The life of a Florida carpenter ant can be brutal. These half-inch ants are territorial and have violent bouts with ants from rival colonies in the Southeast. Combat can leave the ants with leg injuries. But as scientists recently discovered, these ants have evolved an effective wound treatment: amputation. In the journal Current Biology, on…
Every summer I seize on one ingredient early on, my culinary song of the summer. As of now, watermelon is it, and there are no other challengers. Cut it up for salads with feta, tomatoes or pineapple! Blend it into frozen daiquiris! Use it to make chaat! Or just eat it by the slice, juicy…
Etsy has long been a go-to website for artisans and collectors to sell their goods. Think crochet patterns, novelty doormats, 3D-printed jewelry and antique ceramics. Soon, though, its wares will be a little less varied. Starting July 29, many sex toys will be banned, the company said, including products that are penetrative, like dildos and…
If you want to immerse yourself in the sights and sounds of nature this summer but have zero interest in pitching a tent, consider the latest raft of glamping and outdoor resorts. Be it in a treehouse, a tricked-out tent, a geodesic dome or a vintage Airstream, you can vacation near national parks and wake…
In case you haven’t heard, national parks in the United States have been busy in recent years. Record-breaking busy. But one way to enjoy the bounty of a national park without unwelcome company is to get into the backcountry on a day hike. “In the backcountry, you get away from the crowds and the infrastructure,”…
Some worry it robs you of the benefits of sunshine, like vitamin D. We asked experts to weigh in.
Times Insider explains who we are and what we do and delivers behind-the-scenes insights into how our journalism comes together. Steven Kurutz has a penchant for telling unusual stories. It’s something he attributes, in large part, to where he was raised: Renovo, a remote town in Pennsylvania with a population of about 1,000. Growing up…
The August cover of Vogue featuring Dr. Jill Biden was released online Monday — four days after the big debate — and brought with it a fresh round of scrutiny over her role as a die-hard campaigner for her husband, who is locked in a nail-biting campaign for re-election. During much of President Biden’s term,…
In the dimly lit dining room of Caesar’s, just south of the U.S.-Mexico border, Efraín Montoya stood beside a table draped in white cloth, tossing whole romaine lettuce leaves in an intensely pungent, creamy dressing, before topping them with garlicky, golden croutons. Above the checkered floors of the dining room hung a large portrait of…
When Alexandra Weinstein received the photos from her wedding in Anguilla in November 2023, she loved them all. At first. A few weeks later, after she had gone through all the photos and reflected further, she felt that something was off about the editing style, and she wasn’t happy. She felt it made her makeup…