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  • Harnessing Plankton Research Is Crucial To Inform

    Harnessing Plankton Research Is Crucial To Inform

    An international publication led by Plymouth Marine Laboratory highlights how upgrading current plankton models is critical to understanding the scale of global climate issues. 

    Plankton may be small, but they power the planet. feeding marine life and underpinning global biogeochemical cycles. Yet the models used to simulate their influence on ocean ecosystems have not kept pace with developments in understanding of how biology and ecology functions, according to a new publication led by PML’s Professor Kevin Flynn. 

    Plankton models form the core of marine ecosystem simulators, used from regional resource and ecosystem management through to climate change projections, and are essential for us to predict what the future may hold for our planet, and prepare accordingly. 

    However, in the perspectives paper, ‘More realistic plankton simulation models will improve projections of ocean ecosystem responses to global change’, published July 1 in the scientific journal Nature Ecology & Evolution, a team of over 30 international experts argue that plankton models need updating to reflect contemporary knowledge, requiring urgent joint attention from both empiricists and modelers. 

    “Plankton are mainly microscopic organisms that grow in the ocean (and also in inland waters) that support the base of the food chain. No plankton—no fish, no sharks, no whales, no seals, no coral, etc. However, the diversity of the plankton is critical; that biodiversity cannot be best compressed into just a few groups, yet invariably that is what happens in models,” said Flynn.

    “Additionally, photosynthetic members of plankton play a role similar in magnitude to those of plants on land in producing oxygen and fixing carbon dioxide. They have had a transformational impact on how Earth evolved, and are likely to have a huge role in how our planet responds to climate change. ”

    Given that plankton play such a vital role in the natural processes of our planet, plankton models are central to our understanding of how oceans respond to global change. But the authors warn these tools do not sufficiently reflect what science now knows about plankton physiology, diversity, and their roles in ecosystem functioning. 

    “We’re using simulation tools built on 30 to 50-year-old concepts to understand the most complex and rapidly changing ecosystems on Earth. And that’s a real problem – not just for science, but for policy and for wider society. We need to be sure that models describe the ecophysiology of these organisms in a realistic manner,” explains Professor Flynn. 

    This disconnect could have serious consequences, from underestimating biodiversity shifts to missing key drivers of marine productivity and carbon cycling. Using models with over-simplified conceptual cores runs the risk of getting the “right” results (aligning with what data are available) for the wrong reasons, giving a false sense of confidence for using such models in projecting into the future. 

    The paper calls for a transformation in how plankton are modeled and how modelers and empiricists work together. Among the key recommendations are: 

    • Greater collaboration between empirical scientists and modelers, especially during model development 
    • Better accounting for aspects of real-world ecological complexity, known to be of critical importance, in core model design 
    • New tools that allow engagement with the development of simulation models by scientists that lack specialist coding skills 
    • Investment in “digital twin” platforms for plankton research – new-generation models that can simulate realistic biological processes and inform decision-making under global change 

    The authors urge the scientific community to treat modeling as a core tool in plankton ecology and in teaching activities – just as molecular biology revolutionized the science from the 1980s onward, so too must simulation modeling become embedded in plankton research. 

    This work was supported by the UK’s Natural Environment Research Council as part of the “Simulating Plankton” project, contributing to the UN Decade of Ocean Science and the Digital Twins of the Ocean (DITTO) initiative.

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  • Khloé Kardashian’s plastic surgeries and cosmetic work revealed

    Khloé Kardashian’s plastic surgeries and cosmetic work revealed

    Khloé Kardashian is setting the record straight — and giving credit where it’s due — about the plastic surgery and cosmetic work she’s had done after a London-based surgeon rattled off a list of suspected surgeries in honor of the reality star’s 41st birthday.

    Dr. Jonathan Betteridge had a rather suspicious mind: He told followers in an Instagram Reel that he believed Kardashian had undergone a brow lift, an upper-eyelid lift, a nose job, a chin implant, a facelift and a neck lift for “overall tightness and definition” and lip filler.

    Referring to side-by-side photos of Kardashian from a while back and from the recent Bezos-Sánchez wedding in Venice, Betteridge said she “looks dramatically different from a few years ago, and whether you see it as glow-up or glam makeover, there’s no denying she’s created a bold new look for herself.”

    Then he added a disclaimer, saying he had no personal knowledge of what Kardashian had done and was purely speculating, albeit as a professional.

    He also asked people to offer their opinions and voila, along came Khloé.

    “I take this as a great compliment! first off I think these photos are about 15 years apart, But here’s a list of things that I have done. I’ve been very open in the past about what I have done so here we go,” Kardashian wrote in a comment.

    And it turns out the doc’s speculation was mostly wrong.

    Here’s what Kardashian copped to: a nose job. “Laser Hair” for the hairline and “everywhere else,” which we assume means laser hair removal. Botox and Sculptra injectables on her right cheek after she had a melanoma tumor removed. Collagen baby threads under her chin and neck. Sofwave laser treatment for skin tightening.

    She lost 80 pounds slowly over time, she said, and has had fillers but not in the past few years. (“I hear it never goes away,” she wrote, “so I’m sure it’s still there but calmed down.”)

    Also, in addition to “regular facials, peptides, vitamins and daily skin care,” Kardashian said she gets salmon sperm facials.

    Giggle or not — it’s your choice. We giggled. Turns out said facials are all the rage.

    She added that in 2025 “there are many other things we can do before surgery but when it’s time, and if I choose to, I know some great doctors.”

    Kardashian has indeed been open about her cosmetic work over the years, talking about her nose job in 2021 and saying in 2023 that she hadn’t used diabetic medicine to take off what was about 60 pounds at the time. “Let’s not discredit my years of working out,” she wrote in reply to one Ozempic accusation. “I get up 5 days a week at 6am to train. Please stop with your assumptions. I guess new year still means mean people.”

    In her list, the reality star credited all her providers as well.

    Kardashian’s youngest sister, Kylie Jenner, also recently got candid on social media about her plastic surgery, revealing to a TikTok user the details of her breast augmentation.


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  • Study: Squids Originated and Rapidly Radiated by 100 Million Years Ago

    Study: Squids Originated and Rapidly Radiated by 100 Million Years Ago

    Using an innovative digital fossil-mining approach, paleontologists analyzed more than 250 fossil beaks from 40 ancient squid species. Their results suggest that the radical shift from heavily shelled, slowly moving cephalopods to soft-bodied forms did not result from the end-Cretaceous mass extinction, around 66 million years ago; early squids had already formed large populations, and their biomass exceeded that of ammonites and fishes; they pioneered the modern-type marine ecosystem as intelligent, fast swimmers.

    This lithograph shows Loligo forbesii, a species of squid in the order Myopsida. Image credit: Comingio Merculiano.

    Squids are the most diverse and globally distributed group of marine cephalopods in the modern ocean, where they play a vital role in ocean ecosystems as both predators and prey.

    Their evolutionary success is widely considered to be related to the loss of a rigid external shell, which was a key trait of their cephalopod ancestors.

    However, their evolutionary origins remain obscure due to the rarity of fossils from soft-bodied organisms.

    The fossil record of squids begins only around 45 million years ago, with most specimens consisting of just fossilized statoliths — tiny calcium carbonite structures involved in balance.

    The lack of early fossils has led to speculation that squids diversified after the end-Cretaceous mass extinction 66 million years ago.

    While molecular analyses of living species have offered estimates of squid divergence times, the absence of earlier fossils has made these estimates highly uncertain.

    In the new study, Hokkaido University paleontologist Shin Ikegami and colleagues addressed these gaps using digital fossil-mining, which uses high-resolution grinding tomography and advanced image processing to digitally scan entire rocks as stacked cross-sectional images to reveal hidden fossils as detailed 3D models.

    They applied this technique to Cretaceous-age carbonate rocks from Japan, uncovering 263 fossilized squid beaks, with specimens spanning 40 species across 23 genera and five families.

    The findings show that squids originated roughly 100 million years ago, near the boundary between the Early and Late Cretaceous, and rapidly diversified thereafter.

    According to the authors, the previously hidden fossil record greatly extends the known origins of both major squid groups — Oegopsida by about 15 million years and Myopsida by about 55 million years.

    Early Oegopsids displayed distinct anatomical traits that disappeared in later species, suggesting swift morphological evolution, while Myopsids already resembled modern forms.

    The study also suggests that Late Cretaceous squids were more abundant and often larger than coexisting ammonites and bony fishes, an ecological dominance that predates the radiation of bony fishes and marine mammals by over 30 million years, making them among the first intelligent, fast swimmers to shape modern ocean ecosystems.

    “In both number and size, these ancient squids clearly prevailed the seas,” Dr. Ikegami said.

    “Their body sizes were as large as fish and even bigger than the ammonites we found alongside them.”

    “This shows us that squids were thriving as the most abundant swimmers in the ancient ocean.”

    “These findings change everything we thought we knew about marine ecosystems in the past,” said Dr. Yasuhiro Iba, also from Hokkaido University.

    “Squids were probably the pioneers of fast and intelligent swimmers that dominate the modern ocean.”

    The study was published in the journal Science.

    _____

    Shin Ikegami et al. 2025. Origin and radiation of squids revealed by digital fossil-mining. Science 388 (6754): 1406-1409; doi: 10.1126/science.adu6248

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  • ACIP Members Show Inexperience, Lack of Understanding at First Meeting, Experts Say – MedPage Today

    1. ACIP Members Show Inexperience, Lack of Understanding at First Meeting, Experts Say  MedPage Today
    2. Viewpoint: CDC’s upcoming vaccine advisory meeting set up to sow distrust in vaccines  CIDRAP
    3. Exclusive: US CDC vaccine presentation cites study that does not exist, author says  Reuters
    4. If Thimerosal Is Safe, Why Is It Being Removed From Vaccines?  Time Magazine
    5. This Week’s Industry News, RFK Jr. criticizes Gavi, Trump Pulls Federal Subscriptions, and More  The Medicine Maker

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  • Lower Tregs Linked With Survival in Multiple Myeloma

    Lower Tregs Linked With Survival in Multiple Myeloma

    Patients with multiple myeloma (MM) are more likely to experience early relapse if they have a lower percentage of regulatory T cells (Tregs) at diagnosis, a new report published in Cancer Medicine has found.1

    Low Tregs might also be an indicator of functional high-risk (FHR) status, the authors noted.

    Corresponding author Fang Xu, PhD, of the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, and colleagues wrote that assessing risk is critically important in MM because the disease is curable, and almost every patient will eventually relapse. Xu and colleagues pointed to a 2023 study that showed that more than 1 in 10 (11.6%) of patients who are not categorized as high risk using traditional baseline risk assessments will still go on to have an early relapse, which they defined as relapse within 18 months.2

    “Therefore, identifying patients with functional high risk early has brought increased attention,” Xu and colleagues wrote.

    The findings that patients with multiple myeloma are more likely to relapse early if they have a lower percentage of regulatory T cells at diagnosis contradicts previous research.

    Image credit: ibreakstock – stock.adobe.com

    FHR refers to patients who will experience an aggressive disease course and early relapse even when treated with novel agents like proteasome inhibitors and/or immunomodulatory drugs, autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT), and CD38 antibodies, they wrote.

    To identify FHR patients, Xu and colleagues started with the tumor microenvironment. Within the MM tumor microenvironment, Tregs play a particularly important role.

    “Tregs can suppress the body’s immune response, thereby weakening the immune attacks on tumor cells,” they said. “Secondly, Tregs may promote tumor growth and survival by regulating the immune response in the tumor microenvironment.”

    The investigators hypothesized that studying patient Tregs at diagnosis might therefore provide insight into potential correlations between Tregs and early relapse.

    The authors identified 70 patients who were newly diagnosed with MM between 2016 and 2023. Participants’ Tregs were assessed at baseline. Early relapse was defined as relapse within 18 months following initial treatment or relapse within 12 months of ASCT. Sixteen patients in the study went on to have early relapses.

    In the cohort as a whole, neither the median progression-free survival (PFS) nor the median overall survival (OS) was reached. However, in patients with early relapse, the median OS was 24.8 months and the median PFS was 10.8 months.

    When the investigators analyzed patients’ medical records, they found that elevated serum creatinine levels, the presence of extramedullary disease, and a lower percentage of Tregs at diagnosis were associated with early relapse. Extramedullary disease and Tregs were found to be significant predictors of early relapse in multivariate analysis.

    Previous research has suggested features like elevated LDH, extramedullary disease, and high-risk cytogenetic abnormalities were associated with early relapse.

    “Our results indicate that when traditional high-risk biological factors are incorporated, Tregs at diagnosis were demonstrated to be an independent risk factor for ER18 (early relapse),” they wrote. “Therefore, Tregs at diagnosis may be used to predict some type of FHR.”

    Conversely, patients with a higher percentage of Tregs at diagnosis tended to have better outcomes.

    Xu and colleagues acknowledged that their findings are at odds with a handful of previous studies that suggested higher Tregs were associated with poorer OS and PFS. One reason for the discrepancy may be changes in treatment regimens over time. They also noted that their study was a single-center study with a small sample size.

    Still, they said their findings suggest that Tregs at diagnosis could be an important factor to incorporate into treatment planning as clinicians seek to personalize care.

    References

    1. Zhou Q, Xu F, Wen J, et al. Tregs at Diagnosis as a Potential Biomarker for Predicting High-Risk Functionality in Newly Diagnosed Multiple Myeloma. Cancer Med. 2025;14(11):e70980. doi:10.1002/cam4.70980
    2. Yan W, Xu J, Fan H, et al. Early relapse within 18 months is a powerful dynamic predictor for prognosis and could revise static risk distribution in multiple myeloma. Cancer. 2024;130(3):421-432. doi:10.1002/cncr.35056

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  • How AI Could Transform Real Estate

    How AI Could Transform Real Estate

    Welcome to Thoughts on the Market. I’m Ron Kamdem, Head of Morgan Stanley’s U.S. Real Estate Investment Trusts and Commercial Real Estate research. Today I’ll talk about the ways GenAI is disrupting the real estate industry.

    It’s Tuesday, July 1st, at 10am in New York.

    What if the future of real estate isn’t about location, location, location – but automation, automation, automation?

    While it may be too soon to say exactly how AI will affect demand for real estate, what we can say is that it is transforming the business of real estate, namely by making operations more efficient. If you’re a customer dealing with a real estate company, you can now expect to interact with virtual leasing assistants. And when it comes to drafting your lease documents, AI can help you do this in minutes rather than hours – or even days.

    In fact, our recent work suggests that GenAI could automate nearly 40 percent of tasks across half a million occupations in the real estate investment trusts industry – or REITs. Indeed, across 162 public REITs and commercial real estate services companies or CRE with $92 billion of total labor costs, the financial impact may be $34 billion, or over 15 percent of operating cash flow. Our proprietary job posting database suggests the top four occupations with automation potential are management – so think about middle management, sales, office and administrative support, and installation maintenance and repairs.

    Certain sub-sectors within REITs and CRE services stand to gain more than others. For instance, lodging and resorts, along with brokers and services, and healthcare REITs could see more than 15 percent improvement in operating cash flow due to labor automation. On the other hand, sectors like gaming, triple net, self-storage, malls, even shopping centers might see less than a 5 percent benefit, which suggests a varied impact across the industry.

    Brokers and services, in particular, show the highest potential for automation gains, with nearly 34 percent increase in operating cash flow. These companies may be the furthest along in adopting GenAI tools at scale. In our view, they should benefit not only from the labor cost savings but also from enhanced revenue opportunities through productivity improvement and data center transactions facilitated by GenAI tools.

    Lodging and resorts have the second highest potential upside from automating occupations, with an estimated 23 percent boost in operating cash flow. The integration of AI in these businesses not only streamline operations but also opens new avenues for return on investments, and mergers and acquisitions.

    Some companies are already using AI in their operations. For example, some self-storage companies have integrated AI into their digital platforms, where 85 percent of customer interactions now occur through self-selected digital options. As a result, they have reduced on-property labor hours by about 30 percent through AI-powered staffing optimization. Similarly, some apartment companies have reduced their full-time staff by about 15 percent since 2021 through AI-driven customer interactions and operational efficiencies.

    Meanwhile, this increased application of AI is driving new revenue to AI-enablers. Businesses like data centers, specialty, CRE services could see significant upside from the infrastructure buildout from GenAI. Advanced revenue management systems, customer acquisition tools, predictive analytics are just a few areas where GenAI can add value, potentially enhancing the $290 billion of revenue stream in the REIT and CRE services space.

    However, the broader economic impact of GenAI on labor markets remains hotly debated. Job growth is the key driver of real estate demand and the impact of AI on the 164 million jobs in the U.S. economy remains to be determined. If significant job losses materialize and the labor force shrinks, then the real estate industry may face top-line pressure with potentially disproportionate impact on office and lodging. While AI-related job losses are legitimate concerns, our economists argue that the productivity effects of GenAI could ultimately lead to net positive job growth, albeit with a significant need for re-skilling.

    Thanks for listening. If you enjoy the show, please leave us a review wherever you listen and share Thoughts on the Market with a friend or colleague today.

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  • Sugar: Plants’ Secret Temperature Regulator

    Sugar: Plants’ Secret Temperature Regulator

    For a decade, scientists have believed that plants sensed temperature mainly through specialized proteins, and mainly at night when the air is cool. New research suggests that during the day, another signal takes over. Sugar, produced in sunlight, helps plants detect heat and decide when to grow.

    The study, led by Meng Chen, a University of California, Riverside professor of cell biology, shows that plants rely on multiple heat-sensing systems, and that sugar plays a central and previously unrecognized role in daytime temperature response. The findings, published in Nature Communications, reshape a long-standing view of how plants interact with their environment and could influence future strategies for climate-resilient agriculture.

    “Our textbooks say that proteins like phytochrome B and early flowering 3 (ELF3) are the main thermosensors in plants,” Chen said. “But those models are based on nighttime data. We wanted to know what’s happening during the day, when light and temperature are both high because these are the conditions most plants actually experience.”

    To investigate, the researchers used Arabidopsis, a small flowering plant favored in genetics labs. They exposed seedlings to a range of temperatures, from 12 to 27 degrees Celsius, under different light conditions, and tracked the elongation of their seedling stems, known as hypocotyls — a classic indicator of growth response to warmth.

    They found that phytochrome B, a light-sensing protein, could only detect heat under low light. In bright conditions that mimic midday sunlight, its temperature-sensing function was effectively shut off. Yet, the plants still responded to heat, growing taller even when the thermosensing role of phytochrome B was greatly diminished. That, Chen said, pointed to the presence of other sensors.

    One clue came from studies of a phytochrome B mutant lacking its thermosensing function. These mutant plants could respond to warmth only when grown in the light. When grown in the dark, without photosynthesis, they lacked chloroplasts and did not grow taller in response to warmth. But when researchers supplemented the growing medium with sugar, the temperature response returned.

    “That’s when we realized sugar wasn’t just fueling growth,” Chen said. “It was acting like a signal, telling the plant that it’s warm.”

    Further experiments showed that higher temperatures triggered the breakdown of starch stored in leaves, releasing sucrose. This sugar in turn stabilized a protein known as PIF4, a master regulator of growth. Without sucrose, PIF4 degraded quickly. With it, the protein accumulated but only became active when another sensor, ELF3, also responded to the heat by stepping aside.

    “PIF4 needs two things,” Chen explained. “Sugar to stick around, and freedom from repression. Temperature helps provide both.”

    The study reveals a nuanced, multi-layered system. During the day, when light is used as the energy source to fix carbon dioxide into sugar, plants also evolved a sugar-based mechanism to sense environmental changes. As temperatures rise, stored starch converts into sugar, which then enables key growth proteins to do their job.

    The findings could have practical implications. As climate change drives temperature extremes, understanding how and when plants sense heat could help scientists breed crops that grow more predictably and more resiliently under stress.

    “This changes how we think about thermosensing in plants,” Chen said. “It’s not just about proteins flipping on or off. It’s about energy, light, sugar, as well.”

    The findings also underscore, once again, the quiet sophistication of the plant world. In the blur of photosynthesis and starch reserves, there’s a hidden intelligence. One that knows, sweetly and precisely, when it’s time to stretch toward the sky.

    /Public Release. This material from the originating organization/author(s) might be of the point-in-time nature, and edited for clarity, style and length. Mirage.News does not take institutional positions or sides, and all views, positions, and conclusions expressed herein are solely those of the author(s).View in full here.

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  • Fernando Alonso triumphs as heavy rain wreaks havoc at the Nurburgring – 2007 European Grand Prix

    Fernando Alonso triumphs as heavy rain wreaks havoc at the Nurburgring – 2007 European Grand Prix

    To mark F1’s 75th anniversary celebrations, F1.com is counting down the sport’s 25 greatest races with a new feature every week. While you may not agree with the order, we hope you enjoy the stories of these epic races that have helped make this sport what it is today. You can read the introduction to the series and see the list of races here.

    At No. 18, Anna Francis recalls the 2007 European Grand Prix at the Nurburgring, an event that featured everything from a backmarker leading on their debut, a dramatic Turn 1 pile-up courtesy of treacherous rain and a thrilling late-race duel that sparked quite the fallout after the chequered flag.

    As this countdown of F1’s greatest races highlights, a Grand Prix can become a classic for a variety of reasons; perhaps there was a storyline-packed build-up that heightened the tension, or the weather proved unpredictable and an unexpected turn of events unfolded, or maybe the drama continued well after the chequered flag had fallen.

    The 2007 European Grand Prix basically ticked off every point on this list. It was an encounter that took place in the middle of a fascinating and closely-fought season, with the Nurburgring playing host to the 10th round of a 17-race calendar – and a race that lives on in the memories of fans 18 years later.

    Hamilton crashes in Qualifying

    Lewis Hamilton, in his rookie campaign for McLaren, arrived into the weekend as the championship leader – and, given the points system then in play (which awarded the top eight drivers, from 10 points for the winner through to one for P8), he would leave still on top regardless of the result, having built a 12-point advantage over team mate Fernando Alonso.

    However, evidently Alonso – who was equal on wins with Hamilton, the pair having taken two apiece – could still cut into Hamilton’s lead if the cards fell in his favour. Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen also remained in the mix, sitting third in the standings just six points adrift of Alonso after claiming three victories, while the other red car of Felipe Massa had won twice.

    It was Hamilton and Raikkonen who set the pace during the weekend’s practice sessions, but the former’s strong run hit a snag when he suffered a heavy crash in Q3 of Qualifying, the right front tyre on his MP4-22 bursting and sending him into the wall at Turn 8. Team boss Ron Dennis blamed the incident on a faulty wheel gun failing to secure the tyre to the car.

    Hamilton was airlifted to hospital for precautionary checks – after reassuringly giving a thumbs-up to the crowd – and his participation in Sunday’s race remained in doubt. Having been unable to continue in the session, the Briton’s original time put him in 10th, while Raikkonen took pole ahead of Alonso and Massa.

    After the dust settled on that eventful Saturday, attentions switched to Sunday’s race. Hamilton returned to action and joined the rest of the pack as they lined up for the 60-lap encounter in initially dry conditions – but the weather forecast looked ominous…

    Cars pile up as rain arrives – and a surprise leader emerges

    While the dark clouds that had gathered over the Nurburgring hinted at imminent rain, the field lined up on slick tyres. Further back, however, Spyker’s Markus Winkelhock – making his F1 debut – pitted for wet tyres at the end of the formation lap, meaning that he would start the race from the pit lane.

    Within just a couple of laps, that would prove to be something of a genius call by the backmarker team. Raikkonen had initially led from pole, with Massa following after getting ahead of Alonso, while Hamilton made an impressive start to climb up to sixth by the first corner.

    However, a collision between the BMW Sauber cars resulted in Hamilton getting tagged and picking up a puncture, dropping the McLaren backwards. Meanwhile rain had started to fall on some parts of the circuit – prompting the majority of the field to pit at the end of Lap 1 for intermediate tyres.

    Raikkonen was one of the few to remain out on track, having missed the pit entry after a mistake in the increasingly tricky conditions. While the Finn made a stop after Lap 2 along with the other cars that had stayed out, Winkelhock had found himself in the lead.

    But soon the rain had become even heavier, sparking incredible scenes as car after car aquaplaned off the circuit and into the gravel at Turn 1, where something of a ‘river’ of standing water had formed.

    The Safety Car was deployed as the process of recovering a total of five stricken cars began, but it was quickly decided that conditions were too dangerous to continue in, meaning that the race was red flagged.

    Order changes at the restart

    After around 15 minutes, the drivers prepared to take the restart – with the exception of Jenson Button (Honda), Adrian Sutil (Spyker), Nico Rosberg (Williams), Scott Speed (Toro Rosso) and Vitantonio Liuzzi (Toro Rosso), all of whom had fallen victim to the Turn 1 car park.

    Hamilton, meanwhile, had been amongst those to aquaplane off the circuit but, having kept his engine running, his McLaren was hoisted back onto the track by a crane, meaning that he was able to continue on in the race under the regulations then in place.

    While the Briton was a lap down at the restart, he was able to unlap himself as the Grand Prix resumed under the Safety Car, before diving into the pits to bolt on slick tyres. It was a gamble that failed to pay off as he soon had another foray off the still-wet track, though again managed to rejoin.

    Winkelhock’s moment in the sun also quickly came to an end after a few laps, with the likes of Massa and Alonso soon overtaking him – and things worsened further when his Spyker suffered a hydraulic failure on Lap 15, bringing his eventful sole F1 appearance to an early end.

    It soon transpired that Winkelhock would not be the only retiree following the restart, with Ralf Schumacher (Toyota) and Takuma Sato (Super Aguri) each recording a DNF a few laps later – but a ninth and final retirement would prove to be the most significant in terms of the championship fight….

    Raikkonen out as Alonso snatches the lead from Massa

    While his switch to slick tyres had initially backfired, Hamilton subsequently looked to have strong pace on a track that was drying out, leading other frontrunners to pit for dry tyres. One of the first to do so was Raikkonen, allowing the Finn to haul himself back up to third behind Massa and Alonso.

    The Ferrari driver continued to chase down the leaders from there – yet his charge was brought to an abrupt halt when his car was struck by a mechanical issue, forcing him to retire at just over half distance in a blow to his title hopes.

    It still seemed as if the Scuderia were on for victory at the Nurburgring, though, thanks to the sister car of Massa, who maintained his lead over Alonso through what had looked to be the final round of pit stops, despite the two-time World Champion slowly closing in.

    But the weather gods had not quite finished their day’s work yet. The rain returned as the race entered into its final 10 laps, leading to another flurry of action in the pit lane as the majority of the field headed in for intermediate tyres – with the exception of Hamilton, taking another gamble by remaining out on the slicks.

    However, with the downpour showing no signs of abating, Hamilton eventually had to stop, dropping him down to 10th place. Meanwhile, the other McLaren of Alonso was trying to find a way past Massa.

    On Lap 56 the move finally came, with Alonso boldly going around the outside at Turn 5 in a sequence that saw the two cars make contact. Further back, team mate Hamilton also gained a position before the end by grabbing P9 from Renault’s Giancarlo Fisichella.

    As the chequered flag fell on an action-packed afternoon at the Nurburging, Alonso crossed the line to take victory by eight seconds from Massa, while Red Bull’s Mark Webber completed the podium in third. The race might have been over, but there was still more drama to come…

    A heated debate after the chequered flag

    After the drivers had arrived into parc ferme, Alonso highlighted the damage that he had picked up in his scrap with Massa, directing the television cameras to zoom in on the area of his car affected as he wagged his finger.

    The fallout did not end there either; any fans watching that day will doubtless recall the heated debate that ensued between Massa and Alonso before heading out onto the podium, with Massa eventually walking away from the two-time World Champion – who seemed to brush off the argument by smiling at the watching camera and victoriously pumping his fist in the air.

    They then proceeded to the rostrum for a slightly tense podium ceremony, with a marked contrast between the jubilant Alonso and a still perturbed Massa – and as if that didn’t make it memorable enough, Michael Schumacher formed part of the ceremony following his retirement just a few months earlier, the seven-time World Champion tasked with handing the Teams’ trophy to former rival Ron Dennis.

    Massa later said about his clash with Alonso in the post-race press conference: “I was really surprised when he came to say that I did that on purpose. I would never do something like that on purpose.”

    Alonso, meanwhile, suggested he was sorry for the argument as he added: “We touched each other two times [on the track] and I apologise to him because I was so stressed when I finished the race, because we nearly didn’t finish the race.

    “I apologise if I said anything to him, because it’s motor racing and it’s a fight. We finished the race, so I don’t want to talk any more about this and I want to enjoy the win.”

    With Alonso having closed the gap to just two points to Hamilton in the championship standings, it marked the latest twist in a dramatic season famed for what would become an increasingly tense intra-team battle between the McLaren pair.

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  • Glenmorangie announced as Official Whisky of Formula 1

    Glenmorangie announced as Official Whisky of Formula 1

    Glenmorangie has been named as the Official Whisky of Formula 1, with Hollywood icon Harrison Ford helping reveal the partnership ahead of the British Grand Prix this weekend.

    The partnership marks the union of two icons, steeped in heritage, dedicated to taking their crafts to new heights and is part of part of the landmark 10-year deal between Formula 1 and LVMH – Glenmorangie’s parent company.

    Ford, who plays himself in Glenmorangie’s humorous brand campaign Once Upon a Time in Scotland, marked the partnership in a new short film, and with the same amusing understatement he uses for Glenmorangie’s whisky, blessed the collaboration in a word: “Nice.”

    Silverstone, site of the first official Formula 1 Grand Prix in 1950, will host a special Glenmorangie experience showcasing cocktails and the exclusive Eagle Speedster Jaguar E-Type, as used by Ford in the whisky’s brand film.

    Emily Prazer, Chief Commercial Officer at Formula 1, said: “As part of our 10-year deal with LVMH, we are delighted to welcome Glenmorangie from the Moët Hennessy Maisons collection as the Official Whisky of Formula 1. We have both been mastering our craft for many years, and we share a commitment to refinement and perfection delivered over time.

    “With our mutual respect for tradition, it is absolutely fitting that we are launching our collaboration at the Formula 1 British Grand Prix at Silverstone – the circuit that hosted our first race 75 years ago – and from there around the world for many years to come.”

    Caspar MacRae, President and CEO of Glenmorangie, added: “I am thrilled to set in motion Glenmorangie’s landmark partnership with Formula 1 – the pinnacle of motor racing. We share with F1 a great pride in our heritage and an unstoppable desire to reach new heights of excellence.

    “We look forward to spectacular performances and imaginative serves and hope our collaboration will inspire and excite racegoers throughout Formula 1’s 75th anniversary year – and beyond.”

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  • NASA's Curiosity rover takes a closer look at 'spiderwebs' on Mars | Space photo of the day for July 1, 2025 – MSN

    1. NASA’s Curiosity rover takes a closer look at ‘spiderwebs’ on Mars | Space photo of the day for July 1, 2025  MSN
    2. NASA’s Curiosity rover takes a closer look at ‘spiderwebs’ on Mars photo of the day for July 1, 2025  Space
    3. OTD In Space – June 22: Possible Evidence Of Liquid Found On Mars  MSN
    4. Mars rover captures first close-up images of ridges that hint at planet’s watery past in “really surprising” discovery  CBS News
    5. NASA’s Curiosity Mars Rover Starts Unpacking Boxwork Formations  NASA (.gov)

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