Military Dad Photobombs Son’s School Picture (WATCH)

By

-

Apr 21, 2015

Best. Photobomb. Ever.

When Joshua Bass posed for his third-grade school picture, he thought it would be just another yearbook photo– little did he know that a very special someone was sneaking into the shot behind him.

After Joshua said “cheese,” the photographer gave him a chance to see the photo–which showed his prankster dad in the background. After a few seconds of confusion over his father’s apparition on the camera’s screen, the photographer remarked with a chuckle that the boy should turn around.

Army Corporeal James Bass had made the school his first stop after returning from being stationed overseas in Kuwait for a little less than a year.

Check out the video above, to see how Father’s Day came early for this little cutie.

SHARE the Love (below)…

Color Us Thrilled: Kraft Mac-and-Cheese Nixes Artificial Dyes

By

Terry Turner

-

Apr 21, 2015

A staple of childhood meals is about to get a new look as Kraft Macaroni & Cheese in the U.S. will no longer be made with artificial preservatives or synthetic colors. Reacting to mounting consumer pressure for more natural food choices, Kraft says the artificial ingredients will be gone starting in January. But the company says the familiar taste of their mac-and-cheese will stay the same.

“We weren’t ready to change the product until we were confident that Kraft Macaroni & Cheese tastes like Kraft Macaroni & Cheese,” the company said in a statement.

Kraft said it’s been thinking about making the changes for some time based on customers’ concerns. In 2013, Good News Network reported on Kraft’s decision to remove food dyes from its kids-specific cartoon-shaped mac-and-cheese products, after 350,000 people signed a petition started by food blogger Vani Hari. Hari has kept up the pressure and declared victory after Kraft’s announcement yesterday.

“The thousands of letters I have received from parents whose children have benefited from the removal of artificial food dyes are ringing in my ear this morning,” she posted. “We finally did it.”

Kraft’s statement said parents are increasingly focused on better nutrition and simpler ingredients, but the company promises the new recipe will not change the flavor of the popular American comfort food.

“We’ve been working tirelessly to find the right recipe that our fans will love,” said Triona Schmelter, Vice President of Marketing.

Photo credit: Pink Sherbet Photography (CC)

Kermit Lives: New Frog Species Looks Just Like Him

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 21, 2015

Which came first, the Muppett, or Diane’s Bare-Hearted Glass Frog?

The eerie similarities between Jim Henson’s Kermit the Frog and a new species discovered in Costa Rica could be just coincidence, but we like to imagine a more familial link.

Seriously, though, the similarity in the eyes is uncanny.

Brian Kubicki, founder of the Costa Rican Amphibian Research Center (CRARC), discovered the new species in the jungle, and named the frog after his mother, rather than the most popular green puppet of all time.

What’s really cool is the fact that the skin on his stomach is transparent, giving us all the opportunity to take a good look at his internal organs–feel free to verify that it’s not just someone’s hand up there.

Hyalinobatrachium dianae has been documented online, including a special mention of his horizontally-shaped pupil and its resemblance to a certain someone.

(WATCH a video below from the Telegraph) – Story tip from Heather Ferreira / Photo credit: CRARC

Too Cute Not to Share…

Winner of Boat Hands Over Keys to Less Fortunate Fisherman

By

Terry Turner

-

Apr 21, 2015

Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day, but give a man a new bass boat you’ve just won, and everyone will give you a standing ovation.

Fred McMahon became the ultimate good Samaritan at a fishing competition in Jasper, Texas right after he won a tricked-out Triton bass boat in a drawing at the event’s finale.

Like most of the other fishermen in the Big Bass Splash tournament, McMahon had fished from a boat in Lake Sam Rayburn. But he’d learned that one man, Albert Jenkins, had competed all three days in the tournament fishing from the dock because he had no boat. McMahon decided to turn the keys over to his fellow fisherman, on the spot.

Orphans Win Fishing Tournament, Decide to Share $250,000 With Orphanage

“I thought I would never do this,” McMahon wrote in a Facebook post after giving the boat to Jenkins. “I feel blessed.”

The announcement brought people to their feet cheering.

“Fred McMahon, you truly are an inspiration to others and an angel in my eyes,” Nicole Sealy of Sealy Outdoors, the tournament’s creator, wrote on the Big Bass Facebook page the next day. “Thank you for making Dreams Come True! Congratulations Mr. Albert Jenkins and hope you enjoy your new boat.”

(SEE pics of the giveaway moment from KJAS News) – Photo credit: Fred McMahon’s Facebook Page

This Bicycle With Roll Cage Could Save Your Life in Collisions With Cars

By

Terry Turner

-

Apr 21, 2015

In a collision between a 40-ton semi and a bicycle, it’s pretty obvious who’s going to come out on top. But a new bike promises to let its riders walk away from a crash like that. The stand-out feature on the Babel Bike is something inventor Crispin Sinclair calls the “safety cell” — a roll-cage built around a safety seat complete with seat belts.

“The safety cell is physically large enough so as not to get under the front or side of large vehicles, so the Babel Bike (and rider) will be pushed away by the bus or truck, not crushed by it,” Sinclair says in a promotional video for the bike.

Sinclair and his team of designers have piled on other safety features for the bike including built-in lights that come on as soon as you start peddling, turn signals, brake lights, foot protectors, mirrors and a horn as loud as a car’s. Sinclair believes that if people have a bike that can protect them from collisions with cars, trucks and buses, more people will switch to bikes for the commute to work. But it won’t come cheaply. The Babel Bike costs around $3,000 — $4,400 for one with an electric-assist motor.

“It will work out less than you would currently pay to commute by car, bus or train, assuming an average commute of three miles or more each way,” Sinclair says. “When you own the Babel Bike outright, your daily commutes are completely free. And you won’t need to go to the gym or for a run afterwards, as you will have built your exercise into your daily commute.”

You might even be able to do chin-ups on the roll bar.

The bike isn’t on the market yet but Sinclair and his team say they have secured contracts with factories in China and Taiwan to deliver the first bikes in May, 2016 to customers who pre-order on his Indiegogo fundraising page.

Like this Safety Innovation? Sharing is Caring (below)…

The Most Inclusive Playground in the Country Opens – And it’s Magical

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 21, 2015

Where can a blind child, a child in a wheelchair, a sister with autism or brother with Down syndrome play with other families equally, and be part of their community? The Magical Bridge Playground.

In Palo Alto, the most innovative and inclusive–and expensive– playground in the country opened on Saturday. It’s a wonderland for young and old alike where there are no barriers to fun.

The idea was birthed by a mother (of course). Olenka Villareal had to drive 12 miles and pay $150 so her child with developmental disabilities could play on a swing.

It took six years of planning, but this mom raised $4 million, most of it privately, to bring the Magical Bridge Playground to life.

Some of the features include an entirely smooth surface – no sand or mulch to limit access to wheels or walkers – overly large safety swings and slides, merry-go-rounds built at ground level for wheelchairs, and lazy boy swings for parents to gently rock kids in their arms.

(WATCH the videos below or READ the story at KTVU)

SHARE This Good News (below the video)…

New Device Gives Early Warning of Asthma Attack in Kids

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 20, 2015

Matt Fischer has been an asthmatic all his life. He remembers having fun with childhood friends one minute, then suddenly being laid out on the ground trying to breathe the next. That feeling of being helpless is what he and co-founder Dan Kirk are hoping to remedy with a start-up company that provides families with control over their children’s asthma.

Their new device, called Control A+, analyzes environmental and internal risk factors in order to predict when a child is at high risk for having an asthmatic attack.

Here’s how it works: first, a representative makes a home visit to inspect the house. While the rep is there, they’ll drop off a toy-like medical device that measures lung function and a wall unit that collects indoor and outdoor environmental data.

After calculating data on the day’s environmental risk factors and the child’s lung capacity, the system sends a report to the child’s doctor, push notifications to parents, and a list of recommended activities for the child. So far, Fischer been able to identify 72 potential risk factors to consider, weather and pollen count among them.

The kit is not quite finished, and a partnership with a medical device manufacturer will be necessary to bring it to market, according to Fast Company.

Control A+ competed in the Verizon Powerful Answers Competition and were invited to be a part of the Verizon Innovation Center. This video was created as a result.

With Fins Off the Menu, A Glimmer of Hope for Sharks

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 20, 2015

For decades, the decline of sharks – sought for their fins and meat – has been staggering. But bans on finning and new attitudes in Asia toward eating shark fin soup are leading to optimism about the future for these iconic ocean predators.

Along with the economic boom in China and other Asian countries came the ability for millions to afford shark fin soup. As more sharks were harvested to feed that appetite, it became clear to scientists how vital these top-predators were for the entire ocean ecosystem – from algae to sea-grass, turtles to tuna.

In the last year, there’s been some good news leading conservationists to believe that the tide for struggling sharks, at last, may be turning.

Man Expertly Grabs Pelican to Save it From Almost Certain Death (WATCH)

Global fin trade is declining. The U.S., European Union, and India, along with close to 100 other nations from the Mideast to the Caribbean, have banned finning — the practice of catching sharks solely to harvest fins. Some of those countries, like New Zealand, were huge exporters.

China, Hong Kong and Malaysia have all banned the soup at government functions, five hotel chains have taken it off their menus and 26 airlines have refused to transport shark fins. On a recent survey in China 85% of respondents said they no longer ate shark fin soup. In fact, so many people have lost their appetite for shark, that the fins are as cheap as squid — essentially destroying the market for them in some parts of China.

Transforming Lion Killers into ‘Lion Guardians’ in Africa

A preeminent marine biologist praised a turnaround in US fisheries management in the last decade, saying officials have basically altered their direction on shark management 180 degrees, calling new policies “among the best in the world.” Sharks are also bolstered by pledges from 205 marinas and 103 other businesses around the globe to forbid or discourage the offloading of dead sharks.

Even as sharks recover in some waters they’re getting hammered when they migrate to countries that don’t manage them, so nations and conservationists need to continue pushing for tough regulations to make sure the tide keeps turning for these crucial top-level predators.

(Source: Yale 360, March 2015, from a feature by Ted Williams) – Photo by Travel Bag Ltd (travelbag.co.uk), CC license

Touching the Mona Lisa: Now the Blind Can Enjoy Art Masterpieces Too

By

Terry Turner

-

Apr 20, 2015

Blind and other visually impaired people are finally getting to enjoy some of the world’s greatest paintings in a first of it’s kind exhibition. “Touching the Prado” turned six great master works into three-dimensional, textured reliefs that people can touch and feel at the Prado Museum in Madrid.

The paintings, including the Mona Lisa, were reproduced using a process it’s creators at Dureo Studios call “Didu.” It’s a relief printing technique that turns high resolution photos of the paintings into layered textures, defining faces, clothing, plants and other subjects in the paintings into something the blind can touch and feel.

“For me, Didu is another way to see, a way of connecting with the world of images,” a blind man named Ruben said in a video about the exhibit and process.

CHECK Out: Bike Path Inspired by Van Gogh ’s ‘Starry Night’ Opens in Netherlands

“My fingers are my eyes,” Ruben said. “Everything I perceive with my fingers, all the information they gather, helps me to learn, to compose the image that up to now I couldn’t grasp.”

It takes 40 hours to create a Didu painting, layering special inks and chemically treating parts of the panels to create raised, 3-D textures. The final step requires matching the colors of the originals to give the reproductions the same look as the originals. Braille and audio descriptions accompany the works to guide visitors through the exhibit.

“The Prado Museum is (now) within everyone’s reach,” said Ruben.

(READ more, w/ photos, from Web Urbanist)

Fatal Crashes for Teen Drivers Down 55 Percent in the US

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 20, 2015

The number of drivers between the ages of 16–19 involved in fatal automobile crashes in the United States has plummeted by 55% over the ten year period, 2004-2013.

The report released this month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention credits several factors for cutting the number from 5,724 annually to 2,568.

The reasons cited:

– graduated driver licensing programs, which can limit teen driving at night or restrict teenage passengers
– safer vehicles
– teens waiting until they are older to drive (crash risks are highest for the youngest teen drivers)
– teens driving less overall

(Read the details from the CDC)

Photo credit: Sylvar (CC)

In Indonesia People Can Trade Trash for Free Health Care

By

Terry Turner

-

Apr 20, 2015

Patients in Indonesia can trade recyclable trash for doctor visits in a clever plan to get affordable medical care to people in rural villages.

Three in every five Indonesians have no health insurance and with no money to pay for doctors, they put off medical care allowing easily treated illnesses to turn into major problems. Dr. Gamal Albinsaid looked for a substitute for money– something people already had that they could trade for health care. He didn’t have to look much farther than Indonesia’s trash-strewn streets.

“There’s garbage everywhere on the ground,” he said, according to Fast Company. “So we decided to use garbage as a financial resource.” Only about half the trash produced in Indonesia is collected, which creates health problems and allows tons of valuable recyclables to go to waste.

Albinsaid created Garbage Clinical Insurance to take in trash, sell it to recyclers and use the money to pay for health care. Four pounds of plastic or 11 pounds of cardboard will sell for less than a dollar, but that’s enough to buy a basic health insurance policy that pays for two visits to a doctor a month.

CHECK Out: For Every Recycled Bottle, This Machine Dispenses Dog Food for Strays

Albinsaid has set up his own clinic and his company has helped 3,500 people buy health coverage. For his innovative service, the young doctor won a prize of €50,000 and mentoring support from Cambridge University in the 2013 Prince of Wales Young Sustainability Entrepreneur Awards.

(WATCH the video below or READ more in Fast Company)

Little Girl With No Birthday Party Guests is Surprised by 300 Strangers

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 20, 2015

A little girl named Mackenzie Moretter who had a tenth birthday celebration planned for Saturday, might have been plenty disappointed because nobody planned to show up to her party, and there were last-minute cancellations.

Mackenzie has a genetic disorder called Sotos Syndrome that causes developmental delays and makes her grow a lot faster than other kids, which has made socialization tough.

Well, Mackenzie ended up having a bigger, bolder party than if her friends would have come.

Her mother, Jenny, posted a message on Facebook asking people to come. Thanks to four friends who, in two days, organized the event, and raised money – and to Twin Cities businesses who donated – Mackenzie had a tenth birthday party that no one will forget.

Mom Who Adopted 7 Special Needs Kids Gets New Car In Best Prank Ever (WATCH)

“I’m overwhelmed with emotions, my heart has been touched by so many stories similar to mine,” Mrs. Moretter wrote on FB. “I will never be able to thank you all enough for your kindness.”

Minnesota Vikings player Charles Johnson and his family showed up, along with hundreds of strangers, someone dressed as Elsa from Frozen, and the fire department, which offered kids tours of the truck.

The Mayor of Shakopee, Brad Tabke, even proclaimed Saturday as “Mackenzie Moretter Day”– and thanked her for “reminding us how we should treat each other every day.”

“I have a hard time making friends in school, but thanks to all of you … my voice was heard,” Mackenzie told the crowd. “I love you all.”

(WATCH the video from KARE-11 News) – Photo credit: Keighla’s Fresh Face Photography, FB

SHARE the Love below…

Man Creates ‘Shoes That Grow’ So Poor Kids Don’t Outgrow Them

By

McKinley Corbley

-

Apr 19, 2015

If you were making a list of things that someone needed to survive and succeed in the world, well-fitting shoes wouldn’t be at the top. But Kenton Lee was working with barefooted kids in Kenya and realized the importance of making this a priority.

“Wouldn’t it be great,” he pondered, “if there was a shoe that could adjust and expand — so that kids always had a pair of shoes that fit?”

Kenton Lee was working with barefooted kids in Kenya and realized the importance of well-fitting shoes. His incredible innovation? A Shoe That Grows.

Although kids may own shoes, it’s hard when living in poverty to keep up with constant growth spurts. The Shoe That Grows can now accommodate children’s ever-growing feet by expanding five sizes, making them last up to ten years.

WATCH: Woman Invents Amazing Car That Wheelchair Users Can Just Drive Away

Determined to get started, Kenton became the Founder and Executive Director of Because International, a nonprofit organization headquartered in Nampa, Idaho. The company completed the prototype for their wonder shoe in 2013, and reached out to the world for crowdfunding of their invention. After hand delivering their first shipment of 100 shoes to little ones in Nairobi, Kenya, Kenton is eager to continue production.

Thanks to these shoes, children won’t be so susceptible to soil-based diseases and infections, and they can always be ready to race wherever their legs may lead them.

Inspired to walk in Kenton’s shoes? The donate button to protect children’s feet is just a click away.

(WATCH his video below)

Share the Inspiring Innovation (below)…

New Baby Bison: First One Born in Nearly Two Centuries in Eastern US

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 19, 2015

The last time a bison was born in a wild habitat east of the Mississippi River was in the 1830s. This month, 95 miles west of Chicago, history was reset on a patch of restored prairie grass.

The historic birth is thrilling news for the Nature Conservancy working in Illinois since the 1980s to restore the Nachusa Grasslands. They finally reintroduced the vital last piece of the puzzle, a wild bison herd, last October.

Commenting on the bison birth, Cody Considine, a restoration ecologist at Nachusa said, “From a historical standpoint, this hasn’t happened in Illinois in about 200 years.”

After Years Apart, Watch This Mother Elephant Reunite With Her Baby

Cody says the mother and calf “looked great” but no one’s tried to get close to them. So far, they’ve only monitored the baby’s progress through binoculars–and camera lenses, with the Conservancy releasing high resolution photos last week.

“The goal is to allow the bison to be bison.” Cody explained. “Between our two bison units they have 1,500 acres of prairie to roam, and aside from the annual round up and veterinary check, they will breed, birth, and care for themselves 364 days a year.”

The newest addition, along with other baby bison expected later this spring, will further the prairie restoration work to come. Through their natural grazing behavior, they help keep grasses in check while creating a mosaic of habitats that allow a wide range of wild flowers, birds, mammals, plants, insects and amphibians to flourish

For more info, visit www.nature.org/nachusabison or watch their video here. (Photos by Charles Larry, courtesy of Nature Conservancy)

We’re improving the Earth! Share the story below…

The 5 Best Ways To Show Your Kids Love: How Many Do You Do?

By

Jodie Benveniste

-

Apr 19, 2015

We know that the single most beneficial thing we can do for our kids is to love them. Kids thrive when they feel loved.

It seems straightforward, doesn’t it? We all know how to love our kids, don’t we? But I’m not sure that love is that straightforward.

I know my husband and I show our love for our kids in different ways. My husband is much more expressive in telling the kids he loves them, and giving them lots of cuddles. Whereas, I’m more likely to help my kids, and teach them how to be a decent person.

Despite our best intentions, things can easily get in the way of showing our love – busyness, competing demands, stress, lack of sleep, and the list goes on.

Adult Fears Are Encouraging Obesity in Kids

But it’s worthwhile to remember these five ways to show our kids love. And recognize when we do them.

1. Being warm and affection ate

Being warm and affectionate is one of the more obvious ways we can show our kids love. It could be morning cuddles, snuggling up with a book at night, or randomly saying ‘I love you’.

2. Doing activities together

Kids get a lot of value and enjoyment out of doing fun activities with us whether it’s sitting on the floor with a puzzle, finger painting or going for a bike ride. Even if it doesn’t seem fun for us (and there are a million others things that need to get done), getting involved in our child’s fun can be infectious.

3. Paying attention

One of the more powerful ways to validate our children and help them feel loved is to pay attention to them. They want us to notice when they do something new or fun or funny! If we’re too distracted, we can miss moments to share in their world. We can’t pay undivided attention to our kids every minute of every day (and we wouldn’t really want to because that doesn’t necessarily help our kids). But taking a little time every day helps show our love.

4. Saying no

I think one of our most important jobs as parents is to help teach our kids what’s appropriate and acceptable behavior. Kids learn this when we set some boundaries and stick to them. That involves saying no when we need to, even if our kids don’t like it. To me, that is another very important aspect of loving our children.

5. Focusing on strengths

I think everyone, including kids, really thrive when we reinforce and encourage their strengths. Sometimes we can be so focused on stamping out the negative behaviour that we forget to highlight and encourage the good behaviour. All of our kids have amazing strengths that we can cultivate and delight in everyday.

There are probably so many other ways to express our love, but I think these five are most important. What do you do to show your kids you love them? Tell us in the comments below…

Jodie Benveniste is a psychologist, parenting author, TEDx speaker, and author of four parenting books, including Intuitive Parenting: Unlocking the secrets to raising incredible kids. Visit her website at jodiebenveniste.com.

Like the article? Share it, and show US some Love! – Photo by Philippe Put, CC

China Fights Water Pollution, Bans Paper Mills and Oil Refineries

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 19, 2015

China will ban water-polluting paper mills, oil refineries, pesticide producers and other industrial plants by the end of 2016, as it moves to tackle severe pollution of the country’s water supply.

The long-awaited plan comes as the central government steps up its “war on pollution” after years of industrial development that have left one-third of China’s major river basins contaminated.

(READ the full story from Reuters)

Photo: Guangzhou river by sanfamedia.com, via CC

Sacrificing to Help Brother Go To School, Selfless Sister Is Rewarded With Tuition

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 18, 2015

Sometimes, good things happen to good people.

Young Lauren Burgos had always planned to go to college, possibly even to become a lawyer. But when her father died while she was still in high school, she took a job to help her family, eventually working 40-60 hours a week at a Manhattan hotel so her brother could attend college, while she helped pay the rent. Dreams of higher education became a distant memory for the 22-year-old, but her family never forgot.

When her brother, Matt, learned that Strayer University was looking to award scholarships to people whose obstacles had forced them to take a detour in life, instead of pursuing college, he submitted Lauren’s story of selflessness.

Stanford Just Made Tuition Free for Families Earning Below $125K

At a surprise birthday party last month, Lauren Burgos stood aghast when her family in Brooklyn broke the news that she was one of three people chosen to receive a full scholarship– and money for books, too.

“You sacrificed… you kept me going,” her brother Matt told her.

“I’m getting a full ride to school,” Lauren told a camera crew that was recording the surprise for Strayer. Laughing and wiping away tears, she dared finally to dream again.

“In five to ten years, I will be a self-confident, independent woman traveling the world.”

(WATCH the heartwarming video below)

MULTIPLY the Good, by Sharing (below)…

Her Student Debt Was Paid in Full After A Bank Heard Her Family Story

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 18, 2015

After a former college student shared her heartbreaking family story on CNN last month, her student loans totaling $54,000 were completely wiped off the bank’s ledger within hours.

Rhea Shannon, 26, a graduate of Howard University in Washington, DC, was left without a parent to help repay the debt after her father died serving in Afghanistan. Her soldier dad had been a huge advocate for continuing education, so he cosigned on her loan before reenlisting to help pay them off.

Shannon could not keep up with the payments, was grieving, and having to face collectors alone, when she told CNN Money her story. Within two hours of the broadcast, she received a call from the Tragedy Assistance Program (TAPS) who informed her she no longer owed a cent because the nonprofit organization, which supports families after the death of a service member, has a partnership with JP Morgan Chase.

Occupy Wall Street Activists Pay Off $15 Million of Americans’ Personal Debt

The debt was forgiven through the mega-bank’s Military Survivor Program, which is always on the lookout for cases like Shannon’s. Since the program started in 2013, JPMorgan has forgiven $4.3 million in student loans, car loans, mortgages, and credit card debt held by fallen service members.

And, while the heavy burden was being lifted from Shannon’s shoulders, she also learned about a TAPS scholarship that will cover her Master’s degree.

“Thank you God, and thank you Dad,” she told CNN.

(WATCH video below from CNN Money)

CORRECTION: GNN incorrectly identified the woman’s father as a Marine. The story has been corrected.

Innovative Crowdsourcing of Tweets, Phones Can Give Early Warnings of Quakes, Floods

By

Terry Turner

-

Apr 18, 2015

Your smartphone could save your life before disaster strikes. Researchers are turning smartphones and social media into early warning systems for earthquakes and floods.

In two separate developments, researchers have found a way to use smartphone GPS sensors to detect earthquakes and Twitter to track major flooding in real-time.

In the first case, NASA helped scientists to crowdsource the GPS in smartphones and tablets to measure sudden shaking in the ground. The phones then sent warnings to other phones farther and farther away. The early warning reached people several seconds before the quake’s tremors got to them.

“The speed of an electronic warning travels faster than the earthquake shaking does,” explained Craig Glennie, a report author and professor at the University of Houston in Texas.

Woman Invents Amazing Car That Wheelchair Users Can Just Drive Away

The system only works with major quakes, magnitude seven or higher, but if as few as 5,000 phones and tablets in a major city sense a tremor, that’s enough to send out an early warning — and buy people valuable time to take cover.

“Most of the world does not receive earthquake warnings mainly due to the cost of building the necessary scientific monitoring networks,” said U.S. Geological Survey geophysicist and project lead Benjamin Brooks, who published their findings in the journal Science Advances.

At the same time, researchers are using smartphones with a Twitter app to track major floods.

Disaster planners used tweets from two years of flooding in Indonesia to create real-time flood maps that could warn people of rising water and help them determine where to send rescuers and resources.

How Ocean Current Could Power Half the Homes in Florida

This speedy method can produce a map within around a minute of messages being posted, Deltares flood expert Dirk Eilander told Reuters.

People in Jakarta were posting 900 tweets per minute during February’s floods. Researchers used those pictures and descriptions to recreate what people were seeing, then plotted it onto a map. The amateur observations weren’t as accurate as professional gauges, but the descriptions matched professional measurements in two-thirds of the cases.

Disaster responders can use the maps to spot areas with the greatest need for response and to speed up recovery efforts.

Both the earthquake and flood warning systems are relatively inexpensive and put important parts of disaster preparedness in the hands — or pockets — of everyone with a smartphone.

Photo credit: Ed Yourdon, CC

Monkey Presumed Extinct is Photographed in Congo Forest

By

Good News Network

-

Apr 18, 2015

A rare monkey not seen for nearly half a century and thought to be extinct has been spotted by two primatologists working in a Congo forest. Their expedition yielded the first-ever photograph of the elusive Bouvier’s red colobus monkey.

The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) reported the good news this week after researchers Lieven Devreese and Gaël Elie Gnondo Gobolo returned from the Ntokou-Pikounda National Park, a protected area that safeguard gorillas, chimpanzees, elephants, and other species.

Guided by local people familiar with the area, the team found a group of red colobus in the swamp forests and confirmed that the species is not extinct.

Baby Boom Surprise For World’s Most Endangered Orcas

“We’re very pleased indeed that Lieven and Gaël were able to achieve their objective of not only confirming that Bouvier’s red colobus still exists, but also managing to get a very clear close-up picture of a mother and infant,” said WCS’s Dr. Fiona Maisels. “Thankfully, these colobus monkeys live in the recently gazetted national park and are protected from threats such as logging, agriculture, and roads, all of which can lead to increased hunting.”

Bouvier’s red colobus (Piliocolobus bouvieri) is a species of monkey endemic to the Republic of Congo, about which virtually nothing is known. First described in 1887, it is only known from a couple of museum specimens collected from three localities over 100 years ago. The authors of a book written in 1949 mention that the species lives in the swamp forests of the region, but the last unverified sightings of Bouvier’s red colobus monkey occurred in the 1970s.

Bird Thought to Be Extinct Re-emerges in Myanmar

Red colobus monkeys (there are several species) typically do not flee from humans but look down at them from the trees, an unfortunate behavioral characteristic that has led to them becoming very rare wherever hunters are active. Hunting and logging decimated its population, leading some scientists to suggest the monkey was extinct.

Inspired by this? Share the Good News (below)… Photo by LievenDevreese, released by WCS

1. Being warm and affection ate

2. Doing activities together

3. Paying attention

4. Saying no

5. Focusing on strengths

CORRECTION: GNN incorrectly identified the woman’s father as a Marine. The story has been corrected.

1. Being warm and affection ate