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Alejandro Izquierdo Lopez

PhD candidate, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto
I am a graduate from University of Barcelona (UB) in Spain, where I specialized in Natural history topics (botany, zoology, ecology). My Bachelor thesis was focused on science communication, and involved being part of the University journal B-On, where I wrote two monographs highlighting a scientific topic and the work done by different departments of the University in the topic, including interviews, directed to the other members of the university (students and faculty). I obtained later a Masters degree in Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München, in Germany, where I specialized in ecology, evolution and systematics, mostly on morphological evolution of arthropods. My masters thesis focused on the evolution of praying mantises, using fossils and extant taxa. I am currently part of the Royal Ontario Museum and UofT in Toronto, Canada, where I study the evolution of the first arthropods, using fossils from the famous locality of the Burgess Shale, which has some of the first fossil animals on Earth. I have also collaborated on different sci-com projects, including my own blog (onelephantsandbacteria.net), as well as collaborations in other blogs and podcasts (sharpmindsweb.net- extinct, elpulgarldelpanda.com, La Linterna de Diógenes in iVoox), institutions (European Southern Observatories in Garching, Royal Ontario Museum), and clubs (Astronomical Society of Barcelona (ASTER), Friends of Paleontology at the ROM), as well as being editor in the wildlife app WildMentor (wildmentor.org). I am also fluent in four languages, including Spanish, Catalan, German and English.

A new fossil discovery reveals a little more about arthropod evolution

Jul 23, 2022 16:26 pm UTC| Nature

Paleontology is undergoing a new renaissance. Since the mid-20th century, genomics has become the main focus of evolutionary biology. But the last few decades have shown how the study of fossils can complement genomic data...

Economy

South Korean Won Leads Asian FX Losses as Dollar Rises

The South Korean won led declines across Asian currencies on Monday as the U.S. dollar strengthened, while the Japanese yen retreated after giving up some of its intervention-driven gains. The U.S. Dollar Index rose 0.18%...

Oil Prices Rise as Hormuz Reopening Remains Uncertain

Oil prices climbed on Monday as uncertainty over the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz continued to support the market, despite Iran and Oman moving closer to an agreement on new shipping routes through the strategic...

Gold Prices Hold Near Seven-Week High as Markets Await U.S. Inflation Data

Gold prices remained largely steady on Monday, hovering near a seven-week high as investors assessed Middle East geopolitical risks and looked ahead to key U.S. inflation data that could influence the Federal Reserves...

Asian Stocks Rise as Weak US Jobs Data Eases Fed Rate Hike Bets

Asian stocks mostly advanced on Monday, following record highs on Wall Street as weaker-than-expected U.S. employment data reduced expectations for a Federal Reserve interest rate hike in September. Japan and South Korea...

Asian Stocks Rise as Weak US Jobs Data Eases Fed Rate Hike Fears

Asian stock markets moved higher on Monday, following record gains on Wall Street as weaker U.S. employment data reduced expectations for an imminent Federal Reserve interest rate hike. Oil prices also advanced as...

Politics

Houthi Attack on Yemen’s Mocha Port Kills Seven, Injures 30

Seven people were killed and 30 others wounded after Houthi forces launched a large-scale drone and missile attack on Yemens Red Sea port city of Mocha, according to the Yemeni military. In a statement issued early Monday,...

Germany Warns of Daily Hybrid Warfare Threats

Germany is facing foreign hybrid warfare operations on a daily basis, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt has warned after authorities discovered an explosive-carrying drone at Leipzig/Halle Airport. Dobrindt said hostile...

ICE to Complete Nationwide Body Camera Rollout by End of August

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) will equip all officers and agents working in the field with body-worn cameras by the end of August, accelerating a nationwide rollout that was initially expected to take...

Iran-Oman Near Strait of Hormuz Deal as Shipping Tensions Persist

Iran and Oman are nearing an agreement on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, but Tehran says a bilateral deal alone will not be enough to fully reopen the critical global energy route. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas...

Joe Biden’s Prostate Cancer Has Spread Further, Hunter Biden Says

Former U.S. President Joe Bidens prostate cancer has spread beyond his bones and is causing significant pain, according to his son, Hunter Biden, who discussed his fathers health in a BBC interview. Speaking to the BBCs...

Science

Blue Origin New Glenn Explosion Could Delay Launch Operations Until 2028

Blue Origin is facing a significant setback after a dramatic explosion involving its New Glenn rocket severely damaged a launch pad at Cape Canaveral, Florida. According to NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, repairs to the...

Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Explodes During Launch Pad Test, Delaying Space Ambitions

Blue Origin suffered a major setback after its uncrewed New Glenn rocket exploded during a launch pad test in Florida on Thursday, raising new challenges for Jeff Bezos space company as it competes with Elon Musks SpaceX...

SpaceX Delays Starship V3 Launch Ahead of Potential Record IPO

SpaceX on Thursday postponed the highly anticipated launch of its 12th Starship rocket test from Texas after technical issues interrupted the final countdown. The company now plans to attempt the Starship V3 launch again...

Trump Administration Releases New UFO Files and Apollo Mission Records

The U.S. Defense Department has released dozens of previously classified UFO-related files following an order from President Donald Trump, sparking renewed debate over unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) and government...

China vs. NASA: The New Moon Race and What's at Stake by 2030

The space race is back and this time, its a direct competition between the United States and China for dominance on the lunar surface. NASAs Artemis II mission recently made history when four astronauts flew farther into...

Technology

Sony, TSMC Eye $6.3 Billion Japan Chip Venture for Next-Gen Image Sensors

Sony Group and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) are reportedly preparing to invest about 1 trillion yen ($6.32 billion) in a new Japanese semiconductor venture focused on next-generation chips for image...

Nvidia Seen Beating Q2 Targets as Vera Rubin Cycle Begins

Nvidia (NVDA) could enter a multi-quarter growth cycle as shipments of its next-generation Vera Rubin AI chips begin, with BofA Global Research forecasting stronger-than-expected quarterly results and maintaining a bullish...

OpenAI Restricts Astra AI Over Cyberattack Risks

OpenAI has reportedly restricted parts of the development of its next-generation AI model, code-named Astra, after early evaluations indicated the system could potentially carry out sophisticated cyberattacks with limited...

Nvidia to Invest Up to $3 Billion in Blackstone-Backed Lancium

Nvidia is reportedly preparing to invest as much as $3 billion in Lancium, a Blackstone-backed power infrastructure developer involved in the Stargate artificial intelligence infrastructure initiative, as demand for...

Meta Ordered to Pay $567M Over Child Safety Violations in New Mexico

Meta Platforms Inc. has been ordered to pay $567 million into a fund designed to address harm to young people, in a major legal ruling involving child safety on Facebook and Instagram. Judge Bryan Biedscheid of New Mexicos...