Ripped from the Headlines: September 2024: This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for September 14–September 20, 2024

Schools around the U.S. are tearing out asphalt and concrete, replacing dangerously hot paved playgrounds with landscaped areas. The warming climate has prompted a push to cool schoolyards, which have traditionally been covered in blacktop. The hard, tarry surfaces have been shown to soak up sunlight and increase heat. Removing the material and adding trees, gardens, and playgrounds with wood chips rather than rubber are proven to reduce temperatures for kids who play there.

Australia recognized 750 new species, adding to the continent's reputation as a hub of biodiversity. Australia boasts about 150,000 plants and animals, and one wildlife ecologist said about 70 percent of native species there still "remain to be described." Animals added to the continent's vast variety include an orb-weaving spider named after the actor Tom Hardy and the western laughing tree frog. The Latin roots of biodiversity mean "life" and "turned different ways."

On the night of September 17, two unusual celestial events happened at the same time. The concurrent cosmic happenings were a supermoon and a partial lunar eclipse. The first occurs when a full moon is as close as possible to Earth in its orbit, making it look enormous. The partial eclipse, when the earth is between the sun and moon, made the moon in the dark night sky look like a bite had been taken out of it. Celestial derives from the Latin caelestis, "sky."

Experts are urging Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to retire after he sustained a concussion, one of at least three he's had during his career. Tagovailoa's head injury occurred in the third quarter of a game against the Buffalo Bills, when his helmet slammed against a defender's body during a tackle, sending his head sharply to one side.

Afghanistan's ruling Taliban party is enforcing strict laws that limit women's activity. Critics called the new morality code and its severe restrictions Draconian. Under the harsh rules, women are banned from speaking in public, speaking indoors above a whisper, singing, and laughing. Women haven't been allowed to attend school since the Taliban took power three years ago. Draconian is from the Athenian ruler Draco, who punished small crimes with the death penalty.

The historical epic Shogun dominated the Emmy Awards on September 15. The ceremony, honoring outstanding television, awarded "best drama series" to the critically acclaimed FX show, which delves into the history of 17th century Japan while following a hero's journey. The show's stars Hiroyuki Sanada and Anna Sawai also won in the lead actor and actress categories, the first Japanese performers to win those honors. Epic is from the Greek epos, "story."

Scientists are making progress in the fight against a deadly bat fungus. Known as white-nose syndrome, the fungal infection has killed millions of bats since 2006. It's named for the powdery-white fungus that can be seen on the faces of infected animals. Bats spread the pathogen's spores between each other, or pick them up from the surfaces of caves. Reduced populations of bats have caused destructive insect populations to explode in many areas, making a cure essential.

The Secret Service said it did not search the perimeter of a Florida golf course before a would-be assassin aimed a gun at former president Donald Trump there. According to the agency, Trump gave his security team little notice that he would be golfing, and they didn't have time to scan the bushes and trees surrounding the course. When an agent noticed the man before he fired, he had already been hiding there for 12 hours. The Greek roots of perimeter mean "measure around."

This year's Ig Nobel prizes went to scientists and researchers whose findings “first make people laugh, and then make them think," as the award's organizers put it. One of those honored at the ceremony, held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was a 1940s research project that tested the use of pigeons inside missiles. Though the project never took off, some pilots were trained in using the common gray birds to help guide the weapons, protecting the planes from flying too low.

A cat returned safely to his family in Minnesota after being trapped in a sewer for eight weeks. Drifter the tabby disappeared after he was seen exploring a nearby construction site. His family searched the neighborhood for almost two months to no avail, until a group of kids reported meows coming from an underground storm drain. The family started digging, revealing a sewer pipe and a paw reaching up through torn landscape fabric. Drifter was very skinny but otherwise unharmed.

Torrential rain across Central Europe triggered mass evacuations this week. In the Czech Republic, Poland, Austria, and Romania, rivers swelled and overflowed after the countries were inundated with downpours, causing widespread flooding. The region received an enormous amount of rain — more precipitation in just a few days than normally falls over several months. Torrential is from torrent and its Latin root torrentem, "rushing or roaring."

An Indigenous Colombian business is challenging Coca-Cola’s century-old trademark on the word coca. Coca Nasa, which makes several coca drinks, accuses the multinational beverage giant of bullying. Coca Nasa also says that by claiming an exclusive right to the word, Coca-Cola is violating the rights of native South Americans, who see the coca plant as part of their cultural heritage. Originally, a trademark was a visible mark on an item signifying ownership.