This Week in Words: Current Events Vocab for August 10–August 16, 2025

A new project will use AI to help make the vast archives at the Boston Public Library more accessible to the public. The library is collaborating with Harvard Law School and OpenAI to scan, digitize, and make the library's massive collection of historical documents available online. Currently, the records, which include oral histories and congressional reports dating back to the 1800s, have to be viewed in person. Archives is from the Greek arkheia, "public records."

Texas trophy hunter Asher Watkins was killed by an African Cape buffalo he was stalking in South Africa. The animal is one of the most prized in big game hunting, described by a safari company as "the most dangerous animal to pursue in Africa." The buffalo, which can be up to five feet tall and 11 feet long, is distinguished by its enormous curved horns and stubborn, unpredictable behavior. Watkins was preparing to shoot the animal when it turned and charged at him.

Australia's government says that it will recognize a Palestinian state, joining countries including Portugal, France, Canada, and Great Britain. Australian Prime Minister Albanese said his support came after the Palestinian Authority agreed to demilitarize Gaza and hold elections. Criticizing Israel's plans for a new military offensive amidst the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Albanese said he supported the PA's pledge to remove troops from Gaza and allow Hamas no role in its government.

Helsinki, Finland, hasn't had a single traffic fatality in over a year, thanks to a major street redesign and a new system of speed limit enforcement. The number of car-related deaths plummeted after the city lowered speed limits on city streets to 30 kph (just under 20 mph); added traffic cameras and automated enforcement; and installed new, upgraded pedestrian and cycling paths. Fatality is from the Latin fatalis, which means both "ordained by fate" and "deadly."

A massive swarm of jellyfish shut down one of France's largest nuclear power plants on August 10. The transparent, umbrella-shaped marine invertebrates floated into the filter drums that pull in water used to cool the reactors. The Gravelines plant, which generates power for about five million homes, is situated beside a canal leading to the North Sea, where jellyfish are commonly found. Jellyfish get their name from their soft, jelly-like bodies.

British conservationists say an abandoned oil refinery is now home to multitudinous plants and animals, demonstrating the potential for turning so-called "brownfields" into thriving nature habitats. Acquired by the U.K.'s Land Trust several years ago, the site was once nothing but slabs of asphalt and unused street lamps. Today, it's teeming with life too abundant to count; thousands of species live there, including owls, nightingales, voles, bees, reptiles, stonecrops, and lichens.

Economists are worried that a paucity of tourists in Las Vegas is a hint of what's happening in the broader U.S. economy. Visitors to the Nevada city have become scarcer over the last six months compared to last year, causing growing concerns about a decline in international tourism and an increase in inflation. According to some experts, a lack of tourists in Vegas may reflect trends across the country. The Latin paucitatem, "a small number," is the root of paucity.

AOL announced that its dial-up internet service, now considered quaint in a world where speedy broadband internet is ubiquitous, will be discontinued next month. This early method of going online, which involves using a landline and a process that makes distinctive beeping and booping noises, was synonymous with the internet in the 1990s. Today, just .01 percent of U.S. households use AOL dial-up, which seems whimsical, slow, and old-fashioned to most people who access the internet.

As of August 14, wildfires in western Colorado had burned more than 180,000 acres. Firefighters are hoping for a reprieve from the dry, windy conditions and high temperatures that are making it hard to contain the blazes. An ongoing drought extending across much of the Western Slope has contributed to the extreme fire conditions. Until there's a break in the weather, crews are trying to protect as many homes as they can, assist with evacuations, and limit the fires' spread.

Analysis of a million people who stutter has revealed a potential genetic component to the common speech disorder. The discovery of 48 genes linked to the condition, which disrupts the flow of speech, could provide new ways to diagnose and treat it. Doctors could begin speech therapy before children learn to speak, preventing a stammer from becoming habitual. Stutter comes from the Middle English stutten, "to stammer," and its root stutt, "to stop or pause."