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Submission + - Python blood could hold the secret to healthy weight loss (colorado.edu)

fahrbot-bot writes: CU Boulder researchers are reporting that they have discovered an appetite-suppressing compound in python blood that helps the snakes consume enormous meals and go months without eating yet remain metabolically healthy. The findings were published in the journal Natural Metabolism on March 19, 2026.

Pythons can grow as big as a telephone pole, swallow an antelope whole, and go months or even years without eating—all while maintaining a healthy heart and plenty of muscle mass. In the hours after they eat, research has shown, their heart expands 25% and their metabolism speeds up 4,000-fold to help them digest their meal.

The team measured blood samples from ball pythons and Burmese pythons, fed once every 28 days, immediately after they ate a meal. In all, they found 208 metabolites that increased significantly after the pythons ate. One molecule, called para-tyramine-O-sulfate (pTOS) soared 1,000-fold.

Further studies, done with Baylor University researchers, showed that when they gave high doses of pTOS to obese or lean mice, it acted on the hypothalamus, the appetite center of the brain, prompting weight loss without causing gastrointestinal problems, muscle loss or declines in energy.

The study found that pTOS, which is produced by the snake’s gut bacteria, is not present in mice naturally. It is present in human urine at low levels and does increase somewhat after a meal. But because most research is done in mice or rats, pTOS has been overlooked.

Comment Re:smug Linux user enters the chat (Score 1) 186

Well, I remember vividly the last crash, few days ago, due to the crappy proprietary Nvidia drivers suffering from race conditions (seemingly). Even the physical reset button wouldn't work!
Besides, without the card and/or the proprietary Nvidia drivers, absolutely zero crashes, however.
Linux is amazing in this regard.

Submission + - Iran blocks accounts of Starlink users as crackdown continues (iranintl.com) 1

An anonymous reader writes: Iranian police said on Thursday they had blocked 61 bank accounts belonging to users of Starlink satellite internet in the central city of Yazd, as part of a broader crackdown on unauthorized connectivity.

A local police commander said six Starlink devices were seized and six people detained following searches carried out with judicial approval.

Authorities accused the suspects of trading access to the service, sharing information with foreign-based outlets and engaging in activities deemed hostile. The individuals were referred to prosecutors, police said.

The move comes amid a broader wave of arrests across Iran, with authorities detaining dozens in recent days on security-related charges, including alleged links to militant activity, contacts with foreign media and online activity. Officials have also reported seizing weapons, explosives and Starlink devices in multiple provinces.

Starlink is banned in Iran, where authorities have imposed a near-total internet blackout during the war. Monitoring group NetBlocks says connectivity has dropped to around 1% of normal levels, leaving satellite services among the few ways to access the global internet.

Submission + - Time To Flash OpenWrt

ptorrone writes: The FCC just added all foreign-made consumer routers to its Covered List, banning new models from receiving authorization for import or sale in the US. The agency cited Volt, Flax, and Salt Typhoon cyberattacks, but cybersecurity researchers note the same vulnerabilities existed on American-brand routers too (Salt Typhoon targeted Cisco hardware). No evidence of deliberate backdoors has been presented. Netgear stock jumped 16% after hours. There isn't a single router currently manufactured entirely in the USA. Existing models are grandfathered but firmware updates are only guaranteed through March 2027. If you're running a home network and don't want to wait for the government to pick winners, now's the time to flash OpenWrt, build a router from a Banana Pi or Raspberry Pi with pfSense, or support open-source networking projects like OPNsense. When proprietary supply chains get cut by policy, open-source firmware becomes the supply chain. Adafruit has a writeup with more actionable steps for makers and hackers.

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