🐦 As Jurassic Park Once Said...

Image: Giphy

Parthenogenesis, a natural form of asexual reproduction in which growth and development of embryos occurs without fertilization by sperm, is rare, but not unheard of.

• It’s seen in animals like Komodo dragons, starfish, turkeys, and pigeons, but what makes this discovery stand out is the mothers of the condor chicks were able to mate with a male partner... and just chose not to.

If you thought that was puzzling (shoutout to the men reading this😉), there's more... One mother had given birth to 11 chicks before with male partners, while the other had given birth to 23 chicks in 20 years with the same partner. The latter female reproduced with a mate two more times after reproducing asexually, the San Diego Zoo said.

🤔 What’s going on ?... Long story short, no one really knows. But it’s about time the largest flying birds in North America got some good news – they once ranged throughout the West Coast, but only 22 survived into the 1980s.

• The U.S. government placed the endangered birds in zoos for captive breeding, and about 160 were bred at the San Diego Zoo and Safari Park. There are now around 500 alive, with 300 of them living in the wild across California, Arizona, Utah, and Mexico, the AP reports.

👁 Looking ahead... Good scientific discoveries usually lead to more questions, and this one is no exception. What drives asexual reproduction ? Are there any other animals that have been asexually reproducing without human knowledge ? Could that spell hope for other endangered species ? Only time will tell.

🎁 McDonald’s has entered a strategic partnership with IBM to develop artificial intelligence (AI) tech to automate the fast-food chain's drive-thru lanes.

Can You Make Something Perfect Even MORE Perfect ?

If you want to get technical, maybe not – but bear with us.

Dogs are amazing creatures. Each has their own unique personality, plus they’re loyal, funny, cute, etc. In other words, we love ‘em and can’t live without ‘em.

But they sometimes chew on expensive things. Poop in the house. Bolt into the street chasing the neighbor’s cat. And it’d be nice if they… well… just didn’t do that.

🐶 "But training a dog is challenging"… As the Kool-Aid Man would say, “OH YEAH.” It’s time consuming, expensive, and often ineffective – training a pup the right way requires some serious patience and know-how.

That’s why you need Pupford.

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• They even offer training treats made from natural, healthy ingredients, so you can have confidence in Fido’s health while you’re building a deeper bond through training.

Join more than 1 million other dog parents who’ve made their perfect pup even more perfect with Pupford. 👇

Discover the secret for making a perfect dog more perfect.

Image: Giphy

• The new deal maintains U.S. tariffs of 25% on steel and 10% aluminum worldwide, but allows "limited volumes" of EU-produced metals into America tariff-free.

📜 Background: The Trump administration imposed global tariffs on steel and aluminum at the above rates in 2018 – with the exception of imports from Canada & Mexico – in an attempt to bolster domestic industry, which had faltered in recent years.

• China is the biggest player in both industries, producing more steel in a single month than the U.S. does in an entire year. (A ratio that’s multiplied 3x when it comes to aluminum.) 
• But relatively little Chinese metal flows into the U.S. market due to previous tariffs. Thus, the countries most affected by the new tariffs were in the EU.
• In response, the EU imposed retaliatory tariffs against high-profile American industries, including Harley-Davidson motorcycles, Levi’s jeans, peanut butter, and bourbon.

As part of Saturday’s agreement, the EU will drop its U.S. tariffs, which had been set to increase in December.

💬 What they’re saying: “We fully expect this agreement will provide relief in the supply chain and drive down cost increases as we lift the 25 percent tariffs and increase volume. Of course, it’s also good for the American manufacturers who use steel and aluminum in their products. And we believe it’ll help them lower their costs and create more jobs.” –U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo in a conference call over the weekend.

🌍 20-20 vision… The announcement came on the first day of the annual G20 summit held in Rome this year.

• The attending leaders also endorsed an agreement to overhaul global tax rules and published a final communiqué committing to reach carbon neutrality "by or around mid-century."

🤖 Rise of the Machines

Image: Getty

• Instead of relying on human assumptions, researchers are designing neural networks that suggest new hypotheses based on patterns they find in data.

🔋 What are some examples ?... EV batteries, for one. Car companies are quickly running out of materials needed to make them, and one key component, nickel, is projected to cause supply shortages as early as the end of this year.

• In a recent study, scientists relied on an AI algorithm to select four new materials that could potentially serve as a replacement for nickel in EV batteries out of a list of more than 300 options.
• Other researchers are applying neural networks to larger technical and theoretical questions, such as what causes certain types of cancer or how quantum mechanics actually works.

📝 Bottom line: A growing number of scientific fields are turning to machine-learning algorithms to try and speed up scientific processes and reduce human biases.

Images: Stefanny Avera

Fifteen-year-old Janae was born with a rare genetic disorder called Williams Syndrome. Like most children with the condition, she was never interested in playing with toys.

• But then she received a simple snow globe as a gift. Absolutely mesmerized by the object, she and her family have now spent years amassing an impressive collection.

📚 Trouble in paradise… Janae was distraught when her beloved snowglobe shelf fell off her wall earlier this year, shattering nearly the entire collection.

• Upon the devastating loss, Janae’s aunt reached out online and asked for donations from the neighborhood to help rebuild the collection – and was shocked at how much the community delivered (86 so far from 6 different states !!).

Which planet is home to the tallest mountain in the solar system ?

A) Venus
B) Uranus
C) Mars
D) Mercury

(keep scrolling for the answer)

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C) Mars

Olympus Mons is an enormous volcano located on Mars. It's both the largest and tallest mountain in the solar system, covering an area of ~120,000 square miles and reaching a peak height of 13.6 miles.

• For context, Olympus Mons covers an area the size of New Mexico and measures roughly two-and-a-half times the height of Mount Everest.