Colossal Biosciences says it has hatched 26 chickens using a 3D-printed artificial eggshell, a development that could support its longer-term work on extinct species such as New Zealand’s giant moa. Eggs act as self-contained incubators, protecting embryos while allowing gases to pass through the shell. Colossal’s version is designed to mimic that balance with a rigid outer structure and a silicon-based membrane that lets oxygen in and carbon dioxide out. The company says the approach could eventually be adapted for larger birds, moving from chickens to emus before any possible attempt with the moa, whose fully developed egg was about 80 times larger than a chicken egg.
Image Credit: Colossal Biosciences
True Spies
Howard Hunt Unleashed
How did the CIA turn a farmyard fable into propaganda?
In the early 1950s, the CIA was still proving what it could do. After North Korea’s invasion of South Korea caught US intelligence off guard, some inside the Agency argued that the Cold War would not be won through information gathering alone. It would also require influence.
Everette Howard Hunt became part of that shift. A former OSS officer, novelist, and CIA operative, Hunt worked within the Agency’s psychological operations world, where books, films, radio, and newspapers could serve as tools in the fight against Soviet influence. One unlikely target was George Orwell’s Animal Farm, a political fable already known for its sharp criticism of Stalinism.
The plan was simple on paper: secretly fund an animated film version without revealing the CIA’s role, not even to the filmmakers. Hunt and his colleagues secured the rights through Orwell’s widow, brought in producer Louis de Rochemont, and moved production to Britain, where John Halas and Joy Batchelor began work on what would become the UK’s first feature-length animated film.
But the Agency wanted more than an adaptation. Script notes, rewrites, funding pressure, and a revised ending pushed the story toward a clearer anti-Soviet message. By the time Animal Farm premiered in 1954, Orwell’s warning about power had become part of a covert Cold War campaign.
Listen to this week’s podcast selection, ‘Howard Hunt Unleashed’, for a story of spycraft, cinema, and the CIA’s hidden hand in popular culture.
When a buried mission resurfaces, Jack Ryan is pulled back into the CIA. Together with MI6 agent Emma Marlow, he faces a ruthless enemy who’s always one step ahead—turning every move into a fight for survival. No operation stays dark forever.
Jack Ryan: Ghost War on Prime
When a buried mission resurfaces, Jack Ryan is pulled back into the CIA. Together with MI6 agent Emma Marlow, he faces a ruthless enemy who’s always one step ahead—turning every move into a fight for survival. No operation stays dark forever.
How big was Southeast Asia’s newly discovered titan?
Scientists in Thailand have identified a new giant dinosaur species, Nagatitan chaiyaphumensis, after studying fossils found in Chaiyaphum province in 2016. The remains include vertebrae, limb fragments, and a front leg bone nearly 6 feet long.
The dinosaur was a long-necked sauropod, a broad group that includes Brontosaurus, and lived around 100 million to 120 million years ago during the early Cretaceous period. Researchers estimate it measured about 88.5 feet from head to tail and weighed roughly 27 tons, about the same as four African elephants.
Subtle differences in the bones helped scientists determine that the fossils belonged to a previously unknown species. Its name combines “Naga,” inspired by serpent-like water spirits, with “titan,” from Greek mythology, while “chaiyaphumensis” points to the place where it was discovered. The dinosaur has earned the nickname “last titan".
Image Credit: DinoThaiThai
Articles
The Long Con
How do hackers break in without forcing the door?
In April 2026, the decentralized finance platform Drift lost $285 million in a cyber-heist linked to North Korean operatives. But the attack was not simply a case of malicious code slipping through a technical gap. It began months earlier with something far more familiar to the intelligence world: social engineering.
The hackers, identified as an offshoot of Labyrinth Chollima, spent about six months building fake professional lives inside the crypto development world. They created convincing digital identities, complete with work histories, public credentials, and industry connections. By blending into the decentralized finance community, they appeared as legitimate developers rather than outsiders.
Once trusted, they targeted people with access to Drift’s ecosystem. Some were drawn to test a wallet product via Apple’s TestFlight, while others worked with the operatives on shared code projects. By early 2026, the attackers had gained a place inside the system under the cover of normal collaboration.
When the theft happened, the fake profiles, networks, and messaging channels disappeared. Discover how North Korean hackers used deep-cover deception in this SPYSCAPE article.
Give your party guests an unforgettable experience designed to engage, entertain, and inspire. Our dedicated staff will be on hand to help, and you'll even get your own private space to celebrate.
Host your birthday at SPYSCAPE or SPYGAMES.
Give your party guests an unforgettable experience designed to engage, entertain, and inspire. Our dedicated staff will be on hand to help, and you'll even get your own private space to celebrate.
Researchers studying a ninth-century manuscript have found a rare Old English copy of Caedmon’s Hymn, often considered the earliest surviving poem in English. The short verse has long held an important place in literary history, but this newly identified version offers a fresh clue about how early English writing circulated.
The poem is traditionally linked to Caedmon, an illiterate cowherd said to have composed the lines after a religious vision. At just nine lines, it praises creation and the heavens, yet its survival helped make it one of the foundational works of English literature.
Caedmon’s Hymn appears in some versions of Bede the Venerable’s medieval Ecclesiastical History of the English People, a text copied around 200 times. Two earlier versions of the poem have been found, but both were written in Latin. This newly recognized copy appears in Old English within the surrounding Latin text. Suggesting Latin readers valued English poetry earlier than scholars had previously understood, placing the language’s literary roots more firmly inside the manuscript culture of the early Middle Ages.
