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  Self-repairing buildings? Engineers make living concrete in construction breakthrough The fungus species Neurospora shows potential in creating building materials with intricate internal structures and diverse architectural forms. A team of researchers has developed a living building material composed of fungal mycelium and bacterial cells capable of self-repairing and surviving for extended periods. Unlike conventional construction materials, this bio-based composite remains viable for weeks, opening up new possibilities for regenerative architecture. The scientists behind the project, based at Montana State University in the USA, say the material is produced at low temperatures and relies on living cells, making it a potentially groundbreaking solution for reducing the environmental impact of the construction industry. Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more.

  5 Inventions That Started Out as Something Else  Innovation doesn’t always follow a straight line. Some of history’s most famous inventions, including the microwave, were  born from accidents . Others, though not strictly accidental, ended up serving a completely different purpose than originally intended — such as the blood pressure medication that ended up becoming a famous hair loss remedy.  Silly String Silly String may be a nostalgic party staple now, but it was originally a medical product. In the 1960s, chemist Robert P. Cox and inventor Leonard A. Fish set out to create an instant spray-on cast for broken bones. During their experiments, which included testing upward of  500  different spraying vessels, they discovered the material could be sprayed in long, sticky strands from a certain pressurized can.  Play-Doh Anyone who’s cleaned Play-Doh out of carpet or picked up all its little crumbs knows how messy it can be, so it may come as a surpr...

Popular Myths Busted by Science #8 " Bulls and the Color Red " This is one of the most widespread myths in the world, originating from bullfighting traditions. The myth claims that the color  red  makes bulls extremely angry, driving them into a mad rage. However, this isn’t true. In reality, bulls can’t even perceive red—or many other colors—the same way humans do. Experts believe bulls react to the  movement  of the bullfighter’s cape, not its color.

AP PHOTOS: Four baby tortoises debut at Philadelphia Zoo, home to their nearly 100-year-old parents Four baby Galapagos tortoises made their public debut Wednesday at the Philadelphia Zoo. They are the offspring of the zoo’s oldest residents, a female named Mommy and a male named Abrazzo, a pair of critically endangered Galapagos tortoises who have become first-time parents at the age of roughly 100. Mommy has been at the zoo since 1932 and is considered one of the most genetically valuable Galapagos tortoises in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ species survival plan. The zoo says she is also the oldest first-time mom of the Western Santa Cruz Galapagos species. Note: The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more.

Popular Myths Busted by Science #7 "Ostriches Heads" A classic cartoon scene: the frightened ostrich burying its head in the ground. You've probably seen it, too, right? Although this is a common belief, ostriches never actually bury their heads. This myth likely stems from the way ostriches care for their nests. These birds make a small hole in the ground and place their nests there to keep them safe. From a distance, when we see the ostrich sticking its head in the ground, it is actually taking care of its chicks!

Popular Myths Busted by Science #10 " Dog's Vision " As kids, many of us grew up hearing that dogs only see in  black and white.  Luckily for our pets, that's just a myth! Dogs perceive colors in a way that's different from ours. While the human eye has three types of color receptors, dogs have only  two.  In other words, while we can see a broad spectrum of colors, dogs see a more limited range, similar to someone with red-green color blindness.

  Maddie Meyer/Getty Images Switzerland’s Marcel Hug and the United States’ Susannah Scaroni zoomed into first place in the men’s and women’s wheelchair   divisions, respectively, at the 129th Boston Marathon yesterday — the 50th anniversary of the first official wheelchair finisher in the race. The victory marked Hug’s eighth title   and fifth consecutive win. “It means a lot to win this year, 50 years of wheelchairs in Boston. For me, it will take some time to realize what it means, eight times wins,” he said. “It’s such an incredible number.”  Watch them cross the finish line. Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more.

  Don't Trash Your Old Phone, Help the Environment Instead Smartphones have been around long enough that you're probably holding on to more than one of them. What do we do when it's time to replace our old ones? Whatever you do, don't put it in the trash. Rotting in a landfill is one of the worst fates to befall a phone, and you would also miss out on all the ways your phone can still be of service. Here's what to do instead. Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more.

  Popular Myths Busted by Science #6 "Five-second Rule" You're chilling, enjoying some chips, when suddenly—oops! One hits  the floor.  What do you do in that case? Do you follow the so-called "five-second rule"? According to this myth, if you drop food on the floor, it's safe to eat it if you pick it up within  5 seconds. While we would like it to be right, science discourages this idea. The truth is, as soon as food hits the floor, any bacteria present can transfer to it  instantly.

  Popular Myths Busted by Science #3 " The Great Wall of China from Space " For years, it was widely believed that the Great Wall of China was the only human-made structure that could be seen  from outer space  with the naked eye. However, while we would all like it to be true, this claim is actually a myth. It's a fact that the Great Wall is indeed very long, but it's also relatively  narrow.  That means that as we gain altitude, the Great Wall  blends  in with the surrounding natural landscape.

9 Brand Logos With Hidden Messages Most of us are inundated with brand logos almost every day. And while their designs are often memorable for their original fonts, catchy slogans, or cute mascots , some logos also have hidden details that make them even more interesting. Here are nine U.S. brand logos that have “hidden” messages you might not be aware of. Amazon Baskin Robbins Cisco FedEx Hershey's Kisses Levi's Pinterest Tostitos Wendy's Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more .

  Popular Myths Busted by Science Credit: sanjiv nayak #5 "Goldfish Memory" Goldfish are said to have a memory span of only  a few seconds.  This myth probably originated due to the repetitive behaviors observed in these fish. However, science has debunked this notion. Through various experiments and research, it has been demonstrated that goldfish can remember multiple things for several  weeks.  For example, they can recognize the faces of their keepers, remember feeding schedules, and even associate certain stimuli with rewards.

 Popular Myths Busted by Science #4 Lightning Credit: Felix Mittermeier A common myth claims that lightning never strikes the same  place twice.  This may be reassuring to many, but science—and nature itself—have proven otherwise. In fact, lightning can strike the  same location multiple times , particularly if it’s a tall structure or an area containing water or metal. The safest and most recommended thing to do during a lightning storm is to stay indoors. Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more.

A (Baby) Colossal Squid Was Caught on Camera for the First Time ROV SuBastian / Schmidt Ocean Institute One hundred years after the colossal squid was formally discovered and named as a species, scientists captured  the first-ever footage of the animal swimming in its natural habitat . Since that initial finding in 1925, when a fisherman came upon remains inside the belly of a sperm whale, there have only been eight confirmed colossal squid sightings, and all have been postmortem, according to the Museum of New Zealand. That makes the new recording,  captured by a team aboard the Schmidt Ocean Institute’s research vessel , pretty exceptional — and to make it even better, the squid caught on camera was a baby. “It’s exciting to see the first in situ footage of a juvenile colossal and   humbling to think that they have no idea that humans exist ,” Kat Bolstad, one of the independent scientific experts the institute consulted to verify the footage, said in a statement. ​ Bec...

   Popular Myths Busted by Science #1 Mice and cheese Credit: David Foodphototasty For centuries, both children's tales and cartoons have depicted the idea that  cheese and mice  are inseparable. However, science has revealed that mice don’t have a particular preference for cheese over other types of food. Although this is a common stereotype, mice are more drawn to foods high in  sugar , such as candy or fruit. Now you know—next time you’re setting a mouse trap, you might want to bait it with a Snickers bar instead of a piece of cheese. Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more.

  Original photo by Al Rublinetsky/ Shutterstock The first post office in the U.S. was established in a tavern. Benjamin Franklin is often credited with launching the U.S. Postal Service after the Continental Congress  authorized him to create postal routes  in 1775. But before the ingenious founding father became the first U.S. postmaster, there was another important mail manager: a tavern owner by the name of Richard Fairbanks. About 136 years before Franklin’s post office management, Fairbanks’ tavern became the first post office in the United States. There, the businessman, who was permitted to sell “wine and strong water” along Boston’s Water Street, became  responsible for collecting and distributing mail. Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more.

 Aiming for a world record on the world’s longest ever ski jump It can take training, practice, persistence, a mix of luck and technology, as well as a huge team to break ski jump and ski flying world records. In April of 2024,  Olympic medallist ,  FIS World Cup  Champion, and current Japanese record holder  Ryōyū Kobayashi  assembled these elements in an attempt to fly beyond  Austrian Stefan Kraft’s 253.5 meter competitive record . This Red Bull promotional video  documents the process, from his team’s two-month location search and construction of the world’s longest ever ski jump in  northern Iceland  to Kobayashi’s extensive training involving wind tunnel testing, mathematical calculations of trajectory, specialized equipment, and finally a series of increasingly longer attempts that culminated in an extraordinary flight. Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more.

 The First Toy Advertised on TV was Mr. Potato Head While toy commercials are ubiquitous today, they were virtually unheard of before April 30, 1952. That day,  a television ad  for Mr. Potato Head aired for the first time. George Lerner created an early version of the toy tuber in 1949, and sold the rights to Hassenfeld Brothers (which became Hasbro) three years later. The original package contained 30 plastic accessories, including facial features, hands, and feet, which could be affixed to any real potato or similar vegetable. What transformed the toy into a m ajor success, however, was the innovative TV advertising campaign that soon followed. The inaugural Mr. Potato Head commercial was the first of its kind to advertise directly to children rather than their parents, revolutionizing the marketing industry. The ad featured a cartoon mascot talking to kids about how to play with Mr. Potato Head and all the fun they could have. More than a million kits were sold in the...

  American Woodcocks: The strutting timberdoodles of Bryant Park and beyond “Superbly camouflaged against the leaf litter,” the Cornell Lab’s  All About Birds explains , “the brown-mottled  American Woodcock  walks slowly along the forest floor, probing the soil with its long bill in search of earthworms.” “Unlike its coastal relatives, this plump little shorebird lives in young forests and shrubby old fields across eastern North America. Its cryptic plumage and low-profile behavior make it hard to find except in the springtime at dawn or dusk, when the males show off for females by giving  loud, nasal peent calls  and performing  dazzling aerial displays .” This charmingly egg-shaped shorebird, colloquially called a timberdoodle, is also known for its “funky funny dance walking,” a rhythmic strut seen in  this Petite New York video  filmed in  New York City’s Bryant Park . Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  C...

  Krispy Kreme Brings Back Strawberry Iced Doughnut for Easter — and Introduces 3 New Bunny Treats! The doughnut brand is launching a Hoppy Easter Collection featuring three new items and one returning fan favorite Krispy Kreme Brings Back Strawberry Iced Doughnut for Easter — and Introduces 3 New Bunny Treats!.   Photo:  Krispy Kreme Krispy Kreme is celebrating Easter with a brand-new collection of bunny-themed treats — and by bringing back a fan-favorite item. On Monday, April 7, the doughnut chain announced in a press release that they were getting ready for Easter by adding four new items to the menu, including the Strawberry Iced Doughnut with Sprinkles. The strawberry treat has been on the menu in past years, and will feature Krispy Kreme's original glazed doughnut dipped in strawberry flavored icing and pastel sprinkles. Note:  The above comes directly from their website.  Click here to read more.