A Boy And His DogWhile eight-year-old Owen Howkins knew he was a little different from other kids, the disparity became more apparent when he entered school at the age of seven. Born with an extremely rare genetic condition called Schwartz Jampel Syndrome, his muscles are in a constant state of tension. This causes the young boy to suffer from issues ranging from growth delays to impaired eye vision and even, lack of balance....
اقرأ المقالNew Breakthrough In Cell Printing Inspired By Ancient Chinese WoodblocksA team of researchers from Houston Methodist Research Institute in Texas, looking for a new solution to 'print' live human cells, found their inspiration in the most unlikely of all sources - Ancient Chinese woodblocks! Called Bloc-Printing, the invention which was led by the organization's nanomedicine faculty member Lidong Qin, comprises of a silicone mold that resembles the ancient printing blocks....
اقرأ المقالAnonymous Restaurant Tipper's Generosity Is Spreading!Just a few months ago, there were a slew of heartwarming incidents being reported by fast food restaurants all across America. Now, there is a new giving trend surfacing in fine dining establishments, in the form of extraordinarily generous tips!...
اقرأ المقالUrban Bees Respond to Littering by Adopting Innovative Nest-Building TechniquesAs you probably know, being 'busy as a bee', is not just an empty metaphor. From searching for nectar and pollen to tending to honeycombs, bees are amongst the hardest workers out there. So it should come as no surprise that two species of urban leafcutter bees in Canada, have learnt to adapt to our increasingly polluted world, by using small pieces of plastic found in the litter, to build their nests....
اقرأ المقالNeed A Weather Prediction? Ask Your Cat!The fact that animals can sense natural disasters well before they occur, is quite well-known - There are the red ants that leave their mounds prior to earthquakes and monkeys known to move to higher ground before tsunamis. However, the fact that animals have the ability to predict changes in day-to-day weather, seems to have been a well-kept secret known only to people that inhabited the world a few centuries ago. Now, thanks to the resurfacing of an ancient book, we too can partake in some of that wisdom....
اقرأ المقالHarbin's 30th Ice and Snow Festival Is Spectacular!For most of us, building a snowman or even an igloo is hard enough. So you can only imagine the effort, skill, and patience, it takes to build not just giant sculptures, but also, towering castles and beautifully chiseled buildings using just ice and snow - That is exactly what happens annually, in the city of Harbin in Northeast China....
اقرأ المقالMexico's One Man Alpine Ski Team!If you happened to watch the opening ceremony of the Sochi Winter Olympic Games you may have noticed an unusual sight - A single athlete representing Mexico. It was not because other contestants from the country had decided to skip the parade, but because Prince Hubertus Von Hohenlohe, is Mexico's sole representative at the Games....
اقرأ المقالHave Superbugs? Call In The Xenex Germ-Zapping Robot!When one thinks of fighting robots, it is usually in context of them combating large terrifying alien creatures, not microorganisms that are invisible to the human eye. But the emergence of resilient bacteria that scientists call superbugs, has left medical experts with no choice, but to call in the best combat force available!...
اقرأ المقالWill The US Olympic Bobsleigh Two-Man Team Finally Strike Gold After 78 Years?For all of you that are rooting for team USA at this year's Sochi Olympics, Sunday, February 16th is the day to watch history in the making. That's because it may be the first time since 1936, that the country's bobsleigh two-man team, may finally strike gold!...
اقرأ المقالWire Fox Terrier From California Wins Prestigious Westminster Dog ShowEarlier this week, over 2,800 dogs representing 187 breeds, descended upon New York's Madison Square Garden to participate in the 138th annual Westminster Kennel Dog Show. Often referred to as the Super Bowl of the dog world, the two-day event that took place from February 10-11th, is not just the country's oldest dog show, but also, the most prestigious one!...
اقرأ المقالThe Sports You Will Not See At Sochi Or Any Other Winter Olympics!This year's Winter Olympics is the longest in the 90-year history of the games. That's because the International Olympics Committee decided to add a record, twelve new events across eight disciplines - ranging from ski half-pipe to snowboard parallel slalom and even a Luge - team rally competition. Does that mean that future Winter Olympics will be as long? Not necessarily. Here are a few sports that made a grand debut and even lasted a few games, before being scrapped in favor of more exciting and popular sports!...
اقرأ المقالVenezuela's Most Persistent Lightning Storm Keeps Going And Going And . . .The most exciting storms are ones accompanied by flashes of lightning. Unfortunately those are rare, unless you are in the vicinity of the Catatumbo River in Northwestern Venezuela, home to the spectacular everlasting 'rib a-ba’, or ‘river of fire' lighting storms....
اقرأ المقالArcheologists Debate The Purpose Of 4,600-Year-Old 'Provincial' Pyramids That Predate GizaAt a symposium held by the Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities in Toronto, Ontario, on January 11th, archeologists revealed the uncovering of yet another provincial pyramid near the ancient settlement of Edfu in Southern Egypt. The 4,600-year-old structure, built decades before the Great Pyramid of Giza, is the seventh of its kind discovered scattered near major ancient settlements, throughout central and southern Egypt....
اقرأ المقالDudley The Duck Gets A (3D Printed) Prosthetic LegJust when we thought we had seen all the magical things that 3D printing can do, here comes another - A working prosthetic leg that has transformed the life of a little Canadian duckling called Dudley, who had been struggling to get by after losing a leg in an epic battle with a chicken!...
اقرأ المقال'Sensory Fiction' Allows You To Read Your Book And Feel It Too!Though you must have all imagined how terrified Peeta and Katniss were when they were competing in the Hunger Games and then again in Catching Fire, you probably did not feel like you were in their shoes and living the experience with them. That, is what researchers at MIT's Media Lab are trying to achieve with a new device that they call Sensory Fiction....
اقرأ المقالCan Artificial Rain, Giant Shower Heads And Vacuum Cleaners Solve China's Smog Problem?While smog is a problem in many of the world's urban cities, few have it as bad as China. Most of last year, the air around Beijing was so polluted that on certain days it went beyond what was once considered the worst possible level. The residents of Harbin, in northeast China, have not had it easy either. On days when the haze is really bad, residents are unable to even see across streets and airplanes have a hard time landing....
اقرأ المقالCan These Unconventional Playgrounds Make Kids More Creative?Children have always had the uncanny ability to take the simplest items and use their imaginations to transform them into fantastic playthings. Cardboard boxes become time machines, blankets hung over tables transform into fortresses, while twigs magically turn into wands or pirate swords....
اقرأ المقالBRR! Groundhogs Predict An Extended Winter!This morning, 25,000 people braved the early morning chill and made their way to Gobbler's Nob to see for themselves what Punxsutawney Phil had to say about the length of this year's frigid winter season. Unfortunately, the legendary woodchuck did not predict what most had been hoping for!...
اقرأ المقالIt's Super Bowl Sunday AKA America's Second Largest Food Consumption DayThere are few celebrations that Americans look forward to, more than Super Bowl Sunday. And while the love for the game is an obvious reason, there is another equally important element - The food! For, believe it or not, Super Bowl Sunday is not just the most popular television event of the year, but also the second-largest day for food consumption, after Thanksgiving!...
اقرأ المقالNot Into Football? Then You May Want To Check Out The Puppy Bowl!Super Bowl Sunday means different things to different people - For some it's the thrill of the game, while for others it's a chance to see some fun commercials and maybe, their favorite star at the half-time show. Then there are those that simply view the day as an excuse to have a party and gorge on junk food....
اقرأ المقالGiddy Up! It's The Year Of The HorseOn Friday, January 31st, 2014, more than a billion people of Chinese origin will usher in the first day of the year 4712. Known as the Lunar New Year or Spring Festival, it marks the beginning of the longest and most significant of all Chinese festivals. As the name indicates, the four-thousand-year-old tradition whose date is determined by the lunar calendar, began as a way to mark the end of the dreary winter season and the beginning of spring....
اقرأ المقالWhy Australian Researchers Are 'Spying' On 5,000 Honey BeesThe industrious honey bee not only provides us with delicious honey, but also, helps pollinate about a third of the world's fruits and vegetables. It is therefore no wonder that the ongoing deaths of millions of the tiny insects throughout the world, a phenomenon scientists call Colony-Collapse Disorder, has researchers extremely worried. What's even worse is that despite extensive investigation, the cause still remains a total mystery....
اقرأ المقالAmerican Winter Freeze Results In Some Cool Natural PhenomenaOn Monday, January 27th, residents of Ohio, Pennsylvania and Illinois woke up to a special treat - Giant snow rollers. Often described as nature's snow sculptures, the beautiful giant columns are a rare meteorological phenomenon....
اقرأ المقالOne-Wheeled Electric Motorcycle Ready To Make Its DebutOver the years, there have been many unusual modes of personal transport invented - There is the Segway, the Solowheel, the Uno . . . and the list goes on. However, none have been quite like this latest entrant to the market. Called RYNO or 'Ride Your New Opportunity', it is an electric motorcycle with just a single 25-inch wheel!...
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