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Number of Greater One-Horned Rhinos Reaches New High – Up From Just 100 Individuals

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IRF
(c) WWF Nepal

Confirmation from India came this week hailing a conservation success story for the greater one-horned rhino.

The International Rhino Foundation announced the milestone, reporting that the population now numbers 4,014 individuals—up from just 100 individuals 50 years ago.

The government of Assam, the state in India that is home to 70% of the population, just completed its biannual rhino census, saying the greater one-horned rhino total has increased by 274 rhinos since the last count.

Helped by a baby boom during the pandemic when many protected areas were closed to visitors, Nepal is the only other country where the species exists.

“For an animal that was once perilously close to extinction, numbering fewer than 100 individuals, this recovery is truly remarkable,” said the IRF in a fundraising plea.

Thanks to strict protection and conservation measures enacted by regional and national-level governments in India and Nepal, the greater one-horned rhino’s recovery provides a blueprint of hope for other rhino species.

The population is growing because the governments of India and Nepal have given rhinos the space they need to breed, while also preventing poaching deaths. Over the past three years, the government of Assam has more than doubled the area of Kaziranga National Park (home to the world’s largest greater one-horned rhino population) from 430 square kilometers to 1,040.

RELATED: Tiny New Species of Chocolate Frog is Discovered After Scientists Follow its Unique ‘Beep’ Sound

“The overall growth in population size is indicative of ongoing protection and habitat management efforts by protected area authorities, despite challenging contexts these past years,” said Ghana Gurung, Country Representative of WWF Nepal.

Earlier this year, it announced plans to increase Orang National Park by about 200 square km. With NGO partners, including the International Rhino Foundation, the government of Assam initiated translocation of rhinos within protected areas of Assam to give rhinos more room to breed. All rhino bearing protected areas are also closed to visitors during breeding season.

MORE: ‘Comical-Looking’ Bat Thought to Be Extinct is Found Again After 40 Years in Dense Rainforest

IRF also works with local NGOs—Aaranyak (in India) and The National Trust for Nature Conservation (in Nepal)—to control invasive plant species and assist native grasses to recover rhinos’ shrinking habitats. The end result of all of these programs is more space for rhinos and more rhino babies being born.

IRF

At the same time they’re expanding rhino habitats to increase population growth, the two Asian governments are also prioritizing rhino protection and enforcement of wildlife crime laws to reduce deaths.

IRF supports them by purchasing vehicles and equipment needed for anti-poaching patrols and providing training for forest guards and other law enforcement officers on wildlife law, crime scene investigation, evidence collection and case preparation.

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Groundbreaking New Study Finds Possible Explanation for SIDS

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Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) may soon be a thing of the past, thanks to a world-first breakthrough.

Researchers at at The Children’s Hospital at Westmead have identified Butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) as the first biochemical marker that could help detect babies more at risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) while they are alive.

The study analyzed BChE activity in 722 Dried Blood Spots (DBS) taken at birth as part of the Newborn Screening Program, using only samples parents approved for use in de-identified research. BChE was measured in both SIDS and infants dying from other causes and each compared to 10 surviving infants with the same date of birth and gender.

Led by Dr Carmel Harrington, study lead and Honorary Research Fellow at CHW, who lost her own child to SIDS 29 years ago, the study found BChE levels were significantly lower in babies who subsequently died of SIDS compared to living controls and other infant deaths.

BChE plays a major role in the brain’s arousal pathway and researchers believe its deficiency likely indicates an arousal deficit, which reduces an infant’s ability to wake or respond to the external environment, causing vulnerability to SIDS.

LOOK: Pregnant Mom Saves Unborn Baby’s Life By Rushing to Hospital Despite Showing No Warning Signs: ‘It was Instinct’

Dr Harrington says the findings are game-changing.

“Babies have a very powerful mechanism to let us know when they are not happy. Usually, if a baby is confronted with a life-threatening situation, such as difficulty breathing during sleep because they are on their tummies, they will arouse and cry out. What this research shows is that some babies don’t have this same robust arousal response,” Dr Harrington said.

“This has long been thought to be the case, but up to now we didn’t know what was causing the lack of arousal. Now that we know that BChE is involved we can begin to change the outcome for these babies and make SIDS a thing of the past.”

SIDS is the unexplained death of an apparently healthy infant less than one year of age, during a period of sleep.

The incidence of SIDS has been more than halved in recent years due to public health campaigns addressing the known major risk factors of prone sleeping, maternal smoking, and overheating. However, the rate of SIDS remains high, contributing to almost 50 per cent of all post-neonatal deaths in Western countries and responsible for two infant deaths in Australia every week.

RELATED: Babies Use Kissing and Sharing Their Food as Signals to Interpret Their Social World, Says New Study

After losing her son, Damien, to SIDS, Dr Harrington has dedicated her career to finding answers for the condition, supporting much of her research through her crowd-funding campaign, Damien’s Legacy. She says these results not only offer hope for the future, but answers for the past.

“An apparently healthy baby going to sleep and not waking up is every parent’s nightmare and until now there was absolutely no way of knowing which infant would succumb. But that’s not the case anymore.”

“This discovery has opened up the possibility for intervention and finally gives answers to parents who have lost their children so tragically. These families can now live with the knowledge that this was not their fault,” Dr Harrington said.

While these findings do offer some hope for the future, parents are strongly encouraged to continue following safe sleeping practices including placing babies on their backs to sleep, keeping their head and face uncovered during sleep and ensuring a safe sleeping environment in both the day and night.

MORE: UK’s Most Premature Twins Finally Go Home 5 Months After Being Given 0% Chance of Survival

The next steps for researchers is to begin looking at introducing the BChE biomarker into newborn screening and develop specific interventions to address the enzyme deficiency. It is expected this will take around five years to complete.

“This discovery changes the narrative around SIDS and is the start of a very exciting journey ahead. We are going to be able to work with babies while they are living and make sure they keep living,” Dr Harrington said.

This study has been published by The Lancet’s eBioMedicine.

Source: The Sydney Children’s Hospital Network

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“Stop insisting on clearing your head. Clear your heart instead.” – Charles Bukowski

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Quote of the Day: “Stop insisting on clearing your head. Clear your heart instead.” – Charles Bukowski

Photo by: Aleksandra Sapozhnikova

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Livin’ Good Currency Ep. 10: Dominic Kalms on Bringing the E-Commerce Revolution to Philanthropy

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Andy Corbley
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The Lesson: If someone wants to start an e-commerce platform to sell goods or services online, there are literally thousands of tools ranging from simple drag-and-drop interfaces that the biggest luddite could use, to the most comprehensive panoply of features for enterprise-level operations. But for charitable or non-profit work, even though the market cap and market velocity are similar, the tools just aren’t there. Dominic Kalms has built several platforms capable of allowing people to set up a non-profit project for whatever social good they’re trying to achieve, as easy as using Shopify.

Notable Excerpt: “There’re 1.7 million non-profits, and starting a non-profit is hard. The average cost—labor and time is very prohibitive, I mean you’re talking $20,000-plus, average, to start a non-profit. To get the IRS to approve a non-profit, that’s 6-8 months, on average, and if you want to be compliant across the federal, state, and local jurisdictions across the United States, there are over 200 documents that need to be filed. So I thought to myself ‘there’s got to be a better way,’ so what I did with GVNG is I raised a round of venture capital financing and we built a digital one touch solution for instantly launching, running and managing your own non-profit project, or donor-advised fund. Over the last 5 years we’ve powered thousands and thousands and thousands of non-profit projects, we’ve processed millions of dollars of non-profit capital through our system.

The Guest: Dominic Kalms is a venture backed entrepreneur and philanthropist with an expertise in financial tech, charity and non-profits. He has created two revolutionary philanthropic platforms, B Generous, and GVNG, a venture-backed platform that facilitates the creation of instant charitable giving accounts. He has raised over $50 million in venture and philanthropic capital during his career, but is also a public speaker of a Tedx Talk, and a long list of global forums on philanthropy on Nexus Global Summit, or TechCruch’s Global Ventures Summit.

The Podcast: Livin’ Good Currency explores the relationship of time to our lives. It gives a simple, straight-forward formula that anyone can use to be present in the moment—and features a co-host who knows better than anyone the value of time (see below). How do you want to spend your life? This hour can inspire you, along with upcoming guests, to be sure you are ‘Livin’ Good Currency’ and never get caught running out of time.

The Hosts: Good News Network fans will know Tony (Anthony) Samadani as the co-owner of GNN and its Chief of Strategic Partnerships. Co-host Tobias Tubbs was handed a double life sentence without the possibility of parole for a crime he didn’t commit. Behind bars, he used his own version of the Livin’ Good Currency formula to inspire young men in prison to turn their hours into honors. An expert in conflict resolution, spirituality, and philosophy, Tobias is a master gardener who employs ex-felons to grow their Good Currency by planting crops and feeding neighborhoods.

Subscribe to the Pod:  On iTunes… On Spotify… On Amazon Music… Or Google Play.

Zeus, the World’s Tallest Dog, is Big as Texas (LOOK)

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Guinness World Records

Zeus of Texas is now officially the world’s tallest dog, measuring an impressive 3 feet 5.18 inches tall.

Guinness World Records

The two-year-old Great Dane officially achieved the title on March 22, 2022, after his record-breaking height was measured and confirmed by his vet. 

“Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted a Great Dane named Zeus,” said Brittany Davis. Her dream became reality when her brother gifted eight-week-old Zeus to the Davis family.

She said, “At first, we were nervous about having such a large dog, but we fell in love with him and here we are!”

Zeus shares his home with three miniature Australian shepherds, as well as a cat. While he reportedly loves all his siblings, his best friend is the miniature Australian shepherd, Zeb.

Nothing, not even their vast height difference gets in the way of their playtime and bonding. 

MORE: Florida Chihuahua is World’s Oldest Living Dog Setting Guinness Record

According to Guinness World Records, “Zeus loves walking with his human brother and sleeping by his window in his chair.

He loves visiting the Dallas Farmers Market where he is always the center of attention. Vendors greet him by name and offer up extra treats; he’s a local celebrity!”

Guinness World Records

Known to be laidback, a little stubborn, and for loving everybody he meets, Davis commented that, “He is only naughty when he wants to take food off the counter or steal the baby’s pacifier.” 

Guinness World Records

She says when people see Zeus, they often comment on his size, even asking things like, “Can I ride him? Does he have a saddle?” 

Guinness World Records

To be fair, we can see why.

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Scientists Power a Computer Using Only Algae and Daylight to Make the Electricity

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University of Cambridge; Paulo Bombelli
University of Cambridge; Paulo Bombelli

Researchers have used a widespread species of blue-green algae to power a microprocessor continuously for a year—and counting—using nothing but ambient light and water.

Their system has potential as a reliable and renewable way to power small devices.

Comparable in size to an AA battery, the system contains a type of non-toxic algae called Synechocystis that naturally harvests energy from the sun through photosynthesis. The tiny electrical current this generates then interacts with an aluminium electrode and is used to power a microprocessor.

The system is made of common, inexpensive, and largely recyclable materials. This means it could easily be replicated hundreds of thousands of times to power large numbers of small devices as part of the Internet of Things.

The researchers say it is likely to be most useful in off-grid situations or remote locations, where small amounts of power can be very beneficial.

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“The growing Internet of Things needs an increasing amount of power, and we think this will have to come from systems that can generate energy, rather than simply store it like batteries,” said Professor Christopher Howe in the University of Cambridge’s Department of Biochemistry, joint senior author of the paper.

LOOK: These Solar Panels Also Pull in Water Vapor to Grow Crops in the Desert

He added, “Our photosynthetic device doesn’t run down the way a battery does because it’s continually using light as the energy source.”

A new method

In the experiment, the device was used to power an Arm Cortex M0+, which is a microprocessor used widely in Internet of Things devices. It operated in a domestic environment and semi-outdoor conditions under natural light and associated temperature fluctuations, and after six months of continuous power production the results were submitted for publication.

RELATED: This Portable EV Charger is a Game-Changer For Drivers Who Need to Plug-in

“We were impressed by how consistently the system worked over a long period of time—we thought it might stop after a few weeks but it just kept going,” said Dr Paolo Bombelli in the University of Cambridge’s Department of Biochemistry, first author of the paper.

The algae does not need feeding, because it creates its own food as it photosynthesizes. And despite the fact that photosynthesis requires light, the device can even continue producing power during periods of darkness. The researchers think this is because the algae processes some of its food when there’s no light, and this continues to generate an electrical current.

MORE: Carbon-Negative Plant Opens in Turkey Turning Algae Into Bio-Jet Fuel and So Much More

The Internet of Things is a vast and growing network of electronic devices—each using only a small amount of power—that collect and share real-time data via the internet. Using low-cost computer chips and wireless networks, many billions of devices are part of this network—from smartwatches to temperature sensors in power stations. This figure is expected to grow to one trillion devices by 2035, requiring a vast number of portable energy sources.

The researchers say that powering trillions of Internet of Things devices using lithium-ion batteries would be impractical: It would need three times more lithium than is produced across the world annually. And traditional photovoltaic devices are made using hazardous materials that have adverse environmental effects.

The study is published in the journal Energy & Environmental Science.

Source: University of Cambridge

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We Finally Rid An Island of 300,000 Rats – Now Everything is Blooming

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Andy Corbley
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wikimedia commons Lord_Howe_Island_-_panoramio cc license wikimedia commonsDavid Stanley
David Stanley, CC license

One of the biggest conservation success stories in the 21st century has been exterminating invasive species from vulnerable islands.

Now, Lord Howe Island in Australia has finished eradicating the entirety of their invasive rat and mouse populations, and the recovery of the endemic-Australian ecosystem has been near-immediate.

A UNESCO-listed island in the East Tasman Sea, the island may have housed these mice as early as the mid-1800s, with the rats arriving later in 1918. As is so often the case with biodiversity Down Under, the native animals suffered.

Their absence, which took three years of eradication, is revealing a diverse landscape—with fruiting trees, returning numbers of land invertebrates, and one of Australia’s rarest birds, the flightless woodhen—whose population has doubled to 565 in the past three years.

“What is unfolding is an ecological renaissance, since the rodents have gone, the catchphrase is: ‘I’ve never seen that before’,” Hank Bower from the Lord Howe Island board told the Sydney Morning Herald.

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“There’s a vine which we didn’t know what the fruit looked like, people are taking photos of insects and sending them to the Australian Museum who are saying we’ve only got three of those on record ever but we are seeing hundreds of them. Everything is blooming, all the plants are flowering and we are seeing a carpet of seedlings.”

Noteworthy among the returning characters on the island are four species of land snail, one of which hasn’t been seen alive for 20 years, the black-winged petrel, and crickets.

“We’ve been hearing crickets. We’d only hear crickets very rarely, now every night there’s a chime of crickets,” Bower said, this time to ABC News Australia.

To do the business, poison was placed inside 22,000 lockable traps around the island, while in inaccessible areas, pellets were distributed via helicopter. Just to be sure, rat-catching dogs scour the island every few weeks—but one hasn’t been seen since last August.

CHECK OUT: Monumental Animal Sculptures Made From 35 Tons of Plastic Collected on Oregon Coast by Volunteers–LOOK

The Ministry of Environment of Australia said it was “an incredibly optimistic sign for the future of conservation.”

Globally, there have been more than 800 successful eradications of invasive mammals on 181 different islands since the year 2000—including the famous eradications of feral goats from the Galapagos Islands.

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One Man’s Treasure Hunt Thrilled a Canadian Town, Turning Strangers into Friends

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Andy Corbley
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A horror-themed treasure hunt, organized anonymously in a small Canadian town, left the community enriched with funds and friends.

The town in question, Miramichi in New Brunswick, has a history replete with scary stories of murder and ghosts, which the hunt’s organizer used as context to keep the spooky search going all the way up to Friday the 13th—where the game came to and end with $1,000 (CAD$1,300) in total prizes.

Locals were sure that nothing of the sort has ever gripped the town of 17,000 quite like it, and for getting people out of the house after so many months of COVID restrictions, it’s been a catalyst for community reconnection, and a boon for businesses.

All of this began in early May when, on a Facebook page called the Miramichi Mystery Machine, a man calling himself Roman Dungarvan said there was 100 Canadian dollars hidden somewhere around the town harbor.

This mysterious Mr. Dungarvan claimed, according to the Guardian, to be a descendant of a 19th-century Irish cook who lived in town. Robbed, murdered, and buried in a shallow grave in the woods, the local legend of Dungarvan’s death was that on that night, the entire forest was filled with terrifying noises described as ‘whoops’ that sent the culprits running for their lives, leaving a tale of the Dungarvan Whooper in their frightened wake.

For days, Dungarvan posted videos and photos about where $100 bills could be found. One prize was found in French Cove, which is supposedly haunted by a headless ghost, and another was in an abandoned school building, the clue for which was the release poster for the 1980s slasher film Prom Night.

The big night

Lesfreck, CC license

On May 11th, Dungarvan announced that the last event would be Friday the 13th, which would include an extra $100 for the person with the best costume. The Facebook group exploded with activity.

MORE: Family’s New Puppy is Seriously a Golden – After Digging Up Rare Coins Worth $8k

The first clue was posted after 7:00PM, after which hundreds of people were out exploring, lending the treasure hunt an air of real camaraderie.

Tim Sutton, a local TikToker, found himself frustratingly close to one of the stashes of money.

“I… searched for nearly seven hours that night. I didn’t find it,” he told the Guardian. “But it’s not about the money. It’s more about the hunt and getting out in the fresh air and kind of making new friends.”

“It was good to see everybody out there having a good time,” said Mallory Barnaby, one of the Friday the 13th winners.

RELATED: Amateurs Claim to be ‘On the Verge’ of Uncovering Long Lost Treasure Horde Worth Over $20 Billion

Mr. Dungarvan posted an image of a text message he received that read, “Thank you Mr. mysterious for bringing the community out together and your amazing generosity. I saw so many smiling faces over the last two weeks on adults and children. Many friends made!!!”

A Friday the 14th comment on the Facebook group agreed, saying, “Maybe the real prize were the friends we made along the way.”

A new name

Some of the clues led hunters to local breweries or pizza shops, after which he would remind people to be respectful of their property and to tip their staff.

CHECK OUT: Historian Believes the Holy Grail and Lost Ark of the Covenant May be Hidden Under This House in English Countryside

On Friday the 13th, he warned hunters that with a heart condition should refrain from participating for risk of becoming startled with spooky conditions—exactly the kind of polite behavior one would expect from a Canadian. Hence the shifting of the organizer’s name from ‘Mr. Dungarvan’ into ‘Mr. Canadian’.

But this is really the story of how one individual used the character of a small town to bring it together at the end of a very difficult period in its history—with one high schooler remarking, “we absolutely love[d] it.”

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“Every successful person I know starts before they feel ready.” – Marie Forleo

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Quote of the Day: “Every successful person I know starts before they feel ready.” – Marie Forleo

Photo by: Alexander Londoño

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Photo From Mars Curiosity Rover Looks Like We Found a Doorway

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It looks like there’s a doorway on Mars.

That has been the topic of internet discussion since NASA released a new picture taken by the Curiosity rover on Mars.

The intriguing image snapped by the explorer’s Mast Camera on May 7 appears to show a cleanly-cut hole in a rock face.

There has been no official NASA statement about the sighting or the grainy image.

It looks like a doorway with an artificial wall, but many viewers are more practical, like one Reddit user who wrote, “It’s obviously not a little door, it’s just a flat piece of broken rock.”

Coincidentally, a U.S. Congressional House subcommittee is set to hold an open hearing next Tuesday about UFOs—the first time the fascinating topic has been on the docket in over 50 years.

LOOK: The Red Planet Has a New ‘Zen Garden’ After Mars Rover Leaves Peaceful Tracks

The US government released a report on documented cases of so-called ‘Unidentified Aerial Phenomena’ (UAP) in Summer 2021. In it, the Director of National Intelligence examined 144 cases of UFOs, but could explain only one.

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Baby Blanket Crocheted by Queen Mary and Surviving WWII Set to Raise Money for Ukraine Children’s Fund

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Blanket made by Queen Mary to be auctioned for Save The Children’s Ukrainian appeal - SWNS
Blanket made by Queen Mary to be auctioned for Save The Children’s Ukrainian appeal – Hansons Auctioneers / SWNS

A baby blanket which was crocheted by Queen Mary and survived World War II is being sold to raise money to help children in Ukraine.

Great-grandmother Kathleen Pritchard was wrapped in the pink shawl as a baby after her mother Florence won a contest.

Two blankets, one pink and one blue, were knitted by Queen Mary and offered as prizes at a mother and baby clinic in 1938.

Florence won one of the crocheted blankets and later wrapped baby Kathleen, whose middle name is Mary, in the shawl while the family took refuge in an underground bomb shelter during air raids.

Kathleen, from Rainham, Essex, has now decided to sell the royal blanket in an auction with the proceeds going to Save The Children’s Ukrainian appeal.

“The blanket was my mother’s most valued and precious possession,” said the 83-year-old who has seven grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

“It was never used but kept in a box. It was only given to me after I got married and became pregnant with my twins.”

RELATED: Man Who Tells the Queen He Engineers Solar Panels is Stunned When She Orders Some Installed on the Castle

The blanket still bears its original ‘1st prize’ tag and comes with a handwritten note on Marlborough House stationary paper saying ‘Made by Her Majesty, Queen Mary, 1938.’

Kathleen Pritchard with the blanket made by Queen Mary – Hansons Auctioneers / SWNS

It is expected to fetch around $1,000 (£800) when it goes under the hammer at the upcoming Royal Memorabilia Platinum Jubilee Auction.

Granddaughter Carlie Bussey says, “Nan has so many grandchildren and great grandchildren she can’t possibly choose between us to hand it down.”

LOOK: The Queen has Launched Her Own Gin Featuring Botanicals Grown on Her Country Estate

“She is also extremely saddened and upset by the conflict in Ukraine and wanted to raise some money to help children over there. She has chosen Save the Children’s Ukraine appeal, which ties in quite nicely as Princess Anne is patron.”

Anne’s great grandmother made the blanket, so it has ‘gone full circle’.

“It’s extremely moving to be honest. My nan doesn’t have a lot. This is still her most prized possession but she wants to help and give something back.”

Queen Mary (1867-1953) was the wife of King George V and was queen from 1910 until 1936. She died in 1953 at age 85.

CHECK OUT: Ukrainian Refugees Move Into Medieval Irish Castle Owned by Good Samaritan

Auctioneer Charles Hanson hopes to help Kathleen achieve an excellent price for her chosen charity. The blanket will be auctioned on May 26 in Derbyshire. Find out more on Hanson’s website.

Adjoining Cottages Once Home to Both a Man and His Clever, Beloved Bull Go Up for Auction

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15th Century 'Pontious Piece Cottages' - SWNS
15th Century ‘Pontious Piece Cottages’ – SWNS

A pair of dilapidated farmhouses once home to a man who lived alongside his ‘intelligent’ bull are soon to be auctioned in Cornwall, England.

The historic 15th Century ‘Pontious Piece Cottages’ are situated at the heart of a world heritage site in the village of Minions, steeped in Cornish mining history—but their most endearing quality is that the buildings were once home to a man and his beloved bull, ‘Scrunch’.

The late Tony Trewin made headlines for his unique lifestyle, sharing his two adjoining cottages with the highland bull.

Having rescued Scrunch as a calf, Tony always maintained that he was more of a friend than a pet, and he would welcome the animal into his house for feeding every day.

He bottle fed milk to the orphan every night before putting him to bed in the garden shed. The pair had lived a happy reclusive life together, largely without modern technology or comforts.

“I know Scrunch is big and bulls aren’t known for their intelligence, but he’s as loyal and affectionate as any cat or dog,” said Tony in a 2007 interview. “You couldn’t wish for a better pet.”

Thankfully, after Tony’s death, Scrunch was allowed to stay on the land and live peacefully on Bodmin Moor until his own death a few years later.

The pair remained together in death though, with Tony and Scrunch’s ashes being scattered together a short distance from the cottages.

LOOK: Family’s New Puppy is Seriously a Golden–After Digging Up Rare Coins Worth $8,000

SWNS

The property is comprised of two adjoining granite stone cottages which have both fallen into varying degrees of disrepair. In the listing, the estate agents wrote, “The late Tony Trewin occupied Pontious Piece Cottages, in a most unconventional way.

“Tony began letting the calf into the cottages on a daily basis for his feed and the two became more than master and pet, but actually bonded as lifelong friends. Scrunch was looked after and allowed to stay and enjoy his home until he died a few years ago of old age. He was also cremated, with his ashes being scattered next to Tony.”

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“This wonderful and unique story will no doubt be preserved as restoration to Pontious Piece Cottages takes place with another.”

Hoping for a ‘bull market’ during the public auction, they’re selling the property on July 27, 2022 at 6:30pm at Strawberry Fields, Lifton, Devon, with an opening bid of £175,000.

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“The winner will be the one who knows how to pick the right fights.” – Jane Ciabattari

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Quote of the Day: “The winner will be the one who knows how to pick the right fights.” – Jane Ciabattari

Photo by: Bernardo Lorena Ponte

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Anonymous Donor Pays Off Student Debt for Entire 2022 College Class in Texas

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Wiley College
Wiley College

Students at a Texas College graduated last week not only with their diplomas but with their balances cleared suddenly by an anonymous donor.

More than 100 students assembled for the 133rd graduation ceremony at Wiley College and were shocked to hear President & CEO Dr. Herman J. Felton, Jr. announce that their balances had been paid off.

The recent pandemic had exacerbated some students’ ability to pay their debts, so some graduates and parents in the audience in Marshall, Texas, were especially thrilled to hear the news.

“Our commitment to our students goes beyond their time while they are enrolled,” said Felton. “We are grateful for this anonymous donor who will assist the students in paying off their balances.”

The estimated total owed by the class of 2022 in the historically Black college was $300,000.

LOOK: Students in 5 Chicago High Schools Surprised With Free College Ride–All Expenses Paid–And For Some Parents, Too

“As Wiley College closes the academic semester and prepares for its Sesquicentennial Celebrations beginning in July, this is a great way to start the celebration of 150 years of the College’s contributions to the world.”

Wiley College, with its focus on social good and leadership, has reduced its tuition in the past years to $17,500 to cover fees, room, and board.

Now the school’s motto is even more appropriate: “Go forth Inspired.”

CHECK OUT: Homemade Bumper Sticker Saves Stranger’s Life After She Asked the Universe For ‘a Sign’

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Even in Your 80s, Adopting a Healthier Lifestyle Can Add Years to Your Life

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By david Griffiths
By david Griffiths

Adopting a healthier lifestyle can add years to your life—even in your 80s, according to new research from Japan.

Reducing drinking, not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, and increasing sleep produce the biggest gains, say scientists.

They increased longevity by six years in healthy 40-year-olds. The benefits were even more prominent in those twice the age.

These gains applied also to individuals with life-threatening illnesses, including cancer, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and kidney disease.

The study from Osaka University shows it is never too late to give up bad habits and shed the pounds, from middle age onwards. It was based on almost 50,000 people in Japan who were tracked for up to 20 years.

“This is a particularly important finding given the prevalence of chronic disease has increased globally,” said Senior author Professor Hiroyasu Iso.

The team says taking ownership of your health is key to a pleasurable retirement.

“Idioms and proverbs about the importance of maintaining good health span the ages. Many emphasize how closely health is tied to happiness and the opportunity to live a fulfilling and enjoyable life.”

The study, published in Age and Aging, found that healthy behaviors adopted over time have a marked effect on lifespan.

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The researchers found that adopting five or more healthy lifestyle behaviors increased life expectancy even for individuals over 80 years old, and importantly, including those with chronic conditions. They saw results that were dependent on socioeconomic status, policies such as assisted access to healthcare, and lifestyle factors.

30 years ago, participants in The Japan Collaborate Cohort (JACC) Study filled in surveys that included questions about diet and exercise, alcohol consumption, smoking status, sleep duration, and BMI (body mass index). They were also asked about any illnesses.

The aim was to increase knowledge about what factors contribute to death from cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Points were awarded for each healthy behavior and the impact of modifying them on projected lifespan was assessed.

The project continued until December 2009, by which time nearly 9,000 individuals had died.

RELATED: 30 Minutes of Lifting Weights, Push-ups or Yard Work Weekly May Cut Risk of Death By 20%

It is one of the first studies to measure the impact of improvements to health behavior among older individuals in a country with a national life expectancy achieving almost 85 years.

“The finding that lifestyle improvements has a positive impact on health despite chronic health conditions and older age is an empowering one, especially given the increasing prevalence of chronic conditions and longer life,” said lead author Dr. Ryoto Sakaniwa.

Two years ago a study found women can gain ten and men seven years of life free of cancer, heart problems, and type-2 diabetes from a healthy lifestyle. That research was based on 111,000 Americans tracked for more than 20 years.

LOOK: Fountain-of-Youth Pill Could Be on Horizon After Scientists Dramatically Extended Longevity in Mice

Lead author Dr Frank Hu, of Harvard School of Public Health, in Boston, described the findings as “a positive message for the public”.

“They gain not just more years of life but good years through improved lifestyle choices.”

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Power of Internet Reunites Minneapolis Woman With Refugee She’d Given $100 to, Decades Ago

By
Andy Corbley
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Samaritan Tracy Peck (left) and Ayda Zugay (right)

23-years ago, a cash gift of $100 from a generous American aboard an airline flight inspired hope in a pair of young women fleeing the former-Yugoslavia during the country’s collapse.

After two decades, they wanted to find the mysterious woman again, but they only knew her first name—Tracy.

Now, after some amateur sleuthing and their internet post going viral, their longing has turned into a reunion that left both women in tears.

Ayda Zugay was 12-years old in 1999, when she and her sister Vanja Contino fled the war sparked by the collapse of the Soviet Union. Aboard a Northwest Airlines flight, an American tennis coach, seeing their plight, slipped them an envelope.

In it were a pair of dangly earrings, $100, and a letter that read “I am so sorry that the bombing of your country has caused you and your family problems. I hope your stay in America is a safe and happy one for you. A friend from the plane—Tracy ❤️”

For years, that was the end of the story. Both prospering in America, Ayda and Vanja currently live in Boston and Connecticut.

But Ayda would never forget the kindness shown by Tracy, nor lose hope that one day the sisters would be able to say thank-you in person.

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Meanwhile, Tracy Peck, the Minneapolis tennis coach, was 70 years young, and working as a massage therapist. Recently she was alerted by a barrage of texts and phone calls that she had been the subject of a national news story. Zugay was looking for her, and Catherine Shoichet, writing for CNN, shared her intention with the world.

But the decisive moment in the search came when the refugee advocacy group, Refugees International, tweeted a 2-minute video of Zugay explaining her desire to find Tracy.

The tearful reunion

That tweet drew the attention of one of Peck’s daughters, and Susan Allen, a tennis coach colleague.

The reason for Tracy’s presence on the flight that fateful day was because she had gotten the opportunity to travel to Paris in 1999 to watch the French Open. Allen, who helped organized that very trip, reckoned a little bit of evidence would be needed to prove, and so contacted another tennis friend who had been on that same flight, and who just so happened to keep in a scrapbook the receipt from the flight from Amsterdam to Minneapolis on May 31st, along with a team photo, which was the same date that Zugay recalled.

Then, Allen opened a group chat with Zugay and Tracy Peck, posting the images as proof that at last, Zugay’s 23-year search was over.

RELATED: Good Deed Takes Flight at Airport as Man Buys Ticket For Someone Desperate to Get Home

Samaritan Tracy Peck (left) and Ayda Zugay (right)

A Zoom call was scheduled with her and her sister, and suddenly on their computer screens appeared the same smiling face, albeit with a few more tears, from 23 years before.

“Hello beautiful ladies!” Peck exclaimed, to which Zugay replied, “It’s been more than 20 years,” now fully-able to communicate in English, when before she could only manage hand signals.

They shared many things, including how they used the $100 to last through the whole summer eating pancake mix.

“You know those huge doors that they have in old places across the world? It felt like that big, heavy door just got shut. And I’m finally able to move forward and thrive… And it just makes me so happy,” Zugay said. “Thank you for reminding me to be strong.”

They hope to meet in person soon, after further video calls led to catching up, the introduction of Vanja’s daughters, and more.

CHECK OUT: Strangers Raise $84,000 for 94-year-old Street Vendor in Wheelchair After One Woman’s Act of Kindness Goes Viral

Peck already had 5 children, but today she always counts the total as 7.

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Your Inspired Weekly Horoscope From Rob Brezsny: A ‘Free Will Astrology’

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Good News Network
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Our partner Rob Brezsny provides his weekly wisdom to enlighten our thinking and motivate our mood. Rob’s Free Will Astrology, is a syndicated weekly column appearing in over a hundred publications. He is also the author of Pronoia Is the Antidote for Paranoia: How All of Creation Is Conspiring To Shower You with Blessings. (A free preview of the book is available here.)

Here is your weekly horoscope…

FREE WILL ASTROLOGY – Week of May 14, 2022
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
“Every successful person I know starts before they feel ready,” declared life coach Marie Forleo. Author Ivan Turgenev wrote, “If we wait for the moment when everything, absolutely everything, is ready, we shall never begin.” Here’s what educator Supriya Mehra says: “There’s never a perfect moment to start, and the more we see the beauty in ‘starting small,’ the more we empower ourselves to get started at all.” I hope that in providing you with these observations, Taurus, I have convinced you to dive in now. Here’s one more quote, from businesswoman Betsy Rowbottom: “There’s never a perfect moment to take a big risk.”

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
Poet Ranata Suzuki writes, “There comes a point where you no longer care if there’s a light at the end of the tunnel or not. You’re just sick of the tunnel.” That’s good advice for you right now, Gemini. The trick that’s most likely to get you out of the tunnel is to acknowledge that you are sick of the damn tunnel. Announce to the universe that you have gleaned the essential teachings the ride through the tunnel has provided you. You no longer need its character-building benefits because you have harvested them all. Please say this a thousand times sometime soon: “I am ready for the wide-open spaces.”

CANCER (June 21-July 22):
In the coming weeks, your imagination will receive visions of the next chapter of your life story. These images and stories might confuse you if you think they are illuminating the present moment. So please keep in mind that they are prophecies of what’s ahead. They are premonitions and preparations for the interesting work you will be given during the second half of 2022. If you regard them as guiding clues from your eternal soul, they will nourish the inner transformations necessary for you to welcome your destiny when it arrives. Now study this inspirational quote from poet Rainer Maria Rilke: “The future glides into us, so as to remake itself within us, long before it occurs.”

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
“Remember that you will never reach a higher standard than you yourself set,” wrote author Ellen G. White. That’s true! And that’s why it’s so crucial that you formulate the highest standards you can imagine—maybe even higher than you can imagine. Now is a favorable phase for you to reach higher and think bigger. I invite you to visualize the best version of the dream you are working on—the most excellent, beautiful, and inspiring form it could take. And then push on further to envision even more spectacular results. Dare to be greedy and outrageous.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Before Virgo-born Leslie Jones achieved fame as a comedian and actor, she worked day jobs at UPS and Roscoe’s House of Chicken and Waffles. Her shot at major appreciation didn’t arrive until the TV show Saturday Night Life hired her to be a regular cast member in 2014, when she was 47 years old. Here’s how she describes the years before that: “Everybody was telling me to get a real job. Everybody was asking me, What are you doing? You’re ruining your life. You’re embarrassing your family.” Luckily, Jones didn’t heed the bad advice. “You can’t listen to that,” she says now. “You have to listen to yourself.” Now I’m suggesting that you embrace the Leslie Jones approach, Virgo.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
“A person must dream a long time in order to act with grandeur, and dreaming is nursed in darkness.” Author Jean Genet wrote that, and now I’m offering you his words as the seed of your horoscope. If you’ve been attuned to cosmic rhythms, you have been doing what Genet described and will continue to do it for at least another ten days. If you have not yet begun such work, please do so now. Your success during the rest of 2022 will thrive to the degree that you spend time dreaming big in the darkness now.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
“Cursed are those who feel floods but who can only express a few drops.” So says an internet proverb. Luckily, this principle won’t apply to you in the coming weeks. I expect you will be inundated with cascades of deep feelings, but you will also be able to articulate those feelings. So you won’t be cursed at all. In fact, I suspect you will be blessed. The cascades may indeed become rowdy at times. But I expect you will flourish amidst the lush tumult.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
“It takes a great deal of experience to become natural,” wrote Sagittarian author Willa Cather. I’m happy to report that in recent months, you Sagittarians have been becoming more and more natural. You have sought experiences that enhance your authenticity and spontaneity. Keep up the good work! The coming weeks should bring influences and adventures that will dramatically deepen your capacity to be untamed, soulful, and intensely yourself.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
“I intend to live forever,” proclaims 66-year-old comedian Steven Wright, who then adds, “So far, so good.” I offer you his cheerful outlook in the hope that it might inspire you to dream and scheme about your own longevity. Now is a great time to fantasize about what you would love to accomplish if you are provided with 90 or more years of life to create yourself. In other words, I’m asking you to expand your imagination about your long-term goals. Have fun envisioning skills you’d like to develop and qualities you hope to ripen if you are given all the time you would like to have. (PS: Thinking like this could magically enhance your life expectancy.)

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
“Stop insisting on clearing your head,” advised author Charles Bukowski. “Clear your heart instead.” That will be a superb meditation for you to experiment with in the coming weeks. Please understand that I hope you will also clear your head. That’s a worthy goal. But your prime aim should be to clear your heart. What would that mean? Purge all apologies and shame from your longings. Cleanse your tenderness of energy that’s inclined to withhold or resist. Free your receptivity to be innocent and curious.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
“The winner will be the one who knows how to pick the right fights,” wrote author Jane Ciabattari. Heed her advice, please, Pisces. You will soon be offered chances to deal with several interesting struggles that are worthy of your beautiful intelligence. At least one will technically be a “conflict,” but even that will also be a fruitful opportunity. If you hope to derive the greatest potential benefit, you must be selective about which ones you choose to engage. I recommend you give your focus to no more than two.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):
“Choose the least important day in your life,” wrote Aries author Thornton Wilder. “It will be important enough.” I recommend that you make those your words to live by in the next two weeks. Why? Because I suspect there will be no tremendously exciting experiences coming your way. The daily rhythm is likely to be routine and modest. You may even be tempted to feel a bit bored. And yet, if you dare to move your attention just below the surface of life, you will tune into subtle glories that are percolating. You will become aware of quietly wondrous developments unfolding just out of sight and behind the scenes. Be alert for them. They will provide fertile clues about the sweet victories that will be available in the months ahead.

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

(Zodiac images by Numerologysign.com, CC license)

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“If evolution really works, how come mothers only have two hands?” – Milton Berle

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Good News Network
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Quote of the Day: “If evolution really works, how come mothers only have two hands?” – Milton Berle

Photo by: Jordan Rowland

With a new inspirational quote every day, atop the perfect photo—collected and archived on our Quotes page—why not bookmark GNN.org for a daily uplift?

Black Hole at the Heart of Our Own Galaxy is Pictured For First Time

By
Andy Corbley
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EVENT HORIZON TELESCOPE COLLABORATION
EVENT HORIZON TELESCOPE COLLABORATION

The gargantuan black hole which binds our galaxy together with its powerful gravity has been imaged for the first time.

The capture relied on the collaboration of telescopes from all over the world acting in sync, collecting several millions of gigabytes of data to present the burning accretion disk of Sagittarius A—our black hole’s official name.

How can one image a phenomenon that sucks in light? Something that’s invisible and that we can only picture because of artists’ interpretations? A black hole’s gravitational pull is constantly pulling in, and actually belching out, hot gases and radiation, which form something known as the accretion disk.

This vortex of extremely hot energetic material swirling into the black hole betrays its presence, in the same way that throwing a pound of flour onto an invisible man would reveal them.

The photograph was a project of the Event Horizon Telescope network (EHT), which won Science Magazine’s photo of the year in 2019 for their first-ever image of a black hole called Messier 87. Readers may remember that, just before the pandemic, a glowing orange ring on a black field appeared on the front page of virtually every news outlet.

MORE: This is What it Looks Like When a Black Hole Snacks on a Star

“But this new image is special because it’s our supermassive black hole,” said Prof. Heino Falcke, who also led the European team behind the imaging of M87. “This is in ‘our backyard’, and if you want to understand black holes and how they work, this is the one that will tell you because we see it in intricate detail,” the German-Dutch scientist from Radboud University Nijmegen told BBC News.

But how?

At 26,000 light years away, Sagittarius A is four million times larger than our Sun, and the event horizon, the part of space around a black hole where the laws of physics begin to break down in relation to its presence, is about as wide as Mercury’s orbit around the Sun, or around 40 million miles across.

RELATED: Have We Detected Dark Energy? Cambridge Scientists Say It’s a Possibility

One aspect of the discovery that’s almost as difficult to wrap one’s head around as the measurements above, is that all the images used to construct the finished product of Sag. A were taken during the same observation period that gave us the Messier 87 image.

However, since Messier is in a neighboring galaxy, the distance the light traveled to arrive here makes it appear static, while the proximity of Sag. A meant that the plasma in the accretion disk, moving as it does at about 190,000 miles per second, was much harder to piece together into a concise image.

CHECK OUT: Astronomers Capture Black Hole Eruption Spanning 16 Times the Full Moon in the Sky

Because Sag A. is a thousand times smaller than M87, the structure of its disk changes a thousand times faster, which combined with the reduced time the light needed to arrive here meant a much greater challenge creating an image that wasn’t just a single orange blur.

The brighter parts of the image are thought to be where radiation is coming right towards us.

Below, the scientists created a simulation of what you might see if you traveled to the center of the galaxy and looked at Sag. A through an optical tool that caught sensitive radio frequencies.

(WATCH the video for this story below.)

SHARE a Cosmic Spiral of the Good News; Share This Story…

New Online Map Shows You the Local Mosquito Forecast for the Week

By
Andy Corbley
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Off!Cast map with mosquito image by Boris Smokrovic
Off!Cast map with mosquito image; Boris Smokrovic

What’s on the to-do list for a late-spring barbecue? Go shopping, sweep the deck, clean the grill, and check the mosquito forecast…

That’s right, Google Earth Engine and SC Johnson are using weather and climate data to provide Americans with a mosquito-forecast to help better plan yard parties and camping trips, by mapping the mosquito’s life-cycle onto the temperature and humidity swings that benefit them.

Periods of heat and humidity might accelerate the growth of mosquitos from eggs to blood-suckers, and if those periods of humidity move across regions, they could kick-start broods as the pass by.

Called Off!Cast Mosquito Forecast, after the mosquito-repellent Off! manufactured by SC Johnson, the tool makes use of Google Earth Engine—which is the tech giant’s massive satellite image database. Professional entomologists are also onboard, providing data from past mosquito numbers from thousands of locations and detailed analyses of the various species’ lifecycles.

At the moment the tool only exists in the U.S., but the developers hope to have versions for Brazil and Mexico soon.

Entomologists have described the tool as “very accurate,” and it can offer a first line of protection (knowledge) to use before scientists genetically alter the animal to stop carrying the various diseases they plague society with.

MORE: It ‘Smells Like Fear’: Scientists Create Diffuser That Could Keep Pests Off Garden Plants

Until then, Ada McVean, writing for Canada’s McGill Office for Science and Society, explains all the ways in which mosquitos find you—who they prefer to bite, and what really protects them without poisoning oneself.

BUZZ the Good News in All Your Besties’ Ears; Share This Tool…

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