Magpie News Collector

animal

Deep Antarctic waters hold geometric communities of fish nests

By Science News | Carly Kay | 10/29/2025 4:00 AM

Scientists found thousands of patterned fish nests in Antarctica’s Weddell Sea, boosting calls for marine protected areas. ... Read full Story

animal

Polar bears provide millions of kilograms of food for other Arctic species

By Science News | Gennaro Tomma | 10/28/2025 9:00 AM

A new study shows how much food polar bears leave behind — and how their decline threatens scavengers across the Arctic. ... Read full Story

animal

Subway mosquitoes evolved millennia ago in ancient Mediterranean cities

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 10/23/2025 6:00 PM

A variety of subway-dwelling mosquito seems like a modern artifact. But genomic analysis reveals the insect got its evolutionary start millennia ago. ... Read full Story

animal

Which venomous snakes strike the fastest?

By Science News | Erin Garcia de Jesús | 10/23/2025 2:43 PM

Vipers have the fastest strikes, but snakes from other families can give some slower vipers stiff competition. ... Read full Story

animal

Scientists and fishers have teamed up to find a way to save manta rays

By Science News | Melissa Hobson | 10/22/2025 1:00 PM

Thousands of at-risk manta and devil rays become accidental bycatch in tuna fishing nets every year. A simple sorting grid could help save them. ... Read full Story

animal

Guppies fall for a classic optical illusion. Doves, usually, do too

By Science News | Sujata Gupta | 10/20/2025 6:00 PM

Comparing animals’ susceptibility to optical illusions can show how perception evolved. ... Read full Story

animal

A rice weevil frozen in flight won the 2025 Nikon Small World photo contest

By Science News | Carly Kay | 10/17/2025 4:00 PM

From fluorescent ferns to sprawling neurons, this year’s winning photos reveal the structures and artistry of life seen through a microscope. ... Read full Story

animal

These ancient bumblebees were found with their pollen source

By Science News | Taylor Mitchell Brown | 10/15/2025 5:00 PM

Insects have long pollinated plants, but evidence of ancient pairing is rare. Fossils now show bees and linden trees goes back 24 million years. ... Read full Story

animal

The viral Chicago ‘Rat Hole’ almost certainly wasn’t made by a rat

By Science News | Amanda Heidt | 10/14/2025 7:01 PM

Researchers used methods from paleontology to analyze the quirky local landmark, created when a rodent of a certain size fell into wet concrete. ... Read full Story

animal

New wetsuit designs offer a layer of protection against shark bites

By Science News | Carly Kay | 10/14/2025 9:00 AM

By weaving Kevlar or polyethylene nanofibers into standard neoprene in wetsuits, researchers found ways to limit injury during rare encounters with sharks. ... Read full Story

animal

Mic’d bats reveal midnight songbird attacks

By Science News | Alison Pearce Stevens | 10/9/2025 2:00 PM

Sensor data reveal greater noctule bats chasing, catching and chewing on birds during high-altitude, nighttime hunts. ... Read full Story

animal

Toy-obsessed dogs give clues to addictive behaviors

By Science News | Laura Sanders | 10/9/2025 11:00 AM

Some dogs love playing with toys so intensely they can’t stop—offering scientists a window into behavioral addictions. ... Read full Story

animal

What the longest woolly rhino horn tells us about the beasts’ biology

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 10/7/2025 10:00 AM

A nearly 20,000-year-old woolly rhino horn reveals the extinct herbivores lived as long as modern-day rhinos, despite harsher Ice Age conditions. ... Read full Story

animal

To make a tasty yogurt, just add ants (and their microbes)

By Science News | Erin Garcia de Jesús | 10/3/2025 11:01 AM

Spiking milk with live ants makes tangy traditional yogurt. Researchers have identified the ants' microbial pals and enzymes that help the process. ... Read full Story

animal

Meet the ‘grue jay,’ a rare hybrid songbird

By Science News | Sarah Boden | 9/26/2025 10:00 AM

Despite millions of years of evolutionary separation and a geographical divide, a blue jay and green jay mated in Texas. This bird is the result. ... Read full Story

animal

Is camouflage better than warning colors? For insects, it depends

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 9/25/2025 2:00 PM

The effectiveness of camouflage or warning colors for insect defense depends on conditions such as light levels and how many predators are around. ... Read full Story

animal

This ‘ghost shark’ has teeth on its forehead

By Science News | Meghan Rosen | 9/23/2025 9:00 AM

Spotted ratfish, or “ghost sharks,” have forehead teeth that help them grasp onto mates. It’s the first time teeth have been found outside of a mouth. ... Read full Story

animal

Bats live with some viruses. But others can do them in

By Science News | Erin Garcia de Jesús | 9/19/2025 10:00 AM

Bats can carry some deadly human pathogens without signs of illness. A new survey shows that other viruses can still be bad for bats. ... Read full Story

animal

Tug or fetch? Some dogs sort toys by how they are used

By Science News | Jennifer S. Holland | 9/18/2025 11:00 AM

Dogs that easily learn the names of toys might also mentally sort them by function, a new example of complex cognitive activity in the canine brain. ... Read full Story

animal

Octopus arms are adaptable but some are favored for particular jobs

By Science News | Jake Buehler | 9/11/2025 11:00 AM

Octopuses are ambidextrous, a new study finds, but they favor their front arms for investigating surroundings and their back arms for locomotion. ... Read full Story

art

Rirkrit Tiravanija at Galerie Chantal Crousel

by Contemporary Art Daily | Nov 02 2025

basketball

Today's top games to watch, best bets, odds: Chiefs vs. Bills, NBA and more

by CBS Interactive Inc | Nov 02 2025

beauty

13 Major Hair Transformations Celebrities Still Regret

by The List | Mar 03 2025

book

We always come back to the second-chance romance

by BookPage | Oct 28 2025

connecticut

CT Democrats targeting open Republican municipal seats

by CT Mirror | Nov 02 2025

game

Fortnite Is Down: When Will Fortnite Servers Be Online For Simpsons Season?

by GameSpot | Nov 01 2025

golf

Ryder Cup: U.S. and European Golfers Face a Challenge at Bethpage Black

by NY Times | Sep 25 2025

nation

Treasury Sec. Bessent: SNAP may be back by Wednesday, but 'there is a process'

by upi.com | Nov 02 2025

new_jersey

Obama headlines for Sherrill, Ciattarelli boasts of campaign momentum

by NJ Spotlight | Nov 02 2025

nutrition

Sebastian Maniscalco Reveals How Jerry Seinfeld Helped Him Establish a Mental Health Routine

by thehealthy.com | Oct 15 2025

odd_fun

Watch: Venomous snake rescued from backyard swimming pool

by United Press International, Inc. | Oct 31 2025

opinion

National populists surge around the world — spelling doom for the global elite

by New York Post | Nov 02 2025

people

Will Taylor Swift attend Chiefs vs. Bills? The request Travis Kelce's fiancée reportedly made to Buffalo officials

by marca.com | Nov 02 2025

technology

China’s Feilong-300D attack drone can dominate battlefield in low-cost warfare

by Interesting Engineering | Nov 02 2025

travel

Up for some adventure in 2026? Find yours for every month of the year.

by The Travel Magazine | Nov 01 2025

Word of the Day

arbitrary

Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for November 2, 2025 is:

arbitrary • \AHR-buh-trair-ee\ • adjective

Arbitrary describes something that is not planned or chosen for a particular reason, is not based on reason or evidence, or is done without concern for what is fair or right.

// Because the committee wasn’t transparent about the selection process, the results of the process appeared to be wholly arbitrary.

// An arbitrary number will be assigned to each participant.

See the entry >

Examples:

“The authority of the crown, contemporaries believed, was instituted by God to rule the kingdom and its people. England’s sovereign was required to be both a warrior and a judge, to protect the realm from external attack and internal anarchy. To depose the king, therefore, was to risk everything—worldly security and immortal soul—by challenging the order of God’s creation. Such devastatingly radical action could never be justified unless kingship became tyranny: rule by arbitrary will rather than law, threatening the interests of kingdom and people instead of defending them.” — Helen Castor, The Eagle and the Hart: The Tragedy of Richard II and Henry IV, 2024

Did you know?

Donning black robes and a powdered wig to learn about arbitrary might seem to be an arbitrary—that is, random or capricious—choice, but it would in fact jibe with the word’s etymology. Arbitrary comes from the Latin noun arbiter, which means “judge” and is the source of the English word arbiter, also meaning “judge.” In English, arbitrary first meant “depending upon choice or discretion” and was specifically used to indicate the sort of decision (as for punishment) left up to the expert determination of a judge rather than defined by law. Today, it can also be used for anything determined by or as if by chance or whim.

Deep Antarctic waters hold geometric communities of fish nests

Polar bears provide millions of kilograms of food for other Arctic species

Subway mosquitoes evolved millennia ago in ancient Mediterranean cities

Which venomous snakes strike the fastest?

Scientists and fishers have teamed up to find a way to save manta rays

Guppies fall for a classic optical illusion. Doves, usually, do too

A rice weevil frozen in flight won the 2025 Nikon Small World photo contest

These ancient bumblebees were found with their pollen source

The viral Chicago ‘Rat Hole’ almost certainly wasn’t made by a rat

New wetsuit designs offer a layer of protection against shark bites

Mic’d bats reveal midnight songbird attacks

Toy-obsessed dogs give clues to addictive behaviors

What the longest woolly rhino horn tells us about the beasts’ biology

To make a tasty yogurt, just add ants (and their microbes)

Meet the ‘grue jay,’ a rare hybrid songbird

Is camouflage better than warning colors? For insects, it depends

This ‘ghost shark’ has teeth on its forehead

Bats live with some viruses. But others can do them in

Tug or fetch? Some dogs sort toys by how they are used

Octopus arms are adaptable but some are favored for particular jobs

Rirkrit Tiravanija at Galerie Chantal Crousel

Today's top games to watch, best bets, odds: Chiefs vs. Bills, NBA and more

13 Major Hair Transformations Celebrities Still Regret

We always come back to the second-chance romance

CT Democrats targeting open Republican municipal seats

Fortnite Is Down: When Will Fortnite Servers Be Online For Simpsons Season?

Ryder Cup: U.S. and European Golfers Face a Challenge at Bethpage Black

Treasury Sec. Bessent: SNAP may be back by Wednesday, but 'there is a process'

Obama headlines for Sherrill, Ciattarelli boasts of campaign momentum

Sebastian Maniscalco Reveals How Jerry Seinfeld Helped Him Establish a Mental Health Routine

Watch: Venomous snake rescued from backyard swimming pool

National populists surge around the world — spelling doom for the global elite

Will Taylor Swift attend Chiefs vs. Bills? The request Travis Kelce's fiancée reportedly made to Buffalo officials

China’s Feilong-300D attack drone can dominate battlefield in low-cost warfare

Up for some adventure in 2026? Find yours for every month of the year.

Word of the Day

10 Odd & Fun

1.Watch: Venomous snake rescued from backyard swimming pool

2.Ohio man forgets winning lottery ticket at home, wins another $500,000

3.Watch: Lost dog found 5 years later, 520 miles from home

4.Ozzy Osbourne pumpkin mosaic breaks Guinness World Record

5.Watch: Deer rescued from between bars of metal fence in Virginia

6.Ohio State marks mascot's 60th by breaking a world record

7.Watch: Utah man drops 1,917-pound pumpkin onto his Geo Metro

8.Watch: Dog rescued after fall from San Francisco cliff

9.Please, Please, Please Do Not Wear Any Of These Wildly Offensive Halloween Costumes This Year

10.Watch: Dog reunited with owner 7 years after burglary in Florida