To cheers and applause from kids wearing spacesuits and star-studded T-shirts, a tree was planted in California that is out of this world. The so-called "Moon Tree"—grown with seeds that were flown around the moon—was wheeled out in a wagon accompanied by several students carrying shovels to help dig its new home at Santiago STEAM Magnet Elementary School in Lake Forest. The school, which has roughly 500 students in grades K-12, was among those selected to receive a seedling for a giant sequoia that was grown with seeds flown on NASA's Artemis I Mission in 2022. "It's kind of crazy," said Emily Aguesse, a sixth grader who participated in the ceremony welcoming the tree. "I've always wanted to go to space but this motivates it even more."  It's the second time that NASA has flown seeds into space and brought them back for planting. An astronaut for the Apollo 14 mission in 1971 who was a former U.S. Forest Service smokejumper carried seeds that later were grown into the first generation of Moon Trees, which were planted in states spanning from Alabama to Washington. While many of those seedlings were distributed to national monuments, this latest batch has been given to schools and museums to promote science and conservation education and help bring space down to Earth, said Paul Propster, chief story architect for NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. "It's just kind of cool and fun to connect the next generation of explorers," Propster said. It isn't known whether space travel has an effect on how plants grow and scientists continue to study the topic, he said. In 2022, NASA and the Forest Service flew nearly 2,000 seeds from five species of trees aboard the unmanned Orion spacecraft, which went into lunar orbit and spent about four weeks traveling in space. Once back on Earth, the seeds were grown into young sycamores, sweetgums, Douglas firs, loblolly pines and giant sequoias that could be shared with the public through an application process. Nearly 150 seedlings were distributed earlier in the year, and another batch is expected this fall, NASA officials said. This article was provided by The Associated Press.

Opal miners in Queensland, Australia are concerned about the future of their industry as the land they source the gemstones from is being converted into a national park. The Queensland government bought the land with a 21-million-Australian-dollar anonymous donation. For the past thirty years, Robbey Vinnicombe has been looking through red dirt in search of a rare treasure. A gemstone that can only be found in this remote part of Queensland: the Boulder Opal. “It’s the most beautiful gemstone on earth. I’ll be here for the rest of my life if I can,” says Vinnicombe. But Vinnicombe and many other miners who work here hold great concerns for the future of their industry. Vergemont, the former cattle station on which Vinnicombe holds mining leases, will soon be transformed into a national park. “There’s dozens and dozens and dozens of stakeholders here that have been here a lifetime and generations, you know what I mean? And we’re just completely ignored, as though we don’t even exist,” says Vinnicombe. The state government argues they acquired the land to preserve crucial habitats for vulnerable and endangered species. “It’s significant for the biodiversity that’s in that part of the world,” says Geoff Penton of Desert Channels Queensland. Existing mining operations can carry on working in some of the property’s locations but for miners with leases that are close to expiring, the future is less certain. The Queensland Department of Resources says it will work with the industry to help prospectors. “We’re all small companies. We’re family companies. We’ve invested our life in this,” explains miner and shop owner James Evert. Each year, the industry brings in 14 million Australian dollars to the area. “I can't see the Winton Shire without Opal in it. It’s so important to us. What we need is certainty for this industry,” says Winton Mayor Cathy White. This article was provided by The Associated Press.

As AI continues to evolve, the line between human and machine is blurring in the art world. One artist has taught a robot to copy her brush strokes so they can paint together. D.O.U.G. is a machine created by Sougwen Chung. The artist has built and programmed this AI system to work alongside them, creating paintings together. Over the years, it has learned to mimic Chung’s brush strokes. It’s an exploration of how humans and machines can collaborate. Simonida Pavicevic is co-founder and curator of HOFA Gallery (House of Fine Arts) which represents Chung. She says you can’t separate the artist from her machines. “So Sougwen managed to do something very impressive where she merges the robots with her work. They don’t work separately. [...] So it’s a teamwork. [...] And she had over ten years of research (into) how to teach them and to teach them to follow her brainwaves, her own ideas, and her own work,” she explains. For galleries, trying to convince people to purchase a digital artwork can be an uphill battle. Elio D’Anna, co-founder and CEO of HOFA Gallery, says physical objects are the key to getting people to invest in digital art. “The big challenge with digital art so far has been how do I collect? How can I have it in my house? And with this exhibition, we wanted to focus a lot on that as well, [...] growing the awareness of this new medium and showing that it can also be collected in a both physical and digital way,” he explains. Digital art is still in its early stages, and it’s had a difficult beginning. But experts expect the market to grow. But what role will AI play in creating art as the technology evolves? The smart money is on it being another tool in the artist’s paintbox. “In anything creative, there’s always a lot of error, going back and exploring and doing it again and so on. And a lot of this is for sure being replaced by machine learning and by AI systems that are able to help you speed up that process and to achieve to where you want to go,” says D’Anna. This article was provided by The Associated Press.

On the coastal island of Lamu, off Kenya’s east coast, workers are turning plastic waste into furniture, even boats. Lamu is contending with mounds of plastic waste—some washed up on its beaches, others created by its own population. “We are collecting the waste plastic around Lamu archipelago, and we process those ones to make boats, furniture, and also doing a lot of research on what we can do with the plastic,” explains Ali Skanda, co-founder of the Flipflopi Project, an NGO founded in 2016. The Flipflopi Project receives grants from other NGOs which they then use to buy plastic waste from locals. After it arrives at their facility, workers sort it into different types and colors. It’s then crushed, washed, dried, melted, then molded into different colors, shapes and sizes. “After pre-sorting, we have our sorters, and they categorize into different types and colors. So, they keep plastic into types and colors, separately,” explains Skanda. From there, plastic waste is upcycled into furniture and dhow boats. But Skanda says recycling also comes with challenges. He says nowadays, plastic manufacturers are adding additives to plastics, which makes it more difficult to recycle. Elsewhere, some plastics may be degraded by the sun and lose quality. Since 2019, the NGO has been sailing Flipflopi, claimed to be the world’s first recycled plastic sailing dhow. They’ve gone on expeditions, including sailing from the Indian Ocean to Lake Victoria, and have launched a further two boats made using recycled plastic waste. “We are doing this just for the world to understand that plastic is not waste,” says Skanda. “We can add value and make something like furniture, things like this. And more others, we are making dhows.” Each day, the equivalent of 2,000 garbage trucks full of plastic are dumped into the world’s oceans, rivers and lakes, according to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). People are increasingly breathing, eating and drinking tiny plastic particles. Plastic production continues to ramp up globally and is projected to double or triple by 2050 if nothing changes.  This article was provided by The Associated Press. 

The All-American denim is all about being Japanese in the town of Kojima, whose main road is aptly named “Jeans St.,” with real pairs of pants flapping like flags overhead. Denim is the heart and soul of Kojima. Some would call this spot in southwestern seaside Okayama Prefecture the mecca of jeans, where fans from around the world make their pilgrimage. The area boasts some 40 jeans manufacturers and stores, including denim-themed cafes, and attracts some 100,000 visitors a year, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization. You may be in for disappointment if you expect the glamour and bustle of big cities like New York, Tokyo, or Paris—Jeans Street is quaint and uncrowded. Each company in the area is relatively small, employing about 100 people. What you will find are people taking pride in “monozukuri,” or “making things,” but adding devoted, laborious attention to detail. The high quality of made-in-Japan denim, much of it hailing from Kojima, is well-known among connoisseurs. The dark indigo hue is so distinctive it earned a special name, “Japan blue,” also known as, “tokuno blue,” which translates to: “especially concentrated blue.” Kojima gave birth to popular Japanese jeans brands like Big John, with roots dating back to the 1940s, and supplies top fashion brands like Gucci. Kojima jeans aren’t cheap, ranging in price from the relatively affordable pair for about 33,000 yen ($230) to those made by top craftsmen that retail for 200,000 yen ($1,400) or more. Momotaro Jeans come with a lifetime warranty with tears and other problems getting fixed for free, within reason. About 40% of its sales come from non-Japanese clients. Masataka Suzuki, president and chief operating officer at Japan Blue, says the industrial history of the region is a source of strength, centered around sewing heavy fabrics, including military clothes and obi sashes for kimonos, as well as the cotton and indigo-dyeing native to the area. “Our biggest priority is to make a product that is long-lasting. That’s how I'm structuring the company. Perhaps that is a Japanese quality. That’s my opinion,” he says. This article was provided by The Associated Press.

Most of the world’s raw materials and everyday goods that are moved over long distances—from T-shirts to televisions, cellphones to hospital beds—are packed in large metal boxes the size of tractor-trailers and stacked on ships. A trade group says some 250 million containers cross the oceans every year—but not everything arrives as planned. More than 20,000 shipping containers have tumbled overboard in the last decade and a half. Their varied contents have washed onto shorelines, poisoned fisheries, and animal habitats, and added to swirling ocean trash vortexes. Most containers eventually sink to the seafloor and are never retrieved. Scientists and environmental advocates say more should be done to track losses and prevent container spills. “Just because it may seem 'out of sight, out of mind,’ doesn’t mean there aren’t vast environmental consequences,” said marine biologist Andrew DeVogelaere of California’s Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary. The long-term impact of adding on average more than a thousand containers each year to the world’s oceans—by the most conservative estimates—remains unknown. “The first thing that happens is they land and crush everything underneath them,” said DeVogelaere, who studied the sunken container. By changing the flow of water and sediment, the container completely changes the micro-ecosystem around it—impacting seafloor species that scientists are still discovering. Labels showed the container came from the Med Taipei, which had lost two dozen boxes in rough seas on a journey between San Francisco and Los Angeles. In 2006, the ship owners and operators reached a settlement with the U.S. Department of Justice to pay $3.25 million for estimated damages to the marine environment. It’s not just environmentalists who worry. Some lost containers float for days before sinking—endangering boats of all sizes, from commercial vessels to recreational sailboats. The sporting body World Sailing has reported at least eight instances in which crews had to abandon boats because of collisions with what were believed to be containers. In 2016, sailor Thomas Ruyant was 42 days into a race around the world when his sailboat’s hull split from a sudden crash with what appeared to be a floating container. This article was provided by The Associated Press.

Food labels that say “sell by” or “best before” are misleading because they have no universal meaning under current laws. Now California wants to crack down on such practices, bidding to help consumers stop playing guessing games with produce and other items in their fridges. The state is the first to ban food labels such as “sell by” or “best before” under a law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. The legislation signed by Newsom over the weekend aims at reducing both food waste and the state’s climate-warming emissions. There are more than 50 different date labels on packaged food sold in stores, but the information is largely unregulated and does not relate to food safety. “Sell by” dates, for example, often act as a guide for stores to pull products from the shelf and not as an indicator of whether the product is still safe to consume. With no federal regulations dictating what information these labels should include, the stamps have led to consumer confusion—and nearly 20% of the nation’s food waste, according to the Food and Drug Administration. In California, that’s about 6 million tons of unexpired food that’s tossed in the trash each year. The new law “is a monumental step to keep money in the pockets of consumers while helping the environment and the planet,” said Democratic Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin, author of the bill. The law is set to take effect in July 2026, establishing a new standard for food labeling in California. It will require the use of a “Best if Used By” label to signal peak quality and a “Use By” label for product safety, an approach recommended by federal agencies. The law provides an exemption for eggs, beer, and other malt beverages. “Widespread implementation that was basically committed to by industry wasn’t happening,” said Erica Parker with Californians Against Waste, who sponsored the bill. “Food waste rates are not decreasing, they’re increasing.” Supporters hope the legislation could pave the way for new food labeling standards in the U.S., though it’s not immediately clear if the new law and the massive California market will push companies to standardize food labeling for all products in the country. This article was provided by The Associated Press.

Divers and marine experts found no evidence of a major fuel spill on a Samoan reef after a New Zealand navy ship ran aground and sank, Samoa's deputy prime minister said. All 75 people on board the HMNZS Manawanui evacuated safely as the boat foundered about a mile off the coast of Upolu, Samoa. The ship was one of only nine in New Zealand's navy and was the first the country lost at sea since World War II. Samoan Deputy Prime Minister Tuala Tevaga Iosefo Ponifasio had earlier said a fuel spill was "highly probable." But later he said there was no evidence of oil spilling onto the reefs, ashore and nearby areas, except for "small leakages of oil coming from the vessel." That had been contained using specialized equipment, Ponifasio said in a statement.  The vessel's passengers—including civilian scientists and foreign military personnel—left the vessel on lifeboats in "challenging conditions" and darkness, New Zealand's Chief of Navy Rear Admiral Garin Golding told reporters. It took five hours for the first survivors to reach land, he said. One person was treated in a hospital for minor injuries and has been discharged, the military said. Up to 17 others sustained cuts, bruises or suspected concussions. An Air Force plane carrying 72 people from the ship landed at an air base in Auckland. New Zealand will hold a court of inquiry into the loss of the ship. The cause of the accident is not known, but Defense Minister Judith Collins told 1News that she had been told a loss of power to the vessel had led to its grounding. Manu Percival, a surfing tour guide who works in the area where the ship sank, told The Associated Press by phone that oil was not visible from the ship but debris had littered the water and shoreline, and locals were not gathering shellfish as they normally did. It was too soon to know if the "fragile" reef ecosystem had been damaged, he said.  This article was provided by The Associated Press.

In a stretch of Northern California known for scenic shorelines and celebrated vineyards, a battle is brewing over the future of the region’s animal farms. Residents in Sonoma County, which is home to half a million people north of San Francisco, will vote this fall on a ballot measure aimed at putting an end to large-scale contained animal agriculture. Proponents say the move is about the humane treatment of animals, but critics contend it’s a misguided effort that could harm egg farming and dairies in the county. The proposal would require the county to phase out what U.S. federal authorities call concentrated animal feeding operations, or farms where large numbers of animals are kept in a confined setting. The measure is supported by animal rights activists but has also stoked a tremendous backlash, with residents posting massive numbers of signs along roadways, in front yards and on farmland opposing so-called Measure J. Kristina Garfinkel, lead organizer of the Coalition to End Factory Farming, said 21 large-scale farms would be affected by the measure and would be given time to downsize their operations. She said she doesn’t believe in confining tens of thousands of chickens in facilities that provide no access to the outdoors, and argues that these massive operations are actually crowding out small egg and dairy farms and making it hard for them to stay in business. Kathy Cullen, who runs a farm animal sanctuary said she opposes confining animals for any reason. But Cullen said proponents aren’t trying to shut down all farms, but rather asking them to change, and that the measure has helped create more awareness about farm animal welfare. Farmers feel the measure has created awareness, too, about the challenges they face, said Dayna Ghirardelli, executive director of the Sonoma County Farm Bureau. Many local communities oppose the measure in a county that has a long agricultural history and had more than 3,000 farms in 2002, according to national agricultural statistics. This article was provided by The Associated Press.

For decades, Australia's country towns have relied on independently owned general stores. But some are now at risk of disappearing because of increased competition and economic pressures. The small South Australian timber town of Mount Burr is located in the heart of plantation forests. And if you want takeaway or food supplies, the only place available is the general store. The American menu devised by owner George Copelin when he moved to Mount Burr from the United States is what customers come here for. Copelin and his wife Rosie enjoy their work but they say business is getting harder because of increased competition. “Having those home delivery services that we can’t compete with hasn’t been very easy either,” says Rosie Copelin. Roughly 50 minutes away by car from Mount Burr is Allendale and the Allendale East General Store that John Lindquist has run for decades. And like the Copelins, Lindquist says earning a living from a small business is getting harder in regional South Australia. And Lindquist believes the only way to survive is to treat this type of work as an actual lifestyle. “You've got to work out what you can do and you’ve got to work smart, not hard. If you end up working hard you're going to wear yourself out too quick, and like I said, you treat this as a job it's not going to work,” says Lindquist. But most businesses are feeling the pain caused by a higher cost of living. And that financial strain and pain are felt by many. “Businesses are experiencing cost pressures right across the state and that's energy costs, it's wage costs, it's insurance costs, all their inputs have gone up as well because of inflationary pressures,” says Business SA CEO Andrew Kay. And as far as the Copelins are concerned, the future is not looking great at the moment. “With the introduction and the big influx of online shopping, home delivery services, the big supermarkets being able to undercut, I think it's becoming more and more difficult,” says Rosie Copelin. Will the general stores survive long term? This article was provided by The Associated Press.

A network of illegal drug sellers based in the U.S., the Dominican Republic and India packaged potentially deadly synthetic opioids into pills disguised as common prescription drugs and sold millions of them through fake online drugstores, federal prosecutors said. At least nine people died of narcotics poisoning between August 2023 and June 2024 after consuming the counterfeit pills, according to an indictment unsealed in federal court in Manhattan. The indictment charges that the leader of the enterprise, Francisco Alberto Lopez Reyes, orchestrated the scheme from the Dominican Republic, directing co-conspirators to set up dozens of online pharmacies that mimicked legitimate e-commerce sites. The sites lured customers into buying synthetic opioids—in some cases methamphetamine—disguised as prescription drugs such as Adderall, Xanax and oxycodone. The counterfeit pills were sold to tens of thousands of Americans in all 50 states and to customers in Puerto Rico, Germany and Slovenia, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said at a news conference announcing the indictment. “The websites the defendants made and the pills they distributed looked very real,” he said. “But they were not.” Williams said 18 people including Lopez Reyes have been charged with crimes including participating in a narcotics trafficking conspiracy resulting in death. It was not clear whether Lopez Reyes had a lawyer who could comment. No attorney was listed in online court records. Authorities said the fake pills were manufactured in New York using fentanyl smuggled from Mexico. Members of the enterprise ran basement pill mills in the Bronx and Manhattan, where they used custom molds to press powdered narcotics into pills at rates of up to 100,000 pills every 12 hours, prosecutors said. Law enforcement officers raided one pill mill in Manhattan on May 31, 2023, and seized more than 200,000 pills as well as bricks, bags and buckets filled with powdered narcotics, according to the indictment. Prosecutors said that after the orders were delivered, the conspirators bombarded customers with calls and texts urging them to buy more drugs. One customer had to block 30 phone numbers to stop the aggressive marketing.  This article was provided by The Associated Press.