Author: Lisa Mungovan

Alyssa Clark had been training for a marathon, when COVID-19 caused it to be cancelled. She decided to run a marathon on her treadmill instead. Every day. For 100 days. She’s on Day 89, of running 26.2 miles per day. The previous record for consecutive marathons was 60, so at least she wins a world record.

Bees, butterflies, and other pollinators are essential to crops. Farmers depend on bees, to grow the food that feeds the world. Unfortunately, bee populations keep declining, so researchers are looking for alternatives. One solution, is to float pollen in soap bubbles, delivered by tiny drones. That sounds much harder, than being kind to bees.

NASA is planning a mission for 20 22, called the Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART. They plan to crash a spacecraft into a small moon, that’s orbiting the asteroid Didymos. In anticipation of such a cool-sounding mission, they’ve changed the moon’s name to Dimorphos. A Falcon 9 rocket will ram it, to knock Dimorphos off course.

Have you heard of Summersgiving? The Saturday after the first day of summer, have an American-Thanksgiving-style feast! Add a few special items, to celebrate Ice Cream Cake Day, Pineapple Day, Onion Day, and Orange Blossom Day. Eat it outside, because it’s also Sunglasses Day. Don’t forget pumpkin pie! It’ll be a feast to remember.

It’s Pride Day, 50 years after the first Pride march was held in New York City. Today, and throughout June, the LGBTQ community and their supporters, celebrate their true selves. LGBTQ stands for lesbian-gay-bi-trans-queer. Whether you’re a boy, girl, or in-between, no matter who you love, or how you dress, be proud to be you.

Sharonville Ohio residents, have noticed orange dust on the sidewalk. It’s not leftover Cheetos, or the Saharan dust cloud that’s making its way across the ocean. It’s just a fungus falling from pear trees. Gymnosporangium clavipes, the cedar-quince rust fungus, isn’t harmful, but it might stain your shoes, so watch where you walk.

A home for seniors in Brazil, has solved the problem of how to hug your grandparents, during a pandemic. They created a hug tunnel. The tunnel is made of clear, thick plastic sheeting, with arm holes built in. Visitors can hug their loved ones, knowing the plastic will keep any germs from spreading.

Is your dog afraid of fireworks, or thunderstorms? Ford Motor Company used noise-cancellation technology built for vehicles in Europe, to design a quiet kennel for dogs. It’s like a soundproof tent, to calm your dog. Unfortunately, they’re not for sale yet, so try a loud fan and lots of pillows, to block out scary noises.

It’s Chocolate Pudding Day! I wish I had a whole lake full of chocolate pudding. Since it’s also Canoe Day, I’d get in a canoe and paddle around, splashing everyone with pudding! It’s Coconut Day as well, so my imaginary lake has coconut palm trees growing around it. It’s fun to imagine weird things!

Woof woof! Bark-bark, growl. Oops, it’s Take Your Dog To Work Day, and I guess my dog thought he was supposed to do my work! Such a good doggie! It’s also World Refrigeration Day. Before refrigerators, people used ice houses. Snow or ice blocks would stay cool under sawdust. Caves work great too.