Buzz
Another week has come to a close, so let's take a moment to dive into some strange and unusual news you might have missed. For the serious stuff, click here. Otherwise, read on for a dose of the bizarre and unexpected.
Archaeologists and anthropologists have had an eventful week, discussing ancient reptiles, even older footprints, and the enigmatic moai statues of Easter Island. Meanwhile, astronomers were startled to discover an asteroid barreling toward Earth. Was it the end of the world? Read on to learn more.
10. The Great Falling Poo Incident Over Canada
The city of Kelowna in British Columbia is dealing with an unusual issue—poo is falling from the sky.
It all began on May 9. Susan Allen and her son were at a red light when a foul-smelling brown liquid began to rain down on their car. Unfortunately, they had the sunroof open, and both of them were showered with the unpleasant substance. They immediately pulled into the nearest car wash to clean themselves off.
Allen waited for weeks before coming forward, feeling embarrassed by what had happened. Eventually, she decided to speak out after feeling that authorities were not being forthcoming with information.
Officials at Kelowna Airport acknowledged receiving and reviewing a complaint but claimed there were no aircraft nearby at the time. Allen, however, disagrees, insisting she saw an airplane fly over just before the excrement began to fall.
Since the incident, more people have come forward with similar stories, prompting Transport Canada to launch an official investigation. Experts suggest the cause may be the “blue ice” phenomenon. This occurs when sewage or other liquids freeze on the plane's exterior during high-altitude flights. As the plane descends and temperatures rise, the blue ice melts and falls off.
9. The Discovery of the 'Mother of All Lizards' in the Alps
In a recent edition of the journal Nature, scientists revealed fossils of a prehistoric reptile dubbed the 'mother of all lizards.' This species, Megachirella wachtleri, lived 240 million years ago—75 million years earlier than the previously known oldest lizard fossils.
The fossils were originally found in the Italian Alps two decades ago by amateur fossil hunters and were first described in 2003. However, it wasn't until recently, with the use of high-resolution micro CT scans, that scientists were able to confirm that M. wachtleri is part of Squamata, the largest order of existing land vertebrates, which includes lizards, snakes, and worm lizards.
The age of the fossils didn’t come as a major surprise. Genetic evidence had already suggested that squamates originated around 250 million years ago. However, this latest discovery is the first fossil confirmation to support that theory.
Paper coauthor Michael Caldwell referred to the fossil as a 'Rosetta Stone' for understanding the evolution of the reptile family tree.
8. The Dance Floor Disaster
An FBI agent was trying to impress partygoers with his killer dance moves at a bar in Denver. Unfortunately, things took a dramatic turn when he accidentally shot one of the patrons in the leg after dropping his gun.
The off-duty agent was showing off his moves in front of a crowd when he decided to finish his routine with a backflip. In the process, his gun slipped from its holster and hit the floor. While the gun didn't discharge immediately, the agent rushed to retrieve it, causing the trigger to accidentally go off. The entire incident was caught on video.
The victim was struck in the lower leg but is expected to fully recover. Denver police briefly questioned the FBI agent before handing him over to a supervisor. At present, the agent’s identity remains unknown, as he has not been arrested. Authorities are looking into whether he was intoxicated, which may influence whether criminal charges are brought against him.
7. What Is the Most Revolting Thing in the World?
Nobody enjoys feeling disgusted, but this emotion serves a key evolutionary purpose—it helps us steer clear of potential disease. The parasite-stress theory suggests that our encounters with parasites and diseases throughout history played a significant role in shaping what we find disgusting today and, as a result, what we instinctively avoid.
A study conducted by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) tested this theory. It aimed to identify the things we find most repulsive and determine if there is a link between disgust and the need to avoid disease.
Over 2,500 participants were surveyed and shown 74 disgusting scenarios, like finding a floater in the toilet or watching a man scratch his crotch on the subway. Each scenario was rated on a disgust scale. The study revealed that the most revolting thing to people was infected wounds that produce pus.
The scenarios presented were grouped into six categories: decaying food, lesions, animal vectors, risky sexual behaviors, unusual appearances, and poor hygiene. Each of these could be tied to the possibility of infections. Researchers see this as part of a pathogen detection system we evolved through our behavioral responses to avoid harmful organisms that we can’t directly see.
6. Picasso's Painting Uncovers Hidden Artwork
Using infrared imaging technology, researchers uncovered hidden layers beneath a Picasso painting, revealing a surprising discovery—a newspaper page and an unseen piece of artwork by the Spanish master.
The painting, titled Mother and Child by the Sea, was completed by Picasso around 1902. It is currently displayed at the Pola Museum of Art in Hakone, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. A team led by John Delaney from the National Gallery of Art in Washington digitally stripped away the layers, uncovering a clear image of a previous painting showing a woman sitting next to a glass of absinthe with a spoon.
While it’s not uncommon for Picasso to reuse canvases, the revelation of a 1902 edition of the French newspaper Le Journal underneath the painting is more mysterious. It’s possible that Picasso used the paper to conceal other layers, suggesting there may be even more artwork hidden below.
Art historians are especially intrigued by this discovery due to its timing, which coincides with Picasso's move from Paris to Barcelona. It is believed the artist relocated in early January, though the date of the newspaper seems to conflict with this.
5. Asteroid Heads Toward Earth
In the early hours of Saturday, astronomers from the Catalina Sky Survey in Tucson, Arizona, made a shocking discovery—an asteroid was heading directly for Earth. With only a few hours to spare, the space rock, traveling at a speed of 17 kilometers per second (10 mps), was on track to collide with our planet. Was this the end of the world?
Spoiler alert: It wasn’t. Fortunately, the asteroid, named 2018 LA, measured just 2 meters (6.6 ft) in diameter. It entered Earth's atmosphere above Botswana in Africa and disintegrated into a fiery ball, burning up entirely before reaching the surface. Instead of disaster, it offered a spectacular light show, which was captured on video and quickly spread across the internet.
Paul Chodas, manager of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), noted that this was only the third time an asteroid on a collision path with Earth had been discovered, and just the second time we had predicted the impact ahead of time.
4. How To Wear A 13-Ton Hat
The moai statues of Easter Island are legendary, yet their origins remain largely a mystery. Built between the 13th and 15th centuries, the true purpose, construction methods, and backstory of these remarkable statues have been lost to time.
Some of the moai are topped with hat-like features known as pukao. These are crafted from volcanic rock called scoria, each weighing about 13 tons. Like the statues themselves, the pukao have prompted many questions: What do they represent? Why are they shaped differently? Are they hats or perhaps topknots? And why do fewer than 100 moai wear them?
Scientists believe they have uncovered one of the mysteries surrounding the pukao: how they were placed atop the statues. Archaeologists had long believed that the cylinders were rolled from quarries, based on wear marks on the sides. But how were they lifted onto statues as tall as 10 meters (33 feet)?
Anthropologist Sean Hixon from The Pennsylvania State University believes he has found the answer, supported by archaeological evidence. Despite their varying shapes, all pukao feature an indentation at the base that fits the statues' heads. This suggests they weren't slid into place, but instead levered upward and tilted onto the moai. Researchers have pointed to rounded stones near some statues, which they believe are remnants of ramps made of stone and soil that were used to roll the hats into position. With precise calculations, this method would only require a team of 15 people to set the pukao in place.
3. Scientists Discover Oldest Footprints Ever
A group of Chinese paleontologists working in the Three Gorges region along the Yangtze River have unveiled the discovery of the oldest footprints ever found.
The footprints are preserved in limestone dating back between 551 and 541 million years, from the late Ediacaran Period. The creature responsible for the tracks remains unidentified, though scientists suspect it was bilaterian, meaning it had paired appendages. It is likely an ancient relative of arthropods or annelids.
The footprints are tiny, measuring about 1 to 2 millimeters in size with a gap of 4 millimeters between them. However, since the number of leg pairs of the creature that made them cannot be determined, these dimensions don't allow scientists to estimate the creature's overall size.
The tracks appear to be linked to several burrows. While paleontologists think they were created by the same creature, they also observed a slight misalignment where the footprints meet the burrows, making it hard to confirm this. If indeed one animal is behind both, its burrowing habits could tentatively identify it as part of an already discovered ichnogenus called Lamonte trevallis.
2. Achilles Predicts The World Cup
With the World Cup fast approaching, some fans just can't wait for the final to see who claims the trophy. Fortunately, Achilles is here to predict the outcome.
Achilles, a deaf white cat residing at the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, earned his title as a World Cup soothsayer after successfully predicting three out of four matches during last year’s Confederations Cup. His only misstep was with the match that ended in a draw, as he was only given the option to pick a winner by choosing from bowls marked with the flags of competing countries.
It remains to be seen whether Achilles can live up to the legacy of his predecessor, Paul the octopus, who became famous for making predictions during the 2010 World Cup with an impressive accuracy rate of 85.7%.
1. The Pickle Lawsuit
What exactly is a pickle? Is it simply a pickled cucumber, or does it refer to any vegetable preserved in brine or vinegar? This is the central question behind a lawsuit currently unfolding in Texas. A farming couple, Anita and Jim McHaney, are suing the Department of State Health Services to redefine what constitutes a 'pickle.'
The McHaneys earned their living selling fresh produce at a local farmers' market. A significant portion of their income came from pickling their surplus, typically including beets and okra. However, they discovered they were inadvertently violating Texas’ Cottage Food Law in the process.
The law provides an exemption for certain types of home-produced food from the requirements that apply to food service establishments. This allows small-town farmers to sell their produce without the burden of complying with commercial regulations. Updated in 2013, the law lists various food items, including pickles, but defines pickles exclusively as cucumbers.
Anyone who sells pickled vegetables other than cucumbers under these regulations could face fines of up to $25,000. A law firm has taken up the McHaneys' case pro bono, challenging the state to amend the definition of 'pickle' to include a broader range of pickled vegetables.
