This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for July 6–July 12, 2025

Mars, the company that makes M&Ms and Skittles, is adamant that it won't remove synthetic dyes from its candy unless regulations require it to do so. Kraft Foods and General Mills, producers of products like Lucky Charms, Jell-O, and Kool-Aid, voluntarily agreed to stop using artificial colors, but the candy industry remains determined not to. Makers of brightly colored sweets say that natural dyes are too expensive, and their hues are too muted for American consumers' preferences.

Days after catastrophic flooding in Central Texas killed at least 120 people, about 170 remained missing as of Thursday morning. The calamity began when a storm dropped 12 inches of rain, causing the Guadalupe River to rise nearly 26 feet in an hour. The devastating flood washed out roads and trapped people in the river's lowlands. At least 27 were killed at a girls' summer camp. It was one of the deadliest inland floods in U.S. history. Calamity's root means "disaster."

Scientists hope to save Miami's reefs from the effects of climate change by transplanting crossbred corals. Fragments of the invertebrate sea polyps, groups of which form ridgelike structures under the ocean's surface, are taken from warmer Caribbean waters and bred with native Florida corals. The resulting corals are being introduced to a reef off the Miami coast. Researchers hope the crossbred corals will be able to tolerate higher temperatures in the warming ocean.

A new La Scala dress code requires visitors to "choose clothing in keeping with the decorum of the theatre." The prestigious Milan opera venue is enforcing a longstanding ban on spectators wearing flip-flops, shorts, and tank tops. La Scala audiences are now expected to dress elegantly, out of respect for the grandeur of the opera house and its cultured history. In Latin, decorum means "that which is seemly," from a root meaning "beauty or grace."

Officials have stepped up their use of drones to spot sharks along New York City beaches, leading to a surge in shark sightings. The small, pilotless aircraft tracked sharks along beaches in Queens and on Long Island over the weekend. Each time a drone spots a shark nearby, lifeguards must direct people out of the water. Some popular beaches were shut down for parts of the Fourth of July holiday. Critics of the practice say the sharks have always been there, not bothering anyone.

According to ecologists, the long-billed curlew and other nesting birds eavesdrop on prairie dogs to keep themselves safe from predators. The grassland birds have something in common with the prairie dogs: they are both preyed upon by hawks, eagles, foxes, and many other Great Plains animals. Researchers say there's evidence that the curlews and other birds listen in on prairie dog warning calls, crouching and camouflaging themselves when they overhear the distinct barks.

Cities around the world are set to emulate Paris, which is allowing people to swim in the once-polluted Seine after a century-long ban. City leaders spent more than a billion euros to clean the river, including updating the sewer system and building rainwater storage to keep the Seine pristine. Berlin, Boston, New York, London, and several other cities have plans to follow Paris's example to clean their own urban waterways and eventually permit swimming in previously polluted water.

Joey Chestnut, the perennial winner of the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest, returned to regain his title after missing last year's event. Chestnut was banned in 2024 because of his endorsement deal with a vegan meat company. The speedy eater had won 16 of the previous 17 Nathan's contests, and in 2021, he set a world record by eating 76 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. The Latin roots of perennial are per, "through," and annus, "year."

The reclusive country of North Korea opened its first luxury beach resort — but it's unlikely to have many foreign visitors. The Wonsan Kalma Coastal Tourist Area has a 2.5-mile-long beach and enough hotel rooms for 20,000 visitors, along with a water park, restaurants, and more. However, the so-called "Hermit Kingdom" has become more isolated from most of the world as it has pursued military advancements. Russian tourists will likely be the first foreign tourists admitted to the resort.

Elon Musk says that he's formed a new political party, although he hasn't shared many details or registered it with the Federal Election Commission. Experts wonder if his America Party will be viable, presenting real competition for the Republican and Democratic Parties. In the past, third parties in the U.S. have had difficulty challenging the established two-party system, and they have received few votes. Viable, "capable of life," is from the Latin vita, "life."