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What chimps understand about keeping secrets that Donald Trump doesn't.

Recently, we learned that President Trump is not very good at keeping secrets.

According to a bombshell Washington Post report, in the course of bragging about how cool his job is, the president revealed highly classified "code word" intelligence to Russian officials visiting the White House.

Oops. Photo by Michael Reynols-Pool/Getty Images.

Most people would know not to do this.

In fact, you probably wouldn't even need to be a person in the White House to keep America's national security secrets safe. A reasonably competent nonverbal mammal could probably pull it off — and an animal president would come with a lot of advantages. No Twitter! No press conferences! We could pay them in food!

But which animal?

I wanted answers. More importantly, I wanted a Plan B for America.

Is there an animal that would be better at keeping secrets than the current president of the United States? And how quickly could John Roberts make that animal swear on a Bible?

The surprising, I-kid-you-not, possible secret-keeping savior species? Chimpanzees.

Photo by Guillame Souvant/Getty Images.

According to a 2015 study, chimpanzees can actually determine who it's important to hide information from.

Researcher Katja Karg of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, discovered that the great apes are able to identify individuals seeking to do them harm, and they are cautious enough to conceal information from them accordingly.

"Chimpanzees understand others' intentions, and they can adjust their behaviour to these intentions by flexibly manipulating what they make visible to others," lead researcher Karg told the BBC in 2015.

Researchers exposed 24 chimps to competitive humans, who would steal food from their cages, and cooperative humans, who would pick it up and feed it to them.

They discovered the chimps were more likely to keep food hidden in the presence of competitors and not say, for example, "Hey, we've got great food. The best food. The most delicious chocolate cake you've ever seen. Let me show you exactly where it is."

The experiment concluded that the chimps are able to selectively, intentionally deceive — and not just because they don't talk.

The key to chimpanzees' ability to keep secrets? They are able to distinguish between friend and foe on a very basic level.

Like, for example, the difference between the leader of an allied and long-term partner nation...

Photo by Saul Loeb/Getty Images.

...and a couple of guys who (probably) lied about the reason they brought cameras into your office.

Russian Foreign Ministry. Photo via AP.

Once the chimps make the distinction between friend and foe, they are able to adjust their strategy — hiding resources from individuals out to get them, while sharing with those who are friendly.

You know.

Basic stuff.

Which raises the question: Is it time to oust Trump and install a great ape in the Oval Office?

Not so fast, it turns out.

"They are not very good at [keeping secrets]," Karg told the BBC, of her chimps' performance in the experiment. "You can help them by giving them some way to distract themselves."

In some ways, perhaps they're not so different from our current president after all.

That said, what would be the harm in giving Mr. Bananas a few weeks to call the shots?

Photo by Andreas Solaro/Getty Images.

Could things really get any weirder than they already are?

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Family

Naming twins is an art. Here are some twin names people say are the best they've ever heard.

With twins, all the regular pressures of having a baby are doubled, including choosing a name.

Photo credit: Canva

Are you in favor of rhyming twin names? Or is it too cutesy?

Having twins means double the fun, and double the pressure. It’s a fairly known rule to name twins in a way that honors their unique bond, but that can lead to overly cutesy pairings that feel more appropriate for nursery rhyme characters than actual people. Plus, it’s equally important for the names to acknowledge each twin’s individuality. Again, these are people—not a matching set of dolls. Finding the twin baby name balance is easier said than done, for sure.

Luckily, there are several ways to do this. Names can be linked by style, sound or meaning, according to the baby name website Nameberry. For example, two names that share a classic style would be Elizabeth and Edward, whereas Ione and Lionel share a similar rhythm. And Frederica and Milo seem to share nothing in common, but both mean “peaceful.”

Over on the /NameNerds subreddit, one person asked folks to share their favorite twin name pairings, and the answers did not disappoint.

One person wrote “Honestly, for me it’s hard to beat the Rugrats combo of Phillip and Lillian (Phil and Lil) 💕”

A few parents who gave their twin’s names that didn’t inherently rhyme until nicknames got involved:

"It's the perfect way! Christmas cards can be signed cutely with matching names, but when they act out you can still use their full name without getting tripped up.😂"

"The parents of a good friend of mine did this: her name is Allison and her sister is Callie. Their names don’t match on the surface, but they were Alli and Callie at home."

“Alice and Celia, because they’re anagrams! Sound super different but have a not-so-obvious implicit connection.”

This incited an avalanche of other anagram ideas: Aidan and Nadia, Lucas and Claus, Liam and Mila, Noel and Leon, Ira and Ria, Amy and May, Ira and Ari, Cole and Cleo…even Alice, Celia, and Lacie for triplets.

Others remembered name pairs that managed to sound lovely together without going into cutesy territory.

twin names, twins, babies, baby namesThese matching bunny ears though. Photo credit: Canva

“I know twin toddler boys named Charlie and Archie and they go so well together,” one person commented.

Another wrote, “Tamia and Aziza. I love how they follow the same sound pattern with the syllable endings (-uh, -ee, -uh) without being obnoxiously matchy matchy.”

Still another said, “Lucy and Logan, fraternal girl/boy twins. I think the names sound so nice together, and definitely have the same 'vibe' and even though they have the same first letter they aren't too matchy-matchy.”

Other honorable mentions included: Colton and Calista, Caitlin and Carson, Amaya and Ameera, Alora and Luella, River and Rosie, and Eleanor and Elias.

One person cast a vote for shared style names, saying, “If I had twins, I would honestly just pick two different names that I like separately. I tend to like classic names, so I’d probably pick Daniel and Benjamin for boys. For girls my two favorites right now are Valerie and Tessa. I think Val and Tess would be cute together!”

Overall though, it seems that most folks were fans of names that focused on shared meaning over shared sound. Even better if there’s a literary or movie reference thrown in there.

twin names, twins, babies, baby namesMany adult twins regret that their names are so closely linked together. Photo credit: Canva

“My mom works in insurance, so I asked her. She’s seen a lot of unique ones, but the only twins she remembers are Gwenivere [sic] and Lancelot... bonus points... little brother was Merlin,” one person recalled.

Another shared, “If I had twin girls, I would name them Ada and Hedy for Ada Lovelace and Hedy Lamarr, both very early computer/tech pioneers. Not that I’m that into tech, I just thought it was a brilliant combination.”

Other great ones: Susan and Sharon (think the original “Parent Trap”), Clementine and Cara (types of oranges), Esme and Etienne (French descent), Luna and Stella (moon and stars), Dawn and Eve, plus various plant pairings like Lily and Fern, Heather and Holly, and Juniper and Laurel.

Perhaps the cleverest name pairing goes to “Aubrey and Zoe,” since…wait for it… “they’re A to Z.”

It’s easy to see how naming twins really is a cool opportunity for parents to get creative and intentional with their baby naming. It might be a challenge, sure, but the potential reward is having the most iconic set of twins ever. Totally worth it!


This article originally appeared last year.

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Parents applaud mom's video telling her 7-year-old why he can't play 'addicting' Roblox anymore

It's an "open loop" with "no actual end."

via Roblox Newsroom and Canva

A boy playing Roblox.

Since its launch in 2006, Roblox has become a cultural phenomenon with 214 million monthly users and over 70 million daily active players. It's become a cornerstone of Gen Z and Gen Alpha childhoods. For the uninitiated, Roblox is an "imagination platform," where users can create their own games and play them with users around the world.

The game is incredibly popular, but it's not without its detractors. Some criticize the game for being open-ended, where, unlike Super Mario Bros., it can continue indefinitely, which gives it an addictive quality. Also, given the interactive component, it has been seen as a haven for political extremists and pedophiles.

Marla Branyan, a mother who goes by @Marla_Branyan on TikTok, is receiving a lot of applause from fellow parents for a video where she tells her seven-year-old son that he can’t play Roblox anymore and then explains it to him in a language he can understand. Since being uploaded, it has nearly eight million views.

@marla_branyan

I’ve gotten 2 emails in the last week about class action lawsuits against Roblox…. What I said here just scratches the surface. #roblox #nomoreroblox #parentsoftiktok #videogames

“So, number one, Roblox is made up of a bunch of different games, and there are people who create those games like players, and they don’t always have the best interests of little kids in mind,” she explained. “There’s some content on there that’s suggestive.”

She added that she doesn’t like that the games are open loop, so they never end. “Which means when you kind of complete something, there's no actual end to the game. It shoves you into the next level or the next portion of the game. So there's just like no end,” Branyan continued. ”It just keeps going and going and going. And that keeps you kind of addicted, and it keeps you wanting to play the game.”


Branyan’s video did a great job at modeling what a conversation with a seven-year-old about video games might look like for parents who want their child to have less screen time but aren't sure how they will react. It was also applauded by those who’ve said no to Roblox in their homes, too.

"As an adult, I play Roblox almost every day. And it is NOT a game for children anymore, unfortunately," one commenter wrote. "The Roblox parental controls don't really work, so we don't have that in our home anymore," said another.


Another big reason why parents should be concerned about their children playing Roblox is the number of sexual predators on the platform. In 2019, Roblox self-reported 675 cases of suspected child sexual exploitation to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. In 2020, that number grew to over 2,200 cases. By 2024, the number had multiplied 11-fold to 24,000.

According to Wired, hundreds of lawsuits are about to be filed with allegations that the platform facilitated sexual exploitation of children. “I would assume by the end of September there should be about 100 to hundreds of these [lawsuits] pending, and I would assume by this time next year you'll probably be looking at over 1,000 of these filed,” Matt Dolman from Dolman Law Group told Wired. “We alone already have about 300 of these cases.”

Roblox may be a big part of many childhoods these days, but parents like Branyan remind us that parents should still empower themselves to set boundaries. In her viral video, she proved it doesn’t have to be hard to show kids that some choices just aren’t safe.





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Passenger on 274-day cruise is surprised to learn the one word you can't say on the ship

"It's like saying 'Macbeth' in a theater."

via Mattew Barra/Pexels
There's one word you can't say on a cruise ship.

There are some things you just don't say. You don't yell out "bomb!" on an airplane, make jokes about carrying weapons while going through security, or, as Michael Scott from The Office knows, loudly proclaim that a boat you're currently on is sinking.

Those are all pretty obvious examples, but sometimes etiquette and decorum are a little more subtle. If you're not experienced in the ways of the venue you're in, you might not know all the unspoken rules. And you might find out the hard way. Cruise ships, for example, have their own very specific set of rules and regulations that guests should abide by.

On December 10, 2023, Royal Caribbean’s Serenade of the Seas set sail on the Ultimate World Cruise—a 274-day global trek that visits 11 world wonders and over 60 countries.


cruise, 9-month cruise, Marc Sebastian, cruise life, vacation, titanic, unspoken rules, etiquette, cruise etiquette, royal caribbean 9 months is a very long time to be aboard a boat, even a giant cruise ship. Photo by Peter Hansen on Unsplash

This incredible trip covered the Americas, Asia Pacific, Middle East, Mediterranean and Europe with a ticket price that ranges from $53,999 to $117,599 per passenger.

With such a unique and incredible offering, it's understandable that Royal Caribbean wanted to invite plenty of influencers to help them get the word out.

Aboard the Serenade to the Seas was popular TikToker Marc Sebastian, who documented his experience throughout the journey. In one video with over 4.3 million views, he revealed what he’s learned over his first few weeks aboard the ship; the biggest was the one word you’re not allowed to say.

"So here's [what] I've learned about cruising since I've spent 18 nights on this floating retirement home with a Cheesecake Factory attached. First, number one, you're not supposed to talk about the Titanic," he says in the clip.

Titanic! It's the ultimate taboo when you're on a giant ship traversing the ocean. Even after all these years, it's still too soon to make even lighthearted comparisons or jokes.

@marcsebastianf

someone get whoopi on the line girl i have some goss for her #ultimateworldcruise #worldcruise #serenadeoftheseas #cruisetok #cruise #9monthcruise #titanic

“Who knew that? I didn’t,” Sebastian said. “I brought it up to an entire room of people having lunch that our ship is only 100 feet longer than the Titanic — when I tell you that utensils dropped. Waiters gasped. It’s dead silent.”

Sebastian was flabbergasted. "It wasn't in the... handbook," he joked. "Not that I read the handbook, clearly."

After the unexpected reaction, his cruise friend told him, “You’re not allowed to talk about the Titanic.” It makes sense.

Who wants to be reminded of the tragedy that killed around 1,500 people while sinking one of the most impressive engineering feats of the era? More experienced cruisers chimed in that they were familiar with the unique piece of etiquette.

cruise, 9-month cruise, Marc Sebastian, cruise life, vacation, titanic, unspoken rules, etiquette, cruise etiquette, royal caribbean Pro tip: Don't ask the band on board to play "My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion Giphy

"When I went on a cruise, my mom told me saying Titanic was equivalent to screaming ‘bomb’ at an airport," Mikayla wrote in the comments.

"It’s like saying Macbeth in a theatre, it’s an unspoken rule" another commenter added.

"I’m sorry you’re telling me you had a Harry Potter like experience saying Voldemort at Hogwarts but it was the titanic on a modern day cruise I’m cryingggg" joked another.

Later in the video covering little known cruise facts, Sebastian admits he was surprised to learn that cruise ships have godmothers and that the pools are filled with seawater.

In an update from June of 2024, Sebastian explains that he only stayed on the cruise for 18 nights. He was not booked to stay throughout the entire voyage, and for him, that was a relief.

He initially jokes that he was kicked off the boat for saving a penguin that had jumped aboard. But in the end, he admits he was more than happy to deboard early.

"I walked off that ship not a happy man," he said, saying the ship was overstimulating and stressful. In another video, he films as the ship navigates the Drake Passage, one of the most notoriously dangerous and choppy stretches of water in the world. It looks stressful indeed, to say the least.

Cruising isn't for everyone, let alone for 274 days straight! But now Sebastian knows the golden rule for his next cruise.

This story originally appeared last year. It has been updated.

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Woman saved an 'aggressive, unadoptable' cat from euthanasia. It was clearly a good call.

"Grumpy Barbara" had been found with her owner a week after he died.

Photo credit: Canva

Cats can be aggressive for many reasons, but this one was heartbreaking.

Just as you can't judge a book by its cover, you can't judge an animal by their behavior at an animal shelter. Barbara the cat (also known as "Grumpy Barbara") had been through a traumatic experience before she was surrendered to a local shelter. Her long-time owner had died and she was found with his body a week later. She and her human dad had had a strong bond—it had been just the two of them living together her whole life—and clearly losing him affected her behavior. The man's family brought her to the shelter because they couldn't handle her, and the shelter workers didn't have much luck with her, either.

Barbara was aggressive with everyone and deemed "unadoptable." When an animal is brought to an open intake shelter and thought to be a danger to humans and other animals, euthanasia is often seen as the only option. But animal rescue advocate Beth Stern felt like Barbara deserved a chance, so she took her in as a foster.

cat, aggressive cat, angry cat, rescue cat, hissing cat Aggressive cats can be scary.Photo credit: Canva

"It was a challenge I wasn't necessarily prepared for," Stern told GeoBeats Animals. "She did not want to see me or talk to me."

Barbara hid in Stern's floorboard in her closet for a week, only coming out at night to eat, drink and use the litter box. It took about a month before Stern was able to touch the volatile kitty, and then she went through several phases of Barbara chasing and attacking her.

"We were both scared of each other," Stern said. "I had to wear knee-high boots to protect myself from her." But she didn't give up on Barbara.

Finally, one night at around 3:00 a.m., Stern woke up to find Barbara purring beside her ear and then nuzzling into her chin. Like flipping a switch, Barbara went from fearful and aggressive to cuddly and affectionate with Stern.

"She became almost suffocatingly affectionate," Stern said. "She follows me around. She will sit with me when I'm working. If I'm on my phone, she wants me to get off my phone."

Barbara had a complete turnaround with Stern, leading commenters to the conclusion that she was traumatized and grieving the loss of her owner. She needed time to be able to trust and feel safe to bond with a human again, which Stern gave her.

"The most valuable lesson I learned from a cat like Barbara is that humans impose their own needs on animals," said Stern, "and understandably they want to feel a bond, but it's much more important to give them the space to tell you what they need first and adapt around that."

People shared their own Barbara-like stories of aggressive animals they adopted who took varying lengths of time to come around:

"My grandfather passed away and I was told his cat Lucy escaped his house. She was in the house hiding and was alone for two weeks without food or a litter box. I brought her home and it took a year for her to come out of my room and be social with her cat sibling and my two cats. She was traumatized. She used to only let me pet her while she was eating. We can pet her more now. It just takes time. ❤️❤️"

"Sounds like our Pearly Pearl. Her momma had to enter care when she was 13. She was about to be euthanized because no one could get near her after months of trying when I got a call asking if we would consider her. She would launch herself across the room and attack you. I had to be fully covered at any interaction. 6 months later she decided we’re were not going to eat her and from then on, she became more loving daily. She’s become the sweetest little cuddle bug and demands to be cuddled and follows us around like a puppy. She just needed time to trust."

pets, cat, cuddly cat, animal rescue, foster animals Some aggressive cats just need time to feel comfortable and safe.Photo credit: Canva

"We took on a kitten that had been returned to the breeder by three different groups because she didn’t like to be touched. At all, she was not socialized (story behind this of course) The breeder told everybody this,but they didn’t listen. We lost one of our cats and the breeder decided to try one last time with us. The agreement was it didn’t matter if she never let us touch her. Same story, and same ending. Now she’s the most affectionate of cats. It took about four months before she let me touch her and now she will not let me go anywhere without her."

However, one commenter pointed out that not all aggressive animals become affectionate like Barbara or the other cats people described, but that doesn't mean they don't also deserve a loving home.

"Thirteen years ago, I adopted an aggressive cat who was scheduled to be euthanized. Not all cats will come around like Barbara. My cat is still aggressive. I cannot hold her or pet her, but I love her and she has a happy, safe home that she loves, despite her behaviour. She is permitted to be herself. Please don't adopt an aggressive pet unless you are committed to whatever may be. Some just don't ever heal from their past but they still need safety, understanding and compassion."

cat, aggressive cat, rescue animals, foster animals, pet adoption Not all aggressive cats will become affectionate, but they still need a home. Photo credit: Canva

The reality is there are too many animals for shelters to care for and without people to step up and foster or adopt them, a percentage of them are going to be put down. Stern is an example of someone willing to give a problematic animal a chance for a caring home, which the world desperately needs more of.

You can follow Grumpy Barbara on Instagram.

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Audrey Plaza's 'gorge' analogy of grief after her husband's suicide is resonating with people

People who've been through a tragic loss are feeling seen in her interview with Amy Poehler.

Images via Wikipedia/Xfranksun, Joe Mabel

Aubrey Plaza opens up on her husband Jeff Baena's death.

Actress Aubrey Plaza gave fans a heartfelt update on her grief journey seven months after losing her husband Jeff Baena to suicide. Plaza, 41, reunited with her iconic Parks and Recreation co-star Amy Poehler on her Good Hang podcast, where she opened up on life and grieving since her husband passed on Jan. 3, 2025.

In an emotional clip, Poehler gently opens the conversation with Plaza to share how she is doing. "To just, to get it out of the way. People want to see you and see how you are. They love you," she says, as she extends her hand out to Plaza to hold with a reassuring "I know" as they clasp hands. As she does, Plaza lets out some uncomfortable laughs, as Poehler continues. "They love you and they want to see you."

Poehler adds, "So, you've had this terrible, tragic year. You lost your husband. You've been dealing with that, and you've been looking for all different ways in which to feel and find support. And on behalf of all the people who feel like they know you and the people who do know you, how are you feeling today?"

- YouTube www.youtube.com

Plaza openly responds, petting her dog Frankie who joined her for the interview. "I mean right in this very present moment I feel happy to be with you. Overall I'm here and I'm functioning, and I feel really grateful to be moving through the world," she says.

She continued, "I think I'm okay. But you know, it's like a daily struggle, obviously."

She goes on to explain how grief has impacted her with a "really dumb analogy." "It was a joke at a certain point, but I actually mean it. Did you see that move The Gorge?" she asks Poehler, who explains its an alien movie starring actor Miles Teller.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

"In the movie there's like a cliff on one side and a cliff on the other side, and then there's a gorge in-between and it's filled with like these monster people that are trying to get them. And I swear when I watched it, I was like, 'That feels like what my grief is like'," Plaza shared. "Or what grief could be like."

She continued, "It's like at all times there's a giant ocean of just awfulness that's like right there and I can see it. And sometimes I just wanna like dive into it and just be in it. And then sometimes I just look at it. And then sometimes I just try to get away from it. But it's always there. It's just always there."

Plaza's beautiful description of grief was praised by fans who applauded not just her openness, but her relatable explanation. "💯 The way she described how grief is always there (in different forms) resonates so much," one wrote. Another shared, "Her self soothing with petting the animal under the desk (I assume) is so relatable."

Fans also opened up about how they were inspired by her honesty. "Agreed. About two years ago, I lost my husband to suicide when I was 29 and he was 30. It’s a terrible experience I would not wish on my worst enemy, and I’m so sad Aubrey Plaza is going through this as well. It’s an isolating experience not many can relate to and her being open makes me feel seen and less alone," another commented.

Another added, "That’s a great description of grief actually. The way she responded to the question at the beginning really resonated with me. When I lost my mom i wasn’t devastated all the time but also I wasn’t exactly doing good inside. So when asked, I would just try to answer how i felt at that very moment because I couldn’t go into how I was really feeling on the inside. And « I’m functioning » was a common answer for me."

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