People Who Fear Single Life Settle for Less, Study Finds

 Posted on February 9, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  551 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

Confirming a bit of conventional wisdom, a new study finds that people who fear being single often settle for less in love; they're more likely to cling to unhappy relationships and more willing to date duds, the research suggests. The study's lead author, University of Toronto researcher Stephanie Spielmann, said she wanted to investigate how the pervasive message that people are supposed to be in relationships affects their love lives. [Read More]

Powerful Ideas: Military Develops 'Cybug' Spies

 Posted on February 9, 2023  |  4 minutes  |  715 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Editor's Note: This occasional series looks at powerful ideas — some existing, some futuristic — for fueling and electrifying modern life. Miniature robots could be good spies, but researchers now are experimenting with insect cyborgs or "cybugs" that could work even better. Scientists can already control the flight of real moths using implanted devices. The military and spy world no doubt would love tiny, live camera-wielding versions of Predator drones that could fly undetected into places where no human could ever go to snoop on the enemy. [Read More]

The Best Genealogy Software

 Posted on February 9, 2023  |  6 minutes  |  1169 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Hand-drawn family trees are so last century. For the modern genealogist, tech is where it's at. A number of companies offer genealogy software to help organize information about ancestors, create reports and ancestry books, and share findings online. The deeper into genealogy you go, the more you might find these features useful. But first: If you're a beginner, just starting to think about genealogy, bookmark this article, switch off your computer screen and run directly to your oldest living family member. [Read More]

Vitamins May Improve Sperm for Older Men

 Posted on February 9, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  309 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

Older men may be able to boost the quality of their sperm with a diet high in antioxidants and certain vitamins, cutting the risk of passing on genetic mutations to their kids, new research suggests. Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory assessed 80 healthy male volunteers between 22 and 80 years old. The men over 44 who had the most vitamin C in their diet had 20 percent less sperm DNA damage compared to their peers who consumed the least vitamin C, the researchers said. [Read More]

Weird, Z-shaped faults could trigger a large earthquake on California's San Andreas Fault

 Posted on February 9, 2023  |  7 minutes  |  1316 words  |  Fernande Dalal

It's impossible to know when the San Andreas Fault will erupt with its next big earthquake — a temblor that could impact the nearly 13 million people who live in the Los Angeles metro area — but it appears that two other nearby faults might have some say in that matter. The San Andreas Fault is part of a giant "Z" of faults; the top of the "Z" consists of the Ridgecrest Fault, the middle is the Garlock Fault and the bottom is the southern part of the famous San Andreas. [Read More]

When Did the Red Carpet Tradition Begin?

 Posted on February 9, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  382 words  |  Mittie Cheatwood

Walking the red carpet used to be a really big deal. Lately, it's become so watered-down that any jabroni on a reality show or seventh-billed actor on a mediocre sitcom gets to walk the carpet for fans and paparazzi. Yes, the red carpet has certainly lost some of its mojo from its more stately origins as a way to honor gods and dignitaries. But before it became co-opted by Hollywood as self-aggrandizing promotion, the red carpet was actually something special. [Read More]

Why Does It Say 'In God We Trust' on Our Money?

 Posted on February 9, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  396 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

The words "In God We Trust," a controversial phrase that some argue should be kept off of our currency, has appeared on all forms of U.S. money since 1963, although the history behind the motto dates back much further. In 1861, Rev. M. R. Watkinson, a Pennsylvania minister, wrote to Secretary of Treasury Salmon P. Chase pleading that new coin designs include "the recognition of the Almighty God," according to Treasury Department records. [Read More]

Boy Dies Days After Swimming: What Is 'Dry Drowning'?

 Posted on February 8, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  508 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

A 4-year-old boy in Texas died recently, nearly a week after he went swimming, from what his parents were told was "dry drowning." But what exactly does this mean? The boy, Frankie Delgado, was playing in the waters of the Galveston Bay when he was knocked down by a wave, according to CNN. Initially, the boy seemed all right. But the next day, he began vomiting and having diarrhea. Nearly a week later, the boy said he had shoulder pain, and later, during a nap, he stopped breathing. [Read More]

Boy or Girl? Text Alerts to Deliver Gender of April the Giraffe's Calf

 Posted on February 8, 2023  |  2 minutes  |  303 words  |  Arica Deslauriers

For the many millions of internet viewers who are checking YouTube (or Live Science) daily to see if April the pregnant giraffe has had her calf, the vigil continues — when the sun rose this morning (April 3), the big-bellied giraffe was still pregnant. However, April's many anxious fans can now subscribe to receive text alerts when April goes into labor — and for the first disclosure of whether the newborn is male or female. [Read More]

Gallery of the Craziest Clouds

 Posted on February 8, 2023  |  3 minutes  |  545 words  |  Trudie Dory

Face in the cloudsLast August in New Brunswick, Canada, YouTube user "denisfarmer" shot a video of what may be themost convincing "face in the clouds" ever. As a storm front moved across the sky, a man's profile seemedto emerge. Totally tubularIn February, a rare and beautiful "roll cloud" was photographed low in the sky above the AtlanticOcean near Brazil. Roll clouds are often born out of a storm's downdraft. Sinking cold air causes warm,moist air near the ocean's surface to rise, and when the air reaches higher altitudes, the moisture in itcondenses to form a cloud. [Read More]