Nature

Fireflies are amazing little creatures. They are nocturnal insects that emit a luminous light. The glow-worm is in the same family but a slightly different creature. 1. There are just under 2,000 species of fireflies in the world today. 2. Of these 2,000 species just under 200 reside in North America alone. 3. While young fireflies need some nectar to grow and survive, adult fireflies do not eat to survive. 4. Fireflies have a life span of about two months. I am told this is not related to the fact that adults don’t eat. 5. Fireflies are totally harmless. They...

Humans are a strange species. Consider alcohol, in reality, humans are poisoning themselves to a certain degree. Fermented fruits and vegetables will impact our ability to think straight, walk straight and make smart life choices. Yet we all know it can be good fun to have the occasional drink or two. Surely no other animal is this silly to deliberately poison themselves with alcohol? Actually no, it has been shown that some animals like to embrace a drink from time to time. Read on to find out more The Pen Tailed Tree Shrew Not a very well known animal but...

Cape cod is one of the nicest locations to spend a summer in America. The hook-shaped peninsula means that it has many unique beaches and trails that can entertain the entire family and provide the perfect place to relax in the summertime sun. As Cape Cod has increased in popularity land has become more and more expensive. The unique location has attracted the rich and famous who are building incredible mansions across the peninsula. Recently a small island came up for sale. While it would have been a perfect location for another mansion, it was purchased for a different reason....

Blue is the newest color. A sentence that upon first reading makes absolutely no sense but if you allow me to explain I am happy to take you on a journey that will change how you see colors forever and especially the color blue. Let’s dive in.Humans have three visual cones that divide up all colors. This is why when you try to recreate a color all you need is its RGB value. Every color in the world, that we can perceive, has a certain amount of red, a certain amount of green, and a certain amount of blue. This...

The seasonality of fruits can be irritating. One month you are eating blueberries for $2 a punnet, a month later the season has changed and that same punnet costs $6. This dramatic increase can make it difficult to plan our fruit consumption but things could be worse. The blueberry and other fruits that face this dramatic increase in price are still generally affordable (although maybe more as a treat and not as a morning routine) but there are fruits that are so expensive we can only dream about eating them. For example, the most expensive fruit in the world; the...

It is no surprise that work has a crucial role to play in our mental health. The reality is that long work hours and high-stress environments are putting many of us on an accelerated path to the grave. Society always seems to try to squeeze more and more out of the average worker until there is nothing left. We are approaching a crossroads where the sophistication of technology is growing so much that it may offer the opportunity to change how we work forever. A recent study examined the impact of work on mental health and tried to determine what...

New research into various species of underwater plants has revealed a species of Mediterranean seagrass that is naturally predisposed to snagging plastic waste. The study, which will be found within "Scientific Reports" claims that this species, nown as Posidonia oceanica grabs onto nearly 900 million plastic chunks in the Mediterranean every year. According to Agence France-Presse (AFP), the means by which this particular marine plant achieves this staggering number is a bit of natural circumstance. When P. oceanica's blades snap off or fall away, the fibers of the fragments turn into a tangled mass resembling a brown piece of steel...

The snow leopard is more than just a cool (pun intended) cat, it is one of the most interesting animals in the world. While part of the feline family the snow leopard has evolved some unusual traits to allow it to survive in such tough conditions. Not only this but it looks incredibly beautiful. Read on to find out more about this wondrous animal: The snow leopard is different from other felines because of the conditions it lives in. Its paws are bigger and covered in more fur to create a snowshoe for the animal to allow it to move...

With the winter solstice coming up, it might be time to brush up on a few facts about the day with the shortest amount of sunlight all year. Today, winter solstice is made note of but then quickly forgotten, but that hasn’t always been the case. It has been an important event in many cultures. Without further ado, then, let’s shed some light on winter solstice. When is it, actually? The date for the winter solstice changes from year to year. It could be December 20, 21, 22, or 23. And winter solstice is actually a point in time, not...

The world continues to get smaller and smaller. Today even those who are not wealthy have the opportunity to travel to new countries and explore new places. This has led to more and more countries becoming accessible to travel to. Once, European couples would honeymoon in Switzerland or Norway now choose the Seychelles and Bali for their post-marital getaway. The landscape of travel and tourism is changing dramatically.  Despite these changes, one country remains top of the pile when it comes to total visitors per year. For yet another year, France has held the top spot for the most visits...