ICHIKAWA, Japan (AP) – Punch the baby orphan macaque is outgrowing the orangutan plushie that comforted him through early rejection from his mother and other monkeys. Images of Punch dragging around the toy bigger than him drew attention to the residents of a zoo near Tokyo. When other monkeys shooed the baby away, Punch rushed back to the toy orangutan.
WASHINGTON (AP) – “Exercise your brain,” experts advise people hoping to stave off dementia. But how? Stretching your brain might be the better description.Do a crossword puzzle a day and you may just get good at crosswords. Instead, research increasingly shows that a variety of habits and hobbies are like a cognitive workout.
DURHAM, N.Y. (AP) – Shoppers in upstate New York earlier this month turned up a rare find while perusing a local antique store this month: tucked next to a cookie jar made in the shape of a chicken was a live owl resting peacefully on a shelf.
SAO PAULO (AP) – Pugapia and her daughters Aiga and Babawru lived for years as the only surviving members of the Akuntsu, an Indigenous people decimated by a government-backed push to develop parts of the Amazon rainforest. As they advanced in age without a child to carry on the line, many expected the Akuntsu to vanish when the women died.
FLOREANA ISLAND, Ecuador (AP) – Nearly 150 years after the last giant tortoises were removed from Floreana Island in Ecuador’s Galápagos archipelago, the species made a comeback Friday, when dozens of juvenile hybrids were released to begin restoring the island’s depleted ecosystem.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Cradling his newborn daughter in his lap in their Indianapolis home, JaKobi Burton’s love for the new lady in his life is evident with each caress. The first-time dad’s commitment started months earlier. Burton attended every medical appointment and took classes with Dads to Doulas.
Instagram said Thursday it will start alerting parents if their kids repeatedly search for terms clearly associated with suicide or self-harm. The alerts will only go to parents who are enrolled in Instagram’s parental supervision program.
FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) – An injured mother manatee and her calf were rescued this week from a river in Florida and taken to SeaWorld Orlando for rehabilitation, officials said. Drone pilots provided the rescuers with an aerial view, guiding their boat toward the manatees on Wednesday.
Refilling a bottle instead of throwing it away has become a popular way for people to reduce waste – a small, tangible action in response to larger environmental problems. But whether refilling actually makes a difference depends on how these systems are used and what they replace. Scores of refill stores have opened in recent years.