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Heroes

What does a scientist look like? Look no further than these badass women.

While women in STEM careers are traditionally underrepresented, it doesn't mean they're not there, kicking ass and capturing data all around the world.

Enter Science-a-thon, a one-day celebration of women in science to raise money for the Earth Science Women's Network , a nonprofit helping women in the field.

On July 13, 2017 (and a few folks on the 14th), female scientists took to Twitter and Instagram using the hashtag #DayOfScience to share photos and stories of their day, from routine observations to groundbreaking research.


The result is a rare look at what it's like to be a professional woman in science. It goes a little something like this.

1. It's never too early to get up and get to work. Science waits for no woman.

2. Some start the day with coffee. Others jump-start their mornings with natural uranium. To each her own.

3. Whether you're hard at work in the lab...

4. ...feeling the wind in your hair in the field...

5. ...or knocking out reports at your desk...

6. ...there's always something new to do and discover!

And confirming how awesome your discovery is is half the fun.

7. But that doesn't mean women in science are always off by themselves. After all, science is a team sport.

8. When it comes to saving the world, you can never have too much help.

9. Women in science also spend time teaching and presenting their findings.

10. Their lectures and mentorships mean we'll have #DayOfScience (and groundbreaking research) for years to come.

11. Being this badass doesn't happen overnight. It takes years of training, education, and hard work.

12. Especially when you're up against people who don't understand how valuable your work really is.

Cough cough , science is real , cough cough .

13. No matter what challenges stand in their way, women in science will continue to research, study, analyze, and record.

After all, it's what they do. And they're really freaking good at it.

14. At the end of the day, even these science superheroes get a break from saving the world.

15. After all the work they do, they certainly deserve it.

Miss out on Day of Science? No worries, there are still plenty of ways to get involved.

Visit a science museum. Tell your legislator that science and research are important to you. Learn more about the research happening at your local college or university. Donate to the Earth Science Women's Network, or other organizations that support women and girls in science, technology, engineering, and math. Remind the children in your life that women in science do legendary stuff every single day. And check out the hashtag #DayOfScience to see it for yourself.

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Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

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via UNSW

Dr. Daniel Mansfield and his team at the University of New South Wales in Australia have just made an incredible discovery. While studying a 3,700-year-old tablet from the ancient civilization of Babylon, they found evidence that the Babylonians were doing something astounding: trigonometry!

Most historians have credited the Greeks with creating the study of triangles' sides and angles, but this tablet presents indisputable evidence that the Babylonians were using the technique 1,500 years before the Greeks ever were.

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Family

Mom’s blistering rant on how men are responsible for all unwanted pregnancies is on the nose

“ALL unwanted pregnancies are caused by the irresponsible ejaculations of men. Period. Don't believe me? Let me walk you through it."

Mom has something to say... strongly say.

Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly known as Mormons, are a conservative group who aren't known for being vocal about sex.

But best selling author, blogger, and mother of six, Gabrielle Blair, has kicked that stereotype to the curb with a pointed thread on reducing unwanted pregnancies. And her sights are set directly at men.

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Family

Dad takes 7-week paternity leave after his second child is born and is stunned by the results

"These past seven weeks really opened up my eyes on how the household has actually ran, and 110% of that is because of my wife."

@ustheremingtons/ TikTok

There's a lot to be gleaned from this.

Participating in paternity leave offers fathers so much more than an opportunity to bond with their new kids . It also allows them to help around the house and take on domestic responsibilities that many new mothers have to face alone…while also tending to a newborn.

All in all, it enables couples to handle the daunting new chapter as a team, making it less stressful on both parties. Or at least equally stressful on both parties. Democracy!

TikTok creator and dad Caleb Remington, from the popular account @ustheremingtons , confesses that for baby number one, he wasn’t able to take a “single day of paternity leave.”

This time around, for baby number two, Remington had the privilege of taking seven weeks off (to be clear—his employer offered four weeks, and he used an additional three weeks of PTO).

The time off changed Remington’s entire outlook on parenting, and his insights are something all parents could probably use.

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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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Images via Alan Taylor/Flickr , used with permission.

Updating the kitchen.


Remember those beloved Richard Scarry books?

Books from when you were a kid?

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Education

Voice recordings of people who were enslaved offer incredible first-person accounts of U.S. history

"The results of these digitally enhanced recordings are arresting, almost unbelievable. The idea of hearing the voices of actual slaves from the plantations of the Old South is as powerful—as startling, really—as if you could hear Abraham Lincoln or Robert E. Lee speak." - Ted Koppel

Library of Congress

When we think about the era of American slavery, many of us tend to think of it as the far distant past. While slavery doesn't exist as a formal institution today, there are people living who knew formerly enslaved black Americans first-hand. In the wide arc of history, the legal enslavement of people on U.S. soil is a recent occurrence —so recent, in fact, that we have voice recordings of interviews with people who lived it.

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