Halti 🦉🎨🥂

It's not about what everyone is screaming. It's more important to look at what's happening when some go silent. Silence speaks volumes

Easily the science news of the day

Never forget this photo of all the workers who spent more than five years restoring the Notre-Dame Cathedral.

Wishing a happy Year of the Fire Horse to all who celebrate! And look at the beautiful books that one of my Chinese students gave me

Here’s a useful reminder of what our federal courts SHOULD be doing to uphold our constitutional traditions: nytimes.com/interactive/20…

If Congress doesn’t act, the last nuclear arms control treaty between the U.S. and Russia will expire. It would pointlessly wipe out decades of diplomacy, and could spark another arms race that makes the world less safe. This piece is worth the read. nytimes.com/2026/01/30/opi…

You are looking at a creature that watched the continents drift apart. 🌍 The Feather Star (Crinoid) has been here for 400+ million years.

The level of detail in the clothing in Rembrandt’s 1639 painting is astonishing.

BRIAN MAY QUIETLY WALKED INTO A SMALL RESCUE SHELTER ON THE BRINK OF CLOSING — WITH JUST 48 HOURS LEFT BEFORE EVERY CAT INSIDE WOULD BE PUT DOWN The bills were overdue. Donations had dried up. The owner had run out of options. In less than 48 hours, 39 cats were scheduled to be euthanized—not because they were sick or aggressive, but because there was nowhere left for them to go. Then, without cameras, a film crew, or any announcement, Brian May walked through the door. Known to millions as the legendary guitarist of Queen and a lifelong animal-rights advocate, Brian didn’t ask for recognition. He didn’t lead with his iconic status. Dressed simply, with his familiar calm presence, he walked straight to the back of the shelter—to the quietest row of enclosures, where the oldest and weakest cats lay unnoticed. There, curled up in the corner of a worn blanket, was an 11-year-old tabby mix named Buddy. Too tired to lift his head. Too old to be adopted. Too close to the end. Brian knelt beside him, his gentle hands resting softly on the cat’s head. He spoke quietly, careful not to startle him. For several moments, he said nothing at all. Then he looked up at the owner and asked softly, “How many cats are here?” “Thirty-nine,” the owner replied, her voice breaking. Brian nodded. No hesitation. No phone calls to assistants. He said calmly—with a steady certainty that stilled the room: “All 39 cats deserve a future.” What followed felt unreal to the shelter staff. The very next morning, delivery trucks began arriving. New bedding and climate-safe flooring. High-quality food and medical supplies. Scratching posts, grooming stations, and enrichment areas. Every enclosure was repaired and restored. All outstanding debts were paid in full. Veterinarians were brought in to examine every single animal. Above each enclosure, a small wooden sign appeared: “Forever home — with love from Brian.” But the moment that brought everyone to tears came from the quietest corner of the room. Buddy was being lifted gently for a checkup when Brian stepped forward. “I’ll take him,” he said. The room went silent. Buddy—overlooked for a decade—finally belonged. “He’s waited long enough,” Brian said later, a soft smile on his face. “I think it’s time he came home.” Brian May didn’t post about it. He didn’t mention it on stage. He didn’t call the press. The story surfaced days later when a volunteer, overwhelmed by what she’d witnessed, decided people needed to know. He didn’t just save a shelter. He didn’t just save cats. He saved 39 lives—and reminded the world that compassion doesn’t need applause. Sometimes, the greatest acts of kindness happen when the spotlight is off.

January 15 1919: Boston's Great Molasses Flood Deadly serious, not funny: 21 dead, 150 injured, property damage of more than $100,000,000 in current dollars Capitalist owners blamed anarchist radicals, but the real cause was their own criminal negligence. massmoments.org/moment-details…

Stunning 820 years old linden tree in the Czech Republic

Elusive. Ethereal. Endangered. With barely 10,000 left in the wild and scattered sightings in NE India, the Clouded Leopard is our most secretive big cat. Here, a rare glimpse ~ a mother with her cubs, guardians of an ancient rainforest. A sight so rare that it’s mythical. #WildlifePhotography #NaturePhotography #Wildlife #Leopards #CloudedLeopards

❄️🐻‍❄️ Finally some positive news from Hungary. As record cold and snow hit Central Europe, polar bear cubs at Nyíregyháza Zoo are seeing real snow for the very first time in their lives. (Video by the zoo.)

A bug’s perspective.

Starling in its autumn plumage. 📸 Credit: IG/wallmika ©️

A handmade paper phoenix that looks like a real bird

I heard some old friends at @PodSaveAmerica were in town, so I decided to stop by. As we saw this week, we can change this country for the better. But it’s going to take all of us getting organized and having honest conversations about the best way forward.

Photograph of a dragonfly covered in morning dew.

Some doors you never forget opening. This is one of them.

Beshear: Let me be clear. The president has both the funding and the authority to fund snap during a shutdown. In fact, every other president in every other shutdown has done so. People going hungry in this instance is a choice that this president has made.

Two days before his assassination, JFK’s administration demanded Israel allow all Palestinians displaced in 1948 to return home. It would have eventually ended Israel’s Jewish majority. The Prime Minister vowed to “fight it to the last man.” Two days later, JFK was killed.