¶Thanks to the well-preserved fossil, researchers created an updated evolutionary tree of microraptors. Analyses revealed 194 anatomical adaptations that arose in the group—about 30 percent of which also popped up in bird evolution. They include things like a certain forearm bone being longer than an upper arm bone and the fusion of specific wrist and hand bones. However, the researchers found that the overlapping features evolved in different orders in the two groups, hinting that they did not come from a common ancestor. Rather, they may have both developed flight independently because of similar environmental pressures, a phenomenon called convergent evolution.

¶The world has been pressuring its inhabitants to take flight for quite some time.

¶“Algorithms lack the spark of the human, whereas ‘authentic culture and art preserve this spark,’” the Pope added, quoting his first encyclical letter, “Magnifica Humanitas,” which was published in May. The letter cautions against the encroachment of AI on humanity, asserting that true progress cannot be measured by performance or technological speed, but through human empathy and connection.

¶AI will force us to contemplate what it means to be human. I believe art, in all its forms, is central to the human identity and will flourish as a result. I’m with the Pope on this one.