Magpie News Collector

animal

A deadly fungus that can infect cats and people is spreading

By Science News | Tina Hesman Saey | 6/17/2026 3:00 PM

It’s just a matter of time before Sporothrix brasiliensis reaches the U.S. a CDC expert says. ... Read full Story

animal

How real is the Cyclops in ‘The Odyssey’?

By Science News | Lily Burton | 6/17/2026 9:00 AM

The iconic one-eyed monster coming to movie screens in July in The Odyssey might have more in common with tiny water critters than with humans. ... Read full Story

animal

Songs prep the brains of finches yet to hatch for a hot world

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 6/11/2026 6:00 PM

Adult finches make "heat calls" as the temperature rises. Exposure to the song prepares their unhatched young's brains for the heat. ... Read full Story

animal

Frozen squirrel poop hints at sights and smells of Ice Age ecosystems

By Science News | Bethany Brookshire | 6/9/2026 11:00 AM

DNA preserved in ancient scat reveals what Yukon ground squirrels ate and what animals shared their world. ... Read full Story

animal

These birds clack their wing bones together to woo mates at night

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 6/9/2026 9:00 AM

During courtship, male scissor-tailed nightjars crack their wings together to make a sharp snapping sound. It's the result of colliding arm bones. ... Read full Story

animal

Honeybees and shrimp are now getting vaccinated

By Science News | Lily Burton | 6/5/2026 11:00 AM

A shrimp vaccine for commercial use could protect the environment and prove vaccines aren’t just for vertebrates. ... Read full Story

animal

This tiny, blue octopus is new to science

By Science News | Gennaro Tomma | 6/5/2026 9:00 AM

The deep-sea octopus is fully mature despite fitting in a palm, a trait researchers think may help it reproduce faster than larger relatives. ... Read full Story

animal

Bumblebees can solve problems on their own

By Science News | Erin Garcia de Jesús | 6/4/2026 2:00 PM

With no training, bumblebees can work out how to use a ball like a ladder to feed on sugar from an out-of-reach flower. ... Read full Story

animal

A secret to making a queen bee may lie in the wax around it

By Science News | Anirban Mukhopadhyay | 6/3/2026 11:00 AM

Queen-cell wax helps shape honeybee queen development, challenging the idea that royal jelly alone makes a queen, a new study suggests. ... Read full Story

animal

Homing pigeons may use a surprising navigation mechanism

By Science News | Elizabeth Pennisi | 5/28/2026 2:00 PM

How animals navigate by Earth's magnetic field is hotly debated. New research in pigeons points to iron-laden liver immune cells as the compass. ... Read full Story

animal

Even careful scuba divers can damage coral reefs

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 5/26/2026 7:00 AM

Hours of diving videos and hundreds of survey responses reveal the common diver mistakes that can cause irreversible reef damage. ... Read full Story

animal

Seabirds weren’t fooled by a scarecrow-like buoy with rotating eyes

By Science News | Bethany Brookshire | 5/21/2026 9:00 AM

A tall buoy with a rotating pair of eyes was supposed to scare birds away from caught fish. Like scarecrows, it didn't work for long. ... Read full Story

animal

AI-powered whale-spotting tech may help save San Francisco Bay’s gray whales

By Science News | Carolyn Gramling | 5/19/2026 12:30 PM

An AI trained to use thermal images to detect whale body heat could help warn ships at risk of colliding with the marine mammals. ... Read full Story

animal

Meet ‘Snuffleupagus,’ a newfound fish sporting shaggy camouflage

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 5/18/2026 1:00 PM

Found near Australia, Solenostomus snuffleupagus is a shaggy swimmer that closely resembles Mr. Snuffleupagus from Sesame Street. ... Read full Story

animal

Crabs’ sideways walk may have evolved just once

By Science News | Sierra Bouchér | 5/15/2026 1:00 PM

A study of 50 crab species in Japan traces the iconic sideways walk to a single ancestor, suggesting the trait drove the group's remarkable diversity. ... Read full Story

animal

Female rats like a different kind of tickling than males

By Science News | Hannah Thomasy | 5/14/2026 9:00 AM

Female rats prefer gentler tickling, a finding that could reshape animal happiness research. ... Read full Story

animal

Hantavirus questions grow in the wake of a cruise ship outbreak

By Science News | Tina Hesman Saey | 5/13/2026 1:25 PM

Scientists still don’t know why Andes hantavirus is the only one shown to spread from person to person. ... Read full Story

animal

Territorial conflict may explain male primates’ large size

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 5/12/2026 7:01 PM

Male primates may be larger than females partly because of pressure from rival groups, not just competition with males inside their own group. ... Read full Story

animal

If wings came before flight, what were they for?

By Science News | Lily Burton | 5/8/2026 1:00 PM

Scientists use simulated dinosaurs to trigger real insect brains and test how wings originally evolved. ... Read full Story

animal

Neandertals used rhinoceros teeth as tools

By Science News | Javier Barbuzano | 5/6/2026 9:00 AM

Finds at sites in Spain and France suggest that Neandertals used the teeth of ancient rhinos for heavy-duty fabrication. ... Read full Story

animal

A deadly fungus that can infect cats and people is spreading

by Science News | Jun 17 2026

connecticut

Lamont wants to charge companies with employees on Medicaid

by CT Mirror | Jun 18 2026

exercise

Lindsey Vonn Says She Still Feels 29—Here’s What She’s Doing Differently

by thehealthy.com | Apr 15 2026

game

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Pulls In Another Costume From The Movies

by GameSpot | Jun 17 2026

lifestyle

Kylie Jenner gives serious ab envy in post workout pictures

by Hello! Magazine | Jun 18 2026

mental

Dreading the Doctor? Experts Offer 6 Tips for Overcoming Appointment Anxiety

by thehealthy.com | Jun 12 2026

music

In Light of Oliver Tree’s Fatal Crash, Is It Safe For Musicians to Keep Flying in Helicopters or Small Planes?

by Billboard | Jun 18 2026

nutrition

She Lost 60 Pounds on the Mayo Clinic Diet—Here’s How It Worked

by thehealthy.com | Apr 30 2026

odd_fun

Look: Alligator found 'posted up right at the front door' of S.C. home

by United Press International, Inc. | Jun 17 2026

opinion

AI is making huge changes in how wars are fought. We aren’t ready for what comes next

by Opinion on Fox News | Jun 18 2026

people

Taylor Swift is staying one step ahead of AI by legally protecting her voice and image

by marca.com | Apr 28 2026

politics

READ IT: The full text of the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding

by Fox News | Jun 18 2026

real_estate

Six New Buildings Add 230 Residential Units to Crown Heights, Brooklyn

by New York YIMBY | Jun 18 2026

sports

Pelé's life in pictures

by CNN | Apr 16 2023

wellness

13 Black Women Share How They Found the Strength to Survive—and Thrive—With Breast Cancer

by Self.com | May 29 2026

Word of the Day

acquiesce

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for June 18, 2026 is:

acquiesce • \ak-wee-ESS\ • verb

To acquiesce to something is to accept it, agree with it, or allow it to happen by staying silent or by not arguing. Acquiesce is somewhat formal, and is often used with in or to.

// Eventually, the professor acquiesced to the students’ request to have the seminar’s final class be a potluck lunch.

See the entry >

Examples:

“It may be just the right time for a chicken burger to become a significant stop on the American burger’s continual evolution—but whether beef-clinging purists will acquiesce to a poultry spin, or cry fowl, remains to be seen.” — Talib Visram, Slate, 6 Apr. 2026

Did you know?

If you’re looking to give your speech a gentle, formal flair, don’t give acquiesce the silent treatment. Essentially meaning “to comply quietly,” acquiesce has as its ultimate source the Latin verb quiēscere, “to be quiet.” (Quiet itself is also a close relation.) Quiēscere can also mean “to repose,” “to fall asleep,” or “to rest,” and when acquiesce arrived in English via French in the early 1600s, it did so with two senses: the familiar “to agree or comply” and the now-obsolete “to rest satisfied.” Herman Melville employed the former in Moby-Dick, when Ahab orders the “confounded” crew to change the Pequod’s course after a storm damages the compasses: “Meanwhile, whatever were his own secret thoughts, Starbuck said nothing, but quietly he issued all requisite orders; while Stubb and Flask—who in some small degree seemed then to be sharing his feelings—likewise unmurmuringly acquiesced.”

A deadly fungus that can infect cats and people is spreading

How real is the Cyclops in ‘The Odyssey’?

Songs prep the brains of finches yet to hatch for a hot world

Frozen squirrel poop hints at sights and smells of Ice Age ecosystems

These birds clack their wing bones together to woo mates at night

Honeybees and shrimp are now getting vaccinated

This tiny, blue octopus is new to science

Bumblebees can solve problems on their own

A secret to making a queen bee may lie in the wax around it

Homing pigeons may use a surprising navigation mechanism

Even careful scuba divers can damage coral reefs

Seabirds weren’t fooled by a scarecrow-like buoy with rotating eyes

AI-powered whale-spotting tech may help save San Francisco Bay’s gray whales

Meet ‘Snuffleupagus,’ a newfound fish sporting shaggy camouflage

Crabs’ sideways walk may have evolved just once

Female rats like a different kind of tickling than males

Hantavirus questions grow in the wake of a cruise ship outbreak

Territorial conflict may explain male primates’ large size

If wings came before flight, what were they for?

Neandertals used rhinoceros teeth as tools

A deadly fungus that can infect cats and people is spreading

Lamont wants to charge companies with employees on Medicaid

Lindsey Vonn Says She Still Feels 29—Here’s What She’s Doing Differently

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 Pulls In Another Costume From The Movies

Kylie Jenner gives serious ab envy in post workout pictures

Dreading the Doctor? Experts Offer 6 Tips for Overcoming Appointment Anxiety

In Light of Oliver Tree’s Fatal Crash, Is It Safe For Musicians to Keep Flying in Helicopters or Small Planes?

She Lost 60 Pounds on the Mayo Clinic Diet—Here’s How It Worked

Look: Alligator found 'posted up right at the front door' of S.C. home

AI is making huge changes in how wars are fought. We aren’t ready for what comes next

Taylor Swift is staying one step ahead of AI by legally protecting her voice and image

READ IT: The full text of the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding

Six New Buildings Add 230 Residential Units to Crown Heights, Brooklyn

Pelé's life in pictures

13 Black Women Share How They Found the Strength to Survive—and Thrive—With Breast Cancer

Word of the Day

10 Odd & Fun

1.Look: Alligator found 'posted up right at the front door' of S.C. home

2.$1 million lottery ticket nearly thrown out by N.C. woman

3.Kangaroo gets new home after several days on the loose in Quebec

4.Watch: Boston bars say Scottish soccer fans are drinking them dry

5.World's oldest living land animal extends record to 194 years

6.Watch: Australian zoo's escaped Tasmanian devil safely captured

7.Watch: San Diego Zoo fills bear habitat with man-made snow

8.Lottery player's forgetfulness leads to $1.05M jackpot

9.Look: Loose emu's origins a mystery in New Jersey

10.Look: German man assembles world's largest Lego sausage