Planet Earth: Here’s Why You Can Hail 2019 as a Year of ‘Incredible Species Action’

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Dec 31, 2019

Stalking Leopard — Photographed with a Camtraptions camera trap. Laikipia Wilderness Camp, Kenya.

Reprinted with permission from World At Large, a news website reporting on nature, science, health, travel, and world affairs.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) raved that 2019 was “a year of incredible species action”.

That’s because December 31st marks the end of a year that saw conservation battles fought—and won—and species returning from extinction.

The year of accomplishments is perhaps best highlighted by conservation targets dear to the hearts of many, the Asian tigers and the lemurs of Madagascar—the Darwinian playground of evolution that has attracted support and international conservation initiatives for years.

But there are many more reasons to celebrate in 2020. Here’s a rundown…

Madagascar’s Lemurs

Deforestation and fires have decimated critical lemur habitat. The entire family—around 100 different species of charismatic tree-leapers are very sensitive to habitat loss, especially the critically-endangered species, such as the black-and-white ruffed lemur and the greater bamboo lemur.

Expanding current native and commercial tree nurseries, while simultaneously creating two new ones, has insured the annual tree production reaches the goal of 500,000.

lemur in Madagascar by Neil Strickland -CC license — Neil Strickland, CC license

Furthermore, grants have allowed the IUCN to help establish locally-led community initiatives. As World at Large reported in September, one project team worked with the Bara people to reduce lemur hunting by village-level awareness-raising, forest patrols, and poverty reduction; and to stop fires entering endangered lemur habitat with man-made firebreaks.

In 2019, with 160 Bara people mobilized by the Lonaky (their tribal leaders), the community installed almost 4 miles of firebreaks.

MORE: Humpback Whale Population Bounces Back From Near-Extinction—From Just 450, to Over 25,000

Another community-focused strategy to help lemurs thrive has been the establishment of grassroots organizations to memorize and help enforce land laws, and the creation of teacher training workshops and conservation camps held in 12 primary schools and a new high school in lemur dense areas.

Tigers Back on the Prowl

Tigers, undoubtedly one of the most incredible and charismatic animals on earth, are recovering all across their range.

Back in July, India completed their 2019 tiger survey, concluding that the population of tigers in India has risen for the third consecutive year, and also reached or exceeded 3,000 individuals. That makes India home to 70% of the world’s wild tiger population.

Additionally, a first-of-its-kind study aims to track the use of high-altitude Himalayan ecosystem by tigers in range countries like Nepal and Bhutan in the face of a changing climate. Since high-altitude mountains have such hydrological and ecological import, scientists from India, Nepal, and Bhutan are conducting a large-scale study on land-use by humans and high-altitude habitat use by tigers in order to help avoid conflict.

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Westward in Kazakhstan, the government has embarked on a massive rewilding project in the Ili-Bukhash Nature Reserve centered on the shores of Lake Balkhash in the southeast of their nation. There, they have increased protection for species like the goitered gazelle, and reintroduced others like the majestic Bukhara deer.

All these steps have been done in preparation for the day when they can use some of Russia’s Amur tigers and recreate the wilderness area as it would have been before humans caused the local Caspian tiger to become extinct.

Eco-fashion by Lacoste

On the International Day for Biological Diversity in 2019, Lacoste launched a new line of limited-edition polo shirts featuring 10 threatened species. Not only did these particular species take over the crocodile’s notorious spot on the Lacoste polos, but also the heart of every Lacoste store worldwide, as well as their online shop, with proceeds going to species protection efforts.

LOOK: Rabbit-Sized ‘Mouse Deer’ Rediscovered in Vietnam After Being Lost to Science Since 1990

One of the species is the Burmese roofed turtle. The only surviving wild population of Burmese roofed turtles consists of less than ten adult females and an unknown (but likely few) number of males in a remote stretch of the upper Chindwin River. The turtles are imperiled by loss of critical nesting habitat such as sandbanks, incidental loss to fishing gear, and occasional illegal harvesting of eggs.

The Turtle Survival Alliance received grants from Lacoste to support the restoration of the Burmese roofed turtle to the Chindwin River in Myanmar. The project focuses on recruiting juvenile turtles into the wild population both by introducing captive-bred turtles and by protecting and incubating eggs laid by the remaining wild female turtles.

Back in March, 51 newborn baby turtles were hatched, promising new hope for a species hanging on by a thread.

‘Extinct’ Leopard Spotted?

One of the most spectacular big cats ever to walk the earth is perhaps not as extinct as previously thought. Listed as extinct on the IUCN’s red list, Alangyi Village rangers recently spotted what they believed to be a Formosan clouded leopard on a cliff in Taitung County’s Daren Township in southeast Taiwan.

Kao Cheng-chi, President of the Association of the Austronesian Community College Development Association and village chief of the Paiwan Tribe, said that in June of last year, the Alangyi Village set up a team of rangers to patrol traditional areas.

One ranger described clearly seeing a leopard climbing a tree, before scrambling up a cliff to hunt goats. Another team member described seeing a leopard darting past a scooter before scurrying up a tree and going out of sight.

These signs were immensely encouraging to the rangers, and after the sighting, the Alangyi tribal community immediately petitioned the Forestry Bureau to cease all logging and disruptive activities and to help them enforce the prohibition of outsiders entering the region.

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Firefighters Rush Out of Supermarket on Emergency Call Only to Return and Find Strangers Paid for Their Groceries

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Dec 31, 2019

When a team of Indiana firefighters were called away from their grocery shopping on an emergency dispatch call, they were incredibly heartened by what they found when they returned.

The Station 392 crew from the Fishers Fire Department had been shopping at the Olio Road Kroger last week when they were suddenly forced to leave their groceries behind so they could respond to a nearby emergency.

Not only did the Kroger employees stash their groceries in coolers until their return, an anonymous customer paid for the firefighters’ shopping.

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According to the department’s Lt. Duane Reddick, he and two other firefighters had been stocking up on dinner and lunch supplies for them and their families when they left on the call—and this was the first time in 20 years that a community member had ever had paid for his supermarket bill as a thank you.

“We don’t always expect a ‘thank you’, we don’t ask for it. We just do it,” Reddick told WIBC. “But it was very heartwarming that somebody saw us leave and [paid for our groceries].”

The department later described the good deed in a Facebook post reading: “When they returned to the store, the awesome staff had placed their groceries in the cooler to keep until their return and some anonymous kind person had paid for them. The crew hopes that person sees this post and understands just how much their kindness is appreciated.”

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“To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.” – Thomas Paine

Quote of the Day

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Dec 31, 2019

Quote of the Day: “To argue with a person who has renounced the use of reason is like administering medicine to the dead.” – Thomas Paine

Photo: by marneejill, CC license via Flickr – cropped

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Give Yourself a ‘Dry January’—You’ll Sleep Better, Save Money, and Lose Weight

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Dec 30, 2019

Are you pondering what kind of resolutions you can adopt to start this upcoming decade off on the right foot?

Well, this research from last year shows that taking part in “Dry January”—a New Year’s challenge in which people abstain from drinking booze for a month—helps people to regain control of their drinking, have more energy, improve their skin, quit smoking, lose weight, and drink less during the following months.

The research, led by University of Sussex psychologist Dr. Richard de Visser, was conducted with over 800 people who took part in Dry January back in 2018—and the results show that the participants were still drinking less in August.

They reported that the average amount of participants’ drinking days fell from 4 to 3 per week; their average amount of drinks per drinking day fell from 8.6 to 7.1; and the average amount of times they reported being drunk dropped from 3 times per month to 2.

“The simple act of taking a month off alcohol helps people drink less in the long term: by August, people are reporting one extra dry day per week,” said Visser.

“There are also considerable immediate benefits: nine in ten people save money, seven in ten sleep better and three in five lose weight,” he added. “Interestingly, these changes in alcohol consumption have also been seen in the participants who didn’t manage to stay alcohol-free for the whole month—although they are a bit smaller. This shows that there are real benefits to just trying to complete Dry January.”

The University of Sussex research also showed that:

93% of participants had a sense of achievement;
88% saved money;
80% feel more in control of their drinking;
76% learned more about when and why they drink;
71% realized they don’t need a drink to enjoy themselves;
70% had generally improved health;
71% slept better;
67% had more energy;
58% lost weight;
57% had better concentration;
54% had better skin.

Furthermore, if quitting smoking is one of your New Year’s resolutions, you might want to consider cutting back on your drinking, too.

MORE: Next Time You’re Feeling Stressed or Anxious, This Study Says You Should Play Tetris

A separate study from Oregon State University found that heavy drinkers who are trying to stop smoking may find that reducing their alcohol use can also help them quit their daily smoking habit. Heavy drinkers’ nicotine metabolite ratio—a biomarker that indicates how quickly a person’s body metabolizes nicotine—was reduced as they cut back on their drinking.

Past research has suggested that people with higher nicotine metabolism ratios are likely to smoke more and that people with higher rates have a harder time quitting. Slowing a person’s nicotine metabolism rate through reduced drinking could provide an edge when trying to stop smoking, which is known to be a difficult task, said Sarah Dermody, an assistant professor at Oregon State University and the study’s lead author.

“It takes a lot of determination to quit smoking, often several attempts,” Dermody said. “This research suggests that drinking is changing the nicotine metabolism as indexed by the nicotine metabolite ratio, and that daily smoking and heavy drinking may best be treated together.”

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The study was just published in the journal Nicotine & Tobacco Research.

Use of both alcohol and cigarettes is widespread, with nearly 1 in 5 adults using both. Cigarette use is especially prevalent in heavy drinkers. Drinking is a well-established risk factor for smoking, and smoking is well-established risk factor for drinking.

Dermody and colleagues at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in Toronto, Canada, wanted to better understand the links between the two. They studied the nicotine metabolite ratio, an index of nicotine metabolism, in a group of 22 daily smokers who were seeking treatment for alcohol use disorder—the medical term for severe problem drinking—over several weeks.

“What’s really interesting is that the nicotine metabolite ratio is clinically useful,” Dermody said. “People with a higher ratio have a harder time quitting smoking cold turkey. They are also less likely to successfully quit using nicotine replacement therapy products.”

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However, they found that as the men in the study group reduced their drinking from an average of 29 drinks per week to 7, their nicotine metabolite rate also dropped.

The researchers’ findings for men replicated those of an earlier study that found similar effects and provide further evidence of the value of the nicotine metabolite ratio biomarker to inform treatment for smokers trying to quit, Dermody said.

“The nicotine metabolite ratio was thought to be a stable index, but it may not be as stable as we thought,” Dermody said. “From a clinical standpoint, that’s a positive thing, because if someone wants to stop smoking, we may want to encourage them to reduce their drinking to encourage their smoking cessation plan.”

Be Sure And Pass This Intriguing News Forward By Sharing It With Your Friends On Social Media – Photo by M_Shipp22, CC

Watch Google’s Inspiring Video Review of How the World Was Celebrating Its Heroes More Than Ever

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Good News Network

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Dec 30, 2019

Every year, Google dives into the world’s search engine history so they can investigate exactly what people were searching for the most—and in 2019, people were apparently looking for heroes.

Last year’s Google data said that a record-breaking amount of people were searching for “good” things, and this year’s statistics run in a very similarly positive direction.

According to the tech company’s latest internet data, there was a global increase in people searching for phrases such as “unlikely heroes”, “everyday heroes”, “sheroes”, and “unsung heroes”.

WATCH: Study of Surveillance Cameras Proves That Strangers Will Almost Always Intervene to Help

Their results included everything from athletic role models like Simone Biles, Megan Rapinoe, and Eliud Kipchoge to the Good Samaritans who saved lives and the philanthropists who eased the struggles of others.

“We found heroes at the box office, where Avengers: Endgame was the top-trending movie around the world (in fact, ‘hero’ was searched three times more than ‘villain’ globally this year),” Google wrote in a statement.

“We turned to real-life heroes in times of crisis, when searches for ‘how to become a first responder’ hit an all-time high in the U.S. We cheered for them on the field, where Megan Rapinoe was one of the top-trending athletes globally. And she was joined by other leading ladies: searches for ‘sheroes’ increased by 150% and the ‘first female spacewalk’ became a breakout trend worldwide.”

(WATCH the inspiring montage below)

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Hospital Janitor Forges Lasting Friendship Between Two Boys in Isolation After Noticing a Love of LEGOS

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McKinley Corbley

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Dec 30, 2019

When two young hospital patients were undergoing treatment in isolation, their friendly custodian took it upon himself to help them form a lasting friendship through their shared love of LEGOs.

Ki-Jana “KJ” Upshaw is responsible for regularly changing the linens in all 82 of the patient rooms in the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital in Ohio.

Earlier this year, Upshaw befriended a 7-year-old patient named Cohen Bramlee who was always playing with LEGOs. Upshaw then noticed that there was another boy across the hall named Keagan Atkins who also spent his spare time building elaborate structures out of the toy bricks.

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Upshaw believed that both of the boys were destined to be friends—but because of the hospital’s isolation rules, they were unable to visit each other’s rooms.

Upshaw then spent the following months helping the boys to forge a friendship by swapping messages and communicating between them about their LEGO creations.

Cohen’s mom Carrie Bramlee told the hospital: “It was kind of like a daily report on what the other child was building, and so he kind of enjoyed getting to hear about what someone else had in common with him while he was here, and just getting to talk to KJ, because, you know, our world is pretty small right now. We were in that room, and Cohen was in isolation, he couldn’t leave, and it was just a bright spot in the day when [KJ] would come in and just sit there and chat with Cohen for a second.”

MORE: Dad Turns Board Games into Bed Sheets So Sick Kids Lying in Hospitals Won’t Get Bored

The friendship helped both of the youngsters recover until they were finally able to meet each other in person; on the day that Keagan was well enough to go home from the hospital, Cohen was healthy enough to wear a mask and walk across the hall to Keagan’s door so he could give him a LEGO set as a farewell gift.

The boys’ mothers are already arranging a LEGO playdate for the boys once Cohen is out of the hospital—and it is all thanks to Upshaw.

(WATCH the heartwarming video below)

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All-Girl Heavy Metal Band Achieves Fame By Dominating National Stages in Hijabs and Leather Jackets

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McKinley Corbley

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Dec 30, 2019

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by VoB (Voice of Baceprot) (@voiceofbaceprot) on Apr 13, 2019 at 6:03am PDT

These three Muslim schoolgirls may not seem like the typical members of a heavy metal band—but that’s exactly why they’re continuing to dominate stages across Indonesia.

Firdda Kurnia, Eusi Siti Aisyah, and Widi Rahmawati all grew up as the daughters of poor farmers in rural West Java, a conservative region of the country. Prior to attending a music class in 2014, the girls had never even heard of heavy metal music.

But that’s when their middle school teacher, Ahba Erza, played them “Toxicity” by System of a Down—and they immediately became hooked on heavy metal.

Erza, who is now their band manager, taught the girls how to play instruments. The youngsters formed a band the very same year and dubbed themselves Voice of Baceprot, which translates to “noise” in their traditional Sudanese language.

LOOK: Afghan Girls, Not Allowed On Bikes, Shred On Skateboards Instead

Despite having to endure harassment and criticism from the more conservative side of the Indonesia, the Voice of Baceprot has played across the nation’s most popular stages.

“They say my music is forbidden by my religion,” she recalled to NPR. “I’m a different musician because I’m a woman, and I play metal music, but I’m wearing hijab. Hijab is my identity, OK?”

Kurnia added that her own parents had originally forbade her from playing heavy metal. As Voice of Baceprot secretly became more and more locally famous, however, her parents became proud of her passion.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by VoB (Voice of Baceprot) (@voiceofbaceprot) on Nov 15, 2018 at 9:57pm PST

According to Assembly, the girls now play about three shows per month as they continue to become one of Indonesia’s most iconic counterculture musical groups.

Other metal musicians have praised the teens for depicting the more diverse side of the genre since Firdda, Eusi, and Widi—now aged 19, 19, and 17 respectively—play their shows wearing leather jackets and hijabs.

With Indonesia reportedly boasting a thriving underground heavy metal scene, Voice of Baceprot has become more and more popular across the nation. Their Instagram page alone has wracked up more than 32,000 followers.

The girls now hope that their music will help people to understand that Muslim girls can pursue their passions while still faithfully abiding by their religion. Not only that, they hope to show that metal music is for everyone—not matter their race or creed.

(LISTEN to the 2017 interview below)

For Those About To Rock, Be Sure And Share This Awesome Story With Your Friends On Social Media…

Man is Using Old Christmas Trees to Make Stylish Wooden Canes for His Fellow Veterans

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McKinley Corbley

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Dec 30, 2019

Rather than letting people’s Christmas trees go to a landfill, this Texas veteran is asking community members to donate their old fir trees so he can turn them into stylish canes for his fellow veterans.

After serving in the US Army for 8 years, Jamie Willis returned to Copperas Cove as a 100% disabled veteran who was completely unable to work.

In addition to being forced to use a cane, the Veteran Affairs provided Willis with a cane that was annoyingly ugly and unstable.

Shortly after he discovered the pitfalls of typical VA canes, he discovered Free Canes for Veterans, a Florida-based organization dedicated to giving away cool-looking handmade canes to veterans.

Willis then reached out Oscar Morris, the mastermind behind the organization, and asked if he could learn how to make his own cane—and Morris was happy to oblige.

After Willis made his first wooden walking stick, he worked with Morris to open up a branch of the organization in central Texas. Since opening up shop in 2016, he has crafted and donated more than 200 customized canes for veterans.

“I do this so I don’t sit home all day feeling sorry for myself,” the 50-year-old vet told CNN. “This is all out of kindness. I do everything out of pocket and from donations.”

LOOK: Canada Now Has Its First Ever Tiny House Village for Homeless Veterans

Now that the holiday season is over, Willis is asking homeowners to donate their old Christmas trees for him to recycle into canes. It typically takes Willis a day’s worth of work to turn one Christmas tree into a cane. After that, he packages it up and ships it off to the recipient.

Although Willis usually crafts his canes for fellow ex-service members, he is also happy to make his canes for anyone with a disability.

This is the second year that Willis has called for tree donations, although he has already been flooded with support since Home Depot donated 400 trees and community members donated an additional 100. If you want to help Willis pay for the organization’s shipping and handling costs, you can donate to his GoFundMe campaign.

(WATCH the interview below) – Photo by Canes for Veterans Central Texas

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“I heard a bird sing in the dark of December. A magical thing. And sweet to remember.” – Oliver Herford

Quote of the Day

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Good News Network

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Dec 30, 2019

singing robin bird-cc-Bernd Thaller — Bernd Thaller, CC license

Quote of the Day: “I heard a bird sing in the dark of December. A magical thing. And sweet to remember.” – Oliver Herford

Photo: by Bernd Thaller, CC license via Flickr – cropped, edited

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?

Which Companies Are Taking the Lead in Commitments to Plastics Reduction?

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Dec 29, 2019

According to Plastic Oceans International (POI), we produce over 300 million tons of plastic each year around the world, half of which is for single-use purposes. If production remains unchecked, the planet and its ecosystems will be overrun. Fortunately, awareness of this issue is growing thanks to activists young and old.

Governmental action on the local, state, and national level is also forcing many companies to re-examine their manufacturing processes, their supply chains, and distribution networks regarding both products and packaging.

IKEA

One leader is Ikea, which recently committed to transition much of its plastic packaging to a mushroom-based renewable alternative that can grow in a controlled environment, and, like plastic, be easily formed into shapes.

If kept dry, this “MycoComposite” can be used over and over. It can also decompose fully in just 30 days. Producing the material uses only 12 percent of the energy required to make the same amount of plastic, and with 90 percent lower carbon emissions.

They are also ditching the use of plastic bags. Starting in 2020, the company’s 363 outlets worldwide will be eliminating everything from single-use plastic plates, drink stirrers, cups, tableware and straws to freezer bags, garbage bags, and packaging.

MATTEL

Another step in the right direction is Mattel’s recent commitment to use 100 percent recycled, recyclable or bio-based plastics materials in both its products and packaging by 2030. Early in 2020 the company will debut its first product aligned with this new goal, the Fisher-Price Rock-a-Stack, made from sugarcane-based plastics and packaged in 100 percent recycled or sustainably sourced material.

WALMART

Walmart announced in February that it seeks to achieve 100 percent recyclable, reusable or compostable packaging for its private brand packaging by 2025 and will encourage other brands that it sells to set similar goals. The retailing behemoth is also working with suppliers to eliminate non-recyclable PVC plastic in general merchandise packaging altogether by 2020.

MORE: Plastic Bag Sales Have Fallen by 90% in England Since They Introduced 5-Pence Charge in 2015

HOLIDAY INN and CROWNE PLAZA HOTELS

The company that runs the Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza hotel chains announced this week that all of its 843,000 guest rooms will provide shampoo and other bathroom amenities from bulk-sized containers, eliminating millions of plastic bottles from landfills. InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), one of the world’s leading hotel companies, will be implementing the phase-out across all 5,600 of their properties worldwide with the transition to be completed within two years.

SAINSBURY’S

A huge chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom has committed to cutting a further 1,284 tons of plastic from their supply chain over the course of the next year, including plastic cutlery, bags, lids, and trays. Sainsbury’s will start by removing 489 tonnes’ worth of plastic bags, which are currently used for loose fruit, vegetables and bakery items. Customers buying loose fruit and vegetables will either be able to bring their own bags or buy a re-usable bag made from recycled materials. Paper bags will be available to customers for loose bakery items.

AMERICA’S LARGEST GROCERY CHAIN

Kroger, America’s largest supermarket chain, announced that it will be phasing out all of its single-use plastic bags in favor of reusable alternatives. When fully implemented, the waste generated by bags in their 2,800 stores, which include Harris Teeter, Fred Meyer, Fry’s, and Ralphs, will drop by 123 million pounds per year.

BEER MAKERS

Heineken, Corona, Carlsburg, and Guinness have all announced in 2019 that they are eliminating plastic from their packaging, replacing them by next year with biodegradable 6-pack rings, or glue.

(With contributions from the 501(c)3 nonprofit EarthTalk EarthTalk® See more at Emagazine.com.) – Featured image by Swansea University, released

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Bill Gates Honors Girl Who Gave 95 Gifts to Strangers, With 81-Lb FedEx Delivery of Personalized Surprises

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Dec 29, 2019

The Microsoft founder has participated in a ‘Secret Santa’ online gift exchange annually since 2013, but this year he really put Santa to shame with his extraordinary kindness toward a young Michigan woman who’d just lost her mother this year.

Shelby herself has been generous in the online gift exchange—although her bank account is never as happy as the strangers she mails packages to—preparing 95 different personalized Christmas gifts over the years, thoughtfully sending them to people she doesn’t even know.

On December 17 she spied an email alert informing her that a Secret Santa package had been shipped through RedditGifts—the program offered by the global online discussion group—and it was being overnighted (an expensive shipping option) from Washington state. She immediately joked to her husband that maybe it was from Bill Gates, who was well-known as an avid RedditGifts player.

On top of that, the next day she saw that the package weighed 81 pounds, and got the feeling that it was going to be “something truly special.”

When she arrived at the FedEx office, her wildest dreams were coming true. The employees were all excited, exclaiming, “You’re the BILL GATES package! We’ve been waiting for you all day.” They were even happier because the box was so big it wouldn’t fit into her car. It meant she had to open it in the store.

Photos courtesy of Shelby on RedditGifts

The carton was emblazoned with a big red #95 on the sides—a tribute to Shelby’s 95th RedditGifts exchange, a fact that was mentioned on her gift profile page. That page is where Gates and his team got most of the information to personalize each gift item. And there were tons of presents geared toward her interest in books, Star Wars, Harry Potter, the Zelda game, Twin Peaks, cats, and outdoor leisure.

There was one special fact the Gates team discovered on their own, though—and it was the gift that meant the most. Shelby’s mom had died unexpectedly in March, just ten days before Shelby’s wedding, and Gates made a donation to the American Heart Association in her mother’s name, a request her family had made public in their obituary.

WATCH: Single Mom Receives Free Car in the Drive-Through After Being Nominated for a ‘Christmas Wish’

“I open the box and am immediately struck by a package that is literally lit up with a strand of fairy lights. Wow! I see the infamous Bill Gates letter placard and photo (showing him signing the card) and my stomach flips.”

Each gift was impressively wrapped (and “indicative of the contents”), so she took them home and made a couple videos. Thoughtful as always, Shelby made sure to carefully open them so she could reuse the paper on gifts in future exchanges.

Inside, she found a hard-bound copy of the original manuscript of “The Great Gatsby,” with Fitzgerald’s handwriting, which is her favorite book; a Harry Potter Santa hat; a pair of elaborate adult-level Lego building sets, including a giant Hogwarts castle and R2D2; eight more books; toys for her cat; Zelda earrings and a gorgeous heavy handmade Zelda quilt; a hammock with mosquito net; a Twin Peaks jacket worn by someone on the crew, and 5 scripts from season 2; and eight packages of assorted Oreos.

MORE: Senior Surprised With New Walker After Accidentally Dialing Attorney’s Office Instead of Medical Store

“Bill Gates, you are a blessing. I still cannot believe how lucky/cool/honored I am to have had someone craft such a special and personal set of gifts just for little ol’ me,” she wrote on Reddit. “And your donation to The American Heart Association in my mom’s memory is the most special gift of all. It means more to me than I can express.”

(WATCH a video from local news…)

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May the tears you cried in 2019 water the seeds you’re planting for 2020.

Quote of the Day

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Dec 29, 2019

Quote of the Day: “May the tears you cried in 2019 water the seeds you’re planting for 2020.” – yesimadiva.com

Photo: by the yes man, CC license via Flickr – cropped

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One Giant Leap for Mankind; Top 10 Scientific Breakthroughs of 2019

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Dec 28, 2019

If there is one thing that we’re grateful for as we head into the new decade, it’s that scientists from all over the world have been tirelessly continuing to solve some of the most fascinating mysteries of the universe and toughest problems on Earth.

Not only have researchers made historic strides in uncovering the cosmic nature of black holes, scientists have come up with incredible solutions and strategies for combatting the climate crisis and protecting our own planet.

So without further ado, here are the top ten most fascinating and innovative stories of science from 2019.

10) Origami-Inspired Solar Panel Could Start Generating Renewable Electricity From Your Window

This unique origami-inspired solar panel has the potential to turn windows into a source of electricity for any apartment dweller.

For urban residences and buildings, implementing renewable sources of energy can be difficult. Researchers have tried building solar panels out of various materials so they can be placed in front of windows, but this generally leads to a large decrease in natural lighting in exchange for limited energy generation.

Soligami, on the other hand, is a solar panel system that works similarly to shutter blinds so that light can still be allowed to pass through a window. (Read more)

9) Students Design Beach Vacuum That Can Suck Up Microplastics While Leaving All the Sand

It’s already challenging enough for environmentalists to keep beaches clear of washed up trash and plastic debris—but the most difficult problem lies in cleaning up all of the millions of tiny microplastics that are impossible to pick up and separate from the sand.

Fortunately, a group of Canadian engineering students succeeded in developing a massive new vacuum cleaner called the Hoopla One that can collect microplastics without removing any of the sand from the beach. (Read more)

8) Researchers Successfully Made First-Ever Robotic Arm That Can Be Controlled By Your Mind

Photo by College of Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University

Back in June, researchers accomplished a groundbreaking new technological feat by developing the first-ever successful mind-controlled robotic arm exhibiting the ability to continuously track and follow a computer cursor controlled by one’s thoughts.

Being able to non-invasively control robotic devices using only thoughts will have broad applications, in particular benefiting the lives of paralyzed patients and those with movement disorders. (Read more)

7) Scientists Developed Exciting New Way to Produce Hydrogen Fuel That’s Safe, Cheap, and Ultra-Efficient

H2Pro researchers – Photo by Chen Galili / Technion

In September, researchers at the Technion-Israel Institute for Technology published a paper in Nature detailing their success in creating a safe, clean, inexpensive, and ultra-efficient new method of splitting water molecules into oxygen and hydrogen fuel.

The team’s system, which uses their specialized E-TAC technology (electrochemical thermally activated chemical), splits water 30% faster than the traditional method of electrolysis, but doesn’t require rare, expensive earth minerals—and it can be manufactured at a 50% reduced cost. (Read more)

6) This Tasty Seaweed Reduced Cow Emissions by 99%—and It Could Soon Be a Climate Game Changer

The particular seaweed species, called Asparagopsis, grows prolifically off the Queensland Coast, and was the only seaweed found to have the effect. Even a small amount of the puffy pink seaweed in a cow’s diet was shown to reduce the animal’s gases by 99%.

Associate Professor Nick Paul, who is the leader of the Seaweed Research Group at the University of the Sunshine Coast (USC), said that if Australia could grow enough of the seaweed for every cow in the nation, the country could cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 10%—which is why it is now being primed for mass farming. (Read more)

5) First Fully Rechargeable Carbon Dioxide Battery Shown to Be Seven Times More Efficient Than Lithium Ion

Lithium-carbon dioxide batteries are attractive energy storage systems because they have a specific energy density that is more than seven times greater than commonly used lithium-ion batteries. Until now, however, scientists have not been able to develop a fully rechargeable prototype, despite their potential to store more energy.

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago were the first to show that lithium-carbon dioxide batteries can be designed to operate in a fully rechargeable manner, and they have successfully tested a lithium-carbon dioxide battery prototype running up to 500 consecutive cycles of charge/recharge processes. (Read more)

4) Robotic Arm Named After Luke Skywalker Enabled Amputee to Touch and Feel Again: ‘It almost put me to tears’

Photo by Dan Hixson/University of Utah College of Engineering

Back in July, researchers from the University of Utah developed a way for the “LUKE Arm” to mimic the way that a human hand feels objects by sending the appropriate signals to the brain.

That means an amputee wearing the prosthetic arm can sense the touch of something soft or hard, accurately understand how to pick it up, and perform delicate tasks that would otherwise be impossible with a standard prosthetic with metal hooks or claws for hands. (Read more)

3) Student Trekked to Yellowstone and Finds Bacteria That Eats Pollution and ‘Breathes’ Electricity

A team of researchers from Washington State University spent several hours hiking through the Heart Lake Geyser Basin area so they could leave a few electrodes inside of several hot water pools.

One month later later, the team returned to the hot springs to collect the submerged electrodes only to find that they had succeeded in capturing their prey: heat-loving bacteria that “breathe” electricity through the solid carbon surface of the electrodes. (Read more)

2) Rather Than End Up in a Landfill, Non-Recyclable Glass Was Found to Be a Cheaper New Ingredient in Concrete

Back in June, Australian researchers developed an exciting new technique for making concrete out of non-recyclable glass that had been turned back into sand.

More specifically, the team found that ground-up glass could be to make polymer concrete, a material that uses polymers—typically resins—to replace lime-type cement as a binder for roads. Since polymer is a particularly high-strength, water-resistant material, it is also suited for areas with heavy traffic such as service stations and airports.

Now that the team has successfully used the waste as a replacement for the industrial flooring, they believe that the process could open a whole new world for recycling glass that could not be remade into newer glass. (Read more)

1) Not Only Did Scientists Capture First Ever Image of Black Hole, They Also Detected Tone Pattern in Ringing of Newborn Black Hole, Proving Einstein Right Again

Photo by NASA / CXC / Villanova University

There are a lot of clichés that get thrown around when talking about big scientific discoveries. Words like “breakthrough” or “game changing” are often used. They grab people’s attention, but it’s fairly rare that they apply.

The announcement of the first image ever taken of a black hole back in April, however, truly rose up to that standard.

Only months later in September, scientists confirmed Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity after they studied the ringing of an infant black hole, and found that the pattern of this ringing does, in fact, predict the black hole’s mass and spin.

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‘Friendship Over Business’: Coffee Shop Owner Helps Competitor Stay Open During Hospice Treatment

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Dec 28, 2019

These two Oregon coffee shops have always maintained their competition for business—but that didn’t stop one of them from offering a friendly hand when financial difficulties arose for the other.

It has been one year since Dave and Tina McAdams opened up The Local Coffee Company in Oak Grove, Portland.

Unfortunately, Dave was forced to celebrate the milestone while he was in hospice care.

This is the third time that Dave has been diagnosed with cancer, although this most recent bout has been declared inoperable—and terminal.

LOOK: When Young Waffle House Worker Was Left Alone to Run Entire Restaurant, Empathetic Customers Jump In to Help

Rather than let the McAdams couple cope with the diagnosis and medical bills on their own, Pixie Adams of the Moonlight Coffee café on the other side of town stepped in to help.

Adams has been volunteering her time to the family by working at The Local for free. Not only have her actions helped to generate additional income to pay for the McAdams’ medical bills, it has also helped to guarantee that The Local will stay open even after Dave is gone.

“It’s supposed to be friendship over business, community over competition,” Pixie Adams told KATU. “I am here supporting them, trying to generate attention for their business to help make sure that after Dave is gone, they still have the ability to keep the coffee place open.”

(WATCH the news coverage below) – Photo by KATU

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Rolls-Royce Unveils Its Aircraft Which They Are Building to Be the World’s Fastest All-Electric Plane

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Dec 28, 2019

Rolls Royce Electric Plane Feature-SWNS — SWNS

This week, Rolls-Royce unveiled its first all-electric plane—and they are aiming for it to be the fastest sustainable aircraft in the world.

After the iconic automotive company presented the machine at Gloucestershire Airport in Staverton, England, they will now begin work on integrating the groundbreaking electrical propulsion system to enable the zero-emissions plane to make a run for the record books.

The plane will be targeting a speed of more than 300 miles per hour (480 kilometers per hour) in order to break the record when it deploys in the spring.

LOOK: World’s Largest Electric Vehicle is a Dump Truck That Doesn’t Even Need to Be Plugged in for Recharging

The aircraft, which is part of an initiative called Accelerating the Electrification of Flight (ACCEL), is a key part of the company’s new strategy to champion electrification.

The ACCEL project plane will have the most power-dense battery pack ever assembled for an aircraft, providing enough energy to fuel 250 homes or fly 200 miles on a single charge. Its 6,000 cells are packaged to minimize weight and maximize thermal protection.

Furthermore, an advanced cooling system ensures optimum performance by directly cooling the battery cells during the high-power record runs.

Rolls-Royce Electrical Director Rob Watson said: “Building the world’s fastest all-electric aircraft is nothing less than a revolutionary step change in aviation.

“This is not only an important step towards the world-record attempt but will also help to develop Rolls-Royce’s capabilities,” he added. “[It will] ensure that we are at the forefront of developing technology that can play a fundamental role in enabling the transition to a low carbon global economy.”

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Scientists Use Recycled Sewage Water to Grow 500-Acre Forest in the Middle of Egyptian Desert

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Andy Corbley

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Dec 28, 2019

Desertification, also known as desert-creep or desert-spread, is a process that has caused much concern over the last decade—and it’s a major problem for the ancient land of Egypt, where 96% of the country’s landmass is desert.

So why is it that—if you drove a car 10 miles west of the Suez Canal—you would see bountiful forests of eucalyptus, teak, and mahogany trees limned against the orange sand and blue sky of the Sahara?

Serapium Forest is the most prosperous of Egypt’s 36 tracts of land that make up an ambitious program to combat desertification by creating sustainably managed commercial forests fed entirely by wastewater.

The 500-mile forest is only a short distance from the populous Egyptian city of Ismailia, inhabited by 400,000 people who produce millions of tons of sewage and sewage water every year.

Routed a dozen miles to the Serapium site, the sewage water arrives in massive microorganism-populated underground vats where oxygen is fed in to accelerate the bacterial purification process. A system of pipes then deposits the wastewater throughout the forest.

Since human wastewater is still rich in nitrogen and phosphorus even after being treated, it is effectively a MiracleGro formula provided free of charge by Ismailia’s citizens. (Watch the encouraging video below.)

An Ambitious Effort

Recent efforts by Egyptian scientists have produced plenty of research suggesting that the wastewater potential for afforestation in the country could turn 1.6 million acres of desert into commercial forests that are arable and economically viable.

CHECK OUT: Man Succeeds Where Government Fails—He Planted a Forest in the Middle of a Cold Desert

The federal effort, called the National Program for the Safe Use of Treated Sewage Water for Afforestation is going a long way towards achieving the country’s commendable ambitions voiced in the 1992 UN Rio conference on climate change—because so many trees can soak up hundreds of tons of CO2.

The research was supported by Forest Finance, a German forest investment company that has already established near-natural forests in Panama and Vietnam to aid those countries in economic development, CO2 absorption, and wildlife conservation.

Forest Finance wants to increase the number of species grown in Serapium by including a plantation on the site. That way, the biodiversity of the commercial forest would be able to support a greater array of life and species, and hopefully increase the profitability as well.

Green Walls

Although desertification is sometimes thought of as the swallowing of lands adjacent to deserts, it is actually a process whereby land that was once fertile or semi-arable becomes desert as a result of things like unsustainable agricultural practices, or long-lasting drought.

MORE: For First Time Ever, Scientists Identify How Many Trees to Plant and Where to Plant Them to Stop Climate Crisis

Africa’s Great Green Wall project, a remarkable effort across more than 10 countries to build a giant patchwork wedge of vegetation to combat desertification in Africa’s Sahel region—the band of semi-arid yet arable land south of the great Sahara—swaps the word desertification for land degradation.

Africa’s Great Green Wall is a success that is also currently being matched by the Chinese, whose “Green Great Wall,” is made in a similar way to Egypt’s.

The African green wall has produced some staggeringly good figures along their stated goals of jobs created, carbon sequestered, land reclaimed, and food produced. It has established best practices for the combating of land degradation by ensuring that the “wall” is a mosaic of different families of plants and land use strategies, providing greater robustness and flexibility in the face of drought or fire.

Although the Serapium Forest suffers from the precarious circumstances derived from lack of funding and political stability, it’s still growing—a 500-acre green wall to join the others in the world in fending off the sands of the world’s deserts from spreading.

(WATCH the 2016 news coverage on Egypt’s miracle forest below)

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“Don’t aspire to make a living, aspire to make a difference.” – Denzel Washington (turns 65 today)

Quote of the Day

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Good News Network

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Dec 28, 2019

Quote of the Day: “Don’t aspire to make a living, aspire to make a difference.” – Denzel Washington (turns 65 today)

Photo: by Mount Rainier National Park, CC license – 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?

Café Owner’s Heartfelt Yelp Response to 1-Star Review Rallies Support for Him and His Homeless Patron

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McKinley Corbley

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Dec 27, 2019

When the owner of a California donut shop was criticized for regularly welcoming a homeless man into his restaurant, he responded with compassion—and he is now being repaid with a flood of support towards him and his homeless customer.

LISTEN to the inspiring story told on the radio by our GNN founder (in the Good News Guru podcast below) or READ the full story after that…

Since Brad Keiller opened Nomad Donuts in San Diego five years ago, the café has become a popular little hotspot for locals, particularly 58-year-old Ray Taylor.

Taylor has been living on the streets since a series of unfortunate financial setbacks left him broke and without health insurance in 2011.

“It was a financial decision to be homeless, not a drug addiction or a moral breakdown,” Taylor told the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Despite enduring the difficulties of being homeless, Taylor doesn’t drink, do drugs, or panhandle for money. Thanks to his friendship with Keiller, however, he does spend many of his afternoons sitting outside of Nomad Donuts, enjoying the occasional conversation with the customers.

Taylor’s presence outside of the store is what prompted one of Keiller’s customers to leave a 1-star Yelp review of the shop back in November. The review, which has since been removed, said that Taylor’s regular appearances outside of the shop “really made them feel great about spending $5 on a jelly donut.”

Keiller spent several days contemplating how to respond to the review before he eventually opted to post a patient public response illustrating how Taylor—and others suffering from difficult circumstances—would always be welcome at the store.

CHECK OUT: Watch Company Surprise All 198 of Their Awestruck Employees With $10 Million in Holiday Bonuses

“I understand how you feel, it’s not easy to look at,” wrote the 49-year-old restauranteur. “I know I probably lose some business, possibly yours, too, because of my choice not to chase him away, but I won’t. He’s not looking for handouts and he tries not to bother anyone. If you stop and talk to him, maybe you’ll come to like him, too.”

Since publishing the response, Keiller’s donut shop has become flooded with an influx of supportive customers. Additionally, Keiller started a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for some of Taylor’s daily necessities—and to Taylor’s surprise, it has raised almost $6,000 in donations from around the world.

MORE: After ‘Mountain Santa’ Dad Spent 42 Years Giving Away Gifts to Poor Families, His Son Decides to Do the Same

“Thank you all for contributing to Ray’s GoFundMe!” wrote Keiller in a later crowdfunding update. “We’ve exceeded [our goal of $1,000], which is just overwhelming for Ray! He’s incredibly touched by all the love and good will.

“Know that you’ve made Ray’s day to day a lot less stressful and more comfortable. He thanks me and all of you daily!

“Yesterday, we withdrew $200 from the fund, which Ray used to buy a VISA gift card from the local Target. He treated himself to a hot meal from the Barons Market last night—and he now has a bus pass thanks to you!!”

(WATCH the news coverage below) – Feature photo by KGTV News

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Scientists Develop New Material to Make Lithium Ion Batteries Self-Healing and Easily Recyclable

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Good News Network

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Dec 27, 2019

Lithium-ion batteries are notorious for developing internal electrical shorts that can ignite a battery’s liquid electrolytes, leading to explosions and fires.

Engineers at the University of Illinois, however, have developed a solid polymer-based electrolyte that can self-heal after damage—and the material can also be recycled without the use of harsh chemicals or high temperatures.

The new study, which could help manufacturers produce recyclable, self-healing commercial batteries, is published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

As lithium-ion batteries go through multiple cycles of charge and discharge, they develop tiny, branchlike structures of solid lithium called dendrites, the researchers said.

LOOK: Three-Story ‘Water Battery’ Has Already Slashed University’s Electrical Costs By 40% in One Month

These structures reduce battery life, cause hotspots and electrical shorts, and sometimes grow large enough to puncture the internal parts of the battery, causing explosive chemical reactions between the electrodes and electrolyte liquids.

There has been a push by chemists and engineers to replace the liquid electrolytes in lithium-ion batteries with solid materials such as ceramics or polymers, the researchers said. However, many of these materials are rigid and brittle resulting in poor electrolyte-to-electrode contact and reduced conductivity.

“Solid ion-conducting polymers are one option for developing non-liquid electrolytes,” said Brian Jing, a materials science and engineering graduate student and study co-author. “But the high-temperature conditions inside a battery can melt most polymers, again resulting in dendrites and failure.”

MORE: First Fully Rechargeable Carbon Dioxide Battery is Seven Times More Efficient Than Lithium Ion

Past studies have produced solid electrolytes by using a network of polymer strands that are cross-linked to form a rubbery lithium conductor. This method delays the growth of dendrites; however, these materials are complex and cannot be recovered or healed after damage, Jing said.

To address this issue, the researchers developed a network polymer electrolyte in which the cross-link point can undergo exchange reactions and swap polymer strands. In contrast to linear polymers, these networks actually get stiffer upon heating, which can potentially minimize the dendrite problem, the researchers said. Additionally, they can be easily broken down and resolidified into a networked structure after damage, making them recyclable, and they restore conductivity after being damaged because they are self-healing.

Photo by L. Brian Stauffer / University of Illinois

“This new network polymer also shows the remarkable property that both conductivity and stiffness increase with heating, which is not seen in conventional polymer electrolytes,” Jing said.

“Most polymers require strong acids and high temperatures to break down,” said materials science and engineering professor and lead author Christopher Evans. “Our material dissolves in water at room temperature, making it a very energy-efficient and environmentally friendly process.”

Although the researchers acknowledge that more work is required before the material could be used in batteries that are comparable to what is in use today, the team probed the conductivity of the new material and found its potential as an effective battery electrolyte to be particularly promising.

Reprinted from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign News Bureau

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66-Year-old Grandfather Stays Sharp by Building Elaborate Star Wars Replicas—And This R2 is His Latest Creation

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Dec 27, 2019

This Star Wars mega-fan has celebrated the release of the latest sci-fi blockbuster by unveiling an ultra-realistic working replica of the iconic droid R2-D2.

Over the course of the last 12 months, 66-year-old Ricky Butler has spent countless hours toiling away in his garden shed to create the remarkable 3.5-foot-tall imitation.

LOOK: Dad Spends 1,200 Hours Renovating ‘Back to the Future’ Car So He Can Use it to Pick Up His Kids From School

The droid, which is made from plywood, fiberglass, and aluminum, is fitted with a whopping 500 feet of wiring and blu-tooth speakers so it can light up, beep, and roll around just like the real thing.

“It’s a very long and often a very difficult process to build something like this, but I love the challenge because it keeps my mind active,” says Butler.

“When I look at the finished thing now, I’m absolutely delighted—it’s come out brilliantly,” he added. “Sometimes I can’t believe that I actually did it.”

Butler, who also built an X-wing starfighter measuring in at 21 feet long, has been a fan of the Star Wars franchise ever since watching the first installment in 1977. However, the granddad-of-seven and semi-retired actor only began building Star Wars replicas as a hobby a couple of years ago when he took a step back from work.

“I’ve been a big fan of the series ever since queuing up to watch A New Hope in the cinema more than 40 years ago,” Butler said. “I’ve always liked making things and working with electronics so I thought, ‘why not combine that with Star Wars?’”

Butler says he doesn’t know how many hours he has dedicated to building the droid—only that he would go into his back garden shed in Doncaster, England “at any opportunity” to work on it.

“At my age it’s important to keep your mind active—and doing this is a really good way to do that for me,” says Butler. “I have to think about what I’m doing and work out how to fix things.

“I rely on lots of knowledge I have picked up over the years, but every now and then there is something I get stuck with. When that happens I go on YouTube and watch a video to help me do it.”

Over the years, Butler has worked as a disc jockey and an actor, including a stint as the body double for Sam Neil, who is famous for his role as Dr. Alan Grant in Jurassic Park.

Then in 2018, he built his “battlescorched” X-wing starfighter fitted with half-a-mile of cables, flashing lights, joy sticks, and the moving wings.

Immediately after unveiling that particular creation, he began work on R2-D2 with the help of his 16-year-old son Prince, who wants to be a civil engineer.

His next creation will be a lifelike Dalek replica from Doctor Who, which he plans on starting in the new year so he can have it ready by Christmas 2020.

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