The solstice marked the start of summer yesterday, but there’s another — albeit less exciting — season that’s been underway for a few weeks: hurricane season. Running June through November, this time of year marks an increase in cyclones and tropical storms forming over the Atlantic Ocean. If you live in a hurricane-prone area, there are ways you can prepare for potential flooding: Read NPR’s recent guide, part of the outlet’s “Climate Solutions Week” series.
Heat waves are rolling across the country — learn how to stay safe when spending time outside in high temps
Culture
Copenhagen Bumps Vienna to Become World’s Most Livable City for 2025
nantonov/ iStock
Earlier this week, the Economist Intelligence Unit released its annual Global Livability Index, an assessment of which cities offer the best and worst living conditions around the world. Vienna held the top stop for three years in a row, but 2025 marks a dethroning of the Austrian capital: This year, Copenhagen is the most livable. The index looks at 173 cities and scores them based on 30 indicators broken up into five categories — stability, health care, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. Copenhagen earned a perfect 100 on stability, education, and infrastructure, only falling behind Vienna on health care. The Viennese don’t need to fret too much, though, as their city was just bumped to the No. 2 spot, followed by Zurich, Melbourne, and Geneva. See the rest of the top 10, which all had average scores over 95.
Together With LMNT
Beat the Summer Heat With Electrolytes
Water + electrolytes = your secret to feeling great this summer. Whether you’re traveling the globe, training for a marathon, or just soaking up the sun, you need to be properly hydrated — especially when temps are high. And with LMNT’s science-backed electrolyte drink mix, hydrating has never been easier. LMNT delivers the ideal electrolyte ratio of sodium, potassium, and magnesium in delicious flavors that scream summer, like Citrus Salt, Watermelon Salt, and the new limited-edition Lemonade Salt. Get a free eight-count sample pack of LMNT’s most popular flavors with any purchase to find your favorite, or share the hydration boost with a friend.
Can the Brain Learn to See Through Optical Illusions? One Study Says Yes
Neslihan Gorucu/ iStock
Remember the black and blue (or gold and white, depending on who you ask) dress that dominated the internet in 2015? The phenomenon was a fun optical illusion and subject of debate for most, but for scientists, this kind of visual trickery offers key insight into how our minds work. A study suggests that some people may be able to train their brains to see images more accurately — something that “shouldn’t be possible,” according to co-author Martin Doherty. In the study, Doherty and his colleagues found that 44 radiographers and radiologists, considered experts in interpreting medical images, were much less susceptible to three optical illusions than a control group of non-experts (including the Ebbinghaus illusion, seen above). “According to the theory, that shouldn’t happen,” Doherty told CBS News, adding: “No previous research has shown that you can learn to see through them.” The researchers speculate that the experts’ enhanced perception may be due to their learned ability to quickly and accurately fixate on relevant parts of medical images when seeking out abnormalities. “There is plenty left to find out,” Doherty and first author Radoslaw Wincza wrote for The Conversation. “Perhaps the most intriguing possibility is that training on optical illusions can improve radiologists’ skills at their own work.” While they’re investigating, here are 35 optical illusions to try your eyes at.
Environment
These 2 Pups Keep Airplanes Safe by Doing What They Love: Chasing Birds
CRW Hercules / Instagram
Your pup may think he’s protecting his humans by chasing away any birds that dare venture into your backyard — but (no offense to him) two canines in West Virginia are actually keeping people safe while performing the same task. Border collies Hercules and Ned serve as team members at the West Virginia International Yeager Airport in Charleston. Their primary objective? To chase away animals that could collide with aircraft. Per the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, birds and other wildlife strikes cause over $900 million in damage to civil and military aircraft each year. These collisions can also be fatal: Since 1988, more than 250 people have been killed globally because of them. Together with their handler and the airport’s wildlife specialist, Chris Keyser, Hercules and Ned help reduce the chances of these dangerous instances occurring. The duo drives off deer, geese, starlings, killdeer, and other critters during regularly scheduled rounds, or after Keyser receives communication from airport traffic control towers regarding any wildlife near the taxiways. “I like making a difference here at the airport, keeping people safe who are flying in and out of here — and especially when somebody’s in a terminal and might be sad — or just putting a smile on everybody’s face,” he told USA Today. “It makes me feel good, and it makes these dogs feel good too, because it makes them feel special.”
In Other News
Surgeons performedthe country’s first fully robotic heart transplant, and the patient is recovering well (read more)
Texas Instruments will invest $60 billion in U.S.-based chip-making, potentially creating 60,000 jobs (read more)
In hopes of easing air traffic controller shortages, a Florida school offers accelerated training programs (read more)
“America’s Sweethearts”: The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaderssuccessfully lobbied for a 400% pay raise (read more)
These moths use the stars to guide their 620-mile migration journeys, a first for invertebrates(read more)
Something We Love
Everdell Board Game Everdell is a treat for board game lovers who appreciate beautiful and thoughtful game design. Over four seasons (how the game refers to rounds), players compete to collect resources, recruit “critters,” and build structures in their woodland cities. It’s a lovely little world to escape into, and it’s easy to lose hours in it with the right group of friends. –Ally Mauch, Associate Editor
There’s always a lot going on in New York, but a group of ducklings recently prompted a group of people to slow down in the city that never sleeps. The young animals were gathered on a ledge over the Hudson River, tentatively hopping in one by one to join the mother duck as the crowd cheered them on. “Everyone was giddy and we all felt so united,” one onlooker said. “It was a beautiful moment watching everyone come together to appreciate this milestone for the ducklings.” Watch the video.
Photo of the Day
ESO/E. Congiu et al.
The European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (yes, that’s really what it’s called) captured this dazzling image of a nearby spiral galaxy. The panorama is the result of over 50 hours of observations and more than 100 stitched-together exposures, capturing 65,000 light-years in one stunning visual. And what you see here is just part of the shot — check out the whole thing.
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