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Have scientists really brought an extinct wolf species back to life? Dr Maria McNamara is a Paleontologist and Senior Lecturer in the School of Biological Earth and Environmental Science at UCC.
A new citizen science project in UCC called the Great Irish Fossil Hunt aims to catalogue the fossils of Ireland. But, how will it work?Joining Seán to discuss is Maria McNamara, Professor of Paleontology at UCC...
A new citizen science project in UCC called the Great Irish Fossil Hunt aims to catalogue the fossils of Ireland. But, how will it work?Joining Seán to discuss is Maria McNamara, Professor of Paleontology at UCC...
Ever wondered what dinosaurs really looked like? UCC's Dr. Maria McNamara did and she tells PJ what she found out! For more on dinosaurs see here! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Every Friday, as part of our ‘Ask Me Anything' series, we put your questions to people from interesting backgrounds or working in different careers.This week, Andrea was joined by Maria McNamara, Professor of Paleontology at UCC to answer all of your fossil-related questions!
On Monday's Morning Focus Alan Morrissey was joined by Nicola Coss, National Programme Development Manager and Maria McNamara, group facilitator, who discussed a support group for those living with ADHD being hosted in Ennis next week. The Face-to-Face Support Group, organised by ADHD Ireland, is due to take place on Friday, 9th February. Nicola Coss also discussed supports for adults with ADHD and the effectiveness of support groups.
For links to every news story, all of the details we shared about Dyoplosaurus, links from Maria McNamara, and our fun fact check out https://iknowdino.com/Dyoplosaurus-Episode-399/Join us at www.patreon.com/iknowdino for dinosaur requests, bonus content, ad-free episodes, and more.Dinosaur of the day Dyoplosaurus, an ankylosaurid that lived in the Late Cretaceous in what is now Alberta, Canada (in the Dinosaur Park Formation).Interview with Maria McNamara, a paleobiologist and professor of paleontology at the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences at University College Cork. Follow her on twitter @MariaMcN_palaeoSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
Neurodevelopmental Therapy for Cerebral Palsy: A Meta-analysisAnna Te Velde, Catherine Morgan, Megan Finch-Edmondson, Lynda McNamara, Maria McNamara, Madison Claire Badawy Paton, Emma Stanton, Annabel Webb, Nadia Badawi, Iona NovakAbstractBackground and objective: Bobath therapy, or neurodevelopmental therapy (NDT) is widely practiced despite evidence other interventions are more effective in cerebral palsy (CP). The objective is to determine the efficacy of NDT in children and infants with CP or high risk of CP.Methods: Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, Cochrane Library, Embase, and Medline were searched through March 2021. Randomized controlled trials comparing NDT with any or no intervention were included. Meta-analysis was conducted with standardized mean differences calculated. Quality was assessed by using Cochrane Risk of Bias tool-2 and certainty by using Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation.Results: Of 667 records screened, 34 studies (in 35 publications, 1332 participants) met inclusion. Four meta-analyses were conducted assessing motor function. We found no effect between NDT and control (pooled effect size 0.13 [-0.20 to 0.46]), a moderate effect favoring activity-based approaches (0.76 [0.12 to 1.40]) and body function and structures (0.77 [0.19 to 1.35]) over NDT and no effect between higher- and lower-dose NDT (0.32 [-0.11 to 0.75]). A strong recommendation against the use of NDT at any dose was made. Studies were not all Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials-compliant. NDT versus activity-based comparator had considerable heterogeneity (I2 = 80%) reflecting varied measures.Conclusions: We found that activity-based and body structure and function interventions are more effective than NDT for improving motor function, NDT is no more effective than control, and higher-dose NDT is not more effective than lower-dose. Deimplementation of NDT in CP is required.
Popular reconstructions of ancient environments, whether they be in natural history museum dioramas, in movies, or in books, present a world of color. But are those colors just fanciful renderings, perhaps based on the colors we see around us today? Or is there evidence in the fossil record that we can use to determine the actual color of plants and animals that lived in the geological past? Maria McNamara tries to answer these questions by studying the fossil preservation of soft tissues, such as skin, muscle, and internal organs. She does this by analyzing fossils that come from sedimentary deposits that contain extraordinarily well-preserved fossils. She also does lab experiments to investigate the processes of soft tissue degradation and preservation. She is Professor of Paleontology at University College Cork in Ireland. For illustrations supporting this podcast, go to geologybites.com.
Stimulating isn't it. I recently came off the hard stuff and I've missed it ever since. I used to see coffee as a real treat, but that caffeine hit may soon be harder to come by. Scientists predict a drastic decline in suitable coffee growing land by up to 60% before 2050. In the show we'll put you in the hotseat to see how well you really know the UK's second favourite hot beverage. In the news: a change up at CERN could spell big changes for particle physicists universally, dinosaurs with coloured feathers and the happy hormone that makes old timers love life... Like this podcast? Please help us by supporting the Naked Scientists
As a series of UN climate reports have warned recently, drastic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions – a halving over the next decade – are needed if we are to keep global warming down to manageable levels. No sign of that happening. An emergency measure to buy time that's sometimes discussed is solar geoengineering – creating an atmospheric sunscreen that reduces incoming solar heat. Sulphate compounds in volcanic gases or in industrial fumes attract water vapour to make a fine haze and have that effect. The difference would be starting a deliberate programme of injecting sulphate particles into the stratosphere. There are a host of arguments against it, including a revulsion against adding another pollutant to the atmosphere to offset the one, carbon dioxide, that's giving us problems in the first place. Another objection, outlined this week, is that it could set back the global fight against malaria - a major killer in its own right. University of Cape Town ecologist Chris Trisos tells Roland Pease what his team's modelling study revealed. Yale University neurologist Kevin Sheth talks to us about a revolution in medical scanning – small-scale MRI machines that can be wheeled to the patient's bedside. According to palaeontologist Maria McNamara, an amazingly preserved pterosaur fossil from Brazil proves that some of these flying reptiles did have feathers similar to those of birds (and some dinosaurs), and that the feathers were of different colours, possibly for mating display. Primatologist Adrian Barnett has discovered that spider monkeys in one part of the Brazilian Amazon seek out fruit, full of live maggots to eat. Why? The ancient Maya flourished in modern day Mexico and Central America for millennia. They built incredible cities and they had sophisticated knowledge of astronomy, architecture and the natural world. But although Maya culture continues to exist today, around 900 AD, many of their great settlements collapsed, and today they lie in ruins. CrowdScience listener Michael wants to know - how did the Maya sustain their populations successfully for so long? And what happened 1000 years ago that led them to abandon their cities? To find out, Melanie Brown travels to the forests of Western Belize. She visits the archaeological site of Xunantunich to learn about what life would have been like for the Maya living in what was once a prosperous city. She hears about the importance of water to the Maya way of life in this region, and their ingenious methods for capturing and storing rainfall. She meets archaeologists using lasers and drones to map Maya settlements that have lain hidden by jungle for centuries. And she discovers what material from the bottom of lakes can tell us about how the Maya faced a changing climate, which may have had huge consequences for their society. (Photo: Illustration of a mosquito biting Credit: SCIEPRO/Science Photo Library/Getty Images) Presenters: Roland Pease and Melanie Brown Producers: Andrew Luck-Baker and Anand Jagatia
As a series of UN climate reports have warned recently, drastic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions – a halving over the next decade – are needed if we are to keep global warming down to manageable levels. No sign of that happening. An emergency measure to buy time that's sometimes discussed is solar geoengineering – creating an atmospheric sunscreen that reduces incoming solar heat. Sulphate compounds in volcanic gases or in industrial fumes attract water vapour to make a fine haze and have that effect. The difference would be starting a deliberate programme of injecting sulphate particles into the stratosphere. There are a host of arguments against it, including a revulsion against adding another pollutant to the atmosphere to offset the one, carbon dioxide, that's giving us problems in the first place. Another objection, outlined this week, is that it could set back the global fight against malaria - a major killer in its own right. University of Cape Town ecologist Chris Trisos tells Roland Pease what his team's modelling study revealed. Yale University neurologist Kevin Sheck talks to us about a revolution in medical scanning – small-scale MRI machines that can be wheeled to the patient's bedside. According to palaeontologist Maria McNamara, an amazingly preserved pterosaur fossil from Brazil proves that some of these flying reptiles did have feathers similar to those of birds (and some dinosaurs), and that the feathers were of different colours, possibly for mating display. Primatologist Adrian Barnett has discovered that spider monkeys in one part of the Brazilian Amazon seek out fruit, full of live maggots to eat. Why? Presenter: Roland Pease Producer: Andrew Luck-Baker (Photo: Illustration of a mosquito biting Credit: SCIEPRO/Science Photo Library/Getty Images)
Maria McNamara, Professor of Palaeontology at University College Cork
Prof Maria McNamara, Professor of paleontology in the School of Biological, Earth and Environmental Sciences at University College Cork joins me this week. Maria's research focuses on the preservation and paleobiology of exceptionally preserved fossils with particular interests in soft tissues and fossil colour. She speaks to me about her Granny's influence on her at a young age to explore the natural world and how she still considers herself a 'curious child'. Maria discusses leaving academia to work as a geopark geologist in the Burren, what that experience taught her and what drew her back into academic life. Her passion for paleontology is evident from the first moment you listen to this episode. She explains why she wants to extract biological information from fossils, her interest in the evolutionary functions of feathers and the importance of insect colour in communication. Maria also discusses her latest projects on melanin and how this may have implications on human health. Finally Maria also chats about her exciting new project 'Irelands Fossil Heritage' and her passion for science communication. This episode is bursting with interesting facts and inspiring advice, I really hope you all enjoy. This is the last episode before Christmas - Back on Jan 4th! Follow Maria: MariaMcN_palaeo Follow me: MeganHanlon4 This season is kindly sponsored by Bio-Sciences Ltd, now part of Thermo-Fisher Scientific.
Introducing Paychex Spotlight, the new home for all awards, recognition, and appreciation across the company. How did we build the platform, and what are some of its most innovative features that employees already love? We sat down with two foundational members of the project team to find out: Katie Bailey, project manager IV, and Maria McNamara, employee programs manager.
As the pandemic's second wave hit India hard this spring, Paychex employees jumped into action to support their colleagues and family located there by asking what more we could do. Through employee contributions and matching donations from the Paychex Cares program, thousands of dollars were raised to help support those in need. This month, we're talking with Rick Amering, Senior Manager of Human Resources and Maria McNamara, Employee Programs Manager, about the Paychex Cares program, and also welcoming our first international guest, Vinoy James, Manager of Office Operations, to get an update on how things are going at Paychex in India.
In this episode, how new discoveries continue to change our understanding of what dinosaurs looked like – and are helping to shed light on bigger questions about evolution. And after Israel's fourth election in two years ended in another political stalemate, a foreign policy expert explains what this could mean for the Middle East. Welcome to episode 11 of The Conversation Weekly, the world explained by experts. Ever since palaeontologists started classifying fossils and bones as dinosaurs in the early 19th century, artists have been using them to try and imagine what dinosaurs looked like. But, however much Hollywood may have instilled a certain vision of dinosaurs into our minds in recent decades, we're still a long way off having all the answers about what dinosaurs actually looked like. We speak to two palaeontologists about what new evidence is emerging and how our dinosaur imaginings have changed. Maria McNamara, professor of palaeobiology at University College Cork in Ireland, explains about the, at times controversial, history of feathered dinosaurs – and what new information is starting to emerge about dinosaur colour. And Nicolas Campione, senior lecturer in palaeobiology at the University of New England in Australia, tells us the two main techniques palaeontologists have used for estimating the size of dinosaurs. In our second story, we head to Israel, where coalition negotiations are continuing following elections on March 23. Whatever happens next will have ramifications for Israel's foreign policy, which is closely tied with domestic politics. Amnon Aran, senior lecturer in international politics of the Middle East, at City, University of London, talks us through how history could inform what happens next, and what the foreign policy stakes are for whoever takes the reins of the next Israeli government. And Eva Catalán, associate editor at The Conversation in Spain, gives us her recommended reads.The Conversation Weekly is produced by Mend Mariwany and Gemma Ware, with sound design by Eloise Stevens. Our theme music is by Neeta Sarl.If you'd like to sign up for The Conversation's free daily newsletter, please subscribe here. To get in touch, find us on Twitter @TC_Audio or on Instagram at theconversationdotcom. Or you can email us on podcast@theconversation.com. Full credits for this episode can be found here. A transcript of this episode is available here. Further reading:Prehistoric pigments reveal how melanin has shaped bird and mammal evolution, by Maria McNamara, Tiffany Slater and Valentina Rossi, University College CorkThe mystery of feather origins: how fluffy pterosaurs have reignited debate, by Maria McNamara, University College Cork and Zixiao Yang, Nanjing UniversityHow do you weigh a dinosaur? There are two ways, and it turns out they're both right, by Nicolas Campione, University of New EnglandLargest ever flying creatures had longer necks than giraffes – we found out how these pterosaurs kept their heads up, by David Martill, University of Portsmouth and Cariad Williams, University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignGodzilla vs. Kong: A functional morphologist uses science to pick a winner, by Kiersten Formoso, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesStark choice for Israel as voters head to polls for fourth time in two years, by Amnon Aran, City, University of LondonIsrael elections: Netanyahu may hold on to power, but political paralysis will remain, by Ran Porat, Monash UniversityIsrael election: why is Palestine no longer an important campaign issue?, by Peter Malcontent, Utrecht UniversityWhat can statistics tell us about vaccine safety?, by Virgilio Gómez Rubio, University of Castilla-La Mancha and Anabel Forte Deltell, University of València (in Spanish)The success of influencers in their use of the Spanish language: idiolects and emotions in social networks, by María Nayra Rodríguez Rodríguez, University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (in Spanish) See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.
Maria McNamara is a researcher at University College Cork and she focuses on fossil tissue preservation and specifically the preservation and the evolution of colour. Together, we chatted about what makes her field of research so fascinating, her latest groundbreaking discoveries, and we also talked about the importance of public outreach. Presented, produced and edited by Ben Couvin. Original music by Harry Couvin.
In 1973, legendary retired tennis player Bobby Riggs challenged two of the top female tennis players to a game. In Fall 1973, Riggs faced Billie Jean King - who was at the top of her game - and lost. Fast forward to 2013. ESPN investigative reporter Don Van Natta Jr. published a wild story about gambling, the mob, and a man who had kept a secret for 40 years - all about Bobby Riggs rigging that fateful Battle of the Sexes. Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
In 2010, LeBron James took his talents to South Beach and joined the Miami Heat, leaving the city of Cleveland and the Cavaliers organization in shambles. While he would eventually find his way back, perhaps that wouldn't have been possible without the convenient bounces of a few unlikely lottery balls. What do we mean by this? Tune in to find out! Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
In the mid-80s, Pete Rose was accused of betting heavily on various sports matches during his time as a player-manager for the Cincinnati Reds. He received a lifetime ban and his name was removed from consideration for a Hall of Fame induction. Was this punishment justified? Should the league have gone a little easier on Rose? Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
January 1994, Tonya Harding's ex-husband and friends facilitated an attack on figure skater Nancy Kerrigan. In this episode of Sportspiracies, we talk about Tonya Harding's rise to fame, the attack, and Harding's life in the aftermath of the controversy. Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
The Boston Red Sox own the 3rd longest championship drought of all time. The franchise went a total of 86 years without a title, while the rival New York Yankees went on to capture 26 of their 27 titles in that span. Was it purely bad luck, or did a questionable transaction in 1920 involving the Yankees purchasing the contract of the great Babe Ruth cast a cloud of misfortune over the city of Boston for years and years? Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
In this episode, we talk about the infamous Deflategate. Also, monkeys come up. Somehow. Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
Michael Jordan is regarded as one of the greatest and most marketable athletes of all time. He also had a horrible gambling addiction. After winning his 3rd straight championship in 1993, he abruptly retired from the game he loved. Did he retire on his own terms? Did he and David Stern have a secret agreement that would cover up Michael's gambling problem and help preserve his reputation as well as the league's? Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
During the 1997 season, the Baltimore Orioles experienced an unexpected malfunction of the lights, causing the game to be postponed to the next day. Cal Ripken Jr. was in the middle of a record-breaking game streak. Did the Orioles postpone the game to keep Ripken's streak alive? Or was it all just a normal blackout? Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
On this episode of Sportspiracies, Chris and Maria recap the suspicious ending to the 1965 Heavyweight Boxing match between Sonny Liston and Muhammad Ali. History may tell you that Liston was knocked out in less than 2 minutes, but was he really? Was Ali's famous knockout hook merely brush contact? Did Liston lose on purpose? Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
Chris and Maria discuss Game 6 of the 2002 NBA Western Conference Finals between the Sacramento Kings and the Los Angeles Lakers. Was the game fixed in favor of the Lakers? Did David Stern's bias toward the Lakers have something to do with it? Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
The 1985 NBA Draft Lottery is regarded as one of the most controversial moments in NBA history. We dive into David Stern's change to the lottery system, how it created a potential opportunity for a failing franchise, and how the league is affected by it today. Hosted by Maria McNamara and Chris Coakley. Produced by Chris Coakley.
This week on Science for the People, we're looking at a different way of producing colour than you might be used to. Structural colour relies on nano-scale structures to reflect particular wavelengths of light. To start things off, we'll be discussing some of the science behind naturally occurring colours, and the engineering to produce manufactured ones with PhD student Victoria Hwang. After that, Dr. Maria McNamara joins us to discuss how colour information is preserved in the fossil record and where the research is going. And we couldn’t give you an episode on colour without some pictures! Photos of structural...
We can observe colour to be highly important for animals today. It can be used for many different purposes, including camouflage and signalling, and produced by many different methods. What is true of colouration today is also likely to have been so in the past, however the fossilisation process replaces tissues with minerals, so finding hints of colour in fossils is very unlikely. There are however certain colour producing structures that can survive the fossilisation process. We visit the University of Bristol to talk to Maria McNamara, a post-doctoral research assistant, to learn more about the preservation of colour in the fossil record.