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Extreme weather caused by global warming is expected to increasingly challenge the yields of conventional crops like corn, wheat, and soy. Small-scale farmers — who lack the resources to adapt to climate change — will be particularly hard hit. Scientists believe that the only way to combat this is by introducing new, hardier crops to what they're currently growing. That's where Ethiopia's enset, or "false banana," plant comes in....

Water scarcity is one of the world's biggest challenges. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that one in three people globally do not have easy access to clean water. Desalinating ocean water could help. But the currently-available devices are too energy-intensive and expensive to deploy on a large scale. Now, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) researchers have developed a portable desalination machine that is both affordable and sustainable....

Memorial Day, which will be observed on May 30, 2022, is often considered the "unofficial" start of summer by Americans. However, the US federal holiday, celebrated annually on the last Monday of May, has a solemn purpose. It honors the men and women who have died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. This includes those in the Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, Marine Corps, and Navy....

Self-portrait photographs, or "selfies," are a great way to document and share precious memories. However, the images, which only capture a moment in time, can be somewhat limiting. That may change soon, thanks to Pixy, a tiny camera drone that autonomously captures pictures and videos of all your adventures....

The birth of three rare Asiatic cheetah cubs in Iran is being hailed as a victory by conservationists worldwide. The May 1, 2022, announcement by Ali Salajegheh, head of Iran's Department of Environment (DOE), marks the first time the critically-endangered cheetah subspecies has reproduced in captivity....

Electric vehicle (EV) sales have sharply escalated over the past three years. However, their overall global market share remains extremely low. It ranges from about 16 percent in China to just 4.5 percent in the US. One of the biggest hurdles to widespread EV car adoption is the fear of running out of charge while on the road. Israeli startup Electreon hopes to eliminate "range anxiety" by transforming highways into Electric Road Systems (ERS) that wirelessly charge vehicles as they drive....

Most of the athletes that participated in the 126th Boston Marathon on April 18, 2022, probably took some time to recuperate before embarking on another exhausting run. But not Jacky Hunt-Broersma. The Arizona-based ultra-runner completed another marathon the next day — and the day after. In fact, Jacky ran the grueling 26.2-mile distance for 104 consecutive days, from January 17 to April 30, 2022. Even more impressive, the 46-year-old did it with a prosthetic leg....

The ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict has produced an unlikely hero — a Jack Russell Terrier named Patron. The two-year-old pooch is credited with detecting over 200 Russian explosives since the war began in February. On May 8, 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy honored Patron and his owner, Mykhailo Iliev, with a presidential medal for their service to the country....

Laura Young had a feeling that the 52-pound marble sculpture she bought from a Goodwill Store in Austin, Texas, in 2018, was worth more than the $34.99 she paid. However, the vintage store owner never thought it would be a priceless, 2000-year-old Roman relic dating back to the first century AD....

The partial solar eclipse on April 30, 2022, was only seen by a lucky few. However, the total lunar eclipse on the night of May 15, 2022, will be visible to about 2.7 billion people on Earth's night side. This includes the residents of North America, Africa, South America, and Central and Western Europe....

American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift may consider 13 her lucky number. However, millions of people worldwide do not share the sentiment.​ The fear of the number increases to a new level when the date coincides with a Friday — as is the case this week. No one knows how Friday the 13th got its fearsome reputation. But experts have some theories....

Taylor Swift has received numerous music awards and even an Emmy. Now, the popular American singer-songwriter can add an unusual achievement to her growing list of accolades — a new millipede species named after her. The Nannaria swiftae (N. swiftae) is one of 17 new twisted-claw millipede species recently identified by Dr. Derek Hennen and his team at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia....

American wild turkeys have made a remarkable comeback. The birds' population, which had fallen to about 200,000 specimens in the early 1900s, has risen to over 7 million today. But the wildlife conservation success story has a downside. The aggressive birds have become a neighborhood menace, destroying gardens and chasing after residents. The latest to make headlines is an aggressive tom that has been attacking cyclists, runners, and walkers on the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail in Washington, DC, for the past five months....

All space missions are significant. However, SpaceX's Crew-4 mission, which docked at the International Space Station (ISS) on April 28, 2022, was particularly historic. The approximately 16-hour flight was SpaceX's fastest Dragon astronaut trip to the space lab yet. More importantly, the crew of four included Jessica Watkins — the first African American woman assigned to the ISS on a long-term mission....

Every Mother's Day, Americans show their appreciation for the remarkable women in their lives by showering them with extravagant gifts. 2022 will be no exception. A recent survey by the National Retail Federation (NRF) indicates that the approximately 84 percent of adults celebrating the holiday on May 8 will collectively spend $31.7 billion. This is up $3.6 billion from the record $28.1 billion spent in 2021 and the highest in the survey's 19-year history....

Ants are truly fascinating creatures. The industrious insects can lift up to 50 times their own body weight, morph into rafts to protect themselves from floods, predict earthquakes, and even repair their damaged homes. Now, researchers have found that the amazing insects may even be able to help detect cancer in humans....

Stargazers will enjoy two spectacular celestial events on April 30, 2022 — the conjunction of Jupiter and Venus and this year's first solar eclipse. The former will be visible worldwide. But the opportunity to observe the moon "bite" a chunk of the Sun in person, will only be available to a lucky few in parts of South America, Antarctica, and some Southern Ocean areas. The rest of us will have to watch the natural phenomenon online....

Energy drink company Red Bull is famous for sponsoring daring stunts. However, the April 24, 2022, mid-air "plane swap" by a pair of experienced pilots and skydiving masters promised to be like none other ever witnessed. Though the widely-publicized event did not go quite as planned, the stuntmen — cousins Luke Aikins and Andy Farrington — luckily emerged unscathed....

The Hubble Space Telescope's record of impressive celestial finds continues. On March 30, 2022, scientists announced that the powerful astronomical observatory had detected the light of a star located about 28 billion light-years away — making it the farthest individual star seen to date....

The proliferation of microplastics in our oceans has received worldwide attention. However, the abundance of the tiny plastic fragments in the soil has largely gone unnoticed. A 2018 study by German scientists found terrestrial microplastic pollution — caused by wastewater irrigation and sewage — far exceeds marine microplastic pollution....

Stargazers, get ready! Starting April 23, 2022, Saturn, Mars, Venus, and Jupiter will form a straight line behind the crescent Moon. The perfect alignment will provide earthlings a relatively rare opportunity to see multiple planets in the sky with the naked eye. Experts say the celestial treat can be best observed by gazing southeast — in the direction of the sunrise — about an hour before the Sun comes out....

On April 22, 2022, over a billion people worldwide will celebrate the 52nd anniversary of Earth Day. The modern environmental movement began on April 22, 1970, when US lawmaker Gaylord Nelson mobilized more than 20 million people to demonstrate support for environmental protection. The Earth Day Network (EDN), which now boasts over 50,000 partners in over 190 countries, has led to the passage of landmark environmental laws both in the United States (US) and globally....

Despite biting cold rain, close to 30,000 ticketed guests descended upon the South Lawn of the White House for the annual Easter Egg Roll on April 18, 2022. The beloved tradition was canceled for the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The fun event featured a variety of Easter-themed activities, along with appearances by popular costumed characters and celebrities....

On April 9, 2022, four civilians made history as the first all-private "astronaut" team to reach the International Space Station (ISS). Former NASA astronaut Michael López-Alegría and three first-time fliers, Mark Pathy, Larry Connor, and Eytan Stibbe — who each paid $55 million for the trip — will spend eight days on the orbiting science laboratory. They are scheduled to return to Earth aboard SpaceX's Crew Dragon capsule on April 19, 2022....