New Jersey police officer disguised as a roadside tree helped catch 74 distracted drivers in just six hours

A New Jersey police department used an officer in a ghillie suit resembling a tree. This unusual tactic aimed to raise awareness about distracted driving dangers. Later, plainclothes officers conducted an operation and cited seventy-four drivers. These citations were for using mobile phones while operating vehicles. The campaign sought to reduce preventable crashes caused by…

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MacKenzie Scott gave Native Forward $50 million; it will spend $10 million on scholarships and place $40 million in a permanent endowment

Scott, 56, is one of the world’s best-known donors. (Getty images) Native Forward Scholars Fund (NFSF) has announced how it will use the entire $50 million unrestricted donation it received from philanthropist and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ former wife, MacKenzie Scott. The organisation said every dollar of the gift will go towards supporting Native students…

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New Zealand’s rare woollyhead nearly disappeared from the wild. Two surviving plants helped produce 250 seedlings now heading back to the reserve | World News

On the dry plains of Central Otago, a small native herb has been given another chance to survive in the wild. Craspedia argentea, a woollyhead found only around the Pisa Flats, had dwindled to just two known plants. By then, even the ordinary business of pollination had become difficult. There were simply too few plants…

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Archaeologists uncover ancient Roman structure near the Colosseum with mosaics resembling firefighters’ barracks | World News

PC: A worker cleans a mosaic floor uncovered during archaeological excavations at Villa Celimontana in Rome, Italy. Reuters Archaeologists in Rome have uncovered a second-century building featuring mosaics and painted ceilings in the Villa Celimontana park, close to the Colosseum, that may once have served as barracks for the city’s ancient firefighters. Five of the…

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A Florida nuclear power plant was surrounded by 270 kilometres of canals. Decades later, American crocodiles turned them into a home | World News

A nuclear power plant is hardly the first place that comes to mind when thinking about wildlife refuges. Yet around Turkey Point, south of Miami, American crocodiles have made themselves at home in a vast network of artificial canals built for the plant. The waterways have become an important habitat for a species that once…

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Martha Hunt paid $3.45 million for a Tribeca condo in 2017; nine years later, the 1,700-square-foot home on a hidden alley is listed for $3.75 million

Photo: Martha Hunt/ Instagram & Hayley Ellen Day Martha Hunt is putting her Tribeca home on the market, offering buyers the chance to own a stylish Manhattan residence tucked away on a quiet cobblestoned alley. The former Victoria’s Secret Angel is asking $3.75 million for the two-bedroom, three-bathroom condominium at 5 Franklin Place, according to…

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Scientists discover Black pine jewel beetles use heat, smoke and infrared organs to find wildfires using nature’s most sophisticated sensory system |

Black fire beetle, Melanophila acuminata. Image Credit: Prof. Schmitz/Wikipedia Black pine jewel beetles, scientifically named Melanophila acuminata, belong to a unique group of insects that exhibit pyrophilous behaviour, which means they are naturally attracted to forest fires. These beetles are primarily found across boreal and temperate forests of the north, where they play a vital…

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California biologist Phil Pister saved the last Owens pupfish from extinction in 1969 by carrying every surviving fish in two buckets | World News

For most people, conservation is associated with large mammals, forests or national parks. Phil Pister spent his life proving that the survival of tiny desert fish could matter just as much. The California fisheries biologist became known for an extraordinary moment in 1969 when he realised that the last remaining Owens pupfish were in immediate…

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