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 first new predatory plant to be discovered in 20 years....

National Hispanic Heritage Month is observed annually in the US from September 15th to October 15th. The event honors the histories, cultures, and contributions of American Latinx and Hispanic communities. This includes all residents from — or descendants of someone from — Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America. The commemoration began in 1968 as Hispanic Heritage Week. It was expanded to a month by President Ronald Reagan in 1988....

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 might belong to a new species of the prehistoric giants....

The longest war in American history has ended. On August 31, 2021, a US aircraft carrying the remaining US officials in Afghanistan lifted off from Kabul, ending the nation's almost 20-year presence in the country. The chain of events leading to the long, drawn-out war began early on September 11, 2001....

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 Hurricane Katrina and made landfall twice....

Even those that do not particularly care for math will agree that pi, or “π," is fascinating. The numerical constant — defined as the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter— is recognized by most as 3.14. However, Pi is an irrational number. This means it can't be written as a fraction. Instead, it is infinitely long and never forms a repeating pattern. While individuals attempt to break records by memorizing pi's decimal points, scientists strive to find its most accurate value using new algorithms and powerful computers....

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 contributors to plastic pollution. Now, some scientists from Lithuania have found a way to recycle the textile waste into clean energy....

On August 8, 2021, the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released its first assessment of climate science since 2013. The news was not good. The report stated that this past decade was the hottest in 125,000 years and that the atmospheric carbon levels are the highest in at least 2 million years. Glaciers are melting faster than any time in over 2,000 years, and ocean levels are rising at twice the rate since 2006....

Snipping off the sides of an acclaimed painting to fit an assigned space would be unheard of in modern times. But that is exactly what was done to one of Rembrandt van Rijn's most famous works, The Night Watch, almost 300 years ago. Now, Amsterdam's Rijksmuseum has finally managed to restore the painting to its original glory with the help of artificial intelligence (AI)....

Thanks to hours of training, gymnasts seem to effortlessly fly through the air at impossible heights. However, a psychological condition, known as "the twisties," can sidetrack even the most experienced gymnast. The phenomenon, attributed to stress, disorients the athletes and causes them to lose awareness while they are in the middle of a routine. It can lead to serious injury....

Blue Origin's Jeff Bezos and Virgin Galactic's Richard Branson have dreamed of going to space since childhood. The billionaires have also been competing to become the first to launch commercial space travel. In July 2021, the two men fulfilled both quests with two separate jaunts to space in their respective company's rockets. The historic flights kicked off a new era of space tourism — for anyone who can afford it....

The seven astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) recently encountered an unexpected and potentially dangerous situation. The Russian laboratory module, Nauka, inadvertently fired its thrusters while docked at the ISS. The force nudged the space station out of its normal flight position for a short time....

The countdown to the 2020 Summer Games has begun. On July 23, 2021, about 11,000 athletes from 206 countries will gather at the Olympic Stadium in Tokyo, Japan, for the opening ceremony of the Games of the XXXII Olympiad. Here are a few contestants to keep an eye on at the world's most prestigious sporting event....

On July 8, 2021, Zaila Avant-garde outspelled 11 finalists to clinch the prestigious Scripps National Spelling Bee title. The 14-year-old from Harvey, Louisiana, is the first African American and only the second Black winner in the national competition's 93-year history. The first was Jody-Anne Maxwell from Jamaica, who won in 1998 at the age of 12. Avant-garde is also Louisiana's first spelling bee champion!...

Our seemingly calm Sun can have a nasty temper that comes in the form of powerful explosions. The star's unpredictable outbursts can disrupt satellites in orbit and be dangerous for astronauts. Though the flares are well-documented, researchers have never been able to pinpoint the cause of the erratic behavior. Now, the Sun's incredible multi-staged "tantrum" may help scientists get closer to solving the long-standing mystery....

Some artists seem to excel at impressing the world with artwork that can only be called unusual at best. First, there was Maurizio Cattelan's Comedian, a series of three sculptures — each comprising a single banana affixed to a wall with duct tape — that sold for $120,000 apiece in 2019. Now, contemporary Italian artist Salvatore Garau has managed to sell an immaterial, or imaginary, masterpiece to an anonymous buyer for an astonishing 15,000 euros (about $18,000)!...

Since being introduced to chess at the tender age of six, Tanitoluwa "Tani" Adewumi has had one goal. He wants to become the world's youngest-ever Grandmaster — the highest title a chess player can achieve. The record is currently held by Russian chess player Sergey Alexandrovich Karjakin, who qualified for the title in 2002 at the age of 12 years and seven months....

In the early hours of June 5, 2021, astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) welcomed some unusual visitors: 128 baby bobtail squids and 5,000 tardigrades. The micro-animals were part of SpaceX's 22nd cargo resupply mission that delivered over 7,300 pounds of equipment and supplies — including treats like fresh apples and oranges — to the station. NASA researchers hope that the tiny critters will enable them to better understand the impacts of space travel on the human body....

On the heels of the spectacular May 26, 2021, total lunar eclipse comes another celestial spectacle. On June 10, 2021, some lucky stargazers will witness this year's first of two solar eclipses. Since it is an annular, not a total, eclipse, the Sun's edges will be visible around the Moon, transforming the star into a stunning "ring of fire."...

While scientists have managed to recover and examine thousands of meteorites, finding their origin or even whether they are from icy comets or rocky asteroids has proved elusive. Now, for the first time, a team of international researchers has traced the source of a boulder-sized rock that landed in Botswana to an asteroid named Vesta. Boasting a diameter of about 326 miles, it is one of the largest and brightest rocks in the asteroid belt that circles the Sun between Jupiter and Mars....

The quarter dollar is both the most commonly-used coin in the American currency and the most unique. Since 1999, the coin's reverse, or "tails," side has showcased all 50 US states, as well as the breathtaking beauty of the country's national parks. Now, the US Mint plans to use the silver canvas to celebrate female leaders who have played a crucial part in shaping the nation's history....