7aMoDi

#Accepted! Message me here or in discord T/C.

#Accepted! Message me here or in discord T/C.

VOTED✔️

The car that wowed the crowds at Le Mans wowed us at VIR. Lap Time: 2:26.7 Class: LLPRO In case you missed it, the NASCAR Next Gen Garage 56 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, or G56 Camaro for short, is the stock car that raced alongside hybrid prototypes at Le Mans. Its naturally aspirated 5.8-liter V-8 won the hearts of the crowd and showcased the uniquely American motorsports series on an international stage. Hendrick Motorsports manufactured and managed the project, from which two cars were made: the development car seen here and the one that did 285 laps of the 8.5-mile Circuit de la Sarthe last June. We thought our Lightning Lap pitch would land in a spam folder, but Rick Hendrick not only read our email, he agreed to bring the car out and even let us drive it. The instructions were clear: Don't crash Mr. H's car. And the way his eye twinkles when he talks about the G56 project, it may be his all-time favorite car. He loves to watch it run, so much so that he flew in on his helicopter from his home in Charlotte, North Carolina. MICHAEL SIMARI AND MARC URBANO|CAR AND DRIVER Our sighting laps (because there is no way to go for time in a handful of laps in an unfamiliar race car) were enough to grasp that this car is rad in the most NASCAR way. It's loud. It's fast. It's big—almost as wide as a pickup, over 10 inches longer than a Corvette—but it's Bernese Mountain Dog, lovably big. The seating position is a bit lower and a bit more reclined than in a modern Cup car. Visibility over the long hood is fair, but the deep cockpit of the G56 car turns VIR's limited-sight areas—braking and entry into *****, the sequence after Spiral, and Roller Coaster to a degree—into blind events. Even lapping gingerly, the 700-ish-hp V-8 makes enough power to drive off corners with some yaw. The steering is ultra-quick and plutonium-238 reactive. It took a couple of laps to extinguish the cold-brakes warning (carbon-carbon rotors need heat to work properly), and while trying to explore grip levels, we locked the rears on the uphill going into Spiral and slid to a stop. Our man was only the sixth person to drive the car, and we hope the sixth to spin it. Back in the pits, we consult with Jordan Taylor. The 10-year IMSA veteran didn't race the car in France but did a lot of its development. He has good taste, calling VIR one of his favorite tracks in the world, and he admitted that he locked the brakes in the same spot, so we think this consultation was all he needed to change his setup for the final attempt at a flying lap. MICHAEL SIMARI AND MARC URBANO|CAR AND DRIVER He still locked the rears going into Turn 1, resulting in a low 1.19 g's of lateral acceleration there. The rest of the lap was clean, particularly on the Full Course corners he knows. Taylor marches up the Climbing Esses like the rest of the world is crawling, averaging 158.5 mph, more than 20 mph faster than any street car we've lapped and nearly 6 mph faster than Subaru's Airslayer. He trumps the Subie's minimum speeds by 6.7 mph in the difficult Turn 3, 6.1 in the off-camber Turn 10, and 4.2 in Hog Pen. Who says stock cars can't turn right? Taylor's 2:26.7 fell short of the Airslayer's best time, but we'd bet that with a little more sim work, he could match the Subaru's lap time if given another shot. We hope the effort expended to make a stock car run fast for 24 hours doesn't stop. An all-NASCAR endurance race might be more fun than that 24-hour race in France. https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a46594920/garage-56-chevrolet-camaro-zl1-lightning-lap-2024/

Russo 3 61, Clinton 19, Mead 37 89, Carter 70, Daly 90+3; Kirchberger 30 88 Grace Clinton scores on her full England debut Alessia Russo gets England off to a flying start against Austria in the third minute. Photograph: Fran Santiago/The FA/Getty Images England’s fresh start, as they prepare to get their Euro 2025 qualifying campaign under way in April, kicked off in style as Sarina Wiegman tried out a number of players who have sat on the fringes of a squad that has moved from tournament to tournament with little room for experimentation. “Very happy with Grace [Clinton], she scored a goal which is very nice for her,” said Wiegman. “She plays like a natural. She picks up the things we talk about very quickly. She takes things on board and just goes out there and plays.” Jenni Hermoso (left) celebrates with Salma Paralluelo after opening the scoring for Spain Spain reach Olympics with Women’s Nations League win over Netherlands Read more If the Lionesses have enjoyed the luxuries of a seafront Marbella hotel this week, arriving at the Estadio Nuevo Mirador was a more humbling experience. Around 950 fans had made the trip to Algeciras, about an hour’s drive south of Marbella, and were treated to a downpour that saw many retreat from the uncovered stand long before the end of the first half, while the covered stand opposite remained mostly empty. The Lionesses’ decision to play Austria in a friendly at a ground so difficult to get to – and more akin to stadiums they were forced into pre-professionalism – was an odd one. Wiegman’s side brought style and flair to the drab surroundings though and Alessia Russo’s goal in the third minute ensured the fans saw at least one Euro 2022 winner on the scoresheet. The Arsenal forward spun and found her clubmate Beth Mead. Her shot was parried by Manuela Zinsberger but Russo was there to turn in. There were four changes to the team which had put six past Scotland in December but failed to progress to the Nations League finals and earn Olympic qualification. One was enforced late on, with Fran Kirby withdrawn as a precaution after the warm-up with an aggravation of her knee injury. Ella Toone replaced her, while Hannah Hampton started in goal. Maya Le Tissier began the game at right-back in place of Lucy Bronze and the Manchester United midfielder Grace Clinton, who is on loan at Tottenham, was handed her debut. She went close to scoring in the 16th minute, hitting a left-footed effort off the inside of the crossbar. She would only have to wait three minutes for a dream scenario though, as she artfully headed in Lauren Hemp’s cross from the left. Grace Clinton, on her debut, celebrates her first England goal with Maya Le Tissier. Photograph: Naomi Baker/The FA/Getty Images Austria were poor, looking a shadow of the side that really tested England in the opening game of Euro 22 at Old Trafford, but Wiegman’s side also made them look bad. Despite England’s dominance, Austria exposed a weakness from set pieces to pull one back, Virginia Kirchberger heading in from a corner on her 99th appearance. The Lionesses picked up where they left off though, restoring their two-goal lead before the break, Mead powering her shot home after cutting inside. Wiegman made two half-time changes, intent on taking advantage of this friendly to experiment. “We have the opportunity to play these friendlies, see many players, lots that we saw today, many new combinations. We have another on Tuesday, which will be tough against Italy,” she said. Lotte Wubben-Moy entered the fray in place of Alex Greenwood, while Lauren James, who was involved in five of England’s nine goals across their two December games, replaced Hemp. Just past the hour mark, Russo grabbed her second, firing home from inside the box. There were three more changes almost immediately after that, with Russo replaced by Rachel Daly and Jess Park and Carter coming on. Carter added to England’s goal tally within seven minutes of stepping on to the pitch, a slick backheel bamboozling Zinsberger. Kirchberger provided another headed goal from a corner to show England exactly where the defensive gaps are – though they are missing their first-choice centre-back pairing Leah Williamson and Millie Bright. However, a minute later James raced clear and hit a low shot off the bottom of the post that Mead powered in on the rebound. The substitute Daly added a seventh, sprinting free through the middle before powering a venomous strike past Zinsberger. Job done, new combinations tested, there were a lot of positives from England’s first game of 2024 – how they deal with set pieces and stiffer opposition are questions that can be answered at a later date. https://www.theguardian.com/football/2024/feb/23/alessia-russo-and-mead-at-the-double-in-lionesses-7-2-mauling-of-austria

Trevors are fighting back against the nerd stigma that’s tainted us for so long Trevor Cunningham: ‘We’re not seen as heroic or glamorous.’ Photograph: Rebecca Lupton/The Guardian I’ve never resented the name Trevor, but I have thought about it a lot. It’s not a weird name, it’s just not that common. I was named after the ambulance driver who took my mother to the hospital as I was about to be born. I’ve only ever met one other Trevor in person in my life. Growing up in the 1970s, it seemed that if there was a TV character who was a bit of a geek, he would be called Trevor. We’re not seen as heroic or glamorous. It was hurtful enough to make me wish I had a different name. After 35 years as an engineer, I retired in 2020 to Monton, a village near Manchester, and was volunteering at an Age UK charity shop two days a week. I’d done it for three years and enjoyed it, but decided I wanted to do something more fu There’s not a lot of money around these days, but there is a huge amount of skill, wisdom and experience, which costs nothing to share. I thought it would be cool if I could gather together a group of clever Trevors, from all over, who could help each other out by sharing their skills. If one Trevor writes in requesting advice, I just give them the email address of the person best placed and willing to help out. I wanted to recruit an army of Trevors (I also include people with the surname “Trevor”). I knew they were out there – the challenge was to find them. I started emailing professionals whose skills I thought would be useful to others on a day‑to‑day basis. My system is very basic. I Google “Trevor professional” and then find Trevors who are photographers, mechanics and so on. I wanted to discover ordinary people who really know their stuff. The other day I wrote to an audiologist, a public‑speaking expert named Trevor the Toastmaster, a botanist, a photographer and a golf pro. Maybe one in 30 will write back. Trevor the full-stack website developer replied, saying: “This is a bit weird, but I’ll help if I can.” I know it’s a unusual, but it’s a project with a good heart. For instance, someone wrote in wanting more information about antidepressants, and I connected him with the Trevor who’s a clinical practitioner. He’s not going to tell people which drug to take, but he could put them on the right path. I’ve now got 11 or 12 Trevors signed up. I think maybe if we have about 25 or 30, that would cover a lot for the time being. And I’m open to people who are a little bit out there. One person is a poet, counsellor and funeral celebrant who lives in Bristol. He’s offered to speak at the funeral of anyone in Bristol who’s called Trevor or is the loved one of a Trevor. I started work on the website in August last year. I saw that Trevor.com was taken, and thought Trevors United seemed too football-y. I went for Trevors Together, which has a nice alliteration. The data analytics and management company Trevor.io offered to help me out with data management for free. To spread the word, I started advertising in Private Eye in October, when the website went live. With the advertising and the website, I’ve spent less than £200 in total. This isn’t something I want to throw lots of money at; it’s more about the fun and creativity. It’s really important to me that everything is kept free – there absolutely must not be any exchange of money among people using the site. I’m basically creating a way for people to meet. Ultimately, the aim is for TrevorsTogether.com to help anyone, regardless of their name. But for now, to keep it manageable, it’s all about Trevors. It’s become my 9 to 5. The benefits for me are obvious. It pleases me that I’m trying to do a good thing, and it’s really got my tail wagging. I’ve realised that, like me, others get a buzz from helping people. Working on Trevors Together has changed my relationship with my name. Trevors are fighting back in the best possible way against the nerd stigma that has tainted us for as long as I can remember. Now I really like my name. I’m glad that not a lot of people are called Trevor. And I want the name Trevor to be synonymous with empathy, kindness and generosity. https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2024/feb/23/experience-i-run-an-online-support-group-for-people-called-trevor

Venomous snakes, primates and wildcats among creatures in domestic settings, wildlife charity Born Free finds A king cobra. Born Free said: ‘The majority of the animals that we’re talking about here will be held in people’s private homes or in their back yards or whatever.’ Photograph: Diego Azubel/EPA From camels in Wiltshire to bush vipers in Redditch, a veritable menagerie of wild animals is being kept in homes across Britain. According to data from the wildlife charity Born Free, there are more than 200 wildcats, 250 primates and 400 venomous snakes living in domestic settings across England, Wales and Scotland, with cobras, crocodiles, tigers, kangaroos and bison among other residents. Dr Mark Jones, a vet and Born Free’s head of policy, said the findings were of concern, noting that while some animals were held in groups on farms, most were kept in rather more modest surroundings. He said: “The majority of the animals that we’re talking about here will be held in people’s private homes or in their back yards or whatever.” The data was obtained by requesting the number of private licences granted by local authorities for animals recognised as dangerous under the Dangerous Wild Animals Act 1976. The approach excludes animals kept under zoo licences, required if animals are on show to the public for at least seven days a year. The charity found that more than 2,700 dangerous wild animals were being kept in private settings in Great Britain, with small wildcats – or crosses between these and domestic cats – the most common. The list also includes lemurs, dingoes, leopards and lions. The figure is a rise from the 2,500 dangerous wild animals recorded in 2022. More than 2,700 dangerous wild animals are licensed to be kept privately in Great Britain During the progress of the 1976 law through the House of Lords, Tufton Beamish said the general policy of the bill was clear. “It is that in future the keeping of dangerous wild animals by private individuals should be made a wholly exceptional circumstance,” he said. Jones said the number of wild animals being kept in private settings showed that the act was no longer fit for purpose. He said that to get a licence it was necessary to apply to the local authority, which should then inspect the premises. Jones said the resources and expertise councils had to do so varied enormously. “We’re really concerned that it’s proving far too easy for people to get licences for these animals, which really don’t belong in people’s homes,” he said, noting that unlike domesticated species, wild animals had not been bred “to live in people’s homes in close proximity to people, raising both animal welfare and health and safety issues”. He said another concern was that some exotic animals that ended up in private homes may have been taken from the wild, which could have implications for the conservation of po[CENSORED]tions and species. The charity also noted that the act did not cover species including constrictor snakes or monitor lizards that could also be considered potentially dangerous, while offspring of wild and domestic cat crosses were also exempt. “Born Free also discovered that some councils are unaware of the exact species of animal being kept, despite a requirement to identify this within the legislation, which raises further serious animal welfare, and health and safety, concerns,” the charity said. A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “Anyone wishing to keep an animal covered by the Dangerous Wild Animals Act must be carefully vetted and apply for a licence which sets out strict conditions under which the animals must be kept. “We keep this legislation under regular review to ensure it remains effective in keeping the public safe. We have also increased the maximum prison sentence for animal cruelty to five years, as well as bringing forward legislation to prohibit primates being kept as domestic pets.” Born Free disputed the latter point. “What the government is in the process of implementing is a private keeper licensing system,” the charity said. “As a result, it will remain legal for the continued keeping, breeding and trading of privately kept primates so long as the keeper acquires the appropriate licence. It is important that government messaging is clear and honest in this regard.” https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/22/dangerous-wild-animals-kept-in-homes-in-great-britain

Israeli plan envisions indefinite Israeli control over Gaza, and no ‘unilateral recognition’ of Palestine. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu presented the plan for a post-war Gaza to the Israeli cabinet on Thursday [File: Ronen Zvulun/Reuters] The Palestinian Authority has sharply criticised a “day after” plan for Gaza presented by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calling it “destined to fail”. “If the world wants security and stability in the region, it must end the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories and recognise the independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital,” Nabil Abu Rudeineh, the spokesperson for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, was quoted as saying on Friday by the Palestinian state news agency Wafa. Netanyahu’s plan is his first official proposal for what comes after the war in Gaza – in which Israel has killed more than 29,000 Palestinians. According to the document, presented to members of Israel’s security cabinet on Thursday, Israel would maintain security and military control over all land west of Jordan, including the occupied West Bank and Gaza – territories where the Palestinians want to create their independent state. In the long-term goals listed, Netanayhu also rejected the “unilateral recognition” of a Palestinian state. He said a settlement with the Palestinians will only be achieved through direct negotiations between the two sides – but it did not name who the Palestinian party would be. In response, Abu Rudeineh rejected any effort to separate governance in Gaza from the West Bank. “Gaza will only be part of the independent Palestinian state … Any plans to the contrary are destined to fail,” he said. “Israel will not succeed in attempts to alter the geographic and demographic reality in the Gaza Strip.” “Netanyahu’s proposed plans aim to perpetuate Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories and prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state,” Abu Rudeineh added. The White House also added its unease with the plan, with US National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby sauind that Washington had been “consistently clear with our Israeli counterparts” about what was needed in post-war Gaza. “The Palestinian people should have a voice and a vote… through a revitalised Palestinian Authority,” Kirby said. “We don’t believe in a reduction of the size of Gaza… we don’t want to see any forcible displacement of Palestinians outside Gaza and, of course, we don’t want to see Gaza dominated or ruled by Hamas.” Gaza to be run by ‘local officials’ The war in Gaza has revived international calls – including from Israel’s main backer, the United States – for the so-called two-state solution as the ultimate goal for resolving the decades-long Israel-Palestinian conflict. However, many senior Israeli politicians oppose the creation of a Palestinian state. While on Gaza, Netanyahu’s plan emphasised that the war would continue until Israel had achieved all of its announced goals: the dismantlement of military capabilities and infrastructure operated by Hamas and Islamic Jihad; the return of all captives taken on October 7; and the removal of all security threats originating from Gaza. The enclave will then be run by “local officials” who are not tied to “countries or entities that support terrorism”. Commenting on the plan, Al Jazeera’s senior political analyst Marwan Bishara said that the identity of these officials was unknown. “We don’t know who they are, he [Netanyahu] doesn’t know either … I don’t think they exist. There were attempts in the 1970s and 1980s to create such entities among the Palestinians and it failed in no time,” he said. It is also unclear whether representatives of the Palestinian Authority (PA) will be involved in controlling Gaza. Reporting from occupied east Jerusalem, Al Jazeera’s Hamdah Salhut highlighted that, in his draft plan, Netanyahu did not mention the PA’s role. “He [Netanyahu] didn’t say this officially in his plan but used broader terminology probably to reach a consensus among his right-wing government,” she said. “Remember the Israeli prime minister is under immense pressure from the Americans who want to see a revitalised PA to take over once the war is over. But Netanyahu has been quiet defiant to come in and take over Gaza,” Salhut added. The Israeli prime minister’s plan also outlined demilitarisation and deradicalisation as goals to be achieved in the medium term in Gaza. It does not elaborate on when that intermediary stage would begin or how long it would last, but says that the “the Israeli army will maintain indefinitely the freedom to intervene in Gaza to prevent the resurgence of terror activity”. It also proposes that Israel have a presence on the Gaza-Egypt border in the south of the enclave and says that Israel should cooperate with Egypt and the US in that area to prevent smuggling attempts, including at the Rafah crossing. Plans for UNRWA’s closure Lastly, Netanyahu’s plan also says that the UN relief agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, would be shut. Israel has long tried to eliminate the UN agency, which enshrines the right of Palestinian refugees to return home. Israel has recently made claims that UNRWA has links to Hamas, a claim that the body has fiercely denied, and that US intelligence assessments have cast doubt on, according to reports. Tamara Alrifai, UNRWA’s director of external relations and communications told Al Jazeera that attempts to get rid of UNRWA should be seen alongside efforts to remove the future prospect of a Palestinian state, highlighting Netanyahu’s display of a map of Israel that included the occupied West Bank, Gaza, and occupied East Jerusalem during an address at the UN General Assembly in September. “A map which includes and encompasses all the Palestinian territories where UNRWA works. I don’t find this a coincidence,” she said. According to Al Jazeera’s Bishara, this plan is not official and is one that Netanyahu is floating to the cabinet, in order to leak it to the media and to do a number of other things. “Firstly there is that approach towards his own base. He’s telling his radicals in the government and public that he remains steadfast … Secondly, I think it is quite stupid to be honest, because we know the Israelis have tried this [plan to take control of Gaza in some form or the other] before and it never worked,” Bishara said. “Lastly, it [the plan] is so sadist. We are in the midst of the fifth month of genocide against the Palestinian people. Still, the Israeli prime minister insists they will maintain control … that kind of sadism is unprecedented.” https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/23/palestinian-authority-says-israeli-post-war-gaza-plan-destined-to-fail

Kurz receives eight month suspended sentence after being found guilty of lying to a parliamentary inquiry. Before his legal troubles, Austria's conservative former Chancellor Sebastian Kurz was once seen as a 'wunderkind' of European conservative politics after he became Austria's leader at the age of 31 in 2017 [Leonhard Foeger/Reuters] Austria’s former Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has received an eight-month suspended sentence after being found guilty of perjury by a Vienna court after a four-month trial. The former leader, once hailed as a “wunderkind” of Europe’s conservatives, had denied downplaying his influence over the appointment of executives to the state-holding company OBAG when he was chancellor, and whose appointments were formally his finance minister’s responsibility. But Kurz’s corruption case centred on his testimony to a parliamentary commission of inquiry that he was “involved in the sense of informed”, but did not play an active role in appointments. The court, however, agreed with prosecutors that Kurz was actually the ultimate decision-maker, and produced evidence, including text messages and testimony from former loyalist Thomas Schmid, the first head of OBAG, who turned state witness. “I find this part of the ruling very unfair,” Kurz said after the ruling. “We have appealed and I am very optimistic that we will receive a ruling in our favour in the second instance.” The trial and other ongoing corruption investigations have damaged the reputation of the charismatic hardliner, and damaged any chance he had of a political comeback. In 2017, Kurz became one of the youngest leaders in the world at age 31 and formed a coalition with the far-right Freedom Party (FPO). Amid a scandal in 2019 when the FPO’s leader was embroiled in a video sting, the coalition collapsed. Kurz then won a snap election and formed a coalition with the Greens, who later forced him from office in 2021 due to the corruption investigation. But his Austrian People’s Party continues to lead the government under current Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz waves as he leaves a session of the Parliament in Vienna, Austria May 27, 2019 [File: Leonhard Foeger/Reuters] Kurz has insisted he is innocent of having misled a parliamentary inquiry probing wide-ranging corruption scandals that brought down his first government with the far right in 2019. Throughout the trial, he portrayed himself as the victim of selective prosecution and an opposition out to “destroy him”. Kurz said that while he had been informed about Schmid’s appointment, he did not decide on it and dismissed suggestions that he had sought to control everything. On the other hand, Schmid testified that Kurz had built up a “system” where he held the reins and could veto any appointment of personnel in critical companies. Separately, prosecutors are still investigating Kurz on suspicion of having embezzled public money to fund polls skewed to boost his image and pay for the favourable coverage that allowed for his success in 2017. However, they have so far failed to obtain any convictions since a video emerged in 2019 showing Kurz’s then-vice chancellor of the FPO offering public contracts to a purported Russian investor for campaign help. After leaving politics, the conservatives, who are in an election year, have slid to second or third in the polls, making it likely that they will lose seats in a parliamentary election this year, prompting speculation that Kurz could eventually return to lead the party and reverse its fortunes. Polls, however, have shown that a clear majority of Austrians say they do not want to see his return to government, and Kurz has said that he is happy as a businessman and is now involved with numerous private international enterprises. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/2/23/former-austrian-chancellor-sebastian-kurz-found-guilty-of-perjury

Music title: SiR - No Evil (Official Music Video) Signer: SiR Release date: 2024/01/26 Official YouTube link:

Nick movie: KANE Official Trailer (2023) Time: Movie Trailers Source Netflix / Amazon / HBO: N/A Duration of the movie: 2mins Trailer:

CONTRA! You should have 2 projects at least and improve your activity.

VOTED✔️

VOTED✔️

VOTED✔️

#Accepted! Dm here or in discord T/C.

Fresh off a mid-cycle refresh, Jeep's lifted V-8 Wrangler remains an entertaining escape from the sensible. It's important to maintain some levity in our lives, distractions to help keep our moods light. While the metaverse and pop-star hookups may entertain some, we posit that a more effective pursuit involves big tires, a powerful V-8, and the ability to transport you far from the daily grind, both literally and figuratively. Jeep, by way of its updated 2024 Wrangler Rubicon 392, seems to agree. HIGHS: Shockingly quick, goes almost anywhere, welcome interior enhancements. Within the greater strata of charismatic off-roaders, this Jeep's 6.4-liter V-8 develops roughly a third as much power (470 horses) as your average Monster Jam competitor, and its 35-inch BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2 tires are only around half as tall. But that hasn't stopped the Wrangler 392 from being a heroically ridiculous middle finger to the sensibilities of the uninitiated (and good luck getting Grave Digger into your garage). From the whopping 90 decibels of full-throttle thunder leaving its active exhaust to the tire-squawking hole shots it can pull at stop lights, few vehicles encourage deviant behavior like this Jeep. Disturbing the peace is its raison d'être. MARC URBANO|CAR AND DRIVER But you already knew this because the Wrangler 392 is not new. In our test of a 2022 model, we called it a "rocket-propelled basset hound," a somehow fitting descriptor for this 5413-pound covered wagon that can hit 60 mph in 4.0 seconds and cover the quarter-mile in 12.8 seconds at 104 mph. That it's also imbued with the same over-the-road qualities as pedestrian Wrangler models—ponderous recirculating-ball steering, a buckboard ride from two live axles, and a cramp-inducing lack of a dead pedal—makes those test results even more impressive, if a little unsettling. Drivers take note: You'll still need at least 194 feet to stop this thing from 70 mph, and it orbits the skidpad with a meager 0.71 g of grip (though those are improvements over the 2022 model's 218-foot and 0.70-g efforts, respectively). Updated Innards While the 392's brashness remains its charm, the Wrangler's mid-cycle refresh does bring some noteworthy refinements for the 2024 model year. Beyond a seven-slot grille that's been subtly rejiggered to better accommodate a newly optional 8000-pound Warn winch in the front bumper, a redesigned interior adds greater convenience when you're terrorizing the countryside. The highlight is a slick new 12.3-inch touchscreen that's horizontally arranged atop the lightly revised upper dashboards of all trim levels. Wireless phone mirroring is standard, with higher trims like the 392 gaining built-in navigation with Jeep's Badge of Honor trail guidance for certain mapped trail systems. As interfaces go, this is one of the better ones, offering an intuitive menu structure, quick responses to inputs, and crisp graphics for easy legibility. MARC URBANO|CAR AND DRIVER LOWS: Primitive handling, costs six figures with options, the Sierra Club may throw soup on it. Elsewhere, the 392's front seats have been reengineered and fitted with 12-way power adjustments, and like all 2024 Wranglers, its exterior mast antenna has been swapped out for an in-windshield unit. Side-curtain airbags also have been integrated into the rollover structure, while top trims get a cabin upgrade with some softer trim pieces, additional sound insulation around the windshield, and dual-pane front side window glass. Sadly, those sound-attenuating measures don't amount to much, barely dropping the noise level inside at 70 mph, from 76 decibels to 75—even louder than in our long-term Ford Bronco. Less Work, More Play But if creature comforts are guiding your potential 392 purchase, you're doing it wrong. Merely entertaining a 470-hp Wrangler on 35s requires a lull in common sense and a surplus of life insurance. Just look at its result on our 75-mph highway fuel-economy test: 13 mpg, the same as its EPA city estimate, and we averaged just 12 mpg overall. No, this is a novelty item for escaping the mundane, offering a commanding view of the road that imparts a sense of invincibility from behind the wheel—if you can't outrun it, you can drive over it. And considering its meaty tires, full-time four-wheel-drive system with low range, 3.5 inches of suspension lift from the newly standard Xtreme Recon 35-Inch Tire package (previously a $3995 option), a new fully floating Dana 44 rear axle, front and rear locking differentials, and a high-performance Off Road Plus drive mode, that's probably true. https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/a46785457/2024-jeep-wrangler-rubicon-392-test/

Analysis gives clues as to why butterflies and moths have been resilient through dramatic changes on Earth – and could help with future conservation A peacock butterfly. Researchers looked at more than 200 genomes of butterflies and moths as part of the study. Photograph: Andrew Bladon/University of Cambridge/AFP/Getty Images The genomes of butterflies and moths have remained largely unchanged for more than 250m years despite their enormous species diversity, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Ecology & Evolution. In the face of rapid environmental changes in the 21st century, the researchers said the analysis gives clues as to how Lepidoptera – the order of winged insects that contains butterflies and moths – have been so resilient throughout dramatic changes on Earth. Researchers at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and the University of Edinburgh looked at more than 200 genomes – a complete set of the genetic information needed to build and maintain an organism – of butterflies and moths to better understand their evolutionary history. They traced the genetic code back to the very first butterflies and identified 32 ancestral chromosomes that are the building blocks of nearly all lepidopterans. Prof Mark Blaxter, the senior author of the study and the head of the Tree of Life programme at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, said: “All life is connected by a common thread – DNA. Our DNA sequences record our deep history. We were able to look at the evolutionary history of butterflies through their genome to go back to their common ancestor, to the great-great-great-etcetera-grandmother of all butterflies. We found they had been remarkably stable.” He added: “There is a contrast between the butterflies that have 16 times as many species as mammals but have a much more stable genetic foundation. It’s just amazing!” Lepidoptera is among the most diverse animal groups known to science, making up approximately 10% of living organisms on Earth. Most moths and butterflies species today have 31 chromosomes, but a rare subset of species that includes the chalkhill blue butterfly, common during the British summer, has 90, the scientists found – breaking the species groups’ genetic norms. A bee lands on a purple flower Food, soil, water: how the extinction of insects would transform our planet Read more Charlotte Wright, the first author and a PhD student at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, said: “The bigger question we are trying to understand is how biodiversity evolves at a broader scale. We want to know what the biggest features are from its genome that underlie the success of moths and butterflies. How can we make sense of the fact that this group makes up 10% of described species? What makes it different from other species groups that are nowhere near as successful?” The researchers said their findings can help with conservation efforts for the species amid a rapid loss of the planet’s biodiversity, which some scientists have called the sixth mass extinction. Many insect species, including crucial pollinators, are experiencing alarming declines. Research by Butterfly Conservation released in 2023 found that since 1976, butterfly species have vanished from almost half of the places where they once flew in the UK. The researcher team said lepidopterans were powerful indicators of ecosystem health – and that a deeper understanding of butterfly and moth biology will inform future research on adaptation for biodiversity conservation. “When the human genome was released in 2010, it was still in millions of pieces and we had stitched those pieces together but there were still many gaps in the letters of the code,” Blaxter said. “There were jigsaw pieces missing. With the butterfly genomes, we have all of the pieces. For the majority of the species we have looked at, it is the first time we have had a genome at all.” Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield on X for all the latest news and features https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/feb/21/butterfly-genome-has-barely-changed-for-250m-years-study-finds-aoe