Quote of the Day: “Judge a rookie by what they do at their best, not at their worst.” – Steve ‘The Homer’ True (ESPN Milwaukee)
Photo by: Dylan Ferreira (cropped)
With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?
60 years ago today, the Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri was completed. Clad in stainless steel and standing 630 feet high, it is the tallest monument in the Western Hemisphere. The arch sits on the west bank of the Mississippi River as a tribute to the great westward explorers, Lewis and Clark, and other pioneers who began treks in St. Louis. READ more about the arch… (1965)
A pair of Colorado innovators have designed an autonomous sprinkler system to hose down a home if it detects an approaching wildfire.
With both men having experienced the threat of wildfires first hand, each said they were driven to try and do something about it.
Owners of a firm called Defense Delivered, their system uses thermal imaging cameras to detect when flames or sparks might be entering the immediate zone of the house. If the camera sensor is triggered, the sprinklers automatically hose down the house to ideally keep it from burning, and will eventually deploy firefighting foam as a last resort if the threat persists.
Founder and CEO Duston Dolamore told CBS News Colorado that the idea was spawned in the wake of the Ptarmigan Fire in 2021, which burned more than 100 acres near Silverthorne in Summit County, where Dolamore lived.
“When we experienced that fire, the feeling of helplessness, that really nothing could be done, it drove us to make a working solution,” Dolamore said.
The system will spray 35 gallons a minute to coat the house, an amount that was specifically calculated to prevent an overdraw on water resources in drier parts of Colorado.
In fact, it’s built for Colorado in all respects, and has a preprogramed drain and flush function in preparation for winter; owners don’t have to remember or worry about freezing pipes.
According to Defense Delivered’s data, more and more homes are being built every year across America in what’s known as the wildland-urban interface—the place where residential zones brush up against National Forest land. This is not only putting more homes at risk of fire, but raising the cost of home insurance for whole communities as a result.
SIMILAR INSPIRATION: Teen Invents Clever Fire Extinguisher to Save Your Home When You’re Away – and He’s Donating All the Profits
Dolamore said a secondary aim of their automated sprinkler defense system was to hopefully give residents a chance at obtaining a lower insurance rate.
Red, White and Blue Fire Protection District Division Chief Mathew Benedict told CBS News that having seen the system in action, he considers it a “win” for homeowners who opt to install one.
MORE STORIES LIKE THIS: First Antidote for Carbon Monoxide Poisoning ‘Cleans’ Blood in Minutes
“There are companies trying different ideas out there. This company has gone at it following the good science, the wildfire science, the wildfire physics… they’re looking at homes and looking at their vulnerability and putting water where the home is most vulnerable. In my opinion, that’s a win.”
SHARE This Great Invention To Keep Coloradoans And Their Homes Safe…
Under local anesthesia, a woman in England was able to play her clarinet for the first time in 5 years whilst receiving treatment for Parkinson’s disease.
The deep-brain stimulation (DBS) procedure promised, if successful, to restore motor control in the patient’s hands such that she would be able to play her beloved instrument again, and the surgeon asked her to bring it with her to test the theory.
The resulting video makes for quite the sight, as the surgery team behind the plastic sanitary screen sat listening in wonder.
65-year-old Denise Bacon from Crowborough, in the English county of East Sussex, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2014, and she gradually lost the ability to do her favorite things such as swim, dance, and play the clarinet.
DBS is a surgical procedure that delivers an electrical current to electrodes implanted in the brain, and is suitable for some patients with disorders such as Parkinson’s. Her skull and scalp were numbed with anesthesia, but she stayed during the four hour intervention, which is when she was asked to play the clarinet to see if her motor control had improved.
A SIMILAR STORY:
“I remember my right hand being able to move with much more ease once the stimulation was applied, and this in turn improved my ability to play the clarinet, which I was delighted with,” she told the BBC.
“I’m already experiencing improvements in my ability to walk, and I’m keen to get back in the swimming pool, and on the dance floor to see if my abilities have improved there.”
WATCH the performance below…
SHARE This Incredible Story With Your Friends On Social Media…
Scientists studying the North Atlantic right whale have celebrated a year without mortalities in which four new whale mothers entered the breeding population.
11 calves were born this year, the North Atlantic Right Whale Consortium reported in a document released Tuesday.
Covered by AP, the animals have now increased to 384 individuals thanks to increased measures to protect these gentle giants from collisions with ships and entanglement with fishing gear: two of their main threats.
Living as their name suggests in the North Atlantic Ocean, the animals were heavily targeted by whalers in the 18th century, but have been federally protected for decades following the commercial whaling ban in 1982.
“The slight increase in the population estimate, coupled with no detected mortalities and fewer detected injuries than in the last several years, leaves us cautiously optimistic about the future of North Atlantic right whales,” Heather Pettis, the consortium’s chairwoman, said. ”What we’ve seen before is this population can turn on a dime.”
Unlike other baleens like the fin whale, humpback, and blue whale, the North Atlantic right whale has been slow to recover, and scientists remain convinced that stronger conservation measures are needed to ensure they can continue to grow long term. The animals are less likely to breed if wounded in ship strikes or by derelict fishing equipment.
But despite the 11 newborns being less than the consortium hoped for, they were reared by both new mothers and by previous mothers who seem to be waiting less time between calves: both encouraging statistics.
WHALES COMING BACK
The animals migrate from their breeding grounds near Florida up to feed in the colder waters off Canada and the northeastern United States.
Philip Hamilton, a senior scientist with the New England Aquarium’s Anderson Cabot Center for Ocean Life, said ongoing, slow recovery is a testament to the effectiveness of conservation measures already implemented, particularly around the Saint Lawrence Gulf in Canada where the whales will sometimes travel.
“We know that a modest increase every year, if we can sustain it, will lead to population growth,” Hamilton said. “It’s just whether or not we can sustain it.”
SHARE This Encouraging News About Whales With Your Friends…
Once the steel and manufacturing jobs dried up, the town of Venice began to sink.
This Illinois community lost two-thirds of its population, before seeing its last remaining grocery store close, and even its only school.
But things are looking up again thanks to an unlikely ally, who presented himself as a financial and managerial conduit through which state money could help turn the lights back on in the town.
In his pomp, Ed Hightower was an award-winning college basketball referee and school superintendent for Edwardsville School District. Refereeing 12 NCAA Division I Final Fours, the 1990 World Championship of Basketball in South America, the European Basketball Championship in 1993, and the Goodwill Games in 1994 and 1998, Hightower built a storied career for himself that allowed his later years to be spent in stressless comfort.
But now he’s taken $3.5 million from that nest egg and put it up as an investment for a new grocery store in Venice, just 20 miles from Edwardsville where he grew up.
The “Venice Market” will receive funding help from the state, which will lease it from Hightower who will manage the business.
“It will put fresh fruits, vegetables, meats and healthy options within walking distance for families—who have gone without them before too long,” town Alderman Tyrone Echols said at a press conference. “But this project is about more than access to groceries.”
ALSO CHECK OUT: Canada’s First Grocery Store Where Food is FREE Opens in Saskatchewan
“I will have skin in the game to make sure it’s successful,” Hightower told CBS News, who added that it’s part of his motivation—part of the belief system his mother instilled in him, that giving back is important. “[M]y mom always taught us that you don’t get there by yourself.”
The grocery store is just one of several new projects on Venice’s shores. A new school opened in 2021, breathing new life into the community, while a medical clinic and affordable housing are also on their way. State money, along with numerous nonprofit and for-profit partners, are footing the bill for Venice’s transformation.
MORE SMALL TOWN TRANSFORMATIONS: Italian ‘Ghost Town’ Rescued by Instagramable Street Art Which Attracts Thousands
“It doesn’t matter what color you are, what belief you have, you want to reside in a safe environment where you can go to school, you can get your groceries,” Hightower said.
Local residents speaking with CBS News said they hope these transformative investments mean that the town starts to grow, rather than shrink, and that their children don’t grow up feeling like they have to move away for an opportunity.
WATCH the story below…
SHARE This Small Town’s Transformation With Your Friends On Social Media…
Quote of the Day: “The absence of alternatives clears the mind marvelously.” – Henry Kissinger
Photo by: Dylan Ferreira (cropped)
With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?
63 years ago today, one man in the right place, at the right time, did the right thing, saving the world from probably nuclear war. Vasily Arkhipov is known as the “man who saved the world,” during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis when he stood down the other two officers aboard the Soviet submarine B-59 over the decision to launch a nuclear torpedo salvo against the U.S. Navy. READ how it happened… (1962)
The Nikon Comedy Wildlife Awards just released their annual finalists.
“We are absolutely delighted to reveal the hotly anticipated finalists of the 2025 competition. They are a cracking collection of jaw dropping and laugh out loud photos of some of the most incredible wildlife that we share this planet with,” said contest officials in a news release.
The call for photos was answered worldwide with photographers sending in a record number of brilliant and hilarious entries—just under 10,000 in total from 108 countries.
They are all competing to win the top prize of an incredible one-week safari with Alex Walker’s Serian in the Masai Mara—other prizes include Nikon cameras and photography rucksacks.
Among the contenders this year are animals caught in headlocks, doing high-fives and getting hugs. You’ll even see a dancing gorilla.
The Awards were co-founded in 2015 by professional photographers Paul Joynson-Hicks MBE and Tom Sullam to create a competition that fused exceptional wildlife photography and the positive power of humor in a bid to help promote the conservation of wildlife and habitats that our precious planet relies on.
Below are GNN’s favorites, but for more chuckles see the full collection of finalists at www.comedywildlifephoto.com. The images are all authentic, and absolutely no AI or digital manipulation is permitted to create the photographs.
“This photograph was taken during a trip to Rwanda earlier this year, where we spent four unforgettable days trekking through the misty Virunga Mountains in search of the gorilla families that call them home. We came across a large family group gathered in a forest clearing, the adults were calmly foraging while the youngsters were enthusiastically playing. One young male was especially keen to show off his acrobatic flair; pirouetting, tumbling, and high kicking. Watching his performance was pure joy, and I’m thrilled to have captured his playful spirit in this image.”
“This was taken in Japan. I was visiting Rausa on the Shirenhoka Peninsula and Nemuro Straits, where I was observing a White-Tailed Sea Eagle putting their fish in a hole and protecting it. This one had a fish and saw another Eagle coming in to try and steal it.”
‘Peek-a-boo’ features a Sri Lankan Elephant playing peek-a-boo with his ears.
“It was then that the crowned sifaka lemur appeared, staring at me with wide, curious eyes, as if questioning my presence. Then, with the grace of a stage actor and the timing of a comedian, he raised his hand, licked it thoughtfully, and then paused mid-gesture, as if he knew exactly what he was doing.”
“Guillemots were nesting on a small rocky cliff ledge where space was at a premium. The nests all crammed in close together which isn’t a good recipe for being good neighbors, as guillemots are fiercely territorial. Aggression and battles are frequent over nesting space and I captured this image of this bemused looking bridled guillemot, its head firmly clamped in his/her neighbor’s beak.”
‘Battle Hug’ features two Asian water monitors locked in battle right by a main path in Bishan-Ang Mo Kio park in Singapore. “A battle of strength and wills never looked so affectionate!”
‘Hornbill In A Hurry’ – A Hornbill in South Africa was spooked by an incoming tawny eagle
and decided a quick exit was probably wise. “Its ungainly departure was captured in a sequence of shots but this one for me perfectly captured the panic of the hornbill at that moment. The hornbill safely escaped although I doubt the tawny eagle was seriously interested in tackling that hornbill beak anyway.”
“This Yellow-cheeked Gibbon was just hanging out in the trees. It looks like he’s waiting for a beer to be served.”
MORE LAUGHS? CHECK OUT: Comedy Wildlife Winners for 2024 Are Positively Adorable
The team of expert judges will be busy over the next few weeks picking their favorites. The winners will be announced on December 9th at an Awards Night in London, which will be followed by an exhibition for one week from December 10 -14 showcasing all the 2025 Award Finalists at the Gallery@Oxo.
The free competition is open to photography novices, amateurs, and professionals—all ‘to celebrate the hilarity of our natural world and bring a smile to everyone’s face.
GOOSE UP YOUR FRIENDS By Sharing the Smiles on Social Media…
With every step toward the finish line, Natalie Grabow was proving it’s never too late to get started.
Earlier this month, the 80-year-old grandmother from Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, became the oldest woman to ever finish the punishing Ironman World Championship triathlon in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
She swam 2.4 miles—even though she never learned to swim until she was almost 60—then she pedaled 112 miles on a bicycle and immediately ran a full 26.2-mile marathon to make history. (Watch the video below…)
About 60 other competitors quit before they finished, all of them younger. Grabow did not.
“She’s truly gritty,” Grabow’s coach, Michelle Lake, told NPR. “Natalie is the definition of grit and gratitude: Grateful to make it to the start line, grateful to get to do something she loves everyday, and grateful to inspire so many others.”
Natalie’s story is even more impressive considering when she started.
She grew up in New Jersey long before Title IX vastly expanded the competitive opportunities for female athletes. A part of her that always existed lay dormant, just waiting for a chance.
“When you grow up and you don’t have those options, you know, you just watch the boys doing stuff and you’re just the cheerleader,” she told The Athletic. “It was just thrilling once I could do my first 5K and race and ride a bike with other people.”
As an adult, she worked as a software developer, played some doubles tennis, and eventually found running. The last hobby would prove to be a long-lasting love.
Running helped her form friendships and filled up her free time several days a week. Her friends eventually tried triathlons, but even in her 50s, Natalie didn’t know how to swim. Fortunately, she never once believed it was too late to start.
So, she became a mainstay at her local YMCA pool, using friends and books and videos, along with pure determination to learn some swimming strokes.
She improved enough to try a sprint triathlon and soon had her eyes on longer distances. Grabow worked on stretching and strength training. She cycled on an indoor exercise bike, ran at a nearby high school track, and kept swimming at the same place where she learned the skill late in life.
Twenty years ago, she finished her first half Ironman. A few years later, she graduated to the full-length version. And this past month, Grabow was tackling the famous Ironman triathlon course in Hawaii.
ANOTHER SENIOR LIVING HIS DREAM: 66-Year-Old Man Fulfills Lifelong Dream and Becomes Oldest Member of LSU Marching Band (Watch)
She swam 2.4 miles in Kailua Bay, using the freestyle strokes that escaped her for so long. She biked 112 miles in temperatures that peaked above 80 degrees. Then, came the marathon, 26.2 miles on a road course that gradually climbed more than 1,000 feet.
Just as she had many other times before, she kept moving forward, drawing closer and closer to her latest goal. It was just the latest obstacle in a life that has been searching them out, intent on surpassing them all.
Natalie crossed the finish line in 16 hours, 45 minutes and 26 seconds, becoming the oldest female to ever finish the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii. (See the moment below…)
“Absolutely incredible,” the PA announcer said to the spectators in attendance.
The senior is already searching for her next challenge. She signed up for a pair of Ironman races in 2026—and she may even take aim at the record set by Hiromu Inada, who at 85, became the oldest person to finish the Ironman World Championship in 2018.
RUNNERS OVERCOMING:
• Runner Completes 268-mi Race a Year After Being Unable to Walk Due to Brain Condition
• 40 year-old Mom of 3 Becomes First Female Olympian to Finish a Triathlon in 8 Hours
• A Marathon Blocked Delivery Route for Organ Donation So a Surgeon Ran Through the Race to Get it
“The important thing is that people see from my story that they can maybe push themselves a little bit, they can do a little more than they thought they could do,” she told The Athletic. “They can keep going longer than they thought they could go.”
It’s all proof that it doesn’t matter where you start. Or when. It’s about enjoying the journey — and finding your way to the finish line.
INSPIRE A SENIOR By Sharing This on Social Media…
A newly developed antibody which restricts the growth of treatment-resistant breast cancers offers new hope for patients.
It may be able to treat some of the most aggressive forms of the deadly disease, say researchers at King’s College London who designed the new antibody that not only attacks the tumor cells directly, but also harnesses the body’s own immune defenses.
The breakthrough gives new options for patients whose cancers no longer respond to existing therapies as well as those with triple-negative breast cancer, for which current treatments are limited.
They explained that the first of its kind “triple-engineered antibody” latches onto cancer cells on one end and draws in immune cells on the other.
The Breast Cancer Now Research Unit at King’s College London has been in the vanguard of work to modify antibodies to boost their ability to activate immune cells for more than a decade.
In the new study, published this week in the journal Cancer Research, lab experiments and animal models revealed the modified antibody bound immune cells more strongly compared to current treatments.
That action activated the immune cells already present in the tumor to attack it, limiting the growth of tumors in triple-negative and treatment-resistant breast cancers.
The research team also found that the modified antibody activated immune cells circulating in the bloodstream, which could boost the body’s overall ability to detect and fight cancer.
“By making a few key changes in the structure of the antibody, we found that it could activate the immune system much more powerfully than any unmodified antibody currently used in breast cancer treatment,” said study first author Dr. Alicia Chenoweth in a media release.
“Many of the immune cells in breast tumors are in a ‘suppressed’ state, difficult to activate with unmodified antibodies. We found our triple-engineered antibodies were not only able to activate these immune cells to kill the cancer cells, but shifted these immune cells to a more ‘activated’ state overall.”
Study leader Professor Sophia Karagiannis said: “By examining key immune cell receptors in breast tumors, including those tumors resistant to chemotherapy and immunotherapy, we have designed our antibody to make them interact better and harness the immune system in a way that has never been done or tested in cancer before.
The King’s College team is now working towards developing immune-active antibodies so that they can be tested in patients in clinical trials.
“If it proves successful, it could stimulate the immune system directly and address the significant unmet need we see in treatment resistant cancers including triple-negative breast cancer.”
EARLIER THIS YEAR: Retooled Cancer Drugs Eliminated Aggressive Tumors in ‘Remarkable’ New Trial
Triple-negative breast cancer accounts for around 15% of all breast cancers.
Prof. Karagiannis explained that it lacks receptors for the hormones estrogen and progesterone and the HER2 protein, which are often treatment targets in other subtypes of breast cancer.
Because it lacks those targets, standard hormone therapies and drugs that target HER2 are ineffective, leaving patients with fewer treatment options and a higher risk of recurrence.
“We know how urgently these women need new treatment options, as this form of the disease can be more challenging to treat, may be more likely to return or spread in the first few years following treatment, and it affects younger women and black women more than other groups,” said Dr. Simon Vincent, chief scientific officer at Breast Cancer Now.
MORE BREAST CANCER GOOD NEWS:
• Breakthrough Single-Dose Drug Wipes Out Breast Tumors in Mice Without Side Effects
• Hope for Patients with Aggressive Breast Cancer: Vaccine Trial Results in 88% Survival Rate After 3 Years
The team says the new therapy has the potential to treat other cancers as one of the antibody targets is also present in ovarian and endometrial cancers.
Further lab work is being conducted to optimize the therapy, including extending how long the antibody lasts in the body and ensuring it can activate a broader range of immune cells.
SPREAD THE HOPE By Sharing With Breast Cancer Patients on Social Media…
Edited with permission of EarthTalk® and E – The Environmental Magazine
Batteries are everywhere—in your phone, your car—even the artificial organs many depend on for life. Fortunately, new innovations have increased the efficiency and sustainability of our ubiquitous batteries.
One of the most novel innovations unveiled recently is the iron-air battery system which usees rust to produce energy in a sustainable way.
The iron-air system from Form Energy is built from safe, low-cost, abundant materials—iron, water, and air—and uses no heavy or rare-earth metals. The company touts that approximately 80% of its components are sourced domestically from within the United States.
As air passes through the cathode (the negatively-charged portion of the battery) and reacts with the liquid, a water-based electrolyte, ions subsequently latch onto the positively-charged iron anode, producing rust. The movement of ions through this rust produces electricity, a process that can be repeated by continually un-rusting the battery after each reaction.
Form energy co-founder and Chief Scientist Yet-Ming Chiang notes the economic viability of iron-air batteries for large-scale usage: “Air is still free and iron is one of the most widely produced, lowest cost materials in the world.”
In Minnesota, a 1.5 megawatt pilot project was shown to be able to power 400 homes for 100 hours. It also successfully completed UL9540A safety testing, demonstrating the highest safety standards with no fire or thermal threats across all scenarios.
ONE MORE LIFE-CHANGING BATTERY MATERIAL: Graphene Dream Becomes a Reality as Miracle Material Enters Production for Better Chips, Batteries
Besides iron-air batteries, solid-state batteries are what George Crabtree, director of the Joint Center for Energy Storage Research, believes to be “very likely… the next big thing at the commercial level.”
Solid-state batteries use electrolytes like argyrodite, garnet and perovskite that are more efficient than liquid-electrolytes in nearly all aspects: they’re lighter, take up less space and can hold more energy per unit of mass. These qualities make them effective for electrical vehicles and grid-scale energy storage.
However, researchers like University of Houston professor Yan Yao, who recently developed a glass-like electrolyte, are still looking for materials that fulfill all four factors for viability in the market: low-cost, easy-to-build, having a high degree of mechanical stability, and chemical stability.
With lithium-based batteries being so ubiquitous, some scientists are looking to improve on the existing model rather than supplanting it entirely. Batteries made out of lithium-sulfur, for example, exhibit four times greater energy density than traditional lithium batteries due to their usage of light, active materials.
BATTERIES MADE FROM WASTE: Scientists Turn Industrial Waste into Batteries for Storing Renewable Energy
Ultimately, innovations in batteries are a cornerstone to shaping a more sustainable future, making renewable energy more reliable and energy grids more stable.
EarthTalk® is produced by Roddy Scheer & Doug Moss for the 501(c)3 nonprofit EarthTalk. See more at emagazine.com. To donate, visit Earthtalk.org. Send questions to: [email protected].
Quote of the Day: “I don’t want life to imitate art. I want life to be art.” – Ernst Fischer
Photo by: Unsplash+ Community (cropped)
With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quote of the Day page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?
200 years ago today, the Erie Canal opened a passageway from New York to the Great Lakes. The canal was built to create a navigable water route from the Atlantic Ocean to the Midwestern US and took 8 years to construct the 36 locks which overcame a total elevation differential of about 565 feet (172 m). At a time when there were only pack animals and no steamships or railways, water became a cost-effective shipping method that changed the Great Lakes Region. READ more… (1825)
Cutting your couch time by 30 minutes every day would give you an energy boost by improving metabolism, according to new research.
It shows that reducing the time you’re seated can improve your body’s ability to utilize fats and carbohydrates for energy production.
Study author Dr. Taru Garthwaite explained that it’s particularly beneficial for people who are physically inactive and have an increased risk of heart diseases and diabetes.
Previous research has shown that mixing an unhealthy diet with a “couch potato” lifestyle is particularly hazardous, as energy intake can exceed the body’s energy expenditure, increasing the risk of diabetes and heart issues.
Such lifestyle habits affect the body’s ability to switch between fats and carbohydrates as a source of energy, known as metabolic flexibility.
“A healthy body burns more fat at rest, but after meals and during high-intensity exercise, the main source of energy shifts to carbohydrates,” said Garthwaite of the University of Turku, Finland.
“If metabolic flexibility is impaired, blood sugar and lipid levels can rise and, instead of being used for energy production, excess fat and sugars may be directed to storage.”
The study, published in the Scandinavian Journal of Medicine and Science in Sports, involved 64 sedentary adults with multiple risk factors for heart disease and diabetes.
The intervention group was instructed to reduce sitting by an hour each day by increasing standing and physical activity in daily life, without starting intentional exercise training.
The control group was instructed to continue their usual sedentary lifestyle.
Sitting and physical activity were monitored using accelerometers for six months.
“Our results suggest encouragingly that reducing sedentary behavior and increasing even light daily physical activity – for example, standing up for a phone call or taking short walks – can support metabolic health and potentially help prevent lifestyle diseases in risk groups,” said Garthwaite.
She says physically inactive people can benefit from even a small increase in physical activity.
The intervention group aiming to reduce sedentary behavior managed to reduce sitting by an average of 40 minutes per day.
As there were significant differences between the participants within the groups in terms of reducing seated time, the researchers also looked at the results based on the actual, achieved changes.
Those participants who successfully reduced sedentary time by at least half an hour showed improvements in metabolic flexibility and fat burning during light-intensity exercise compared to those who remained highly sedentary.
And the more the participant increased their standing time, the more their metabolic flexibility improved.
“The positive metabolic effects of reducing sedentary behavior are likely to apply mainly to those who are physically inactive and already have excess weight and an elevated risk of disease.”
“Even greater benefits can be achieved by following the physical activity recommendation of 2.5 hours of moderate-intensity activity each week—but even a small increase in physical activity is beneficial, especially for those who are not physically active.”
SEND YOUR FRIENDS The HEALTH TIP By Sharing on Social Media…
Time was running out when Mark Rankin and Grant Cameron arrived on a Nova Scotia Beach earlier this week.
After apparently swimming too close to shore, three pilot whales were found stranded at 9 a.m., with low tide quickly approaching.
If the two friends didn’t intervene soon, the whales might never have a chance.
One bystander told the men that the Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans had been called, but this dynamic duo weren’t sure the authorities would arrive in time.
So Rankin and Cameron quickly set aside their plans to help a friend winterize his cabin and sprung into action. They also stripped down to their underwear.
Saving the pilot whales required getting into the water and that wouldn’t be easy in full winter clothes, so the two men did what was required. It was the theme of the day.
“We stripped down to our briefs and did the best we could,” Rankin told CTV News with a laugh. “We got the first one out (to sea) without too much issue. The second one, he took a little longer to come around, but we got him out into deeper water.”
One more whale remained stranded, so the team continued working, saving the third animal’s life. (Watch the video below…) After that, someone contacted the authorities again.
There was no need for any more assistance. Rankin and Cameron had stepped in—literally—to save the iconic mammals.
Authorities always urge citizens to exercise caution when interacting with wild animals because they’re often big and powerful, and good intentions can sometimes lead to misfortune.
But in this case, the heroism of the two men was purely positive. A good deed was done and three whales were saved.
“To be able to touch them and look into their eyes, that’s kind of what got us, I think, and made us do the right thing,” Rankin said.
“We feel pretty good about it, and if nothing else we’ll get a good laugh out of being on the news in our underwear.”
HAIL THE HEROES By Sharing With Whale-Lovers on Social Media…
AND, CHECK OUT THIS EPIC WHALE RESCUE–> Dozens of Whales Saved by Locals After Mass Stranding on Icelandic Beach–LOOK
Taylor Swift just released her latest album The Life of a Showgirl and her popularity has reached every demographics—including a certain 95-year-old in a Nebraska retirement home.
Frank Uryasz is a resident at the Remington Heights Retirement Community in Omaha. He was talking to a worker one day who expressed disappointment that Swift had never responded to any of her fan letters.
Frank wanted to do something about it.
“I know some people,” the 95-year-old said in an interview with Omaha’s KETV.
He started a Taylor Swift fan club and worked to spread the word as far and wide as he could. Membership kept snowballing, from 10 members to 20 and, soon, into the triple digits.
In fact, so many people wanted to join that Frank had to add some membership stipulations: If you’re not a resident of Remington, someone has to sponsor you.
Eventually, Frank’s personality caught the attention of the “Swifties” fan base across the country. Molly from North Carolina sent Frank’s fan club a letter, some cookies, and friendship bracelets, which are a staple souvenir of the Taylor fandom.
“I loved reading your story and hope these cookies and bracelets make your Life of a Showgirl listening party a little more enjoyable!” Molly wrote. “Welcome to the Swiftie family!”
Another group of Swifties has invited Frank and his friends to join their online community, Swifties for Taylor–50 Years Old+.
Frank continues to be an outspoken ambassador for Taylor and the Remington Heights fan club. During the interview with KETV (watch the video below), he wore an “I Love Taylor” button and some orange Swiftie bracelets, while touting a special Taylor Swift license plate affixed to his walker.
The ultimate goal is to secure a visit from Taylor Swift herself—and the campaign has already begun.
Behold, the Power of Taylor:
• Taylor Swift is a Hero to Food Banks Across the U.S. at Each Stop of Her Eras Tour
• After Taylor Swift Visits Children’s Hospital, Her Fans Donate Tens of Thousands to Patients
The club is preparing to deliver a big envelope to Taylor’s team in Kansas City, where her fiancee, Travis Kelce, plays NFL football for the Chiefs. There’s a letter typed for Taylor and Kelce that includes marriage advice from Frank, who is a lifelong Chiefs fan. There’s a letter for quarterback Patrick Mahomes in the envelope too, along with photos of the newest—some might say oldest—Swiftie fan club.
Frank is having fun just thinking about all of them showing up to the Remington Heights building someday. And maybe that’s the whole point: you’re never too old to dream.
“We’re having a wonderful time with this,” he said.
DON’T SHAKE THIS OFF–Share it on Social Media with the Swifties in Your Life…
Our partner Rob Brezsny, who has a new book out, Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicated weekly column appearing in over a hundred publications. He is also the author of Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How All of Creation Is Conspiring To Shower You with Blessings. (A free preview of the book is available here.)
Here is your weekly horoscope…
FREE WILL ASTROLOGY – Week of October 25, 2025
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
Many cultures regard obsidian as having protective powers against negative energy. This makes it popular for healing talismans. Obsidian mirrors have often been used to scry for visions and prophecies. Because obsidian is so sharp, ancient peoples incorporated it into tools used to hunt for food, like knives and arrowheads. In modern times, obsidian is used for its beauty in tabletops, tiles, and architectural components. Do you know how this precious substance is formed? It’s born in the shock between elements: molten lava meets water or cool air and hardens so quickly that crystals can’t form, trapping a mirror-dark clarity in volcanic glass. I propose we make it your symbolic power object in the coming months, Scorpio.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
Medieval alchemists engaged in literal laboratory work as they attempted to create elixirs of immortality, concoct medicines to heal diseases, and metamorphose lead into gold. But the modern practice of alchemy is primarily a psychological effort to achieve awakening and enlightenment. In the early stages of the work, the seeker experiences the metaphorical “black sun.” It’s a dark radiance, the beginning of creative decay, that fuels the coming transformation. I suspect you now have the potential to call on this potent asset, Sagittarius. It’s wild, though. You must proceed with caution and discernment. What worn-out aspects of yourself are you ready to let rot, thereby fertilizing future growth?
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
In Japan, shakkei refers to the practice of “borrowed scenery.” The idea is to create a garden so that surrounding features become part of its expansive context: distant mountains, an expanse of sky, or a nearby body of water. The artistry lies in allowing the horizon to merge gracefully with what’s close at hand. I recommend this approach to you, Capricorn. Frame your current project with a backdrop that enlarges it. Partner with places, influences, or long-view purposes that augment your meaning and enhance your beauty. Align your personal actions with a vast story so they send even more potent ripples out into the world.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Computer scientist Radia Perlman is the “Mother of the Internet.” She invented the Spanning Tree Protocol, a component that’s essential for the flow of online data. Despite her work’s splashy importance, hardly anyone knows of her. With that in mind, I remind you: Some revolutions unfold with little fanfare; positive transformations may be inconspicuous. How does that relate to you? I suspect the next beautiful or useful thing you contribute may also be veiled and underestimated, at least at first. And yet it may ultimately generate a shift more significant than you can now imagine. My advice is to trust the long game. You’re doing good work, though its recognition may be late in arriving.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
The mystical Persian poet Hafez wrote, “Fear is the cheapest room in the house. I’d like to see you living in better conditions.” Picture that shabby room, Pisces: cramped, dim, damp. Now imagine you have resolved to never again live in such a place. In fact, sometime soon you will move, metaphorically speaking, into a spacious, high-ceilinged place with wide windows and skylights, fresh air flooding through. I believe life will conspire on your behalf if you initiate this bold move. You now have extra power to exorcise at least some of your angst and embrace liberating joy.
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
I bet your upcoming night dreams will include marriages, mating dances, and sacramental unions. Even if you are not planning deeper mergers with trustworthy allies in your waking life, your subconscious mind is musing on such possibilities. I hope this horoscope inspires you to make such fantasies more conscious. What collaborations and blends would serve you well? Give your imagination permission to ponder new and exciting connections. Visualize yourself thriving amidst new connections.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
In winemaking, malolactic fermentation softens a wine’s tart malic acid into gentler lactic acid. This process imparts a creamier and rounder mouthfeel, while preserving the wine’s structure. In accordance with astrological omens, I invite you to adopt this as your metaphor of power. See if you can refine your intensity without losing your integrity. Keep things interesting but soften the edges a bit. Introduce warmth and steadiness into provocative situations so they’re free of irritation and easier to engage with, but still enriching.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
The coming weeks will be an excellent time to practice the art of strategic disruption. One way to do it is to interrupt your patterns so they don’t calcify and obstruct you. Just for fun, you could eat breakfast for dinner. Take a different route to a familiar place. Talk to a person you would usually avoid. Say no when you’d normally say yes, or vice versa. Part of your brain loves efficiency, habits, and well-worn grooves. But grooves can become ruts. As a rousing spiritual experiment, you could do things differently for no reason except to prove to yourself that you can. Playful chaos can be a form of prayer. Messing with your standard approaches will unleash your creativity.
CANCER (June 21-July 22):
In Shinto mythology, Ame-no-Uzume is the goddess of mirth and revelry. In one story, she seduces the sun out of its hiding place by performing a humorous and provocative dance. I am sending her over to your sphere right now in the hope that she will coax you out of your comfort zone of retreat, control, and self-protection. While I’m glad you have taken this break to recharge your spiritual batteries, I think it’s time to come out and play. You have done important work to nurture and process your deep feelings. Now we would love you to express what you’ve learned with freewheeling panache.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Ancient cultures in Sumeria, Egypt, and China used willow bark as a pain reliever. Many centuries later, in 1828, European scientists isolated the chemical salicin from the bark and used it to create aspirin. What had been a folk remedy became a widely used medicine all over the planet. Is there a metaphorically comparable development unfolding in your life? I think so. Something you’ve known or practiced could be evolving into its next form. The world may finally be ready to receive wisdom, a technique, or an insight you’ve used for a long time. Consider refining and upgrading it. Share it in ways that meet the present moment’s specific need.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
In honor of your special needs right now, Virgo, I am coining a new English word: edge-ucation. It’s like “education” but with an extra edge. Though book-learning is included in its purview, it also requires you to seek out raw teaching in all possible ways: on the streets, the bedroom, the natural world, everywhere. To properly pursue your higher edge-education, you must hunt down provocative influences, thought-provoking adventures, and unfamiliar stimulation. Make the whole world your laboratory and classroom.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
When I began writing horoscopes years ago, I had greater empathy with some of the signs than with others. But I worked hard to overcome this bias, and now I truly love and understand every tribe of the zodiac equally. I attribute this accomplishment to the fact that I have three Libra planets in my natal chart. They have propelled me to develop a warm, affectionate, fair-minded objectivity. I have a deeply honed capacity for seeing and liking people as they genuinely are, without imposing my expectations and projections onto them. The coming weeks will be an excellent time to tap into these qualities in yourself, dear Libra.
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144 years ago, the visionary artist Pablo Picasso was born. A Spanish painter and sculptor, he had trouble getting out of bed in the morning, and usually spent the afternoon conversing and drinking with friends. But in the evening, he worked prolifically on his surrealistic cubist artwork in France. WATCH a short bio video to see his paintings and learn more… (1881)
