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Scientists found 2 new primates, and they look like the best 'Star Wars' character.

Like Yoda, these creatures look. Worry about copyright infringement, nature should.

Just in time for May the Fourth, the nerdiest holiday, two oddly familiar-looking new species of tarsier — a small, nocturnal primate — have been discovered in Indonesia, according to a paper published in Primate Conservation.

While Stuart Freeborn, the man who designed Yoda, has said he modeled the muppet on himself, it's hard to deny a certain resemblance.

Gursky's spectral tarsier, one of the new species. Oh, and a muppet too. Photos from Myron Shekelle and Lucasfilm.


Yup, that's a Yoda.

The two new species were found on the Indonesian island of Sulawesi and have been named Gursky's spectral tarsier (Tarsius spectrumgurskyae)and Jatna's tarsier (Tarsius supriatnai).

Giant eyes and ears and the ability to rotate their head like an owl lets tarsiers pinpoint predators and prey in the darkness.

They can jump 40 times their body length, which I'm pretty sure I've seen some Jedi do too (except when someone else has the high ground).

Tarsiers evolved a long time ago — 60 million years ago, to be precise — and though fossils of tarsiers are widespread, today they live in a place (likely) far, far away: just a few Southeast Asian nations like Indonesia. Unfortunately, deforestation has cleared much of the habitat tarsiers and other jungle creatures call home.

We humans like to blast off to explore new galaxies, but it's also pretty incredible how much we've yet to discover here on Earth.

A tarsier in the Philippines. Photo from Joe Sinclair/AFP/Getty Images.

Scientists are still discovering new species at an incredible rate. These two little critters are the 80th and 81st new primate species to be found since the year 2000.

Perhaps Russell Mittermeier, co-author of the paper, said it best. After all, if we're still discovering some of our closest living relatives, he said, "imagine how much we still have to learn about the rest of life on Earth."

Education

A school assignment asked for 3 benefits of slavery. This kid gave the only good answer.

The school assignment was intended to spark debate and discussion — but isn't that part of the problem?

A school assignment asked for 3 "good" reasons for slavery.



It's not uncommon for parents to puzzle over their kids' homework.

Sometimes, it's just been too long since they've done long division for them to be of any help. Or teaching methods have just changed too dramatically since they were in school.

And other times, kids bring home something truly inexplicable.
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Teacher Bret Turner thought he'd kick off the morning with his first-grade students using a little riddle.

On the whiteboard in the front of the class, he scrawled it out in black marker:

"I am the beginning of everything, the end of everywhere. I'm the beginning of eternity, the end of time & space."

One student raised their hand, the first to venture a guess.

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Identity

Non-Americans are sharing the ‘dead giveaway’ someone is American and they are pretty right

The dead giveaway is when they call me "honey" or "sweetie" or "darling."

via Flickr, Flickr, and Flickr

Three American tourists enjoying the sights.

One of the most interesting things about traveling the world is noticing how people from your country are a bit different from the place you’re visiting. In America, you’re mostly around fellow countrymen so it’s hard to notice the things that make us stand out.

But when you travel abroad, you quickly notice that no matter how hard you try to blend in, there are a lot of dead giveaways that show people you’re from the states that go way beyond your accent.

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Parenting

Teenage girl shamed for her ‘distracting’ outfit fights back in a very funny way

“[Because] she has a figure she was told she had to change.”

Photo from Facebook page.

A clever message written on her T-shirt.

A Lawton, Oklahoma, student who goes by the Facebook user name Rose Lynn had the last laugh after being sent home from school for wearing an outfit deemed "distracting." Rose Lynn believes her outfit attracted the attention of school officials because of her figure.

She proved it by posting a photo on Facebook of her modest outfit, which consisted of black leggings, a t-shirt, long cardigan, and boots. In her post, she wrote that she was sent home "because I'm developed farther than the average girl my age," and because she's a "CURVY woman." Rose Lynn also thinks the appropriate response shouldn't have been to tell her to cover up, but to teach boys to "to respect the boundaries of young ladies."

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Science

She tattooed half her face and you'd never know it. Her skills are just that good.

This incredible medical tattoo technology is giving renewed hope to burn victims.

All images via the CBS/YouTube

Basma Hameed runs a tattoo shop, of sorts...


Meet Samira Omar.

The 17-year-old was the victim of a horrific bullying incident.

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Taylor Swift at 2022 Toronto International Film Festival Red Carpet Day 2.

The wordsmiths over at Merriam-Webster have announced their official “Word of the Year for 2023,” they say it’s something we are “thinking about, writing about, aspiring to, and judging more” than ever.

The word is authentic.

According to the dictionary, the most common definitions of authentic are “not false or imitation,” “being true to one's own personality, spirit, or character,” and “worthy of acceptance or belief as conforming to or based on fact.”

Merriam-Webster says the word saw a “substantial increase” in lookups this year. That’s probably because we now live in a world where artificial intelligence, deepfake technology and questionable memes challenge our basic notions of reality.

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