Category: Article of the Day

There are approximately 1,300 known species of scorpion, and they are all venomous. Scorpions have two types of venom: a translucent, weaker venom used to stun and an opaque, more potent venom used to kill heavier threats. Although their venom is optimized to affect other arthropods and is relatively harmless to humans, a few species have venom potent enough to be lethal. What scientific fact challenges the ancient belief that scorpions sting themselves to death when surrounded by fire? Discuss

Read was an Australian criminal and author. He committed numerous crimes, including armed robbery, assault, and kidnapping and spent only 13 months outside of jail between the ages of 20 and 38. He used his criminal and prison exploits as fodder for a bestselling series of true-crime books. In them, he tells of attacking a judge, robbing drug dealers, torturing members of the criminal underworld, and starting a prison war. What children’s book written by Read was the target of an attempted ban? Discuss

A combination of the words “smoke” and “fog,” smog is a kind of air pollution that plagues cities throughout the world. Smog can form in almost any climate but is worse during periods of warm, sunny weather, when it can build up to dangerous levels and cause a number of health problems. It has even led to acute incidents in which thousands of people in a single metropolitan area have been killed. In what city did the Great Smog of 1952 kill approximately 4,000 people over a four-day period? Discuss

Tooth decay is a common health problem, second in prevalence only to the common cold. About 75% of all people have had their first cavity by the age of 5. Decay is caused by 3 factors: plaque bacteria, sugar, and a vulnerable tooth surface. Although several microorganisms can cause tooth decay, the primary disease agent appears to be Streptococcus mutans. If left untreated, decay can lead to tooth loss, infection, and, in severe cases, death. What drugs can lead to rampant tooth decay? Discuss

Meerkats are members of the mongoose family that inhabit the Kalahari Desert in Botswana and South Africa. They are highly social creatures and live in groups called “mobs,” “gangs,” or “clans,” which have a dominant breeding pair and up to 23 helpers to assist with rearing the young. Mob members regularly groom each other, and some even babysit or stand guard while others forage for food. They have also been known to engage in what playful social activities? Discuss

In 1939, American educator Frank Cyr organized the first national standards conference for school transportation. One of the most memorable accomplishments of the conference was the selection of a highly visible, standardized color for school buses that would allow them to be easily identified by other motorists. The hue became known as “National School Bus Chrome,” and Cyr was hailed as the “Father of the Yellow School Bus.” According to Cyr, what was the main priority of conference attendees? Discuss

An icebreaker is a ship specially designed to force its way through ice-covered waters. Whether powered by gas turbines, diesel-electric power, or nuclear energy, icebreakers are expensive to build, very expensive to run, and uncomfortable to travel in on the open sea because they roll easily. Nevertheless, icebreakers are needed to keep trade routes open where there exist seasonal or permanent ice conditions. What three features must a ship possess in order to be considered an icebreaker? Discuss

Tagore was a Bengali poet, philosopher, artist, writer, and composer whose works reshaped Bengali literature and music in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. His writings, which often exhibit rhythmic lyricism, colloquial language, and philosophical contemplation, received worldwide acclaim, and he became Asia’s first Nobel laureate in 1913, when he received the Nobel Prize for Literature. Knighted by the British government in 1915, Tagore resigned the honor 4 years later in protest of what? Discuss

A star cluster is a group of related stars usually held together by gravity. Globular clusters are densely packed groups of hundreds of thousands of very old stars. Open clusters are smaller, scattered groups of younger stars. Until recently, astronomers wrestled with a great cosmological mystery: according to theories of stellar evolution, it appeared that some globular clusters were actually older than the universe itself. How was this paradox resolved? Discuss

In 1866, a small, white pebble, which turned out to be a 21-carat diamond, was found on the banks of the Orange River in South Africa. When a second, larger diamond was found in 1871, a diamond rush brought miners to the area by the thousands. Eventually, five big holes were dug, and the largest, known as the “Big Hole,” yielded three tons of diamonds before it was closed in 1914. What company, founded during the rush, is now responsible for about 40 percent of the world’s diamond production? Discuss