25 years ago, a diverse vertebrate assemblage was discovered at the famous Santonian (Upper Cretaceous) Iharkút fossil locality (Bakony Mts, western Hungary). Fishes, among them members of the order Pycnodontiformes have been important components of this continental ecosystem. Members of the order Pycnodontiformes have previously been reported from the Iharkút location by remains referred to as cf. Coelodus sp. Revision of the already published material and the elaboration of recently collected specimens have led to identification of a new pycnodontid species Polazzodus mihalyfii sp. nov., based on upper and lower jaw elements. The new species expands the geographical range of the genus Polazzodus, and largely contributes to our knowledge on the generic diversity of Late Cretaceous freshwater pycnodonts.
Damien Becker, Rémi Lefebvre, Robin Saulnier Masson
et al.
Hyracoidea is a group of afrotheres that is today represented by three extant genera, but its fossil diversity is much greater. While most recent palaeontological studies have focused on documenting the earliest radiation of the group (Eocene–Oligocene), fewer works have attempted to highlight the later diversification (Miocene–Pleistocene) of large hypsodont forms that dispersed across the Eurasian continent. Herein we describe a newly discovered, well-preserved skull from the late Pliocene (3.3 ± 0.03 Ma) locality of Jradzor (Armenia), attributed to a new representative of late-diverging Eurasian Pliohyracidae, assigned to a new genus and species, which is notably characterised by a dental formula lacking an upper canine. The range of the new form is so far restricted to the latest Pliocene (early MN16) in Armenia. Comparison with previously described pliohyracids and a phylogenetic analysis including, for the first time, a substantial sample of Eurasian Neogene Pliohyracidae support the monophyly of this family under its least inclusive definition. The analyses support Titanohyracidae as the sister group of pliohyracids. We therefore tentatively provide the first phylogenetic definition of the family Pliohyracidae. Except for the unstable position of the incomplete and enigmatic Hengduanshanhyrax, relationships within the family are consistent with a biogeographical history involving dispersal of pliohyracids in Eurasia from Africa. Higher-level relationships, notably with Procaviidae and Palaeogene genera, remain to be clarified in future studies aimed at accurately delineating the diversity of both modern and fossil hyracoids.
Abstract Understanding how marine organisms move in the water column is critical for comprehending their palaeoecology and palaeobiogeography. However, interpreting the locomotion of extinct invertebrates can be problematic and difficult because of the lack of close modern analogues or preserved soft tissues. In this study, we chose a biostratigraphically important Ordovician graptolite taxon, Dicellograptus, and reconstructed three-dimensional (3D) models of it. By simulating their rotation patterns via computational fluid dynamics (CFD), we tested three prevailing locomotory hypotheses (“V”-shaped structure, double-helix structure or independently spiralling twin turbaria structure) for Dicellograptus. The simulated hydrodynamic properties (outer-wall pressure fields and velocity fields) suggest that a double-helical rotating locomotory pattern was the most likely for the Ordovician graptolite Dicellograptus because it would have conveyed better feeding efficiency and turbarium stability. Moreover, we analysed whether the evolution from the lineages Jiangxigraptus to Dicellograptus was influenced and selected for by hydrodynamics. The results revealed that the modification of the proximal pattern with a broader first pair of thecae in Dicellograptus than in Jiangxigraptus resulted in reduced rotational velocity and increased stability. This study highlights the close relationship between traditional paleontological analysis and modern computational methods and provides a more comprehensive understanding of the functional morphology of these ancient marine plankton.
Marcelo Reguero, Carolina Acosta Hospitaleche, Jose Patricio O'Gorman
et al.
The Museo de La Plata (MLP, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo, Universidad Nacional de La Plata) houses Antarctica’s largest fossil vertebrate collection. This collection is a major international research resource and constitutes one of Antarctica’s most important records of vertebrate history and evolution. The principal focus of this collection is on vertebrate fossils from the Antarctic Peninsula (Late Cretaceous and Paleogene of the James Ross Archipelago, NE Antarctic Peninsula and the Jurassic of the Antarctic Peninsula). The collection is estimated to consist of over 32,000 specimens, including fossils of fishes, anurans, marine reptiles (plesiosaurs and mosasaurs), avian and non-avian dinosaurs, turtles, and marine and terrestrial mammals. The collection comprises many complete and extraordinarily well-preserved skeletons and has 22 holotypes. It also contains several institutional icons, including the skeletons of the elasmosaurid plesiosaur Vegasaurus and several non-avian dinosaurs such as Antarctopelta and Trinisaura, as well as non-avian dinosaurs Vegavis and Conflicto. The MLP Antarctic fossil vertebrate collection dates from 1978; its importance lies not only in the fact that it is globally one of the main reference collections of Antarctic paleontological material but also in its high proportion of Mesozoic and Cenozoic faunas, which can be used to understand evolutionary dynamics, continental movements, and climatic changes over the past 80 Ma. The collection was made under the auspices and agreement between the Dirección Nacional del Antártico - Instituto Antártico Argentino and the Museo de La Plata in 1983.
Ariana Paulina-Carabajal, Ariel Hernán Méndez, Karen Ulloa-Guaiquín
et al.
Marks left by teeth on bones are evidence for inferring trophic interactions. In carnivorous dinosaurs, such evidence is rare in the fossil record. We present here the description of a fragment of sauropod appendicular bone, which exhibits teeth marks consistent with multiple trace makers. The specimen MPM-PV-19111 comes from Cretaceous rocks outcropping at Cerro Fortaleza locality (Cerro Fortaleza Formation, Campanian–Maastrichtian), Santa Cruz Province, Argentina. It preserves three faces, two bearing grooves, and a third bearing shallow pits. There are about 100 scars (we identified at least 99 grooves and 19 pits), with the grooves mainly oriented more or less perpendicular to the main axis of the bone. These grooves have a width ranging from 1 to 3.5 mm, and generally narrow distally. The pits and punctures are circular to subcircular and variable in diameter (1.5–4 mm). The feeding traces are attributable to theropod dinosaurs -abelisaurids and megaraptorids were recorded in the same formation- of mid to large body size, notosuchid crocodyliforms, and a possible indeterminate small mammal. The teeth marks are considered post-mortem based on the lack of healing on the surrounding bone. The high number of teeth marks suggests both repeated high-power bites in a restricted area (gnawing-like behavior?) and multiple producers, probably biting the bone at different moments since smaller-sized animals would intend to avoid the larger ones. This study aims to describe and interpret the possible origin of the bite marks preserved on this Cretaceous sauropod bone.
Physical specimens have been always the primary resources for teaching and learning paleontology in formal educational environments. However, there is a growing interest in the use of paleontological data in higher education, supported by the increased use of digital tools and large paleontological databases for data-driven learning (DDL). In the context of the ongoing data revolution in modern paleontological research, the notion of the two fossil records has emerged to distinguish the physical record consisting of specimens, from the abstracted record consisting of the data derived from those specimens. Here we argue that the so-called abstracted record extends beyond the digital data (e.g., databases, digital models, and imagery) to include (i) network-based representations of high-dimensional fossil data (e.g., The Earth-Life System), and (ii) point process models describing spatially explicit events (e.g., community-scale spatial distributions; distribution of biotic traces on shelled invertebrates). We discuss these multiples fossil records from a didactical perspective, highlighting their promise for DDL in the paleontology classroom. Network science and spatial point processes modeling are transforming paleontological research by enhancing modeling capacities and helping researchers to reveal the complexity of the global biosphere over deep-time. Our perspective paper aims to bridge the gap between the state-of-the-art paleontological research and current teaching practices in higher education courses of paleontology, by calling on educators to leverage these breakthroughs into their classrooms.
Understanding action correspondence between humans and robots is essential for evaluating alignment in decision-making, particularly in human-robot collaboration and imitation learning within unstructured environments. We propose a multimodal demonstration learning framework that explicitly models human demonstrations from RGB video with robot demonstrations in voxelized RGB-D space. Focusing on the "pick and place" task from the RH20T dataset, we utilize data from 5 users across 10 diverse scenes. Our approach combines ResNet-based visual encoding for human intention modeling and a Perceiver Transformer for voxel-based robot action prediction. After 2000 training epochs, the human model reaches 71.67% accuracy, and the robot model achieves 71.8% accuracy, demonstrating the framework's potential for aligning complex, multimodal human and robot behaviors in manipulation tasks.
Dallin L. Cordon, Shaden Moss, Marc Killpack
et al.
This work represents an initial benchmark of a large-scale soft robot performing physical, collaborative manipulation of a long, extended object with a human partner. The robot consists of a pneumatically-actuated, three-link continuum soft manipulator mounted to an omni-directional mobile base. The system level configuration of the robot and design of the collaborative manipulation (co-manipulation) study are presented. The initial results, both quantitative and qualitative, are directly compared to previous similar human-human co-manipulation studies. These initial results show promise in the ability for large-scale soft robots to perform comparably to human partners acting as non-visual followers in a co-manipulation task. Furthermore, these results challenge traditional soft robot strength limitations and indicate potential for applications requiring strength and adaptability.
Quadruped robots are showing impressive abilities to navigate the real world. If they are to become more integrated into society, social trust in interactions with humans will become increasingly important. Additionally, robots will need to be adaptable to different humans based on individual preferences. In this work, we study the social interaction task of learning optimal handshakes for quadruped robots based on user preferences. While maintaining balance on three legs, we parameterize handshakes with a Central Pattern Generator consisting of an amplitude, frequency, stiffness, and duration. Through 10 binary choices between handshakes, we learn a belief model to fit individual preferences for 25 different subjects. Our results show that this is an effective strategy, with 76% of users feeling happy with their identified optimal handshake parameters, and 20% feeling neutral. Moreover, compared with random and test handshakes, the optimized handshakes have significantly decreased errors in amplitude and frequency, lower Dynamic Time Warping scores, and improved energy efficiency, all of which indicate robot synchronization to the user's preferences. Video results can be found at https://youtu.be/elvPv8mq1KM .
Kristian González Barman, Simon Lohse, Henk de Regt
We argue for the epistemic and ethical advantages of pluralism in Reinforcement Learning from Human Feedback (RLHF) in the context of Large Language Models (LLM). Drawing on social epistemology and pluralist philosophy of science, we suggest ways in which RHLF can be made more responsive to human needs and how we can address challenges along the way. The paper concludes with an agenda for change, i.e. concrete, actionable steps to improve LLM development.
The combination of increased life expectancy and falling birth rates is resulting in an aging population. Wearable Sensor-based Human Activity Recognition (WSHAR) emerges as a promising assistive technology to support the daily lives of older individuals, unlocking vast potential for human-centric applications. However, recent surveys in WSHAR have been limited, focusing either solely on deep learning approaches or on a single sensor modality. In real life, our human interact with the world in a multi-sensory way, where diverse information sources are intricately processed and interpreted to accomplish a complex and unified sensing system. To give machines similar intelligence, multimodal machine learning, which merges data from various sources, has become a popular research area with recent advancements. In this study, we present a comprehensive survey from a novel perspective on how to leverage multimodal learning to WSHAR domain for newcomers and researchers. We begin by presenting the recent sensor modalities as well as deep learning approaches in HAR. Subsequently, we explore the techniques used in present multimodal systems for WSHAR. This includes inter-multimodal systems which utilize sensor modalities from both visual and non-visual systems and intra-multimodal systems that simply take modalities from non-visual systems. After that, we focus on current multimodal learning approaches that have applied to solve some of the challenges existing in WSHAR. Specifically, we make extra efforts by connecting the existing multimodal literature from other domains, such as computer vision and natural language processing, with current WSHAR area. Finally, we identify the corresponding challenges and potential research direction in current WSHAR area for further improvement.
Given the volume of potentially false claims online, claim prioritization is essential in allocating limited human resources available for fact-checking. In this study, we perceive claim prioritization as an information retrieval (IR) task: just as multidimensional IR relevance, with many factors influencing which search results a user deems relevant, checkworthiness is also multi-faceted, subjective, and even personal, with many factors influencing how fact-checkers triage and select which claims to check. Our study investigates both the multidimensional nature of checkworthiness and effective tool support to assist fact-checkers in claim prioritization. Methodologically, we pursue Research through Design combined with mixed-method evaluation. Specifically, we develop an AI-assisted claim prioritization prototype as a probe to explore how fact-checkers use multidimensional checkworthy factors to prioritize claims, simultaneously probing fact-checker needs and exploring the design space to meet those needs. With 16 professional fact-checkers participating in our study, we uncover a hierarchical prioritization strategy fact-checkers implicitly use, revealing an underexplored aspect of their workflow, with actionable design recommendations for improving claim triage across multidimensional checkworthiness and tailoring this process with LLM integration.
Lucía Rivas, Juan Pablo Perez Panera, Lydia Calvo Marcilese
et al.
Coccolithophore thanatocoenosis from 33 surface sediment samples in the Argentina Continental Margin were analyzed. Emiliania huxleyi, the most ubiquitous species in today´s ocean, occurs at relative abundances higher than 60% and tends to obscure the variations in abundance of less represented species. This study aims to compare two intensively used counting methods in coccolithophore studies: including and excluding E. huxleyi from the data set and compare which of both methodologies better reflects the known oceanographic conditions in the area. In the two data sets, species abundances were converted to percentages and Clusters Analysis were performed. The result including E. huxleyi reveals two groups (A and B) separated of compositional Euclidean distance of 12.8. Group A is restricted to the southeastern area (near Malvinas Islands) and is dominated by Gephyrocapsa muellerae (> 56%). Group B is dominated by E. huxleyi (> 93%) and is distributed into two areas: in the southwest (near Tierra del Fuego) and in the north (between 40°S – 47°S). The result excluding E. huxleyi also shows two groups (A’ and B’) distant to a compositional Euclidean distance of 15.8. Group A’ has both a southern and northern distribution, whereas Group B’ is present only at the northern area. These two groups cannot be explained by the relation between the coccolithophore taxa dominance and the surface oceanographic conditions. Our results indicate that the inclusion of E. huxleyi is the most appropriate approach since it seems to better correlate with the known oceanographic regime in the Argentina Continental Margin.
Abstract Soft-tissue preservation in molluscs is generally rare, particularly in bivalves and gastropods. Here, we report a three-dimensionally preserved specimen of the limid Acesta clypeiformis from the Cenomanian of France that shows preservation of organic structures of the adductor muscles. Examination under UV-light revealed likely phosphatisation of organic remains, which was corroborated by EDX-analyses. We suggest that the parts of the adductor muscles that are very close to the attachment are particularly resistant to decay and thus may be preserved even under taphonomic conditions usually not favouring soft-tissue fossilisation.
El Museo Carmen Funes fue creado en el año 1984 en la ciudad de Plaza Huincul, Neuquén, Argentina. Se ubica en la avenida Córdoba 55 de esa ciudad. Cuenta con una exposición paleontológica de esqueletos de dinosaurios en tamaño natural y una colección paleontológica integrada hasta el momento de esta contribución, por 907 ejemplares catalogados. Actualmente, el personal científico cuenta a la fecha con tres paleontólogos.
FLORENCIA S. FILIPPINI, FERNANDO ABDALA, GUILLERMO H. CASSINI
Body mass estimations for extinct taxa are fundamental in palaeobiological reconstructions, but little work has been
done on this topic for non-mammaliaform cynodonts (NMC), the diverse and abundant Permo-Cretaceous forerunners of
mammals. Here, we estimated the body mass of five species of NMC cynognathians by linear measurements and circumferences
of postcranial elements (humeri and femora) from 14 specimens from Triassic units of the Ischigualasto-Villa
Union Basin located between San Juan and La Rioja provinces, and the Cuyo and San Rafael basins, both in Mendoza
province, Argentina. For this purpose, we used predictive formulas available in the literature based on variables on
appendicular skeleton of different extant groups of mammals and reptiles. Geometric similarity using skull length was
applied to provide an estimation of adult masses for species with only samples of juvenile and subadult limb bones.
A broad body mass range was recorded. Small traversodontids such as Andescynodon mendozensis and Pascualgnathus
polanskii were between 1 to 3.5 kg. Medium-sized traversodontids include adult Massetognathus pascuali with masses
from 20 to 40 kg, and the adult forms of large-sized cynognathians like Cynognathus crateronotus and Exaeretodon
argentinus reached or surpassed 100 kg. The morphological variations in the skull and the different body sizes observed
between traversodontids are interpreted as reflecting different types of diets where small-sized traversodontids had a
generalist diet, and the medium/large-sized traversodontids were herbivorous. Finally, palaeoecological working hypotheses
regarding cranial and dental morphology, body mass, and their possible relation with diet in non-mammaliaform
cynodonts of South America are offered.
Jaruwat Nabhitabhata, Jiraporn Suriyawarakul, Anyanee Yamrungrueng
et al.
Abstract Relationships between growth increments of internal shell and age was studied in three neritic decapod cephalopods cultured in laboratory through their entire life cycles. The studied cephalopods were the nektic Sepioteuthis lessoniana d’Orbigny, 1826, Sepia pharaonis Ehrenberg, 1831 and Sepiella inermis Van Hasselt, 1835. Most of the relationship models are in cubic parabolic, except when numbers of increments were estimated from age in S. pharaonis. Differences of numbers of increments from the real age were higher in the pelagic S. lessoniana when compared to the benthic sepiids. The differences were higher in juvenile stages (< 60 days after hatching) than adult stages (> 60 days) in the three species. The increment rate is close to the “one day one increment” assumption. The differences of numbers of increments from the ages and the rate of increment apposition revealed the transition point of the life cycle from 60 days of age, corresponding to the sexual maturity or adult stages. Numbers of increments with higher accuracy are reevaluated to be reliable for age determination at least for the neritic species in the tropical zone, where environmental conditions are more stable, regarding the life styles and stages in life cycles of each species.
Las provincias del centro/norte de Argentina, como Entre Ríos, Corrientes, Santa Fe, Catamarca, Salta y Jujuy, juegan un papel muy importante en la historia de la paleoherpetología de nuestro país. Han sido escenario de numerosas exploraciones geológico-paleontológicas y territorio donde crecieron parte de las instituciones que, a través de sus colecciones, protagonistas y líneas de investigación, construyeron y construyen el conocimiento de esta disciplina en América del Sur. En este artículo se presentan los principales hechos y protagonistas que dejaron su impronta en esta historia, algunos de los cuales hoy trabajan en los distintos museos, institutos y universidades nacionales de estas provincias del Noreste y Noroeste Argentino.
Fernando Abdala, Agustin Guillermo Martinelli, Francisco Rodrigo González
El Laboratorio de Vertebrados Fósiles (LVF) del Instituto Miguel Lillo de la Universidad Nacional de Tucumán se fundó en 1957 con el impulso inicial de Osvaldo Reig, quien fue su primer director y también primer curador de la colección Paleontología de Vertebrados Lillo (PVL). José Bonaparte, inicialmente incorporado como técnico, sucedió a Reig en la dirección del LVF desde 1960 hasta 1978. Estos
investigadores junto con Rodolfo Casamiquela (en ese entonces en el Museo de La Plata), revolucionaron el estudio de los anfibios y reptiles mesozoicos argentinos en las décadas de los ‘60 y ‘70, marcando el inicio de una nueva etapa en la paleontología argentina. En ese período, describieron 34 nuevas especies y colectaron un gran número de especímenes fósiles de rocas mesozoicas de distintas regiones de la Argentina. Esta actividad también puso en el mapa mundial a la colección PVL, que se erigió como una de las más importantes para el conocimiento de la
herpetofauna Triásica de Argentina, una relevancia que continúa hasta nuestros días. Jaime Powell sucedió a Bonaparte en la dirección del LVF y desarrolló una intensa actividad de investigación especialmente en dinosaurios saurópodos de Argentina. La investigación paleoherpetológica estuvo acompañada por un nutrido equipo de técnicos, dibujantes y artistas que, además de los trabajos de campo y preparación de fósiles,
realizaron montajes de esqueletos, esculturas y reconstrucciones en vida de la fauna mesozoica. La comunidad lilloana cuenta en la actualidad con un grupo importante y dinámico de paleontólogos desarrollando mayormente estudios en mamíferos cenozoicos.
The paper has been suggested by two observations: 1) the atmospheric CO$_2$ growth rate is smaller than that ascribed to the emission of fossil fuels combustion, 2) the fossil fuel reserves are finite. The first observation has lead the way to a simple kinetic mode, based on the balance of 1) land/ocean CO$_2$ absorption and 2) CO$_2$ anthropogenic emission limited solely by depletion of the present day fossil-fuel reserves, in a business-as-usual scenario. The second observation has suggested to extrapolate past CO$_2$ emissions by fossil fuel combustion in the future years up to 2200 CE, by constraining emissions to the physical limits of reserves availability. The Meixner curve (hyperbolic secant distribution) has been used to model the pathway of resource exploitation for the three main classes of fossil fuels, crude oil, natural gas and coal. The kinetic model, driven by the extrapolated emissions, has been employed to project the CO$_2$ atmospheric concentration due to fossil fuel combustion close to the zero-reserve epoch. The result is just the output of simple models tuned on well-known experimental data. Error analysis of literature data provides the method robustness and the relevant uncertainty band. Contribution of other greenhouse gases like methane and nitrous oxide has been neglected, since their emissions cannot be projected with the paper methodology (they do not derive from fossil reserves). Notwithstanding this limitation, paper results clearly demonstrate that some of the IPCC projections of the CO$_2$ concentration are largely overestimated if compared to the physical limits of fossil fuel exploitation.