Year: 2015

Colloquially known as the "City of Love," Paris removed a contemporary landmark of sorts that attracted thousands of star-crossed (and other) lovers. The New York Times reports that on June 1st, city workers removed thousands of padlocks attached to the wire mesh panels on the side of the Pont des Arts bridge across the Seine River. For about five years, couples from around the world expressed their affection for each other by attaching a padlock to the side of the Pont des Arts (typically with the couple's initials etched onto it) and then throwing the key down to the river below. Paris's deputy mayor in charge of culture, Bruno Julliard (a Parisian name if there ever was one), insisted that the city will still remain "the capital of love, the capital of romance." Despite the affectiona...

A new law in Ontario now prohibits the sale of e-cigarettes to anyone under 19, thereby making e-cig sales just as restricted as regular cigarettes. Additionally, it is now illegal to smoke e-cigarettes in public places where smoking has been prohibited under Canadian federal law. The official legislation is called the Making Healthier Choices Act, and it addressed several health issues, including the concern that more teens have taken up smoking as e-cigarettes have become more accessible. In the U.S., e-cigs have become popular alternatives to smoking regular tobacco -- between 2008 and 2012, sales of e-cigarettes increase from 50,000 to 3.5 million. The trend hasn't caught on quite so quickly in Canada, but Canadian officials have been much quicker to address concerns over whether e-...

Salmon are one of anglers' most sought-after catches. Not only are they delicious to eat, but they can also be quite a challenge to land. King salmon, the largest species in the Pacific salmon genus, have weighed in at up to 100 pounds in Alaska, for example. However, humans aren't the fish's biggest threat. Predatory seabirds have been having a devastating impact on salmon populations. Consequently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services is preparing a plan to hunt thousands of hungry double crested cormorants, to reduce the numbers of baby salmon being preyed upon. Biologists blame double crested cormorants, which are large black birds that have long necks, webbed feet, and hooked bills used to dive below water surfaces and catch small fish, for damaging salmon populati...