Magpie News Collector

animal

This bug’s all-in helicopter parenting reshaped its eggs

By Science News | Susan Milius | 6/26/2025 11:30 AM

An egg-shape trend found among birds shows up in miniature with very protective bug parents. Elongated eggs fit more compactly under mom. ... Read full Story

animal

Killer whales may use kelp brushes to slough off rough skin

By Science News | Erin Garcia de Jesús | 6/23/2025 11:00 AM

The whales use quick body movements to tear pieces of bull kelp for use as tools, perhaps the first known toolmaking by a marine mammal. ... Read full Story

animal

50 years after ‘Jaws,’ sharks face their own terror

By Science News | Brianna Randall | 6/20/2025 9:00 AM

Humans have driven sharks and their cousins to the brink of extinction. The health of the entire ocean is at stake. ... Read full Story

animal

U.S. seal populations have rebounded — and so have their conflicts with humans

By Science News | Aaron Tremper | 6/19/2025 10:00 AM

Alix Morris’s new book, A Year with the Seals, explores humans’ complicated relationship with these controversial marine mammals. ... Read full Story

animal

Compare shark sizes on our infographic

By Science News | Melissa Hobson | 6/18/2025 2:00 PM

As Jaws celebrates its 50th anniversary, Science News explores the vast range of shark sizes, from megaladon to the dwarf lanternshark. ... Read full Story

animal

This moth species may use the Milky Way as its guiding star

By Science News | Erin Garcia de Jesús | 6/18/2025 11:00 AM

Bogong moths migrate up to 1,000 kilometers from Australian plains to mountain caves to escape the summer heat. The stars may help them get there. ... Read full Story

animal

Fewer scavengers could mean more zoonotic disease

By Science News | Bethany Brookshire | 6/16/2025 3:00 PM

Scavenger populations are decreasing, a new study shows. That could put human health at risk. ... Read full Story

animal

This spider’s barf is worse than its bite

By Science News | Susan Milius | 6/12/2025 8:00 PM

Most spider species subdue dinner by injecting venom from their fangs. Feather-legged lace weavers swathe prey in silk, then upchuck a killing brew. ... Read full Story

animal

Preemptively cutting rhinos’ horns cuts poaching

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 6/5/2025 2:00 PM

Comparing various tactics for protecting rhinos suggests that dehorning them drastically reduces poaching. ... Read full Story

animal

Probiotics helped great star corals fend off a deadly disease

By Science News | Martin J. Kernan | 6/5/2025 2:00 AM

A probiotic paste prevented the spread of stony coral tissue loss disease, but the treatment is still a proof-of-concept, not a cure. ... Read full Story

animal

Flamingos create precise water vortices in a shrimp-hunting frenzy

By Science News | Elie Dolgin | 6/4/2025 11:00 AM

Nashville Zoo flamingos reveal the oddball birds generate many types of vortices to eat. The swirls could be an inspiration to human engineers. ... Read full Story

animal

Aussie cockatoos use their beaks and claws to turn on water fountains

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 6/3/2025 7:01 PM

Parrots living in Sydney have learned how to turn on water fountains for a drink. It's the first such drinking strategy seen in the birds. ... Read full Story

animal

How luna moths grow extravagant wings

By Science News | Susan Milius | 5/30/2025 12:00 PM

Warm temperatures, not just predator pressure, may favor luna moths’ long bat-fooling streamers, a geographic analysis of iNaturalist pics shows. ... Read full Story

animal

Genetics might save the rare, elusive saola — if it’s not already extinct

By Science News | Tom Metcalfe | 5/29/2025 9:00 AM

A new genetic study could help saolas survive by enabling better searches through environmental DNA. But some experts fear they may be extinct already. ... Read full Story

animal

Bedbugs may have been one of the first urban pests

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 5/27/2025 7:01 PM

Common bedbugs experienced a dramatic jump in population size about 13,000 years ago, around the time humans congregated in the first cities. ... Read full Story

animal

The first cicada concert was 47 million years ago

By Science News | Larissa G. Capella | 5/27/2025 9:00 AM

A 47-million-year-old cicada fossil from Germany’s Messel Pit could teach us about the evolution of insect communication. ... Read full Story

animal

Penguin poop gives Antarctic cloud formation a boost

By Science News | Carolyn Gramling | 5/22/2025 11:10 AM

Penguin poop provides ammonia for cloud formation in coastal Antarctica, potentially helping to mitigate the impacts of climate change in the region. ... Read full Story

animal

Juvenile capuchins are kidnapping infants of another monkey species

By Science News | Freda Kreier | 5/19/2025 11:00 AM

Over 15 months on Jicarón Island, researchers saw five capuchin juveniles abduct 11 endangered howler monkey infants — all for no clear purpose. ... Read full Story

animal

A ‘talking’ ape’s death signals the end of an era

By Science News | Erin Wayman | 5/19/2025 9:00 AM

Kanzi showed apes have the capacity for language, but in recent years scientists have questioned the ethics of ape experiments. ... Read full Story

animal

Some science seems silly, but it’s still worthwhile

By Science News | Karen Kwon | 5/16/2025 1:30 PM

The Salmon Cannon and the Levitating Frog contends that curiosity-driven research helps us understand the world and could lead to unexpected benefits. ... Read full Story

art

Philipp Timischl at ESSAIS

by Contemporary Art Daily | Jul 02 2025

connecticut

A CT violence interruption group traded paperwork for an app. It’s been transformational

by CT Mirror | Jul 03 2025

entertainment

Skincare Experts Lisa Garcia and Natalia Guzman Reveal How to Get — and Maintain — a Glowing Complexion

by ET Online | Jul 02 2025

finance

Jobs report shows 139,000 new hires in June. Bigger-than-expected gain to keep Fed from cutting interest rates soon

by MarketWatch.com | Jul 03 2025

football

“He’s a Great Kid” – Brian Daboll Excited to Get Started with #3 Overall Draft Pick Abdul Carter

by ESNY | Apr 24 2025

game

8BitDo's Official Wuchang-Themed Ultimate 2 Controller Looks Awesome

by GameSpot | Jul 03 2025

golf

U.S. Open: In 1983, Larry Nelson Conquered Oakmont

by NY Times | Jun 11 2025

mental

Special Olympics Advocates: Don’t Leave This Community Out of Mental Health Discussions

by thehealthy.com | May 28 2025

music

‘Sinners’ to Hit Streaming: Here’s How to Watch Ryan Coogler & Michael B. Jordan’s Horror Movie Online

by Billboard | Jul 03 2025

nation

House Republicans advance Trump's tax and spending cuts bill

by upi.com | Jul 03 2025

new_jersey

NJ could lose $143M as Trump administration freezes $7B for schools

by NJ Spotlight | Jul 03 2025

people

Travis Kelce lets the awaited 'commitment' slip to Brad Pitt and promises to follow through

by marca.com | Jul 03 2025

real_estate

New Interior Renderings Reveal Caesars Palace Casino Proposal at 1515 Broadway in Times Square

by New York YIMBY | Jul 03 2025

technology

1,000-year-old Babylonian hymn celebrating ancient glory resurrected with AI

by Interesting Engineering | Jul 03 2025

world

Passenger ferry sinks off Bali killing 5 people, 29 unaccounted for

by United Press International, Inc. | Jul 03 2025

Word of the Day

desultory

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for July 3, 2025 is:

desultory • \DEH-sul-tor-ee\ • adjective

Desultory is a formal word used to describe something that lacks a plan or purpose, or that occurs without regularity. It can also describe something unconnected to a main subject, or something that is disappointing in progress, performance, or quality.

// After graduation, I moved from job to job in a more or less desultory manner before finding work I liked.

// The team failed to cohere over the course of the season, stumbling to a desultory fifth place finish.

See the entry >

Examples:

“One other guy was in the waiting room when I walked in. As we sat there past the scheduled time of our appointments, we struck up a desultory conversation. Like me, he’d been in the hiring process for years, had driven down from Albuquerque the night before, and seemed nervous. He asked if I’d done any research on the polygraph. I said no, and asked him the same question. He said no. We were getting our first lies out of the way.” — Justin St. Germain, “The Memoirist and the Lie Detector,” New England Review, 2024

Did you know?

The Latin adjective desultorius was used by the ancient Romans to describe a circus performer (called a desultor) whose trick was to leap from horse to horse without stopping. English speakers took the idea of the desultorius performer and coined the word desultory to describe that which figuratively “jumps” from one thing to another, without regularity, and showing no sign of a plan or purpose. (Both desultor and desultorius, by the way, come from the Latin verb salire, meaning “to leap.”) A desultory conversation leaps from one topic to another, and a desultory comment is one that jumps away from the topic at hand. Meanwhile a desultory performance is one resulting from an implied lack of steady, focused effort.

This bug’s all-in helicopter parenting reshaped its eggs

Killer whales may use kelp brushes to slough off rough skin

50 years after ‘Jaws,’ sharks face their own terror

U.S. seal populations have rebounded — and so have their conflicts with humans

Compare shark sizes on our infographic

This moth species may use the Milky Way as its guiding star

Fewer scavengers could mean more zoonotic disease

This spider’s barf is worse than its bite

Preemptively cutting rhinos’ horns cuts poaching

Probiotics helped great star corals fend off a deadly disease

Flamingos create precise water vortices in a shrimp-hunting frenzy

Aussie cockatoos use their beaks and claws to turn on water fountains

How luna moths grow extravagant wings

Genetics might save the rare, elusive saola — if it’s not already extinct

Bedbugs may have been one of the first urban pests

The first cicada concert was 47 million years ago

Penguin poop gives Antarctic cloud formation a boost

Juvenile capuchins are kidnapping infants of another monkey species

A ‘talking’ ape’s death signals the end of an era

Some science seems silly, but it’s still worthwhile

Philipp Timischl at ESSAIS

A CT violence interruption group traded paperwork for an app. It’s been transformational

Skincare Experts Lisa Garcia and Natalia Guzman Reveal How to Get — and Maintain — a Glowing Complexion

Jobs report shows 139,000 new hires in June. Bigger-than-expected gain to keep Fed from cutting interest rates soon

“He’s a Great Kid” – Brian Daboll Excited to Get Started with #3 Overall Draft Pick Abdul Carter

8BitDo's Official Wuchang-Themed Ultimate 2 Controller Looks Awesome

U.S. Open: In 1983, Larry Nelson Conquered Oakmont

Special Olympics Advocates: Don’t Leave This Community Out of Mental Health Discussions

‘Sinners’ to Hit Streaming: Here’s How to Watch Ryan Coogler & Michael B. Jordan’s Horror Movie Online

House Republicans advance Trump's tax and spending cuts bill

NJ could lose $143M as Trump administration freezes $7B for schools

Travis Kelce lets the awaited 'commitment' slip to Brad Pitt and promises to follow through

New Interior Renderings Reveal Caesars Palace Casino Proposal at 1515 Broadway in Times Square

1,000-year-old Babylonian hymn celebrating ancient glory resurrected with AI

Passenger ferry sinks off Bali killing 5 people, 29 unaccounted for

Word of the Day

10 Odd & Fun

1.S.C. troopers chase loose pig in the middle of highway traffic

2.Fortune cookie numbers earn Kentucky woman a $50,000 lottery prize

3.Watch: Runaway emus found miles from home in Minnesota

4.Medical clinic pleads for a stop to 'unsolicited' urine samples

5.Watch: AI-powered robots face off in soccer tournament in China

6.Snake captured on passenger plane

7.Thousands of Norwegians incorrectly informed of big lottery wins

8.Watch: 21-year-old rows across Atlantic Ocean, earning three world records

9.Watch: New Cedar Point ride strands riders on opening day

10.Watch: Stacking skills with cards and Jenga blocks earn man 4 world records