After successfully banning plastic bags, officials around the world are turning their attention to something we are all guilty of using for only a few minutes and disposing of without a second thought – plastic straws. According to ecostraw.org, over 500 million straws, enough to fill 127 school buses, are used just in the US, each day! Too small to recycle, they choke sea creatures, clog coral reefs, and eventually disintegrate into tiny microbeads which enter our food chain through fish. This means that every single straw ever produced in the world still exists in some form today. Now, thanks to social media campaigns such as #TheLastStraw and #TheFinal Straw, the urgency to ban plastic straws is finally gained momentum....

In 2015, the Internet became divided over a dress that some thought was blue and black, while others believed it was white and gold. Now millions of listeners are arguing over a single word uttered in a three-second audio clip. Some hear it as a deep male voice saying “Yanny,” while others maintain it’s a higher-pitched sound saying “Laurel.” Posted on Reddit by 18-year-old student Roland Camry, the meme became an overnight sensation after YouTuber and social media influencer Cloe Feldman shared it to her Instagram and Twitter on May 15, 2018, inquiring: “What do you hear — “Yanny” or “Laurel?”...

One would think that an elephant bird egg, the largest laid by any vertebrate ever — including dinosaurs and ancient reptiles — would be hard to miss for 80 years. Yet, that is precisely what Paige Langle at New York’s Buffalo Museum of Science discovered recently while inputting the institution’s extensive collections, many of which only exist on cards and ledgers, into the museum’s computer system....

Tonight, (May 8) Earth will pass between the sun and Jupiter, putting our solar system’s largest planet directly in opposition to the star. This means that Jupiter will rise shortly after the sun sets and stay up all night, making it the best time of year to see the massive gaseous world. While the planet will shine its brightest tonight, it will not reach its closest distance — 409 million miles (658 million kms) — to Earth until May 10....

When Brazilian surfer Rodrigo Koxa flawlessly rode a massive wave in Nazare, Portugal on November 8, 2017, he knew it was the biggest one of his life, thus far. What the 38-year-old was unaware of, however, is that his thrilling descent down the monstrous surge, would set a new Guinness World Record for the largest wave ever surfed....

Comic book lovers, rejoice! Saturday, May 5 is Free Comic Book Day (FCBD), which means that you can walk into any participating store and obtain one or more of the graphic novels being offered for free! Now in its 16th year, the global event, celebrated annually on the first Saturday of May, is the brainchild of California resident Joe Field....

While an entire month free of homework or tests may sound too good to be true, that is precisely what the students at Sturenskolan School in Boden, Sweden were treated to in April. What’s more, if the results of the experiment prove encouraging, starting 2019, the middle schoolers will never have to worry about after-school work or tests, aside from the national examinations, which are mandatory for students across the country....

Last week, a runner traversing the trails of California’s Pinnacle National Park, encountered a mesmerizing sight — a halo of rainbow colors emanating from the single cloud in the clear blue skies. While the phenomenon is commonly referred to as a “fire rainbow,” researchers say the name is misleading since the optical illusion is neither a rainbow, nor does it have anything to do with fire!...

Pet owners usually have no choice but to implant their cats or dogs with microchips to help identify the animals if they get lost or decide to escape. However, one Siberian Husky in Israel did not need the modern technology — he could sing his way home!...

On Sunday, April 22, more than a billion people around the world will celebrate Earth Day by participating in neighborhood clean-up efforts. The grassroots movement began in 1970 when twenty million Americans took to the streets to voice their concern about the deteriorating environment and to urge lawmakers to take action before it was too late. Now boasting over 50,000 partners in 195 countries, the Earth Day Network (EDN) is credited with instigating many of our current environmental policies, including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Endangered Species Act....

Every year from March to October, Christian Moullec, aka “Birdman,” takes to the skies aboard his two-seater adapted light aircraft, derived from hang-gliders. However, the 58-year-old Frenchman’s daily 30-minute flight is not just to enjoy the spectacular views, but to guide flocks of lesser white-fronted geese through safe migration paths which the birds can teach future generations....

In case you missed it, April 5 was National Caramel Day. To mark the holiday, which honors the soft sugary confection, August Storck KG, manufacturer of the popular caramel-flavored Werther’s Original candy, teamed up with toymaker Hasbro to create a life-size version of Candy Land. Open only for the day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., the massive game board, located on the Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, California, was completely free for fans of all ages to enjoy....

Though many artists specialize in cityscapes very few create masterpieces as detailed and intricate as those sketched by Stephen Wiltshire. Even more impressive is that each monochromatic landscape, which takes the British artist just a few days to complete, is drawn entirely from memory, a talent that has earned him the nickname “The Human Camera.”...

Though the harmful effects of plastic on wildlife and human health are well-documented, the versatile material is hard to avoid. Nearly everything we touch, from grocery bags to drink bottles to food packaging, contains plastic. Now, Amsterdam’s Ekoplaza supermarket is making it a little easier for consumers to reduce consumption of single-use bags and containers, which are clogging our landfills at alarming rates, with a dedicated plastic-free aisle. Believed to be the world’s first, it features 700 products, including rice, beans, yogurt, chocolate milk, cereal, snacks, and even meat....

Reports of an out-of-control space station hurtling towards Earth may sound like a bad April Fools’ prank. However, this was no joke. At 5:16 pm PDT on April 1 (April 2, 00:16 GMT), China’s school bus-sized Tiangong-1 met a fiery end over the South Pacific, ending weeks of uncertainty as to when and where it would land....

Future generations take note — deep inside the heart of a Sierra Diablo mountain, along the Texas-Mexico border, lies a 200-foot-tall, mechanical clock that ticks once a year, has a century hand that advances once every 100 years, and a cuckoo which will emerge once every 1,000 years! Meet the 10,000 Year Clock!...

While April Fools’ Day is always fun, this year promises to be even more so. That’s because, for the first time in 62 years, the fun holiday coincides with Easter. This means your chocolate egg may turn out to be a real one, or the plastic ones you worked so hard to find could be filled with frozen peas or, even worse, broccoli!...

With Easter fast approaching on Sunday, April 1, chances are you are looking forward to meeting the Easter Bunny, feasting on delicious food, enjoying springtime parades and, best of all, participating in your neighborhood egg hunt. To get you into the spirit, here are some egg-cellent Easter egg hunts from around the globe....

While gorillas are perfectly capable of walking on two legs, most take just a step or two before dropping on all fours. However, Louis, a 16-year-old male gorilla at the Philadelphia Zoo is often seen taking longer strolls, especially when the ground is wet or he is holding a delicious snack or two....

Don’t be alarmed if your city, town, or neighborhood goes dark from 8:30 - 9:30 PM local time tonight (March 24). The blackout is not due to a sudden electricity outage, but a voluntary gesture to celebrate Earth Hour, which will be observed worldwide and include iconic landmarks like the Eiffel Tower, the Empire State Building, and the Sydney Opera House. The simple action, designed to demonstrate what can be achieved if we all unite to help reverse climate change, is the brainchild of the Australian chapter of the World Wildlife Fund (WWF)....

The modern-day version of the hula hoop, introduced by the Wham-O toy company in 1958, has inspired fans to set numerous world records. These include the longest hula hooping marathon (74 hours and 54 minutes), the most number of hoops spun simultaneously (200), and the most number of rotations completed in a minute (243). Those unable to outdo serious hula hoopers in technical skills have turned to setting records using novelty hoops. The most recent feat, which involved spinning a massive ring, falls in that category....

Ireland is known for many things — its rich history, lush green landscapes, and of course, St. Patrick’s Day. Celebrated annually on March 17, the holiday gained prominence in the early-20th century as a religious feast day. However, it is now widely recognized as a celebration of Irish and Irish-American culture with fun traditions that include hunting for leprechauns, feasting on corned beef, and donning bright green clothing....

Always wanted to be part of an important space mission? Now, thanks to NASA’s recently launched “Hot Ticket” program, you can get your “moment in the sun” — literally, by simply submitting your name. The space agency will put all the names received on a microchip which will accompany the Parker Solar Probe on its mission to observe our fiery star’s atmosphere from up close – something that has never been attempted before....

In mid-January, while exploring the white sands of the beach-side dunes just north of Western Australia’s Wedge Island, Tonya Illman came across an “interesting” bottle. Little did she know that inside the glass container lay an invaluable treasure — a 131-year-old note, the oldest message in a bottle discovered to date!...