Eighty-four Siberian tigers have been born since March at a breeding center in China — great news for a rare species that is believed to number only 400 in the wild, worldwide. (ABC, with photo of yawning cub)
I’m in Las Vegas!
EDITOR'S BLOG — I am in Las Vegas — not to gamble or see a show — to attend a 4-day Success Seminar with a leading business and personal coach… I'll share more later, but I wanted to let you know there won't be as many stories published this week. For now, I'm going to stretch out on the floor of this enormous room at the remodeled Hilton and start my day with yoga. I'll try to get some stories up by the day's end…
Sailing Against the Odds and Without Hands and Feet
"An unusual sailing crew is gearing up to compete in the North Sea Yacht Race — all three men have lost limbs and only have three hands and three feet between them. The race, which takes two to three days, is one of the longest and most challenging ocean races in Northern Europe." Watch this wonderful audio slideshow detailing the mens’ efforts for charity. (BBC)
Mute Boy Cured by Fire Crew
"A BOY who barely spoke for ten years has been cured — by the Fire Brigade." (UK's The Sun) Thanks, Andrew!
Honest Airport Worker Lands Handsome Reward
While working at his second job with an airline in Kansas City, Robert Lewis peeked into a bag to find “$266,000 worth of individually wrapped diamond rings and wedding bands.” He turned the sack over to police, and for his honesty he received a $10,000 reward from the jewelry store that owned them. (AP)
Four-Fingered Concert Pianist Overcomes Physical Barriers (Video)
A Korean concert pianist moves the audience to tears performing classical music with just two digits on each hand. Disfigured from birth, and with no limbs below the knees, the girl’s mother cared for her as if she were perfect. No one should call her disabled. She walks, eats, and uses the adjusted piano pedals on her own. 20-year-old Hee-ah Lee is an inspiration to all who know her. (Video)
Inmates and Horses Get a Second Chance
The horse program at this minimum-security prison is part of a growing movement to find refuge for aging or injured thoroughbreds that would otherwise likely be slaughtered. It brings together broken-down horses in need of care and troubled inmates who find an inner peace they’ve never known.
Kellogg to Curb Marketing of Foods to Children
Froot Loops, Apple Jacks and Pop Tarts are a few of the breakfast foods that young children will no longer see advertised on TV unless the foods can be reformulated to meet specific nutritional guidelines for calories, sugar and fat. Under pressure from watchdog groups, The Kellogg Company announced the voluntary change today and also said it would "stop using licensed characters or branded toys to promote such foods unless they meet the nutrition guidelines." (NY Times)
GNN 10th Anniversary Coming Up: Any Ideas?
EDITOR'S BLOG The 10th anniversary of the Good News Network is coming up at the end of August. HOW CAN WE MARK THE EVENT?
I would like to do something unique or exciting, something that would attract media publicity. Since I am a social creature and usually spend my time behind the computer, I would LOVE to have a gala party associated with this special birthday. (It would be in D.C. — which is where I live and where the news media will be itching for stories on the slowest week of the year.) Can I find a sponsor to pay for the party? I want your creative ideas. Let's brainstorm and throw ideas around. Use the comments below. THANKS!
Google, Intel Launch Energy-Efficient Computer Plan
"Search engine giant Google and U.S. semiconductor firm Intel have thrown their weight behind a massive scheme to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by cutting the amount of energy computers consume. They expect to cut emissions by 54 million tons a year — equal to 11 million cars or 20 coal-fired power plants." (BBC) Wow, thanks for the link, Andrew!
Hanoi Restaurant Turns Poor Kids into Gourmet Chefs
Since 1999, "street kids have learned to cook delicious Vietnamese and Western dishes, tend bar, wait tables and speak some English" through the work of a non-profit restaurant in Hanoi. The beautiful Koto grounds are famous for an 11th-century pagoda and university, but for the 200 graduates of the training, some moving on to 5-star kitchens, "It is the discovery that they can achieve their potential, that they are valued and that they are loved." (Reuters) View the Koto website and consider a donation.
Citizen Proposes 10 Steps to Citywide Peace
Dwayne Lee of Milwaukee proposed a Summer Peace Plan for city residents and sent it to the major newspaper for publishing. He was tired of the “self-defeating choices” people made that only increased neighborhood unrest. His calls for understanding others’ shortcomings and challenges, and for getting to know your neighbors, are just as useful to those who may not live in the city. E-mail him with encouragement after reading the article. (Milwaukee Journal)
Govt. Encouraging Employment of Muslims by Debunking Myths
"In a bid to encourage employers to hire Muslims, the Australian Queensland Government has invested a sum of 19,100 dollars to debunk the 'myths' surrounding the faith." Employers believe they would need to make special accommodations for their prayers or diet. It's not clear from the article what the myths are. (NewKarala.com)
City’s Anti-Gang March Renamed Peace March
CICERO, Ill — The gang intervention group CeaseFire aims to foster new perspectives this year by organizing a softball tournament between police and inner city youth; hosting a week of community events; and by prompting police to rename the fifth annual “Anti-gang March" with the anti-confrontational moniker, "Peace March." (ChicagoSuburbanNews)
Huge Wildlife Migration Discovered in Africa
"More than a million animals, including elephants, buffaloes, ostriches, lions, giraffes and a rare type of stork, have been unexpectedly seen living and migrating across Southern Sudan," where 25 years of war caused conservationists to believe no wildlife remained. Certain animals even appeared to be thriving more than before — "the numbers of Mongalla gazelle, for example, sky-rocketed." (LiveScience)
Islamic Development Bank Launches $10 Billion Poverty Fund
The Islamic Development Bank launched a multi-billion-dollar Islamic Solidarity Fund for Development, which aims at combatting poverty and its causes in member Islamic countries around the world and in Africa.
Top Ten Guide to the World’s Greenest Companies
Presenting a guide to the greenest companies in the UK and the world. On the top ten lists are Danish and Dutch companies (wind and banking), Swedish and Australian (paper and banking), Japanese and British (electronics, retail and telcom), but, alas, none from America. (The Independent)
How to Get Closer to Your Dad (Book Review)
Like many people’s relationship with their father, mine has never been very close. Yet, if he died today I would be very sorry I didn’t ask him more questions. That’s why I am glad to have met Stuart Gustafson, who co-wrote the new book, Questions to Bring You Closer to Dad. I met him at the National Publicity Summit in New York in March. After looking at his book, I telephoned my father last week. We talked happily for an hour, or more, about his time in the U.S. Marines and what it was like for him to visit his childhood home, and we engaged in small talk, which turns out to be the glue that holds the important stuff together…
Yoga May Help Treat Depression, Anxiety Disorders
Experiments showed improved conditions in people battling depression and anxiety disorders when yoga was introduced, leading researchers to conclude that it could prove a useful tool…
Dell Intends to be Greenest Technology Company on the Planet
"Dell has launched a long-term, global effort to become the greenest technology company on Earth by setting an ambitious Zero Carbon goal whereby it will maximise the energy efficiency of Dell products, and over time offset their carbon impact." (Tech Digest) Thanks, Andrew!