Category: Nature

The 4.2-Billion-Year-Old Ancestor: The Dawn of the Viral Wars

Date: May 3, 2026

By: Kenneth Henseler

Welcome back to The Chronos Archive podcast. In our newest episode, we are going all the way back to the absolute beginning.

If you picked up the May 3, 2026 issue of Popular Mechanics, you might have seen a striking image of a glowing, cracked egg alongside a headline by Darren Orf: “All Life on Earth Comes From One Single Ancestor. And It’s So Much Older Than We Thought.” The article drops three massive revelations: all life traces back to a Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA), this organism lived a mere 400 million years after Earth formed, and it was already sporting an early immune system to fight off viruses.

In this episode, we dive into the exhaustive 2024 Nature Ecology & Evolution study that sparked these headlines. Using a state-of-the-art molecular clock technique known as “cross-bracing,” an international team of researchers decisively pinned LUCA’s existence to approximately 4.2 billion years ago.[1]

This shatters the old consensus that life was impossible during the chaotic infancy of our solar system. Far from being a fragile, simple chemical blob, LUCA was a highly complex, prokaryote-grade anaerobic acetogen with a genome of at least 2.5 Megabases, encoding roughly 2,600 distinct proteins.[2]

Perhaps most shockingly, scientists found that LUCA possessed 19 distinct class 1 CRISPR-Cas effector protein families.[3] This means that within a blink of a cosmic eye, cellular life was already engaged in a lethal, sophisticated arms race with ancient viral pathogens.[4] Furthermore, LUCA didn’t just survive; it engineered its world. Working alongside ancient methanogens, LUCA’s metabolism helped pump gases into the early atmosphere, which the young sun’s ultraviolet radiation broke down into hydrogen that rained back down to fuel a globally productive biosphere.[2]

Life didn’t just passively happen to the early Earth—it actively conquered it.

Listen to the full deep-dive podcast episode now:

• 🟢 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6bS7oD5okjuP7VJ8YvGcev

• 🍎 Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-chronos-archive/id1831231439?i=1000765907730

Sources Cited:

• Orf, Darren. “All Life on Earth Comes From One Single Ancestor. And It’s So Much Older Than We Thought.” Popular Mechanics, 3 May 2026.

• Moody, E.R.R., Álvarez-Carretero, S., Mahendrarajah, T.A. et al. The nature of the last universal common ancestor and its impact on the early Earth system. Nat Ecol Evol8, 1654–1666 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41559-024-02461-1.[1]

• Astrobiology.com. “The Nature of LUCA (The Last Universal Common Ancestor) and its Impact on the Early Earth System.” 21 Jan. 2025.[2]

• CRISPR Medicine News. “CRISPR origins traced back to LUCA.” 15 July 2024.[3]

• GeneWhisperer. “The nature of the last universal common ancestor (LUCA), its age, and its impact on the Earth system.” 20 Aug. 2025.[4]

by Categories: Biology, History, Nature, Podcast, ScienceTags: , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment
Mid Summer Static

Experience the Sound of Mid Summer Static

Introduction:

Mid-summer is a time of peak energy, vibrant colors, and buzzing activity. “Mid Summer Static” is a playlist that captures this powerful atmosphere, a collection of six tracks that weave together ambient warmth, gritty industrial rock, and bass-driven rhythms. It’s the soundtrack for those intense summer days and electric nights, a sonic landscape where serenity meets a potent undercurrent of raw energy.

The Tracks and Their Journey:

This short but powerful playlist is designed as a journey through mid-summer’s dynamic moods.

  • “Music of Wellness” by ODESZA, Theodore Shapiro: We begin in a space of calm and introspection, like the serene stillness of a hot summer morning. This track sets the stage with its ambient textures, creating a sense of peaceful contemplation.
  • “stonecrop” by Sysdemes: The atmosphere subtly shifts as Sysdemes introduces intricate electronic melodies. Layers of sound build, adding complexity without disrupting the initial serenity. It’s like the gentle hum of a vibrant mid-summer day.
  • “Sputnik IV” by Artifakts: A more defined rhythm emerges with Artifakts’ blend of melodic and glitchy bass. This track injects a subtle drive, a pulse that hints at the energy beneath the surface, mirroring the lingering warmth of the season.
  • “Luv” by ATYYA: The intensity builds with ATYYA’s bass-focused and richly textured sound. The rhythms become heavier, the textures more complex, creating a powerful undercurrent. This represents the last surge of summer’s energy before the eventual cool down.
  • “As Alive As You Need Me To Be” by Nine Inch Nails: The centerpiece of the playlist, this track unleashes a raw, industrial energy. The shift is deliberate, a stark contrast that embodies the underlying tension and grit that can accompany even the most beautiful transitions. It’s the unexpected storm in a late summer sky.
  • “Late Summer Day” by Aloboi: We conclude with a return to atmospheric reflection. This track provides a sense of resolution after the intensity, a calm settling as the day draws to a close, leaving a lingering sense of the season’s end.

Genre Blend:

“Mid Summer Static” intentionally blurs genre lines, creating a unique listening experience that blends:

  • Ambient/Downtempo Electronic: For the moments of peace and reflection.
  • Bass Music: To introduce rhythmic drive and textured soundscapes.
  • Melodic Electronic: Adding layers of complexity and emotion.
  • Industrial Rock: Providing a raw and powerful intensity.

Mood:

Moody, atmospheric, introspective, dynamic, and subtly powerful. This playlist captures the bittersweet feeling of late summer, a time of beauty tinged with the knowledge of change.

Listen Now:

What do you think of “Mid Summer Static”? What does the end of summer sound like to you? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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From cardinal to Pope

I made this movie short using Gemini Advanced Veo 2. Each 8-sec clip was generated by simply using text. As of May 2025, each clip is limited to 8 seconds and a max of 6 clips can be generated per day.

For those curious how this was made, here’s the prompts I used:

4-MAY-2025 Update: the videos generated by Veo 2 lacked audio, so I consulted further with Gemini. AI Sound Effect Generators: Some tools can generate unique sound effects specifically for your video content (The Rundown AI).

The Video to Sound Effects Generator by ElevenLabs seems to have some video clip length limits. I tried giving it the full video, but first 10 sec of audio was generated. Choosing each 8-sec clip at a time took longer, but each generation attempt was more accurate. Here’s an example of how this app works:

After generating audio for all clips, I stitched the new videos together and viola! Not quite a masterpiece, but I’m proud of what I created, using cutting-edge AI Generation tools to bring an idea to life, all from my handheld computer (iPhone).

Thanks for reading and without further ado, I present: “From cardinal to Pope” by Kenneth Henseler & Jim and I aka Gemini.

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A Sea of Red: Discovering the Texas Paintbrush

Driving down FM2181 the other day, I was met with a breathtaking sight: a field ablaze with the vibrant colors of the Texas Paintbrush! These stunning wildflowers, scientifically known as Castilleja indivisa, are a true sign that spring has arrived in Texas.

The Texas Paintbrush isn’t just a pretty face; it’s also a fascinating example of nature’s ingenuity. What appear to be its petals are actually modified leaves called bracts. The true flowers are the less showy, greenish-yellow tubes that peek out from within these colorful bracts. These bracts come in a range of colors, from the classic reddish-orange to occasional variations of yellow, pink, or even white.

Another interesting fact about the Texas Paintbrush is that it’s a hemiparasite, also known as a partial parasite. While it can photosynthesize its own food, it also taps into the roots of nearby plants, especially grasses, to supplement its intake of water and nutrients. This doesn’t seem to harm the host plants significantly, and it allows the Paintbrush to thrive even in less fertile soils.

These vibrant blooms play a crucial role in attracting pollinators like bees and butterflies, ensuring the continuation of their species and contributing to the overall health of our ecosystems. While the Bluebonnet holds the title of Texas State Flower, the Texas Paintbrush is undoubtedly a beloved wildflower that paints our landscapes with beauty each spring, typically from March to May.

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Branding SharePoint: The New Normal

Very helpful blog post discussing branding options for modern SharePoint Online sites. Thanks!

Bob German's avatarBob German's Vantage Point

Modern SharePoint is catching on, and sites are looking better than ever right out of the box. With mobile-ready pages and easier editing, customers and partners are starting to ask for it. And as SharePoint 2019 brings the modern experience on premises, the demand is likely to grow even more.

Yet even as sites look better than ever “out of the box”, there are constraints on how they can be customized. Partners and customers who want to completely change the look sometimes run into these boundaries and get frustrated.

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Interpreting Chevelle’s “Piistol Star (Gravity Heals)”

The timing of Chevelle releasing their new album, NIRATIAS, on March 5, 2021 and then hearing this song, reminding me of the importance of gravity, was an immeasurable and invaluable coincidence. Texas had just survived a very stressful February, with rolling power blackouts, extended periods of no power, frozen pipes, no running water in our homes and then the associated cleanup efforts. We needed healing. “Piistol Star (Gravity Heals)” reminded me what could bring the healing and as a result, is easily my most favorite track from NIRATIAS!

A major theme I took away from the book “12 Rules for Life” was in order to lead a meaningful life, one should assume as much responsibility as one can possibly handle. Personal responsibility. Financial responsibility. Social responsibility. Community responsibility. Work responsibility. All of these responsibilities are Gravity. As Chevelle points out in this new track, Gravity Heals. Gravity brings meaning. Gravity brings purpose. Gravity grounds you to the earth beneath your feet.

We humans have not yet evolved the necessary features to fly. That’s why Icarus used wax and feathers to fashion a pair of wings. We humans of the late 20th and 21st centuries have learned how to build machines capable of space flight though. With this new technology and ambition, we must also maintain balance. The yin & yang kind of balance. We must remain ever vigilant of the limitation of our wings. Too close to the sun and the wax melts. Then, whether you want to or not, Gravity takes hold and promptly returns you.

I’ll never learn though! Looked right into the sun. Once again. Melted my wings and blinded my eyes. I’ve been cooped up in this house for over a year and wanted to feel the warmth of the sun. I’ll never learn… (as the lyrics go). Well, not with that attitude! I have to keep trying though. Iterate and improve each day. I have to keep taking on more and more responsibilities, increasing the gravity, because it keeps me occupied. It keeps me distracted. It keeps me from looking right into the sun. The gravity keeps my wings intact and my eyes open so I can see the world around me. Gravity keeps me from wanting to escape and losing site of the dangers above and below.


[Verse 1]
Steal these sins and maybe guilty wins
One more cat life left lazy tryst
Keep shaking loose these walls
I found a life in them
Embracing these unknowns
How much we got to lose

[Chorus]
I'll never learn
Looked right into the sun

[Verse 2]
Life ain't easy for you faceless mess
Turn those lights out crazy
Clear the mind of negative ills
Jumping in so fast I confess
Steal that one thing still left to risk

[Bridge]
Gravity, gravity heals
Gravity, gravity heals

[Pre-Chorus]
Keep shaking my own walls
Divide the vitamins
We're facing these unknowns
Now face the things ignored
Not like I sold the world
Not like I stole your best

[Chorus]
I'll never learn
Look right into the sun
I'll never learn
Look right into the sun

[Bridge]
Gravity, gravity heals
Gravity, gravity heals

[Chorus]
I'll never learn
Look right into the sun
I'll never learn
Look right into the sun
I'll never learn
Gravity, gravity heals
Gravity, gravity heals
I'll never learn
Gravity, gravity heals
Gravity, gravity heals
I'll never learn
Gravity, gravity heals
Gravity, gravity heals

https://www.last.fm/music/Chevelle/_/Piistol+Star+(Gravity+Heals)

https://music.apple.com/us/album/piistol-star-gravity-heals/1545068576?i=1545069186

https://www.shazam.com/track/550076919/piistol-star-gravity-heals

Why do you think Chevelle named the track “Piistol Star” with two “i”, considering the Pistol Star is spelled with one? I’ve been researching the answer and still haven’t found one yet. Let me know your thoughts!

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Persisting Petrichor and a Millipede

Wednesday night, I did not go to bed; had to work on an email migration project that could not be postponed. Of course, we encountered an issue, resulting in the need for me to spend many, many hours doing manual configuration. I was finally able to take a nap around 10am Thursday morning for about 4 hours. Needless to say, my circadian rhythm was severly interrrupted. Thursday night’s sleep was still affected, not being able to fall asleep until 2 or 3am Friday morning. As a result, I had trouble falling asleep Friday night, as well.

I laid in bed, thinking about all the projects I wanted to complete. I’d been wanting to research a millipede we discovered a couple weekends ago in Broken Bow, OK. While reading the Wikipedia article about the millipede having an aposematic colouring to warn that they are toxic, I eventually stumbled upon an article about the word that describes the scent of rain, petrichor. This had absolutely nothing to do with what I had originally wanted to research, but that’s where I found myself. I needed some music to help me fall asleep. Naturally, I took to Spotify to search the word to see if anyone else was clever enough to use it in a song or playlist. Turns out, there were over 10 artists using the name, over 20 albums using the name, and multitudes of playlists using “petrichor”.

I needed to create a unique playlist name. It was also the last day of April, which is a commonly rainy month in North America. I’ve been on an electronic music kick lately, so my new Spotify playlist was born: Persisting Petrichor. Thought it would be a nice alliteration and play on words, considering I ended up using multiple songs and artists of the same name with different songs and electronic music is often repetitive and persisting. The “petrichor” was persisting. The scent of the rain was persisting, as it had been raining for a few days in a row. Aptly named, even if I do say so myself.

Without further ado, Persisting Petrichor:

Create your own custom Spotify playlist covers using Coverify! https://getcoverify.com/

We enter my Persisting Petrichor playlist with Petrichor, the smell of rain on his eponymous album Petrichor, the smell of rain with the track “Descent“. This track feels like a good opener, featuring some experimental lingering or persisting sound of that initially-plugged-into-a-guitar-amp feedback, as in the sound that’s hear at the beginning of a session, much how petrichor describes the scent at the beginning of a rain session. It’s just ethereal enough to prep you for the remaining tracks of the list, but doesn’t linger past two minutes. We leave Descent with some fierce, high-pitched strums of the guitar strings, in an almost percussive bell ringing sort of way.

We’re seamlessly cross-faded into a collab featuring QUIET BISON on Tek Genesis‘s album Temp in the track “Petrichor“. Those early Asian monestary bells are the calm before that melodic intro synth preps foreshadows that juicy bass drop, full of experimentation and layers of effects until you beg for a break at the middle of the song.

Here’s the Xystodesmidae millipede we discovered that I was originally researching. Photo taken at the Broken Bow Lake Spillway Overlook in Oklahoma, USA on 4/17/2021.
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Introducing custom registration pages for Microsoft Teams meetings

This should streamline the registration/sign-up process for meeting organizers. Currently, our team publishes a Microsoft Form to gather interest and then separately sends a meeting invitation to those interested.

Ganesh Sanap's avatarGanesh Sanap Blogs

Tech giant Microsoft is introducing yet another feature to the Microsoft Teams that will allow meeting organizers to create a custom registration page for any meeting (although the feature is designed for webinars). This feature will be available for meeting organizers using Microsoft Teams desktop applications (Windows/Mac) as well as Teams on the web.

Adding a custom attendee registration page to any meeting will help to manage attendance before and after any meeting. After registration, attendees will receive an email confirmation with calendar invite.

How this will affect your organization

By default, this new meeting registration feature will be available to all users in tenant.

The meeting organizer can set up a custom registration page from the Meeting scheduling form. The organizer will then customize and save the registration page in a pop up window.

When a meeting organizer uses the custom registration option, those who are invited will receive…

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Road-trippin’ for Thanksgiving

Autumn has fallen. The signature color scheme for this season is but only a memory. As we trek across the Midwest to be with our family for Thanksgiving, I can’t help but notice very few leaves still cling to their trees. Those that do remain are shades of brown. Their once vibrant reds, oranges and yellows, now fully depleted. The white bark of the sycamore trees and the evergreen needles of the pines are the last remaining splashes of color to catch your eyes.

Here at the eastern edge of the US Central Time Zone, the sun seemingly sets earlier than Dallas. Granted, we’ve had cloud cover the entire day, but it’s only 4:35 PM and nearly dark outside. Oh how I long for the winter solstice to arrive. The upside is that once we cross the Indiana state line, time jumps ahead one hour, a step closer to normal.

American Sycamore, https://www.pxfuel.com/en/free-photo-oinhd
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