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Social Media Use on the Rise Among Australian Under-16s After Ban
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia /Culture & Society

Social Media Use on the Rise Among Australian Under-16s After Ban

From Asharq Al-Awsat · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Context piece
  • Europe's drought has lowered river levels, revealing historical artifacts and fossils.
  • Volunteers in Bulgaria found mammal remains and ancient oysters along the Danube River.
  • The receding waters have also exposed World War II shipwrecks and soldier remains in other parts of Europe.

The parching drought gripping Europe has not only slowed cargo shipping and threatened nuclear plant cooling but also unveiled a trove of historical treasures. Along the Danube River in northern Bulgaria, receding waters have exposed mammoth bones and other fossilized fragments. Amateur photographer Aleksandar Denkov excitedly found a tooth, joining about 20 other volunteers organized by the Ruse Regional History Museum.

I've found a tooth!

— Aleksandar DenkovAn amateur photographer, exclaiming upon finding a fossilized fragment.

While the group didn't find more mammoth fossils, they discovered remains of a mammal, possibly an aurochs or European bison, along with a subfossil horse jawbone and 60-million-year-old fossilized oysters. This discovery follows a recent find of a mammoth jawbone and other skeletal parts in the village of Ryahovo, which spurred the museum's initiative.

to teach people how to recognize different finds, show them what they might uncover, and give them safety tips.

— Krasimir KirovThe Ruse Regional History Museum curator explaining the purpose of the organized field day.

Krasimir Kirov, a curator at the Ruse museum, stated the field day aimed to educate people on identifying potential finds and safety. The "mammoth discovery" led to dozens of calls from locals reporting their own finds. The organized search, announced on social media, generated significant interest, with many requesting to join future outings.

After the mammoth was discovered, I started getting dozens of calls from people telling me about what they'd found.

— Krasimir KirovThe museum curator describing the public's reaction to a previous mammoth find.

Volunteers were instructed to advance in a line and stop if something was spotted, with a strict warning against touching any metal objects due to potential explosives. However, enthusiasm quickly led to a broken line. "It's a very rare opportunity to feel this close to history," said Ekaterina Yordanova, a psychologist. "Seeing the Danube in this state is worrying, but it also gives us the chance to discover new things." Vladimir Tsvyatkov, a business owner, brought his family for the adventure, noting he had "never seen the Danube so dried up."

It's a very rare opportunity to feel this close to history.

— Ekaterina YordanovaA psychologist expressing her feelings about participating in the fossil search.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Asharq Al-Awsat. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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