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Score (98)
NASA's Historic Orion Spacecraft is on Its Way Home
NASA's historic moon mission, Artemis I, is in its final stretch as it heads back home after circumnavigating the moon. The spacecraft, Orion, made another pass by the surface of the moon Monday morning. After that, Orion fired up its main engine for about three and a half minutes - the longest burn conducted on its trip thus far. This set the capsule on its final path home, kicking off the last leg of its 25-and-a-half-day trip. All told, the Orion capsule will have traveled more than 1.3 million miles in space - an incredible feat!
Score (98)
Canada’s First Bodybuilder With Down Syndrome Trains For The Big Stage, And Lifts Others Up Too
The moment Kyle Landi walks into his Burlington gym, everything tightens into focus. Cameras or no cameras, the 26 year old moves with the kind of purpose that leaves no doubt about why he is there. Landi is the first competitive bodybuilder in Canada with Down syndrome, though he does not let the diagnosis define him. If anything, he treats it as something closer to fuel. He has built a following of more than one million across Instagram and TikTok, trained with big names including Arnold Schwarzenegger, and earned his certification as a personal trainer. He is also developing a fitness app aimed at helping others reach goals of their own. His rise has not changed the values he was raised with. His mother, Kim Murphy, made sure he grew up independent and surrounded by challenge. “I would put him in mainstream everything, mainstream dance, mainstream gymnastics, mainstream karate, because we all need to level up when you see other people,” she said from her home in Milton. She never wanted anyone to underestimate him. “Don’t ever pity him, because he is the happiest guy in the world.” Some of that determination comes from the way she felt treated in the hospital when he was born. Landi arrived six weeks early, with Down syndrome, and later needed open heart surgery at age nine. “When he was born, they made it sound, instead of ‘congratulations’ … it turned into a very mournful event,” she said. “Like the kid wasn’t dead or dying, but they made it sound like it.” She says the reaction robbed the moment of joy. Landi has spent his life disproving limits. Along the way, he has become a source of strength for others, including his stepfather, Joe Dominie, a former police officer living with PTSD, anxiety and depression. “This man has single-handedly helped save my life. Literally. Literally,” Dominie said during a recent workout. Landi’s energy and willingness to push through setbacks are what keep him moving too. His mother says the family often hears from people who see their own possibilities reflected in Kyle. One message came from a young mother struggling after giving birth to a child with Down syndrome. After hearing Kyle’s story, she said her fear eased. It helped her imagine a different future. Right now, Landi is deep into training for two major events, the Pittsburgh Pro Competition at the Pittsburgh Power and Fitness Festival in May, and the Muscle Beach Bodybuilding Contest in Venice, California, in June. He knows the physical work matters. But he also knows that the impact he has on people watching him may be the bigger accomplishment. His lifts are heavy, but the way he lifts others may be heavier still.
Score (96)
Anonymous Donor Gifts $3.6M Gold Bar To Fix a Town's Aging Water Pipes
Osaka officials say they are still stunned after receiving an extraordinary anonymous gift, 21 kilograms of gold bars intended specifically to repair the city’s aging water pipes. The donation, worth 560 million yen, arrived at the Osaka City Waterworks Bureau in November. Mayor Hideyuki Yokoyama told reporters the scale of the gift stopped him in his tracks. “It's a staggering amount and I was speechless,” he said. “Tackling aging water pipes requires a huge investment, and I cannot thank you enough for the donation.” The city plans to honor the donor’s request and put the gold toward waterworks upgrades. The need is urgent. Concerns about infrastructure safety grew after a sinkhole in Saitama swallowed a truck and killed the driver last year. Officials linked the collapse to a damaged sewer. Osaka’s system has its own challenges. In the fiscal year ending March 2025, the city logged 92 water pipe leaks beneath local roads, according to waterworks official Eiji Kotani. With 2.8 million residents, the city is Japan’s third largest and acts as the capital of the country’s western region. Much of its core infrastructure was built during the postwar boom, and Kotani noted that Osaka developed earlier than many cities. That means its pipes have aged earlier, too. The city estimates it must renew 259 kilometers of water lines. Replacing just two kilometers can cost about 500 million yen. The anonymous gold donation will not solve the problem on its own, but it will help Osaka accelerate projects that have been waiting for funding. For now, city leaders say their priority is simple: use the gift exactly as intended and keep the water system safe for the millions who rely on it every day.
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Score (86)
A Minnesota Youth Hockey Playoff Game Lasted 3 Days, Ends After 12 Overtimes
Most hockey games wrap up in a couple of hours. This one needed three days and a small rulebook detour to settle things. It started Monday night, when the Cottage Grove Wolfpack and St. Paul Saints met in a District 8 playoff game. They were tied 1-1 after regulation, so they kept playing. Then kept playing more. Six full 10-minute overtime periods later, the scoreboard still had both teams stuck on one. With the clock pushing toward 23:00, everyone agreed it was time to go home and try again Tuesday. St. Paul co-head coach John Weiberg told ESPN the players were surprised by what they had stumbled into. “After the first three periods we played, I think, three overtimes, and then they resurfaced the ice, and after that we're sitting in the locker room waiting for the Zamboni to get done [and] we're kind of like, ‘Well this is pretty cool.’ But how long [is] this going to go?” Turned out the answer was much longer than anyone expected. On Tuesday night, the teams played four more overtime periods. Overtime numbers 7, 8, 9 and 10 came and went without a goal. Another team needed the arena, so the kids went home again. With a Thursday playoff game looming for whoever advanced, Wednesday had to provide a winner. District officials and coaches agreed on a simple plan. A standard 11th overtime would start the night. If that did not work, overtime 12 would shift to three-on-three to open up the ice. If still tied, a shootout would end it. “We all agreed that we'd way rather figure it out on the ice than do something crazy off the ice,” Weiberg said. “So the shootout was not exactly what we wanted to do, but, you know, we had to get the game over at some point, and if the shootout is good enough for the Olympics, it's probably good enough for 12U hockey too.” Overtime 11 came and went. So did overtime 12. A shootout was the only option left. Five rounds in, the teams were still level. Then came the moment that finally tipped the balance. Cottage Grove goalkeeper Lydia Pettey made the save of the season, her 96th stop of the marathon. Moments later, teammate Ashlyn Anderson buried the winning shot. Ashlyn told KSTP’s Chris Long that a little sibling coaching helped. “Before this game, my brother actually taught me a couple shots [that] would help me score that goal,” she said. The relief poured out in her next line, delivered with a grin. “[I was] feeling like: ‘If we lose this, I'm quitting hockey.’” Lydia’s performance and the 55 saves from St. Paul goalie Ellen Weiberg kept the game locked at one for three straight days. Minnesota Hockey does not keep an official record for the longest game ever played, but this one has to be in the running. St. Paul’s coach was honest about how hard the ending was for his team, especially after so much time and intensity. Even so, he hoped the girls would appreciate the scale of what they had just done. “It's tough being on the losing end of the game,” he said. “But I'm hoping a couple days, a couple weeks, down the road the girls can look back and be like, ‘This was an unbelievable experience, and how cool was it that we got to be part of a game that's trending nationally when we're 12 years old?’”
Score (97)
Lost Leonardo Manuscripts Resurface In Spain, Finally Enter The Digital Age
Spain marks 13 February each year with a quiet nod to one of the most important archival discoveries of the 20th century. In 1967, the National Library of Spain revealed that two original Leonardo da Vinci manuscripts had been sitting on its shelves for more than a century, miscatalogued and largely unnoticed. The Madrid I and II codices, listed today as Mss. 8937 and Mss. 8936, were written between the late 1400s and the early 1500s. They form part of Leonardo’s scientific notebooks, the working papers where he drafted calculations, diagrams and mechanical sketches. These pages show what his paintings cannot, the rhythm of his mind as he tested ideas, corrected assumptions and explored how machines and natural forces operate. Their rediscovery came by chance. American researcher Jules Piccus was reviewing the library’s manuscript inventories when he noticed a set of volumes that looked out of place. Once examined more closely, the significance was obvious. Both codices contained hundreds of pages of notes on statics, applied mechanics, hydraulic systems, fortifications and geometry. Codex Madrid I, dating mostly to the 1490s, is regarded as one of Leonardo’s major works on mechanics. It details how motion is transmitted through gears and how different types of mechanisms function. Codex Madrid II, written slightly later, gathers his research on civil and military engineering along with topographical and hydraulic projects. The manuscripts first arrived in Spain in the 16th century. After Leonardo’s death, the sculptor Pompeo Leoni collected many of his papers and eventually brought them to Spain. They later entered the royal collections before being transferred to the National Library. Internal reorganisations and cataloguing mistakes caused them to slip into obscurity for more than 100 years. When the library announced their discovery in 1967, the news spread internationally. The Madrid Codices expanded the known body of Leonardo’s scientific writings and offered scholars material that had never been published. The National Library launched a digitisation project in 2012 that made interactive versions of the manuscripts available online. The effort opened the codices to researchers and the general public worldwide and reinforced the library’s standing as a guardian of major Renaissance documents. Decades after their rediscovery, the Madrid I and II codices still offer something rare. They show Leonardo not as a distant master but as a working thinker, someone who scribbled corrections, posed problems and tried to understand how the world works.
Score (96)
Baby Giraffe and Ostrich Face Off in Long-Necked Staring Contest at Zoo
A recent video of two long-necked neighbors at the Memphis Zoo engaged in a staring contest has gone viral. The moment a baby giraffe checked out an ostrich in a neighboring habitat racked up more than a million views on Facebook. This footage from the Memphis Zoo shows young giraffe Rahisi, born at the zoo on November 17, 2025, taking in the sight of the large flightless bird next door. “Rahisi has met the neighbors,” the zoo wrote on Facebook. Memphis Zoo via Storyful
Score (97)
Kraków's Air Cleanup Saves Thousands Of Lives, Inspires Anti-Smog Policies Across Poland
As a child, Marcel Mazur learned to hold his breath in parts of Kraków where the air was “so much smoke you could see and smell it.” Today, as an allergy specialist at Jagiellonian University Medical College, he treats patients harmed by those same toxins. He also knows something else, that when political leaders choose to act, the air can change. Kraków, once known as Poland’s smog capital, has shown just how quickly a city can turn things around. A new expert assessment shared with the Guardian estimates that soot levels have dropped enough to prevent nearly 6,000 early deaths over the past decade. The shift began in 2013, when the city announced a ban on coal and wood in home heating. Mazur’s own research reflects the impact. In 2018, cases of asthma in children were 17 percent lower than in 2008, and allergic rhinitis cases fell by 28 percent. “It’s not that we have this feeling that nothing can be done. But it’s difficult,” Mazur told The Guardian. For activists, the difference is undeniable. “It’s a huge improvement,” said Anna Dworakowska, co-founder and director of Polish Smog Alert, a network of campaign groups that began in Kraków and helped spark a nationwide movement for cleaner air. “Little more than 10 years ago, we had about 150 days a year with too high concentrations of particulates in Kraków. Now it’s down to 30.” The city’s ban on burning solid fuels took effect in 2019. By then, most of the tens of thousands of outdated stoves and boilers had already been replaced. The local government subsidized the switch to cleaner heating, sometimes covering the full cost, and steadily restricted which fuels could be burned in the years leading up to the change. Researchers from the European Clean Air Centre estimate the reduction in black carbon, a potent pollutant, saved 5,897 lives over a decade. They relied on a special monitoring station in Wrocław to measure the fraction of black carbon within Kraków’s PM2.5 pollution. Łukasz Adamkiewicz, the centre’s president, said the turnaround happened because political parties agreed to act. “Green, red, black, right, left, up, down, everyone said, ‘OK, this is a problem we need to tackle’.” Black carbon is far more powerful than carbon dioxide in accelerating global warming and is released during the incomplete burning of fossil fuels and biomass. At the UN climate summit in November, nine countries announced plans to cut black carbon emissions. For public health, the stakes are high. “It’s a big deal,” said Rachel Huxley of the health charity Wellcome. “If we take action to tackle superpollutants, we can have this huge impact on global warming and also on all of these premature health impacts.” Poland has already seen change. Early deaths linked to fine particulates fell by 18 percent between 2005 and 2022. Across the EU, they dropped by 45 percent. Kraków, sitting in the coal-heavy Małopolska region, has experienced one of the most dramatic improvements. In 2024, it recorded zero breaches of daily limits for benzo(a)pyrene, a cancer-causing pollutant from burning wood and coal, for the first time since monitoring began, Polish Smog Alert reported. More reductions are expected as the city implements a low-emissions zone that will restrict which vehicles can enter about 60 percent of Kraków. But the work is far from finished. In late January, Kraków briefly ranked as the most polluted major city in the world, ahead of Lahore and Kolkata, according to IQAir’s list of 120 cities. Much of the problem drifts in from surrounding towns and villages, where coal and wood still dominate home heating and Kraków has no direct authority to intervene. Mazur sees this firsthand. He has a house in Szczawnica, a small town south of Kraków, and before switching to a heat pump and gas boiler, he had to fill a coal burner three times a day and clear the ash just as often. The new system, he said, is “incomparably more convenient, and much more eco-friendly.” “What happens in the towns and villages surrounding Kraków has a direct impact on the air quality in our city,” he said. The opposite may now also be true. Kraków’s success has helped inspire similar policies across Poland, pushed by citizens, grassroots campaigns, and a shifting political consensus around clean air. Experts believe the city’s story could guide other polluted regions across eastern Europe and beyond, where air pollution causes high death tolls but public pressure for action remains low. “My experience of working with cities is you can’t do it without public support,” Huxley said. “That will either drive it, or without it you’ll be hamstrung.”
Score (97)
'Rogue Cow' Lassoed While Running Down Florida Highway
A cow running loose down a road in southwest Florida was lassoed by its owner on Tuesday, February 17, while local deputies and the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) helped keep passing vehicles at a safe distance, officials said. Dashcam posted by the Collier County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) shows the cow’s owner on horseback, pursuing and lassoing the bovine, while an FHP patrol vehicle moves alongside him with its emergency lights flashing. “Keeping things MOO-ving. In this line of work, things don’t always go as expected,” CCSO wrote in a Facebook post. “On Tuesday, Cpl David Mercado was working a traffic operation to help crack down on speeding on State Road 82. He made multiple stops all morning and issued citations when warranted. Then there was this…a rogue cow on the road,” the sheriff’s office said. “Cpl Mercado provided traffic assistance, along with FHP, while the cow’s owner safely lassoed the bovine to get it back to greener pastures.”
Score (97)
Homeowner Discovers Adorable Scene in Backyard: 'The Cutest Thing I Have Ever Seen'
Any frustration gardeners feel toward hungry rabbits took a back seat this week after one person found something irresistible under a squash plant, four tiny baby bunnies fast asleep in a perfect little nest. The gardener shared the photo on the r/gardening subreddit, where users quickly zoomed in to notice that three of the babies were curled up on top of a fourth. The sight was enough to turn the comments section into a chorus of delight. “Baby bunny cuddle puddle! So precious!” one commenter wrote. “They are so cute,” another person said. “Please let them eat whatever they want and don’t be like Mr. McGregor.” The reference, of course, was to the disgruntled gardener in Beatrix Potter’s The Tale of Peter Rabbit, a character who remains the patron saint of plant protection everywhere. The original poster reassured everyone that the nest was safe. “We get lots of bunnies around here,” they wrote. “Plan is just to leave ’em be (unless I see an injured one). It’s always best to let nature take its course.” It also turns out the local adult rabbits have not caused much trouble for the garden either. That small detail only increased the good feeling in the thread, since gardening offers plenty of benefits beyond cute surprises. It can lower stress, boost optimism, encourage physical activity, and supply homegrown produce that is often richer in nutrients than store bought options. Environmentally, gardening helps clean air and soil, supports pollinators, prevents erosion, and reduces waste headed for landfills. The unexpected nest became a reminder that gardens are not only for people. They are tiny ecosystems, and the wildlife that wanders through them is part of the experience. Redditors embraced the moment with jokes too. One user asked, “Where did you get baby bunny seeds??!!” “A lucky case of wrong seed, wrong packet,” the OP replied. Others kept it simple. “This is absolutely the cutest thing that I have ever seen,” one person wrote. A small nest under a squash plant ended up providing the kind of surprise that makes gardening feel worth the effort, even when you have to share the space.
Score (97)
A New Spinosaurus Species With a Striking Crest Was Just Unearthed In The Sahara
A newly discovered Spinosaurus species from the Saharan desert has stunned paleontologists, not only for where it was found but for the remarkable crest adorning its skull, something never seen before in this group of dinosaurs. Researchers have named it Spinosaurus mirabilis, the “wonderful spine lizard,” a title that feels well earned. The find raises questions about how these dinosaurs lived. Most Spinosaurus fossils have turned up in coastal environments. This specimen came from deep inland in Niger, hundreds of kilometers from any ancient shoreline. Even the team led by Paul Sereno of the University of Chicago did not expect it. “This find was so sudden and amazing, it was really emotional for our team,” Sereno said. “I’ll forever cherish the moment in camp when we crowded around a laptop to look at the new species for the first time… One member of our team generated 3D digital models of the bones we found to assemble the skull on solar power in the middle of the Sahara. That’s when the significance of the discovery really registered.” The skull features spiky, interlocking teeth that echo those of modern crocodiles. Nearby sediments also held long-necked dinosaur remains, hinting at a once forested habitat with abundant rivers. Sereno said the animal may have lived a semi-aquatic life. “I envision this dinosaur as a kind of ‘hell heron’ that had no problem wading on its sturdy legs into two meters of water but probably spent most of its time stalking shallower traps for the many large fish of the day,” he said. The dinosaur’s elegant, scimitar-shaped crest is perhaps its most eye-catching feature. Its purpose is uncertain. The team suspects it was sheathed in keratin and could have been brightly colored, more like a toucan’s bill than a reptile’s snout. If so, it may have been a visual display. The research appears in Science.
Score (90)
Want To Be A Better Public Speaker? Experts Say Start With A Simple Voice Message
A lot of people want to get better at public speaking, whether it is for work, social comfort, or just feeling more confident in everyday conversations. Classes can help and so can speech coaches, but not everyone has the time or money to access them. One communication expert says you can make real progress with something already in your pocket, your phone. In a YouTube video, speaker and communication coach Vinh Giang suggests a daily habit that can strengthen your verbal skills, sending voice messages instead of texts. He points out that people like texting because they can review a message before sending it and correct anything unclear. Voice messages offer the same advantage. Recording a voice note gives you a chance to hear yourself in a low pressure setting. You can re record it as many times as you want. Each time you play it back, you notice your volume, pacing, clarity, and word choice. You also become more aware of your habits. Over time, you learn what to adjust, what to work on, and what you already do well. Speech professionals say this makes sense. Ryann Sutera, a speech pathology expert, said the process is known as self monitoring through biofeedback. “Rehearsing running speech through the use of recordings can help assess intelligibility, rate of speech, and word choice,” she said. Public relations director Lauren Guess said her team uses the same approach. “Using voice memos as a low stakes tactic to improve communication and public speaking skills is something we find helps prep our clients for media opportunities,” she said. Many of her clients are on the move, so sending voice memos in response to questions is a practical way to build strong, usable sound bites. Guess said this goes beyond communicating with reporters. Voice messages sharpen talking points and help clients become more confident when speaking out loud. “We prefer this approach because we find it quickly strengthens confidence in speaking on their subject matter and enhances their ability to nail their key messages, compared to submitting quotes via email or text,” she said. For anyone hoping to become a better speaker, whether for presentations at work, community events, or even everyday conversations with friends, it may be worth trading a few typed sentences for a short recording. A simple voice message could give you the feedback you need to grow more comfortable and more effective each time you speak.