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Over 80 farms in the US and Canada have created "Peanuts"-themed attractions to honor Charles M. Schulz, the creator of beloved characters like Charlie Brown and Snoopy. The first "Peanuts" strip was released 75 years ago by Schulz when he was just 27 years old, eventually becoming syndicated in over 2,600 newspapers worldwide. Jill Schulz, his daughter, expressed gratitude for farmers dedicating their land to her father's legacy while joking about her own lack of a green thumb.

Why Are Farmers Across US and Canada Carving ‘peanuts’ Comic Characters in Corn Mazes?

ABC News

The holidays often bring out the best in people — from gift-giving to meal-sharing to lending a helping hand. Across the U.S., volunteering typically spikes between Thanksgiving and New Year’s, as food banks and charitable organizations welcome a wave of seasonal helpers. But experts say the impact of volunteering isn’t limited to one time of year — and neither are its benefits.

Alfred Del Grosso, a retired chemist in Maryland, volunteers regularly at Shepherd’s Table, a food assistance center in Silver Spring. On Thursdays, he also helps clear brush and debris from local hiking trails. “I feel more connected to the broader community,” he said.

That feeling of connection is a key part of why giving back matters — not just for recipients, but for volunteers themselves. Psychologists say the impulse to help others is deeply rooted in human nature.

“There’s a nice upwards reciprocal spiral between gratitude and generosity,” said Sarah Schnitker, a psychologist at Baylor University. That spiral tends to strengthen during the holiday season, when expressions of gratitude are more common.

Around the world, similar seasons of giving and reflection exist in many cultures. In Hinduism, Diwali is a time of celebration but also generosity. In Islam, Ramadan and Eid al-Fitr emphasize reflection, gratitude, and charitable acts. Buddhist traditions, too, often highlight selflessness and service.

“Nearly all cultures have events or public festivals that allow people to express gratitude,” said Amrisha Vaish, a developmental psychologist at the University of Virginia. The goal, she said, is often to reinforce cooperation — something that’s been essential to human survival.

“In human evolutionary history, we’ve had to become cooperative in order to work together and survive as a species,” Vaish said. “We don’t have claws or speed. But what we do have is the ability to work in groups.”

Of course, human nature is complex. “We have all these motives mapped together,” said Duke University psychologist Michael Tomasello. “Sometimes we’re generous. Sometimes we’re selfish.”

But studies show that gratitude and seeing others do good can bring out our best instincts. And the benefits of volunteering aren’t just psychological.

“There’s a quick dopamine hit sometimes called the ‘helper’s high,’” said Jenae Nelson, a developmental psychologist at Brigham Young University. “But there’s also a deeper reward — helping us establish purpose and meaning. By helping other people and believing that small acts can change the world, you bring coherence to your own life.”

For Mia Thelen, a retired nurse in Michigan, volunteering has become a new chapter. She started out answering phones for the American Red Cross and eventually moved into organizing blood drives and managing logistics.

“It’s a good way to spend your time, making the lives of others a little easier,” she said. “I’m learning new things — computer skills, communication skills — and I have great co-volunteers. It’s helped me feel more connected to the community.”

Even smaller acts — like sending a holiday card — can have unexpected emotional payoffs. Lara Aknin, a social psychologist at Simon Fraser University, has studied how people feel about reconnecting with old friends. Her research found that many hesitate to reach out, fearing they’ll be a burden — but the reality is usually the opposite.

“People who’ve just heard from old friends report it as a really positive experience,” Aknin said. “So go ahead and write those cards or make those phone calls.”

Holiday traditions may offer a natural excuse to connect, reflect, and give back. But as these experts and volunteers show, there's never a wrong time to help someone — or to find new meaning in the process.

Volunteers Surge During the Holidays — But the Benefits Last All Year

Artnet

Rembrandt van Rijn’s name alone is enough to stop most art lovers in their tracks. But at the Norton Museum of Art in West Palm Beach, Florida, his work isn’t the only draw. A sweeping new exhibition, Art and Life in Rembrandt’s Time: Masterpieces from the Leiden Collection, brings together the Old Master’s paintings alongside a rare assembly of works by his students, peers, and fellow Dutch Golden Age artists — including the only Vermeer painting held in private hands.

The show is already being called historic. It’s the first major Rembrandt exhibition ever held in Florida, the largest display of 17th-century Dutch art from a private collection in the United States, and it coincides with the 400th anniversary of the founding of New Amsterdam (modern-day Manhattan). Why the debut is in Florida instead of New York is anyone’s guess, but for visitors heading to Miami for the art fairs, the Norton is just under two hours away by train.

The works come from the Leiden Collection, a private trove of over 200 paintings and drawings that includes 17 Rembrandts — more than any other private collection in the world. Only Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum holds more. Alongside Rembrandt, the show features works by Frans Hals, Carel Fabritius, and Johannes Vermeer, as well as numerous artists from Rembrandt’s orbit, including Ferdinand Bol and Arent de Gelder.

But the exhibition isn’t just a greatest-hits showcase. It’s thematically organized, which means Rembrandt’s paintings appear not in isolation but in dialogue — with students, peers, and rivals. The result is a richer view of the Dutch Golden Age, a time of cultural and economic bloom that spanned roughly the late 1500s through the 1600s.

Rather than leaning into the familiar flower-filled still lifes and ornate table scenes that often define the period, the exhibition takes a different route — focusing on figuration. Portraits, genre scenes, and religious works dominate, bringing the human experience to the forefront.

Some of the most striking works show the tension between Calvinist ideals of modesty and the wealth that fueled the era. In Portrait of Samuel Ampzing (1630) by Frans Hals and Rembrandt’s own Young Girl in a Gold Trimmed Cloak (1632), the sitters wear subdued clothing. But the details — gold earrings, delicate ruffs, hints of finery — betray affluence beneath the surface.

Elsewhere, Pieter van Laer’s Self-Portrait with Magic Scene (ca. 1635–37) offers a darker, more fantastical take on the period’s religious anxieties. Claws from a demonic figure lunge at the artist, while skulls, candles, and occult symbols appear in the frame — nodding to memento mori traditions and the era’s fascination with morality and the supernatural.

Of course, Rembrandt remains the star. His well-known self-portraits — modest, introspective, honest — are joined by grander, more theatrical works like Minerva in Her Study (1635) and Unconscious Patient (Allegory of Smell) (ca. 1624–25). The range is staggering: from personal, quiet moments to sweeping, multi-figure compositions that highlight his technical brilliance and dramatic flair.

That variety underscores what makes Rembrandt’s legacy so enduring. As the exhibition suggests, he wasn’t an outlier so much as a masterful reflection of his time — someone who synthesized the innovations around him and pushed them forward. Seeing his work interwoven with that of his peers makes clear that his genius was part of a wider, thriving ecosystem of creativity.

Art and Life in Rembrandt’s Time doesn’t just celebrate Rembrandt’s greatness. It reveals the world that made his greatness possible — and shows how, even 400 years later, that world still has much to say.

The exhibition runs at the Norton Museum of Art through March 29, 2026.

Rembrandt and Friends Arrive in Florida, in a Show That’s as Monumental as the Art Itself

Carmen DeBerry didn’t expect a legendary rock band to change her life — but they did. The newly-certified commercial delivery driver from Baltimore says her job has transformed everything. “It feels awesome,” she said. “I take care of my daughter, and I also take care of my mother.”

That job wouldn’t have been possible without a scholarship to cover her commercial driver’s license training — a program that can cost up to $7,500. The scholarship came from an unlikely source: Metallica.

Yes, that Metallica.

The band’s charity, All Within My Hands (AWMH), has quietly donated more than $10 million to fund workforce education, mostly through community colleges and trade schools. DeBerry got her CDL through the Community College of Baltimore County thanks to what’s officially called the Metallica Scholars Initiative.

“I didn’t know when I first signed up that it was through Metallica,” DeBerry said. “They just called it a scholarship.”

The goal is to support people like her — hardworking, determined, and often overlooked. “Not everyone is built for college, and not everyone needs college,” said Metallica frontman James Hetfield, who knows the working class well: his own father was a truck driver.

Hetfield and his bandmates — Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammett, and Robert Trujillo — say their philanthropic mission grew out of a simple question: what to do with leftover food after concerts. That led to food bank donations, then disaster relief, and eventually to a national push for skilled trades education.

“It was very evident during COVID,” Hetfield said. “We weren’t able to go out and do our thing. But the plumber, the electrician, the truck driver — the people that needed to help keep America running — were there. And thank God for them.”

Bass player Robert Trujillo put it more bluntly: “At a certain point you realize, like, hey, you know, we're selling tickets, we're doing well, the ship's not sinking. What can we do to make people's lives better?”

For DeBerry, the answer was clear. When she went in for her job interview, she told them she was a Metallica Scholar. “Once I told them… they were like, ‘Whaaaaat?’” she said. “I got an entrance, and they took a chance with me.”

She finally got to thank Hetfield in person, backstage before a show in Maryland. The hug was genuine. The appreciation was mutual.

“I really think that your scholarship is what got me the job,” she told him. “And I appreciate it.”

“Right on,” Hetfield replied, visibly moved.

Hetfield, who hadn’t met a Metallica Scholar until that moment, said experiences like DeBerry’s reframe what the band’s legacy can be.

“We get to go make some people smile out there, deliver the goods by playing songs that saved us in our lives,” he said. “But to get a one-on-one, heart-to-heart with somebody whose life you've changed? It changes mine.”

Even as Metallica continues selling out arenas, the band’s focus is increasingly grounded in service — not just loud guitars.

This Giving Tuesday, the band’s All Within My Hands foundation is partnering with Carhartt to help provide five million meals through Feeding America. Their annual fundraising concert in Los Angeles raised $3.5 million last year and drew fans like Aquaman star Jason Momoa.

“They’ve kind of been the soundtrack of my life,” said Momoa. “These are my heroes.”

Turns out those heroes aren’t just shredding solos — they’re changing lives. One scholarship, one meal, one hug at a time.

Metallica's Scholarship Fund Is Quietly Changing Lives — Just Ask This Baltimore Delivery Driver

When renovations began at the Church of the Holy Wisdom in Scarborough, Rev. Gerlyn Henry knew what was at stake. The church’s food bank served hundreds every week, and without it, many in the neighbourhood would be left without reliable access to food.

“Food banks used to be an emergency service,” Henry said. “Now it’s an essential lifeline.”

So she did what she felt she had to: she moved the food bank into her garage.

After getting the OK from her spouse and others living in the rectory, Henry cleared out the garage behind the church and transformed it into a makeshift food bank. For the past six months, metal shelves stocked with canned goods, pasta, and bread have lined the space during Tuesday evening pop-ups, when up to 300 people arrive for support.

Most of those who visit are from the local community — people Henry knows by name.

“If the food bank were to close, I’d be wondering, ‘Did you eat today?’” she told CBC Toronto.

The effort to keep the food bank close to its original location was intentional. Many clients walk to pick up food, and moving it too far could have cut them off entirely. Volunteer Linda Luciani said shutting down wasn’t an option.

“Had we changed to a different location altogether or even shut down, then they wouldn’t have that opportunity anymore,” she said. “These people mean so much to us that it was important that we find a way to keep the process going.”

Not everyone was on board immediately. The garage sits at the end of a residential dead-end street, and Henry said it took some explaining to reassure her neighbours. She reminded them that the people visiting the food bank aren’t strangers — they’re local.

“These are your neighbours,” she said. “These are people you see on the street.”

Suman Roy, who runs the food security network Feed Scarborough, said Henry’s situation reflects a broader reality for many community food banks across the city. Finding affordable and appropriate operating space is a major challenge, especially as demand grows.

“This is the real story of what's happening with the whole system of food banks,” said Roy. “Normally the food bank operators on the ground are left to fend for themselves.”

Roy added that neighbourhood food banks aren’t a burden on communities — they’re a support system that helps prevent people from falling through the cracks.

“That is taking them one step away from a life of crime or a life of destruction,” he said. “Having a food bank in the neighbourhood is not a bad thing.”

Back in Scarborough, Henry is hopeful the move is temporary. Renovations at the church are expected to finish in the summer of 2026, and the food bank will return to its old home when they’re done.

Until then, Henry’s garage will stay open — stocked, staffed, and standing in the gap for those who need it most.

When Renovations Threatened a Food Bank, This Toronto Priest Turned Her Garage Into a Lifeline

As diabetes technology gets smarter with continuous glucose monitors, insulin pumps, and AI-powered alerts, one tool is proving to be just as powerful — and much furrier: a dog’s nose.

Across the United States, specially trained diabetic alert dogs are helping people with diabetes stay safe by detecting dangerous changes in blood sugar before medical devices do. In some cases, these dogs are alerting their owners up to 30 minutes earlier than high-tech monitors, according to SWNS.

One of those dogs is Kona, a 1-year-old Labrador retriever in Ohio, who lives with 7-year-old Kennedy Berce. Kona gently places a paw on Kennedy’s arm whenever her blood sugar starts to rise or fall — often before her continuous glucose monitor even sounds an alarm.

“At just 7 years old, she can be full of energy even when her blood sugar is 45,” said Kennedy’s mom, Lindsey Berce. “That’s why Kona is such a lifesaver. He can sense the change before Kennedy feels anything at all, and often before we even know something’s wrong from her technology.”

Kona completed two months of scent detection training and now works 24/7 as Kennedy’s companion and early-warning system. He’s one of hundreds of diabetic alert dogs now working across the country.

These dogs are trained to smell the chemical changes that happen in the body when blood sugar drops too low or spikes too high — changes humans can’t detect. According to the American Kennel Club, alert dogs use signals like pawing, licking, or nudging to notify their person when something’s off.

While continuous glucose monitors are a big step forward in diabetes care, they still have a key limitation: lag time. “One of the main limitations of current diabetes medical devices is the lag between what's going on in the body and the blood vessels,” said Dr. Frank Dumont, an internal medicine physician and executive medical director at Virta Health.

Dogs, on the other hand, don’t rely on data or sensors. They respond to subtle hormone shifts and scent changes in real time — even when their person is asleep.

That kind of speed can be critical. For people with diabetes, sudden drops in blood sugar can lead to seizures, coma, or even death. Dumont noted that early detection is especially important for those who don’t feel their blood sugar changing until it’s dangerously low.

Both type 1 and type 2 diabetes involve high blood sugar, but the causes — and treatments — are different. Type 1 is caused by the body’s immune system attacking insulin-producing cells. Type 2 involves insulin resistance. “The treatment is very different,” Dumont said. “Sometimes we have to resort to medicines like insulin, but we're usually trying to do other things to help people get their nutrition right.”

While diabetic alert dogs can be life-changing, they’re not a replacement for medical devices. They don’t give exact blood sugar readings, and they require ongoing training to stay accurate. Experts say anyone interested in getting one should first talk to their doctor.

But for families like the Berces, the extra layer of protection — and companionship — is priceless. For Kennedy, that protection comes on four paws, with a nose that’s as smart as any machine.

Forget AI — This Dog’s Nose Might Be Better at Detecting Low Blood Sugar

Goodable

UK police came to the rescue of reindeer which had escaped a local Christmas event on November 29, local media reported.

The reindeer was spotted by a National Police Air Service (NPAS) helicopter on Liverpool’s Formby Beach, Liverpool World reported.

“Although capture proved difficult, the team successfully shepherded the animal into the sand dunes at Altcar Rifle Range […] The reindeer eventually settled, allowing a vet, supported by Royal Marines, to safely secure it,” the report said.

Footage released by the NPAS North West Region showed the reindeer on the beach. NPAS said two vets gave the reindeer a check up after it was observed walking with a limp.

In an update, police said, “Buddy who is now recorded on police systems under his seasonal name of ‘Rudolph’ is all good and resting back home.”

“He’ll now have a good rest before helping Santa and his sleigh on the 24th,” they said.

UK police came to the rescue of reindeer which had escaped a local Christmas event on November 29, local media reported.The reindeer was spotted by a National Police Air Service (NPAS) helicopter on Liverpool’s Formby Beach, Liverpool World reported.“Although capture proved difficult, the team successfully shepherded the animal into the sand dunes at Altcar Rifle Range […] The reindeer eventually settled, allowing a vet, supported by Royal Marines, to safely secure it,” the report said.Footage released by the NPAS North West Region showed the reindeer on the beach. NPAS said two vets gave the reindeer a check up after it was observed walking with a limp.In an update, police said, “Buddy who is now recorded on police systems under his seasonal name of ‘Rudolph’ is all good and resting back home.”“He’ll now have a good rest before helping Santa and his sleigh on the 24th,” they said.

Escaped Reindeer 'Rudolph' Finds Himself on Sandy Beach

When a group of high school students in Georgia set out to create a better way to detect Lyme disease, few believed they’d get very far. Their idea relied on CRISPR, a powerful gene-editing tool still unfamiliar to most high school labs. Even their own teacher warned them the plan was “high risk.”

But the students at Lambert High School in suburban Atlanta didn’t back down — and now, scientists say their project could be the start of a major medical breakthrough.

“We’re doing something in our high school lab that could potentially have a huge impact for millions of people,” said Claire Lee, a senior at Lambert. “This thing could help save lives.”

Their project, which competed at the 2024 iGEM competition — a global synthetic biology contest dubbed the "science Olympics" — is built around one of the toughest problems in Lyme disease: early detection. Current tests often fail to identify the infection in its first two weeks, the critical window when it's easiest to treat.

Using CRISPR, the Lambert team developed a system to flag a specific protein produced early in Lyme infection. Their idea was to use CRISPR to cut away irrelevant DNA, making the target protein easier to detect. From there, they designed a simple, kit-style test — something similar to a COVID-19 rapid test — that could identify the disease within just two days of infection.

They even started work on a separate CRISPR-based treatment, aimed at attacking the Lyme bacteria directly, sidestepping antibiotics, which many patients become resistant to.

Behind them was a cutting-edge lab — funded by local taxpayers and corporate sponsors — that rivals college-level facilities. Lambert is located in one of Georgia’s most affluent and high-performing school districts, and its synthetic biology program is among the most competitive in the country. About 100 students apply each year for just 10 spots.

This year’s team, led by co-captains Sean Lee and Avani Karthik, was entirely Asian-American — most of them the children of immigrants. Their diverse skills included engineering, coding, and data analysis. And they put in the hours, often staying up all night as the competition neared.

“There were a lot of people who said this wouldn’t work,” said Sean Lee. “But we knew we had to try.”

That determination paid off. By September, just weeks before the competition deadline, the team had a working proof-of-concept. In lab tests using simulated blood serum, their system was able to detect Lyme as early as two days after infection — a massive improvement over existing diagnostics.

The students flew to Paris in late October to present their work at iGEM, which this year drew over 400 teams from around the world, including 120 from Asia. Fourteen U.S. high school teams made the trip. Lambert was the only American school to finish in the top 10.

The grand prize went to Great Bay High School from Shenzhen, China, for its work on an enzyme to treat indoor mold. But Lambert earned the top award for best software tool, and praise from leading scientists.

Stanford professor Drew Endy, a co-founder of iGEM, said the diagnostic tool developed by the Georgia team was better than anything he'd seen before.

“It’s not only applicable to Lyme disease, but anything you could find in your blood,” Endy said.

Janet Standeven, who launched Lambert’s iGEM program and now leads iGEM’s global high school division, said the team’s work shows what’s possible when high school students are given the resources to solve real-world problems. She hopes to see synthetic biology programs like this in schools across the country — but funding is uncertain.

Standeven had secured federal money to help bring programs like Lambert’s to other schools in Georgia. But that funding was recently cut by the Trump administration, which categorized it under diversity, equity, and inclusion. A court has temporarily restored it, but the future remains unclear.

“Absolutely devastated. I was angry,” Standeven said. “Anybody that's involved in this work at the high school level realizes this is necessary work.”

While the students’ Lyme test is still a prototype — and will require significant further testing to confirm results in real blood — it’s already being taken seriously by researchers.

“If this holds up in clinical trials,” said one iGEM judge, “we’re looking at something that could change how we diagnose not just Lyme, but other infectious diseases.”

For now, the Lambert team is back home in Georgia, back in class. But their work has already made waves — and shown that sometimes, the future of medicine starts in a high school lab.

Georgia High School Students May Have Created a Breakthrough Lyme Disease Test

Science Alert

A new study has found that certain immune cells in the brain can shift into a protective mode that slows the progression of Alzheimer’s disease — a discovery researchers say could open the door to new treatments aimed at harnessing the brain’s own defenses.

Scientists have long known that microglia, the immune cells that patrol the brain, are involved in Alzheimer’s. But their role hasn’t always been clear. Sometimes, microglia help by clearing away harmful proteins. Other times, they worsen inflammation and speed up damage.

Now, researchers led by neuroscientist Pinar Ayata at the Icahn School of Medicine say they’ve identified a special version of microglia that kicks in when these cells get close to the clumps of amyloid-beta proteins — the sticky plaques that are a hallmark of Alzheimer’s.

“Microglia are not simply destructive responders in Alzheimer’s disease — they can become the brain’s protectors,” said Anne Schaefer, a neuroscientist at Icahn who co-authored the study. “This finding extends our earlier observations on the remarkable plasticity of microglia states and their important roles in diverse brain functions.”

In the mouse models used for the study, these protective microglia had two defining features: lower levels of a protein called PU.1, and higher levels of CD28, a molecule better known for its role in the immune system.

That specific combination seemed to matter. The microglia were not only better at slowing the buildup of amyloid-beta plaques but also reduced accumulations of another damaging protein called tau, which is also linked to Alzheimer’s.

When researchers genetically blocked the production of CD28 in mice, the results were dramatic: the number of harmful, inflammation-producing microglia increased, and amyloid-beta plaques became more common.

The finding backs up earlier studies showing that people with naturally lower PU.1 expression — due to genetic differences — tend to develop Alzheimer’s later in life than others.

“These results provide a mechanistic explanation for why lower PU.1 levels are linked to reduced Alzheimer’s disease risk,” said geneticist Alison Goate, also from the Icahn School of Medicine.

The protective state these microglia enter appears to be a kind of built-in defense system, one that slows the disease but isn’t strong enough to stop it completely. That’s where researchers hope future treatments can help — by boosting the number or activity of these protective cells.

It’s a promising lead, but one that still needs to be confirmed in humans. For now, the research is based on mouse models, and microglia in human brains may behave differently.

Still, the findings are part of a growing shift in how scientists think about Alzheimer’s. It’s not just a disease of the brain’s wiring — it also involves the immune system. And the body’s own cells may hold clues for how to fight it.

Alexander Tarakhovsky, an epigeneticist at Rockefeller University, said the research draws a fascinating link between immune behavior in the brain and the rest of the body. The modified microglia resemble regulatory T cells, which help control immune responses in other parts of the nervous system.

“This discovery comes at a time when regulatory T cells have achieved major recognition as master regulators of immunity, highlighting a shared logic of immune regulation across cell types,” said Tarakhovsky. “It also paves the way for immunotherapeutic strategies for Alzheimer’s disease.”

The study was published in the journal Nature.

Scientists Find That Brain’s Own Immune Cells May Help Hold Off Alzheimer’s

Science Daily

In one of the Amazon’s least-explored corners, a remote stretch of Bolivian wetland is rewriting what we thought we knew about human history in the rainforest — and offering powerful insights for its future.

The Great Tectonic Lakes of Exaltación, located in the department of Beni, may not be a household name. But this wetland region, part of the Llanos de Moxos and the UNESCO-recognized Río Yata Ramsar complex, is quietly revealing a sophisticated story of ancient innovation, environmental stewardship, and Indigenous resilience that spans more than a thousand years.

In September 2021, a multidisciplinary team of archaeologists, ecologists, and anthropologists embarked on a major expedition into this landscape. Organized by Bolivia’s Grupo de Trabajo para los Llanos de Moxos (GTLM), the team included experts from institutions like the Wildlife Conservation Society, Embrapa, the National Museum of Natural History, and the University of Bonn.

Their findings, published after multiple field seasons and extensive LiDAR mapping, document a region shaped as much by human hands as by natural forces. Raised agricultural fields, fish canals, geometric enclosures, and interconnected ditches dot the grasslands around tectonic lakes like Rogaguado and Ginebra — signs of generations of Indigenous communities engineering the land to work with water, not against it.

A Deeply Engineered Landscape
Archaeological sites like Paquío, Isla del Tesoro, Coquinal, and Jasschaja reveal a long, layered history of settlement. Radiocarbon dating shows that people lived here continuously from around 600 CE to at least 1400 CE. They built complex water management systems, cultivated maize and palms, and relied on a protein-rich diet of fish, reptiles, and mammals.

At Paquío, researchers found traces of early settlement followed by a more intensive phase around 1000–1200 CE, marked by dense ceramic debris and advanced wetland farming. Jasschaja, occupied in the 1300s, shows signs of even more extensive land modification and botanical diversity.

Their innovations weren’t one-size-fits-all. From rectangular ditches to circular ponds and elevated planting platforms, communities adapted their earthworks to seasonal flooding, ecological shifts, and social needs. The result: centuries of sustainable food production and water control in one of the planet’s most flood-prone environments.

Living Landscapes, Living Knowledge
These achievements didn’t vanish into history. The Cayubaba and Movima peoples still live here, and their knowledge remains central to the region’s cultural and ecological identity.

“Working with stingless bees, in some way, is working for that more profound purpose,” said Joaquim dos Reis Rodrigues, a beekeeper and smallholder in nearby Pará state, whose story echoes similar patterns of Amazonian stewardship.

During the pandemic-era fieldwork, researchers collaborated closely with the Cayubaba Indigenous Council — which represents 21 communities — to ensure cultural sites were respected and local priorities were centered in the research process. This relationship wasn’t just a formality; it reflected a broader view of archaeology as a tool for strengthening Indigenous rights and environmental justice.

Lessons in Resilience
Today, the Llanos de Moxos are under threat from the same pressures facing much of the Amazon: expanding agriculture, cattle ranching, deforestation, and climate change. But the ancient infrastructure buried beneath these savannas holds a different vision of land use.

Rather than clear-cutting forest or draining wetlands, the region’s past inhabitants developed strategies that embraced complexity. They worked with seasonal floods instead of resisting them. They grew food in raised beds above swampy soil. They wove together farming, fishing, hunting, and gathering into one adaptable system.

That knowledge is valuable now, say scientists and community leaders. It challenges modern assumptions about what “development” should look like — and reminds us that innovation doesn’t always mean extraction.

“These people didn’t just survive here,” said Daniel Santiago, an Embrapa researcher who has studied Amazonian stingless bees and agroforestry systems. “They thrived by listening to the land and understanding its cycles.”

Protecting What Remains
The wetlands of the Llanos de Moxos still perform vital ecological functions. They store carbon, support wildlife, and moderate the flow of rivers that stretch across the continent. Their continued health depends not just on fences or park boundaries, but on the survival of the human relationships that have shaped and cared for them.

That’s why the GTLM project aims to link archaeological research with conservation, placing Indigenous stewardship and biocultural heritage at the center of Amazon sustainability planning.

As the Amazon faces intensifying pressure, the quiet, grassy plains around Bolivia’s tectonic lakes offer a rare and timely message: The rainforest isn’t just a place of untouched wilderness. It’s a living archive of how people and nature can thrive together — if we listen.

Archaeologists Uncover Ancient Human Innovations in Bolivia's Amazon Basin

BBC News

Weymouth looked a little more magical than usual this weekend as hundreds of people in pointy ears and red-and-green costumes flooded the seaside town, hoping to break the world record for the largest gathering of elves.

From stormtrooper-turned-elves to hand-knit pom poms, the effort was serious—but despite the turnout, the UK couldn’t quite topple Thailand, the current record holders with 1,762 elves.

“The record was 1,762 people and we got the numbers but just in the wrong order,” said Dawn Rondeau-Irvine, a local business leader who helped organize the attempt. Still, she’s hopeful Weymouth can try again in 2026.

The whimsical parade saw elves of all ages led through the town by stilt walkers and Santa in his sleigh. Registration kicked off at Weymouth Pavilion, where aspiring elves had to pass a costume check before being issued a wristband. Those not quite elf-ready were sent to the ear-making workshop or to get make-up help.

Some participants took things to the next level. Heather and Andy, visitors for the second year in a row, combined their love for cosplay with the holiday spirit. “Andy has taken his spare stormtrooper and turned it into an elf,” said Heather. “He’s done some upgrades this year with added lights.”

Lorraine, a local, topped her elf hat with mistletoe and shared a quick kiss with Santa. “Only a small one,” she clarified with a laugh.

For others, the prep started long before December. Three staff members from the Winchester School of Art said they had spent “months and months” planning their outfits. Claire, who grew up in Weymouth, brought her colleagues to her hometown for the event. “We even knitted our own scarves and all the pom poms that go on the end,” she said. “It took hours but it was so much fun.”

Participants traveled from across the UK, including Wales and Yeovil, to be part of the festive record bid. Even though the title slipped through their fingers this year, the spirit of the day was undeniable.

And with a few more elf ears and pom poms, Weymouth just might clinch the crown in 2026.

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