Strange News

Black and white motion sensor camera capture of Sonoran Desert Toad staring into your soul at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Arizona.

National

The National Park Service wants humans to stop licking this toad

12:39pm November 06, 2022

by Juliana Kim

The Sonoran desert toad secretes a potent toxin that can make people sick. Despite the risks, some people have discovered that the toad's toxic secretions contain a powerful hallucinogenic.

In an experiment conducted by researchers at Queen Mary University of London, bees could make their way through an unobstructed path to a feeding area or opt for a detour into a chamber with wooden balls (toys). Many took the detour.

Science

If bumblebees can play, does it mean they have feelings? This study suggests yes

6:00am November 05, 2022

by Vanessa Romo

Scientists wanted to learn whether bees, like humans and other mammals, had any interest in playing for fun's sake. They say they have evidence that bees do, and that could change how we view insects.

Barred owls are known to be aggressive and territorial. A barred owl similar to this one recently attacked a Washington state woman — twice.

An owl twice attacked a Washington woman. A biologist says it's becoming more common

5:00am November 02, 2022

by Jaclyn Diaz

Such attacks have happened elsewhere in Washington state. They're more common now because of the shrinking availability of dense forests that allow the owls to be more secluded, an expert says.

National

A historic building flooded during a hurricane, so the owner made it a haunted house

4:48pm October 26, 2022

by Sophia Schmidt

A historic Philadelphia building flooded during the remnants of Hurricane Ida last year. Its owner found a creative and terrifying way to adapt to future storms: a flood-resistant haunted house.

World News

Liz Truss vs. lettuce

5:58pm October 22, 2022

Andrew Gilpin, an editor for the British tabloid The Daily Star, talks about the publication's decision to run a livestream that likened Liz Truss' premiership to a head of lettuce.

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Arts

Avoggedon strikes Philadelphia: One nonprofit gives away thousands of avocados

4:27pm October 20, 2022

A food distribution company in Philadelphia, Pa., had a few too many avocados on hand. Its solution? Giving them away for free.

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Health & Safety

What Yankee Candle reviews can tell us about COVID

3:57pm October 18, 2022

After seeing Twitter threads pointing out a potential link between negative candle reviews and spikes in COVID cases, one professor sought to determine if there was a relationship between the two.

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Toast was a very small cat, Saha said, but the loudest one he has met.

Books
Arts

The story behind a new book's strange dedication to Toast the cat

5:00am October 18, 2022

by Halisia Hubbard

"For Toast, the cat, who was no help at all," reads the dedication page of researcher Jonathan Saha's book, Colonizing Animals. A picture of the page went viral on Twitter.

Arts

Baking 'Pan Solo' might take more than 100 hours, but the time spent is worth it

5:33pm October 17, 2022

by Tamara Keith

A mother-daughter baking duo is responsible for the 6-foot tall "Pan Solo" sculpture that sits outside of the family business, One House Bakery, in Benicia, Calif.

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A customer and her dog enjoy a sculpture of "Star Wars" character Han Solo as he was frozen in carbonite made entirely of bread at the One House Bakery in Benicia, Calif.

2 California bakers create a life-size Han Solo out of bread

11:58am October 17, 2022

by The Associated Press

Han Solo may be a hunk. But "Pan Solo" is a hunk of bread.