China has become the first nation to gather samples from the Moon’s far side after the Chang’e-6 mission’s re-entry capsule touched down in Inner Mongolia yesterday. Containing 4.4 pounds of rocks and dust—known officially as ‘regolith,’ the sample-return mission has been hailed as a milestone achievement by scientists who eagerly await what geological secrets the […] The post China’s Lunar Probe Returns World’s First Samples from Far Side of the Moon appeared first on Good News Network.

The post How to Make Catnip Tea for Cats: 6 Vet-Reviewed Easy Recipes by Misty Layne appeared first on Catster. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it, but all of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, so they aren't considered public domain. However, we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article, then linking out to the rest of the piece on Catster.com. Important Note: Cats must always have access to fresh water. Catnip tea should only be offered as an occasional treat if your cat enjoys it, larger amounts can cause digestive upset. Seek advice from your veterinarian before offering your cat new foods and treats, as they may not be appropriate or safe for all cats depending on their age, underlying health or any medication they are on. Sometimes, you want to spice up your kitty’s diet. After all, eating and drinking the same thing day in and day out must be boring, right? But you know you shouldn’t give your cat a ton of treats, and you know people food is definitely out of the question. So, how can you give your pet a nice change of pace when it comes to what they eat or drink? With catnip tea! Wait, tea for cats? Yep. This tea is made with catnip (which we know most kitties adore) and offers your cat a refreshing alternative to plain, boring water (which should entice them to drink more). You can make catnip tea in a variety of ways (not all of them are exactly tea), but no matter how you make it, your cat should be thrilled with the drink. The 6 Easy Recipes for Catnip Tea for Cats 1. Catster Recipe – Simple Catnip Tea Print Simple Catnip Tea As the name of this recipe indicates, this is the simplest, most basic form of catnip tea that you can make. It only involves two ingredients and only takes a few minutes to complete! When it comes to the catnip, it’s advisable to start with a small pinch first to see if your cat likes the tea. If they do, you can add another pinch next time. Course AnytimeCuisine Drinks Prep Time 2 minutes minutesCook Time 5 minutes minutesTotal Time 7 minutes minutes Servings 2 EquipmentPot or kettleMug or bowl for serving Ingredients1 cup Water1 pinch Dried or fresh catnip InstructionsBoil waterAdd catnip to a mug or bowlOnce the water has boiled, pour it over the catnipLet the tea steep for 3 minutesLet the tea cool, then serve to the cat 2. Honey, The Cat’s Dipped The Nip Again (Catnip Tea) Image Credit: Benyamin Bohlouli, Unsplash This fun recipe spices up the original catnip tea recipe above with the addition of chicken broth. Catnip tea alone might make your kitty go wild, but add some tasty chicken broth, and you’ve got a drink sure to delight even the pickiest of felines. Choose chicken broth that is specifically made for cats. Calories: 0 kcal. Number of Servings: 4 Difficulty Level: Easy Ingredients: 1 cup warm water 3 tsp dried or fresh catnip 1/4 tsp instant powdered cat-safe chicken broth (no or low sodium, no onions or garlic) Equipment: Container with a lid Instructions: Place the water in the container. Add the other ingredients. Shake until broth is dissolved and catnip has tinted the water green. Serve 1/4 cup to your cat. Refrigerate the leftovers. Warm the leftovers just a touch before serving. 3. Iced Catnip Tea Image Credit: StockSnap, Shutterstock Iced catnip tea is essentially the original recipe, just with ice. Or rather tea that has been strained over ice, in this case. Going with iced catnip tea saves you waiting for the tea to cool down and ensures your kitty doesn’t burn their tongue! Calories: 0 kcal. Number of Servings: 4 Difficulty Level: Easy Ingredients: 17 oz water 2–3 tsp organic catnip Ice Equipment: Pot Sieve Instructions: Boil water, then remove from heat. Add catnip and let brew for 5 minutes. Strain the tea over ice using the sieve. Serve the tea to your cat. 4. Catnip Tea Ice Cubes Image Credit: cottonbro, pexels If your kitty isn’t digging catnip tea in a bowl, or you just want to make things more fun for them, you can make catnip tea ice cubes! These fun frozen treats are perfect for hot days and are a great way to add extra water to your cat’s day. Calories: 0 kcal. Number of Servings: 12 Difficulty Level: Easy Ingredients: Amount of hot water your ice cube tray will hold 1 tsp dried catnip for every 8 oz of water used Equipment: Pot Ice cube tray Spoon Instructions: Measure how much water your ice cube tray will hold, then boil it. Add 1 teaspoon of catnip for every 8 ounces of water and stir. Let the tea cool. Pour into an ice cube tray and freeze. Serve to kitty. 5. Catnip Ginger Tea Image credit: Pixabay Is your cat suffering from an upset stomach? Then, this catnip ginger tea may help soothe their tummy. Ginger has been used traditionally to help with vomiting and nausea, although too much ginger and catnip can have the opposite effects. Calories: 0 kcal. Number of Servings: 12 Difficulty Level: Easy Ingredients: 1 tsp dried catnip 1 tsp goat milk (or Cat Milk) 1/2 cup hot boiling water Dash of ginger (roughly 1/2 cm of ginger root) Equipment: Tea diffuser Knife Instructions: Take the ginger root and cut roughly 1/2 centimeters off. Slice ginger into tiny pieces. Place ginger pieces and catnip into a tea diffuser. Place the diffuser into hot water and wait about 6 minutes. Add a dash of goat milk or Cat Milk, let cool to room temperature, and serve to your cat. 6. Champagne Tastes Catnip Tea Image Credit: Nennieinszweidrei, Pexels This catnip tea recipe is supposed to be for humans, but with a couple of mild tweaks, you can easily make it cat-friendly. Simply leave out the sugar and honey and ditch the lemon. Then, for the herbal variation, add a cat-friendly herb, such as basil! Calories: 0 kcal. Number of Servings: 4 Difficulty Level: Easy Ingredients: Few pinches of fresh or dry catnip 2 cups water A couple of basil leaves or other cat-friendly herbs Equipment: Pot Wooden spoon Sieve Instructions: Rinse the catnip and herbs. Boil the water. Add the catnip to the pot and muddle with the back of the wooden spoon. Add the herbs. Steep for 10 to 15 minutes. Strain using a sieve. Let cool and serve to the cat. Conclusion Making catnip tea for your cat is a fun way to get them to drink more and let them enjoy the “high” of catnip. Making this kind of tea is incredibly simple and only takes a few minutes to complete; plus, you can make tons of variations to the most basic catnip tea recipe! So, if your kitty is a big catnip fan, try one of these recipes and see how much they enjoy it. Featured Image Credit: TarasBeletskiy, Shutterstock The post How to Make Catnip Tea for Cats: 6 Vet-Reviewed Easy Recipes by Misty Layne appeared first on Catster. Copying over entire articles infringes on copyright laws. You may not be aware of it, but all of these articles were assigned, contracted and paid for, so they aren't considered public domain. However, we appreciate that you like the article and would love it if you continued sharing just the first paragraph of an article, then linking out to the rest of the piece on Catster.com.

News Van Helsing A Contemporary Van Helsing Series Is in the Works No stake is strong enough to kill this character. By Vanessa Armstrong | Published on June 26, 2024 Screenshot: Universal Pictures Comment 0 Share New Share Screenshot: Universal Pictures Elementary showrunner Rob Doherty along with Carl Beverly and Sarah Timberman are producing a show for CBS inspired by Bram Stoker’s vampire hunter Van Helsing. According to Deadline, the series, which is appropriately titled Van Helsing, will be written by Jonathan Lee (Lockerbie). It will take place in present day, and see Van Helsing solving crimes, as vampire hunters are wont to do. The logline, per Deadline, is as follows: Dr. Abraham Van Helsing uses his uniquely inquisitive mind working alongside his ex, relentless FBI special agent Mina Harker, to solve New York City’s most harrowing cases. Just soak that in! Van Helsing is solving crimes with an FBI agent who happens to be his ex-girlfriend! In New York City! It’s not clear whether these crimes are supernatural and/or X-Files in nature, but it seems likely given the show is based on characters from Dracula. This, of course, is far from the first time we’ve seen Van Helsing on screen. In 2004, Hugh Jackman played the character in a feature film (pictured above), and SYFY ran a series—also called Van Helsing—for five seasons. In that show, vampires had taken over the world and Van Helsing’s descendant, Vanessa, had the power (in her blood, of course) to thwart them. No news yet on who will be playing the leads in this latest concoction based on Stoker’s work, much less when it will premiere on CBS. [end-mark] The post A Contemporary Van Helsing Series Is in the Works appeared first on Reactor.

Excerpts Young Adult Read an Excerpt From Meriam Metoui’s Portrait of a Shadow A missing sister. A mysterious boy. And a painting that holds the truth beneath its peeling edge… By Meriam Metoui | Published on June 26, 2024 Comment 0 Share New Share We’re thrilled to share an excerpt from Meriam Metoui’s Portrait of a Shadow, a new young adult horror novel out from Henry Holt & Co on July 16th. Inez is missing, but missing things can always be found.Mae knows this as a fact, even though the police investigation has come to a standstill, even though her parents are moving on. But when she goes to clear out her older sister’s studio, she finds a mess of research and a white canvas that seems even older than the ornate frame it is set in. The closer Mae gets to the canvas, the more difficult it is to pull her eyes away from its mottled surface, its heavy layers of white paint, its peeling top corner she is tempted to pull to see what’s beneath. But she doesn’t. Not yet.Mae decides to trace her sister’s last steps in the hopes of finding answers, certain that Inez’s disappearance is related to the painting. And she knows she is desperate enough to let the strange boy who claims to have been Inez’s neighbor tag along. Even if his good looks don’t help distract from his avoidance of her questions. So begins a scavenger hunt piecing together what they can find from what Inez left behind. One that leads to centuries-old questions best left unasked and secrets best kept in the dark. Chapter 8 SEPTEMBER 6, 1891 12:36 A.M. In the shadows of the woods lives a woman with no name. If one knows what to look for, they can separate her from the trees. Can pick out branches from limbs and hair from leaves. They can look into the darkness and see her looking back, two onyx eyes formidable in their ferocity. But no one knows to look and so no one sees the woman with no name. When she ventures out of the woods, she spills into spaces like water. Falls through fingers and away from curious eyes before anyone can make sense of her. Unless, that is, she wants them to. Unless she sets her gaze on them and does not let go. It is desire that draws her out, a want as staggering as her own imposing power. Tonight, she can sense it and is almost over- whelmed by it, inundated by its sheer force. Dev Sharma is fortunate enough to be seen. Though fortu- nate is a strong word and, depending on who you ask, entirely inaccurate. You see, the woman with no name knows much more of you than you know of her. In Dev she sees desperation. A simmering kind that lives just beneath his skin. A well of yearning so deep, she cannot see its bottom. In a way, their crossing paths were inevitable, fated. As pow- erful as she was, she was so intensely drawn to his infinite well of want that she chose him as much as a moth can choose to turn toward flame. Buy the Book Portrait of a Shadow Meriam Metoui Buy Book Portrait of a Shadow Meriam Metoui Buy this book from: AmazonBarnes and NobleiBooksIndieBoundTarget The woman with no name steps out of the dark, and there, at the edge of a pendulum, her eyes meet Dev’s. He hears the voice first. “You want something.” Dev turns to see a woman made of shadows. He blinks and she steps forward into the moonlight. He is unsure if he is the target of this woman’s attention. But he walks home alone at night along the edge of the Wildwood, and there isn’t a soul but his for miles. He notes her bare feet, the white cloud of hair that surrounds her. It wraps around her shoulders and ends at her waist, one soft, hazy storm as if she has meticulously brushed out every curl. But it’s her black, dark-as-night eyes that entrance him, rooting him in place. He couldn’t escape her if he tried. It will take him a lifetime to learn that, to know this moment was inevitable. He opens his mouth, though he does not know what to say, only continues to take her in; but she is an ocean, and he is a cup. He will never truly fathom her. She steps closer, close enough to touch, and he understands she is more creature than human. More wild than woman. He knows, the moment their eyes lock, whatever she and he are made of, they are not the same. “You want something,” she repeats. Her voice is low, smooth, and it wafts in the air, so he can’t quite make out the source, even though the woman stands before him. She leans in closer, enough that he can feel her cold breath against his cheek, and whispers, “Escape.” His eyes go wide, as if she has pressed her finger to a bruise, and he is afraid to admit he understands. “What you seek lies beyond this town. Beyond its borders and all they hold. It is a painting made of want and there it lies in wait. Find Delphine Lefroy. Find her painting, and what you seek most shall find you.” He does not know what else to do but nod. “Be warned,” she adds as she drifts around him. “It will give, yes, but only as much as it takes.” Dev does not think to question her. He takes this as fact, as if he’s known it all along. It is not until later, when she’s van- ished into the woods, that he wonders if this was all one lucid, walking dream. If she ever existed to begin with. But existence is a fickle thing, and Dev does not yet understand he is asking the wrong questions. The woman with no name is made of shadows once again, her silhouette barely perceptible in the darkness. He blinks, and the only trace left of her is the chill down his spine from her cold breath against his cheek. Chapter 9 JULY 17, 2024 9:34 P.M. That’s it? You’re not going to explain?” Mae asks. Again. He drives in silence, avoiding any questions he isn’t in the mood to answer, which, so far, has been all of them. “You’re really not going to tell me why we ran out of there? Or who that guy was? Or where we’re even going?” “I told you. I didn’t trust Ava. She was up to something and I had a bad feeling about it. I trusted my gut and got us out of there.” “And I told you I don’t believe you. There’s something else. You know more than you’re letting on.” She is met with more silence. “Fine. I can make my own guesses. Clearly, the guy at the door is the brother you mentioned, the one you don’t talk to. If you want to tell me I’m wrong, you can, but it’s unlikely I’ll believe you.” His jaw clenches in the dimming light, and she takes that as a sign she’s right so far. “You owe him money.” Here his shoulders relax. Okay, Mae thinks, so she’s off base. “You killed his dog. You burned his house down. You slept with his girlfriend. No. His boyfriend,” Mae says in mock hor- ror. “How could you?” He smiles before he catches himself a second too late. “I promise I want to tell you, Mae. I do. But I just—I can’t. For right now, I need you to trust that I have my reasons and they would be valid had I said them out loud.” She isn’t sure what to say to that. It is honesty she is asking for, and here he is being as honest as he is capable of. It just isn’t enough. Mae doesn’t care about the reasons he’s with- holding the truth. All she cares about is finding Inez, and here he is taking her farther away from answers Ava could have had, answers that his brother, who she’s now realizing must be connected to all this somehow, has. His showing up was as good of a lead as she was going to get, and Dev robbed her of where it would have taken them. She’s been patient, she’s tried to keep the conversation light, but he doesn’t deserve her generosity. This boy who she’s trusted too easily. She studies his profile: the sharp slope of his nose, the soft dip of his mouth. It dawns on her that she’s let her shallow feelings, his lingering gaze and easy smile, distract her from the only thing that matters. Finding her sister, the only person she’s ever really cared for, that ever saw her truly. Inez. Why had she so easily believed that he wanted the same thing? Is it possible that he is here only to keep her from the truth? Whatever it is? “It’s late, I’m just driving to a motel for the night until we can figure out what to do next. Is that okay?” He tears his eyes away from the road and glances at her, waiting for her approval. His eyes are kind and pleading and she wants so badly to trust them. To trust him. But the voice in her head is too loud now. She nods and he turns back to the road just in time to make the exit he needs. Two hours after they floor it out of Ava’s, they find them- selves in a motel just outside Montreal. It’s set close to the road and the parking lot is full. It’s not exactly what she expects. After all, Dev has the money—they could have been in another hotel calling room service. But instead she finds herself staring at a run-down two-story building with a flickering vacancy sign in the office window. Not exactly the Ritz. “I’ll go get us two rooms,” Dev says as he puts the car in park. “Do you want to grab your things? Inez might have clothes you can borrow for the night.” Mae nods, noting his use of borrow instead of have. It is only a matter of time before she comes back for her things, he seems to say. This morning she would have thought it sweet, would have appreciated the distinction, but now she wonders if he’s simply clever enough to use the right words, to make her think he’s on her side. He heads inside, and she grabs her backpack before opening the trunk to look through the poorly packed boxes and suitcases. A part of Mae breaks in two as she opens a suitcase full of Inez’s clothes. But she shoves that piece deeper, knowing that feelings like these don’t align with the reality she has created for herself, one that has her borrowing her sister’s things. She closes her eyes. Takes a deep breath, and it is a mistake. The scent of Inez’s perfume fills her nostrils, and all she wants to do is let the rest of her fall apart too. Excerpted from Portrait of a Shadow, copyright © 2024 by Meriam Metoui. The post Read an Excerpt From Meriam Metoui’s <i>Portrait of a Shadow</i> appeared first on Reactor.

If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The United Nations has unveiled the latest in a series of censorship initiatives, this one dubbed, the Global Principles for Information Integrity. Neither the problems nor the solutions, as identified by the principles, are anything new; rather, they sound like regurgitated narratives heard from various nation-states, only this time lent the supposed clout of the UN and its chief, Antonio Guterres. The topic is, “harm from misinformation and disinformation, and hate speech” – and this is presented with a sense of urgency, calling for immediate action from, once again, the usual group of entities that are supposed to execute censorship: governments, tech companies, media, advertisers, PR firms. They are at once asked not to use or amplify “disinformation and hate speech” and then also combat it with some tried-and-tested tools: essentially algorithm manipulation (by “limiting algorithmic amplification”), labeling content, and the UN did not stop short of recommending demonetizing the “offenders.” Presenting the plan on Monday, Guterres made the obligatory mention of doing all that while “at the same time upholding human rights such as freedom of speech.” According to the UN secretary-general, billions of people are currently in grave danger due to exposure to lies and false narratives (but he doesn’t specify what kind). However, that becomes fairly clear as he goes on to mention that action is needed to “safeguard democracy, human rights, public health, and climate action.” Guterres also spoke about alleged conspiracy theories and a “tsunami of falsehoods” that he asserts are putting UN peacekeepers at risk. This is interesting not only because of the tone and narrative the UN chief chose to go with but also as a reminder that peacekeeping, rather than policing social platforms and online speech, used to be one of the UN’s primary reasons for existing and spending money member-countries taxpayer money. Guterres revealed that the principles stand against algorithms deciding what people see online (another attack on YouTube, etc., recommendations system, for all the wrong reasons?). But he reassures his audience the idea is to “prioritize safety and privacy over advertising,” i.e., profit. The next thing Guterres wants these decidedly for-profit behemoths, including advertisers, to do is make sure tech companies keep them abreast so as not to “end up inadvertently funding disinformation or hateful messaging.” According to him, the principles are there to “empower people to demand their rights, help protect children, ensure honest and trustworthy information for young people, and enable public interest-based media to convey reliable and accurate information.” If you're tired of censorship and dystopian threats against civil liberties, subscribe to Reclaim The Net. The post UN Project Aims To Combat “Misinformation,” “Hate Speech,” Recommends Algorithmic Censorship and Demonetization appeared first on Reclaim The Net.

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Researchers in Spain have discovered the remains of a Neanderthal child displaying a number of traits that are consistent with Down syndrome. However, unlike other prehistoric individuals with the condition, the youngster didn’t die as a baby, indicating that both the child and its mother received ongoing care and support from the rest of their ancient tribe.The study authors came across the incredible find when analyzing bones that were originally unearthed way back in 1989 at the paleolithic site of Cova Negra in Valencia. Among these fossils were several inner ear fragments showing congenital malformations that would likely have caused hearing loss and vertigo. “The only syndrome that is compatible with the entire set of malformations present in [the remains] is Down syndrome,” write the researchers. “It is therefore notable that the individual… lived to at least six years of age, which far exceeds the usual life expectancy of children with Down syndrome in prehistoric population[s],” they continue.Indeed, Down syndrome is the most common human genetic disorder and is also seen in great apes, yet survival beyond infancy is thought to have been rare prior to the modern era. Among chimpanzees, one particularly moving case has been described in which a baby with Down syndrome was cared for by its mother and sister but died before the age of two.Among our own species, five prehistoric cases of Down syndrome have been documented between 3629 and 400 BCE, with none of these individuals living longer than 16 months.Based on the size and developmental stage of the bones from Cova Negra, however, the study authors conclude that this particular child was between six and seven years old at the time of death. “It is reasonable to think that the long survival of [this child] could only have occurred because it received continuous care and attention during that time,” they write.Providing a little more detail on the nature of this support, the researchers explain that “because of the demanding lifestyle of Neanderthals, including high levels of mobility, it is difficult to think that the mother of the individual would have been able to provide such care alone and also carry out normal daily activities over a prolonged period of time. It is likely, therefore, that the mother required the continuous help of other members of the social group, either for assistance in performing other daily tasks (or to relieve her from performing them) or to directly assist in providing the necessary care for the child, or both.”Such conclusions contribute massively to the discussion surrounding the origins of empathetic and humanitarian behaviors within the Homo lineage. While evidence for caregiving among Neanderthals has been documented in the past, some anthropologists have argued that this emerged as a kind of self-interested pact between individuals who could return the favor.Yet the authors of the new study say their case “is particularly interesting because social care was destined to an immature individual who had no possibility to reciprocate the assistance received.” This, in turn, strengthens the argument that caregiving among Neanderthals has its roots in true altruism, rather than stemming from a need to secure future services from indebted individuals.Putting these findings into context, the researchers say their findings indicate that “caregiving and collaborative parenting occurred together in Neanderthals and that both prosocial behaviors were part of a broader social adaptation of high selective value that must have been very similar to that of our species.”The study is published in the journal Science Advances.

A baby elephant dancing its heart out on a dirt road in South Africa has taken the internet by storm. Filmed at the Sabi Sands game reserve bordering the famous Kruger National Park, this video captures the sheer joy and energy of a young elephant, charming viewers with its adorable antics. The clip has become... The post Baby elephant’s dance moves are too cute for tourists to ignore appeared first on Animal Channel.