Endemic to New Zealand, this sweet little bird is called the tūturiwhatu, or New Zealand dotterel, and though endangered, it has found a unique sanctuary where it can nest and feed in relative peace.
Relative, because it comes with a significant amount of noise pollution. It’s the Auckland Airport, and 4 pairs of dotterel have been recorded in the green areas alongside the outer runways this year.
Even though anthropic elements are by and large the largest driver of species decline around the Earth, what can be an impediment to one species can be a sanctuary to another, and in the case of the Auckland Airport, wildlife manager Lucy Hawley said the high fences keep out the bird’s invasive predators.
“This is very attractive to nesting dotterels and our airfield’s become a real sanctuary for them,” Hawley told RZN.com. “These tiny little birds take absolutely no notice of the giant planes moving all around them and have no issues setting up home right beside the taxiways.”
Over the last ten years, Hawley has estimated that she and her groundskeepers have seen 80 dotterels hatch on the taxiways of the country’s busiest airport. The parents typically arrive between November and December.
Over time the airport has taken time to work with professional wildlife biologists who have banded some of the birds in order to track their movements and nesting behavior.
The large gassy exteriors of airports can often play host to wildlife.
The San Francisco garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis tetrataenia), which can grow to three feet in length, has skin that looks like a black canvas painted with racing stripes of bright orange and neon turquoise.
San Francisco garter snake-credit-Richard Kim: USGS Western Ecological Research Center
While the snake is mostly isolated around the San Francisco peninsula, they are thriving in numbers near the tarmac of the airport known as SFO.
A tract of 160 privately-owned acres has been put to work to save the beautiful reptile, including the construction of many small ponds where the snake can keep moist, breed, and hunt for its favorite prey: the red-legged frog—which is also endangered and given sanctuary on the SFO runway lawn.
Concerning the dotterel, there may only be 2,500 of them left in the country following years of egg predation from invasive creatures like stoats. Fortunately, the ground-nesting bird poses no risk to aviation and can live alongside the planes in relative comfort.
A spectacular seven-pointed spaceship seems to be touching down on a lake in Chengdu for the 81st World Sci-Fi Convention, but in reality, it’s a new museum designed especially for the event that will go on to host future tech and pop culture events for years.
It’s a far cry from a flat, rectangular convention center, and being that Chengdu is home to one of the most published science-fiction magazines history, it’s in the right place.
At just under 60,000 square meters (three times the size of the Sydney Opera House,) the building is the latest masterstroke from Zaha Hadid Architects of London, and will feature an integrated exterior envelope that weaves together interior galleries and outdoor paths just as the building integrates land with the water of Jingrong Lake.
Arch-Exist PhotographyCourtesy of Arch-Exist Photography
“From every angle, it will always look different; it will always look unusual or unexpected,” said Paulo Flores, one of the project directors at Zaha Hadid Architects, which designed the museum.
Incredibly, this structure went from brainstorming to ribbon cutting in just 12 months in order to host Worldcon, also known as the World Sci-Fi Convention. Chengdu, the capital of China’s Sichuan Province, has been gradually climbing the ladder of Chinese cities for livability and prosperity.
The megalopolis of 20 million is an ancient city, known as the gateway to China’s tropical south, but it’s also the center of a fast-growing industry for hi-tech innovation and research, as well as the house of Science Fiction World—at certain times ranking as the most-read science-fiction periodical on Earth with over 300,000 subscribers.
Arch-Exist PhotographyArch-Exist Photography
Speaking with CNN, senior organizer for this year’s Worldcon, Dave MacCarty, said that the museum is “the best facility by far that the Worldcon has ever been hosted in,” calling it “more special” than cookie-cutter convention centers.
Zaha Hadid Architects used a lot of digital rendering and computing power to virtually sculpt the incredible curves, waves, and points of the building, which meets the highest criteria of China’s Green Building Program, and it has been designed to maximize efficiencies of shading, heat dispersion, and solar power.
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Quote of the Day: “I don’t like the word hike. People ought to saunter in the mountains–not hike.” – John Muir
Photo by: Ivana Cajina
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A Texas mother-daughter duo was honored by three former presidents this month, becoming 2023 Points of Light Award honorees for their fierce dedication and advocacy for children with pediatric pancreatitis.
The little-known disease struck Rebecca Taylor when she was just 7-years-old, causing excruciating pain. Now 21, Rebecca was chosen for the award because of the work with her mom, Christyn, on their nonprofit Rebecca’s Wish.
When Rebecca was 12, the Make A Wish Foundation granted her selfless wish to form a group to help other children dealing with pediatric pancreatitis.
Their national organization has raised over $3 million to support families whose children have the disease, to advance cutting-edge medical research, and to fund fellowships that train doctors to treat such patients.
“I wanted to start a pancreatic charity for other children so they don’t suffer like I did,” Rebecca said. “Rebecca’s Wish not only gives me a way to help others; it also helps me focus on something greater than myself and that—surprisingly—has helped my own pain.”
And the young woman has defied all the odds since doctors told the family that she wasn’t expected to live past the age of 12. She’s been hospitalized throughout 150 surgeries, including a life-saving experimental pancreas transplant—and nearly died multiple times.
Today, Rebecca is a biomedical engineering student at Texas A&M University working on medical research and treatment options for the disease, which is estimated to affect 3-13 children in every 100,000 kids.
Three former presidents—Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama—still serve as co-chairs of the Points of Light Award, created by an even earlier president, George H. W. Bush.
“Great purpose can evolve from great adversity,” said Rebecca’s mom Christyn Taylor, President of Rebecca’s Wish. “As a mom, I would never have chosen this for my daughter but we now get the privilege to help thousands, if not tens of thousands, of children so they don’t have to walk the difficult journey we did.”
“We can do so much good, and help so many because we’ve lived this,” she told GNN.
Christyn also leads Rebecca’s Wish programs that provide medical grants and supportive care to thousands of patients and their families through travel reimbursements to and from hospitals, developing medical equipment that better fits children, and sending kids to a summer camp called Camp Hope.
“We had very little hope for this disease path when Rebecca was diagnosed,” said Christyn. “We went from hospital to hospital and nobody knew how to help a child with long-term pancreatitis. We do not want another child or family to have to go through what we went through in our long journey.”
“I’m really proud of what my mom and I have created—and I’ll work on this until the day I die,” said Rebecca, who invites you to learn more on their website, RebeccasWish.org.
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Synthetic melanin applied to inflamed skin – Northwestern University
Synthetic melanin applied to inflamed skin – Northwestern University
A new ‘super melanin’ skin cream developed by scientists at Northwestern University shows the ability to continuously heal sun damage and chemical burns.
The synthetic, biomimetic melanin cream demonstrated the potential to heal damage occurring throughout the day when skin is exposed to sunlight or environmental toxins.
It mimicks the natural melanin in human skin, and can be applied topically to injured skin, where it accelerates wound healing. These effects occur both in the skin itself and systemically in the body.
A study published this week in Nature Regenerative Medicine showed that when applied in a cream, the synthetic melanin can protect skin from sun exposure and heal skin injured by sun damage or chemical burns. The technology works by scavenging free radicals, which are produced by injured skin such as a sunburn. Left unchecked, free radical activity damages cells and ultimately may result in skin aging and skin cancer.
Melanin in humans and animals provides pigmentation to the skin, eyes and hair. The substance protects your cells from sun damage with increased pigmentation whenever the sun is ‘tanning’. That same pigment in your skin also naturally scavenges free radicals in response to damaging environmental pollution from industry smokestacks and car exhaust fumes.
“People don’t think of their everyday life as an injury to their skin,” said co-corresponding author Dr. Kurt Lu, who teaches dermatology and practices at Northwestern University School of Medicine. “If you walk barefaced every day in the sun, you suffer a low-grade, constant bombardment of ultraviolet light. This is worsened during peak mid-day hours and the summer season.”
The skin, which doesn’t age when protected by clothing, always does age due to getting older and external environmental factors, including air pollution.
“All those insults to the skin lead to free radicals which cause inflammation and break down the collagen,” Lu said. “That’s one of the reasons older skin looks very different from younger skin.”
When the scientists created the synthetic melanin engineered nanoparticles, they modified the melanin structure to have higher free-radical scavenging capacity.
“The synthetic melanin is capable of scavenging more radicals per gram compared to human melanin,” said co-corresponding author Nathan Gianneschi, a professor of chemistry and pharmacology at Northwestern. “It’s like super melanin. It’s biocompatible, degradable, nontoxic and clear when rubbed onto the skin. In our studies, it acts as an efficient sponge, removing damaging factors and protecting the skin.”
The sunscreen booster stays on the surface and quiets immune system
Once applied to the skin, the melanin sits on the surface and is not absorbed into the layers below.
“The synthetic melanin stabilizes and sets the skin on a healing pathway, which we see in both the top layers and throughout the body,” Gianneschi said.
The scientists, who have been studying melanin for nearly 10 years, first tested their synthetic melanin as a sunscreen—and it was successful.
“Next, we wondered if the synthetic melanin, which functions primarily to soak up radicals, could be applied topically after a skin injury and have a healing effect on the skin?” Gianneschi said. “It turns out to work exactly that way.”
“You are protecting the skin and repairing it simultaneously,” Lu said. It’s continuous repair, as shown in the team’s video below…
The cream could also potentially be used for blisters and open sores, while quieting the immune system.
The stratum corneum, the outer layer of mature skin cells, communicates with the epidermis below. It is the surface layer, receiving signals from the body and from the outside world. By calming the destructive inflammation at that surface, the body can begin healing instead of becoming even more inflamed.
“This means that stabilizing those upper layers can lead to a process of active healing,” Lu said.
In a lab, the scientists used a chemical to create a blistering reaction to a human skin tissue sample in a dish. The blistering appeared as a separation of the upper layers of the skin from each other—highly inflamed, like a poison ivy reaction.
They waited a few hours, then applied their topical melanin cream to the injured skin. Within the first few days, the cream facilitated an immune response by initially helping the skin’s own radical scavenging enzymes to recover, then by halting the production of inflammatory proteins. This initiated a cascade of responses in which they observed greatly increased rates of healing. This included the preservation of healthy skin layers underneath. In samples that did not have the melanin cream treatment, the blistering persisted.
“The treatment has the effect of setting the skin on a cycle of healing and repair, orchestrated by the immune system,” Lu said.
Melanin could protect from toxins including nerve gas—and the team’s research on melanin is partly funded by the U.S. Department of Defense and the National Institutes of Health. They showed they could dye a military uniform black with the melanin, and that would absorb the nerve gas. Additionally, their observation that melanin protects biologic tissue from high energy radiation, shows it may be an effective treatment for skin burns from radiation exposure.
Melanin also absorbs heavy metals and toxins. “Although it can act this way naturally, we have engineered it to optimize absorption of these toxic molecules with our synthetic version,” Gianneschi said.
The scientists recently completed a human trial showing that the synthetic melanins are non-irritating to human skin—and the promising work may well provide treatment options for cancer patients undergoing radiation therapy in the future.
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During the crucial first two years of life, the brain undergoes significant development, with a staggering one million neural connections formed every second, yet air pollution around cities has emerged as a significant barrier to that healthy brain development, so Kate Harrison decided to devote her life to promoting a solution.
In 2014, almost half of Americans lived in areas that fell short of federal air quality standards.
Since 1958, scientists have shown automobile exhaust to be the main driver of that urban air pollution. Further, transportation emissions are the largest share of greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to climate change in the U.S.
Today, cities already have the solution: engines powered by electricity, not gasoline, eliminate tailpipe emissions altogether.
“I suffered from childhood asthma growing up in New Haven, Connecticut where almost 15% of kids have asthma—almost double the national average,” Ms. Harrison told GNN.
“The need for cities to reduce pollution is a moral imperative with clearly defined consequences for their most vulnerable residents,” she says. “Especially in many minority communities which are jammed up against highways and major traffic corridors.”
Harrison became a co-founder of MoveEV, which is an EV transition company that helps organizations convert fleet and employee-owned gas vehicles to electric—with reimbursements for charging at home.
If all new cars, pickup trucks, and SUVs sold in the next decade were zero-emission, there would be up to 89,300 fewer premature deaths, two million fewer asthma attacks, 10 million fewer lost workdays, and a savings of $978 billion in public health benefits across the U.S. by 2050, according to the American Lung Association.
Norway is often cited as a real-world example of how EV adoption can reduce air pollution.
About 80% of new cars sold there now are fully electric, and another 10% are plug-in hybrids—and the country is powered by an electricity grid that is already very green (91.8% hydropower and 6.4% wind).
As a result, emissions of dangerous particles plunged by a whopping three-quarters from 2000 to 2020.
“EVs are an incredible technology that can move the needle on climate pollution, help families—and cities—save money, and improve our health.”
California’s ambitious EV adoption goals in recent years have yielded measurable results, too.
According to a study in California from 2013-19, increasing the number of electric vehicles per 1,000 people by just 20 in a given zip code was associated with a 3.2% drop in the rate of emergency room visits due to asthma—a common side effect of inhaling combustion byproducts from cars.
Harrison believes cities should set an example for residents by ditching gasoline-powered fleet vehicles, like trucks and buses, in favor of EVs—and there is a growing number of such conversions. Even businesses are transitioning; Amazon has more than 100,000 EV delivery vans on the road today.
New York City already operates more than 4,000 government-owned EVs, including an electrified garbage truck fleet. The federal government’s Clean School Bus Program is providing more than $5 billion to help cities prioritize vehicles moving children and idling near schools.
Asthma sufferer by Kathryn Doran, CC license
Helping individuals make their own transition to EVs, Kate wrote a blog on the MoveEV website about buying a 2012 Nissan Leaf, demonstrating how it was “an insanely affordable electric vehicle.”
Making it easier for drivers of these electric cars, Los Angeles, which is ground zero for harmful tailpipe emissions, provides residents with over 1,100 public charging stations, free parking, and charging for EVs at some locations—and rebates for residents who install home chargers.
In some cities, such as San Francisco, EV drivers receive reduced bridge tolls.
“Every parent deserves the assurance that their child’s environment isn’t silently eroding their potential,” said Harrison. “Data from places like Norway and California present not just a vision but a tangible reality of what is achievable.”
“It’s no longer a question of whether cities can afford to embrace electric vehicles but whether they can afford not to. With advances in EV technology, cities and counties have no excuse not to meet the imperative of embracing EV adoption”—and MoveEV can help them do it.
A 59-year-old woman grabbed her camera after spotting a murmuration of starlings while out for a walk.
Helen Day said the flock looked like a “dark spell” drifting across the grass, near Bangor in north Wales.
The language teacher and curator from Hertfordshire, England said “It was mesmerizing—like a dark spell drifting across the land.”
And, it sounded like the rush of the sea. “I’m no bird watcher, but it was really freaky to me.
“It was just a happy accident that I caught it on camera.”
She was on vacation in late October when she witnessed the murmuration, which occurs when a flock of starlings, which may include other species from other families, exhibit a swarm behavior in a large flight formation.
“It felt like I had the whole world to myself in that moment.”
Quote of the Day: “Out of difficulties grow miracles.” – Jean de la Bruyere
Photo by: Matthew Henry
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More than three quarters of U.S. small business owners believe that their company is equipped to handle any upcoming economic instability, according to a new poll.
The new survey of 1,000 small business owners revealed that increased interest rates and inflation are their top economic concerns for the remainder of 2023.
But despite those economic concerns, 72% of small business owners feel more optimistic now about the financial prospects of their company than they did at the beginning of the year.
The entrepreneurs have tapped into various financial resources to cope with the economic changes, including savings accounts and loans (61%) and raising prices (50%).
Conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Melio, the random double-opt-in survey found that 48% of those surveyed (which included a statistically significant amount of African Americans, Hispanic/Latinos, and women small business owners) have raised their prices by an average of 7% over the last six months.
But they are still reporting an increase in repeat business (66%), sales (63%) and number of new clients (56%).
Having an online presence is more important to small businesses than it used to be, which led to some of the changes made this year: 66% of respondents have increased their advertising and marketing efforts, 58% increased their digital presence, and more than half started selling products online.
“Small businesses are the foundation of the economy,” said Tomer Barel, Melio’s president and COO. “And, despite the challenges posed by inflation and interest rates, small business owners seem to adapt and demonstrate impressive agility and resilience.”
Beyond the importance of digitizing aspects of their businesses—like, inventory management (51%) and customer service (42%)—three-quarters feel that it is most imperative to accept forms of payment beyond cash—more than it used to be.
“Since the pandemic began over three years ago, small businesses are embracing new technologies that can help them take control over their finances and weather economic uncertainty,” said Melio’s CBO Prashant Gandhi.
Centenarians at Care U.K’s Manor Lodge: Irene Rankin (101 ), Daisy Taylor (103) and Phyllis Cottrell (103) – SWNS
Centenarians at Care U.K’s Manor Lodge: Irene Rankin (101 ), Daisy Taylor (103) and Phyllis Cottrell (103) – SWNS
Three friends over 100-years-old in Britain have revealed their secret to a long life, which includes keeping a ‘toy boy nearby’.
Daisy, 103, Irene, 101, and Phyllis, 103, say they still laugh and “enjoy life to the fullest” every day.
Each woman has lived through their own fair share of triumph and torture, including World Wars and loves lost
The three pals who all live in the same senior care home have now shared their advice on how to live for a century, including staying active and happy, treasuring family, fresh air, and nature.
Daisy Taylor, turning 104 this month, said she makes the most of every day and loves having her large family around her to help her do this.
“We all meet and we enjoy life – I look forward to it. I live life to the full. I’m always on the go, I don’t like sitting around.
“Sitting in a chair is not my scene really, but’s it’s come to that now!” she said, even though the staff at Manor Lodge help keep her busy.
She has two daughters, one son, 10 grandchildren and 23 great-grandchildren, and the staff in Chelmsford, Essex, says she loves activities’.
Irene (L) and Daisy (R) – SWNS
They say both Daisy and Phyllis are the oldest people to attend their movement to music classes and be able to participate fully.
“Yoga, dancing, cycling… I’ve always been to exercise classes and mixing with people is a nice thing.”
Daisy’s husband to whom she was married for 39 years passed away at just 60, and now she brags that she “has a toy boy in another local care home who is 96.”
Irene Rankin, who has always loved being outdoors, describes herself as an “easygoing” soul who “gets on well with mostly everything”.
“I like to be in the fresh air, alongside the seaside, in nature… I remember walking for miles. The animals and the plants have always taken my fancy because they are living creatures.”
Irene, who worked with machines in upholstery—the same job as Daisy—has always thrown herself into her hobbies and things that make her happy, admitting there “aren’t many things [she] dislikes.”
Captain of her school swimming team, Irene has always loved swimming and diving—cooking and gardening, too. But the Doris Day fan says one of her biggest loves in life is music. The Manor Lodge staff says the joyful lady “dances all the time”.
“I like to sing in my own way. Music always brings back such lovely memories and I thoroughly enjoy it. Dancing, laughter and joining in are things I have lived by.”
The mother-of-two from East London met her first husband at 18, but he passed away shortly after their wedding after leaving the country to fight in the war. Phyllis raised her daughter on her own for four years, before meeting Charles, who she endearingly named ‘Red’.
“I was happily married for 73 years and one of my greatest achievements was finding love again with Red.”
She was not only a mother but worked in many different fields, including running a laundry and ending up as a salesperson, retired when she was a youthful 80.
The grandmother of three says living and eating healthily is very important. “I used to tell the children that they must eat their greens.
“But it’s just being with people and my family that makes me happy. Also keep yourself warm in the winter!””
Phyllis says if she could give advice on how to live a long and happy life, it would be to “be kind and optimistic—positive attitude is the key to life.
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Michelangelo secret room – Francesco Fantani/Courtesy Musei del Bargello
Michelangelo secret room – Francesco Fantani/Courtesy Musei del Bargello
The walls of a “secret” underground room discovered in 1975, covered in sketches by the persecuted Michelangelo, are now being unveiled to the public for the first time.
The Italian Renaissance master sculptor who carved David and decorated the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel hid in the tiny chamber for about two months in 1530 while evading a death sentence ordered by Pope Clement VII.
The pope, who was a member of the powerful Medici family, was enraged at the artist for aiding a rebellion against their reign, the same family whose magnificent tombs Michelangelo carved in the chapel just above his hiding place.
50 years ago, museum officials were searching for a suitable space to create a new exit for tourists visiting the Medici chapel, where the artist had adorned the family tombs with sculptures depicting the passing of time.
They discovered a trapdoor beneath a wardrobe that led to a 10-foot wide room. Stripping two layers of plaster from the walls revealed the existence of the drawings sketched by the maestro using charcoal and sanguine wooden sticks.
Designed by Michelangelo, the Medici Chapel (New Sacristy) lies just above the secret chamber – GWC
“He drew things from the past as if he was taking a trip down memory lane … it was like having an album of his works,” said Paola D’Agostino, the director of the Bargello Museums, which includes four other state museums besides the Medici Chapels.
“(It’s) a place of extraordinary charm,” said Massimo Osanna, Italy’s Director General of Museums.
Detail of Michelangelo drawings – Francesco Fantani/Courtesy Musei del Bargello
Public access will be allowed on an experimental basis until March, 2024, with only 4 people at a time able to view the room, in order to maintain adequate conservation conditions for the precious drawings, with alternating periods of exposure to LED light and prolonged periods of darkness.
Window opening in secret room – Francesco Fantani/Courtesy Musei del Bargello
“This very small environment is truly unique due to its exceptional evocative potential… traced by signs that attest to great clarity of design,” commented Francesca de Luca, curator of the Museum of the Medici Chapels.
This, despite the looming wrath of the Medici pope due to Michelangelo’s activity as head of fortifications for the short-lived republican government, which had expelled the family in 1527. It was the Prior of San Lorenzo—the larger Basilica to which the smaller funerary chapel designed by Michelangelo is attached—Giovan Battista Figiovanni, who hid Michelangelo in the room which has a small window where he could see the feet of passersby.
Medici chapel (right) and the larger San Lorenzo Basilica in Florence – GWC
After about two months of self-imprisonment (beneath the smaller chapel pictured above), Michelangelo obtained the family’s forgiveness and resumed his Florentine duties. But the artist abandoned Florence four years later, taking up residence in Rome, never to return. However, he remained so beloved in Florence that the Medici family stole his remains from Rome bringing them back to be entombed in the local Basilica Santa Croce.
Basilica of Santa Croce in Florence where Michelangelo’s tomb is enshrined – GWC
The small room, 10 meters long by 3 meters wide and 2.50 meters high at the top of the vault, had been used as a charcoal deposit until 1955 and then unused, remaining closed and forgotten for decades, under a trap door covered by furniture.
According to Dal Poggetto, the artist used the walls of the small room to sketch some of his past projects including works from the New Sacristy above him, like the legs of Giuliano de’ Medici carved for his tomb, along with quotations from antiquity.
Detail of Michelangelo drawings – Francesco Fantani/Courtesy Musei del Bargello
Reservations to visit the secret room will be limited to 100 people per week until March 30 and cost 20 euros, though visitors must also pay for entry to the San Lorenzo site (10 euros) plus a 3 euro reservation charge. Youth aged 18-25 get a discount.
“This place grants today’s visitors the unique experience of being able to come into direct contact not only with the creative process of the maestro, but also with the perception of the formation of his myth as a divine artist,” said Francesca de Luca, curator of the Museum of the Medici Chapels, in a press release.
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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY – Week of November 4, 2023
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
Who would have guessed that elephants can play the drums really well? On a trip to Thailand, Scorpio musician Dave Soldier discovered that if given sticks and drums, some elephants kept a steadier beat than humans. A few were so talented that Soldier recorded their rhythms and played them for a music critic who couldn’t tell they were created by animals. In accordance with astrological omens, I propose that you Scorpios seek out comparable amazements. You now have the potential to make unprecedented discoveries.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
Sagittarian novelist Shirley Jackson wrote, “No live organism can continue for long to exist under conditions of absolute reality; even larks and katydids dream.” Since she wrote that, scientists have gathered evidence that almost all animals dream and that dreaming originated at least 300 million years ago. With that as our inspiration and in accordance with astrological omens, I urge you to enjoy an intense period of tapping into your dreams. To do so will help you escape from absolute reality. It will also improve your physical and mental health and give you unexpected clues about how to solve problems.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
Capricorn writer Kahlil Gibran believed an essential human longing is to be revealed. We all want the light in us to be taken out of its hiding place and shown. If his idea is true about you, you will experience major cascades of gratification in the coming months. I believe you will be extra expressive. And you will encounter more people than ever before who are interested in knowing what you have to express. To prepare for the probable breakthroughs, investigate whether you harbor any fears or inhibitions about being revealed—and dissolve them.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
November is Build Up Your Confidence Month. In the coming weeks, you are authorized to snag easy victories as you steadily bolster your courage to seek bigger, bolder triumphs. As much as possible, put yourself in the vicinity of people who respect you and like you. If you suspect you have secret admirers, encourage them to be less secretive. Do you have plaques, medals, or trophies? Display them prominently. Or visit a trophy store and have new awards made for you to commemorate your unique skills—like thinking wild thoughts, pulling off one-of-a-kind adventures, and inspiring your friends to rebel against their habits.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
I’m glad we have an abundance of teachers helping us learn how to be here now—to focus on the present moment with gratitude and grace. I love the fact that books on the art of mindfulness are now almost as common as books about cats and cooking. Yay! But I also want to advocate for the importance of letting our minds wander freely. We need to celebrate the value and power of NOT always being narrowly zeroed in on the here and now. We can’t make intelligent decisions unless we ruminate about what has happened in the past and what might occur in the future. Meandering around in fantasyland is key to discovering new insights. Imaginative ruminating is central to the creative process. Now please give your mind the privilege of wandering far and wide in the coming weeks, Pisces.
ARIES (March 21-April 19):
“Our bodies sometimes serve as the symbolic ground where order and disorder fight for supremacy,” writes storyteller Caroline Kettlewell. Here’s good news, Aries: For you, order will triumph over disorder in the coming weeks. In part through your willpower and in part through life’s grace, you will tame the forces of chaos and enjoy a phase when most everything makes sense. I don’t mean you will have zero problems, but I suspect you will have an enhanced power to solve problems. Your mind and heart will coordinate their efforts with exceptional flair.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
I recently endured a three-hour root canal. Terrible and unfortunate, right? No! Because it brought profound joy. The endodontist gave me nitrous oxide, and the resulting euphoria unleashed a wild epiphany. For the duration of the surgery, I had vivid visions of all the people in my life who love me. I felt their care. I was overwhelmed with the kindness they felt for me. Never before had I been blessed with such a blissful gift.Now, in accordance with your astrological omens, I invite you to induce a similar experience—no nitrous oxide needed. It’s a perfect time to meditate on how well you are appreciated and needed and cherished.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
Unless you are very unusual, you don’t sew your clothes or grow your food. You didn’t build your house, make your furniture, or forge your cooking utensils. Like most of us, you know little about how water and electricity arrive for your use. Do you have any notion of what your grandparents were doing when they were your age? Have you said a prayer of gratitude recently for the people who have given you so much? I don’t mean to put you on the spot with my questions, Gemini. I’m merely hoping to inspire you to get into closer connection with everything that nourishes and sustains you. Honor the sources of your energy. Pay homage to your foundations.
CANCER (June 21-July 22):
Cancerian singer-songwriter Suzanne Vega has had a modest but sustained career. With nine albums, she has sold over three million records, but is not in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She has said, “I always thought that if I were popular, I must be doing something wrong.” I interpret that to mean she has sought to remain faithful to her idiosyncratic creativity and not pay homage to formulaic success. But here’s the good news for you in the coming months, fellow Cancerian: You can be more appreciated than ever before simply by being true to your soul’s inclinations and urges.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
“Everything in the world has a hidden meaning,” wrote Greek author Nikos Kazantzakis. Did he really mean everything? Your dream last night, your taste in shoes, your favorite TV show, the way you laugh? As a fun experiment, let’s say that yes, everything has a hidden meaning. Let’s also hypothesize that the current astrological omens suggest you now have a special talent for discerning veiled and camouflaged truths. We will further propose that you have an extraordinary power to penetrate beyond surface appearances and home in on previously unknown and invisible realities. Do you have the courage and determination to go deeper than you have ever dared? I believe you do.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
How many glowworms would have to gather in one location to make a light as bright as the sun? Probably over a trillion. And how many ants would be required to carry away a 15-pound basket of food? I’m guessing over 90,000. Luckily for you, the cumulative small efforts you need to perform so as to accomplish big breakthroughs won’t be nearly that high a number. For instance, you may be able to take a quantum leap after just six baby steps.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
In the 17th century, John Milton wrote a long narrative poem titled Paradise Lost. I’ve never read it and am conflicted about the prospect of doing so. On one hand, I feel I should engage with a work that has had such a potent influence on Western philosophy and literature. On the other hand, I’m barely interested in Milton’s story, which includes boring conversations between God and Satan and the dreary tale of how God cruelly exiled humans from paradise because the first man, Adam, was mildly rebellious. So what should I do? I’ve decided to read the *Cliffs Notes* study guide about *Paradise Lost*, a brief summary of the story. In accordance with astrological omens, I suggest you call on similar shortcuts, Libra. Here’s your motto: if you can’t do the completely right thing, try the partially right thing.
WANT MORE? Listen to Rob’s EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPES, 4-5 minute meditations on the current state of your destiny — or subscribe to his unique daily text message service at: RealAstrology.com
Quote of the Day: “We don’t see things as they are, we see them as we are.” – Anais Nin
Photo by: Dim Hou
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Illustration of aftermath of collision with Theia – Professor Hongping Deng of the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory / Hangzhou Sphere Studio
Illustration of aftermath of collision with Theia – Professor Hongping Deng of the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory / Hangzhou Sphere Studio
A proto planet the size of Mars called Theia may have collided, and remained, inside the Earth after ejecting enough material to form the Moon.
But in an expansive new study, researchers say there’s reason to believe that Theia’s impact on the solar system hasn’t concluded because it’s still influencing the forces of the Earth’s interior having been subsumed by our planet.
An international, interdisciplinary team of researchers identified something called Large Low-Velocity Provinces (LLVP) deep in the second layer of the Earth, known as the mantle, which could be relics of Theia.
The new study, published in the journal Nature, offers important new insights not only into the Earth’s internal structure but also its long-term evolution and the formation of the inner solar system.
How our own Moon was formed has proved a persistent challenge for several generations of scientists. The prevailing theories suggest that during the late stages of the Earth’s growth around 4.5 billion years ago, a huge collision known as the ‘giant impact’ formed the Moon from the debris.
Simulations have also indicated that the Moon likely inherited material primarily from Theia, whilst Earth, due to its bigger size, was only mildly mixed with Theian material.
Since Earth and Theia were relatively independent formations composed of different materials, previous theories suggested that the Moon, being dominated by Theian material, and the Earth, being dominated by Earthen material, should have distinct compositions.
However, high-precision isotope measurements later revealed that the compositions of the Earth and Moon are remarkably similar, thus challenging the conventional theory of the formation of the Moon.
Professor Hongping Deng of the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory (SHAO) has been researching this topic since 2017.
Deng has discovered that the early Earth featured an upper and lower mantle of very different material compositions. Specifically, the upper mantle featured a magma ocean created through a thorough mixing of material from Earth and Theia, while the lower mantle remained largely solid and retained the material composition of Earth.
Following discussions with geophysicists from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, Deng and his collaborators realized that this mantle layering may have persisted to the present day about 1,000 km (600 miles) beneath the Earth’s surface.
“Our findings challenge the traditional notion that the giant impact led to the homogenization of the early Earth,” Deng said. “Instead, the Moon-forming giant impact appears to be the origin of the early mantle’s heterogeneity and marks the starting point for the Earth’s geological evolution over the course of 4.5 billion years.”
Another example of the Earth’s mantle diversity is the two anomalous regions, the LLVPs mentioned earlier, which stretch for hundreds of miles at the base of the mantle.
One is located beneath the African tectonic plate, whilst the other is under the Pacific plate. When seismic waves pass through these areas, wave velocity is significantly reduced.
Previous research has demonstrated that LLVPs have significant implications for the evolution of the mantle, the separation and aggregation of supercontinents, and the Earth’s tectonic plate structures but their origins have remained a mystery.
Dr. Qian Yuan, from the California Institute of Technology, proposed along with his collaborators that LLVPs could have evolved from a small amount of Theian material that entered Earth’s lower mantle.
“Through precise analysis of a wider range of rock samples, combined with more refined giant impact models and Earth evolution models, we can infer the material composition and orbital dynamics of the primordial Earth and Theia,” said Dr. Yuan. “This allows us to constrain the entire history of the formation of the inner solar system.”
Through in-depth analysis, the research team calculated that around 2% of denser, iron-rich Theian material rapidly sank to the bottom of the mantle and, over the course of long-term mantle convection, formed two prominent LLVP regions which have remained stable throughout 4.5 billion years of geological evolution.
Diversity in the deep mantle suggests that the Earth’s interior is far from a uniform system.
Evidence such as isotope ratios of rare gases in samples of Icelandic basalt suggest that remnants of diversity between Earth and Theia in the deep mantle still serve to shape the Earth today, and can be used to inform the 4.5 billion years of geological evolution that followed the great impact.
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From Dubai comes the story of an ordinary man being singled out for honors by the police department after a selfless display of civic-mindedness.
An unnamed Dubai resident was driving when he saw some debris on Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Road. It’s a situation we’ve all been in before, and almost always simply passed by, thinking “someone should do something about that debris.”
Well, the resident decided that person should be him, and when the Dubai police arrived to do just that, they found the man had already cleaned up the debris for them.
The department claimed the man had explained he did it out of concern for the safety of other motorists.
“Celebrating unsung heroes. It’s not about physical strength, but about the initiative.” Here is a new story from the heart of Dubai, and a well-deserved recognition from Dubai Police,” the Department posted on X, formerly Twitter, with a short video of the story.
In the UAE and the Muslim world at large, but particularly in Dubai owing to the mixing of cultures, gift-giving is practiced with extreme frequency, and in the video it appears the police gave the man a present of sorts. All in a day’s work.
Salisbury Police Department of North Carolina is honoring one of their own who said he was willing to die in a car fire in order to save the unconscious motorist trapped within.
Lieutenant Corey Brooks is the hero in question—who saw a tractor-trailer hit the guardrails along Interstate 85 and catch fire on August 8th. The driver, Michael Williams, was unconscious.
“This truck can go at anytime and I was thinking ‘I am either going to die here with him or I am going to get him out of here,’” Brooks said. “When it hit the wall it scared me because it’s not everyday you see a tractor-trailer hit a wall that fast.”
For anyone who knows Brooks, this wouldn’t come as a surprise, who has already won commendations that include the City of Salisbury Bronze Keys of Excellence, Salisbury Police Veteran Officer of the Year, the 2016 Blue Line Brotherhood Award, and Lion’s Club Salisbury Police Veteran of the Year.
The Department released body cam footage of Brooks’ rescue, which is nothing short of something from a Die Hard film. It shows Brooks running down a line of burning fuel to the cab of the truck where Williams is slumped unconscious in his seat belt. Brooks screams at him to get out, but quickly realizes he must remove the driver himself, and does so after unlatching the seatbelt.
Another driver wearing an Argentina National Football Team shirt showed up out of the blue to help Brooks haul Williams across the street, whom the officer later called an “angel” and whose identity remains a mystery.
Brooks’ remarks about the truck being capable of “going” at any time were no exaggeration, and just minutes after he pulled Williams to safety, something can be heard exploding from the direction of the semi.
Williams made a full recovery, and Brooks said the ordeal was the scariest moment in his 25 years of law enforcement.
WATCH the story below…
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A group of teenagers who came across an empty candy bucket decided to refill it with their own candy in order to ensure little kids could have some too.
Going viral on social media, the act of holiday generosity was filmed from the house owner’s Ring camera and captured the irony of the three young women, dressed as bald businessmen, donating their own candy and inviting other trick-or-treaters to follow suit.
Homeowner Jennifer Wyckoff of Redmond, central Oregon, was excited to watch the Ring camera footage back with her daughter Layla Glover, so as to see all the different costumes that paid them a visit. Their candy bucket had a note pinned to it: “Sorry we missed you, be kind and only take a few pieces.”
What they found was rather shocking, rather than coming up and taking candy, kids were coming up and replenishing Wyckoff’s pumpkin which was at that point empty.
“On our camera, I saw them come up to the house, there was no candy there. They said ‘Oh, let’s donate some to the bowl.’ There was some other kids walking up and they told them ‘Hey, come give some candy to this bowl, there’s none left,’” Glover told the Central Oregon Daily News
The TV station then got in contact with some of the kids, and they had some inspiring insight into their generous trick.
“We see the teenagers running around especially later at night taking the candy, and then all of the little kids who still want more candy when there’s none left in the bowl, it just makes you want to give more,” said Samantha Sale, one of the girls who donated some of her candy.
Another said that three pieces of candy from her already-bulging stash aren’t going to make much difference to her, but for a child arriving at the empty candy bucket who might really have their spirits dropped, the candy would make a big difference.
After being shared on Facebook, someone commented that they “didn’t want to brag,” but their daughter was the one who started it all, to which another replied that “those teens were raised right! Great job! You should be extremely proud of your actions last night!!”
Still, another, proving that good deeds don’t go unrewarded, said “Reach out to me!! I will gladly give them some whole candy bars from my leftovers!!”
WATCH the story below from Central Oregon Daily…
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Quote of the Day: “If the world seems cold to you, kindle fires to warm it.” – Lucy Larcom
Photo by: (c) GWC
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These white beads contain engineered E. coli bacteria that can produce valuable chemicals from munching on plastic - University of Edinbrough via SWNS
These white beads contain engineered E. coli bacteria that can produce valuable chemicals from munching on plastic – University of Edinburgh via SWNS
Plastic-chomping bacteria could transform plastic bottles into make-up, drugs, and perfumes, according to a new study.
University of Edinburgh scientists engineered a simple E. coli bacteria to eat our litter and regurgitate it into something else. Writing in ACS Central Science, the researchers announced it was the first “one-pot” solution for making plastic waste useful, or valorizing it, using microbes.
Mountains of disposable polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles are thrown out every day. The world produces millions of tons of PET a year, over 80% of which is for single-use products.
The E. coli can upcycle discarded PET into adipic acid, widely relied on in cosmetic, pharmaceutical, and fragrance industries.
Adipic acid is generally created by an energy-intensive process that’s reliant on fossil fuels, and the team hopes their study will encourage industries to use fossil alternatives.
“This approach enables the upcycling of waste carbon from existing industrial processes to create circular economies, avoiding the environmental consequences of landfill and/or incineration processes,” write the authors.
“Although chemical and biological approaches to the depolymerization and recycling of PET waste are being investigated, bio-upcycling technologies to convert plastic waste into higher value small molecules are less established.”
“Herein we report the first one-pot bioproduction of adipic acid from terephthalic acid and terephthalate waste in engineered Escherichia coli.”
Previously the authors write, other engineers created an E. coli strain that could transform the main component in PET, terephthalic acid, into vanilla flavoring, otherwise known as vanillin.
Building on that research, the University of Edinburgh’s team practiced getting microbes to metabolize terephthalic acid into small molecules including short acids.
They first turned terephthalic acid into muconic acid using one type of E. coli, and then transformed that into adipic acid using another E. coli. They managed to turn up to 79% of the terephthalic acid into adipic acid.
Next, the team hopes to find a way to create higher-value products through similar processes.
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A ten-year-old quadruple amputee is going to attempt to summit a 656-foot mountain to raise money for other children with disabilities.
The climber, Luke Mortimer, is “determined” to summit Embsay Crag, in North Yorkshire. The kind-hearted youngster has dubbed the peak his ‘Everest,’ and is undertaking the challenge as an attempt to “return the favor” to charities which have helped him.
Mortimer was just seven years old when he contracted the severe bacterial infections meningococcal meningitis and septicemia. Although he survived the deadly illness, he lost all his limbs and needed 23 painful surgeries over a ten-week period to replace missing skin and address his wounds.
Ever since his family moved near the Embsay area in 2019, the plucky lad has had ambitions to summit the nearby crag, which he can see from the garden of his rural home.
“When we moved here, we were going down the road to Embsay, and I just saw the crag, and I said, ‘Mum, dad, one day can we climb it?'” said Mortimer. “It’s been a few years now, but I feel very determined about getting to the top and back down. I think the worst thing that can happen is probably rain.”
Luke’s dad, Adam Mortimer admitted the steep two-mile journey to the top of the summit and back would be a “tough challenge” for his intrepid son.
But he said Luke was intent on reaching the peak himself and would be wearing a set of shortened knee-length prosthetics called ‘stubbies’ for the climb.
“It will take as long as it takes. We don’t have a set time because I don’t want to put him under any pressure,” said Mr. Mortimer. “It’s just going to be at Luke’s pace, up and back down.”
Charities and fundraisers set up in the wake of the amputations managed over £15,000 ($18,000) worth of donations from an army of well-wishers, allowing him to get a suite of prosthetics that he used in rehabilitation. They also paid for his first robotic arm so he could do more for himself.
Volunteer organization Band of Builders later helped his dad Adam fit the bungalow where Luke lives with a remarkable range of adaptions, which were unveiled on September 3 this year.
A charity called Band of Builders made a small house for Luke, with everything built to the specifications of his abilities – SWNS
Luke’s challenge will begin from a parking lot at the Embsay Reservoir at 10 a.m. on Saturday, where cakes and refreshments will be sold for charity prior to the ascent.
“There’s a few people that have said they’ll come along—it’s kind of an open invitation,” said Adam. “We’ve done it at his school, we’ve put it online.”
Simon Antrobus, Chief Executive at BBC Children in Need, wished Luke the best of luck for his fundraising initiative.
“We would like to extend our enormous thanks to Luke for taking on such an inspiring challenge and for choosing BBC Children in Need as one of the charities to benefit from his fundraising,” he said. “We wish him lots of luck for next weekend and cannot wait to see how he gets on.”
WATCH the story below from SWNS…
SHARE This Inspiring Ascent Of Mini-Everest By This Intrepid Boy…
