In the first of four installments of a series on good governance, SPIEGEL explores how Brazil has become one of globalization’s success stories. A rigorous battle against corruption and poverty has ushered in new freedoms, growth, and increasing equality, winning the country respect around the world.
How Brazil’s Good Governance Created High Growth, Political Freedom, and Greater Income Equality
Blind Orangutan Receives Cataract Surgery, Sees her Babies for First Time
A formerly blind orangutan has been given the remarkable gift of being able to see her baby twins for the first time after undergoing cataract surgery in the first such operation in Indonesia.
Prior to her surgery on Monday afternoon, Gober, a 40-year-old orangutan, had spent at least the last four years blind due to cataracts leading.
She was rescued in North Sumatra province in late 2008 by the Sumatran Orangutan Conservation Program.
Recently she gave birth in their breeding program.
Martin Sheen Thanks His Newspaper Delivery Lady: App Honors Workers by Saying “Thanks”
“Thanks for the work you do” is heard all too rarely, says the AFL-CIO, which has launched a creative new digital application to help everyone — including Martin Sheen — say thanks to the workers in their lives this Labor Day.
On the new app, from the AFL-CIO, participants can send personalized thank you cards through Facebook or email to those people whose work makes life easier for all of us. The online app also features thank-you videos from leaders, including actor Martin Sheen, recognizing the work of people they rely on every day. (Sheen honors Ann Hernandez, who delivers his Los Angeles Times newspaper every day.) Viewers can create and upload their own video thank-you.
Pending US Home Sales Touch Two-year High
Contracts to buy previously owned U.S. homes rose to their highest level in more than two years in July, an industry group said on Wednesday, suggesting the housing market recovery was gaining traction.
The number of contracts signed in July, increased 2.4 percent to the highest level since April 2010.
40,000 Pounds of Potatoes Piled High in a Sweet Giveaway
Working with area farmers who have excess produce at harvest time, the Love and Cherish Family Center of Rock Hill, South Carolina organized a huge giveaway this week inviting local residents to fill bags and buckets at the foot of a mountain of sweet potatos.
Hundreds of families had only reduced the pile of potatoes by a few feet the first day of the gleaning giveaway.
Postal Service Reduces Energy Use by 26%
Since 2003, the United States Postal Service has reduced its energy use by 26 percent. Energy efficiency improvements at the USPS’s 33,000 buildings have saved enough energy to meet the power needs of 90,000 households for a year.
In 2011, alone, the USPS saved $22 million with its 1 trillion BTU reduction in energy use.
Largest Green Roof in Oregon to be Planted Atop a Walmart
Walmart is winning over some Portland-area naysayers with its construction of a new store in North Portland that will be home to not only the largest green roof in the green-happy city of Portland, but the largest green roof in the entire state of Oregon.
When completed, the vegetated, carbon dioxide-absorbing roof atop the Hayden Meadows Walmart will measure 40,600 square feet.
Navy Lieutenant Swims To Gold In London Paralympics, Months After Injury
Less than one year after being blinded by an explosion in Afghanistan, U.S. swimmer Bradley Snyder has won a gold medal in the men’s 100m freestyle at the 2012 Paralympics.
He swam even faster during an earlier heat, setting a Paralympic record with a time of 57.18. To put that time in perspective, it would have put Snyder in first place in one of the early men’s 100m freestyle heats at the London Olympics.
Rare Blue Moon Tonight Coincides With Neil Armstrong Memorial Service
The memorial service for astronaut Neil Armstrong being held today, August 31, coincides with the day of the rare blue moon, a fitting tribute to the first man to walk on the lunar surface.
A blue moon occurs about every three years when four full moons appear in a single season.
Google Co-founder Quietly Buying Up Property and Charging Below-Market Rent
Soviet-born Sergey Brin is already a world-changer. The Google co-founder has donated millions of dollars to charity and given us public technology tools that make us smarter.
But one of the most touching efforts comes from his small real estate holding firm called Passerelle Investment Company.
Australians Implant “World First” Bionic Eye
Australian scientists said Thursday they had successfully implanted a “world first” bionic eye prototype, describing it as a major breakthrough for the visually impaired.
Bionic Vision Australia, a government-funded science consortium, said it had surgically installed an “early prototype” robotic eye in a woman with hereditary sight loss caused by degenerative retinitis pigmentosa.
Stolen Laptop Leads to Generous Outreach Toward Poor Teen
A Boston, man who found his stolen computer in the hands of a teenager, instead of getting angry, decided to raise money to buy the boy from the housing projects a new laptop.
Fran Harrington, a web designer, used the Apple technology on his Macbook to see who was using his laptop after it was stolen. It turns out the boy’s low-income parents had bought the computer not knowing it was stolen.
Mars Rover Plays First Song Transmitted From Another Planet (WATCH)
For the first time in history, a recorded song was beamed back to Earth from another planet. Will.i.am’s new composition, “Reach for the Stars,” traveled 300 million miles to the ears of students gathered yesterday at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif., after it was transmitted from the surface of Mars by the Curiosity rover.
The techno-rapper wrote the first interplanetary song as an anthem for NASA education. “Today is about inspiring young people to lead a life without limits placed on their potential and to pursue collaboration between humanity and technology through education,” he said. (Watch the video and hear the song below.)
Mars Rover Plays First Song Transmitted From Another Planet (WATCH)
For the first time in history, a recorded song was beamed back to Earth from another planet. Will.i.am’s new composition, “Reach for the Stars,” traveled 300 million miles to the ears of students gathered yesterday at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif., after it was transmitted from the surface of Mars by the Curiosity rover.
The techno-rapper wrote the first interplanetary song as an anthem for NASA education. “Today is about inspiring young people to lead a life without limits placed on their potential and to pursue collaboration between humanity and technology through education,” he said. (Watch the video and hear the song below.)
Louisiana Father-Son Team Rescues 120 From Flooding
They stayed behind rather than evacuating their Louisiana home in the path of Hurricane Isaac.
They and their neighbors in Plaquemines Parish were shocked Wednesday morning when ocean water burst over the Mississippi River levee, covering their town and leaving thousands trapped in attics and on roofs.
While police and the fire department were unable to reach stranded people using their vehicles, Jesse Shaffer, 25, and his father were able to save dozens of lives using boats.
(WATCH the video below or READ the story from ABC News)
Louisiana Father-Son Team Rescues 120 From Flooding
They stayed behind rather than evacuating their Louisiana home in the path of Hurricane Isaac.
They and their neighbors in Plaquemines Parish were shocked Wednesday morning when ocean water burst over the Mississippi River levee, covering their town and leaving thousands trapped in attics and on roofs.
Boy Gets Letter From Neil Armstrong Shortly Before Astronaut’s Death
As the world mourns Neil Armstrong, the first astronaut to walk on the moon, an 11-year-old San Rafael boy has a special reason to miss him — and a message from the astronaut he will always treasure.
“Sometimes when I look up at the moon, I wonder if my mom and dad are watching me,” wrote Max Boddington in an award-winning essay after his mother died in 2005 and his father in 2008.
In closing his essay, Max wrote that his dream was to meet “the world’s Number One space hero.”
Consumer Spending Picks Up as Americans’ Incomes Rise
Consumer spending in the US increased in July by the largest margin in five months, after personal incomes climbed 0.3 percent, the Commerce Department said today.
Americans’ spending is closely watched because it accounts for 70 percent of economic activity. The 0.3 percent growth in income matched the gains from May and June.
Unique Way to Help Hurricane Victims Suffering from Flooding “Worse Than Katrina”
As expected, Hurricane Isaac is now wreaking havoc along the Gulf Coast — and New Orleans in particular — with storm surges flooding coastal communities under ten feet of water and displacing thousands of people. For some inland neighborhoods, the flooding is already worse than experienced during Katrina, which struck exactly seven years ago, and rain is expected to continue for many hours.
Unless you live in the Bayou, you’re probably just watching video of the hurricane damage on TV and feeling badly for the people who live there.
Of course, there are the usual ways to pitch in. You could text $10 to aid relief efforts (Text REDCROSS to 90999), you can donate clothes and shoes or even give blood. But there is another option most people haven’t considered.
You can donate airline miles.
That’s right. The Red Cross can receive frequent flyer miles from Delta, United, and US Airways.
Why give away your precious miles?
Because the Red Cross often needs planes to deliver supplies or carry people and pets from disaster zones.
How to donate:
United and US Air ask for a minimum donation of 500 and 1,000 miles respectively. Delta lets you choose any amount you want. Just make sure you list ‘Red Cross’ as the recipient whenever prompted.
Delta
To donate miles by mail, e-mail or fax, please prepare your request in writing making sure to include the following information:
– Your SkyMiles account number
– The number of miles you want to donate
– The name of the organization you want to receive your donation
By e-mail: [email protected]
United Airlines
Mileage Plus members can make donations to the American Red Cross through United Airline’s Mileage Plus charity program. The minimum mileage requirement for a donation is 1,000 miles. All donations should be made by visiting the Mileage Plus Service Center or by calling 1-800-421-4655.
US Airways
Members may donate miles in 1,000-mile increments to the Miles of Hope program by visiting the airline’s website.
Learn more about your donations at the Red Cross website
Danny Rubin, a media consultant based in Washington, DC, writes News To Live By, a blog that uses the day’s headlines to explore how we can improve personally and professionally. From careers and relationships to personal finance and life hacks, he applies the lessons from the news to our own lives. He tweets at @NewsToLiveBy.
Unique Way to Help Hurricane Victims Suffering from Flooding “Worse Than Katrina”
As expected, Hurricane Isaac is now wreaking havoc along the Gulf Coast — and New Orleans in particular — with storm surges flooding coastal communities under ten feet of water and displacing thousands of people. For some inland neighborhoods, the flooding is already worse than experienced during Katrina, which struck exactly seven years ago, and rain is expected to continue for many hours.
Unless you live in the Bayou, you’re probably just watching video of the hurricane damage on TV and feeling badly for the people who live there.
Of course, there are the usual ways to pitch in. You could text $10 to aid relief efforts (Text REDCROSS to 90999), you can donate clothes and shoes or even give blood. But there is another option most people haven’t considered.
You can donate airline miles.
That’s right. The Red Cross can receive frequent flyer miles from Delta, United, and US Airways.
Why give away your precious miles?
Because the Red Cross often needs planes to deliver supplies or carry people and pets from disaster zones.
How to donate:
United and US Air ask for a minimum donation of 500 and 1,000 miles respectively. Delta lets you choose any amount you want. Just make sure you list ‘Red Cross’ as the recipient whenever prompted.
Delta
To donate miles by mail, e-mail or fax, please prepare your request in writing making sure to include the following information:
– Your SkyMiles account number
– The number of miles you want to donate
– The name of the organization you want to receive your donation
By e-mail: [email protected]
United Airlines
Mileage Plus members can make donations to the American Red Cross through United Airline’s Mileage Plus charity program. The minimum mileage requirement for a donation is 1,000 miles. All donations should be made by visiting the Mileage Plus Service Center or by calling 1-800-421-4655.
US Airways
Members may donate miles in 1,000-mile increments to the Miles of Hope program by visiting the airline’s website.
Learn more about your donations at the Red Cross website
Danny Rubin, a media consultant based in Washington, DC, writes News To Live By, a blog that uses the day’s headlines to explore how we can improve personally and professionally. From careers and relationships to personal finance and life hacks, he applies the lessons from the news to our own lives. He tweets at @NewsToLiveBy.