All News - Page 273 of 1718 - Good News Network
Home Blog Page 273

New Jersey Dad Drives 1,000 Miles After Wife and Kids Had Flight to Disney Cancelled: ‘He’s Our Rock’

By
Good News Network
-
“Don’t let his face fool you,” wrote Jill in a Facebook post to honor the generosity of her husband.
“Don’t let his face fool you,” wrote Jill in a Facebook post to honor the generosity of her husband.

A New Jersey man upended his life by jumping in to drive his family over 1000 miles when their flight was cancelled.

Nathan Montanez had just dropped his wife and two kids at the airport to begin their trip to Disney World, but United Airlines cancelled their flight to Florida—and any rebooking meant they wouldn’t get to leave on their vacation for two days.

Jill Tobin-Montanez told GNN that she had been planning this trip for months. Nathan, who works in supply chain operations had to work, so wasn’t even going on the trip. 15 minutes before departure, the flight was cancelled—and there were no ticket options for days.

“I explained to my kids that sometimes life gives you lemons—and we’d try again to get to Disney another time,” she recalled.

Suddenly Jill’s husband messaged her that he was back at the airport and they should meet him outside.

“When we got in the car, all defeated, he asked if we were ready to go. We said ‘yup,’ thinking we were going home. Then he told us to get ready for a long drive.”

“He then put the song ‘On the Road Again’ on the radio and told us he was driving us to Disney!”

Nathan proceeded to drive 17 hours straight so they wouldn’t miss a day in the Magic Kingdom.

The car pulled into Orlando a little after midnight, and he turned around just a few hours later and headed back to New Jersey so he could get to work on Tuesday—only missing one day.

CHECK OUT: Best ‘Dad Jokes’ Have Been Compiled for Father’s Day in New American Poll

“This dad is our rock!” Jill exclaimed.

“Not many people in this world would do that. And the kids absolutely appreciate what he did for them.”

“They haven’t stopped talking about him,” she wrote in an email, signing off as ‘the wife to one amazing dad!’

WATCH: Middle-Aged Dads Form Dance Team Called ‘Outta Puff Daddys’ Proving Age is Just a Number

BRAG ABOUT This Rockin’ Dad By Sharing His Kindness on Social Media…

Dog Learns the Hard Way Not to Mess With Porcupines–or Disagree With Dad on Car Ride to Vet (WATCH)

By
Good News Network
-
LouietheBoxer / Rumble license
LouietheBoxer / Rumble license

Your doggie heart is going to melt after watching this cute moment inside a Midwestern fur-family.

Louie the Boxer sits calmly in the front seat listening to a stern dad giving him a parental ’talking-to’ on a weekend trip to the emergency room following an unfortunate incident with a porcupine.

While they were driving to find medical care for the dog in northern Michigan, his owner shot a charming video (see below), and later posted it on Rumble with a tongue-in-cheek first-person account:

“I did it this time! I swear it was a cat but it had these prickly things all over that got stuck in my face and dad couldn’t pull out! ☹️☹️

“It was Saturday and no vets were open so we had to drive 45 minutes to the Little Traverse Bay Humane Society Veterinary Clinic where I got to meet 2 really nice people.”

“I was sedated and they removed well over 100 quills from my face, nose, gums, tongue and all four paws…Ouch!

“Dad says he hopes I learned my lesson but I’m naughty so who knows… Btw, all my dog friends out there…stay away from the prickly cats! 🐾🐶❤️‍🩹🤪”

ALSO WATCH: The Hilarious Moment a Dog Refuses to Look at Mom While Being Scolded for Destroying a Pillow

Watch the moment below… (Note: GNN has no affiliation with any ads displayed.)

DRIVE This Boxer’s Advice to Dog Owners By Sharing on Social Media…

Conjoined Twins Given 2% Odds of Survival Are Now Thriving and Graduating Kindergarten

By
Good News Network
-
Conjoined twins Abby and Erin – SWNS
Conjoined twins Abby and Erin – SWNS

Rare conjoined twins who survived surgery to separate them, despite just 2% odds of success, have now graduated kindergarten.

In her 11th week of pregnancy Heather Delaney learned that she was carrying twins connected at the head—known as craniopagus twins—and the girls were born at 30 weeks gestation weighing just 6 pounds combined.

They remained in a neonatal intensive care unit until their first birthday when they underwent a pioneering procedure to separate their skulls at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, in Pennsylvania.

Although both daughters have developmental difficulties, Abby and Erin are both thriving as they approach their seventh birthday, according to proud parents Heather and Riley, who watched their girls graduate kindergarten this month.

“There are days now where I sit back and think ‘I can’t believe how incredibly lucky we are’,” said the 33-year-old stay-at-home mom. “Yes, they have disabilities and things they’re working through, but they’re so happy.”

“Watching them graduate, it was like we were dreaming,” said Heather who lives in Statesville, North Carolina. “We don’t yet know what they can accomplish so the sky is the limit for them.”

LOOK: Preemie Given 10% Chance of Survival Defies the Odds and is Now ‘a Genius’ Who Outsmarts His Teachers

Twins Abby (left) and Erin (right) – SWNS

Baby photos hang in the house of when they were conjoined, and one day the parents will sit them down and ”talk about it properly”.

“We want them to be proud of who they are and where they’ve come from.”

They go to mainstream school, but attend a special class to get support for their needs. Erin has been walking since she was five, and now Abby is starting to walk too.

“When Abby can run too, I’ll be in trouble—it’s hard enough chasing one.”

CHECK OUT: Miracle Preemie Baby Born the Size of an iPhone Came Home For Christmas After a Year of Fears That He May Not Survive

“It has always been our goal in sharing our story to try and reach any other parents faced with the same type of pregnancy we were—to give them hope. We want to show there is the possibility they can be separated and then lead healthy and happy lives.”

“Now look at them – I’m so proud of them both.

SHARE the Inspiring Update to Give Hope to Families…

“The home is the chief school of human virtues.” – William Ellery Channing

By
Good News Network
-

Quote of the Day: “The home is the chief school of human virtues.” – William Ellery Channing

Photo by: Rajiv Perera

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Landlord of Real Ted Lasso Pub Says Tourists Now Come From all Over the World–LOOK

By
Good News Network
-
SWNS NEWS SERVICE
SWNS NEWS SERVICE

The landlord of the London pub featured in the Emmy-sweeping comedy series Ted Lasso says tourists have been flocking from “almost every country” to enjoy a pint in the wake of the TV show’s meteoric rise.

Reece Kent became the manager at The Prince’s Head pub in Richmond in April 2022.

It’s the very pub that, for three years, has been featured in the Apple TV hit show, which recently aired its finale.

In the Jason Sudeikis dramedy, the pub goes by the name Crown and Anchor, but the interior is well-known to any fan of the story centering around the English football team dubbed The Richmond Greyhounds.

The 28-year-old said the pub is now a tourist hotspot for Lasso-lovers visiting the UK.

“We’ve had people from Brazil, Canada, Australia, Germany. It’s been quite a surprise how many people want to come.

There’s a whole Ted Lasso Tour that leads folks around south-west London to the Richmond landmarks where filming was done.

“Tourists always want to come in and have a chat. You can even tell when the tour is finished they all have an AFC Richmond shirt on.”

Despite playing an important role in the show, there have only been “a handful” of filming days that disrupted the day-to-day running of the pub. The crew only filmed exteriors outside because all the interiors were shot on a separate set, designed to match the pub’s interior.

WATCH: Jedi Student Sneaks Lightsabers Into Graduation and Challenges Principal to Battle

Ted Lasso memorabilia inside of The Princes Head – SWNS

Reece said it’s had a great impact on the whole of Richmond.

“It’s not just about the pub though, but about Richmond as a whole. The pub is just at the heart of the community here.”

LOOK: Guy on Pub Crawl Dressed as Gandalf Bumps into ‘Real’ Ian McKellen For Best Birthday Surprise Ever

When Reece took on the role as general manager, he had never watched the show, so he binge-watched all three seasons and said he quickly became a fan—because “it makes you feel good inside, just like The Prince’s Head”.

“It’s exciting to be on Ted Lasso but it’s also about giving customers that welcoming feel being part of something—being a part of Richmond.”

THINK Like a Goldfish – And Don’t Forget to SHARE on Social Media…

Tiny Van Gogh Gallery Created Inside a Watch By an Artist With a Microscope

By
Good News Network
-
Vincent Van Gogh art trilogy watch - SWNS Hammond Galleries
Vincent Van Gogh art trilogy watch – SWNS Hammond Galleries

A renowned micro-artist has recreated a trio of Vincent Van Gogh paintings inside a watch—each smaller than the gap of a second hand.

David A. Lindon depicted three of the late Dutch painter’s most famous works, but in a mind-bogglingly microscopic size, calling it the world’s first-ever wearable art gallery.

The fragility of the pieces means a mere sneeze or a cough could wreck months of intricate work in an instant.

He uses a microscope in between heartbeats to keep his hands sufficiently steady, and the process takes two months to complete each of the images representing Starry Night, Sunflowers, and Self Portrait.

Mr. Lindon was commissioned to create the Van Gogh Trilogy by Hammond Galleries, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the famed Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam this month.

Using specialized tools and techniques honed over years of practice, he crafts the artworks using strands of Kevlar, carpet fibers, pieces of ceramics, crushed micro pigments, precious metals like gold and platinum as well as gemstones, diamonds, emeralds and rubies.

Each of the Van Gogh paintings is painstakingly balanced atop the tourbillon of the watch, which constantly rotates the balance wheel to keep the device in rhythm.

POPULAR: Woman Finds 4 Plates for $6 Made by Picasso–She Started Crying in the Thrift Store

Vincent Van Gogh art trilogy watch – SWNS Hammond Galleries

This is only the first in a series of miniature art gallery watches in the works. Upcoming Lindon creations will include Banksy, Andy Warhol, Salvador Dali, and Pablo Picasso trilogies.

On the minutiae of his craft, Mr. Lindon credits his steady hand to a previous career in the Ministry of Defense working with complex equipment.

“It is a real challenge to control my hands and my breathing, let alone create something almost literally out of nothing. I keep my heart rate as low as possible as a single twitch from my fingers can wreck months of work.”

“I can accidentally blow it away, with a sneeze or a cough. There’s even a danger that static electricity can unexpectedly snap the art away as if by magic,” said the Bournemouth resident.

LOOK: Artwork Found in Shed Covered in Bird Droppings Turns Out to be Early Van Dyck Now at Auction for $3 Million

“Once a piece is lost, you can spend hours hunting around for it with a magnifying glass in your hand—and still never find it.

“Having been trained to work on small complex devices I had developed steady hands and a good deal of patience. I still think I’m mad to sit still for hours staring into a microscope day after day.

“What keeps me going through the long, tough hours is seeing my work finished and the look of wonder and astonishment on people’s faces, when they see my art in person for the first time.”

Hammond Galleries near Wolverhampton in the UK is featuring the wearable wristwatch as the centerpiece of its new exhibition Inspired By… Vincent.

Managing Director Edward Hammond is also offering the watch for purchase. Previous micro masterpieces by Lindon have sold for as much as $36,000 each.

WATCH: Van Gogh Paintings Come to Life in Spectacular Oil Animation Film

MAKE SURE to Send Your Friends Some van Gogh Goodness–SHARE it! 

The Guys Who Sell Ocean Plastic Bracelets Just Reached 30 Million Pounds of Waste Pulled From Seas

By
Good News Network
-
4ocean
4ocean

4ocean has reached a stellar milestone: 30 million pounds of plastic waste recovered from the our oceans, rivers, and coastlines since the company began in 2017.

Operating in 12 locations across two continents, 4ocean has been dedicated to ending the ocean plastic crisis.

“4ocean is incredibly proud to have accomplished this record-setting feat” said Alex Schulze, 4ocean CEO and Co-Founder.

“We’ve built an entire business for the sole purpose of cleaning the ocean. With hundreds of local captains and crew members recovering trash from our oceans and coastlines seven days a week and the support of millions of people doing their part to prevent plastic pollution, I’m sure our work will have a lasting impact on the ocean.”

Schulze made the announcement after the 4ocean TrashTracker, a proprietary database used to document the company’s recovered materials through their entire supply chain, was independently audited and verified by GreenCircle Certified, an internationally recognized third-party entity that tests sustainability claims.

4ocean, a Public Benefit B Corp based in Boca Raton, Florida, sells bracelets made from the plastic waste collected, employs 185 crew members in the USA, Indonesia, and Guatemala, who are local to the area.

“All of our captains and crews live in the communities we serve and are hired as full-time employees. All of our bracelets are handcrafted by artisans living in either Guatemala or Bali. Every bracelet purchased funds our cleanups and creates jobs that provide the steady income people in these communities need right now.”

CHECK OUT: New Solar-Powered Beach Robot Filters Even Tiny Plastic – And 30x Faster Than Humans

4ocean

While 4ocean’s cleanup operations are funded primarily through their product sales, in 2021, they launched a Corporate Partnerships Program that works with companies to offset their plastic usage and aid in waterway cleanup efforts around the globe—including John Frieda, Mount Gay Rum, Nature Gnaws, and U.S. Polo Assn.

“Waste is ultimately a design flaw, which means preventing plastic pollution starts with changing the way we design, produce, market, consume, and dispose of the products we use each and every day.”

Their most recent project was announced on World Oceans Day, June 8. A new partnership with Corona will movie collection efforts upstream into highly polluted rivers like the Rio Motagua in Guatemala. One of the most polluted rivers in Central America, the Motagua River accounts for roughly 2% of all the plastic waste entering our oceans each year.

LOOK: Australia’s Ocean Kelp Forest is Growing at Light Speed–Rivaling the Mighty Amazon for Absorbing CO2

The 5-year project, called “A River of Change from Corona x 4ocean,” will help restore natural ecosystems and biodiversity; create full-time, living-wage jobs for people who are directly impacted by plastic pollution in the river and surrounding areas; and build infrastructures for lasting change.

4ocean bracelets

“When they say a small group of dedicated people can change the world, believe them,” said Schulze. “Reaching 30 million pounds of plastic and trash removed from the oceans is just the first step. We still have a lot of work to do.”

SAIL This Opportunity to Keep Our Oceans Clean to Friends Without Bracelets…

Your Weekly Horoscope From Rob Brezsny: A ‘Free Will Astrology’

By
Good News Network
-

Our partner Rob Brezsny 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 July 1, 2023
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com

CANCER (June 21-July 22):
Hexes nullified! Jinxes abolished! Demons banished! Adversaries outwitted! Liabilities diminished! Bad habits replaced with good habits! These are some of the glorious developments possible for you in the coming months, Cancerian. Am I exaggerating? Maybe a little. But if so, not much. In my vision of your future, you will be the embodiment of a lucky charm and a repository of blessed mojo. You are embarking on a phase when it will make logical sense to be an optimist. Can you sweep all the dross and mess out of your sphere? No, but I bet you can do at least 80 percent.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
In the book Curious Facts in the History of Insects, Frank Cowan tells a perhaps legendary story about how mayors were selected in the medieval Swedish town of Hurdenburg. The candidates would set their chins on a table with their long beards spread out in front of them. A louse, a tiny parasitic insect, would be put in the middle of the table. Whichever beard the creature crawled to and chose as its new landing spot would reveal the man who would become the town’s new leader. I beg you not to do anything like this, Leo. The decisions you and your allies make should be grounded in good evidence and sound reason, not blind chance. And please avoid parasitical influences completely.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
I rebel against the gurus and teachers who tell us our stories are delusional indulgences that interfere with our enlightenment. I reject their insistence that our personal tales are distractions from our spiritual work. Virgo author A. S. Byatt speaks for me: “Narration is as much a part of human nature as breath and the circulation of the blood.” I love and honor the stories of my own destiny, and I encourage you to love and honor yours. Having said that, I will let you know that now is an excellent time to jettison the stories that feel demoralizing and draining—even as you celebrate the stories that embody your genuine beauty. For extra credit: Tell the soulful stories of your life to anyone who is receptive.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
In the Mayan calendar, each of the 20 day names is associated with a natural phenomenon. The day called Kawak is paired with rainstorms. Ik’ is connected with wind and breath. Kab’an is earth, Manik’ is deer, and Chikchan is the snake. Now would be a great time for you to engage in an imaginative exercise inspired by the Mayans. Why? Because this is an ideal phase of your cycle to break up your routine, to reinvent the regular rhythm, to introduce innovations in how you experience the flow of the time. Just for fun, why not give each of the next 14 days a playful nickname or descriptor? This Friday could be Crescent Moon, for example. Saturday might be Wonderment, Sunday can be Dazzle Sweet, and Monday Good Darkness.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
From 998 till 1030, Scorpio-born leader Mahmud Ghaznavi ruled the vast Ghaznavid empire, which stretched from current-day Iran to central Asia and northwestern India. Like so many of history’s strong men, he was obsessed with military conquest. Unlike many others, though, he treasured culture and learning. You’ve heard of poet laureates? He had 400 of them. According to some tales, he rewarded one wordsmith with a mouthful of pearls. In accordance with astrological omens, I encourage you to be more like the Mahmud who loved beauty and art and less like the Mahmud who enjoyed fighting. The coming weeks will be a favorable time to fill your world with grace and elegance and magnificence.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
About 1,740 years ago, before she became a Catholic saint, Margaret of Antioch got swallowed whole by Satan, who was disguised as a dragon. Or so the old story goes. But Margaret was undaunted. There in the beast’s innards, Margaret calmly made the sign of the cross over and over with her right hand. Meanwhile, the wooden cross in her left hand magically swelled to an enormous size that ruptured the beast, enabling her to escape. After that, because of her triumph, expectant mothers and women in labor regarded Margaret as their patron saint. Your upcoming test won’t be anywhere near as demanding as hers, Sagittarius, but I bet you will ace it—and ultimately garner sweet rewards.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
Capricorn-born Johannes Kepler (1571–1630) was an astronomer and mathematician who was an instrumental innovator in the Scientific Revolution. Among his many breakthrough accomplishments were his insights about the laws of planetary motion. Books he wrote were crucial forerunners of Isaac Newton’s theories about gravitation. But here’s an unexpected twist: Kepler was also a practicing astrologer who interpreted the charts of many people, including three emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. In the spirit of Kepler’s ability to bridge seemingly opposing perspectives, Capricorn, I invite you to be a paragon of mediation and conciliation in the coming weeks. Always be looking for ways to heal splits and forge connections. Assume you have an extraordinary power to blend elements that no one else can.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Dear Restless Runaway: During the next 10 months, life will offer you these invitations: 1. Identify the land that excites you and stabilizes you. 2. Spend lots of relaxing time on that land. 3. Define the exact nature of the niche or situation where your talents and desires will be most gracefully expressed. 4. Take steps to create or gather the family you want. 5. Take steps to create or gather the community you want.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
I’d love you to be a deep-feeling, free-thinker in the coming weeks. I will cheer you on if you nurture your emotional intelligence as you liberate yourself from outmoded beliefs and opinions. Celebrate your precious sensitivity, dear Pisces, even as you use your fine mind to reevaluate your vision of what the future holds. It’s a perfect time to glory in rich sentiments and exult in creative ideas.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Visionary author Peter McWilliams wrote, “One of the most enjoyable aspects of solitude is doing what you want when you want to do it, with the absolute freedom to change what you’re doing at will. Solitude removes all the ‘negotiating’ we need to do when we’re with others.” I’ll add a caveat: Some of us have more to learn about enjoying solitude. We may experience it as a loss or deprivation. But here’s the good news, Aries: In the coming weeks, you will be extra inspired to cultivate the benefits that come from being alone.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
The 18th-century French engineer Étienne Bottineau invented nauscopy, the art of detecting sailing ships at a great distance, well beyond the horizon. This was before the invention of radar. Bottineau said his skill was not rooted in sorcery or luck, but from his careful study of changes in the atmosphere, wind, and sea. Did you guess that Bottineau was a Taurus? Your tribe has a special capacity for arriving at seemingly magical understandings by harnessing your sensitivity to natural signals. Your intuition thrives as you closely observe the practical details of how the world works. This superpower will be at a peak in the coming weeks.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
According to a Welsh proverb, “Three fears weaken the heart: fear of the truth; fear of the devil; fear of poverty.” I suspect the first of those three is most likely to worm its way into your awareness during the coming weeks. So let’s see what we can do to diminish its power over you. Here’s one possibility: Believe me when I tell you that even if the truth’s arrival is initially disturbing or disruptive, it will ultimately be healing and liberating. It should be welcomed, not feared.

WANT MORE? Listen to Rob’s EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES, 4-5 minute meditations on the current state of your destiny — or subscribe to his unique daily text message service at: RealAstrology.com

(Zodiac images by Numerologysign.com, CC license)

SHARE The Wisdom With Friends Who Are Stars in Your Life on Social Media…

“If you would know strength and patience, welcome the company of trees.” – Hal Borland

By
Good News Network
-

Quote of the Day: “If you would know strength and patience, welcome the company of trees.” – Hal Borland

Photo by: Johannes Plenio @jPlenio (cropped)

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

This Tower Filters 273 Hot Air Balloons-Worth of Pollution per Day in India City

By
Andy Corbley
-
Studio Symbiosis tower - credit Avesh Gaur - released
Studio Symbiosis tower – credit Avesh Gaur – released

This installation isn’t a graduate student’s idea of an art piece, it’s a sophisticated air purifier that could be key to making India’s capital more livable.

With the worst air pollution in the world stemming from a variety of factors, New Dehli was recently selected as the home of a husband-and-wife architecture business. But seeing the smog out of their window, Amit and Britta Knobel Gupta from the UK resolved to help fix the problem.

Their offering is the Verto tower, from their business Studio Symbiosis. This sleek and curved, aerodynamic design forces air through the multiple openings where inside lies a stack of air filtration cubes that can clean 600,000 cubic meters of air per day, the equivalent to the contents of 273 hot air balloons.

Amit and Britta imagine the tower as a mass-produced object to frequent city parks around polluted cities of the world, since the whole thing can be flat-packed, and the manufacturing is subdivided.

The cleaning footprint of each tower could be as much as 200 to 500 meters (656 to 1,640 feet) of air in enclosed spaces, and between 100 to 350 meters (328 to 1,148 feet) in outdoor spaces, varying due to wind direction and other factors.

The one pictured here is a prototype from the New Dehli Sunder Nursery.

“Now that (findings from the prototype) are what we expected, we will start speaking to the government authorities about further installation,” Amit told CNN on a video call from New Delhi.

MORE GOOD EARTH IDEAS: Scientists Are Recycling Wastewater to Reclaim Valuable Phosphorous to Put Back in Soil

The largest part of the development process was ensuring that air didn’t swirl around the tower, but that every puff was pulled inside, which they accomplished by studying a variety of aerodynamic designs, from car spoilers to aircraft.

The filters, made by the German firm Mann+Hummels, need to be changed every 9 months while the noise generated by the mechanical parts generates the same level of sound as a kitchen blender, which would presumably be fine with city-goers looking for a bit of tranquility in the park as long as each green space was limited to a single tower.

SIMILAR URBAN RENEWAL: Instead of Demolishing its Tallest Building, Australia Holds Contest to ‘Upcycle a Skyscraper’ Saving Tons of CO2

Studio Symbiosis believes that 100 of the towers could clean the whole of central New Delhi, but has also heard from companies in the US who want to use the towers to filter the air in construction sites, as well as potential buyers from France, New Zealand, and Uzbekistan.

THINK These Air-Cleaning Towers Would Catch On In Your City? Share Below…

Octopuses Have Remarkably Similar Sleep Patterns to Humans–and May Even Dream

By
Andy Corbley
-
Sleeping octopus – SWNS

Researchers found that, like us, the octopus transitions between two sleep stages, a “quiet” stage and an “active” stage that resembles REM sleep in mammals.

Their arms and eyes twitch, their breathing rate quickens, and their skin flashes with vibrant colors—which has led scientists to conjecture that they may even be dreaming.

Researchers from the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) in Japan, along with colleagues from the University of Washington in the US, meticulously examined the brain activity and skin patterning in octopuses during that active period of sleep.

Roughly once an hour, the octopuses entered an active sleep phase for around a minute. During that stage, the octopuses’ brain activity very closely resembled their brain activity while awake, just like REM sleep does in humans.

The study also found that while sleeping, the octopuses cycled through the same skin patterns. The scientists theorized that the animals may have been practicing their skin patterns to improve their waking camouflage behavior, or simply maintaining the pigment cells.

Another idea is that the octopuses could be re-living and learning from their waking experiences, such as hunting or hiding from a predator, and reactivating the skin pattern associated with each experience.

The research team said their findings, published in the journal Nature, highlight the remarkable similarities between the sleeping behavior of octopuses and humans.

“All animals seem to show some form of sleep, even simple animals like jellyfish and fruit flies,” said senior author Professor Sam Reiter, head of the Computational Neuroethology Unit at OIST. “But for a long time, only vertebrates were known to cycle between two different sleep stages.”

REMARKABLE MARINE LIFE: Kayaker Singing in Hopes of Attracting Beluga Whales Never Imagined They Were Actually Listening

“The fact that two-stage sleep has independently evolved in distantly related creatures, like octopuses, which have large but completely different brain structures from vertebrates, suggests that possessing an active, wake-like stage may be a general feature of complex cognition,” added co-author Dr, Leenoy Meshulam.

What does this mean to science? In extrapolation, it means that sleeping, and indeed dreaming, was selected for in both humans and octopuses independent of the fact that the evolutionary paths which produced these animals diverged 500 million years ago.

While sleeping, animals in nature are extremely vulnerable. They’re unable to hunt or forage for food, unable to defend themselves against predators, unable to search for a mate, and unable to protect their offspring.

MORE EVOLUTIONARY SCIENCE: Scientists Discover Butterflies Originated in America 100 Million Years Ago When Upstart Moths Wanted to Bask in the Sun

Indeed, sleep overrides all other prime activities of life, the activities most people would suggest to be the most basic and important among multi-celled organisms.

One might conclude then that sleep, and potentially dreaming, is one of the most fundamental needs for life.

SHARE This Fascinating Study With Your Friends… 

Ancient Mayan City Hidden for Over 1,000 Years Discovered by LiDAR

By
Andy Corbley
-
Ocomtún ruins by Ivan Šprajc via National Institute of Anthropology and History
Ocomtún ruins by Ivan Šprajc via National Institute of Anthropology and History

LiDAR has done it again: pyramids, a ballcourt, and columns built by the late Mayan Empire over 1,000 years ago were discovered under the forest canopy thanks to the hi-tech surveying device.

The site is located in the largely-unexplored forested region in the Mexican state of Campeche, an area of 1,150 square miles near the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve.

Named Ocomtún, the word for ‘column’ in the Yucatec Mayan language, the city’s nucleus stretches for 123 acres centered around a stone pyramid.

Several plazas, a ballgame court, and the stone columns that gave Ocomtún its name surround the pyramid, all believed to be built between 250 CE and 1,000 CE.

“The site served as an important center at the regional level, probably during the Classic period,” said Ivan Šprajc, an anthropologist at the Research Center of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts, who participated in the survey project alongside several Mexican institutions.

“The most common ceramic types that we collected on the surface and in some test pits are from the Late Classic (600-800 CE); however, the analysis of samples of this material will offer us more reliable data on the sequences of occupation”, detailed the doctor in anthropology.

The discovery began with LiDAR surveys in March of 2023, revealing multiple prehispanic structures in an area bigger than Luxembourg.

Mayan inscription at the Ocomtún ruins (Ivan Šprajc via National Institute of Anthropology and History)
LiDAR survey of the area near Calakmul. (Ivan Šprajc via National Institute of Anthropology and History)

Abbreviating “light detection and ranging,” LiDAR is a laser-survey device that can make detailed maps of the terrain underneath the jungle canopy. Mounted on the front of an aircraft, LiDAR can survey in exquisite detail even if it’s flying at high speeds.

MORE MESOAMERICAN ARCHAEOLOGY: Over 100 New Nazca Lines Discovered in Peru Designed by Ancient People

The technology has done so much more than just show archaeologists where to look and dig under South and Central America’s rainforest canopy, it is legitimately re-writing the history of human civilization and placing Meso-america’s people at levels of organization and technological sophistication that surpass that of post-Rome Europe.

For example, thousands of miles south in Bolivia, LiDAR discovered a lost South American civilization called the Casarabe Culture, who built large pyramids, sophisticated irrigation, and road infrastructure, but they did it all with dirt.

“Just imagine you are working 20 years in that region like we did, and you have to explain to someone not familiar with the archaeology of the region, and they’re asking what is special about that culture—you’d need an hour to explain it,” Dr. Heiko Prümers who led the LiDAR survey, told World at Large. “Now we just show the images, and everybody will say ‘wow, yes it’s obvious that it’s something big’”.

MORE ARCHAEOLOGY NEWS: Divers Are About to Pull a 3,000-Year-Old Shipwreck From the Depths

Other big discoveries include Angamuco, a major urban settlement of the Purépecha civilization, now in ruins hidden under vegetation, in the Lake Pátzcuaro Basin of Michoacán, Mexico. It contained an estimated 39,000 buildings spread across an area about 40% the size of Manhattan.

Despite being in a pretty densely populated area, it remained undiscovered until 2007-2012 when LiDAR surveys revealed the extent of the city.

SHARE This Big Discovery With Your Friends… 

Paris Art Exhibit Pulls Leon Monet From Famous Shadow of his Older Brother Claude

By
Andy Corbley
-
Leon Monet in 1905 with his nephew Jean

Did you know Claude wasn’t the only Monet? His younger brother Leon’s faithful support of his older brother is partly why Claude became the man we know today.

The Brothers Monet and their relationship are on full display at a new exhibit at the Musée du Luxembourg in Paris. Curator Geraldine Lefebvre took three years to amass the collection of paintings and records of Leon’s activities, and what takes shape shows a “lynchpin” in Claude’s superstardom.

“One tends to think of Monet making it all by himself, but he relied on a network of collectors, supporters, dealers. Leon seems to be almost like a lynchpin who has been somehow overlooked and rediscovered through the exhibition,” Frances Fowle, senior curator at the National Galleries of Scotland, told Euronews.

Leon was part of this network, and he supported his brother early on by buying his paintings at auction to drum up interest, as well as introducing him to new kinds of synthetic dyes.

He kept some of his brother’s paintings, but others he gave back so he could create more publicity.

MORE ART HISTORY: The Painting Paid for Grilled Cheese Sandwiches 50 Years Ago – Now Earns the Restaurant Thousands

Leon must have enjoyed the role, as he met and grew into a businessman alongside not only Monet, but other Impressionists whom Claude was friends with, like Pissaro, Renior, and Sisley, whose paintings Leon also bought. Monet the Younger became a well-to-do owner of a chemicals factory.

Leon Monet by Claude – Wikimedia Commons

Claude’s son Jean worked at Leon’s factory, and that was the first snowfall of the winter of their discontent, as Jean contracted a respiratory infection and died. Claude blamed Leon for Jean’s death, and at his 1914 funeral, Leon Monet’s side of the family wasn’t invited.

This was made all the worse by the death of Claude’s daughter Adrienne from similar causes.

Leon was in denial of the chemicals’ role in their deaths, and shortly after Adrienne passed, they exchanged final angry words and never spoke again.

Perhaps though, the Brothers Monet were made of stiffer stuff than most, because after Leon died just 3 years later at the ripe old age of 82, Claude lamented.

“I regret not being able to see my brother one last time, and tell him to forget everything that took us apart,” he wrote to his widow.

MORE ART NEWS: Guess Who’s Curating New Exhibit at Baltimore Museum of Art? Their Staff of Security Guards

Chief among the showpieces is a large and lively portrait of Leon Monet painted by Claude during the year the former made his debut as an industrialist in Rouen. Leon didn’t like it—felt it was unfinished, but Claude’s friends Renoir and Sisley convinced Claude to leave it as it was. Leon hid it away all his life.

The exhibit, which runs until July 16th, also includes a variety of family photographs, records, woodblocks, and other materials that each tell a small part of the story of the Brothers Monet, and the exhibit itself may help one or two disgruntled siblings understand that blood (and paint) is thicker than water, and that the time to make amends should be sooner rather than (too) later.

SHARE This Story Of Brotherly Love With Impressionist Lovers You Know… 

“We aim above the mark to hit the mark.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

By
Good News Network
-

Quote of the Day: “We aim above the mark to hit the mark.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Photo by: Afif Ramdhasuma

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Nature’s Famous Spiral is Coded into 400 Million Years of Plants–But Not in This New Fossil

By
Andy Corbley
-

It’s the most famous mathematical sequence in biology—the description of a spiral with a particular ratio found in the evolution of plants going back millions of years, and that is seen today in succulents like this aloe, but also in pineapples, sunflowers, and pinecones.

Named for the Italian mathematician that discovered it, the Fibonacci Sequence, or Fibonacci Spiral, is also known as nature’s secret code, as it also predicts the spiral of invertebrate shells like ammonites and snails.

Now though, scientists have just discovered where its spiral ends, and one would have to go back 407 million years ago.

The Early Devonian Period produced a plant known as the clubmoss, which arranged its leaves in a spiral, but which doesn’t follow the Fibonacci Sequence.

“Spirals are common in plants, with Fibonacci spirals making up over 90% of the spirals,” University of Edinburgh paleontologist Alexander Hetherington and colleagues wrote in their paper describing the discovery. 

MORE MATHEMATICS IN LIFE: The Mind-Blowing Mathematics of Snowflakes

“Based on their widespread distribution it has long been assumed that Fibonacci spirals were an ancient feature that evolved in the earliest land plants and became highly conserved in plants.”

Asteroxylon mackiei. Image credit: Turner et al., doi: 10.1126/science.adg4014.

They characterize the Fibonacci spiral as being found in the arrangement of their organs around their stems. In most existing plant species, organs emerge at 137.5° from the previous organ. This results in continuous spirals of organs, with the number of clockwise and anticlockwise spirals forming consecutive numbers in a Fibonacci sequence.

The Fibonacci Sequence has also been found in spiral galaxies and large hurricanes. Fans of the band Tool probably know that band leader Maynard James Keenan wrote a song with the lyrics and time signature arranged in the numbers of the Fibonacci Sequence.

Asteroxylon mackiei was a clubmoss that featured among the world’s oldest leaf-bearing plants. The exceptionally preserved fossil subjected to 3D imaging for the study was found in the famous fossil site the Rhynie chert near the Aberdeenshire village of Rhynie in Scotland.

MORE MATHEMATICS IN LIFE: The Mind-Blowing Mathematics of Sunflowers …From Scientific American Magazine on Their 175th Birthday

“The clubmoss Asteroxylon mackiei is one of the earliest examples of a plant with leaves in the fossil record,” said Holly Anne-Turner, the study’s first author. “Using these reconstructions we have been able to track individual spirals of leaves around the stems of these 407 million-year-old fossil plants. Our analysis of leaf arrangement in Asteroxylon shows that very early clubmosses developed non-Fibonacci spiral patterns.”

“This transforms our understanding of Fibonacci spirals in land plants,” the researchers said. It indicates that non-Fibonacci spirals were common in ancient clubmosses and that the evolution of leaf spirals diverged into two separate paths.”

SHARE This Break In Mathematical Evolution With Your Friends… 

After 20 Years He Finally Spotted the Elusive North American Butterfly Beauty in a Nearby Bog

By
Andy Corbley
-
(left) Byran Pfeiffer - retrieved from Facebook (right) an Eastern pine elfin Judy Gallagher CC 2.0.
(left) Byran Pfeiffer – retrieved from Facebook (right) an Eastern pine elfin Judy Gallagher CC 2.0.

At times it can seem that some humans are just born to play the piano or run long distances, but natural talent isn’t limited to beauty or competition, some talent comes in subtler ways.

Take 65-year-old Bryan Pfeiffer, a man born seemingly for the purpose of hunting a little brown butterfly the size of a penny in the bogs of Vermont for 21 years.

Pfeiffer attempted, almost certainly in vain, to communicate what his final accomplishment meant when he wrote in his substack, Chasing Nature, that “Vermont is now a better place for having Bog Elfins—up there in the spruce where they belong.”

If Vermont is a better place for having bog elfins, then Earth is a better place—humanity is in better condition—for having people like Bryan Pfeiffer, who sought this tiny brown insect—not because he was discovering a new species he could name Pfeiffer’s elfin, but merely to confirm that it indeed inhabited his native Vermont; just that, and nothing more.

An entomologist, Pfeiffer has been compiling a butterfly species atlas for the state of Vermont, and he had a hunch that the elusive bog elfin could be found within its borders. The elusive insect dwells up among the high canopy of spruce trees most hours of the day, which has meant 21 years of wading through knee-deep bog water and clouds of biting, swarming insects.

He began his quest for the bog elfin at age 44 when his knees worked and his back was strong. Every year that passed, he told the Boston Globe, he wondered if his window was closing.

Then, after several years of looking in a single bog, he noticed a little brown butterfly coming down from the trees to alight on a juvenile spruce 20 feet from the man, who raised his binoculars and said to himself “I’ve been looking for you, for a very long time.”

But just like that, he couldn’t take a picture before it launched back up into the canopy. There are pine elfins in the bog too, so he couldn’t be sure he had found his prize without a photo. Scouring the rest of the bog in a bit of anxiety, he saw another brown butterfly alight nearby, and he didn’t wait for the optics—he swung his butterfly net, and inside was a bog elfin, the first ever seen in the state of Vermont.

MORE LIFE’S WORK FROM DEDICATED PEOPLE: Wildlife Sound Recordist Releases Treasured Audio Collection for Free – to Awe and Inspire the World

He took a few pictures and released the insect back into the trees.

In his essay, published on his exceptional substack (he writes with the adoranze of Aldo Leopold at least, John Muir at best) he questions, looking back on his 21-year search, why it mattered so much, and how it’s almost certain to be just a footnote in the scientific record.

Indeed, with the focus paid to the decline of biodiversity, large newspapers are often publishing stories about the loss or recovery of some small colored newt in Asia, or a brown warbler in South America—almost begging the question of what degree of importance they have in the world, and why should we care about them?

MORE STORIES LIKE THIS: He Finally Located Source of Mysterious Sound–A New Frog Species Named After His Rewilding Quest in Costa Rica

“Here in the United States we protect speech we don’t necessarily care for, or that might lack obvious intrinsic value. It is a foundational doctrine—it makes us stronger, more open to ideas,” writes Pfeiffer.

“In our safeguarding little brown butterflies, like protecting speech, we show reverence not only for the popular and charismatic and profitable, but for the obscure and the vulnerable as well.”

Bravo Pfeiffer, bravo.

SHARE This Inspiring Story of The Old Man and the Bog… 

400-Year-old Ming Dynasty Table Worth $80k Inherited From Relative Who Loved Anything Asian

By
Andy Corbley
-
SWNS / Hansons Auctioneers
SWNS / Hansons Auctioneers

While modest, this simple table has a special secret—the artisans who crafted it lived more than 400 years ago.

The rare rosewood table, standing 31 inches (79cm) tall was made around 1,600CE during the Ming Dynasty. Known colloquially for their vases and porcelain, there was nothing the Ming Dynasty artisans couldn’t craft.

British Auctioneer, antiquities expert, and occasional television presenter Charles Hanson discovered the remarkable piece in a country home in Derby.

Reports place its value at between $70,000 and $100,000 but is likely to spark a bidding war at Hanson’s Auctioneers in October.

“Hanson’s Asian works of art consultant Adam Schoon has dated the table to around 1,600,” said Hanson, referring to the piece as a Banzhou side table. “To put that into historical context, that was the end of the Tudor period in England and Wales.”

“It is a work of art. It was crafted during the Ming Dynasty period which dates back to 1,368 – 1,644. Its simplicity defines modern style.”

Mr. Schoon was able to give Hanson a rich background in the use of the table, which thanks in no small part to the Chinese civilization’s immaculate record keeping, will give any potential bidders the complete history of its use.

Made of fine huanghuali wood, the unique floating panel construction is supported by three dovetail transverse stretchers underneath.

“Items like this are mentioned in 16th-century Chinese novels about life in grand houses. Its design has been seen in wall murals relating to the Jinyuan Dynasties [sic] of 1,115-1,368,” said Hanson, referring to the two dynasties preceding the Ming.

“Banzhuo literally means ‘half table’ and is so-called for its size, which is half that of an ‘eight immortals table,'” he continued. “The banzhuo was mainly used for serving wine and food and is also sometimes referred to as a jiezhuo, meaning extension table.”

SWNS / Hansons Auctioneers

“The simplicity of its construction is impressive too. It has mortise and tenon joints, which have been used by woodworkers around the world for thousands of years.”

The sellers inherited it from a relative who was an avid collector of Asian artifacts and was genuine ‘head-over-heels for anything Asian.’

Emperor Longqing lifted a ban on maritime trade which allowed huanghuali, a tropical hardwood, to be imported from Southeast Asia.

Due to the wood coming from slow-growing, small trees, the availability of furniture made from it is extremely rare.

“The wood itself is a thing of beauty. Its dense, beautifully-figured grain displays a broad range of colors from pale honey to rich mahogany,” Hanson continued. “It polishes to a translucent golden sheen. The finest huanghuali has a translucent shimmering surface with abstract patterns.”

“Today huanghuali furniture is in demand at auction. It appeals to wealthy collectors from the Far East due to its elegance and historical significance because they’re keen to repatriate works of art to their homeland to celebrate and honor their culture.”

SHARE This Story With Any Antique Hunters You Know… 

First Recorded Birth of Critically-Endangered Burmese Peacock Turtle Hatchlings (WATCH)

By
Andy Corbley
-
Credit: Fauna & Flora www.fauna-flora.org
Credit: Fauna & Flora www.fauna-flora.org

This little fellow is the Burmese peacock softshell turtle, and he’s sitting here in the hands of one of the first humans to ever hatch them in captivity.

As one of the most endangered freshwater turtle species on the planet, it’s hoped the 15 hatchlings will go a long way towards preserving these beautiful reptiles for future generations of Myanmar’s people.

The breeding program was undertaken by the conservation group Flora and Fauna International along with support from local volunteers and knowledge keepers around Myanmar’s Indawgyi Lake, one of the largest freshwater lakes in Southeast Asia.

The locals, trained by FFI, nominated “turtle guardians” to patrol the shores and look for nesting areas—of which they found 5 in the 2022 breeding season. They fenced them off and kept regular watch over them.

According to the conservation group, the video of the turtles hatching is the first known recording of the species born in the wild.

FFI has worked around Indawgyi for many years, and was instrumental in its designation as a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2017. Home to 160 endemic birds, the lake also hosts fish, reptiles, primates, and mammals unique to the area.

Burmese Peacock Softshell Turtle hatchlings – Credit: Nyein Chan & Yae Aung / Fauna & Flora

The Burmese peacock turtles are named for the orange spots on their shells reminiscent of peacock feathers. They are considered a delicacy in the poverty-stricken country, and have been overhunted.

SHARE This Encouraging Conservation News With Your Friends… 

“Don’t forget to love yourself today.” – Soren Kierkegaard

By
Good News Network
-

Quote of the Day: “Don’t forget to love yourself today.” – Soren Kierkegaard

Photo by: pmv chamara

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Sweden Is Trying to Build a Whole City Borough Out of Wood to ‘Show What is Possible’

By
Andy Corbley
-
Stockholm Wood City - Atrium Ljungberg
Stockholm Wood City – Atrium Ljungberg

A Stockholm development company has a dream contract in its hands—the construction of a whole new city borough entirely of lumber that aims to be a sustainable ballast to an unbalanced city.

Spanning 25 blocks, 30 sustainable mass timber buildings will add 7,000 new offices and 2,000 new homes, with construction slated to begin in 2025, and the first buildings to be completed in 2027.

Known as Stockholm Wood City, the borough is not just an exercise in Swedish woodworking or sustainability, it’s a much-needed re-structuring of the urban landscape since most people live south of the historic center, but most offices are north of the historic center.

The development company in charge is called Atrium Ljungberg, and it appreciates the concept of a “15-minute city” where everything is a 15-minute walk from one’s front door.

“We are proud to introduce Stockholm Wood City. This is not only an important step for us as a company, but a historic milestone for Swedish innovation capability,” Annica Ånäs, CEO of Atrium Ljungberg, said in a statement.

“From tenants, there is a strong demand for innovative, sustainable solutions—a demand that we meet with this initiative.”

Timber construction of large buildings came about in the 90s with the invention of cross-laminated timber, known shorthand as “mass timber.” Consisting of multiple boards of lumber fused together using sophisticated machinery, the mass timber could bear much greater loads and forces. Additional applications made this special lumber fire-resistant.

MORE ON MASS TIMBER: The New Green Building Revolution Uses Timber to Build ‘Plyscrapers’ That Save Tons of CO2

The company alleges that studies have shown living around wooden buildings increases well-being by decreasing stress and increasing focus, though no such studies were cited.

What they undoubtedly do offer however is a massive reduction in CO2 emissions, since cement and steel emit more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than any other aspects of manufacturing, and together just over 10 times what is emitted from air travel.

Stockholm Wood City – Atrium Ljungberg

The timber is harvested in Sweden, made into CLT, and erected in Stockholm.

“Our industry leaves a big mark, and it is important for us to make a positive difference in both the shorter and longer term,” said Ånäs. “The new development will create a dense, green city area with circular and sustainable principles built into the whole ecosystem.”

MORE SWEDEN NEWS: Sweden’s First EV-Charging Road Will Power Electric Vehicles as They Drive

Recently, Sweden built the world’s tallest wooden skyscraper as a demonstration to the world what mass timber can do. This is perhaps a more sustainable and realistic open invitation to cities around the globe.

SHARE This Wooden Wonderland With Your Friends… 

1...272273274...1,718Page 273 of 1,718
© Copyright 1997–2026 GNN, LLC