The Sequoia National Park in California's southern
Sierra Nevada mountains is best known for its
namesake giant sequoias. The park boasts 40
groves of the massive trees, which occur naturally
only on its western slopes. But the most beloved is
the Giant Forest, a collection of 2000 trees that
includes half of the Earth's largest and longest-livi...
After years of intense public pushback, the
now-shuttered Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey
Circus finally announced the retirement of their
Asian elephant performers in 2016. While the
decision was a resounding victory for animal lovers
and activists, it raised a new issue. The mighty
pachyderms were raised in captivity and lacked th...
The western false asphodel — an herb-like plant
found in abundance along North America's West
Coast — has been known to science since 1879. But
it is only recently that researchers from the
University of British Columbia discovered the
innocent-looking plant's penchant for insects. The
finding is particularly exciting given that this is the...
The 2021 US Open Women's Singles final between
18-year-old Emma Raducanu and 19-year-old Leylah
Fernandez was one of the most anticipated Grand
Slam tournaments in recent history. It was the first
all-teenage final since the 1999 US Open and the
first major final — men or women — since 1968 to
feature two unranked players.
The Henan Province in central China is a treasure
trove of dinosaur eggs. However, the odd-looking
black orb with a blue tint, presented to Fenglu Han
and Haishui Jiang by a farmer in 2018, was unlike
any dinosaur egg the experts had encountered
before. The paleontologists from the China
University of Geosciences initially thought the egg ...
Mattel's Barbie Role Models series, designed to
inspire young girls to pursue their dreams, has
highlighted the work of many incredible women. On
August 4, 2021, the US toymaker revealed the latest
additions to the collection — custom, one-of-a-kind
dolls modeled after six female COVID-19 frontline
workers.
Rosh Hashanah, or Jewish New Year, will be
celebrated from sundown on September 6, 2021,
through sundown on September 8, 2021. The
two-day observance, which starts on the first day of
Tishrei — the seventh month on the Jewish calendar
— commemorates the creation of the world.
The 2021 Atlantic hurricane season began with a
bang for the residents of Louisiana. On August 29,
2021, the Gulf Coast state was battered by
Hurricane Ida, a powerful Category 4 storm that
officials believe was the strongest to hit the area in
165 years. To make matters worse, Ida arrived on
the sixteenth anniversary of the devastating Hurric...
Clothing made from synthetic materials, such as
polyester and nylon, has many positive attributes. It
is cheap to produce, lasts for a long time, and is
comfortable to wear. However, the fabric, made from
petroleum, has one major downside. The tiny
polymer strands — or what we call lint — that shed
from the textiles during each laundry cycle are big...
