Teahupo’o. Photograph: Matt Dunbar/World Surf League
On a big swell, Teahupo’o is fearsome – waves track thousands of kilometres across the Pacific before unloading on to a shallow Tahitian reef. For a decade and a half, the women’s side of the WSL did not feature a leg in Tahiti; the event was discontinued in 2006 reportedly due to injury fears, a decision that was criticised at the time as sexist. That was reversed in 2022 after the WSL men’s and women’s calendars were integrated.
Last year, that decision was more than vindicated when the top female surfers looked at home in heaving 8-10ft Teahupo’o barrels. “It definitely gives me reasons to want to go on the bigger waves,” Kelia says. “I feel like the level of the girls is getting way better every year. I’m really happy to be part of that next generation.”
Gallina waits for a wave. Photograph: Richard Seehausen
The youngster started surfing Teahupo’o at four and a half years old – she can’t recall whether she was fearful at first. “I think so,” she says with a laugh. “It’s kind of hard to remember.” Ryan admits he continues to harbour some concerns, but, he says, “nothing out of the ordinary for a parent.”
“Of course you worry,” Ryan says. “Like you worry when they’re crossing the street, or riding around in town, there’s always somewhat of a worry that comes with being a parent. But I’ve been about 23 years out at this wave, and feel I know it pretty intimately – so I pride myself in knowing when is a good time [for Kelia to surf].”
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The pair often surf together. In bigger waves – Kelia says she has previously surfed 12ft faces – Ryan will stay close in the water and help guide his daughter into the waves. “They’re not going to allow that [during competition],” he says. So the Mehani Gallina family are hoping the swell is good, but not too good, come competition day. “We’re praying the waves aren’t too big,” he adds. The family also take peace of mind from the fact that “the best life-saving water patrol in the world” will be close to hand, Ryan says.
Gallina in the water at Teahupo’o. Photograph: Damien Poullenot/World Surf League/Getty Images
Not yet a teenager, Kelia says she wants to qualify for the WSL in the future – even if her debut appearance came earlier than expected. “That’s definitely the goal, to make it on tour,” she says. The Mehani Gallina family are trying to manage expectations, though. “We acknowledge that it is extremely difficult to make it to that level,” Ryan adds. “It’s a goal, but not the goal. Surfing is a lifestyle for us, so whether or not that happens, it’s just about being in the ocean, getting better every day and having something you’re passionate about.”
In the coming days, when the buzzer goes to begin her heat, Kelia will make history – even before she surfs a wave. Could an upset be on the cards? “I’m just going to wait until the moment,” says Kelia.
But Ryan is hoping that age and relative inexperience could work in his daughter’s favour. “There is really no pressure on her to do anything – no one expected her to get this far,” he says. “[Kelia] is the biggest underdog ever – the pressure is on [the other surfers in the heat]. You don’t want to lose to a 12-year-old girl.”
Ahead of iOS 26 launching this fall, Apple Music for Android is beta testing version 5.0.0 with new features and design tweaks.
The Android app does not get a Liquid Glass redesign with the same bottom bar and docked Now Playing controls as before. It’s unfortunate from a cross-platform parity standpoint, but hopefully a future update will introduce it.
That said, there are some design tweaks like pill-shaped buttons throughout the app replacing the rounded rectangles. For example, shuffle, repeat, and autoplay at the top of your queue have been updated. The Play and Shuffle buttons in albums also get the same treatment. There are no changes to homescreen widgets.
You can now “Pin Music to Your Library: Elevate your most played music to the top of Library for easy access.” You’ll find Pin Song, Album, Playlist, or Artist in various overflow menus throughout the app. These sync with your Apple devices, though you might have to pin/unpin one item to get the rest to show up.
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Once set, you can long-press from the Library tab to unpin, as well as customize the Tap Action: Go to Album, Play, or Shuffle. You can have pins automatically download, though this can be disabled in Settings.
The redesign splash screen also highlights:
Lyrics Translation & Pronunciation: Understand the lyrics and sing along across languages.
Replay in the App: Check out your month-by-month and year-end stats easily in-app.
You can access the Apple Music 5.0 beta by joining on this page.
FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.
Marvel Rivals Season 3 premiered last month and brought a fiery update to NetEase’s hero shooter. The season featured Jean Grey as the Phoenix, a Duelist with explosive damage, and the symbiote-themed Klyntar: Celestial Husk map for Domination mode.
The Power of the Phoenix Battle Pass included new skins and emotes, as well as a summer event with cosmetics for Punisher, Psylocke, and Loki. New team-ups, such as Human Torch and The Thing, as well as balancing modifications, changed the meta, buffing heroes like Dr. Strange and nerfing Black Panther.
As Season 3 concludes on August 8, anticipation grows for Season 3.5, which will be released on the same day. The mid-season update will include Blade, a vampiric Duelist with swordplay and anti-heal skills, as well as the Resource Rumble mode and the Throne of Knull map. If you’re looking for all the new content coming in the next update, here are the full patch notes.
Marvel Rivals Update 20250808 Season 3.5 Full Patch Notes
All-Black the Necrosword has returned to Knull’s grasp after millennia, ushering in an era where light may be snuffed out for good. The Phoenix Egg has shattered, its fragments igniting a wildfire upon the planet Klyntar. Blade, now empowered by both Phoenix fire & the living abyss, leads the heroes to destroy Knull’s throne. But will it be enough to halt the march of the King in Black? Join the battle and witness the eternal clash of light and darkness!
The update begins on August 8th, 2025, at 9 AM UTC. There will be a brief server downtime of 3-4 hours starting at 5 AM UTC, so please ensure you install the full update before logging into the game.
New Content on All Platforms
New Hero
Blade is on his feet and itching to join the fight in Marvel Rivals! He’s a Duelist with an impressive kit and an overpowered ultimate ability that can slice through enemies.
New Stories
New Blade lore – Cut to The Chase
New Iron Man lore – The Celestial Iron Man
New Rocket Raccoon lore – The Deepest Bond
Limited-Time Event: Queen’s Codex
The Queen is coming! Battle to earn XP and level up to earn rewards, including the The Thing – Symbiote Thing costume absolutely FREE!
Image Credit: NetEase Games
Unlock the Premium Codex to claim even more rewards, such as the Hela – Queen in Black costume, an all-new dynamic spray, and more! Plus, once you unlock Premium, you gain permanent access to the event until all rewards are claimed. No time limit!
Event Available from: August 8 at 9 AM UTC
New Systems
Custom Muted Words: Players can now set up their own defenses against words they’d rather not see in chat. If a message contains a muted word, it will be filtered out.
Faction Tab in Chat: Added a new Faction tab to the chat system.
New In Store
Blade – Polarity Edge Bundle
Blade – Emoji Bundle
Blade Dynamic Mood Bundle
Bundle Available from: August 8 at 9 AM UTC
Twitch Drops
As Season 3.5 kicks off, get ready for a new round of Twitch Drops. Simply accumulate the required viewing time to claim your rewards.
This round’s drops include the Mantis – Will of Galacta costume along with related bundle content.
Drops Period: August 8 at 12 am UTC to September 5 at 9 AM UTC
Tournaments
We’re introducing latency equalization technology to the S3 Marvel Rivals Championship. When a server or geographic location causes significant ping differences between factions, the system will auto-balance latency for fairer matches.
Newly added the Balance Latency option to Custom Game – Tournament Rooms. Hosts can now enable this option and set thresholds.
Rank Adjustments
Rank Rewards
New Rank Settlement Rewards: Reach Gold for the cool Blade- Emerald Blade costume. Earn all-new Nameplate Frames at Diamond and Platinum, plus rock fresh Crests of Honor for Grandmaster, Celestial, Eternity, and the illustrious Top 500.
Team Matchmaking Adjustments
Players in Bronze, Silver, and Gold can queue for Competitive in any team size except 5-player teams.
Players in Platinum, Diamond, and Grandmaster can queue for Competitive in teams of up to 3 players.
Players in Celestial, Eternity, and One Above All can queue for Competitive in teams of up to 2 players.
Surrender & Disconnect Rule Adjustments
Surrender Trigger: In the first round, if a player disconnects and does not reconnect within 90 seconds, their team may vote to surrender. The required votes passes with 1 less than the current team members. (E.g., if 4 remain, 3 votes are needed.)
Disconnect Penalty and Compensation Adjustments
Invalid Matches
If any player disconnects during loading, ban/pick phase, hero select, or within the first 70 seconds of a match, the match is deemed invalid. The disconnected player receives a T1 Penalty (see below for details) that scales with repeated offenses and penalty count increases. For other players, the match ends with no result or penalty.
Valid Matches
If a player disconnects after 70 seconds, the following applies:
Disconnected player does NOT reconnect before the match ends:
If the match ends within 90 seconds of their disconnect:
Normal settlement based on match result and stats; no penalty.
If the match ends 90 – 150 seconds after their disconnect:
Disconnected player receives a T1 Point Penalty and Competitive Matchmaking Ban (both scale with repeat offenses), and penalty count increases (win or lose). If the disconnected team loses, remaining teammates receive ranked point compensation.
If the match ends 150+ seconds after their disconnect:
Disconnected player receives a T2 Point Penalty and Competitive Matchmaking Ban (both scale with repeat offenses), and penalty count increases (win or lose). If the disconnected team loses, remaining teammates receive ranked point compensation.
Disconnected player RECONNECTS before the match ends:
If their team wins:
Normal settlement; no penalty.
If their team loses:
Penalty is based on disconnect-to-reconnect time (as above), but no Competitive Matchmaking Ban.
Teammates receive compensation on loss only if the disconnect lasted more than 90 seconds.
T1 penalty, competitive ban, penalty count increases//Penalized regardless of win or loss.
Compensation if lost
>150s
T2 penalty, competitive ban, penalty count increases//Penalized regardless of win or loss.
Compensation if lost
Yes
≤90s
Normal settlement, no penalty
Normal settlement
90–150s
T1 penalty, penalty count increases (if lost)
Compensation if lost
>150s
T2 penalty, penalty count increases (if lost)
Compensation if lost
Points Compensation
Rank
Points
Bronze
12
Silver
12
Gold
12
Platinum
8
Diamond
8
Grandmaster
8
Celestial
4
Eternity
4
One Above All
4
Compensation points vary by rank.
If the final score after compensation is above -1, it will be capped at -1. For example:
If a Gold player was supposed to lose 10 points, but receives a disconnect compensation of +12, the result would be +2. Since this is above -1, the final deduction will be set to -1.
AFK Penalty Adjustments
Invalid Matches
If a player is detected AFK within the first 70 seconds, the match is invalid:
Inactive Player:T2 Penalty (scaling with repeat offenses) and penalty count increases.
Other Players: Match ends immediately with no result or deductions.
Valid Matches
If a player is detected AFK after the first 70 seconds:
If their team wins: Normal settlement, no penalty.
If their team loses: Inactive player receives a T2 Penalty and Competitive Matchmaking Ban (scaling with repeat offenses), and penalty count increases. Teammates do not receive compensation.
Combined AFK & Disconnect Penalty
If a player is both inactive and disconnects, the highest penalty applies.
If a team is faced with both inactive and disconnected players and that team loses, compensation is granted to fully engaged teammates.
Penalty & Ban Scaling for Competitive
Repeat Offenses
Competitive Ban
T1 Penalty
T2 Penalty
1
15 minutes
25
30
2
1 hour
30
35
3
3 hours
35
40
4
8 hours
40
45
5 or more
20 hours
40
45
//Specific penalty rules described above will be enforced accordingly.
Quick Match Penalties
In Quick Match mode, we’ve also strengthened the penalty duration for players who disconnect and leave the game:
Repeat Offenses
Quick Match Ban
1
Warning
2
15 minutes
3
30 minutes
4
1 hour
5 or more
8 hours
We will continue to monitor disconnections and early exits in both Ranked and Quick Match modes and adjust these rules as necessary. If you believe you were wrongly penalized, please contact customer support for a prompt review.
Fixes and Optimizations
All Platforms
Rank reward Nameplate Frames can now be displayed in more areas (lobby, career, friends, faction, leaderboards, gifts, invites, custom games, etc).
Hero display in the team lobby now supports camera scrolling. When zoomed out, you can use emotes, and your teammates will see them in real time.
Costume voice and sound effect settings have been moved from Audio Settings to the Hero Profile > Costumes screen. You can now toggle special voice lines and sound effects individually for each supported costume.
Improved Venom’s Tickle Me Pink emote animation for his default costume.
The “Special” tab in the Store now lets you browse all available Moods, Emoji, and unique Emotes.
PC Graphics & Performance
PC Shader Compilation Rework: The mandatory shader compilation wait on first launch has been removed. Instead, essential global shaders will now preload in the background after installation/update. (Shader preload speed depends on your GPU, entering a match before preloading competes may cause performance issues, including stuttering, network lag, rendering errors, or crashes.)
The performance test tool now provides graphics settings optimization recommendations based on your test results.
In-game UI animation details will now automatically adjust based on your effects detail settings to improve overall performance.
Maps and Modes
Fixed several terrain issues that could cause characters to sometimes become stuck or clip into strange areas.
Heroes
Jumping the Gun: Polished up a minor bug where Emma Frost, Iron Fist, Phoenix, and Wolverine were out-leaping the competition with slightly higher jump heights. Now everyone’s jump is perfectly balanced, as all things should be!
Iron Fist’s Silent Sanctuary: Resolved an issue where Lin Lie’s Harmony Recovery would sometimes end without playing its ending sound effect. The Iron Fist can now find his inner peace with the proper zen, no more silent retreats in K’un-Lun!
Venom & Spider-Man Slinging in Style: Spidey and The Symbiote can now set separate keybinds for simple and manual swinging. Choose your web-slinging style on the fly!
Panther & Wolverine’s Sneaky Sounds: Enhanced the audio cues for enemy Black Panther and Wolverine when they’re sneaking up for a surprise attack. Now, when these clawed kings are on the prowl, you might hear them coming. Predator awareness up!
Console Fixes
Fixed an issue where changing global keybinds could incorrectly affect some hero ability keys.
The Marvel Rivals universe is ever-evolving, and with Season 3.5 dropping, we have plenty more surprises and changes in store. What are you most excited about? Tell us in the comments below!
