BACKUP ORIGINAL TWIW January 3–January 9, 2026

Winter storms in California are calming fears of extreme drought this year. Meteorologists caution that it's too early to assume there will be enough rain to avoid drought, since the state's rainy season lasts until late February. Still, the unusually wet winter has allayed the concerns of many Californians about water supply in the hot summer months. Allay derives from the Old English alecgan, "lessen," from roots meaning "to lay down."

Two decades after Indian ecologist Dr. Purnima Devi Barman began working to protect the endangered greater adjutant stork (locally known as the hargila), she has mobilized a team of 20,000 women conservationists to assist her. The group, which Barman refers to as the Hargila Army, helps protect chicks, monitor nests, and raise local awareness of the awkward avian scavenger. Though the birds were once believed to bring bad luck, they play a vital role in keeping the ecosystem healthy.

A new exhibition at Ottawa's National Gallery of Canada includes 164 brumal-themed artworks from around the world. The pieces in Winter Count: Embracing the Cold vary greatly, including both historic and contemporary work in media ranging from painting and sculpture to clothing and teepee covers. What they have in common is a depiction of winter, specifically the coldest, snowiest parts of the season. The Latin bruma, "winter solstice," is the root of brumal.

Scientists have developed a drug that can regrow cartilage, which they hope will eventually end the need for knee replacement surgery. In a recent study, researchers found that when old mice received injections of the drug, their knees grew new, functional, flexible tissue. Lab tests also found that human samples from knee replacements responded to the drug by regenerating cartilage.

Warren Buffett officially retired as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway at the age of 95. The company was a foundering textile manufacturer when Buffett took control of it in 1964. Over the next 60 years, he turned it into a powerful conglomerate. Today's Berkshire Hathaway is a massive group of companies, including Duracell, Dairy Queen, and GEICO, and has made Buffett one of the wealthiest people in the world. Conglomerate is from a Latin root that means "roll together in a ball."

A massive sell-off has continued to shake the cryptocurrency sector, according to economists. The value of bitcoin and other digital payments nearly doubled from November, 2024 until October, 2025, when many traders began selling their cryptocurrency. Some experts tie the sell-off to President Trump's threat of additional Chinese tariffs, which caused some investors to dump what they perceived as risky investments.

Texas Tech signed center Stephanie Okechukwu, who at seven-foot-one is the tallest player in women’s college basketball history. She is also admired as a supremely deft athlete, an agile ball-handler who's as proficient at passing and rebounding as she is at dunking. Okechukwu towers over the previous tallest women's basketball players, Nicole Dominguez of Middle Tennessee State and Abbie Boutilier of Eastern Illinois, who are both six feet and ten inches tall.

Two days after Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro was deposed by the United States, he pleaded not guilty to drugs and weapons charges in a New York City courtroom. During an overnight military raid on his residence, U.S. forces captured Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores. After Maduro's removal from office, his senior official Delcy Rodríguez was sworn in as Venezuela's interim leader. Depose comes from the Old French deposer, "to put down."

Experts are praising Finland's model of teaching media literacy, including the ability to recognize disinformation, to kids as young as three years old. Skills used to spot deliberately fake news stories are incorporated into the curriculum starting in preschool. Teaching students to watch out for deceptive messages is part of a national effort to combat Russian propaganda. Disinformation is an English translation of the Russian dezinformatsiya.

Twenty-nine bomb-sniffing dogs received an award from New Jersey's attorney general for their work on election day, when they swept multiple bomb threat sites. The dogs' work was so efficacious that the threatened polling places were rarely closed for longer than 30 minutes. The labs, German shepherds, golden retrievers, and Belgian Malinois were praised for addressing threats swiftly and efficiently. The Latin root of efficacious means "powerful or efficient."

Twins Eric and Matthew Gilbertson embarked on a project to measure the elevation of mountains around the world after realizing that many of their heights had been incorrectly calculated. The brothers, both mechanical engineers, gradually discovered the errors during multiple climbing trips. Surveying equipment showed that some of the peaks they measured were taller than previously documented, while others had lower elevations. The Gilbertsons hope to correct the official record.

Fans of a popular cupcake vending machine company are lamenting its closure. According to the former owner of Sprinkles Cupcakes, which became well known for dispensing baked treats from kiosks resembling ATMs, the 20-year-old business shuttered at the end of December. Devotees mourned the loss of easily accessible cupcakes at malls and airports across the country. Lament is derived from the Latin lamentum, "a wailing or moaning."

A paraplegic engineer became the first wheelchair user in space. Michaela Benthaus, who lost the use of her legs after a bicycle accident, traveled beyond Earth's atmosphere in a spacecraft with five other passengers. The capsule was designed to be accessible to people with disabilities, and Benthaus was able to float and turn freely during the ten-minute flight. The Greek paraplēgia, "paralysis of one side of the body," is the source of paraplegic.

Coins that have been redesigned in honor of the country's 250th birthday are now in circulation. The United States Mint revamped dimes, quarters, and half-dollars to feature early presidents and pilgrims, as well as images of the Mayflower, the Gettysburg Address, and the Statue of Liberty. Planning for the renovated coins began in 2021. Revamp originally meant "patch a shoe," from vamp, "upper part of a shoe or boot."

The Chinese company BYD has surpassed Tesla as the world's leader in electric car sales. Since October, when the U.S. eliminated federal tax credits for people who purchase electric vehicles, sales have fallen sharply. Tesla, the country's largest producer of EVs, saw its sales decline nine percent in 2025. While Tesla sold a total of 1.64 million cars last year, BYD sold more than two million. The French root of surpass is surpasser, "go beyond."