The first-known instance of “garbanzo bean” showing up in print was in 1944; the word “upcycle” made its inaugural appearance in 1994; and in 2004, “chonky” debuted. We learned this thanks to Merriam-Webster’s free Time Traveler feature, which allows users to select a year and see which words had their first recorded usage during that time. The creator of a popular meme account recently used the tool to share five words from their birth year that they felt best described them, and it inspired a flurry of commenters to do the same. Give it a go.
— the Nice News team
Featured Story
Incredible Miniature Replica of New York City Took Truck Driver Over 20 Years to Build
Filip Wolak/Museum of the City of New York
Central Park. Coney Island. Yankee Stadium. Times Square. A thorough sightseeing trip around New York City might take days, but you can experience the entire metropolis in miniature in just a couple of hours.
Queens-born truck driver Joe Macken, 63, is on the road four days a week, yet he still found time over the last two decades to meticulously produce “one of the most ambitious handmade representations of New York City ever created.” That’s according to the Museum of the City of New York, where Macken’s model is on display through at least September.
We spoke to Macken during a break on his trucking route — read our exclusive interview to learn about his process and see the model up close.
Car insurance rates shift constantly, but most drivers stick with the same policy for years without checking if a better deal exists –– and it probably does.
Compare.com pulls real-time quotes from more than 120 insurers in just minutes, making it easy to see where you could save. Drivers who switch save up to $867 a year.*
*Average potential savings based on initial quotes received by 18,330 customers seeking insurance through Compare. Actual savings may vary depending on state of residence, individual circumstances, coverage selections, and insurance provider. Savings and lowest rates do not reflect typical results.
This Week’s Top Stories
Environment
At This Houseplant Hospital, “Patients” Recover Under the Care of a Green Thumb
Katielee Arrowsmith / SWNS
At a bright blue building on Newhaven Road in Edinburgh, Scotland, admitted patients receive similar treatments to those of any other ailing individual. Sometimes they’re put on drips or quarantined, for example, all with the goal of restoring them to full health. But here, appearing green is a good sign: It’s a hospital for plants.
Founded by Rosanna and Tom Costello, the Hilda Houseplant Hospital helps customers revive indoor plants in need of extra care. Amateur horticulturalists can drop off their greenery for “surgery,” repotting, pest removal, and more. The infirmary is just one aspect of the couple’s plant shop, Hilda (named for Tom’s great-grandmother).
“I’d been into plant shops where you could buy compost and things to repot your plants at home, and even though I knew how to do it, I still wanted either somewhere else to do it and make a mess, or somewhere with advice on hand to avoid any pitfalls,” Rosanna told SWNS of her motivation for starting the hospital. “I’d had this idea from when I first got into houseplants, because that was what I had wanted.”
Watch “patients” receive treatment — and get some of Rosanna’s top plant care tips (including how to best tend to them during a heat wave).
Health
The First At-Home Lyme Disease Test Rolls Out This Month
Andreas Häuslbetz—iStock/Getty Images Plus
If a tick has bitten you, one of the first questions that likely pops into your head is: What are the odds it gave me Lyme disease? This month, a first-of-its-kind Lyme screening tool is rolling out to help answer that question.
Called LymeAlert, the three-step at-home test determines if the tick in question carries the pathogen known to cause Lyme disease. The tick-borne illness, which can cause a rash, fever, joint pain, and neurological complications, is spread by only about two of the nearly 50 species of ticks in the U.S., and the percentage of ticks within those species that are infected varies by region, from less than 1% to over 50%.
“It’s similar to a pregnancy test or a COVID test, and takes about 15 minutes,” LymeAlert co-founder Erin Dawicki told Smithsonian magazine. The team is also rolling out an accompanying app to make the results accessible and put people in touch with health care providers, so they can get treatment within the crucial 72-hour window after a bite.
Health experts emphasize the test is helpful, but not a standalone tool, as a positive tick test doesn’t necessarily mean the person is infected. “It does offer information to share with a health care provider if you bring in the test and say it tested positive,” explained entomologist Erika Machtinger. Read up on tips to prevent tick bites in humans and pets.
Sports
Meet Yoko Morishita, the World’s Oldest Prima Ballerina
Aflo Co. Ltd.—Nippon News/Alamy
When Yoko Morishita was 3 years old, she started ballet on the advice of a physician who noticed she was weak and recommended exercise to strengthen her body. Over seven decades later, the 77-year-old Japanese dancer is recognized as the world’s oldest active prima ballerina, and she’s not likely to be resting on her laurels anytime soon.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the star of the Matsuyama Ballet Company trains for at least six hours a day, six days a week (and stretches on her day off). This November, she’s set to play Clara in The Nutcracker for the 45th time, a role she’s preparing for one lesson at a time.
“Once today is over, I think about tomorrow’s lesson,” she told the outlet. “Before I knew it, 75 years had passed.” See the septuagenarian dance en pointe.
A 70-pound lab mix named Oscar was the muse for Paul Yoon’s poignant new novel, but the story the pup inspired is far removed from the New York backyard the pair plays fetch in. Taking place in a fictional country and told through the eyes of its canine protagonist, Etna follows an ex-military dog who decides to return home after spending years fighting alongside humans. His daunting journey across war-ravaged landscapes, during which he meets other animals and people attempting to find their way in the world again, makes for a moving meditation on the power of hope.
What does it take to be a cookie queen? The four Girl Scout stars of this joyful Sundance documentary can tell you. Meet Ara, a charming 5-year-old with Type 1 diabetes; Shannon, an 8-year-old who yearns to go to summer camp; Nikki, a 9-year-old striving to sell as many cookies as her big sisters; and Olive, a 12-year old with plans to become a Supreme Court justice. Filmed in three different states over one Girl Scout Cookie season, the doc is a lighthearted look at the American Dream as chased by the country’s youngest go-getters. You can catch it in select theaters now — watch the (adorable) trailer at the link above.
This Week in History
The Smithsonian Institution Is Founded
August 10, 1846
Heritage Art—Heritage Images/Getty Images
When British scientist James Smithson drew up his last will and testament, he included a rather curious stipulation: If his nephew, the beneficiary of his estate, were to die without heirs, the inheritance should go “to the United States of America, to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men.”
Smithson died in 1829, and his nephew passed in his 20s just six years later, leaving behind no children. Shortly after, the U.S. government became aware of the unusual gift, which amounted to around$500,000, and began the process of carrying out Smithson’s direction. After eight years of debate in Congress, President James K. Polk signed an act officially establishing the Smithsonian Institution, and today, it’s the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex. Meanwhile, the motives for Smithson’s bequest “remain mysterious” — he’d never even visited the U.S. Learn more about his story.
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