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Israeli Device Lets Paralyzed People Stand, Walk

ReWalk machine helps people walk again

paralyzed man uses ReWalk deviceThe device known as the “ReWalk” which helps paralyzed patients stand and walk will soon become commercially available.

When Israeli entrepreneur Amit Goffer was paralyzed in a car crash in 1997, he went on a quest to help other victims walk again. He invented an alternative to the wheelchair: robotic “pants” that use sensors and motors to allow paralyzed patients to stand, walk and even climb stairs.

The upright walking assistance tool, even enables wheelchair users with lower-limb disabilities to climb stairs.

Watch a demonstration video from the company, or READ the full story at PhysOrg.com

Thanks to Andrew Norris for submitting the link

Mexico’s Biggest Bread Maker to Build $200 Million Wind Farm

wind turbine

wind turbine Grupo Bimbo, one of the world’s biggest breadmakers, will build a $200 million wind farm to supply almost all of the electric power needed for its Mexican operations, enough to run 65 plants and offices in Mexico.

The company announced the renewable energy plan Thursday estimating the total capacity to be around 90 megawatts.

(READ the story at Reuters)

GM Offers its Thanks to America in Video Ad

knock-out-in-GM-commercial

knock-out-in-GM-commercialDid you see the TV ad by GM over the Thanksgiving holiday? General Motors created a poignant video in which the company gives thanks to the American people for helping them back to their feet.

After a short montage of historical failures and triumphant returns, the commercial ends with the two simple lines:

“We all fall down”

“Thank you for helping us get back up”

 

Kanye West Gets in the Holiday Charity Spirit

Kanye West wraps for NYFC charity - photo from NYFC

Kanye West wraps for NYFC charity - photo from NYFCKanye West dropped by a New York City charity this week to help with their foster kids gift drive. He spent 90 minutes gift-wrapping presents donated by WalMart for hundreds of young children in the city’s foster care system.

He surprised a roomful of busy volunteers at the Eighth Annual “Wrap to Rap” holiday event organized by New Yorkers For Children.

Kanye West Gets in the Holiday Charity Spirit

Kanye West wraps for NYFC charity - photo from NYFC

Kanye West wraps for NYFC charity - photo from NYFCKanye West dropped by a New York City charity this week to help with their foster kids gift drive. He spent 90 minutes gift-wrapping presents donated by WalMart for hundreds of young children in the city’s foster care system.

He surprised a roomful of busy volunteers at the Eighth Annual “Wrap to Rap” holiday event organized by New Yorkers For Children.

Runner Crawls to Finish to Win Title for Her Ailing Coach (Video)

runner crawls to state title -ABCvid

runner crawls to state title -ABCvidThe race was supposed to have been a moment of glory for the top runner of a northern California high school track team.

But instead of crossing the finish line ahead of the pack and earning another state championship for the girl’s team, the 16-year-old junior collapsed just feet from that line and stunned onlookers by stubbornly crawling to the end, despite being in obvious pain.

Hilton Group Donates $13 Million to End Homelessness in L.A.

homeless

homeless person (c) geri 1980Supporting an initiative  to end chronic and veteran homelessness in Los Angeles County within five years, the Conrad Hilton Foundation announced Wednesday a gift of $13 million in grants to fund key components of the campaign.

The grants include: $9 million for the creation of 2,500 new permanent supportive housing units; $3.6 million to identify 4,500 of the most vulnerable people on the streets and provide housing; $330,000 for an innovative pilot program to ease the transition into housing; and $200,000 to engage faith leaders and communities in the campaign.

 

Today is the 40th Anniversary of EPA: Amazing Progress in 40 Years

earthheart

Photo by Sun Star

Today, environmentalists are celebrating the 40th anniversary of the founding of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, but all citizens should take a moment to appreciate the breadth of this federal agency’s achievements over such a short span of time.

EPA has protected — and many times brought back from the brink — the air that we breathe, the water we drink, and the ecosystem that keeps us and our animal friends alive.

President Nixon created the agency that would ban DDT, phase out leaded gasoline, halt the use of cancer-causing PCBs, and launch the Brownfields Program to clean up abandoned, contaminated sites, returning them to productive community use. It curbed Acid Rain and  — under George W. Bush — established new regulations requiring truck diesel engines and fuel to be 90 percent cleaner.

”Over its 40-year history, the EPA has evolved into the world’s preeminent environmental regulatory agency through a balanced, three-pronged strategy, combining excellent science, regulatory enforcement, and engagement of all stakeholders in developing new solutions to environmental problems,” said Walter Isaacson of the Aspen Institute.

President Johnson declared that, “Either we become a nation wearing gas masks, or we clean up the air.”

(Watch an excellent video montage of news headlines that highlights the US environmental movement of the last 40 years.)

40th Anniversary of the EPA: Amazing Progress in 40 Years

earthheart

Photo by Sun StarToday, environmentalists are celebrating the 40th anniversary of the founding of the United States Environmental Protection Agency, but all citizens should take a moment to appreciate the breadth of this federal agency’s achievements over such a short span of time.

EPA has protected — and many times brought back from the brink — the air that we breathe, the water we drink, and the ecosystem that keeps us and our animal friends alive.

Hurricane Season Ends With U.S. Unscathed, Despite Dire Predictions for 2010

beach photo by Sun Star

Photo of beach by Sun StarThe third busiest Atlantic storm season officially drew to end on Tuesday but the United States shoreline and its key energy producing hubs were mostly untouched by any of the year’s major storms, thwarting meteorologists’ predictions that as many as five storms would strike American coastlines.

(READ the report at Reuters)

Cracker Barrel, a Model of Old Times, to Offer Electric Vehicle Chargers

crackle barrel logo

crackle barrel logoCracker Barrel will soon feature electric vehicle chargers in their parking lots. Their “old country stores” will jettison into the 21st century as part of a pilot project to install ECOtality chargers, at 24 of their restaurants across Tennessee.

Customers can be charged-up within 30 minutes, as part of ECOtality’s bid to bring charging stations to more places around the country.

(READ the AP story at The News Tribune)

Africa Can Feed Itself Within a Generation Says Study

Egyptians harvesting crops, USAID

Egypt harvest - photo by USAIDAfrican nations can break dependence on food imports and produce enough to feed a growing population within a generation despite extra strains from climate change, according to a study unveiled today.

All it would take is more research into new resistant crops, support for small-scale farmers and greater involvement by national leaders in the sector of transportation.

(READ the story from Reuters)

To Improve Learning, German School Allows Chewing Gum

school students with gum?

school students with gum?Few things rile a teacher more than seeing a pupil chewing gum in class, but a primary school in southern Germany is now actively encouraging them to do so — in order to improve their grades.

(READ the AFP story at France24.com)

Hero Meets Man He Rescued on NYC Subway Tracks from Oncoming Train

photo by Sun Star

Photo by Sun StarHe’s the city’s newest hero, but Carlos Flores said it didn’t feel real until he was reunited Monday with the man he saved from an oncoming No. 6 train and saw he was okay.

“People kept asking me if I felt like a hero,” Flores said. “I didn’t feel like a hero. But to see you – I feel better now,” Flores, 36, said.

Who Says Democrats and Republicans Can’t Work Together: Historic Bill Passes Senate

KfC chicken will be palm oil free in the UK

chicken and friesThe Senate voted overwhelmingly Tuesday to launch the biggest overhaul of the nation’s food safety laws since the 1930s. The bill passed 73 to 25 and would give new authority to the Food and Drug Administration and — for the first time – sets safety standards for imported foods.

The law would place new responsibilities on agri-business to prevent food contamination, like those which responsible for recent egg and spinach episodes.

Small and local farms may be exempt from the final bill’s provisions.

President Obama is optimistic the House will pass a similar bill.

(READ a report in the Washington Post)

Monthly Job Growth Highest in 3 Years, Sparked by Small Biz Hiring

help wanted ads photo by Kevin P via morguefile

classified ads, photo by Kevin P. via MorguefilePrivate sector employers added 93,000 jobs in November, the largest number in three years. Small businesses were responsible for 58% of the hiring, with 54,000 of those jobs offered by businesses with fewer than 50 employees.

(READ more numbers at ABC News, or the small biz gains in CNN)

Photo by Kevin P. via Morguefile

Belarus Will Eliminate Its Uranium Stockpile

hillary-clinton-george-mitchell-state-dept

hillary-clinton-george-mitchell-state-deptThe former Soviet republic of Belarus announced today that by 2012 it will give up its stockpile of material used to make nuclear weapons.

It is a significant step toward keeping nuclear materials out of the hands of terrorists, and follows similar commitments made by other former Soviet republics, including Kazakhstan.

(READ the AP story at NPR)

Have You Noticed the Massive Speed Increase of the Site?

blurry_bridge

blurry_bridgeI had intended for weeks to write on the Editor’s Blog about the significant speed increase we’ve achieved for the Good News Network viewers. Thanks to subscription fees from our fans, even the smallest amount of $2.00 per month, I was able to invest in a new fully dedicated server, which has delivered whizzing speeds since November 1.

It took a full month for me to get here and post this, but, did you notice how fast the site became around the start of November? Now, all the files and processes occur on my very own server, not shared with any other site. . . A terrific improvement.

Thanks to all my supporters! We are busting the myth, proving that Good News really DOES sell!

(Look for a great give-away – offering 25 free Gift Subscriptions – coming in December to social network hubs of Facebook and Twitter.)

xxoo, Geri

Trash To Treasure: Toilets in Landfills Become Artful Tiles

recycled debris tile by FireClayTile

recycled debris tile by FireClayTileYou wouldn’t expect a landfill to be a place where you could turn something (with a high yuck factor) into a thing of beauty. But decorative tile maker Paul Burns saw an opportunity. He’s taking discarded porcelain toilets and using them to make lovely tile.

Trash To Treasure: Toilets in Landfills Become Artful Tiles

recycled debris tile by FireClayTile

recycled debris tile by FireClayTileYou wouldn’t expect a landfill to be a place where you could turn something (with a high yuck factor) into a thing of beauty. But decorative tile maker Paul Burns saw an opportunity. He’s taking discarded porcelain toilets and using them to make lovely tile.