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A general theory of intelligence by Ben Goertzl.


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In 1,860, Auguste Mariette unearthed an exceptional sculpture while excavating a mastaba in the Saqqara necropolis, north of the Step Pyramid of Djoser.

Egyptian workers quickly realized the uniqueness of the discovery and, impressed by its realism, named it Sheikh el-Beled (Arabic for the village head, that is, the mayor), possibly because it reminded them of someone from their locality.

It actually represents Kaaper, an Egyptian nobleman who lived in the late fourth or early fifth dynasty (circa 2500 BC); the mastaba (today called the Kaaper mastaba or Saqqara C8) was the burial place of his family. Since that, another sculpture of what is believed to be his wife was also found, although the name has not been preserved.

A team of researchers from Università di Firenze, the University of South Florida, California Institute of Technology and Princeton University has found an incidence of a quasicrystal formed during an accidental electrical discharge.

In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes their study of a quasicrystal found in a in Nebraska.

Quasicrystals, as their name suggests, are crystal-like substances. They possess characteristics not found in ordinary crystals, such as a non-repeating arrangement of atoms. To date, quasicrystals have been found embedded in meteorites and in the debris from nuclear blasts. In this new effort, the researchers found one embedded in a sand dune in Sand Hills, Nebraska.

The Covid omicron XBB.1.5 variant is rapidly becoming dominant in the U.S. because it is highly immune evasive and appears more effective at binding to cells than related subvariants, scientists say.

XBB.1.5 now represents about 41% of new cases nationwide in the U.S., nearly doubling in prevalence over the past week, according to the data published Friday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The subvariant more than doubled as a share of cases every week through Dec. 24. In the past week, it nearly doubled from 21.7% prevalence.

Scientists and public health officials have been closely monitoring the XBB subvariant family for months because the strains have many mutations that could render the Covid-19 vaccines, including the omicron boosters, less effective and cause even more breakthrough infections.