Author: Lisa Mungovan

A wild wormy-looking amphibian, was discovered in the United States for the first time. The caecilian is smooth and limbless, with poor eyesight and a venomous bite. It lives underground or in freshwater, and can grow up to 5 feet long. Caecilians are usually found further south in Venezuela and Colombia, not Florida!

Have you learned about triangles and the Pythagorean theorem, in math? Pythagoras was born around 570 BC, but researchers found an artifact that shows an even older example of geometry. A 3700-year-old clay tablet from the Old Babylonian period, used geometry to describe land boundaries. I wonder what math class was like back then?

The Mattel toy company, is releasing a new line of Barbie dolls, modeled after real-life heroes. They honor 6 women, who’ve helped lead the fight against COVID-19, like Professor Sarah Gilbert, who helped develop the Oxford-Astrazeneca vaccine, and Amy O’Sullivan, a nurse who got sick after treating the first COVID patient in Brooklyn.

What color is at the top of a traffic signal? In the United States, it’s red, but it could be different in other countries. In Iceland, some lights have smiley faces on them! Some places have a yellow light to warn you, before the light turns green. International Traffic Light Day celebrates them all.

Hey, what’s under there? Under where? That’s what I thought! It’s Underwear Day, so wear your most fun-derwear. It’s also Work Like A Dog Day. Working dogs, like sheep dogs, love their jobs and do them with enthusiasm. If you have a job to do today, get excited and wag your tail!

A hotel in Iceland is looking for a professional Lights Catcher. The Hotel Ranga will host someone for 3 weeks in their unique hotel, to photograph the Northern Lights. They have retractable roofs, a stargazing observatory, and professional telescopes, to capture great shots of the aurora borealis, Nature’s incredible light show in the sky.

A new moon was discovered orbiting Jupiter, and it was found by an amateur astronomer Kai Ly. Jupiter’s 80th moon is red rock, thought to be a part of a huge comet. Kai studies the skies as a hobby, and has found other moons in the past. What a fun hobby!

Are you excited? It’s Hooray For Kids Day! Baby goats are so cute, aren’t they? Just kidding. Young humans, this day is for you! People could celebrate how awesome you are, by giving you cookies, or helping you bake your own. After all, it’s also Chocolate Chip Cookie Day. Chip-chip hooray!

Today is Assistance Dogs Day. That could mean guide dogs, that are trained to lead blind and visually impaired humans, or hearing alert dogs to help the deaf. There are also seizure and medical alert dogs. Never pet or distract an assistance dog. They’re working! Thank you, poochies!

International Clouded Leopard Day is a good time to learn more about these big cats. Clouded leopards are endangered, and native to parts of Asia. The Formosan clouded leopard was thought to be extinct until fairly recently. Their bodies can be 2 to 4 feet long, and they have very long canine teeth. They’re beautiful!