Deborah Bloomfield

Since almost the dawn of civilization itself, humanity has been fascinated by those who live outside of it. We’ve told each other tales of Enkidu, the wild man who must slowly be introduced to the modern world of ancient Mesopotamia; of Romulus and Remus, the children suckled by a she-wolf, who, legend has it, would […]

US air traffic control systems are to get an upgrade, finally ending the use of 30-year-old operating system Windows 95, and dispensing with floppy disks and paper strips in the process. On Wednesday, June 4, the acting head of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) informed the House Appropriations Committee that they were to begin replacing […]

After just over a week on the run, Ed the zebra has finally been caught. The rebellious equine caused quite a stir with his escape antics, shutting down highways, inspiring memes, and even gathering adoring fans across the world when being airlifted to safety.  The story began on May 31, just one day after Taylor […]

With a recorded total population speeding towards fewer than 2,000, the critically endangered gray-shanked douc langur (Pygathrix cinerea) is one of Vietnam’s rarest primates – but the discovery of a new population in the country’s central highlands has brought hope that there could be more out there. The previously unknown group was found in Khe […]

In the US alone, the American Civil Liberties Union is currently tracking more than 500 pieces of legislation aimed at the LGBTQ community, which in some instances can include people with intersex traits. Intersex is a broad categorization of people with anatomical, genetic, or hormonal variations that do not fit the typical “male” or “female” […]

Almost everybody has reached for paracetamol at one time or another. Otherwise known as acetaminophen, and often just by brand names like Tylenol® or Panadol®, the drug is a staple of household medicine cabinets, used for everything from headaches to fevers to period pain. It’s so common, in fact, that it will probably surprise you […]

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Over the fields of Oklahoma, a little-known, toxic, organic pollutant has been reported for the first time. Its impacts are currently unknown, but researchers believe it’s something that governmental agencies should keep a close eye on. Chemists at the University of Colorado Boulder were recently toying around with high-tech instruments in Oklahoma with the hopes […]

It was once hoped that the Antarctic and its icy, remote waters were relatively unscathed by human activity – but those hopes are being swiftly dashed. In a new study, marine scientists have shown how ships are causing long-term damage to the seabed in Antarctic waters, resulting in significant harm to the strange ecosystems that […]

NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter has captured a stunning image of the Arsia Mons volcano, its summit peeking above the Martian clouds. In 2001, NASA launched the Mars Odyssey mission to map the chemicals and minerals of the Martian surface. The spacecraft has been in orbit around the planet ever since, breaking the record for the […]

Nestled in the Arctic Archipelago, Canada’s Victoria Island is home to a mind-bending, Russian nesting doll of lakes and islands. The geographical oddity is comprised of an island in a lake on an island in a lake on an island – yes, you read that right. The Inception-worthy phenomenon is known as a third-order island […]

In recent years, nighttime revelers in the US have noticed odd streetlights starting to emit an otherworldly purple haze. It isn’t a psychological warfare operation, nor a viral marketing ploy for a posthumous Prince album, but the result of LED silicone phosphor degradation. It’s estimated that at least 30 states have reported streetlights switching from […]

The first ever discovery of sauropod stomach contents has revealed new insights into the dietary habits of these enormous dinosaurs, including support for the long-held idea that they were herbivores. It also appears that they were walking around with “gastric furnaces” that could break down food thanks to fermentation and microbes in the gut – […]

For anyone disappointed that the Milky Way – our host galaxy – may not collide with our closest neighbor Andromeda after all, we have good news to keep your collision-hungry minds satisfied. Astronomers have spotted two clusters of galaxies that have collided, and appear to be lining up to smack into each other a second […]

Two hundred and thirty-six million years ago, an ancient herbivore took a dump that would blow 21st-century minds. You see, that poop contained what would become the oldest-known evidence of butterflies and moths, preserved in tiny hexapod scales still detectable in coprolites (fancy word for fossil poop). Most perplexing of all is that, if the […]

Many animals have pretty remarkable lifespans, whether it’s Creme Puff the cat, or Johnathan the tortoise. In the marine world, Greenland sharks can survive for hundreds of years, but there’s a whale species that isn’t far behind. Time to learn more about the lifespan of the bowhead whale. The bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus) is a […]

When Gen X and Millennials were teens, a skincare “routine” probably consisted of soap, makeup wipes, and those scrubs we turned to in desperation to rid ourselves of spots (if you know you know). Cosmetic science has thankfully come a long way since then, and we can all be grateful that rubbing actual fruit seeds […]

On December 24, 2024, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe traveled at the fastest speed that any human-made object has ever traveled, clocking in at a zippy 692,000 kilometers per hour (430,000 miles per hour) on its closest approach to the solar surface, relative to the Sun. At these speeds, it would take around 23.4 seconds to […]

The world is home to a host of weird and wacky fish, some of which can climb trees,  others that can glow in the dark and  some can walk on their hands. In total, there are more than 33,000 known species – that is roughly equivalent to all other vertebrate species combined.  The only things […]

Lying amongst the rice fields and walnut orchards of northern California is “the world’s smallest mountain” range: Sutter Buttes.  The relatively speaking diminutive range is situated 18 kilometers (11 miles) northwest of Yuba City and 80 kilometers (50 miles) northwest of Sacramento. Earning its (albeit unofficial) status as the planet’s dinkiest mountain range, it spans […]