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Louis Cha aka Jin Yong

Trending Today

Louis Cha, “Master” of Kung-Fu Novels, Has Died at 94

Under the pen-name Jin Yong, the writer published 14 seminal books that defined the entire wuxia genre and sold more than 300 million copies

Residents of a village on the main island Hokkaido (pictured) didn't realize one of the small, uninhabited islands, Esanbe Hanakita Kojima, off the coast near them had vanished completely.

How a Japanese Island Quietly Disappeared

Esanbe Hanakita Kojima, as the island is called, may have been eroded by wind and ice floes

The lamprey's jawless yet toothy mouth is ideal for hooking onto victims' flesh

Cool Finds

Toothy Medieval Sea Monster Remains Found in London

The lamprey, a jawless fish that uses its teeth to hook onto the flesh of prey, was a favorite delicacy amongst British royals past and present

Assortment of bird eggs and a fossil theropod egg

Dinosaurs May Have Given Birds Their Colorful, Speckled Eggs

A new analysis of fossilized eggshells suggests diversely patterned eggs evolved much earlier than previously believed

New Research

Your Appendix May Be Starting Point for Parkinson’s Disease

Those who have the organ removed have a 20 percent less chance of developing the disease, which is related to protein found in the appendix and the brain

The labyrinthine network stretches roughly 4.5 miles across the ocean floor

Cool Finds

Researchers Unearth Glass Labyrinth Created by Underwater Volcanic Eruption

The unusual formation is situated nearly three miles below the ocean’s surface—a distance greater than Mount Rainier’s height above sea level

Two high schoolers from Akron, Ohio, stumbled upon the tool while sifting through sediment during a dig at the estate

Cool Finds

Students Unearth 6,000-Year-Old Stone Axe at Mount Vernon

The tool, which was likely used for cutting or carving wood rather than as a weapon, was crafted during 4000 B.C.

Trending Today

Why Fall Color Has Been So Meh in Parts of the U.S. This Year

A hot fall and excess rain robbed much of the East Coast of its annual leaf show

Upturned chairs and unmounted table tops lie on the floor inside the historic Caffe Florian, in San Marco square, in Venice, Italy, on Tuesday.

Venice Museums Re-Open After the City’s Worst Flood in a Decade

How Venice and its cultural institutions will battle rising sea levels in the future is a larger question

The Vatican-endorsed game lets you "collect" Catholic saints.

There’s a Pokémon Go-Inspired App for Catholics

The Pope was reportedly impressed by the new game

This vintage print of Sylvia Plath was taken in 1959 at her 9 Willow Street apartment in Boston.

Sylvia Plath’s Last Letters Paint Visceral Portrait of Her Marriage, Final Years

A new volume of her correspondence highlights the poet’s whimsical, sensual and intellectual sides

Trending Today

Kepler Space Telescope, Revealer of New Worlds, Officially Shuts Down After Historic Mission

Launched in 2009, Kepler discovered thousands of new exoplanets before finally running out of fuel earlier this month

This image from the virtual reconstruction shows how the ribs attach to the spine in an inward direction, forcing an even more upright posture than in modern humans.

Neanderthals Breathed With Powerful Lungs, 3-D Reconstruction Shows

The new study has found that Neanderthals’ chests were not larger in volume than those of modern humans, contrary to popular belief

This year marks the 333rd anniversary of J.S. Bach's birth

Are Classical Music Performances Speeding Up?

For Johann Sebastian Bach’s 333rd birthday, a team looked at recordings of the composer’s work over the last 50 years

American South

New National Monument in Kentucky Honors Black Civil War Troops

Over 10,000 African-American troops mustered at Camp Nelson, which also offered refuge for their enslaved wives and children

Cool Finds

Never-Before-Seen Colony of 1,000 Brooding Octopuses Found Off California Coast

The deep sea creatures are raising their eggs on the Davidson Seamount in Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary

Look inside, if you dare. Or if you have a forensics degree.

Cool Finds

Is This the Bag That Held Sir Walter Raleigh’s Mummified Head?

Legend has it his wife retained his embalmed head. But while the sack dates to the correct era and was found in his son’s home, scholars are not convinced

China Reverses Its Ban on the Use of Rhino and Tiger Parts in Medicine

Conservationists worry that the decision will further imperil threatened species

Contemporary hot chocolate bears little resemblance to the bitter drink enjoyed by ancient South and Central American civilizations

Cool Finds

Cacao Was First Cultivated in South America, Not Mexico and Central America

New study pinpoints birth of chocolate to some 5,300 years ago, or nearly 1,500 years earlier than previously believed

Celebrate the spookiest night of the year by participating in a "game" that lets you guide a real person's actions

This Halloween, a Social Experiment Will Allow Internet Users to Control the Actions of a Real Person

MIT Media Laboratory’s BeeMe is the love child of ‘Black Mirror’ and psychologist Stanley Milgram’s notorious experiments on free will and obedience

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