The Punch Brothers played a cover of “The Imperial March” from Star Wars as a twangy bluegrass song. Videographer Bill Hutt captured this incredible performance at Archer Music Hall in Allentown, Pennsylvania, in May 2026.

Punch Brothers Live – The Imperial March – Archer Music Hall Allentown, PA 5/15/2026

The band also played this cover at DelFest 2026 in Cumberland, Maryland.

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Musician Brendan Goh quite cleverly spoke to his cat with the dulcet sound of his cello, instantly mimicking the chatty feline’s voice at every step.

I play cat

Goh Also Plays Dog on the Cello

Guitarist Mimics Cat

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Cameron Duke of MinuteEarth shared the story of a high-flying Rüppell’s griffon vulture who was hit by a plane at 11,000 meters (36,089 feet) in 1973 to illustrate how high certain birds can fly and how long they can stay aloft.

There are two things that limit how high a bird can fly. Its ability to stay aloft as the air pressure decreases. And on a much more basic level, its ability to stay alive as the temperature and amount of oxygen decreases.

Larger birds are better able to fly higher without running out of oxygen than small birds, and their larger wings allow for greater soaring ability as measured by Lift Coefficient and the Square-Cube Law.

Lift Coefficient: A dimensionless number that represents how effectively a wing generates lift based on its shape and angle. The higher the coefficient, the more lift produced.

Square Cube Law: A principle stating that as an object increases in size, its volume grows much faster than its surface area. This affects heat loss/gain and strength, impacting flight feasibility

These factors, plus the benefit of thermal columns, make the Rüppell’s griffon vulture the world’s highest flying bird

A bird we know for a fact can fly higher than 11,000 m. Our math suggests that it is lift-limited a lot lower than that, about 8,200 m. But this is where theoretical calculations fall short without some additional real-world knowledge. See, the Ruples Griffin like to soar on thermals, warm columns of rising air that can help birds exceed their mathematical lift limit, sometimes even thousands of extra meters up into the air. 

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A border collie named Milo (“King of Fetch”), who lives in the British seaside town of Staithes in North Yorkshire, England, is quite well known in the area (and on social media) for successfully completing any search-and-fetch challenges his devoted human proposes.

Milo, the Undisputed King of Fetch. From his kingdom in Staithes to feeds all around the world. 

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Craven Moorhaus and Zak Koonce, the prolific team behind Auralnauts, who previously portrayed the stand-alone Star Wars series Andor as an opening sequence for a faux 1975 television movie, reimagined the same series with an extended 1982 television intro.

The long awaited Season 2 followup to Andor 1975.

Andor 1975

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CRABS Historical Fencing in Nova Scotia cleverly combines fencing with roller derby, resulting in lunging swordplay on wheels. An exciting yet dangerous duel that is certainly not for beginners.

At CRABS we are always looking for new and exciting ways to plunge steel into our friends!

via Neatorama

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Andreas Schellenberg and Suryansh Agnivanshi of Everything Explainer compiled a rather chilling list of effective propaganda tricks used to keep people in line and quell resistance. Included in this sadly familiar list are fear, dehumanization, scapegoating, whataboutism, name-calling, emotional appeal, and glittering generalities.

Glittering generalities are words that carry enormous emotional weight but communicate almost no specific content. You cannot oppose freedom. You cannot disagree with values. The moment these words attach to a cause, the warmth transfers automatically. Every political system uses this constantly. Most people never notice.

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A peeking pigeon named Mango turned into various dinosaurs while sitting above the computer screen, which was controlled by her human, Fabian Hummer. Hummer simply found a series of headless dinosaur images that perfectly fit the visage of his dear Mango.

DINOSAUR ! RAWR !

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Global Data created an informative animation that compares whale sizes from smallest to largest, with a human diver traversing the sea alongside them for scale.

We dive deep into the ocean to look at every major whale species side-by-side with a human diver for scale!

The smallest depicted is the Dwarf Sperm Whale at 2.7 meters (8.9 feet), and the largest is the Blue Whale at a massive 30-33 meters (98-108 feet). Also included in the comparison were such rare specimens as Sato’s Beaked Whale, Ramari’s Beaked Whale, and Spade-toothed Beaked Whale.

From the tiny Dwarf Sperm Whale to the mind-bogglingly massive Blue Whale, watch how these marine mammals stack up against each other in real-time animation. We’ve included incredibly rare species like Sato’s Beaked Whale, Ramari’s Beaked Whale, and the elusive Spade-toothed

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A tiny silvereye named Pickle, who was brought back to health by veterinary nurse CeeJay Donovan after being attacked by a cat, recovered enough to be released. Despite this newfound freedom during the day, Pickle decided she’d much rather spend her nights at home, being pampered with grapes and warm baths. Donovan said that Pickle is very much like a teenager.

She’s like a teenager. She comes in, she gets her feed, I do her laundry, she goes away again. If she hasn’t come home by 5:30, I’ll sometimes head outside and start calling her and then she’ll come home realizing that it’s time to come home.

Pickle has come quite a long way since her initial injuries, and Donovan expected her to be gone for good, but Pickle didn’t agree.

Using my nursing skills, I was able to nurse her back to health. After about a month of recovery, I decided to release her, and she stopped coming for about 2 weeks. So I thought, “Okay, great. She’s gone now. She can be a wild bird.” And then one day, 2 weeks later, she was just at the door, like squealing at the door to be led in. And I was like, “Oh my god, it’s Pickle.” So I opened the door, and she flew in to where her cage used to be inside.

Silvereyes are native to New Zealand, where Donovan lives, so she wanted to ensure that she was doing right by Pickle.

I called the wildlife center because she is a native bird, and I thought they would want to take her, but they were totally overwhelmed at the time, and they were like, ” Please, can you just take her?”

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The post Rescued Bird Comes Home Every Night to Be Pampered by Her Devoted Human was originally published on Laughing Squid.

Simon Pegg read a poignant, thought-provoking letter written by Tony Cross in 2004 that apologizes for common misconceptions about penguins, from their perceived fashion sense to the stereotypical soundtracks used in nature documentaries. Cross also expressed regret about their shrinking habitat.

One final note: we are sorry about the ice. We know it is melting. And while we do want to preserve your habitat so we can forever watch your amusing escapades, we have decided instead to slowly cook our world for self-serving purposes. We are truly sorry, penguins. The day will come when we will miss you dearly.

This reading was done at the Letters Live event on Earth Day 2026

At Letters Live on Earth Day 2026, in support of Greenpeace, Simon Pegg joined us to read this funny and poignant letter.

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An in-home caregiver named Tegan Strickland, who was working with a memory care patient, met an adorable yet massively overfed dachshund named Daisy, who was living there as well. Concerned for the dog’s welfare, Tegan offered to take Daisy back home with her to help Daisy slim down, and Miss Daisy’s human agreed.

I became a caretaker for elderly people. And I ended up with this little lady who lives with this little dog that they warned me ahead of time has a little bit of a weight issue. ….Overweight was an understatement. Big time. Unfortunately, the owner of Daisy has dementia, and her memory made it almost impossible to change the deep set habits that had been at play for years with Miss Daisy.

When Daisy first arrived at Tegan’s house, she weighed a whopping 55 pounds, and her health was suffering greatly. Since then, Daisy has lost enough weight to play with her Corgi siblings and enjoy going for walks.

She couldn’t move. She struggled to breathe at times. And it was a hard sight to look at. Daisy has come such a long ways in such a short amount of time. …Her relationship with my dogs has been magical for her. She’s got a specific buddy named Goldie and those two are pretty much inseparable.

Tegan said that Miss Daisy’s attitude, which had always been good, really improved in her new environment.

I think that the mental stimulation of that alone was tremendous for her. The world was so small, and then it opened up to socialization. It opened her up to activities.

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Multi-instrumentalist Chris Calvin Claxton performed a catchy cover of the intro riff to Rage Against the Machine‘s “Killing in the Name” on a sousaphone. While it took Claxton quite a bit of effort, it was worth it in the end.

Apart from this tune taking waaaaayyy too much air out of my lungs, it is fun to get all them low ds sounding phat

Other Rock Covers on Sousaphone and Tuba

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Nepalese athlete Hari Budha Magar, who lost both his legs to an IED while serving in Afghanistan for the British Army, became the world’s first double amputee to climb three of the world’s highest mountains.

In 2023, Magar set the Guinness World Record for climbing Mount Everest, and in 2025, he set the record for climbing Puncak Jaya (Carstenz Pyramid) in Central Papua, Indonesia. In 2026, Magar set another record, this time being the first double-amputee to climb Mount Vinson, the highest peak in Antarctica.

Hari Budha Magar is a Nepali double above-knee amputee and record-breaking mountaineer. On 6th January 2026, he became the first double amputee to complete the Seven Summit challenge after climbing Mount Vinson, Antarctica’s tallest mountain. He is also a Guinness World Records Icon. He shares his inspiring story.

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Comedians Jay Foreman and Mark Cooper-Jones of Map Men quite amusingly explored the historical context and challenges faced by Ferdinand Magellan and Francis Drake, the first two explorers to attempt to circumnavigate the globe.

Two voyages One was an absolute disaster and the other was an absolute disaster. 

The hosts analyzed the geopolitical motivations of each journey, the logistical challenges faced, and the unintended discoveries that defined these perilous 16th-century circumnavigations.

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A beautiful, overfed orange cat named “Pumpkin” found a loving foster home with Chris Seelbach, the President and CEO of SPCA Cincinnati. Pumpkin was surrendered after her human passed away, and Seelbach acted quickly to foster her.

Pumpkin came to the SPCA Cincinnati in mid-March after her owner passed away. She weighed 25 lbs when she came in. My staff kept saying, “Have you seen this cat? She is just so much personality, but she’s really fat.” And so I went down to met her, talked to my husband, and we brought her home.

Seelbach noted that although Pumpkin appears obese, she is not that overweight.

The thing about Pumpkin is that she’s not a large cat. She’s like a regularsized cat that weighs 25 lbs. So, she literally looks like a pumpkin. We have cats that weigh 20some lb, but they’re ginormous cats. Pumpkin is like an average sized cat that ballooned into pumpkin.

Despite her weight, Pumpkin is quite healthy.

She’s gone through all of the blood work and lab work and x-rays and all of the tests have all come back within normal range. So, there’s no underlining medical condition that we know of.

Seelbach and his husband have decided to adopt Pumpkin and help her return to a more comfortable weight.

Pumpkin, we love you. You were meant to be with us. It’s tough that your owner passed and we know that she loved you very much, but things happen for a reason. You’re safe with us. You’re going to have a fantastic rest of your life. Look at Pumpkin. We’re going to get you to the size where you’re more comfortable.You can move around. You can play. Nothing but good things to come. You’re going to have a great life.

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The post Overfed Orange Cat Who Looks Like a Pumpkin Finds a Loving Home With SPCA Cincinnati’s CEO was originally published on Laughing Squid.

French multidisciplinary artist Amédæe created a really entertaining electronic bird feeder that interacts audibly with hungry pigeons. This sound installation responds to their pecking at seeds with musical beats that he incorporates into songs.

Sound installations capable of generating semi-random compositions in collaboration with these living creatures, without constraining or confining them. Thus, rather than viewing the pigeon as a problem, he sees it as fertile ground for exploring forms of interspecies coexistence.

The artist described this project to the art gallery Hors Sujet, noting how these birds are so important, yet completely misunderstood.

The rock dove (Columba livia) holds a unique place in our urban landscapes. Descended from a long history of domestication, it was gradually abandoned in modern times. …Often perceived as a nuisance, filthy, or a disease carrier, the bird embodies many negative stereotypes. Yet, these perceptions mask a more complex reality: that of a social and sensitive species whose apparent filthiness is largely a product of our own urban environments.

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Toronto artist Trevor Wheatley and Cosmo Dean of TF Dean Studio collaborated with Puncture Design to create “Global Convenience”, a fully stocked floating store on Lake Ontario at Harbour Square Basin in Toronto. The artists spoke with Waterfront Toronto about this uniquely urban yet global project and its connection to the FIFA World Cup.

The timing of the project felt especially meaningful as Toronto prepares to welcome visitors from around the globe for the FIFA World Cup. We began thinking about the convenience store as a kind of cultural crossroads. It is a place where products, languages, traditions, and identities coexist in one contained space. By filling the store with products from different countries, Global Convenience reflects the ways culture travels around the world.

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The post ‘Global Convenience’ – A Floating Convenience Store on the Toronto Waterfront was originally published on Laughing Squid.

While in town for the FIFA World Cup, Scottish bagpiper Neil Wilson of the Tartan Army, came upon a busking bucket drummer outside of Faneuil Hall on Boston‘s iconic Freedom Trail, and began playing alongside without a word. This impromptu collaboration, which drew in an appreciative crowd, really underlined how music brings the world together.

When music brings people together… one lone piper from Scotland and Boston’s finest bucket-drum maestro somehow created the collaboration nobody knew they needed

A similar collaboration occurred between another Scottish bagpiper and another busking drummer.

Other Heartwarming Tartan Army Incidents in Boston

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Google Earth has launched an online flight simulator available globally, allowing home pilots to take to the virtual skies on their own without downloading an app.

Prepare for takeoff… Flight simulator is now available globally on web to all users.

This fully immersive experience allows users to fly all over the world using 3D maps generated by the app. Other features include a 2D view and historical Street View imagery showing changes over time. However, there are also some limitations.

While the flight simulator is designed to provide an immersive flying experience, the following limitations apply:

• Web only: The flight simulator is only available on Google Earth on web.
• Simplified flight physics: The flight simulator is designed for casual exploration rather than high-fidelity aerodynamic training.
• Dynamic loading: As you fly, 3D buildings and high-resolution imagery stream in dynamically. Flying at extreme speeds or over low-bandwidth connections may result in temporary loading delay.

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