Given her quick rise to fame and celebrity status, it would be easy to assume that Thailand’s Moo Deng is the only young pygmy hippo out there. But her fellow (adorable) species members across the globe are now vying for a piece of the world’s attention — meet Haggis, a pygmy hippo born at Edinburgh Zoo in Scotland, and Toni, who recently began exploring her underwater enclosure at the Berlin Zoo.
Japan’s Latest Transportation Endeavor: A Conveyor Belt Road
Kindamorphic/ iStock
Japan has been busy in the efficient commuting industry. Now, authorities are outlining plans to raise the bar on cutting-edge transport with a new conveyor belt road. Think: Conveyor belt sushi, but with cargo instead of spicy tuna rolls. Planners envision the roadway will stretch 320 miles from Tokyo to Osaka and transport containers between the two major cities.If completed, it will check off quite a few boxes, including meeting the rising demand for delivery services, curbing carbon emissions, and alleviating pressures on delivery drivers amid an ongoing labor shortage, The Guardian reports. It’s estimated that the endeavor, if expanded nationwide, could do the work of25,000 truck drivers per day. “We need to be innovative with the way we approach roads,” Yuri Endo, a senior official overseeing the project, told the Associated Press. “The key concept of the auto flow-road is to create dedicated spaces within the road network for logistics, utilizing a 24-hour automated and unmanned transportation system.” Test runs are slated to begin in 2027 or early 2028. In the meantime, check out this video to see how it could work.
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Science
Why Elephant Wrinkles Are “Underrated,” Per Recent Study
CarlFourie/ iStock
Take a look at the drugstore beauty aisle, and it’ll become clear that most people don’t look particularly fondly upon wrinkles. For other species in the animal kingdom, though, they’re more than cosmetic — a recent study concluded that wrinkles are actually the key to elephants’ versatile trunks. Elephant trunks, which are essential for their ability to breathe, pick up food, and make those iconic trumpet sounds, aren’t smooth, but rather covered in creases. “We think these wrinkles are very underrated,” co-author Michael Brecht told Science magazine. Brecht and fellow researchers found that the wrinkles form 20 days into an elephant’s fetal development, and the number of them doubles every three weeks over the following 150 days. That’s a good thing, because the wrinkles improve the trunk’s ability to bend and wrap, a bit like hands and elbows. In this sense, the wrinkles are an important part of the “most unbelievable grasping organ on the planet,” Brecht noted. Without them, elephants wouldn’t be what they are. Perhaps the research could help us humans better appreciate our lines — and the memories they hold — the next time we look in the mirror.
Humanity
Welcome to the Grandma Stand, Where Advice Is Free and Wisdom Is Priceless
GrandmaStand/ Instagram
Need some words of wisdom from someone with good ol’ life experience under their belt? The Grandma Stand has your back. The weekly advice stand can be found on street corners and at parks in New York City, starring a rotation of six elders ready to offer a listening ear. Sometimes they chat with little ones, other times with fellow grandmas, but the advice is always free of charge. “We could all use a grandma to talk to,” Mike Matthews, the visionary behind the wholesome stand, told a local news site called I Love the Upper West Side. From 2013 to 2018, the booth was occupied by Matthews’ sage and sassy Grandma Eileen, who chatted with hundreds of New Yorkers via FaceTime. When she died at 102, the Grandma Stand shuttered — that was, until recently. Earlier this year, Matthews sent out an Instagram post calling for grandmas with a specific set of qualifications: “good at listening, asking questions, and possessing empathy.” Now, the stand is back up and running for no other reason than to add a glimmer of grandmotherly love to the streets of New York and beyond. “This world feels so chaotic, isolated, and lonely with everything going on,” Matthews said. “It’s a small thing, but it makes people happy.”
In Other News
The results are in: New York City is officially home to the world’s largest marathon (read more)
U.S. National Parks will be free to visit on Monday in honor of Veterans Day (read more)
NASA plans tofly closer than ever to the sun with the Parker Solar Probe (read more)
“It’s not time to give up yet.” A study of old-growth forests is giving scientists hope amid climate change (read more)
A rare, 237-million-year-old fossil was found in Brazil and may help clarify looming dinosaur questions (read more)
Inspiring Story
“A little angel”
Retirement looks different for everyone, and Lyn Story is spending hers giving free rides to those in need, all while dealing with financial challenges of her own. Inspired by Story’s compassion, a Philadelphia car dealer decided to pay it forward and gave her a brand-new vehicle, with all expenses covered. “I’m just blown away by this generosity,” Story said.
Photo of the Day
Heritage Auctions
There’s no place like home … and these shoes are looking for a new home. A pair of ruby red slippers worn by Judy Garland in The Wizard of Oz are up for auction right now, with online bidding continuing through early December. And they have a bit of lore behind them: The slippers were stolen from a museum case in 2005 by someone who thought the jewels were real, and recovered by the FBI in 2018.
Burble: Reconnecting Kids With Their Imaginations
It’s no secret that kids are spending more and more time in front of screens. Instead of more screen time playing mobile games or watching TV, why not immerse little ones in a world of their own? Burble Creativity has developed a unique storytelling technologycombining lights, sounds, and stories to set their imaginations free.
