19-Year-Old Just Set the Record for the Youngest Woman to Fly Solo Around the World

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Jan 24, 2022

zara ruthersford social embed instagram fly.zolo — Instagram/@fly.zolo

19-year-old Zara Rutherford has made a grab bag of records after completing a 32,000 mile (52,000km) circumnavigation of the Earth.

Landing at Kortrijk-Wevelgem Airport in western Belgium on Thursday, she became the youngest woman, and first Belgian to fly solo around the world—as well as the first person ever to do it in an ultralight aircraft. It took her 155 days.

The previous youngest-ever woman to accomplish the celebrated feat of aviation was American Shaesta Waiz, who also founded a non-profit called Dreams Soar which Rutherford was supporting on her long journey. A funny twist of fate saw the two globe trekkers united on a stopover.

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A post shared by Zara Rutherford (@fly.zolo)

Rutherford made the 41-country crossing to inspire more women and girls into entering other STEM fields, but obviously and particularly aviation. Remarking on how only 5.1% of pilots are women, she described the occupation to CNN last year as “a career where you basically get paid to travel around the world.”

She’s also supporting the non-profit Girls Who Code.

Chalks away

It wasn’t all smooth sailing for the 160-mph ultralight aircraft, and both extreme weather and visa difficulties took their tool on the plane and the pilot. Originally planned for three months and 52 countries, the route had to be changed due to unscheduled landings such as to avoid wildfires in California, and a denial for crossing permission over China.

“I would say the hardest part was definitely flying over Siberia—it was extremely cold. It was minus 35 degrees Celsius on the ground,” Rutherford said during a press conference on Thursday.

“If the engine were to stall, I’d be hours away from rescue and I don’t know how long I could have survived for.”

MORE: Rookie Lifeguard Faced With Saving a Kangaroo From Rough Surf in Her First Ever Rescue

Rutherford was piloting the carbon fiber and epoxy Shark Aero, one of the fastest ultralight aircraft in the world—built by specialists and modified for the rigors of circumnavigation.

(WATCH the video reel from Zara below.)

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“Nothing will tell you where you are. Each moment is a place you’ve never been.” – Mark Strand

Quote of the Day

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Jan 24, 2022

meadow road with forest nature country-pubdomain-Anastasiya Romanova — By Anastasiya Romanova

Quote of the Day: “Nothing will tell you where you are. Each moment is a place you’ve never been.” – Mark Strand

Photo: by Anastasiya Romanova

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?

Almost $13 Million Raised For Animal Shelters to Honor the Late Celebrity With the #BettyWhiteChallenge

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Jan 23, 2022

Betty White graphic-released — Actors & Others For Animals

JoAnne Worley and Loretta Swit were among the celebrities who began a campaign on social media called the #BettyWhiteChallenge in honor of Betty White’s 100th birthday.

The comedic actress died on New Year’s Eve, just weeks before her centennial celebration of January 17th—but because she is so beloved, the campaign has taken flight to raise millions for animals.

Actors & Others For Animals, the charity for which she served on the Board of Directors, launched the campaign asking for donations of $100 for Betty’s 100th birthday.

Dozens of other groups benefitted, too, as the public began sending in money to local shelters in Ms. White’s name.

Almost 400,000 people used Facebook and Instagram to donate to the challenge, raising an incredible $12.7 million dollars for animal shelters and rescuers all over the country—with 100% of the pledges going directly to the organizations.

Two Philadelphia shelters brought in $100,000; a Los Angeles zoo charity got $70,000; an Arkansas shelter was flooded with over $12,000; and Dubuque, Iowa shelters received $13,000.

LOOK: Baby Donkey is Named ‘Betty White’ to Honor Celebrity Who Donated to Their Animal Sanctuary For Years

Betty had prepared a video to share on her 100th birthday which was recorded just days before her death. Her team posted the video on her Instagram page as a farewell greeting for her fans.

“I just want to thank you all for your love and support over the YEARS. Thank you so much, and stick around!”

Her team added an update from the #BettyWhiteChallenge to the posted video, “As we continue to see numbers coming in from all over the world, it’s just absolutely amazing how much money all of you raised for animals.”

WATCH the video…

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Visit ‘Fortlandia’ Where Designers Have Built Odes to Childhood Fort-Building in Austin, Texas

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Andy Corbley

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Jan 23, 2022

Bamboo fort by Leonid_Furmansky for Perkins & Will released for Fortlandia — By Leonid Furmansky for Perkins & Will architects

An annual mass ‘fort building’ event is going on now which for years has brought smiles uncountable to the faces of children visiting in Austin, Texas.

Hosted at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center and Botanic Gardens, Fortlandia is a celebration of childhood fort building, in which architects create different forts to tickle the imagination of young and old.

Building forts is a universal childhood experience. Whether out of blankets and pillows, sticks and leaves, or refrigerator boxes, it is the pinnacle of big picture creativity.

Now open until January 31st, Fortlandia 2022 features 8 forts built by professional architects and artists arrayed along a nature trail for kids, so they can explore and pretend to their heart’s content.

Color Space Architecture from San Marcos, for example, contributed ‘The Critter Stack’, which creates a play and meet and greet environment for kids and forest critters.

“By integrating natural stacked materials within and on the installation, The Critter Stack invites Fortlandia attendees to consider life forms smaller than themselves and to take a closer, respectful look at the wilderness that we can help support outside our front doors.”

Color Space – Critter Stack, designed for Fortlandia 2021

“Children are also invited to crawl right up and into the installation and imagine what it is to become a little critter themselves,” they added.

Designer Jodi Bade made ‘The Critter Cafe’, which is pulled by a vintage garden tractor and filled with child-safe kitchen equipment for that most persistent of childhood fancies, tea time. Watch her video showing the remarkable detail on the inside.

For the 2020 exhibition, Perkins & Will built a fort entirely of bamboo tubes, allowing kids’ tireless knees to crawl them about inside an enclosed yet natural space.

By Leonid Furmansky for Perkins & Will architects

Each year since it debuted in 2018, up to ten different forts each year dot a 16-acre stretch of the Texas Arboretum (part of the Botanic Gardens), with majestic trees framing the model forts.

Before starting their journey to the secret hideouts in the woods that most of us only dreamed of, kids can pick up their “Passforts” to document their adventures, map the fort locations, along with the animals and plants they find along the way—and the friends they’ve made—and compare notes for the next year.

WATCH one family’s adventure in 2019…

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Inspired by Lava, New Nontoxic Coating Can Halt Fire in its Tracks

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Jan 23, 2022

Lava is one of the hottest substances found on the Earth’s surface and also a source of inspiration for the design of a potentially life-saving fire retardant coating.

A research team, led by University of Southern Queensland chemical engineer and Australian Research Council Future Fellow, Professor Pingan Song, has developed a non-toxic, fire extinguishing coating that could save buildings from being engulfed in flames.

Professor Song said lava sparked his idea of a hybrid coating that would melt and then gradually form a flowing but non-combustible ceramic layer when exposed to extreme heat.

“Melton lava is like a viscous flowing liquid but non-flammable,” Professor Song said.

“Once cooled, it solidifies to become a ceramic layer that does not support fire.

“Inspired by this interesting phenomenon, we designed a fire retardant coating that can create a non-combustible ceramic layer which can offer fire protections for the underlying substrates, just like a fire shield.”

Professor Song said spraying the coating on building materials, such as thermal insulation foam, timber and steel structures, during construction could prevent disasters like the 2017 Grenfell Tower blaze in London, where 72 people died.

“Polymer foams were identified as the main cause of recent catastrophic disasters, particularly the Grenfell Tower fire,” he said.

“Solid wood materials, also widely used in buildings but extremely combustible, can also trigger fires, like the Notre-Dame de Paris blaze in 2019.”

CHECK Out: Futuristic ‘Green’ Fabric That Works Like a Smartphone Unveiled by Scientists

Fire retardants have been used in building materials for decades, but most are not effective enough, costly and sometimes difficult to mass produce.

Professor Song said their version offered better protection and could be used in other application settings, such as wooden furniture, mining, tunnels and transportations.

“Our fire retardant coating produces a very robust and thermally stable ceramic layer, compared to existing coatings, which usually produce a protective layer that is fragile and degrades at high temperatures,” he said.

Professor Song said the fire-retardant coating still had to undergo further testing and refinement before it could be commercialized and put to widespread use, which he hoped would be within the next three years.

The research, which was financially supported by an Australian Research Council Future Fellowship, was published in the journal Matter.

Source: University of Southern Queensland

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Mystery ‘Garbage Man’ in Wisconsin Neighborhood is Revealed to Be a 75-Year-old Man

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Jan 23, 2022

WFRV Local 5 youtube screenshot — WFRV Local 5 / Youtube

For weeks, in the frigid Wisconsin winter, neighbors in Appleton were puzzling over a sudden mystery.

On garbage days, they would trudge with their trash bins down their long driveways of snow and ice—and in the evenings the bins appeared back at their garages.

Melody Luttenegger, who lives in the neighborhood of Grand Chute, first asked her husband—but he replied, ‘no, I’m not bringing the garbage cans up.’

Then, she thought it was the garbage company, and decided to stake out the area to discover the identity of the good deed-doer.

“It was the day before Christmas Eve,” she told WFRV Local 5’s Barrett Tryon. “And I got a little gift for them… and stood there, waiting and waiting.”

At 8:21 in the morning, she saw Dick Pontzloff, a 75-year-old senior who lives a few streets over, coming up the driveway with the Luttenegger’s garbage cans.

WFRV broadcasts a regular segment called ‘Positively Wisconsin’, to showcase inspiring people.

And, Dick turned out to be quite inspiring.

“When I retired, I got sick of doing nothing, so I started going around and picking up garbage cans. Not just certain ones, everyone’s,” he told Local 5 News, from nearby Green Bay.

LOOK: Sanitation Heroes Dig Through 2,000 Pounds of Trash to Reunite Man With His Lost Wallet

He’s lived in Wisconsin most of his life, and always loved winter.

“I put this mask on because it makes your face nice and warm. That’s the reason I’m wearing it. I don’t normally wear it,” he laughed again.

“Just be nice to all people,” he said. “It’s just what you gotta do. Just think if you were at home and you needed someone for help.”

Luttenegger benefitted from something more intangible than help: “You know, the kindness that strangers give is an unexplainable feeling.”

WATCH the WFRV video below…

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“The joy of strife: Next to trying and winning, the best thing is trying and failing.” – L.M. Montgomery

Quote of the Day

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Jan 23, 2022

Quote of the Day: “The joy of strife: Next to trying and winning, the best thing is trying and failing.” – L.M. Montgomery (Anne of Green Gables)

Photo: by Javad Esmaeili (colorized)

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?

Watch the Jubilant Christmas Message These Surprised Tesla Owners Got From Their Car

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Jan 22, 2022

These Tesla owners have loved their electric car, ever since they carefully decided to wade into the EV world—and they’ve never regretted the move.

The lower fuel costs have roughly equaled the higher purchase price, and they do feel good about making less of an impact on the planet as they drive.

Their Tesla also provided a holiday surprise for the owners in the form of a dazzling Christmas light show.

After downloading the latest operating software for the vehicle, the Tesla instructed Dave to press the start button and then get out and enjoy a special message.

Dave and his wife watched as the car began to play a majestic orchestral performance of Carol of the Bells, synchronized with not only the lights on the car, but the movements of the trunk, mirrors, windows, and charge port.

The whole family watched in amazement as the exciting holiday greeting emerged from their car.

Another feature they found was a cozy fireplace video that plays on the control screen, synchronized with the heaters in the car that send out a gentle warm breeze to match the fire. Aptly referred to as “romance” on the control menu, this caused a giggle as the screen lit up.

Another ‘Easter egg’ the found in the software was the option to play the sound of coconuts clopping as the car drives—reminiscent of the epic scene from Monty Python as the knights gallop across the highlands without horses.

WATCH the Christmas light display below…

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Majority of Americans Plan to Splurge on These Top 10 Things–After Missing Out in Pandemic

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Jan 22, 2022

The “Roaring 20s” are just around the corner for seven in 10 Americans who plan to go all out with their finances in the coming years by enjoying what they missed out on in the last two years.

A survey of 2,000 adults found 70% are looking to have more fun with their finances over the next decade, with 84% believing those plans to spend more freely are due to having built a financial safety net during the pandemic.

Fifty-nine percent of Gen Zers (ages 18 to 24) are more likely to enjoy their money in the coming years, compared to 45% of millennials (ages 25 to 40) and 25% of Gen Xers (41 to 56).

On the other hand, 36% of boomers (57+) plan to stick to a very tight budget, while still enjoying themselves by spending some of their money.

When it comes to emergency funds, close to three-quarters (73%) have a savings account set up for when they need it most—with an average of $3,816.

Commissioned by Alliant Credit Union and conducted by OnePoll, the survey revealed 77% of millennials have retooled their budgets since the pandemic began, as compared to an average of 72% of all generations.

A third of those polled (31%) prefer spending money on experiences, and a quarter (25%) on material things.

Over the next decade, respondents want to spend more money on:

1. Traveling – 44%
2. Home goods/decor – 40%
3. Consumer electronics – 38%
4. Restaurants – 37%
5. Groceries – 37%
6. Clothing – 37%
7. Live entertainment – 37%
8. Shoes – 29%
9. Museum exhibits – 27%

“The last couple of years have helped us all realize what we value most,” said Director Chris Moore, of Alliant Credit Union. “Saving for retirement and a rainy day is incredibly important, but so is spending money on the things that bring you joy each day.”

“As long as you realistically budget for it, you can truly enjoy spending money on that next vacation or new gadget,” she added.

Still, a majority believe that with great fun comes great responsibility. Four in five of respondents are careful with their finances, with 73% of people regularly following a monthly budget.

Of all generations, Gen Xers describe themselves as the most cautious with their finances (87%), compared to seniors over 76 (84%), boomers (83%), millennials (78%) and Gen-Z (76%).

CHECK OUT: With Time to Pursue New Hobbies, 6 in 10 Have ‘Leveled Up’ – And 40% Think They’ll Make Money From it

Many respondents even use spreadsheets (45%) and budgeting apps (38%) to help them stay on top of purchases.

“Every successful budget needs a ‘fun’ spending category,” assures Moore. “The key is to set realistic savings goals and budget accordingly so you know exactly how much you can spend on the things you love—and it’s OK to adjust your budget each month to spend extra on the experiences for which you’ve been missing out.”

Will you be indulging in ‘the Roaring 2020s’? Tell us in the comments…

Alien-Like Sculptures Sliced By Ice and Winds on Lake Michigan Beach – LOOK

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Jan 22, 2022

Dr. Seuss-like spires whipped into formation by icy winds along the shore in Lake Michigan have caught the eye of nature photographers—and fed the fancy of fans on social media.

The nearly-annual phenomenon is similar to the one that creates 50-foot tall spires called hoodoos in the Utah desert, but these temporary ice hoodoos are anywhere from 3 to 20 inches high.

And, they may last only a day before the temperature and winds change, rendering them back to grains of sand.

Resembling chess pieces or modern art, they are carved when the wet sand turns into ice in spots, and strong winds remove the loose sand, layer by layer, in only a few hours.

Amateur photographer Shaun Tvetmarken lives in Saint Joseph, Michigan, where the bizarre sandy spires were created in Tiscornia Park.

He braved the cold to shoot some frames to post on Facebook and Instagram.

Photo courtesy of Nature photographer Terri Abbott, Indiana

Gusts along the lake shore topped 40 mph on Friday morning, January 8, and as the temperatures rose above freezing the fragile pieces crumbled.

The phenomenon isn’t unique to this Southwestern corner of Lake Michigan. They can form, for instance, along the Northwest Pacific Coast or in Northern Europe.

LOOK: Birdwatchers Flock to See Rare 8-ft Raptor After Huge Russian Eagle Takes Detour into Maine

BLOW These Cool Pics to Nature Lovers on Social Media…

Solar Power Will Account for Nearly Half of New U.S. Electric Generating Capacity in 2022

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Jan 22, 2022

solar panels energy workers hardhats-pubdomain-Science in HD — By Science in HD

In 2022, almost half of the planned utility-scale electric generating capacity coming online are solar, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Wind power is in third place, estimated to create 17% of the new green energy launching this year.

“We expect U.S. utility-scale solar generating capacity to grow by 21.5 GW in 2022,” reports the EIA. “This planned new capacity would surpass last year’s 15.5 GW of solar capacity additions, an estimate based on reported additions through October (8.7 GW) and additions scheduled for the last two months of 2021 (6.9 GW).”

Most of the planned solar additions in 2022 will be in Texas, with 28% of the national total (6.1 GW), followed by California providing around 18 percent (4.0 GW).

How did wind power contribute In 2021? A record-high 17.1 GW of wind capacity came online in the United States last year. Another 7.6 GW of wind capacity is scheduled to come online in 2022.

About half of the planned 2022 wind capacity additions are also located in Texas. The 999 MW Traverse Wind Energy Center in Oklahoma, the largest wind project expected to come online in 2022, is scheduled to begin commercial operations in April.

Regarding the all-important battery storage needs for renewables, the Administration expects U.S. utility-scale battery storage capacity to grow by 84% (5.1 GW) this year. Several factors have helped beef-up the expansion, including declining costs of battery storage and adding value through regional transmission organization (RTO) markets.

Developers and power plant owners report planned additions to the EIA for their annual and monthly electric generator surveys. In the annual survey, we ask respondents to provide planned online dates for generators coming online in the next five years.

CHECK OUT: These Solar Shingles on Your Roof Could Be Producing Energy With Simple Installation

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This Week’s Inspiring Horoscopes From Rob Brezsny’s ‘Free Will Astrology’

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Jan 22, 2022

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 January 22, 2022
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
Self-help teachers and New Age gurus are fond of using metaphors about opening doors. They provide a lot of advice that encourages us to knock on doors, scout around for doors that are open just a crack, find keys to unlock doors, and even kick down doors. I will not be following their lead in this horoscope. In my opinion, the coming days are an excellent time for you to heed the contrary counsel of author Paulo Coelho: “Close some doors today. Not because of pride, incapacity, or arrogance, but simply because they lead you nowhere.” Once you carry out this assignment, Aquarius, I believe you’ll start finding interesting new doors to open.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
Piscean film director Jordan Peele released his debut film, Get Out. It was a success with both critics and audiences. A year later, Peele became the first Black screenwriter to win the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. As he accepted the Oscar, he said, “I stopped writing this movie about 20 times because I thought it was impossible.” Personally, I’m glad Peele didn’t give up his dream. Here’s one reason why: He will serve as an excellent role model for you throughout 2022. As you reinvent yourself, Pisces, don’t give up pushing ahead with persistence, courage, and a quest for what’s most fun.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):
In October, the Vancouver Canucks hockey team played the Seattle Kraken team in a Seattle arena. A fan named Nadia Popovici noticed that the Canucks’ equipment manager Brian Hamilton had an irregular mole on the back of his neck—possibly cancerous. She found a way to communicate her observation to him, urging him to see a doctor. In the ensuing days, Hamilton sought medical care and discovered that the mole was indeed in an early stage of melanoma, and he had it removed. In the spirit of this inspiring story, Aries, I invite you to tell the people in your life things they should know but don’t know yet—not just what might be challenging, but also what’s energizing and interesting. Be their compassionate advisor, their agent for divine intervention.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
Canadian-Jamaican songwriter and recording artist Kreesha Turner isn’t a mega-star like Beyoncé or Rihanna, but she has had a successful music career. What’s the secret to her constant creative output? Here’s what she has said: “I love to surround myself with people who are the best at what they do. My idea is I want to be a sponge and absorb everything they teach, experience their energy, view them in their element, and have the opportunity to ask them questions.” The coming year will be one of the best times ever for you to emulate her strategy, Taurus. And now is a perfect moment for formulating plans to make it happen.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
Gemini author Lisa Cron says that when we’re telling a story, we should give each successive scene “new information, rather than rehashing things we already know. Never tell us the same fact twice. Because it’s boring and stops the flow of the story. Never tell us the same fact twice. Because it’s boring and stops the flow of the story.” In accordance with astrological omens, Gemini, I suggest you apply this counsel to everything you say and do in the next three weeks. Don’t repeat yourself. Keep moving right along. Invite novelty. Cultivate surprises and unpredictability.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):
Years ago, I reluctantly gave up my music career. To do so was sad and hard. But it enabled me to devote far more time and energy to improving my writing skills. I published books and developed a big audience. I’m glad I did it. Here’s another redemptive sacrifice I made earlier in my life: I renounced the chaotic pleasure of seeking endless new romantic adventures so I could commit myself to a relationship with one particular woman. In so doing, I learned a lot more about how to be a soulful human. I’m glad I did it. Is there potentially a comparable pivot in your life, my fellow Cancerian? If so, the coming weeks and months will be a favorable time to make a move.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Leo actor Claudia Christian has appeared in over 50 films, including many in the science fiction genre. She has played a variety of roles in movies with more conventional themes. But as for the sci-fi stuff? She says, “Apparently, I’ve been typecast: I’m a Russian asexual telepathic Jew.” If Christian came to me for astrological advice right now, I would suggest that the coming months will be an excellent time for her and all of you Leos to slip free of any pigeonholes you’ve been stuck in. Escape the mold! Create niches for yourself that enable you to express your full repertoire.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
The coming weeks will be a favorable time to meditate on your job and your calling—as well as the differences there may be between your job and your calling. In fact, I regard this as a phase when you can summon transformative epiphanies about the way you earn a living and the useful services you provide to your fellow humans. For inspiration, read this quote from photographer Margaret Bourke-White: “Even while you’re in dead earnest about your work, you must approach it with a feeling of freedom and joy; you must be loose-jointed, like a relaxed athlete.”

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
Author Marguerite Yourcenar wrote, “All happiness is a work of art: The smallest error falsifies it, the slightest hesitation alters it, the least heaviness spoils it, the slightest stupidity brutalizes it.” If what she says is true, it’s bad news, isn’t it? She makes it seem like cultivating joy and well-being is a superhuman skill that few of us can hope to master. Personally, I am not as stringent as Yourcenar in my ideas about what’s required to generate happiness. But like her, I believe you have to work at it. It doesn’t necessarily come easily and naturally. Most of us have never been taught how to cultivate happiness, so we must train ourselves to do it and practice diligently. The good news, Libra, is that the coming weeks will be an excellent time for you to upgrade your happiness skills.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
In 1891, a cultural organization commissioned Scorpio sculptor Auguste Rodin to create a statue of beloved French author Honoré de Balzac. The piece was supposed to be done in 18 months, but it wasn’t. For seven years, Rodin toiled, producing over 50 studies before finally finishing the piece. We shouldn’t be surprised, then, that one of his mottoes was “Patience is also a form of action.” I’m recommending Rodin-like patience to you in the coming weeks, Scorpio. Yours will be rewarded long before seven years go by.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
“I am ashamed of confessing that I have nothing to confess,” wrote author Fanny Burney. Actor Jennifer Lawrence said, “I started to write an apology, but I don’t have anything to say I’m sorry for.” I nominate these two souls to be your role models for the coming weeks. In my astrological opinion, you are currently as immune to karmic boomerangs as it’s possible to be. Your guilt levels are abnormally low. As far as I can determine, you are relatively free from having to answer to the past or defend your actions. How do you plan to make maximum use of this grace period?

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
“New truths become evident when new tools become available,” declared Nobel Prize-winning medical physicist Rosalyn Sussman Yalow (1921–2011). She was referring to developments in science and technology, but I think her idea applies to our personal lives, too. And it so happens, in my astrological opinion, that the coming weeks will be a favorable time for you to acquire new tools that will ultimately lead you to discover new truths.

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)

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“Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to others.” ― Buddha

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Jan 22, 2022

Quote of the Day: “Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to others.”
― Buddha

Photo: by Lina Trochez

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?

Nursing Home Residents Recreate Famous Portraits From History – And They’re Amazing (LOOK)

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Jan 21, 2022

A care home has produced a calendar featuring all the old people posing in a series of photos from famous portraits—including The Virgin In Prayer and American Gothic.

The elderly residents of MHA Brookfield each feature as a different month in classic paintings—such as Evelyn Elizabeth Tudor.

Staff at the Oxfordshire care home in England created the 2022 calendar with the help of 14 elderly people.

One of the home’s volunteers, Rebecca Phillipson, took and edited the photos.

The calendars will be on sale for £12 ($16) and can be purchased from reception at the home.

The home provides nursing and nursing dementia care for 66 residents in purpose-built, en-suite accommodation.

57-year-old resident Andrew Reese who is on the cover of the calendar, said, “I really liked the style of my picture and it was good fun.

MORE: Nursing Home Residents Recreate Classic Album Covers While in Lockdown – LOOK

“A table cloth and some fur was used for my costume and I really enjoyed being a part of this for the second time.”

Victoria Davidson, activity coordinator said, “I am very impressed with how the pictures have come out.

“Those who volunteered to be a part were very excited and could not wait to see what the pictures looked like.

“We used a lot of our own equipment at the homes to make props and costumes and it was something we all really enjoyed.

“The pictures have received a lot of interest, so we decided to put them up in the reception area and whenever we have people walking through they stop by and have a look.”

Take a look at some more of the portraits below.

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An Athlete Has Mastered the Sport of Extreme Pogo – Watch His Incredible Stunts

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Jan 21, 2022

A young athlete has mastered the unique sport of extreme pogo—or Xpogo—and performs incredible stunts.

22-year-old Henry Cabelus learned to pogo when he was seven, but it wasn’t until he was 12 years old when he got his first high-powered stick and began to learn tricks.

He began pushing it to the next level at 16 and practiced religiously to test his personal limits.

Henry, from Burlington in Vermont, is these days a full-time professional pogo sticker who performs with the Xpogo Stunt team.

He said, “Similar to street skateboarding or BMX videos, we like to see what tricks can get done in our day-to-day environment.

LOOK: Deaf Football Team Goes 12-0 On Its Way to California State Championship

“It’s hard to be satisfied with a clip unless you had to overcome fear or some sort of new physical challenge.”

Henry has suffered several injuries while performing the stunts, but he’s determined to improve his skills.

He added, “When it comes to danger there’s the obvious broken arms and legs, but my main concern is always the ‘slip out’.

“We only have one point of contact on the ground and it is not very much surface area.

MORE: Tom Brady FaceTimes With High School Team After They Dialed the Wrong Number

But pogo is simply what he loves to do. He says, “I still would like to take it further.”

(WATCH the video for this story below… but maybe don’t try this sport at home?)

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IKEA Buys Land Damaged by Hurricane in Florida to Plant Forests

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Andy Corbley

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Jan 21, 2022

redleaf pines cc license wikimedia commons @bobistraveling — Readleaf pines; BobisTraveling/CC license

Readleaf pines/BobisTraveling, CC license

Ingka Group, the owners of the IKEA furniture chain, just bought 3,200 acres of forest in Florida that had been destroyed by a hurricane in order to restore it with longleaf pine.

Part of the retail giant’s commitment to carbon neutrality, Ingka Group has gradually accumulated more than 600,000 forested acres in the U.S., Europe, and New Zealand to offset the CO2 it releases during its entire value chain.

“The new forests will support increased biodiversity, help ensure sustainable timber production from responsibly managed forests, and recover land damaged by Hurricane Michael in October 2018,” Ingka Group stated.

“The afforestation business… is a long-term investment that consolidates our business while also positively impacting the climate through the absorption of CO2 during the forests’ growth.”

If Ingka can keep the forests healthy and alive, in 40 years they will pull carbon out of the air equal to a certain percentage of the carbon placed into the atmosphere by IKEA’s operations, while providing valuable habitat to vulnerable species like the red-cockaded woodpecker, gopher tortoise, pine snakes, and dusky gopher frogs.

MORE: Buy Some Wind Power With Your Furniture? IKEA is Now Selling Renewable Energy

GNN reported in 2021 that IKEA bought 11,000 acres in Georgia to stop it from being clear-cut and developed. In that instance Ingka teamed up with The Conservation Fund to create working forests that are harvested and regenerated sustainably to save the cost of managing them, while also being placed along important biodiversity corridors, or to stop habitat fragmentation.

CHECK OUT: IKEA is Ditching All of Their Single-Use Plastics Throughout Stores

Forest stewardship is just one way that the world’s largest furniture outlet is trying to become a carbon-neutral company. They recently announced they would begin buying used IKEA furniture from customers for resale, while electric vans and less carbon-emitting materials are used in both packaging and product.

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Exercise Alters Brain Chemistry to Protect Aging Synapses, Study Finds

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Good News Network

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Jan 21, 2022

yoga public domain anupam-mahapatra-Vz0RbclzG_w-unsplash — By anupam mahapatra

When elderly people stay active, their brains have more of a class of proteins that enhances the connections between neurons to maintain healthy cognition, a UC San Francisco study has found.

This protective impact was found even in people whose brains at autopsy were riddled with toxic proteins associated with Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.

“Our work is the first that uses human data to show that synaptic protein regulation is related to physical activity and may drive the beneficial cognitive outcomes we see,” said Kaitlin Casaletto, PhD, an assistant professor of neurology and lead author on the study.

The beneficial effects of physical activity on cognition have been shown in mice but have been much harder to demonstrate in people.

Casaletto, a neuropsychologist and member of the Weill Institute for Neurosciences, worked with William Honer, MD, a professor of psychiatry at the University of British Columbia and senior author of the study, to leverage data from the Memory and Aging Project at Rush University in Chicago. That project tracked the late-life physical activity of elderly participants, who also agreed to donate their brains when they died.

MORE: Your Body’s Own ‘Cannabis-Like’ Substance Can Reduce Chronic Inflammation During Exercise

“Maintaining the integrity of these connections between neurons may be vital to fending off dementia, since the synapse is really the site where cognition happens,” Casaletto said. “Physical activity—a readily available tool—may help boost this synaptic functioning.”

More Proteins Mean Better Nerve Signals

Honer and Casaletto found that elderly people who remained active had higher levels of proteins that facilitate the exchange of information between neurons. This result dovetailed with Honer’s earlier finding that people who had more of these proteins in their brains when they died were better able to maintain their cognition late in life.

To their surprise, Honer said, the researchers found that the effects ranged beyond the hippocampus, the brain’s seat of memory, to encompass other brain regions associated with cognitive function.

CHECK OUT: Weight Lifting Can Burn Fat Just Like Cardio: New Research About Strength Training vs Aerobics

“It may be that physical activity exerts a global sustaining effect, supporting and stimulating healthy function of proteins that facilitate synaptic transmission throughout the brain,” Honer said.

Synapses Safeguard Brains Showing Signs of Dementia

The brains of most older adults accumulate amyloid and tau, toxic proteins that are the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease pathology. Many scientists believe amyloid accumulates first, then tau, causing synapses and neurons to fall apart.

Casaletto previously found that synaptic integrity, whether measured in the spinal fluid of living adults or the brain tissue of autopsied adults, appeared to dampen the relationship between amyloid and tau, and between tau and neurodegeneration.

“In older adults with higher levels of the proteins associated with synaptic integrity, this cascade of neurotoxicity that leads to Alzheimer’s disease appears to be attenuated,” she said of the study, which appears in the latest issue of Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association. “Taken together, these two studies show the potential importance of maintaining synaptic health to support the brain against Alzheimer’s disease.”

Source: University of California

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“Imagine others complexly.” – John Green

Quote of the Day

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Good News Network

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Jan 21, 2022

individuals youth girls weight friends-cc-Petra Bensted — Petra Bensted - CC License

Quote of the Day: “Imagine others complexly.” – John Green (Paper Towns)

Photo: by Petra Bensted, CC license on Flickr

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?

Outdoor Cats Are Using $500 Starlink Satellite Dishes as Self-Heating Beds

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Andy Corbley

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Jan 20, 2022

cats aaron taylor twitter social media embed — @AaronTaylor/Twitter

A man using a $500 Starlink satellite dish to connect to the internet was surprised to find five cats curled up inside of it on a snowy day.

Attracted to the dish for its self-heating feature that melts off snow to prevent interference with the connection, the cats would pile in all day, until night when they would return to their heated cat house.

Aaron Taylor suspects that the wide metal bowl of the satellite dish absorbs and reflects heat from the sun, while the self-heating feature warms from below, creating a kind of sleeping bag effect which the kitties found irresistible.

He confirmed in a tweet that five cats “slows everything down,” while another Starlink user reported a similar occurrence when a raptor was photographed enjoying the heat on its talons.

Different species, same problem pic.twitter.com/OzG2bOoaWv
— Nico Thirion (@Nicothirion) January 1, 2022

With an aim of giving internet access to all corners of the world, the Starlink service is part of Elon Musk’s SpaceX company–it currently has 1,600 satellites flying around in space, with U.S. permission to launch far more, so that even those in rural places far from any grid can get online.

MORE: Cat Reunited With Family After It Got Stuck in an Armchair They’d Donated to a Thrift Store

With all of Musk’s intellect and resources, it seems he overlooked his technology’s use for felines.

RAISE a Paw For This Fun Winter Story; Share it on Social…

New Method for Treating Alzheimer’s Disease Developed by Researchers

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Good News Network

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Jan 20, 2022

Associate professor Evandro F. Fang. Photo- Thomas Olafsen, University of Oslo released

Associate professor Evandro F. Fang. Photo- Thomas Olafsen, University of Oslo

Researchers in Oslo have developed an artificial intelligence method to help them identify potential new medicines for Alzheimer’s. The new medicine seems to be more precise. No side effects were documented during tests with worms and mice.

One of the causes of Alzheimer’s disease is the degeneration and loss of nerve cells in the brain as we age. A cell is like a finely tuned machinery. The cell needs energy to perform its tasks. The energy comes from energy factories called mitochondria.

In young, healthy cells, old or damaged mitochondria are removed from the cell in a process called mitophagy. The research group found that when we get older, we have more broken mitochondria, and the cells will not be able to remove all of them anymore. An accumulation of broken mitochondria clogs the cell’s ordinary processes and eventually, the cell will die.

Cells need the energy generated by the mitochondria to clear this “garbage.” Just like a machine will stop working if it is not maintained, says associate professor Evandro F. Fang, the leader of the research group.

A new method for treating Alzheimer’s disease

A new potential method for treating the disease is described by Fang’s group in a new study. “We may be able to reduce or stop the progress of the disease with the patient. We can do this by increasing the cell’s ability to self-clean,” Fang says.

MORE: New Study of ‘MIND’ Diet Shows It May Improve Memory and Thinking Skills in Old Age

Because the clogging of the machinery is a part of the problem, the researchers had to find a way to boost the cleaning process. They looked into the use of so-called mitophagy inducers. The idea was to find a way to increase the level of waste management in the patient’s brain cells.

“We can compare this to hiring extra personnel to clear a cleaning backlog in a factory,” Fang explains.

Fang’s group described how It may be possible to find a way to stimulate the cells’ own self-cleansing system in 2019.

The treatment may improve other organs

The green colours show healthy mitochondria while the red ones are damaged mitochondria undergoing ‘clearance’ by mitophagy. Photo- Xu-xu Zhuang.

The reboot of mitophagy gives the patient several advantages: It will increase the clearance of brain cell garbage and the cleaning process will be more effective in itself. It may also increase the cleaning in other other organs, not only the brain.

“By turning up mitophagy, we may also be able to increase the quality of other organs, like their heart and muscles. A stronger body is important to reduce the effects of the disease,” Fang notes.

AI used to find possible candidates for a new medication

It takes a lot of time and effort to develop a new drug, and it is a very expensive process.

The researchers wanted to find substances that may induce the cleaning process. They used AI to search for substances similar to known mitophagy inducers.

The computer program browsed through a large catalog of substances and identified two candidates, Rhapontigenin and Kaempferol. They used mice and nematodes, a type of worms, to document whether use of these substances on their nerve cells inhibited memory loss.

CHECK OUT: 4 Common Medicines Have Reversed Alzheimer’s in Mice

Fang and his colleagues have filed a patent on Rhapontigenin for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. They are now working on describing both how Rhapontigenin and Kaempferol may help us delay the progression of memory loss, and how it may help us reduce disease progression when it has occured.

In addition, they are also going to describe the in-depth molecular mechanisms that help Kaempferol and Rhapontigenin to induce mitophagy.

MORE: Keeping Active Can Reduce the Risk of Dementia, Scientists Find

The compounds have not been tested in humans yet, so much still remains to be done.

“We are now using AI to propose small, structural modifications to these candidate compounds. We want to make them safer and more efficient for treating Alzheimer’s disease,” Fang says.

The study is published in Nature Biomedical Engineering.

Source: University of Oslo

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