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“a voice for animals” essay contest winners demonstrate ingenuity in promoting human-animal coexistence.

Four smiling teenagers gather around a Golden Retriever.

Washington, DC —From documenting the plight of city pigeons to describing how the barn owl is harmed by folklore and superstition, the winners of the 2022 “ A Voice for Animals ” contest use their voices to explore urban wildlife struggles, showcase volunteer work benefiting animals, and examine how cultural beliefs influence attitudes about animal welfare, among other topics.

The annual contest offers high school students ages 14 to 18 the opportunity to win cash prizes for essays, videos, or photo essays that explore strategies to alleviate animal suffering. The contest is sponsored by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and the Humane Education Network, with additional support from the Palo Alto Humane Society.

Twenty winners, nearly half of whom live abroad, were selected this year. Students were given the option this year to choose their own topics. Additionally, they were invited to explore how alternative energy sources impact wildlife. Many students acknowledged in their submissions the need to generate alternatives to fossil fuels and mitigate negative consequences of energy generation for animals and their habitats.

“These young people are embracing creative challenges and engaging their peers and communities on important issues of species decline, models of compassionate care, and the interplay between technological advancements and animal protection, said Regina Terlau-Benford, AWI’s humane education manager and co-manager of the contest. “Their leadership will inform the next generation of animal advocates.”

The first-place winners are:

  • Ava Smith of Davidson, North Carolina, for the video “ The Overlooked Struggles of Pigeons and Ways to Help ,” which examines the efforts of an Amsterdam organization that rehabilitates pigeons whose feet get tangled up in string or hair in the urban environment, as well as Smith’s own work at the Carolina Raptor Center and as a foster home provider for pigeons and doves who are unable to be released back into the wild.
  • Katelyn Chen of Portland, Oregon, for the essay, “ The PAWS Club ,” which focuses on how Chen led her school’s companion animal club during the COVID-19 pandemic. Limited by age and geography, the club developed innovative strategies to contribute to local shelters, such as participating in dog wash fundraisers, crafting pom pom cat toys for shelter cats, and learning woodworking to build dog-training tables.
  • Emily Scott of Chantilly, Virginia, for the essay, “ Reforming Hydroelectric Power Infrastructure to Promote Ecological Preservation ,” which examines the ecosystem impacts of renewable energy sources, including loss of terrestrial habitat and biodiversity, and discusses potential remedies.
  • Ayram Beltran of Phoenix, Arizona, for the essay, “ Barn Owls and Witches ,” which explores how Mexican folk tales labeling barn owls as witches in disguise result in the animals being mistreated, abused, and even killed. Instead, as Beltran notes, barn owls should be appreciated for controlling rodent populations and contributing to ecological balance.
  • William Tsay of Manhasset, New York, for the essay, “ The Downfall of the Blue Bloods ,” which discusses how hundreds of thousands of horseshoe crabs are captured and forcefully bled each year by the medical industry for vaccine development and other research. Horseshoe crab blood is a bright shade of blue and has remarkable antibacterial properties, but there are synthetic alternatives. After surveying students and community members, Tsay concluded that many people remain unaware of the crucial role horseshoe crabs play in our ecosystem.

For more information on the “A Voice for Animals” contest and to review all the winning entries, visit  hennet.org/contest.php . The 2023 contest dates will be announced in mid-December.

Margie Fishman, Animal Welfare Institute [email protected] , (202) 446-2128

The  Animal Welfare Institute  is a nonprofit charitable organization founded in 1951 and dedicated to reducing animal suffering caused by people. AWI engages policymakers, scientists, industry, and the public to achieve better treatment of animals everywhere — in the laboratory, on the farm, in commerce, at home, and in the wild. Follow us on  Facebook ,  Twitter ,  and  Instagram  for updates and other important animal protection news.

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Annual
Contest The 34 annual Contest is now closed for entries and the judges are hard at work reading entries from around the world. The winners will be announced here by Friday, August 16th 2024. Inspired in large part by his family’s own rescue dog, Derek DeAngelo (2020) brainstormed a technology-based solution. The resulting smartphone app, called “Rescue Me Massachusetts”, took months to develop and test. His perseverance throughout his project and commitment to helping shelter animals was apparent is his essay with photos submission titled, “Animal Homelessness: There’s an App for That”. Although the app listed just animals in his area, he had a bigger picture in mind. “…I’m trying to streamline the process for people looking to adopt. My goal is to expand it by reaching out to more local shelters for permission to add animals.”

Winner: 2020 Second Prize (Essay/Photographs by 16-18 year old):

Canadian environmentalist Jordan Dearsley (2021) coordinated a series of e-waste disposal drives. In her photo essay, Jordan described the harmful effects that toxic substances—such as those found in common electronics—can have on wildlife. The 17-year-old saw an opportunity to educate others on these impacts, and eliminate the inconveniences preventing her fellow citizens from properly disposing of their old electronics. She arranged drop-off locations and coordinated with a local group to pick up the discarded items for recycling or, when practical, repairs. Through these efforts in her community, Jordan hopes to improve the future for wild animals.

Winner: 2021 First Prize (Essay/Photographs by 16-18 year old):

Sarah Robison (2020), parlayed her appreciation for sea turtles into “Sea Turtle Awareness” day, educating her community about the dangers of plastics in the marine ecosystem. Her informative video, “The Plastic Effect: Sea Turtle Awareness” documented her initiative in creating an educational display using recyclable items, as well as handicrafts, to show how materials can be repurposed instead of discarded. Robison’s video also encourages viewers to take practical, every-day steps in curbing their use of plastic bottles, drinking straws, and shopping bags – the latter bearing a close, and deadly resemblance to jellyfish, a main food source of sea turtles.

Winner: 2020 First Prize (Video by 16-18 year old):

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A Voice for Animals Contest

Scholarship description.

The Humane Education Network in partnership with the Animal Welfare Institute offers an Annual A Voice for Animals High School Contest. Participants must currently be attending middle or high school, or be home-schooled and under 19 years of age on the date, the contest opens for entries. The competition has sections for 14-15-year-old students and sections for 16-18-year-old students. Requirements will vary by the award being applied for.

Please utilize either the MLA or APA styles to format and cite your sources. The judges will take an especially harsh view of plagiarism. Learn from previous winners (Visit our home page and the submissions of previous winners. Look at their entries to see how they stand out.). Make sure the file or URL you submit is your actual entry. We only accept essays as PDF (Portable Document Format) files which are easy to create from word processing applications.

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Arlington Young Authors to Advocate for Wildlife in 23rd Annual Animal Essay Contest

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Arlington's aspiring young authors have their pens poised and their minds brimming with tales of tusks, tails, feathers, and fur for the 2024 Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest. In what marks its 23rd year, the competition is beckoning students from third to sixth grade residing in Arlington to weigh in on wildlife, migration, environmental impacts, and habitat loss. Kicking off on February 26, and running through March 1, these young scribes have a small window to make their passionate pleas for the animal kingdom, according to the City of Arlington, Texas .

The young contestants must flex their creative muscles to pen original essays, capping at 500 words. Submission is a breeze, with entries welcomed digitally until the evening of the deadline. However, latecomers be warned: no hand-delivered entries will be accepted after the strict 5 p.m. cutoff on Friday, March 1st. Prizes for the elucidating essays include a $100 savings account, with kudos from the City of Arlington, EECU, and Spring Creek Barbeque.

The topics for this year's challenge are sure to stir the stew of thoughts simmering in the minds of youths. Third-graders are asked to explore how humans and wildlife can harmoniously share our expanding footprint. Meanwhile, fourth-graders will delve into the phenomenon of animal migration, and fifth-grade entrants will analyze the environmental issues pressing down on our animal brethren. The task for sixth graders is perhaps the most sobering: tackle the thorny issue of endangered species and habitat loss and offer imaginative solutions to these global concerns.

Those eager to join the foray must ensure their submissions are accompanied by a cover sheet with essential details like the student's name, address, contact number, school, grade, teacher's name, and, a touch whimsically, their two favorite book titles. True to the spirit of fair competition, past winners need not apply, as the contest is only open to fresh minds and new ideas.

Interested families or educators are encouraged to direct their inquiries to their local pedagogues or by visiting the aforementioned contest page. With the prospect of a crisp $100 bill in a savings account and the bragging rights as a youthful conservationist, Arlington's third through sixth graders are set to storm the literary stage with their pens as their swords, fighting valiantly for the voiceless creatures sharing our planet.

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Voice for Animals Essay Contest

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Scholarship Name: Humane Education Network’s A Voice for Animals Essay Contest Description: The 19th Annual Voices for Animals High School Essay Contest rewards prizes of up to $1,000 to high school students whose essays best promote the humane treatment of animals. Sponsored this year in part this year by the Palo Alto Humane Society, the contest is open to all eligible students, regardless of nationality or country of residence. To be eligible, you must currently be attending high school or be home schooled and under 19. Essays of no fewer than 1,300 words and no more than 1,500 words should examine either the mistreatment of one animal species or one cause of animal suffering, occurring anywhere in the world, and possible measures to reduce it. Essays without citations will be disqualified. Essays must be written in English and double-spaced. Your essay will be judged on originality, breadth and depth, organization and presentation, degree of research, and personal involvement in responses to cruelty. Award: $150 – $1,000 Awards per Year: 11 Award is Open to: High School Students Major/Field of Study: Open How to Apply/Contact: Visit the HEN website for other requirements. Essays and applications must be submitted online .

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Wildlife Fact:

Red knots are one of the longest-distance migrants in the Western Hemisphere. They spend over half of the year migrating back and forth between wintering and breeding areas.

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Species on the Edge Art & Essay Contest

Empowers 5th grade students to advocate for an endangered or threatened species from New Jersey through a well-researched, creative essay and original art piece.

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The Species on the Edge Art & Essay Contest empowers 5th grade students to advocate for an endangered or threatened species from New Jersey through a well-researched, creative essay and original art piece.

Simple, Fun, and Free to Enter!

One winner from each county in New Jersey will be selected. Open to all New Jersey fifth grade students.

The contest kit (including rules, species list, & entry form) should be downloaded below.

Click here for a detailed video with information about the contest for teachers and 5th grade students .

Congratulations to the 2024 Species on the Edge Contest Winners!

Atlantic County

First Place - Mia Ann Dare (Belhaven Middle School)

Second Place - Alexa Buck (Reeds Road School)

Bergen County

First Place - Sienna Hahm (Primoris Academy)

Second Place - Sylvia Eliya (Highland Elementary School)

Burlington County

First Place - Lillian Angemi (Westfield Friends School)

Second Place - Ava Burdick (Eastampton Community School)

Camden County

First Place - Kinley Potts (Joyce Kilmer Elementary School)

Second Place - Wiktoria Wronski (John H. Glenn Elementary School)

Cape May County

First Place - Avery Fine (Dennis Township Elementary School)

Second Place - Brendan Peoples (Wildwood Catholic Academy)

Cumberland County

First Place - Eriana Perez (Compass Academy Charter School)

Second Place - Logan Flitcraft (Compass Academy Charter School)

Essex County

First Place - Geneva Gau (Yantacaw Elementary School)

Second Place - Maya Gutierrez Almeida (Oliver Street School)

Gloucester County

First Place - Cameron Clark (Williamstown Middle School)

Second Place - Kate Hathaway (Williamstown Middle School)

Hudson County

First Place - Ameer Khaled Rochdi (Miftaahul Uloom Academy)

Second Place - Yousef Elnomany (Miftaahul Uloom Academy)

Hunterdon County

First Place - Giuliana Martinez (Thomas B. Conley Elementary School)

Second Place - Gryphon Benjamin (Thomas B. Conley Elementary School)

Mercer County

First Place - Vedika Krishna (Stony Brook Elementary School)

Second Place - Samantha Lieu (Toll Gate Grammar School)

Middlesex County

First Place - Isara Chen Durek (James Madison Intermediate School)

Second Place - Aaradhya Sripadi (Menlo Park Elementary School)

Monmouth County

First Place - Lindsy Jimenez Garcia (Gregory School)

Second Place - Silla Mosera (Maple Place Middle School)

Morris County

First Place - Vorora Xu (Stonybrook Elementary School)

Second Place - Jake Johnson (Stonybrook Elementary School)

Ocean County

First Place - Joseph Santiago-Sanchez (Nellie F. Bennett Elementary School)

Second Place - Liam Normandin (Nellie F. Bennett Elementary School)

Passaic County

First Place - Vihaan Gandhi (Clifton School #9)

Second Place - Addison Alvarez (Clifton School #9)

Salem County

First Place - Chase Gearhart (Creativity CoLaboratory Charter School)

Second Place - Layla Falen (Creativity CoLaboratory Charter School)

Somerset County

First Place - Isabella Santibanez (School of Saint Elizabeth)

Second Place - Anishka Suhas (Mt. Horeb School)

Sussex County

First Place - Lily Ryan (Lounsberry Hollow School)

Second Place - Tyler Hitchmough (Sandyston-Walpack Consolodated School)

Union County

First Place - Chelsea Li (Jefferson Elementary School)

Second Place - Wren Malester-Poris (Thomas P. Hughes Elementary School)

Warren County

First Place - Kate Tipton (Harmony Township School)

Second Place - Patricia Galione (Ridge and Valley Charter School)

⚠️ Important Note About Species Selection ⚠️

A complete list of endangered and threatened wildlife species can be found on our Field Guide.

  • Endangered wildlife in New Jersey
  • Threatened wildlife in New Jersey

All entrants must select a focus species from this list or the list provided in the contest kit.

 - 
Species on the Edge Art & Essay Contest Teacher Resource Kit for Essay Development. Includes comprehensive unit and NGSS daily lesson plans which include pre-writing graphic organizers, Powerpoint presentations, grading rubrics, & other resources to help implement the contest into your curriculum.

 - 
Species on the Edge Art & Essay Contest Teacher Resource Kit for Optional Art Project. Includes comprehensive unit and National Core Standard visual art lesson plans which include Powerpoint presentations, classroom games, grading rubrics, & other resources to help implement the contest into your daily curriculum.

This STEAM-based contest enables 5th grade students to advocate for an endangered or threatened species from New Jersey through a well-researched, creative essay and original art piece. Check out the past winners of this contest since the beginning.

Testimonials from educators about the Species on the Edge Contest. Submit your own testimonial.

Open to all past and current winners of the Species on the Edge Art & Essay Contest, the Circle of Winners Club will offer unique access to upcoming wildlife events, academic and professional networking, merchandise discounts, and up-close and personal wildlife experiences.

JOIN THE SPECIES ON THE EDGE ART & ESSAY CONTEST MAILING LIST!

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New Jersey Contests

2024 new jersey student contests.

The New Jersey Association for Biomedical Research (NJABR) will be sponsoring an essay , poster , and digital media contest for all students in the state of New Jersey. Details about the different contests are below.  Print a flyer  to post in your classroom or share with friends!

General Eligibility: All K-12th grade students in New Jersey including (but not limited to): public and private schools, home and cyber schools, and youth organizations. 

Submission Deadline: 11:59pm on March 10, 2024

 ESSAY CONTEST Details:   The Essay Contest is divided into two separate contests- one for Middle School student (6th - 8th graders) AND one for High School students (9th - 12th graders).

Discover the connection between biomedical research, animal research, and your life! The contest recognizes students who artfully demonstrate a superior understanding of the connection between their life and biomedical research (including the need for animals in that research). The essay contests are free to enter and consist of cash prizes .

  Contest Themes:

Middle School (6th, 7th & 8th Grade) Essay Contest

Topic: "What is Biomedical Research?"

Be creative! Think, Research, Write! Explore the entire biomedical research process, including the role of animals in research, and how it leads to new medical treatments and cures. Questions to consider: What is the biomedical research process? What are the regulations involved in research? What methods are used in biomedical research? How has it impacted your life or family members? How about your pet's life? What role do animals play in research? How does this research improve the health of both humans and animals?

View the Complete Middle School Essay Contest Details

High School Essay Contest

Topic: "Biomedical Research and My Life"

Be sure to focus on one specific biomedical breakthrough. Investigate the process of biomedical research, including the role of animals in that research, that leads to the development of new treatments and cures. This will allow you to learn how medicines, medical devices, and/or surgical procedures are developed with the help of animal models and human clinical trials. Be sure to consider the wide range of topics available including human and veterinary treatments. Questions to consider: Do you know someone who has benefited from vaccinations, pharmaceutical drugs, medical devices, surgery, or transplants? How does animal research help advance medicine and science? How have these life-saving technologies been developed? How has biomedical research affected the health of your dog, cat, or other pet?

View the Complete High School Essay Contest Details

Submissions: Essays must be submitted via email to  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . 

POSTER CONTEST Details: The Poster Contest is open to all K-12th grade students.

Discover the connection between biomedical research and your life! The poster contest provides the opportunity for students to illustrate different aspects of biomedical research and science through art. The contest is free to enter and consists of cash prizes.

Contest Themes:

  • 3 R's: Replacement, Reduction, Refinement
  • Advancements in Biotechnology
  • Animal Research Saves Lives
  • Careers in Biomedical Research
  • Veterinary Advancements: Animal Research Helping Animals

A release form must be securely attached to the back of the poster.

Size:   Minimum: 8 ½" x 11" & Maximum: 11" x 17"

Layout: Landscape Layout Only!

Submissions: Posters can be mailed to PSBR/NJABR. Submissions postmarked by 11:59pm on March 10, 2024 (but received after) will be eligible to win.

Mailing Address: PSBR/NJABR, Attn: NJ Poster Contest, PO Box 1163, Camp Hill, PA 17001-1163

Street Mailing Address (will be needed if mailing through UPS, FedEx or DHL): PSBR/NJABR, Attn: NJ Poster Contest, 1675 Camp Hill Byp #1163, Camp Hill, PA 17001

Digital posters and release forms can be emailed to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Subject Line: NJ Poster Contest

View/Print a PDF of ALL the poster contest details including release form

View/Print a PDF of the poster release form only

DIGITAL MEDIA CONTEST Details: The Digital Media contest is open to all 6th-12th grade students. 

The purpose of this contest is to recognize students who digitally demonstrate a superior understanding of the connection between their life and biomedical research (including the need for animals in that research). The contest is free to enter and consists of cash prizes.

Media Theme: "Biomedical Research and My Life."  Do you know someone who has benefited from vaccinations, pharmaceutical drugs, medical devices, surgery, or transplants? How does animal research help advance medicine and science? How have these life-saving technologies been developed? How has biomedical research affected the health of your dog, cat, or other pet? You must demonstrate that you understand the topic and present it with originality and creativity, clearly presenting the benefits from biomedical research.

Media Components:  All entries MUST be a digital media (video, animation) and MUST be submitted in one of the following formats: .MOV; .MP4; .WMV; or .AVI

1) Digital Media - Students may work together in groups of 2-5 people or submit entries as individuals. No more than 5 students per group. The length of the media content should not exceed 3 minutes (180 seconds), not including the 5 second title screen and the 5 second works cited screen (see below).

-All entries must begin with a 5-second full screen “title screen” that includes the following information:

  • Student First Name(s) and Last Initial(s)
  • School Name
  • School City, State, Zip
  • Title of Media Piece
  • Total running time- excluding title screen & works cited screen

-All information presented must be cited on a 5-second full screen at the end of the video, giving credit to the original source(s). This does not count toward the 3-minute limit. Plagiarism of any kind will result in disqualification.

-No professional assistance is allowed. Adults may assist with production, but are limited to verbal guidance only. Adults are allowed to be actors or videographers, but not content contributors.

2) Release Forms - All entries must include a "Permission/Release Form”

3) Actor Release Form - All entries must include an “Actor Release Form” for every human person who appears in the media submission.

Submissions: All media submissions must be emailed as an attachment or a link to download the video from an outside source, such as Dropbox. Please save your final document with your last name, underscore, first name. Ex: Doe_Jane.mov

Email to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.    Subject Line: NJ Digital Media Contest

Note: Please submit all components in one email.

View the complete NJ Digital Media Contest Details

Individual Documents:

ACTOR Release Form

PARENT Permission/Release Form

Contest Judging Rubrics:

Middle School Essay Contest Judging Rubric

High School Essay Contest Judging Rubric

Poster Contest Judging Rubric

Digital Media Contest Judging Rubric

Winners:  All contest winners will receive CASH prizes.

Topic Resources:

Middle School Resources- Click here  to view 6th, 7th & 8th Grade essay resources

High School Resources - Click here  to view High School essay resources

See the "Animal Research" tab for additional information.

See " Biomedical Research Information " under our "Useful Links" tab to see additional websites, videos, blogs, and PDFs with facts about biomedical research and animals.

Submission Deadline for ALL contests = 11:59pm on MARCH 10, 2024

Questions?   Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 717-731-3559

Click here for comprehensive official contest rules and information.

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Announcing the "Why My Favorite Horse Would Love to Be a Breyer Model” Essay Contest

It’s the million-dollar question! How can you get your very own Breyer model horse? The answer could be in your hands—or words! As part of Breyer Animal Creation’s 75th anniversary celebration in 2025, we’re throwing a “Why My Favorite Horse Would Love to be a Breyer Model” essay contest. Three (3) winners will be honored with a personal copy of their very own genuine Breyer model in the likeness of their entry when Breyer’s Diamond Anniversary happens in 2025 (an estimated retail value of US$1,000.00)!*

The contest is open to essays about real horses and ponies of all breeds, types, and abilities—whether they’re a show ring champion or a solid-citizen lesson pony (no fictional horses, please) . You don’t even need to own a horse to write about it! Tell us about that precious pony you own, a horse that you ride, or a horse you admire.

One of the three winning entries, with the permission of the horse’s owner, may even have the opportunity to become part of the Breyer stable for purchase at your favorite Breyer retailer in 2025!

Don’t let your favorite horse, or pony, get left in the field – saddle up and write! We can’t wait to hear your stories!

MANY WILL ENTER, ONLY THREE WILL WIN. NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. See how to enter and official rules below.

  • Write an essay describing why your favorite horse is the hands-down choice to be honored as a Breyer model (minimum of 50 words, maximum of 250 words).
  • Email your entry to us at [email protected] by no later than 11:59pm EST July 31, 2024 following the official rules below. No other method of entry will be accepted.
  • Your entry must include the subject line “Breyer Essay Contest 2024” along with your original essay, a photo of the horse (taken by you or someone else; .jpeg or .gif, no more than 2MB), your name, age (at the time of entry), mailing address, telephone number, and email address as well as parent/legal guardian’s email address and statement of parental consent if under age 18 (or under the legal age of majority in the entrant’s state of residence in the U.S. or jurisdiction of residence in Canada, whichever is greater). Essay, entry and statement of parental consent (if applicable) must be submitted in English. Entries missing any of the above requirements will be immediately disqualified.
  • All essays must be original and entirely created by the entrant. Only one entry per person will be accepted in this essay contest; all subsequent entries will be disqualified. Only single author essays qualify (no co-authored entries).
  • Individuals who cannot write may dictate their story to be printed, written legibly or typed.
  • Essays will be judged by a judging panel including qualified members of Sponsor’s Marketing Team and at least one similar qualified independent judge. Each entry will be judged on the following criteria: 60% on the communication of the character of the horse (what makes them so special!) and 40% on the creative expression of the writer (how well the horse’s story is told!).
  • Winners will be notified on or around September 15, 2024 and may be announced on or about January 1, 2025 on BreyerHorses.com.
  • Three (3) winners will each win one Breyer model horse decorated in the likeness of their entry (Estimated Retail Value (“ERV”): US$1,000 each). Total ERV of all three prizes is US$3,000.00.

*Contest is open to all legal residents, ages 5 and above at the time of entry, of the U.S. and Canada (excluding Quebec), where allowed. Email account required. Parent must submit entry if entrant is under age 13. If selected as a potential winner, parental consent is required if entrant is under age 18 (or under the legal age of majority in the entrant’s state of residence in the U.S. or jurisdiction of residence in Canada – whichever is greater). Void where prohibited or otherwise restricted by law.

  • Contact and shipping information collected will be used by Sponsor for the purposes of administering this Contest and awarding the prizes only and will not be used for marketing or other purposes.

See Official Rules for complete details.

OFFICIAL CONTEST RULES:

By submitting an entry, you (and your parent or legal guardian on your behalf, as applicable) agree to be bound by the following Why My Favorite Horse Would Love to be a Breyer Model Essay Contest (“Contest”) rules:

  • This is a skill‐based contest and chance plays no part in the determination of winning. Many will enter, but only three (3) will win.
  • NO PURCHASE NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. A purchase will not increase your odds of winning.
  • Contest is open to all legal residents, ages 5 and above at the time of entry, of the U.S. and Canada (excluding Quebec) where allowed. Email account required. Parent must submit entry if entrant is under age 13. If selected as a potential winner, parental consent is required for entrants under age 18 (or under the legal age of majority in the entrant’s state of residence in the U.S. or jurisdiction of residence in Canada). Void where prohibited or otherwise restricted by law.
  • Contest entry period begins June 25, 2024 at 5:00PM EDT and ends July 31, 2024 at 11:59pm EDT. All entries must be received by Sponsor via email at [email protected] by no later than 11:59pm EDT July 31, 2024. No other method of entry will be accepted.
  • To create your entry, write an essay describing why your favorite horse is the hands-down choice to be honored as a Breyer model. Minimum of 50 words, maximum of 250 words.
  • All essays must be original and entirely created by the entrant. Only single author essays qualify (no co-authored entries).
  • Your entry must include the subject line “Breyer Essay Contest 2024” along with your original essay, a photo of the horse taken by you or someone else (.jpeg or .gif, no more than 2MB), your name, age (at the time of entry), mailing address, telephone number, and email address as well as parent/legal guardian’s email address and statement of parental consent if under age 18 (or under the legal age of majority in the entrant’s state of residence in the U.S. or jurisdiction of residence in Canada, whichever is greater). Essay, entry, and statement of parental consent (if applicable) must be submitted in English. Entries missing any of the above requirements will be immediately disqualified.
  • Individuals who cannot write may dictate their story to be printed, written legibly, or typed by a third party for submission.
  • Limit one (1) entry per person; all subsequent entries will be disqualified.
  • Entries will be judged by a judging panel including qualified members of Sponsor's Marketing Team and at least one similarly qualified independent judge. Each entry will be judged according to the following criteria: 60% on the communication of the character of the horse (what makes them so special) and 40% on the creative expression of the writer (i.e., how well the horse’s story is told). Three (3) winners will be determined by the judges in their sole discretion. The decisions of the judges will be final and binding in all respects.
  • Three (3) potential winners will be selected on or about September 15, 2024. We will contact the potential winners (or their parent/legal guardian if under age 18 or under the legal age of majority in the entrant’s state of residence in the U.S. or jurisdiction of residence in Canada – whichever is greater) by email on or about October 1, 2024 to confirm shipping address and provide a Prize Winner Affidavit of Eligibility and Liability/Publicity Release (Declaration and Release for residents of Canada). Selected potential winners must confirm receipt of email and verify valid contact and shipping information to Sponsor, and sign and return the executed Prize Winner Affidavit of Eligibility and Liability/Publicity Release (Declaration and Release for residents of Canada), by email (email address will be provided to potential winner in notification email) within three (3) business days or such potential winner will forfeit the prize and an alternate potential winner will be selected. The first name, first initial of last name, and state/province/territory and country of the winners from each age group may be posted on the Sponsor website (www.breyerhorses.com) on or about January 1, 2025.
  • Winners agree not to publicly disclose they are winners until Sponsor announcement of winners.
  • Prize: Three (3) winners will each win one Breyer model horse decorated in the likeness of their entry (Estimated Retail Value (“ERV”): $1,000 USD each). Winner is responsible for all taxes on their prize. Total ERV of all 3 prizes: $3,000.00 USD.
  • Prize will be awarded in the name of the parent if the winner is under age 18 (or under the legal age of majority in the entrant’s state in the U.S. or jurisdiction of residence in Canada – whichever is greater).
  • Prize will ship on or about December 1, 2024 at no charge to winner. Estimated ship time approximately 1-2 weeks depending on destination.
  • Noncompliance or return of prize notification as undeliverable, whether by email or telephone, may result in disqualification and selection of an alternative potential winner.
  • Sponsor and Sponsor’s employees, retailers, and their immediate family members (i.e., spouse, parent, child, sibling, grandparent, and/or stepchild, wherever they may live), and anyone else professionally connected with the Contest, are not eligible to enter.
  • All entries become the sole property of Sponsor (to the maximum extent permitted by law) and may be used or reproduced in any manner and for any purpose by Sponsor without additional consent or compensation, including without limitation for commercial purposes, and will not be acknowledged or returned. By entering, you (and your parent or legal guardian on your behalf, as applicable): (i) grant to the Sponsor, in perpetuity, a non-exclusive, royalty-free license to publish, display, reproduce, modify, edit or otherwise use your entry/works, in whole or in part, for advertising or promoting the Contest or for any other reason; and (ii) waives all moral rights in and to your entry in favor of the Sponsor (and anyone authorized by the Sponsor to use the entry).
  • By participating, Contest entrants (and their parent or legal guardian on their behalf, as applicable): (1) represent that they have complied with these Official Contest Rules; (2) grant Sponsor the right to use entrant’s name (first name and first letter of last name), city, state/province/territory/county, and country; (3) to the maximum extent permitted by law, release Sponsor from any and all liability in connection with this Contest, and (4) agree to execute an affidavit of eligibility/prize acceptance form and/or publicity release (declaration and release for residents of Canada) if requested to do so, all without further compensation. Entry into the Contest constitutes complete permission for Sponsor to use, edit, or modify all submissions for all purposes including without limitation advertising and trade in any manner or medium whatsoever. To the maximum extent permitted by law, entrants over the age of 18 and the parents or legal guardians of entrants under age 18 (or under the legal age of majority in the entrant’s state of residence in the U.S. or jurisdiction of residence in Canada – whichever is greater) agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Sponsor, its officers, directors, agents, subsidiaries, and affiliates, wherever  situated, against claims, losses, penalties, causes of action, damages, liability, costs, expenses (including but not limited to reasonable attorneys' fees) or claims caused by or resulting indirectly from entrants participation in the Contest, without limitation or exception, including entrant's violation of any third-party's rights, including without limitation, infringement of any copyright, trademark, service mark, trade secret, right of privacy or publicity or any other third party right).
  • Sponsor is not responsible for lost, late or misdirected entries, or incomplete/incorrect entries, or any internet, hardware, or software computer malfunction.
  • Sponsor reserves the right to disqualify anyone who attempts to tamper or otherwise interfere with the proper functioning of the promotion and/or its website.
  • Sponsor reserves the right to modify or cancel the Contest in the event of a malfunction beyond Sponsor’s control.
  • All entries must be original and entirely created by the entrant, must not violate the trademark, copyright, or privacy/publicity rights of any third party, and must not violate any applicable local, federal, state/provincial/territorial, and/or international laws and regulations. Void in Quebec and where prohibited or restricted by law.
  • California residents: this program may constitute a financial incentive under California law. For more information, please see privacy policy financial incentives notice.
  • Sponsor is: Reeves International, Inc., 14 Industrial Rd, Pequannock, NJ 07440. Breyer Animal Creations is a division of Reeves International, Inc.
  • For a copy of these Official Rules or the Winners List (which shall include the first name, first letter of last name, state/province/territory, and country of the winner, send a stamped, self-addressed envelope to Sponsor at the above address; Attn: Breyer Essay Contest 2024. Please specify which item you are requesting. Residents of Vermont and Canada may omit return postage. You may also obtain a copy of these Official Rules or the Winners List by sending an email (with your email address) to: [email protected] with the subject line “Breyer Essay Contest 2024 request.” Please specify which item you are requesting.

Meet New Releases for Mid-Year 2024

Breyerfest 2024 tickets roadmap, added to your cart:.

  • Global Elections
  • About Speakers Bureau Careers Podcast

Katyanna Quach

Communicate with animals, win millions: Inside the wild new world of AI prizes

animal essay contest

Sign up for Semafor Technology: What’s next in the new era of tech. Read it now .

In this article:

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Katyanna’s view

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Room for Disagreement

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A British financier will pay millions to anyone who finds a way for humans to communicate with animals as part of a new generation of AI prizes that represent a fresh incentive to push technology forward.

Jeremy Coller, who made his money developing a way for a private equity fund’s backers to sell interests or assets to another investor, is offering $10 million to whoever can pass a kind of modified, interspecies Turing Test. The now archaic test examines whether machines can successfully imitate humans and trick them into believing that they’re chatting with another person.

The goal of the Coller Dolittle Challenge , instead, is to test whether humans can mimic animals and trick them into talking with humans. AI algorithms have helped analyze bat calls and whale songs, leading scientists to believe that communication with other species may be possible. Yossi Yovel, a professor at Tel Aviv University’s Sagol School of Neuroscience, who is chairing the competition, said it’ll be very difficult to show whether a human has successfully communicated with an animal, and that he’s still trying to finalize the competition’s rules.

“We want to decipher their communication system and we want to communicate with them using their communication system,” he told Semafor. “So training a dog to sit using human language does not count. If you can do it using barking, then that might be something else.”

The Coller Dolittle Challenge is one of a new set of efforts to drive developments in AI that are too weird for big companies, and too wild for academia. These types of contests are often driven by rich donors with niche, peculiar interests and a strong desire to change the world.

Yovel said Coller is “all for animal rights, which I think our competition is very relevant for because the more we understand animal cognition and communication, the better we will know how to treat them.” Singer Peter Gabriel, who was popular in the 1980s and ’90s, is also part of the effort as co-founder of the Interspecies Internet, a think tank dedicated to accelerating communication with animals and backed by Coller.

“When I played music with bonobo apes, I was stunned by their intelligence and their musicality,” Gabriel said on the Coller Dolittle Challenge website.

The winners of these AI contests often go from being unknown computer scientists to geeky rock stars. For example, the Vesuvius Challenge , launched by former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman and entrepreneur Daniel Gross, offered amateurs a path to fame and fortune in artificial intelligence.

Youssef Nader, a PhD student at Freie University, was part of the three-person team that won the $700,000 grand prize this year for deciphering the charred remains of ancient Greek scrolls. He is now famous among archaeologists.

“I met a lot of them, and all three of us sort of became celebrities in this field, of which we know nothing about,” he told Semafor. “[We] don’t know any Greek, but people assume we’re experts.”

He became captivated by the idea of downloading 2000-year-old data directly onto his laptop, and spent hours trying to figure out ways to piece together the characters in the scroll, sacrificing sleep.

These flashy million-dollar prizes offer an alternative way to solve quirky AI problems in new ways that push the technology forward outside the confines of academia and industry. Anyone with some technical chops can get involved.

“I think it’s a very interesting way of solving research problems that probably would otherwise be stalled,” Nader said.

Now, Nader is thinking of entering the ARC Prize contest, for which Mike Knoop, the co-founder of Zapier, a software automation startup, has put up $1 million. The challenge was initially proposed by François Chollet, a software engineer and AI researcher at Google, in 2019 and involves solving a series of visual puzzles that are easy for humans to understand but difficult for AI.

The problems require applying pattern recognition and reasoning skills in novel scenarios. Knoop will award a grand prize of $500,000 if participants can train an AI model that can solve 85% of the problems, and believes that current transformer models like ChatGPT have limited intelligence. Even though their abilities have improved with scale, Knoop and Chollet are convinced they won’t lead to artificial general intelligence.

Companies like OpenAI and Anthropic, however, are betting that it’s inevitable they will eventually reach the holy grail of machine intelligence if they can keep training larger models.

“There’s an incentive for the entire ecosystem to heavily promote this since there’s a lot of money riding on the winners. It stamps out a lot of competition, but as a society, we need new ideas,” Knoop told Semafor.

He was motivated to launch the prize as a way to keep fundamental AI research open, since tech companies keep their technologies secret. “Right now the world’‘s bet is that these individual labs are going to solve [AGI] within themselves,” he said. “And yet, if you look at the history of AI, that’s not how any of it actually progressed.”

Prizes incentivizing researchers to solve problems or reach scientific breakthroughs aren’t new. But the AI buzz seems to be attracting more wealthy people in tech and philanthropy to believe in wackier ideas that might not have been possible before. They cut through the bureaucratic fluff that bogs down academia and industry.

People don’t have to have fancy titles, apply for grant funding, or persuade executives for resources to work on a problem, which is a breath of fresh air. The benefits from solving it are shared publicly for other people to build upon, and even if the goals are niche, they still contribute to societal progress in some way. There’s no harm in trying to decode ancient text, and we would be better off if we could build generally intelligent machines or talk to animals one day.

Cynics may argue that these types of contests won’t necessarily make much progress, and that the money should be spent tackling issues that are more helpful than reading burnt scrolls. Some believe that the ARC Prize, for example, isn’t a good test for developing AGI. Even if a developer invents a new algorithm that can successfully solve the puzzles, it might not be applicable to other domains that are actually useful like healthcare or science.

  • Here’s a podcast interview with Knoop and Chollet on why they don’t believe LLMs will reach AGI.

Duck® Brand Announces Top 10 Finalists in 24th Annual Stuck at Prom® Scholarship Contest

News provided by

Jun 26, 2024, 13:10 ET

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Top Duck Tape ®   Dress and Tux Will Win Largest Prizes in Contest History

AVON, Ohio , June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Drumroll, please! Today, Duck ® brand names the top 10 finalists in the 24 th Annual Stuck at Prom ® Scholarship Contest , which challenges high school students across the U.S. and Canada to create promwear entirely out of Duck Tape ® for a chance to win college scholarships. From jaw-dropping dresses with extravagant skirts to tuxedos that incorporate a kaleidoscope of patterns and colors, this year's impressive display of creativity and craftsmanship puts online voters in a sticky situation as they decide the Grand Prize winners.

"What 'sticks out' to me about the participants this year is their confidence to create entries that are completely unlike any of the previous Stuck at Prom ® looks," said Kerry Haugh , director of product marketing, duct tapes, at Shurtape Technologies, LLC, the company that markets the Duck ® brand. "Encouraging high schoolers to be themselves and embrace their uniqueness is what this competition is all about. The voters have their work cut out for them as they determine this year's winners!"

This year's top 10 finalists are:

2024 Stuck at Prom ® Dress Finalists: Bree Austin ( Edmond, Oklahoma ) 97 hours & 19 Duck Tape ® Rolls Jessica Ong ( Great Neck, New York ) 98 hours & 36 Duck Tape ® Rolls Victoria Schoenherr ( Spearfish, South Dakota ) 161 hours & 80 Duck Tape ® Rolls Celeste Sotelo ( Waynesboro, Virginia ) 15 hours & 10 Duck Tape ® Rolls Monica Walsh ( Dryden, Ontario ) 126 hours & 13 Duck Tape ® Rolls

2024 Stuck at Prom ® Tux Finalists: Josie Authers ( New York, New York ) 150 hours & 25 Duck Tape ® Rolls Finn Beauregard (York, Pennsylvania ) 76 hours & 14 Duck Tape ® Rolls Mario Casstillon ( Hemet, California ) 46 hours & 13 Duck Tape ® Rolls Isaac Cerventes ( Pilot Point, Texas ) 123 hours & 16 Duck Tape ® Rolls Aidan Flanagan ( Decatur, Alabama ) 92 hours & 21 Duck Tape ® Rolls

To select the top 10, a panel of judges narrowed down over 150 entries based on specific criteria, including accessories, color, workmanship, originality and the use of Duck ® Tape. The Grand Prize winners—one dress and one tux designer—will each take home a $15,000 cash scholarship, which is the largest prize Duck ® brand has awarded since the start of the competition. All runners-up will receive $1,000 and a Duck ® brand prize pack valued at $100 . Additionally, three of the finalists will be honored with one of the new Judge's Choice Awards, also worth $1,000 . The Judges' Choice Awards are:

  • 'Runway Worthy' for the trendiest or most fashion-forward look
  • 'Most Inspiring' for the creation with the most impressive 'why' or 'how' shared through a video or essay
  • 'Trust E's Choice' for the entry that is most favored by the judges

From now until July 10 , the public can cast their vote at StuckAtProm.com . Winners will be announced on or around July 19 .

About Duck Tape ® Brand Duct Tape

An American original, Duck Tape ® brand duct tape is the fix-all to help with everyday repairs, projects or crafts. Duck Tape ® offers a vast array of innovative, forward-thinking solutions that help everyone – from makers and creators to do-it-yourselfers and professionals – bring their ideas to life. The brand sets trends with its wide variety of colors and designs, inspires creativity and leads the way in DIY or jobsite projects, crafting, and more, by providing the tools consumers need to make or repair anything. Duck Tape ® brand is marketed by Shurtape Technologies, LLC, an industry-leading manufacturer of adhesive tape and consumer home and office products, with facilities worldwide. Visit DuckBrand.com for additional product information and everyday inspiration, imagination and creativity.

SOURCE Duck® Brand

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A man, a bear, and a woman walk into the woods

A grizzly bear cub searched for fallen fruit beneath an apple tree a few miles from the north entrance to Yellowstone National Park in Gardiner, Mont., in 2013.

“Despite the real hazard bears pose, I can tell you that encountering one in the wilderness isn’t as scary as running into a man who seems a little bit off,” wrote Christine Mehta in the June 23 Ideas piece “Man or bear? Which would women rather encounter on a hiking trail?” Her essay generated more than 300 comments on BostonGlobe.com. Following is an edited sampling of readers’ reactions:

I’ve encountered many black bears on trails and they have never bothered me. They are beautiful creatures and generally passive if not with young ones. Just walk slowly the other way and they go away. Lone men on trails often don’t go away when you walk the other way, like the guy who continued to follow me saying he wanted to talk to me until I finally had to tell him I’d let my madly barking and lunging dog off his leash if he didn’t leave me alone. (Chowder99)

This is just another chapter on the villainizing of men. Men also provide for their families, protect our country, and are scientists, engineers, and educators. (jvc123)

As do women. (Hulltim)

A threat is a threat, no matter what its DNA is. But making gross generalizations and pigeonholing men into a “war” is about as insane as believing a grizzly or brown bear will never do you harm. Take precautions. Pay attention. Never forget that you are in the wilderness, which is by definition wild. As in not safe. (BlackwoodStone)

Before all the men start howling, consider for just a moment what this real fear must be like for us women. Strangely enough, as I’m much older now, I’ve faded into the background because my looks no longer attract that ugly, unwanted attention from men, and honestly, it’s a relief. (renisme)

There are men who see women as prey and who find any excuse to satisfy their cravings, especially in the forest and out of the sight of others. In many societies, not just our own, the ability to form healthy mutually satisfactory sexual relationships is hindered, even distorted, by dysfunctional family relationships and cultural and religious belief systems. Women have every right to exercise their freedom. (Augie85)

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As a guy, I’ve always been confused why so many men don’t get it. If I am ever walking behind a woman at night, I will try to cross the street so she doesn’t even consider that I’m following her. One time I was walking behind a woman and there were no sidewalks on the other side, and I saw her briefly glance behind. I called out, “Sorry, I would normally cross the street but there’s no sidewalk. If you want to stand aside, I’ll be glad to scoot by so I’m in front of you,” and she said, “No, that’s OK. But thanks.” (SS2001)

That’s the problem I have with this article. While women are completely justified in their fears, the reality is that most men are decent people that a woman has no reason to fear. It’s not men that are bad; it’s that some men are bad. While I understand that a woman can’t tell whether a man is decent or not just by looking at him, this is still a form of “profiling,” which we usually consider a bad thing. I wish there were a better way of handling this than framing it as women vs. men. (Sigmund-Fraud)

Of course it isn’t all men just like nothing is ever “all” anything, but there isn’t a woman alive who doesn’t know the potential danger in every encounter with an unknown man — and sometimes with the known ones. I am over 70 and have lived with this reality all my life. Men do not understand out of willful ignorance. If a man actually takes the time to listen and take what is said seriously, any woman can explain to them exactly why this fear is based in reality and experience. And until they do and truly understand, women will continue to prefer the bears. (Cat1953)

If I unexpectedly came upon either while walking in the woods, dread would wash over me. What might happen next is horrifying, but in different ways. (CCgrl)

Have been a solo hiker in the New Hampshire wilderness for over 25 years, and often get asked if I get scared being alone. My response is I do not fear any animal but I am aware of humans, most specifically men, of which I am one. (whtmtns)

Having hiked since 1965, I think it would be great if there were fewer people (male/female/also dogs) on the trails. My best hikes have typically been when there was solitude. (teleguy66)

I don’t believe a single bear has ever been served with a restraining order. No contest: The human male is the most dangerous animal on the planet. Female runners have to plan their routes by location and time of day to reduce the risk of an abusive verbal or physical encounter. How many men have ever had to consider the same? (danofdot)

A couple of weeks ago a friend in North Carolina posted a video to her Facebook page of a black bear hanging out on her deck and looking in her windows. The video included the sound of her and her mom laughing about it. I suspect a strange man standing on her deck looking in her windows would have prompted a 911 call. (DoctorL)

Leg injury with swelling increasing over the last three days. Can no longer walk but can limp for the time being. Have not eaten in four days. No water left in jug. Temperature 95 degrees and it is 8:30 a.m. Would you like to meet a bear or a man? I’ll wait… (BasicMath)

Well, if the bear had a picnic basket… (Question Authority)

And finally, user locavoree went the parody route:

I think I see a “Dinner with Cupid” in the works.

Bear: I arrived early and was seated. She was brought to the table. There was no immediate attraction as she lacked any belly fat and smelled “off.”

Woman: Not my usual type but he is big and muscular. The restaurant offered eclectic choices; we started with the fruit, nut, twigs, and roots bowl and later shared a plate of termites, ants, and moss.

Bear: The conversation was spotty. I tried to bring in an element of surprise. It almost got us thrown out.

Woman: He walked me to my Uber, no kiss but a heck of a hug!

Another date?

I think we have a lot more to explore.

Again not really my type, but we can be friends.

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This Year’s Annie Li Yang Student Essay Contest Winners

March 7, 2024

Three students were named winners of the 2024 Annie Li Yang Student Essay Contest. Students were asked to reflect on the connections between their clinic and classroom experiences and share how it has impacted their growth as future physicians. Congratulations to first place winner Jake Haver, second place winner Andrew Harris, and third place winner Eliza Burr.

Read their essays below.

animal essay contest

Speaking with Silk

Not as strangers.

by Andrew Harris Most aspiring medical students seem to dream of their white coat ceremony. It’s one of those days that shouts “your life is changing” and serves as a lookout or rest stop on the steep ascent to becoming a physician. My outlook was a little different. I was not dreaming of my white coat ceremony. Rather, I was dreading it. Perhaps it was white coat syndrome amplified, as I walked onto the stage and announced my name to the crowd, my smiling face masking a deep, visceral ache. My core throbbed, a tight and unrelenting constriction from a fear that lurked inside me that whispered “I do not belong.” As I walked across the stage, I saw those around me as insiders. It was as though everyone else glided to shake the Dean’s hand and smile for the camera, meanwhile I felt like I tracked mud across the floors. It was a day to celebrate finding my path, yet I felt out of place and hesitant of the future.

The semester began, and the ache continued. They say that learning medicine is like learning a foreign language. In my opinion, it’s more like being thrown out of a plane and parachuting into an unfamiliar culture. My mind rattled with the cacophony of jargon and unfamiliar diagnoses, set against a new rhythm of process and formality. I’d nod and feign understanding while racing to look up seemingly basic topics like “what is a CBC.” I felt like I was a wandering microorganism, somehow having breached the defenses of my host via a lucky form of molecular mimicry. Out of place, but undetectable. From my past career in business, I was familiar with this style: fake it till you make it. But in medicine, I wasn’t so sure we wanted anyone faking anything.

I felt like a stranger, but thankfully the ache of feeling out of place began to crack and erode. This mindset change was mostly thanks to the people around me. Time spent with caring faculty and incredible students enabled me to chip away my fears and access my underlying confidence.

And then I started my clinic rotation, and I realized that many patients face similar feelings of outsider-ness. The ways that the body functions, both correctly and incorrectly, and the complex organization of delivering care are behemoths that many patients find foreign and hard to understand. In the clinic, I watched an elderly patient drip with anxiety as they discussed their profound concern over a recent note in their chart. A few months prior, they had an ultrasound which incidentally showed a cyst on their left kidney. They went through a follow up investigation and came to the clinic confused and afraid. Pulsing with fear from the implications of a disease, they explained how they had read the imaging report in their chart and had no idea what it meant. The physician declared that the cyst was not a cause for concern, and the patient erupted with tears of relief. Offering a hug, the physician remained in the room for a long time. As the patient asked more questions and listened, their fear evaporated and their confusion turned into curiosity.

I met another patient, a professional musician, who came to the clinic terrified about recent pain in their arms. They described how the pain forced them to stop performing in the middle of their set, and they admitted their fear that this condition would prevent them from playing. “I feel lost in my own body,” they said, as the provider asked how they were coping. During the visit, the provider explained, with no hint of jargon, how the body responds to pain and carries out movement. The patient leaned in as the provider drew a rough sketch of a nerve pathway, and while the provider could not yet point to the cause of the pain, the patient expressed their satisfaction in understanding more about the situation.

In those moments when I met fearful and lost patients and watched caring physicians offer support, I better understood my feelings of outsider-ness. Somehow, I had the conception that in training to become a doctor, I would have to discard my humanity. I realized I’m not training to be some sterile, robotic, pseudo-machine. I’m immersing myself in medicine so that I can be a guide to those who come to me feeling scared and uncertain. To many, like me, medicine is a foreign world, and I’m training to be a bridge into that world, to be adept in the complexities and technicalities so as to make it understandable and personal for my patients. I’m training to care for those who feel like strangers, and in the process to see them not as others, but as full human beings, with hopes and dreams and stresses just like me.

I realize that encouraging strangers to feel known and providing a foothold to those who feel lost are lofty tasks. Some people think consideration and empathy are finite resources. Some see kindness and concern like pitchers of water that we must ration as we pour ourselves into others, afraid our springs will run dry. Certainly, when we are fatigued from hard work and tackling our own stressors, it is hard to muster the energy that is required to mask our feelings and focus on patients. Certainly, there are times when the feelings poke through, and even in our best efforts, there are patients who do not feel satisfied. But my challenge to myself, at least, is that as I venture deeper into the world of medicine, I never forget my feelings of being an outsider. My challenge is for me to remember the radiating ache that I felt during my white coat ceremony, and for me to remember that many patients experience similar, if not more magnified feelings. My challenge is to remember that I’m not an automaton or some prestigious purveyor of science: I’m simply a human, learning medicine, in order to help other humans

Myco-Medicine

When I arrived in Michigan, I had been foraging mushrooms for a few years. I first became interested in mycology, the study of fungi, at college in upstate New York. The environment was luscious, the kind of environment that encourages mycorrhizal structures lying beneath our feet to fruit, and it is the fruit that catches our attention. There’s amanita muscaria, also known as the “Mario mushroom,” not to be eaten; puffball mushrooms pallid like softballs; laetiporus, lovingly referred to as the “chicken of the woods.” And beneath our feet, the networks of rhizomes, the real organisms, stretch out for miles. They commune with the roots of trees, providing necessary nutrients. They respond to subtle shifts in temperature, moisture, and light. Fungal networks have been referred to as the “wood wide web,” transmitting information throughout the giant organism of our ecosystems. When I began medical school at Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, I was already looking for mycorrhizal networks everywhere. It was not difficult to see the underlying web of interconnected needs in health care as a mycorrhizal network itself. My medical training has been preoccupied with the investigation of where one entity ends, and another begins. This dissolution of the individual is visible on the molecular level, where systems blend into each other to interact and influence the operation of the body as a whole. It is evident on the level of the healthcare system, in which patient care is only as effective as our communication with everyone involved. But as someone who went into medicine for the human interactions, I am most interested in the community that is built between those of us who provide care and the patients who receive it. If I imagine this generative space, I begin to fill it up with all the ways in which we are connected to our patients. There is the physical connection, the foundation of medicine, in a clinical examination of another person. Touch is the most tangible form of connection. The link between my ears and their heartbeat is a message murmured between S1 and S2. Then there is the emotional connection between us, the empathy that we are taught to carry to each room on our rounds. The subtle cues in a patient’s glance or tone tell us about their fear, or their sorrow, or their impatience. Even before we exchange words, a connection is formed based on the way we enter their room and the way they greet us. Then, the conversation, the history; we are taught its importance even before we learn physical cues. Human society is built on the backs of words as they string together one discrete body to another. The History of the Present Illness, or HPI, is much more than the story of a symptom. Rather, it is a door into the patient’s experience. In trusting us to care for their health, patients trust that we will not abuse the bridge they are building between their needs and our solutions. They are inviting us in with the hope that we will take them along. The HPI is an experience in duality, a building of community. Admittedly, this framework has not been supported by the power of fungi alone. CHM has reaffirmed the framework of community-building on every level. In lecture halls we are taught to understand discrete biological systems by building “mental bridges” from one concept to another. This is a virtue of the C3 curriculum that encourages thinking outside the traditional medical structure of learning one bodily system at a time. In simulation sessions we were encouraged to pay attention to stories and nonverbal cues alike from our standardized patients. I will never forget the session during the second year Structural Competencies rotation in which we were able to sit down with the people who had been our standardized patients all year to get to know them as themselves. One of those sessions ended with both me and the patient in tears, grateful to have been able to find community in each other’s stories. These experiences allowed me to feel the power of mutualism when it is practiced in healthcare settings. Understanding the universality of mycorrhizal networks has helped me access the invisible threads that tie me to the patients I see. One of the valuable lessons I have gained in medicine is the ability to let go of ego and lean into the community that surrounds us. Finding that community with a patient helps us help each other, making the collective experience of seeking care and providing it run more smoothly. Finding community within our healthcare systems allows us to feel less isolated in a field that is often full of grief. I remember during my first rotation of third year, I walked into the Hurley Medical Center student lounge to find a circle of peers decompressing from the exhausting and often frustrating experiences of their clerkship rotations. In that moment, I felt recharged by the mutual support I was witnessing. This kind of community-building allows us to accomplish the shared goal of providing high quality patient care without sacrificing our mental health and wellbeing. In my clerkship rotations in Flint, I have used the lessons of community-building gleaned from MSU and mycorrhizal networks every day. When I see patients, I feel the network stretching between me and them, them and their community, their community and my community, and my community and me, all wrapped up in the time I take gathering their history. When I talk to a patient’s nurse or try to coordinate care between two specialists, I see us all as nodes in the healthcare network, each one of us providing nutrients and information to the other. From the patient to the physician to the administrator, we’re all part of a system with collective goals. My hope as I move forward in medicine is to hold fast to this network to foster community that stretches for miles, perhaps invisible, nourishing us all.

IN MEMORY The contest is named in honor of  Annie Li Yang  (1995-2019), one of the inaugural essay winners. Annie was a first-year medical student at the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. She held a BA from Princeton and would have received her MD in 2022. In her winning 2019 Inaugural Student Essay Contest entry titled  “ Patiently Gazing into Patients’ Lives,”  Annie candidly delved into her fear of and journey to overcome reductive thinking, stressing the importance of always keeping sight of the individuality of patients and their lives outside of the hospital or clinic. In her words, “what it truly means to become a physician [is] to see the patient as someone much like myself, a member of a wider community and family.”

View previous essay winners

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Albania's world-renowned novelist Ismail Kadare dies at 88

Vlasov Sulaj And Llazar Semini

Associated Press

TIRANA – Albanian novelist and poet Ismail Kadare, whose irreverent works from inside communist Albania earned him international renown and repression from the country's dictatorship, has died in Tirana, his publishing editor said Monday. He was 88.

Kadare won a number of international awards , and had long been mentioned as a possible contender for the Nobel Prize in literature.

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Albanian President Bajram Begaj praised Kadare as the country's “spiritual emancipator.”

“Albania and Albanians lost their genius of letters ... the Balkans (lost) the poet of its myths, Europe and the world (lost) one of the most renowned representatives of modern literature,” Begaj said in a statement released by his office.

Albania's government declared two days of national mourning on Tuesday and Wednesday, when flags will fly at half-staff. A minute's silence will be observed nationwide Wednesday following Kadare's funeral.

Onufri Publishing House editor Bujar Hudhri said the author died Monday morning after being rushed to a hospital.

A nurse at the hospital said he was taken to the emergency room after suffering cardiac arrest. She spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to talk to the media.

Kadare became internationally recognized after his novel “The General of the Dead Army” — which later inspired a film starring Marcello Mastroianni and Anouk Aimee — was published in 1963. The book told the story of an Italian general who was sent to Albania to find and repatriate the bones of thousands of his compatriots killed there during World War II, and who dwells on the futility of the task and of war.

At the time, Albania was still governed by the communist government of late dictator Enver Hoxha that had turned the small, mountainous Balkan country into Europe's most isolated.

Celebrated for the delicate writing of his novels, Kadare fled to France in the fall of 1990, just a few months before the collapse of the communist regime following student protests in December. He lived in Paris and had recently returned to Tirana, the Albanian capital.

During a visit to Albania last year, French President Emmanuel Macron awarded him the Grand Officer of the Legion of Honor title . France had previously also made him a foreign associate of the Academy of Moral and Political Sciences, as well as Commander of the Legion of Honor.

Kadare was awarded a number of international prizes, including the inaugural International Booker Prize in 2005. His works, which included more than 80 novels, plays, screenplays, poetry, essays and story collections, were translated into 45 languages.

Born on Jan. 28, 1936, in the southern Albanian city of Gjirokaster, Kadare graduated from Tirana University's History and Philology Faculty and went on to study at Moscow's Maxim Gorky Literature Institute.

But he was recalled after Hoxha split with the Soviet Union — the first of two great ruptures with major communist powers that was later to conclude with China.

Back in Albania, Kadare won a reputation as a poet and novelist, but soon fell foul of the communist regime, which banned several of his works and briefly exiled him to the provinces.

“The General of the Dead Army” attracted major international attention when it was translated into French and published in the West. This recognition abroad has been credited with shielding Kadare from the more violent retribution Albania's communists routinely reserved for dissidents.

After the fall of communism in Albania, Kadare resisted calls from different political parties or politicians to become the country’s president.

He is survived by his wife, Helena, also a writer, and his daughters Gresa and Besiana.

The funeral will be held on Wednesday.

Semini reported from Bari, Italy.

Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.

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The Morning

The science of dogs.

We explore a boom in research into our furry friends.

A dog with white fur and gray patches stands in an outdoor setting.

By Emily Anthes

I cover animal health and science.

My career as a science journalist began with a story on canine genetics. It was the summer of 2004, and a female boxer named Tasha had just become the first dog in the world to have her complete genome sequenced. It was a major advance for an animal that, though beloved by humans, had been overlooked by many scientists.

Over the two decades since, I have seen dogs transform from an academic afterthought to the new “it” animal for scientific research. In the United States alone, tens of thousands of dogs are now enrolled in large, ongoing studies. Canine scientists are investigating topics as varied as cancer, communication, longevity, emotion, retrieving behavior, the gut microbiome, the health effects of pollution and “doggy dementia.”

The research has the potential to give dogs happier, healthier and longer lives — and improve human well-being, too, as I report in a story published this morning . In today’s newsletter, I’ll explain why dogs have become such popular scientific subjects.

Big dog data

First, an important clarification: Dogs have long been the subject of invasive medical experiments, similar to lab rats and monkeys. That’s not the research I’m discussing here. The studies that have exploded in popularity involve pets. They require the enthusiastic participation of owners, who are collecting canine saliva samples, submitting veterinary records and answering survey questions about their furry friends.

One reason these studies have become more common: Scientists realized that dogs were interesting and unique subjects. Our canine companions have social skills that even great apes lack, for instance, and they happen to be the most physically diverse mammal species on the planet. (Consider the difference between a Chihuahua and a Great Dane.) Dogs also share our homes and get many of the same diseases that people do, making them good models for human health.

“Most of the questions that we have in science are not questions about what happens to animals living in sterile environments,” said Evan MacLean, the director of the Arizona Canine Cognition Center at the University of Arizona. “They’re questions about real organisms in the real world shared with humans. And dogs are a really, really good proxy for that in ways that other animals aren’t.”

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  • A deadly new strain of mpox is raising alarm

Health officials warn it could soon spread beyond the Democratic Republic of Congo

Children with lesions, one of the symptoms of Monkey Pox.

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M POX IS A viral infection typically found in parts of Africa and spread through contact with infected animals as well as within households. It causes severe fever, flu-like symptoms and a rash of pus-filled blisters across the body. In 2022 the disease, formerly known as monkeypox, spread around the world—cases turned up everywhere from Nigeria to America and Australia. A newly discovered strain of the virus, described by some researchers as the most dangerous yet, now threatens to spread beyond the Democratic Republic of Congo into neighbouring countries such as Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda.

Although much remains unknown about this strain, Jean Claude Udahemuka, a lecturer at the University of Rwanda who has been studying the outbreak, reports fatality rates of approximately 5% in adults and 10% in children. The virus exhibits different transmission patterns and disproportionately affects children. On June 25th the World Health Organisation emphasised the urgent need to deal with the surge of mpox cases in Africa.

The mpox outbreak in 2022 was caused by a different, and less severe form of the virus of the type “clade II”. The new strain was first identified in April in Kamituga, a gold-mining town in Congo’s South Kivu province. Researchers discovered it was a new lineage of the virus, distinct from previously known mpox strains, which they called “clade Ib”. The clade Ib strain has reportedly mutated to become more efficient at human-to-human transmission. This is causing concern about its potential for broader spread. Mpox has been circulating in humans for many years but it also exists in wild animals in several African countries and occasionally jumps to humans, for example through the consumption of bushmeat.

Unlike the mpox outbreak in 2022, which was driven by male-to-male sexual contact, the new strain is spreading through heterosexual contact, particularly among sex workers, who account for about 30% of recorded cases. Researchers estimate that the outbreak began around mid-September 2023. As of May 26th, 7,851 mpox cases and 384 deaths have been reported in Congo (though it is unclear how many are clade Ib infections, as there is likely to be more than one outbreak going on in the country).

In Congo the new strain is behaving quite differently from other strains of mpox, with cases also suggesting transmission through close (non-sexual) contact. Dr Udahemuka reports instances of household transmission as well as an outbreak in a school. It is also just as common in women as in men, and is reported to be causing miscarriages. The risk of international spread appears to be high, with the strain detected in towns near national borders. The new strain has also been found in sex workers from Rwanda and Uganda, a group that is normally quite mobile. With the arrival of the dry season facilitating greater migration, experts fear it is only a matter of time before the virus starts to emerge in neighbouring countries and then spreads worldwide through close contact at international airports.

In April the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention called for an increase in surveillance and contact-tracing efforts. Some experts suggest it would be worth deploying the smallpox vaccine among high-risk groups such as sex workers and health-care workers, as it has been known in the past to offer cross-protection against mpox, which is a related virus. However, the effectiveness of the smallpox vaccine against this new strain remains unknown. Trudie Lang, a professor of global-health research at the University of Oxford, suggests that although there are uncertainties, the vaccine is safe, easy to use and worth trying. There are also trials under way of an antiviral drug known as tecovirimat, with results expected next year.

The situation in the region is complicated by war, displacement and food insecurity. Containment efforts are made harder still by the likelihood of asymptomatic cases, where individuals do not know they are infected but can nevertheless spread the virus to others. Dr Lang emphasises that this, along with the number of mild cases of the infection, are the biggest unknowns in the current outbreak. Preventing this new mpox strain from becoming another global health crisis requires swift and co-ordinated action. ■

Curious about the world? To enjoy our mind-expanding science coverage, sign up to  Simply Science , our weekly subscriber-only newsletter.

This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Breaking out”

Science & technology June 29th 2024

The race to prevent satellite armageddon, at least 10% of research may already be co-authored by ai.

The centre cannot hold

From the June 29th 2024 edition

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Those using the prosthetic can walk as fast as those with intact lower limbs

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  4. ESSAY CONTEST: Animal Rights

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  5. Third through Sixth Grade Students Living in Arlington, Get Ready: The

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  6. Ready, Set, Go! The Annual Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest Kicks

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COMMENTS

  1. Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest

    A-. This annual competition inspires Arlington students in grades three through six to pen essays on topics relating to responsible pet ownership. The contest promotes responsible pet ownership with a variety of topics that include thought-provoking questions for each grade level. The 2024 Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest is sponsored by.

  2. 2024 Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest Open Feb. 5 though March 1

    The 2024 Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest is kicking off the new year with exciting new essay topics! It is time for students across The American Dream City to begin composing an original essay to submit in the annual Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest. The contest, in its 23rd year, begins Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, and is open to students ...

  3. PDF 2024 Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest

    Animal Essay Contest 23rd A nual Contest is open to students who live in Arlington, are in 3rd, 4th, 5th or 6th grade and attend either public, private, or home school. Contest begins Monday, February 5, 2024. Essay entries may be submitted beginning on Monday, February 26, 2024 and ending at 5:00 p.m. on Friday, March 1, 2024. 2024 Sheri Capehart

  4. A Voice for Animals Contest

    Our judges are hard at work reading the entries for the 2024 contest. We will announce the winners on or before Friday, July 26th 2024. Prizes up to a total of $5900 * will be awarded to high school students whose entries best promote the humane treatment of animals, including: $500. First Prize (Video by 16-18 year old)

  5. "A Voice for Animals" Essay Contest Winners Demonstrate Ingenuity in

    The annual contest offers high school students ages 14 to 18 the opportunity to win cash prizes for essays, videos, or photo essays that explore strategies to alleviate animal suffering. The contest is sponsored by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) and the Humane Education Network, with additional support from the Palo Alto Humane Society.

  6. PDF Coming Soon! Enter the 2024 Sheri Capehart Annual Animal Essay Contest

    Annual Animal Essay Contest 23rd Annual More Information Coming Soon! This writing contest is open to students in grades 3, 4, 5, and 6, residing within the City of Arlington, who attend public or private schools. Contest begins - Monday, February 5, 2024 Essay entries begins - Monday, February 26, 2024 Contest Deadline - Friday, March 1 at 5: ...

  7. H.E.N.

    The 34 th annual A Voice for Animals Contest is now closed for entries and the judges are hard at work reading entries from around the world. The winners will be announced here by Friday, August 16th 2024. ... Through these efforts in her community, Jordan hopes to improve the future for wild animals. Winner: 2021 First Prize (Essay/Photographs ...

  8. "A Voice for Animals" High School Essay Contest

    The "A Voice for Animals" Essay Contest is open to high school and home schooled students who are under the age of 19. To be eligible, you must establish or become involved with a project that address either the mistreatment of one animal species or one cause of animal suffering, or the preservation of one species threatened with extinction ...

  9. 33rd Annual A Voice for Animals Contest

    Students ages 14-18: Submissions are open for the 33rd annual "A Voice for Animals" essay contest, sponsored by AWI and Humane Education Network! Now... | animal, prize

  10. Students ages 14-18: Submissions are open for the 33rd ...

    Students ages 14-18: Submissions are open for the 33rd annual "A Voice for Animals" essay contest, sponsored by AWI and Humane Education Network! Now through May 21, submit essays, videos, or photo...

  11. A Voice for Animals Contest

    The Humane Education Network in partnership with the Animal Welfare Institute offers an Annual A Voice for Animals High School Contest. Participants must currently be attending middle or high school, or be home-schooled and under 19 years of age on the date, the contest opens for entries. The competition has sections for 14-15-year-old students ...

  12. Arlington's Youth to Address Environmental Issues in 2024 Sheri

    Arlington students compete in the 23rd annual Animal Essay Contest, writing on wildlife and environmental topics.

  13. Arlington Young Authors to Advocate for Wildlife in 23rd Annual Animal

    Arlington's aspiring young authors have their pens poised and their minds brimming with tales of tusks, tails, feathers, and fur for the 2024 Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest.

  14. 2023 Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest Kicks Off November 29

    The contest, in its 22 nd year, begins Tuesday, November 29, 2022, and is open to all students residing in Arlington city limits in third, fourth, fifth or sixth grade who attend public, private or home school. Essay entries will be accepted beginning Monday, January 9, 2023, through Friday, January 13, 2023, at 5 p.m. One essay entry per student.

  15. Humane Education Network

    Humane Education Network. Description: The 19th Annual Voices for Animals High School Essay Contest rewards prizes of up to $1,000 to high school students whose essays best promote the humane treatment of animals. Sponsored this year in part this year by the Palo Alto Humane Society, the contest is open to all eligible students, regardless of ...

  16. 2021 Essays

    The 2021 Sheri Capehart Animal Essay Contest winners are listed below. Click on the student names to read their essays. Third Grade Essay Topic: If you could make up a holiday for animals, what holiday would it be and how would you celebrate it? First Place - Zoe Wolfe, Little Elementary Second Place - Reagan Capps, Little Elementary

  17. Species on the Edge Art and Essay Contest

    The Species on the Edge Art & Essay Contest empowers 5th grade students to advocate for an endangered or threatened species from New Jersey through a well-researched, creative essay and original art piece. Simple, Fun, and Free to Enter! One winner from each county in New Jersey will be selected. Open to all New Jersey fifth grade students.

  18. Essay competition

    Essay Competition. The Cambridge Centre for Animal Rights Law organises an annual essay competition in the field of animal rights law. The aim of this competition is to encourage students to explore the fascinating questions that animals rights raise, and to discuss these questions in an original piece of writing that may inspire them to engage further with the topic in the future.

  19. New Jersey State Contests

    Submission Deadline: 11:59pm on March 10, 2024. ESSAY CONTEST Details: The Essay Contest is divided into two separate contests- one for Middle School student (6th - 8th graders) AND one for High School students (9th - 12th graders). Discover the connection between biomedical research, animal research, and your life!

  20. Announcing the "Why My Favorite Horse Would Love to Be a Breyer Model

    The answer could be in your hands—or words! As part of Breyer Animal Creation's 75th anniversary celebration in 2025, we're throwing a "Why My Favorite Horse Would Love to be a Breyer Model" essay contest. Three (3) winners will be honored with a personal copy of their very own genuine Breyer model in the likeness of their entry when ...

  21. Communicate with animals, win millions: Inside the wild new world of AI

    Now, Nader is thinking of entering the ARC Prize contest, for which Mike Knoop, the co-founder of Zapier, a software automation startup, has put up $1 million. The challenge was initially proposed by François Chollet, a software engineer and AI researcher at Google, in 2019 and involves solving a series of visual puzzles that are easy for humans to understand but difficult for AI.

  22. Duck® Brand Announces Top 10 Finalists in 24th Annual Stuck at Prom

    Today, Duck ® brand names the top 10 finalists in the 24 th Annual Stuck at Prom ® Scholarship Contest, which challenges high school students across the U.S. and Canada to create promwear ...

  23. A man, a bear, and a woman walk into the woods

    No contest: The human male is the most dangerous animal on the planet. Female runners have to plan their routes by location and time of day to reduce the risk of an abusive verbal or physical ...

  24. This Year's Annie Li Yang Student Essay Contest Winners

    The contest is named in honor of Annie Li Yang (1995-2019), one of the inaugural essay winners. Annie was a first-year medical student at the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. She held a BA from Princeton and would have received her MD in 2022.

  25. Albania's world-renowned novelist Ismail Kadare dies at 88

    If you need help with the Public File, call (954) 364-2526.

  26. The Science of Dogs

    The contest is a gamble for Emmanuel Macron. Read what to know . Officials in the Philippines are reckoning with the violence of former president Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs , years after he ...

  27. Animal Essay Contest Winners Recognized at City Council Meeting

    City Council Member Sheri Capehart started the endeavor 13 years ago with fellow animal advocate Dr. Allan Saxe, who wanted to create a program that promoted animal welfare education at an early age. The essay contest is designed for children to consider the responsibilities that go along with pet ownership.

  28. Congrats to 2020 Arlington Animal Essay Contest Winners!

    Excitement was in the air as Council member Sheri Capehart and contest sponsors made surprise visits to eight schools on Friday, Feb. 7 announcing winners of the annual Animal Essay Contest. This year, Wood Elementary school produced four of the 12 contest winners out of 942 entries citywide, with two of the students from Cynthia Mitchell Rohan ...

  29. A deadly new strain of mpox is raising alarm

    M POX IS A viral infection typically found in parts of Africa and spread through contact with infected animals as well as within households. It causes severe fever, flu-like symptoms and a rash of ...

  30. 12 Winners Announced in Arlington's Annual Animal Essay Contest

    With surprise visits to classrooms, Arlington city officials congratulated twelve students on Friday who penned the winning papers for this year's Animal Essay Contest. Nearly 1,500 students in public, private, charter and home schools participated in the 15 th Annual Animal Essay contest, which is designed to promote responsible pet ownership ...