In 1956, a doctor bought a 7.9-acre Florida Keys island from the US at auction with residential zoning; 70 years later, his heirs won a decades-long fight over their right to build
Representative image of Florida Keys from Canva In 1956, a physician from Florida purchased a 7.9-acre island in the Keys at a federal auction, believing he had acquired a rare piece of private land where he could one day build a home. The island, known…
In 1842, a North Carolina mission school began on mountain farmland; 184 years later, an 86.7-acre easement completes protection of land stewarded there for 130 years
High in the Blue Ridge Mountains of western North Carolina, a quiet story of faith, education and land stewardship has unfolded over nearly two centuries. In 1842, a mission school opened on what was then rugged mountain farmland in the Valle Crucis…
In 2001, a 266-acre Texas golf ranch opened beside a 600-acre lake; 25 years later the city traded it to Texas A&M for 138 undeveloped acres worth about the same $2.5 million
In 2001, the city of Temple, Texas, opened a sprawling 266-acre “golf ranch” next to a 600-acre reservoir, marketing it as a unique blend of course, event venue and recreational hub. A quarter-century later, with the facility aging and the…
Scientists used fossil wings, lasers and AI to recreate the calls of insects from 165 million years ago; some Jurassic species were already communicating above human hearing
The research focused on nine extinct insect species related to modern crickets and katydids. For 165 million years, the sounds made by insects living alongside dinosaurs were lost to time. Scientists have now recreated some of those calls using…
In 2018, Northeastern planned a 55,000-sq-ft expansion on a Massachusetts peninsula; 8 years later, the town won the right to take 12 acres by eminent domain to keep them open
The town of Nahant during a breezy spring day.Photo credit: Canva In 2018, Northeastern University announced plans for a major marine science expansion on Nahant, a small, densely built peninsula northeast of Boston. The proposal included up to 55,000…
A Michigan scientist buried seeds in 20 glass bottles in 1879; 142 years later, some still grew, and the experiment is set to run until 2100
Michigan State University botanist William James Beal buried 20 glass bottles filled with seeds In 1879, Michigan State University botanist William James Beal buried 20 glass bottles filled with seeds and sand in an effort to answer a deceptively simple…
In 2001, two Seattle Mariners raised an American flag after clinching their division days after 9/11; 25 years later, that moment has become a permanent stadium statue
Seattle Mariners unveil Legacy Plaza honoring iconic 2001 flag-raising moment An iconic moment of national unity and sporting triumph after 9/11 has been turned into a permanent bronze statue at T-Mobile Park, as the Seattle Mariners unveiled a monument…
Australia’s endangered eastern quolls have welcomed new joeys; after vanishing from the mainland for 60 years, the species is now breeding again in a rare conservation comeback
A study released 20 captive-bred eastern quolls at Tasmania’s 6,500-hectare Silver Plains conservation property. (Photo: Booderee NP) The eastern quoll, a small nocturnal marsupial once common across eastern Australia, is showing signs of recovery after…
In 2002, South Australia sank ex-HMAS Hobart in under 3 minutes; 18 years later, a marine survey recorded more than 50 fish species around the destroyer
In 2002, South Australia sank ex-HMAS Hobart in under 3 minutes A 134-metre decommissioned guided-missile destroyer lying 30 metres below the surface of Yankalilla Bay has become one of South Australia’s most diverse marine habitats, less than two…
In 1978, advocates sought affordable homes in a New York town; nearly 50 years and a landmark court battle later, a $98 million community with 145 homes is finally complete
Representative Image (AI-generated) A proposal that began as a fight for affordable housing in a Long Island community in 1978 has finally resulted in 145 affordable homes. Matinecock Court, a nearly $98 million affordable housing development in the Town…