Imagine you are walking on your favorite trail or through your local park, when you notice a tree stump that looks different from the rest. This stump looks like it’s covered in a beautiful rock, maybe even… a precious gem? That can’t be real, can it? What you are seeing is real and can happen:...

“I looked around the city and wondered what I would feed my newborn daughter. It became clear that I needed to create it myself. So I hurried to build a vegetable garden.” – Jamiah Hargin Jamiah Hargins was unaware that he was about to revolutionize his neighborhood when he moved to the West Adams area...

Hummingbirds are extremely smart creatures. In fact, they are some of the smartest birds in nature, with brains larger in comparison to their body size than any other birds [1]. Several studies have shown that they will recognize every single flower in their territory and even migration routes.  Then there’s the parental care trait found...

After several decades of extensive research, scientists finally established that truly, embryos from several bird species such as quails and chicken can hear through their eggs [1]. Some other species listen to their parents’ incubation calls and may be able to mimic the sounds exactly when they hatch. However, embryonic learning has always been associated...

What’s the furthest distance you have ever swum? A few lengths of your neighbor’s pool? From one end of the swim area at camp to another? There have been some people throughout history who have swum some pretty remarkable distances. American Sarah Thomas has swum across the English Channel four times. A team of six...

While actual treasure hunts don’t usually roll around every day (or ever), you can give yourself a thrilling crystal-digging experience by visiting a gem site near you. There are several of these sites scattered across the U.S. where you can mine natural crystals and gems for your keeping.  The south in particular is spotted with...

Many Americans love bald eagles. After all, this symbolic bird is the national emblem of the United States and has been since 1782. The bald eagle was chosen as the national emblem for the US because they were long-lived, strong, and majestic in appearance. At the time, they were believed only to live in North...

Fireflies, also called lightning bugs, are little nocturnal winged insects the size of paper clips. Many people can spot them in warm environments and on summer evenings, often in humid regions in the Americas and Asia. Those who have never seen a firefly in person have been introduced to them by the character Ray in...

When I was younger, I loved dandelions. When someone told me “they are just weeds,” I took that as a personal offense. After all, they’re just a pretty shade of yellow and they are the only “flowers” on the lawn my parents won’t get mad at me for picking and weaving into my hair. It...

Home is wherever you feel accepted, loved, and safe. It may not be the best or the most luxurious of places, but you love it all the same. In 2017, Bonnie the cow was born on a beef farm in Holland, New York. When she was only four months old, and not far off from...

Paleontologists found a partial animal skull at Australia’s Riversleigh World Heritage Area in Queensland, Australia. At first, the fossil was assumed to be a part of a group of marsupial lions that had died out about 35,000 years ago. Then they discovered it was an entirely new genus, which they called Lekaneleo roskellyae, or Leo...

Max Pazak and copywriter Kayli Vee Levitan of M&C were standing on their office balcony watching all of the people walking by. Then the idea of Street Store came to them, a nonprofit movement where volunteers set up a ‘store’ on a sidewalk to give away clothes to the homeless. It’s a rent-free, pop-up clothing...