Today is the start of National Park Week, an annual commemoration that usually takes place around Earth Day in April but was moved this year to mark the 110th anniversary of the National Park Service. On Tuesday, the actual anniversary, entrance fees will be waived for U.S. residents at all national park locations that usually charge them. Beyond visiting a park, learn some more ways to celebrate the week, courtesy of the National Parks Conservation Association.
Must Reads
Everyone puts their foot in their mouth at some point: Learn how to recover from your next social blunder
In what’s believed to be a “world-first” procedure, Jodie Foster — a 15-foot reticulated python named after the actor — is the first snake to receive a pioneering cancer treatment usually reserved for humans. A recurring tumor had destroyed part of Jodie’s jaw, making it difficult for her to eat. Fearing they may lose the 23-year-old reptile, keepers and veterinarians at England’s Chester Zoo teamed up with cancer specialists from the University of Liverpool to devise an innovative intervention.
Joining two operating tables to accommodate the 110-pound-python and using heated blankets to maintain her body temperature, the teamremoved the tumorous mass before successfully administering electrochemotherapy. “Electrochemotherapy is an emerging treatment, and this was the first time it had been used in a snake. The success of this treatment is a testament to the power of collaboration,” Jose Alvarez Picornell, from the department of small animal clinical science at the University of Liverpool, said in a press release.
Now, following months of observation post-surgery, Jodie is back to her usual routine — and officially cancer-free. “Seeing her back to her normal bright and feisty self has been incredibly rewarding. … [She’s] behaving exactly as we’d hope,” said Dr. Ian Ashpole, who performed the surgery. Picornell added that the team plans to formally publish details of the procedure “so that veterinary colleagues around the world can learn from and build upon our approach.”
See more photos and watch a video chronicling Jodie’s journey.
Together With TribeTokes
This Women-Owned Hemp Brand Is Hosting a Summer Sale
TribeTokes is a women-owned and operated hemp cannabinoid brand based in New York City — and everything on the site is 20% off right now. That includes the Sleep Gummies, which combine CBD, CBN, Vitamin B6, and L-Tryptophan, all in one peach-flavored gummy.
The product is one of the brand’s bestsellers, with hundreds of reviews raving about sleep improvement. No melatonin. No brain fog. No dependency. Just deep sleep.Click below or use code SUMMERSALE20 to shop the discount before the season ends.
Life and Job Skills Are on the Menu at This Inspiring California Cafe
Mychal’s Café
Order the soup du jour at Mychal’s Cafe in Redondo Beach, California, and you might just experience the best thing you’ve ever tasted — at least, that’s how two employees felt about a recent batch.
Pride in their work comes with the territory at the eatery, where young adults with developmental disabilities take orders, make lattes, and whip up tasty offerings like omelettes, sandwiches, salads, soups, and baked goods. The cafe is a social enterprise run by Mychal’s Learning Place, a nonprofit that helps such individuals build life and job skills, like cooking.
“They are people who are told all their lives they’re not capable, they won’t be able to do certain things, and so their mission is just to do those things,” Bridgett Franco, a program director for the organization’s Path to Independence program, recently told Today. Kate, a cafe employee with autism, added that she’s learned to cook “anything I can imagine,” thanks to her time with Mychal’s. “Every food and every drink has an amazing and incredible story behind it,” she said. “I just feel really accomplished.”
Thanks to the nonprofit’s strong social media presence, hundreds of thousands of followers follow along with participants’ success — even those who can’t make it to the cafe for a bite. Watch some of the uplifting videos.
Science
Scientists Are Using Spider Silk to Develop Materials for Drug Delivery and Wound Care
James Rowland—500px/Getty Images
This article was written by Aliasger K. Salem, a professor of pharmaceutical sciences at the University of Iowa, for The Conversation.
Spider-Man: Brand New Day turns organic web production into a superpower. In the 2026 film, Tom Holland’s character, Peter Parker, begins producing webbing inside his body and shooting it from his wrists, rather than firing synthetic web fluid from the wrist-mounted mechanical web-shooters he used in earlier films. The switch transforms a familiar superhero technology into a biological ability and highlights the spectacular properties of real spider silk.
Humans cannot shoot spider silk from their bodies, but scientists have studied this amazing material for decades, working to adapt it for a range of technological applications.
A web may look like one kind of thread, but in reality, it is a carefully engineered structure assembled from several materials. As a scientist with biomaterials expertise, I’m fascinated by how biology controls silk, from its protein building blocks to the architecture of a finished web, and by how scientists may adapt it for medical applications — learn more.
In Other News
An experimental melanoma vaccine in the works could help combat the deadliest form of skin cancer (read more)
For the first time in 100 years, an otter was spotted in the Bronx River, a sign of recovery for the waterway (read more)
Giant footprintsfound along a Texas riverbank could be dinosaur tracks: See the impressions (read more)
In a single Egyptian tomb, archaeologists discovered 300 years of mummified remains, including those of a dog (read more)
“Seeing double”:Thousands oftwins visited Twinsburg, Ohio, for the annual gathering of twins (read more)
Something We Love
National Parks Coloring Book
In an effort to swap doomscrolling for healthier ways of mindless unwinding, I got myself this adult coloring book with vintage-style national park designs. I bought a set of alcohol markers to go with it, but the pages are thin, so colored pencils might be the better way to go.
– Rebekah Brandes, Staff Editor
In 2020, Marisa Mender-Franklin had already planted “every square inch” of her rental home’s small front yard, but she still didn’t have quite enough space to helm the flower shop she wanted. So, she turned to her neighbors in Memphis, Tennessee, for help: She posted in a local Buy Nothing group, requesting free places to grow flowers in exchange for weekly bouquets. “Within five minutes, my phone started pinging like crazy,” she said. Fast-forward to today, Mender-Franklin owns a flower shop and manages nine farm plots. “People like to help make dreams come true. It's that feeling of connection that we all really need,” she said.
Photo of the Day
astro_jessica/Instagram
Last week’s total solar eclipse was out of view for Jessica Meir and Jack Hathaway, two NASA astronauts living aboard the International Space Station. But the pair, who enjoyed the partial eclipse, said their vantage point has been ideal for viewing an equally spectacular cosmic display: the northern and southern lights. Learn more about how they’re staying entertained in space.
Enjoy One More Summer Getaway With Hilton
There’s still a month of summer left to enjoy — and you can take advantage of it with Hilton. Escape to New Jersey with the whole family, experience Portland, Maine’s small-town charm, or finally take that girl’s trip to Nashville. When you book with Hilton Honors, you can get member-exclusive rates, travel points, a price match guarantee, and the peace of mind from knowing you have flexible options if plans change.
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