A thousand years of surviving empires, invaders, and fire—yet now, Hungary’s Pannonhalma Archabbey faces a subtler adversary: beetles with a taste for old books. As librarians deploy nitrogen and vacuum cleaners in a quiet war against the “bread beetle,” it’s a reminder that history’s greatest battles aren’t always loud—or visible. Curious what’s gnawing at the world’s oldest stories?

If you thought fads were strictly a human pastime, meet the trendsetting chimps of Zambia—flashing blades of grass not just in their ears, but their butts. From borrowed caregiver habits to homegrown innovation, these primates are reminding us that when survival isn’t urgent, creativity—and the universal urge to belong—can take some truly unexpected forms. Ready to reconsider who really invented “fashion for fashion’s sake”?

Think the Black Death is just a grim tale for medieval history buffs? Think again. When a patient in northern Arizona died suddenly of bubonic plague, it was a reminder that history isn’t always content to stay in textbooks—or buried with prairie dogs. Old horrors may resurface, but our best response is simple: stay curious, stay cautious, and never underestimate nature’s weird sense of timing.

Meet Veer Narmad South Gujarat University, where new building plans now come with a side of sacred livestock. Instead of sticking to blueprints and budget meetings, the university is calling in cows—for a month—to cultivate “positive energy” and fix nagging campus headaches. Curious how bovine residents and a cow-centric curriculum landed in higher ed? You’ll want to read on.

What happens when evolution’s oddball takes the scenic route to safety? This week’s pronghorn rescue—part road trip, part understated teamwork—offers a gentle reminder: sometimes the strangest stories slip by quietly, rescued not by spectacle but by someone who actually looked twice. How did a giraffe’s distant cousin end up in a New Mexico subplot? Read on for all the curiously grounded details.

Is Rochester’s late-night lurker a vanished cougar making a dramatic comeback, or simply a housecat that needs to lay off the fancy feast? Security cams, curious neighbors, and incredulous officials are on the case—because when suburbia collides with the unexpected, the line between ordinary and outrageously odd gets very blurry (and a little furry). Click through for the full, claw-tapping saga.