The world’s rainforests are under siege. Climate change has driven the average temperature of the Amazon rainforest up by as much as 1.5 degrees Celsius. As a result of higher temperatures and deforestation, drought has surged. In 2019 alone, tens of thousands of wildfires destroyed 2.24 million acres. Humans have wiped out or degraded nearly […]
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The “Green Thing”
We Didn’t Have the “Green Thing” Back In My Day In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that plastic bags weren’t good for the environment. The woman apologized to her and explained, we didn’t have the “green thing” back in my day. That’s right, they didn’t have the […]
Continue ReadingDNA of 6.7 Million Species on the Moon
Scientists want to store DNA of 6.7 million species on the moon, just in case A “lunar ark” hidden inside the moon’s lava tubes could preserve the sperm, eggs and seeds of millions of Earth’s species, a group of scientists has proposed. The ark, or gene bank, would be safely hidden in these hollowed-out tunnels […]
Continue ReadingNational Grammar Day
National Grammar Day is observed in the United States on March 4. Designated in 2008, the National Grammar Day was established by Martha Brockenbrough, author of “Things That Make Us [Sic]” (2008) and founder of the Society for the Promotion of Good Grammar. Martha Brockenbrough: Martha Brockenbrough is an American author of fiction and nonfiction […]
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Coca-Cola Will Start Selling Drinks in Paper Bottles This Summer
Coca-Cola is to test a paper bottle as part of a longer-term bid to eliminate plastic from its packaging entirely. The prototype is made by a Danish company from an extra-strong paper shell that still contains a thin plastic liner. But the goal is to create a 100% recyclable, plastic-free bottle capable of preventing gas […]
Continue ReadingAunt Jemima Rebranded as Pearl Milling Company
Quaker Oats has announced the new name for its “Aunt Jemima” products in response to criticism that was levied at the brand for featuring a racist stereotype of a Black woman. The name “Aunt Jemima” and the picture of a Black woman shown on the packaging, based on a former slave named Nancy Green, will […]
Continue ReadingInventions Timeline
Inventions don’t generally happen by accident or in a random order: science and technology progress in a very logical way, with each new discovery leading on from the last. You can see that in our mini chronology of invention, below. Please note: it’s not meant to be a complete history of everything, and it doesn’t […]
Continue ReadingThe History of Leap Year
Leap years are years with 366 days, instead of the usual 365. Leap years are necessary because the actual length of a year is 365.242 days, not 365 days, as commonly stated. Basically, leap years occur every 4 years, and years that are evenly divisible by 4 (2004, for example) have 366 days. This extra […]
Continue ReadingWedding Anniversary Names
What is a Wedding Anniversary? A wedding anniversary is the anniversary of the date a wedding took place. On a wedding anniversary in many countries it is traditional to give a gift to your partner (or couples) that symbolize the number of years of marriage. The names of some wedding anniversaries provide guidance for appropriate […]
Continue ReadingChina – Why New Draft Legislation Offers No Relief for Non-Native Teachers
A new piece of proposed legislation submitted for public review by the Chinese Ministry of Education has recently been making the rounds among China’s sizeable community of foreign teachers. In addition to new provisions regulating part-time work by teachers outside of their main place of employment, the most discussed issue was the proposed introduction of […]
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