Looking for a fun Earth Day activity? You may want to try plogging, or picking up litter while jogging. Odd as it may sound, the new "sport" is becoming extremely popular with runners worldwide, many of whom are posting images of themselves and friends holding bags of trash on social media....
Read news articleWhile even the mention of a shark swimming close to shore is enough to send residents scurrying for cover, the "WasteShark" is being welcomed with open arms. The brainchild of South African entrepreneur Richard Hardiman, the aquatic drone is designed to devour all floating debris, including plastic and other non-biodegradable trash, that has accumulated along coastal waters, before it drifts out to sea....
Read news articleTermites are famous for their superior architectural skills. The mounds created by the industrious insects contain an elaborate network of tunnels with a series of chimneys that help regulate oxygen levels, temperature, and humidity to ensure the queen, who sits in a chamber underneath, is comfortable....
Read news articleIn early February 2019, 51-year-old Rainer Schimpf and his team set out to film South Africa's famous Sardine Run off the coast of Point Elizabeth. The annual migration of billions of Sardinops sagax, more commonly known as South African pilchards or sardines, is a big draw for predators, especially the Cape gannet, a beautiful, cream-colored seabird, and the common dolphin. The two species work together to herd the large group of fish and separate them into smaller shoals known as bait balls, which are then scooped up by not just the birds and the dolphins, but also other hunters such as copper sharks and Bryde's whales....
Read news articleOn Friday, March 15, 2019, hundreds of thousands of kids from over 80 countries, including the United States, Germany, and Malaysia, will skip school and take to the streets. However, the worldwide strike is not a protest against excessive homework or long school hours. It is a plea to government officials and business leaders to take immediate action against climate change....
Read news articleA walnut-sized bee with a wingspan of two and a half inches – about the length of a human thumb – may seem like something straight out of a science fiction movie. However, the Megachile pluto, or Wallace's Giant Bee, is not a figment of a movie writer's imagination, but a real insect that dwells in the Indonesian forests. While a few dead specimens of the bee have been discovered over the years, researchers have not seen a living one since 1981. Now, thanks to a team of dedicated American and Australian biologists, the magnificent bee has been photographed live in its natural habitat for the first time....
Read news articleExperts assert that if food were a country, it would rank third behind China and the US as one of the biggest greenhouse gas polluters. The reason is the ever-rising demand for meat. Livestock farming is responsible for 14.5 percent of global methane emissions. While cows are the worse offenders, pigs, sheep, and other animals contribute as well....
Read news articleWhile any sighting of the critically-endangered leopard deserves mention, that of a black leopard is particularly newsworthy. What makes the specimen, recently captured on camera in Central Kenya by San Diego Zoo researchers and British wildlife photographer Will Burrard-Lucas, unique is that it is the first scientific documentation of such a creature in Africa in nearly a century. Prior to this, the only confirmed sighting was a 1909 photograph taken in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia....
Read news articleAlways wanted to experience the magical winter wonderland that Queen Elsa created in Disney's animated movie Frozen? Then you are in luck. Thanks to Utah-based company “Ice Castles,” acre-sized frozen fortresses are now a reality in six of North America's coldest regions: Dillon, CO, Excelsior, MN, Lake Geneva, WI, North Woodstock, New Hampshire, Midway, UT and Edmonton in Alberta, Canada....
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