A monster weed called Kenaf can sequester huge amounts of carbon permanently while lifting villagers out of poverty by providing both protein-rich food and super-insulated building materials.
This is according to Bill Loftus, a retired building contractor who has patented an application for the fast-growing, carbon-sucking plant that can grow 14 feet in a single year.
A Louisiana man has been released from death row, becoming the 300th prisoner nationwide to be freed after DNA evidence showed he was innocent.
Of those 300 prisoners, 18 had been on death row, according to lawyers from the New York-based Innocence Project.
“It feels good,” said 38-year-old Damon Thibodeaux.
A yellow lab named Bosko found a young calf dying of hypothermia on his family’s ranch. Bosko came across the calf and ran to get help from his family. The animal was barely breathing as it was brought into a shelter, wrapped in blankets and heating pads and given him some antibiotics.
Over the next four hours, even though it was cold, Bosko stayed steadfastly by his side.
He curled up next to the calf and only after relentless coaxing would he give up his watch to the family’s other dog and come into the house.
Every time a cruise liner sails in or out of the Grand Harbour, a solitary figure appears perched high upon a roof ledge cheerily waving a Maltese flag to welcome or bid the passengers farewell.
“I feel as if I’m contributing to my home country in my own little way,” said the 70 year old citizen.
Charles Cremona knows the timetable of the liners’ activity and appears on the roof of his apartment like clockwork.
This amiable practice started two years ago when a close friend of Mr Cremona’s was about to leave Malta for a holiday on board a cruise liner.
(WATCH the video and READ the story in the Times of Malta)
Businesses might want to allow employees a five-minute tour of kitten videos on YouTube now that a new study released by Japanese scientists has reported added benefits of looking at cute images.
Beyond just feeling warm and fuzzy, the mere sight of adorable puppies and kittens can improve our concentration, according to a new study, “The Power of Kawaii: Viewing Cute Images Promotes a Careful Behavior and Narrows Attentional Focus.”
The research was was conducted by scientists from Hiroshima University and published Thursday in PLoS One.
(READ the story in the Wall Street Journal)
Photo from story, Macaque Shoots Perfect Self-Portraits (courtesy of David Slater)
Businesses might want to allow employees a five-minute tour of kitten videos on YouTube now that a new study released by Japanese scientists has reported added benefits to looking at cute images.
Beyond just feeling warm and fuzzy, the mere sight of adorable puppies and kittens can improve our concentration, according to a new study, “The Power of Kawaii: Viewing Cute Images Promotes a Careful Behavior and Narrows Attentional Focus.”
Kengi Carr wrote a heartfelt blog post describing how he felt when he won the gift of gourmet fudge following the Good New Network’s “Give A Fudge” contest, in which he was nominated by a friend for his service to the poor and HIV community in L.A.
Carr stressed that he doesn’t devote his life to helping others in order to get rewarded or lauded by others. But the fudge award arrived at a time of doubt and cynicism for Carr regarding higher ups in city government. Alex’s nomination and ultimately winning the award reminded him of the gratitudel he feels for his friends and supporters, and the appreciation they feel for him:
Seth Goldstein was in the middle of a cross country meet in Memphis recently when he saw a runner drop to the ground in front of him. Everyone else kept running, but Goldstein stopped.
His lifeguard training prepared him to recognize that the boy was in severe distress and having a seizure.
A freshman at Lincolnton High School could hardly believe she landed a nomination to the homecoming court for the big fall dance. She had expected a more popular girl would be picked.
Later she learned the votes had been a prank. But, she decided not to back down.
As news of the cruelty spread, the school, family members, and the community rallied around her and helped her get ready for the big day.
A freshman at Lincolnton High School could hardly believe she landed a nomination to the homecoming court for the big fall dance. She had expected a more popular girl would be picked.
Later she learned the votes had been a prank. But, she decided not to back down.
As news of the cruelty spread, the school, family members, and the community rallied around her and helped her get ready for the big day.
Tina’s father was a soldier. But when he died she was seven years old, and that’s where her memories ended.
All she had from her father were two photographs. Her mother got rid of all of Sergeant Stanley’s war medals, pins and photographs.
That’s when investigative journalists at NewsChannel 3 stepped in to try and recover the lost items.
Increasingly tinkerers and hobbyists are proving they are more than equal to the corporate world, and their efforts are challenging the traditional methods of manufacturing.
From the 15-year-old high school student who created a pancreatic cancer test using Google as a research tool, to people making money from home-made electronic devices, citizens are most definitely doing it for themselves.
The availability of cheap components, from microcontrollers coupled with the plethora of crowdsourcing models to allow the sharing of everything from ideas to funding, means that production can move out of the factory and into the home.
(READ the story from the BBC)
Hundreds of Libyans handed in weapons left over from last year’s war on Saturday, part of a drive by the North African country to rid its streets of arms and crack down on rogue militia groups.
As the day went on, a trickle of people turned into longer lines in Tripoli and in Benghazi, where tents were set up for military officials to collect arms, explosives and even rocket propelled grenade launchers.
The Weatherization Assistance Program, which was allocated $5 billion in stimulus funding by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, has been a win-win-win for the United States. It has saved homeowners billions in energy costs, put Americans back to work, and helped cut carbon emissions that create climate change.
After a slow start, the program gained momentum and this week completed work on its 1 millionth home, just nine months after passing the 600,000 mark.
This past spring, an Ottawa family found an injured baby bird in the grass near a bike path and took it home to nurse it back to health.
Now fully grown, Walter the crow is free to fly away, but he thinks he is part of the family.
He daily walks the kids to and from their school and curls up on the couch when they’re sick.
This past spring, an Ottawa family found an injured baby bird in the grass near a bike path and took it home to nurse it back to health.
Now fully grown, Walter the crow is free to fly away, but he thinks he is part of the family.
He daily walks the kids to and from their school and curls up on the couch when they’re sick.
After someone snapped a photo of her and posted it on online, Balpreet Kaur was ridiculed for following the tenets of her Sikh faith. But instead of hiding or lashing out, she politely posted a reply—and turned a bullying situation into a inspiring example of tolerance, support, and inspiration.
The photo shows Kaur waiting in line at the Ohio State University Library. In the photo, Kaur’s hair is hidden by a large, black turban. She’s wearing a T-shirt and yoga pants, glasses; her sparse facial hair is clearly visible.
A Reddit user posted it to the “Funny” forum and sarcastic quips started pouring in.
Instead of attacking the poster and the negative comments, Kaur replied with dignity and simple facts about the tenets of her religion regarding a person’s appearance.
(READ the article from Huffington Post)
A major league baseball player hit in the head the very first time he came to bat, who never got a chance to take a pitch, will get a second chance seven years later, thanks to the very team whose pitcher decked him.
Adam Greenberg’s career seemed over without ever beginning. He suffered brain trauma after that blow to the head, which kept him from gaining his balance or coordinating movements. Now, at 31-years-old, following an online petition drive by fans begging for a single at bat, Greenberg will get his chance.
A major league baseball player hit in the head the very first time he came to bat, who never got a chance to take a pitch, will get a second chance seven years later, thanks to the very team whose pitcher decked him.
Adam Greenberg’s career seemed over without ever beginning. He suffered brain trauma after that blow to the head, which kept him from gaining his balance or coordinating movements. Now, at 31-years-old, following an online petition drive by fans begging for a single at bat, Greenberg will get his chance.
NASA has released a new, improved portrait of mankind’s deepest-ever view of the universe. The Hubble Ultra Deep Field image shows an area of space photographed over time, faint light collected over many hours of observation, containing thousands of galaxies, both nearby and very distant, making it the deepest image of the universe ever taken.
Hubble pointed at a tiny patch of southern sky in repeat visits (made over the past decade) for a total of 50 days, with a total exposure time of 2 million seconds. More than 2,000 images of the same narrow field were taken with Hubble’s two premier cameras to reveal the faintest and most distant galaxies ever seen.
