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Ukraine Inspires Us With Humanity and Hope: 8 Positive Stories From the Conflict

From charities and governments, to celebrities and everyday people, millions are pitching in to ease the burden for fleeing or sheltering Ukrainians. In turn, they’re inspiring the world with their generosity and strength.

We searched the internet to find heartwarming positive stories about Ukraine, and hope they will be an antidote to the daily barrage of reports about the pain and hardship.

1) Dog Company Delivers Tons of Food for Ukrainian Pooches

SWNS

A dog transport company is helping to feed pooches in war-torn Ukraine after collecting nearly 11,000 pounds worth of food (5,000kg).

Daisybrook International Pet Transport was inundated with 300 bags of dog food and other donations from around the UK, and the Staffordshire company has dropped off the supplies at the Polish border, with owner Matthew Hunt delivering it in their specialized dog van, crammed to the roof with food—and with plans to make the trip once a week.

2) David Beckham Hands Over Instagram Account to Ukrainian Doctor

English soccer has turned been turned on its head over the war in Ukraine—with the British government sanctioning the Russian billionaire owner of Chelsea FC, the third best team in the country. Now David Beckham, legend of Manchester United, gave control of his Instagram account with more than 71 million followers to Iryna, the head of the regional perinatal center in Kharkiv.

MORE: Strangers are Leaving Strollers, Diapers, and Toys at the Border for Ukrainian Refugee Moms (LOOK)

Choosing only to be known by her first name, Iryna is working 24/7 to help mothers give birth safely in one of the conflict’s hottest zones.

“We are probably risking our lives, but we don’t think about it at all,” she wrote. “We love our work.”

3) Ukraine Joins European Power Grid, Ending Its Dependence on Russia

Mary, CC license

Belgium-based utilities company ENTSO-E connected the Ukrainian electrical grid to a largely-distributed system stretching across most of Europe, allowing it to end dependence on Russian power stations.

“This step will give Ukraine the opportunity to receive electricity if (Russia) continues to destroy our power infrastructure, and thus to save our power system,” said Volodymyr Kudrytskyi, who chairs the management board of Ukraine’s grid operator Ukrenergo. “We are sincerely grateful to our European partners for their great support and assistance during these difficult times.”

As well as reducing dependence on coal as a nice bonus, Ukraine could export nuclear power to elsewhere in Europe, which Brussels sees as a win-win.

4) Celebrity Chef Cooking For Free For Thousands on Ukrainian Border

José Andrés, the founder of World Central Kitchen, set up an emergency relief kitchen in the town of Przemyśl—just several miles from the border with Ukraine that is receiving tens of thousands of refugees every day. In twelve massive paella pans and twelve large ovens, they are cooking hundreds of thousands of meals.

RELATED: Endangered Baby Rhino Born in a Czech Zoo is Named After Kyiv (PHOTOS)

A warehouse in L’viv, in the west of Ukraine, is shipping trucks of these meals to cities further east like Odessa and Mykolayiv. To date they’ve served one million meals.

5) Hero vet is crossing into Ukraine to rescue trapped animals

SWNS

32-year-old Polish veterinarian Jakub Kotowicz launched a rescue trip into the war zone last week and has since rescued around 200 cats and 60 dogs from L’viv, in three convoys.

Now being cared for in his veterinary clinic are the rescued animals, including a pygmy goat with diseased legs and a large Sphinx cat who loves to cuddle. Jakub plans to keep the two-month-old pygmy goat kid, named Sasha, who shares a soft bed with two Chihuahuas, as part of his service with ADA Foundation. Jakub founded the animal rescue charity when he was 17, and runs a no-kill animal shelter in Przemysl, Poland, just 30 minutes from the border with Ukraine.

People can donate in dollars here, or in euros here.

6) Celebrities Donate Millions to Help Ukrainians

A number of A-listers have used their fortunes and their platforms to support relief for Ukrainians.

J.K. Rowling has pledged to match every pound sterling up to £1 million ($1.3 million) in donations to Lumos, a charity that’s focused on helping children in the war zones.

Mila Kunis and Aston Kutcher have pledged $3 million from their film and TV fortunes towards a GoFundMe drive with a target of $30 million. “While my family came to the United States in 1991, I was born in Chernivtsi, Ukraine, in 1983,” Kunis wrote on the GoFundMe page.

CHECK OUT: UPDATE: Airbnb and its Community Raise More Than $40 Million and Offers 150,000 Temp-Homes for Ukraine

Last week they passed their goal, exceeding it by $4 million.

Another celebrity couple helping out is Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, who tweeted that they would personally match any donation towards helping Ukrainian refugees up to $1 million.

7) Russia-Ukrainian Chef Duo Host Dinner-Fundraiser for UNICEF

Monika Grabkowska

Ukrainian chef Olia Hercules and Russian chef Alissa Timoshkina, long-time colleagues living in London, have started the Cook for Ukraine moment, which is encouraging restaurants to add small extra charges as a way to contribute a bit of sales to UNICEF’s work helping children in and out of Ukraine.

“Cook for Ukraine are hosting an event at The British Library theatre on 22 March to help raise awareness for the incredible food of Ukraine, and how it crosses many borders and communities,” Euronews writes. The fundraiser has already made £280,000 ($371000).

8) Italian Government Announces It will Rebuild the Mariupol Theater

Italy’s culture minister, Dario Franceschini, tweeted that a proposal introduced in parliament has passed to use Italian government funds to rebuild the destroyed theater in the city of Mariupol.

He noted that “Theaters of all countries belong to the whole of humanity.”

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Check Out These Victories for Old Growth Forests Worldwide on International Forest Day

Monday was International Day of Forests, a perfect moment for taking a walk under your local trees and reading a roundup of forest victories from around the world.

This year notes a turning tide in the global awareness of the value of trees. In several regions of the world, there are more acres of forest than there have been in the past 100 years: in Europe for example.

In other cases, reforestation stemming from a conscious change in attitudes towards conservation is now equal to existing deforestation in some of the most threatened areas, for example in Brazil’s Atlantic Forest biome.

The recent meeting of the parties to the Paris Climate Accords have given rise to an international agreement between two dozen countries to end deforestation this decade. Locally-speaking, regional victories drive these global trends, and these movements will certainly go a long way to making every future International Day of Forests even more special because of what has been saved.

In the U.S., Oregon lawmakers just passed legislation to conserve 81,544 acres (33,000 hectares) of the Elliott State Forest, protecting it against logging and future threats. The site contains significant old-growth forest and supports 20% of the wild Oregon Coast coho salmon population.

MORE: City Trees and Soil Are Sucking More Carbon Out of the Atmosphere Than We Thought

As part of a partnership between the Defense, Interior, and Agriculture departments of the U.S., 11,000 square miles (around 3 million hectares) of farms, forests, and wildlife habitat around Eglin Air Force Base will be protected, together with the help of non-profit conservationists and landowners, to create a unique mosaic of land systems called the Northwest Florida Sentinel Landscape.

Down under, landmark legislation in Western Australia will end native logging and secure 1,544 square miles (400,000 hectares) of one of the most diverse native forests on Earth. Activists have campaigned for decades to protect these forests, containing rare tingle, jarrah, karri, marri, tuart, and wandoo trees found nowhere else on the planet, which had been increasingly depleted by logging.

RELATED: Ancient Trees Have Incredible Lifespans That Also Help Keep The Surrounding Forests Alive

“We’re going to stop logging in our native forests… to preserve these beautiful, magnificent, wonderful areas for future generations of West Australians,” WA Premier Mark McGowan said, allegedly stunning green party members and protestors alike.

In South America, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation has allocated an additional $300 million toward the Andes-Amazon Initiative to continue biodiversity and forest conservation efforts in the region until 2031.

To date, the initiative has been successful in conserving 1.5 million square miles (400 million hectares) or about half the size of Brazil itself, since its establishment in 2003. New targets include ensuring that 38,000 square miles (100 million hectares) of freshwater and forest ecosystems—as well as Indigenous and local communities’ lands—are effectively managed.

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“I may not be totally perfect, but parts of me are excellent.” – Ashleigh Brilliant

Quote of the Day: “I may not be totally perfect, but parts of me are excellent.” – Ashleigh Brilliant

Photo by: Callum Shaw

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Taking a Cooking Course Has Magic Pill Like Effects on Mental and Physical Well-Being

In a large study in Australia, a seven-week cooking class was found to significantly improve mental health and well-being, physical health markers, confidence and life satisfaction—as well as the ability to change eating habits.

These changes were not only seen in both men and women, but regardless of whether any increase in understanding of nutrition and the risks of obesity was obtained during the course.

It suggests that simply by returning to home-cooked meals, society could greatly improve the overall health condition of its citizens.

The story of the decline in physical and mental health in the western world is well known. An emphasis on work and study leads to the consumption of less nutritious food, which has exploded in availability as the decades have advanced.

67% of all Australians are overweight or obese, the recently-published paper reveals, a figure which is nearly applicable to the American population.

An international team of researchers aimed to investigate if a course of seven, 90-minute cooking classes could improve health outcomes by restoring confidence in people’s ability to cook for themselves at home.

RELATED: This Lizard Has His Own Cookbook – and it’s Utterly Adorable

“The intervention involved participation in weekly cooking sessions… delivered by a nutrition professional from the fully equipped JMOF mobile kitchen,” the study reads.

“The 90-min hands-on cooking session used a new recipe each week to scaffold learning of skills and knowledge about nutritious foods, to enable increased cooking confidence, skill development and food literacy knowledge. In addition, the participants were taught knife handling skills and were given tips and advice about healthy options for how to boost flavor and create dishes using fresh foods to replace pre-prepared ingredients. Food-budget planning, kitchen economy and reduction of food waste were also covered.”

Something deeper

The study details that many researchers have imagined that food literacy is linked to higher education, higher incomes, and value of real estate: i.e. that only rich white folks understand why cooking with vegetables is advantageous from a health perspective.

MORE: IKEA’s New Cookbook Puts Kitchen Scraps to Good Use With 50 Recipes From Top Chefs

In this large and diverse population sample, consisting of many education and income levels, no socio-economic factor drove the desire to learn from—or the benefits from participating in—a home-cooking class. The authors report similar incidents in three other published trials of a similar kind.

Six months after the classes, the participants, 32% of whom had scores for general health, mental health, and subjective vitality lower than the national average, all reported significant improvements.

A limitation of the study, the authors note, could be that as the class was a group activity, it was simply the result of doing something constructive together with other people that resulted in the benefits.

However, as the improvements in mental and physical well-being were observed months after the classes concluded, one can suppose it’s due more to the deployment of the knowledge gained in the kitchen over the subsequent weeks—and perhaps even the juxtapositions of more time with family and friends over cooked meals.

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Sex Pheromones Could Help Stop Asian Giant Hornets from Invading UK and ‘Wreaking Havoc’

Asian hornet (Vespa velutina), by Charles J. Sharp – CC license
Asian hornet (Vespa velutina)/ Charles J. Sharp, CC license

Sex pheromones could help stop ‘murder hornets’ from invading the UK and elsewhere and wreaking havoc, according to a new study.

The stimulating odors produced by a hornet queen can be used as bait to trap and track the invasive insects, say scientists.

Asian giant hornets, more commonly known as murder hornets, have been spreading across parts of North America and Europe.

While their nickname is misleading, they are threatening bee populations along with millions of pounds worth of crops.

Honey bees, some of the world’s most important pollinators, have few defences against these destructive insects, which can quickly destroy an entire colony.

So far, coming up with a solution to eliminate them has proven challenging, and even knowing where to look for them is tricky.

But now scientists in the United States have come up with a cunning plan to map their movements and end the invasion.

RELATEDThese Homegrown Mushroom Hives Could Save Ireland’s Bees

Study author Professor James Nieh at the University of California, San Diego said, “My usual plea is that people should stop calling them ‘murder hornets’ because they are large and perhaps frightening but not truly murderous.

“They are amazing social insects, but they don’t belong in North America and harm our critical bee populations, so we should remove them.”

Three of the major chemicals found in the giant hornet queen’s sex pheromone were identified by the researchers, including hexanoic, octanoic, and decanoic acid.

They then captured male hornets by laying traps near their nests and places where they typically reproduce.

The hornets’ brain activity and antennae were highly sensitive to the pheromone, the researchers found.

These compounds found in the queen’s pheromone could easily be purchased and deployed in the field immediately.

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Professor Nieh said, “The males are drawn to the odors of the females since they typically mate with them near their nests.

“In two field seasons we were able to rapidly collect thousands of males that were attracted to these odours.”

The researchers are hoping to test their traps in more field locations to see whether they can chemically attract hornets over distances of a kilometre or more.

Professor Nieh said, “Because these pheromone-based traps are fairly inexpensive I think they could be readily deployed for sampling across a large geographic range.

“We know where they have been found, so the big question is whether they are expanding. Where is that invasion front?”

How Asian giant hornets, known scientifically as Vespa mandarinia, first came to North America has remained a mystery, but they have been documented in British Columbia and Washington state.

Models suggest they could rapidly spread across Washington, Oregon, and possibly the eastern United States.

Rather than patent their discovery, the researchers have published their findings in the hope it will help document the hornet’s spread.

MORE: French Beekeeper Invents a Trap to Take on Asian Hornets Decimating Bee Populations in Europe

Where and how rapidly they are spreading could be mapped using predictive models once more traps have been deployed.

Professor Nieh said, “We hope that others, especially in invaded areas, will take the protocol we have established and test this method.

“We’ve described the chemical blends needed for these traps, which could reduce the number of males available to mate with females to help depress the population but primarily would help us figure out where they are.”

The findings were published in the journal Current Biology.

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Newly-Identified Species of Transparent ‘Glass’ Frogs Unveiled in Amazing Photos From Ecuador

By Jaime Culebras, study co-author / Andean Condor Foundation
By Jaime Culebras, study co-author / Andean Condor Foundation

Two new species of glass frog were found living in the same 6,200-acre reserve, showing just how much is yet to be discovered in the tropical Andes.

At first seeming perfectly identical to each other, the frogs were actually found to have very large differences on a genetic level, as well as different calls.

The newly-discovered hyalinobatrachium mashpi lives on the southern side of the Guayllabamba river valley, which separates its territory from that of another frog species, hyalinobatrachium nouns. 

When biologist Juan M. Guayasamin and his companions entered the Guayllabamba area looking for species of glass frogs, they found several specimens that seemed to have all the same features.

They were both see-through, displaying their heart, liver, and GI-tract proudly through their translucent bellies.

Beyond that, they had the same speckled patterns on their lime-green backs, and the same miniscule size of two centimeters.

MORE: New Species, Devil-eyed Frog, and Satyr Butterfly Not Seen For a Century Found in Forests 30 Miles From the Capital

It was only back at the lab when Guayasamin and the rest of the research team were sequencing the DNA of the new frogs into the glass frog genetic database that they realized they were dealing with two totally unique species.

Jaime Culebras, study co-author / Andean Condor Foundation

“What we are thinking is that the valley has kept these frogs from mixing with each other,” Guayasamin told National Geographic, noting that the two groups were found living merely 13 miles from one another. “When you have populations separated by a geographic barrier, you start having an accumulation of mutations in each group, and in time, they become genetically different.”

Northwest Ecuador is a place of such extraordinary biological diversity. It contains a South American biome known as the tropical Andes Mountains, which astonishingly contains twice as many amphibians as in the whole of the Amazon Rainforest. One of the reasons for this is that the Amazon Basin is actually rather flat.

A vertical world with numerous topographical barriers to the movement of species like the small glass frog, means the mountains offer far more isolation than the lowlands.

Jaime Culebras, study co-author / Andean Condor Foundation

“The topography here is quite complex, with many unexplored niches and hard-to-reach areas, so endemism is very high,” an Ecuadorian herpetologist not involved with the discovery told Nat Geo.

MORE: Scientists Discover a New Brown Species They Named the ‘Chocolate Frog’ – And it’s Adorable

Indeed, the total number of amphibians in the Amazon matches only the number of those specifically-endemic to the tropical Andes.

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New Electric Boat Just Levitated Boating to a New Level, While Ending Fuel Leaks

Candela
Candela

A Swedish shipwright has unveiled successful tests for a new fully-electric hydrofoil speed boat which it says will change the face of recreational boating forever.

The C-8, by Candela, can do 20 knots of speed and accommodate a half-dozen passengers while eliminating fuel leaks, motor noise, wake, and expensive trips to the fuel dock.

Electric boating has been far behind electric cars as a result of the far-denser resistance encountered when a vehicle attempts to push its way through water as compared to air.

Using hydrofoils to lift the C-8 out of the water, that most critical roadblock is avoided, resulting in 80% less energy consumption per knot traveled than an internal-combustion engine boat.

This allowed Candela to mount an electric motor and battery pack as the form of thrust and actually deliver range and speeds comparative to a fossil-fuel speed boat.

MORE: Solar Panels Built From Waste Crops Can Make Energy Without Direct Light

Candela has designed C-8 to fit right into the industry options. Capable of being mass produced at 400 units per year, the C-8 prices in at €290,000, equal or in some cases lower than other fossil-fuel speed boats in its size class of 28 feet (8.5 meters).

The C-POD motor is rated for 3,000 hours of service-free use, which is equivalent to 50–100 years of a person’s average recreational boating time, reports Clean Technica, adding that after being unveiled in February, its 100 preorders mean it outsold almost all other conventional speed boats of its size.

“It’s basically free boating, and hassle-free boating, for the first time in history,” says company founder Gustav Hasselskog.

The boat sleeps two kids and two adults, while the above deck cockpit has room for eight people.

RELATED: Scientists Develop Breakthrough Method for Recycling Industrial Plastics at Room Temperature in 20 Minutes

“Candela C-8 is designed to do away with all the bad aspects of powerboating: no slamming, no harmful wake, no pollution, no maintenance, no noise, and no more expensive trips to the fuel dock,” Candela’s head of PR, Mikael Mahlberg told Clean Technica. “It’s just a smooth, silent, and fun ride. After the first ride last week, it’s clear we’re right on target. This will be a pivotal moment for electric boats.”

(WATCH the video for this story below.)

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Livin’ Good Currency – Ep. 3: She Makes GOOD Happen, By Investing in Women-Led Companies

The Lesson: Investing in people is investing in the future. Putting money behind women-led companies can lead to great financial returns, and even better social ones. Better still, investing in early-stage companies led by minorities or women builds a power base where before there wasn’t one.

Notable Excerpt: “I’m really proud also, [that] we picked our bucket and we said women. And because we said women, instead of this traditional Silicon Valley road where these kids come from Harvard or Stanford, we started getting companies from all across the country, all different backgrounds, we have 50% minority-led companies, and we look at age, race, and gender in terms of every founding team, and when you invest in those early stages, that’s when you can make the change.”

The Guest: Jesse Draper is a mother of three and General Partner of Halogen Ventures, a financial management company that allows investors to grow their financial, cultural, and spiritual capital by backing funds which diversify along lines of gender, race, and age. Their portfolio consists of 70 companies with an emphasis on female leadership and consumer technologies, and have seen strong returns over short periods.

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.

Livin’ Good Currency cohosts Tony Samadani and Tobias Tubbs

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.

DON’T Forget to Share the New Podcast With Friends and Family on Social Media… (Featured photo by Kevin Abosch)

“Too many people miss the silver lining because they’re expecting gold.” – Arthur Yorinks

Quote of the Day: “Too many people miss the silver lining because they’re expecting gold.” – Arthur Yorinks

Photo by: Rowan Heuvel

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?

He Quit His Job to Offer Scottish Highland Trips in New York School Bus – A ‘Hostel on Wheels’

SWNS
SWNS

A business graduate is taking tourists on adventure trips amidst the Scottish Highlands – in a New York school bus.

The 24-year-old came up with the idea after watching Expedition Happiness on Netflix, about a couple traveling across North America in a refurbished school bus.

Angus Luff, who graduated in 2019, quit his job as a management consultant in Leicester, England, to live out his dream of creating the hostel on wheels.

He only worked in his job for three months before he decided, ‘I don’t want to do this’.

Dubbed ‘The Bonnie Camper’, the bus has been converted into a ‘glamping’ RV mobile home, with beds, seating areas, and a kitchen, for up to six people.

He hosts road trips across the Highlands, arranging outdoor activities like hiking, cycling, kayaking, and swimming in lakes along the way.

Serving as the tour guide, Angus does all the driving, cooking, and cleaning, before pitching a tent outside to give the guests full privacy in the bus.

The 1999 model vehicle was originally used to take students to and from school in New York. He bought it in 2019, and had it shipped over from the US.

“The buses are so iconic,” said the Edinburgh entrepreneur. “I think it’s the novelty of the school bus—it’s very rare you see them in real life.”

The Bonnie Camper – SWNS

He used lockdown to refurbish the bus, stripping it and furnishing it with the help of his dad—making sure it met UK regulations.

LOOK: Camping Travelers Can Rent Old, Empty Churches in UK to Help Pay for Historical Upkeep

Angus then earned his HGV driving license and tried out his tour on friends before setting out on his first money-making trip in June, 2021. “It was great fun, everyone loved it.”

“Everyone’s always beeping and waving at us. You feel like a celebrity.

“It was amazing, I had a group of four women from London come up and hired it out privately.

“I love seeing people’s reaction to the bus, they get so excited.”

The Bonnie Camper – SWNS

The five day tour costs £595 ($780) per person and includes all the activities and food.

CHECK OUT: These Beautiful Italian Towns Will Pay You to Move There if You Work Remotely

“I host the whole week and organize whisky tasting tours, hiking, mountain biking, watersports, and stops at local bars and pubs.”

“There’s no other company that does something similar in the UK.

With its high vantage point and large windows, the school bus is a unique way to experience some of Scotland’s most rugged and beautiful scenery. It even has a sunroof.

The Bonnie Camper – SWNS

“It’s a completely different viewpoint of everything,” he says. “You are quite engrossed in all the landscapes.

The Bonnie Camper – SWNS

This year he will also be trying individual bookings, where people can just book themselves a spot on the bus and take part in the activates for a tour group.

Travelers board the bus in Edinburgh, where Angus keeps the bus, before driving to the Cairngorms, then on to Glencoe, and arriving back by way of Stirling.

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“I basically go on holiday every week, I’m very fortunate to be able to do this.”

WATCH a montage video from The Bonnie Camper…

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University Gives Unexpected Bonus To All Employees Saying Thanks for Their Service During Covid

Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University

The Chancellor of Vanderbilt University is recognizing all the school’s employees for their diligent work over the past two years with a surprise bonus in their paychecks.

All the eligible faculty, staff, and postdocs, will receive a $1,500 bonus in their paychecks at the end of March.

That’s around 9,000 workers, including part-time employees, who are getting the generous bonus.

In announcing the Chancellor’s Recognition Award—which coincided with the March 17 anniversary of the university’s founding 148 years ago—Chancellor Daniel Diermeier expressed gratitude for the extraordinary efforts of those at the heart of Vanderbilt’s educational mission.

“It has not been easy, especially during the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic,” Diermeier said.

“However, your dedication to our vision and goals enables our university to operate at its highest level. I am indeed grateful as we approach Vanderbilt’s 150th anniversary in a position of strength and with optimism about our path forward.”

RELATED: University Cancels Debt for Graduates Hit By Pandemic

More than 7,000 undergraduate students, and 6,400 graduate students, were enrolled in the Nashville, Tennessee university last Fall.

Watch his announcement video below…

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‘Exciting’ Head-Tongue Controller Lets Paralyzed Patients Operate Smart Phones And Drive Wheelchairs

Georgia Tech
Georgia Tech

A new controller that works using head and tongue movements is one of the only options for patients with paralysis to not only control their own power wheelchairs but to use smartphones and computers.

Georgia Tech unveiled the results of a study that showed how their engineers were able to transform research prototypes into a user-ready version that was tested by 17 power wheelchair users living with tetraplegia—a spinal cord injury that affects the arms, hands, trunk, legs, and pelvic organs.

They described it as a first-of-its-kind, innovative application for individuals living with disabilities.

Collaborating with physicians and clinical therapists at Brooks Rehabilitation, the team was able to show how useful and easy the MagTrack technology worked for patients.

“To see where the MagTrack project has advanced even just since the early stages of this study is incredible,” said Geneva Tonuzi, medical director of the spinal cord injury program at Brooks Rehabilitation.

MagTrack enables power wheelchair users to control their connected devices (e.g., smartphone, computer) and drive their power wheelchairs using an alternative, multimodal controller. In addition, the assistive device is designed to be wearable, wireless, and adaptable to the user’s specific condition.

Unlike other devices, you wouldn’t have to be sitting in a chair or at a desk to use it. The controller travels with you.

RELATED: Justin Timberlake Buys Wheelchair-Accessible Van for Teen With Cerebral Palsy: ‘It’s a blessing’

Testing the performance of the Head-Tongue Controller (HTC), an earlier version of the MagTrack technology, demonstrated its ability to perform complex human-machine interactions that will enhance users’ quality of life, through the use of tongue and head movements, which are detected by eyewear and a tiny tracer that is temporarily glued onto the tongue using a bio-compatible adhesive.

Commands are generated from these motions using advanced data processing and machine learning models. This combination of head and tongue movements allows the user to perform a variety of daily functions with customizable control, from mouse navigation, scrolling, or drag-and-drop to advanced driving maneuvers when connected to a power wheelchair.

MagTrack’s tracers can stick to the face for many hours thanks to a transparent bio-compatible adhesive.

Georgia Tech

LOOK: 10 Lawmakers Accept Teen’s ‘Eye-Opening’ Challenge to Spend a Day in His Wheelchair

The test results, published in IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, showed that new users of MagTrack can complete these tasks as fast, and sometimes even faster, with the MagTrack’s HTC rather than their personal, alternative controller. Since the study session lasted less than 3 hours and used a power wheelchair that wasn’t their own—it is anticipated that participants would be more proficient as time went on.

“It was amazing to see how their faces lit up when they saw they were able to control their wheelchair with such ease and comfort,” said Jesse Milliken, speech-language pathologist in the spinal cord injury program at Brooks Rehabilitation Hospital. “They all said they can see this improving their day-to-day lives if it were available to them.”

At its core, MagTrack is a new type of body motion tracking—and these new, alternative controllers will enable them to be active members of an interconnected digital world.

“The trajectory of the MagTrack study shows an unprecedented possibility for the advancement of independent function as well as mobility for electric wheelchair users,” said Omer T. Inan, a Georgia Tech researcher and professor in the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering.

“Our team and partners are energized and motivated by the recent patient trials to continue to push this technology and its capabilities as far as possible (as) this technology can significantly improve people’s lives.”

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“The development of our wearable alternative controller eliminates the need for having multiple assistive technologies, replacing them with a single multimodal and integrated system,” said Nordine Sebkhi, a postdoctoral researcher and co-creator of the MagTrack assistive technology.

As a result of these studies, MagTrack has been refined to offer a fully integrated, all-in-one experience so that a user can seamlessly switch between driving their wheelchair and controlling connected devices in their surroundings (e.g., smartphone, computer, automated door opener, smart TV). The system can be used anywhere since it is wearable, and its built-in wireless connectivity facilitates portability.

The team at Georgia Tech is already working on a new version of MagTrack that is not only more inconspicuous, but also includes detection of facial gestures which could significantly augment its control capabilities.

In the coming year, the team plans to make MagTrack available to early adopters for at-home validation testing, to further improve the technology.

HERO: Pawn Shop Owner Gives Motorized Wheelchairs to 580 People –Some Who Haven’t Been Outside in Years

The team is also working on various designs of MagTrack to be used as a wearable articulograph for motor speech disorders, as a hand and joint tracking system for physical rehabilitation, and even as a finger tracking for VR/AR applications. The MagTrack team will be partnering with the Global Center for Medical Innovation to assist in regulatory strategy and project planning to transition the technology from the lab to the market.

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Anxiety Can Be a Habit – Which Means We Can Stop it, If We Know How

The Lesson: Worry and anxiety can establish themselves, through feedback loops, as actual habits, instead of being simply transient emotional states. People with anxiety disorders can try and prevent these habitual loops from developing by mapping out the sequence of thoughts, i.e. first, anxious feelings lead to these thoughts, then thoughts reinforce anxious feelings, and so on. Disrupting this flow can be the key, not only for breaking out of the anxious habit, but curtailing many other downstream affects of anxiety such as over-eating, poor sleep, and more.

Notable Excerpt: “Fear plus uncertainty leads to anxiety, and that anxiety makes the thinking and planning part of the brain go offline—so I would postulate that worrying is not only not helpful, it actually makes things worse because we can’t think and plan…. If we change our relationship with our emotions we can stop feeding them, and at the same time when they do show up we don’t resist them, because that resistance is part of the feeding: ‘what we resist persists.'”

The Guest: Dr. Judson Brewer is a psychiatrist, deep dharma practitioner, and author of Unwinding Anxiety: New Science Shows How to Break the Cycles of Worry and Fear to Heal Your Mind. He’s also the creator of the Unwinding Anxiety app, which can be downloaded onto your tablet or smartphone. He says the app requires 10 minutes to walk you through the unwinding of your anxiety habit that has built up in the mind. Watch Dr. Jud’s TED Talk, “A Simple Way to Break a Bad Habit”, viewed over 18 million times.

The Podcast: Believing people can be trained in happiness, the fidgety, skeptical journalist and author of 10% Happier, Dan Harris, ventures into the diverse ends of the mental health swimming pool—from science-based techniques for issues such as anxiety, productivity, and relationships, to the concept of enlightenment and the use of psychedelics. His Ten Percent Happier podcast is available where all podcasts are found.

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“Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” – Maya Angelou

Quote of the Day: “Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” – Maya Angelou

Photo by: Saulo Mohana

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?

COVID is Now Less Deadly Than The Flu in England, as Mask Requirements End

The Covid virus has gradually become less lethal over the two years since the pandemic began in early 2020—so much so that, now seasonal influenza is currently more deadly in England, according to analysis from The Financial Times.

“For every 100,000 Omicron infections, 35 will result in death, while the equivalent number of flu infections will lead to 40 fatalities,” John Burn-Murdoch and Oliver Barnes wrote in the article on FT.com.

They point to the high degree of immune protection from either vaccinations or previous infections as being the main reason for the recent parity with the flu.

“The proportion of people infected with Covid-19 in England who go on to die has dipped below that of seasonal flu, which has an infection fatality rate of roughly 0.04 percent,” wrote Burn-Murdoch and Barnes.

In the chart below, you can see that the blue line toward the bottom is the infection fatality ratio for seasonal flu. The ratio of fatalities from the Omicron variant recently dipped below that mark of 0.04 percent.

Reported hospitalization rates in England are on the rise this month, but that can be a bit misleading, because, according to the article, “more than two-fifths of Covid-19 patients in England’s hospitals are being treated primarily for something else, having incidentally tested positive upon admission.”

Getting back to normal

Many countries have started relaxing their COVID restriction rules, bolstered by dropping infection rates and studies suggesting that COVID-19 caused by the Omicron variant is less severe.

In the UK, all legal restrictions related to the pandemic, including mask requirements in public and self-isolation following a positive test, have been retired.

CHECK OUT: Researchers Find Potential Cause of ‘Long Haul’ COVID-19 Symptoms

In Switzerland, people no longer need to wear masks in most public places. And although those who test positive for COVID-19 must isolate for five days, all other restrictions have disappeared.

“We’re in a different place now,” says Müge Çevik, who researches infectious diseases and medical virology at the University of St Andrews, UK. “It’s clear now we can’t prevent infections, so the focus needs to be on preventing severe outcomes.”

Joël Mossong, an infectious-disease epidemiologist at Luxembourg’s Health Directorate, supports lifting restrictions in his country. “We’ve seen some deaths, but nothing of the sort that we witnessed last winter, even last spring,” he says in Nature. “The argument for keeping up the restrictions has really gone, and I think we were we’re now in a phase where the strategy to remove restrictions is the right way to go.”

RELATED: Promising Results From Antiviral Pill May Change the Game for COVID-19 Effects, Finds Clinical Trial

However, Çevik also believes that targeted populations should continue to be tested. Although, the benefits of general testing for asymptomatic people aren’t worth the trouble, she thinks regular testing is crucial in high-risk settings such as hospitals, care homes, and prisons.

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

SWNS
SWNS

‘The UK’s most premature twins’ have finally headed home from the hospital—five months after their birth when they were given a zero percent chance of survival.

Little Harley and Harry Crane were conceived via IVF and were born at 22 weeks and five days.

Babies born after only five months of development are not classed as legally viable but the tough siblings clung to life, and have amazed doctors.

The 39-year-old mother, Jade, has spent the last five months at the side of her brave babies in the newborn intensive care unit at Queens Medical Hospital in Nottingham.

After trying to get pregnant naturally for three years, Jade suffered an ectopic pregnancy before the couple decided to start IVF in 2010.

The miracle pair headed home to Derby this week with their proud mum and dad just two and a half weeks after their original due-date.

“They’re doing absolutely amazing. They’re doing all the things that we were told they wouldn’t do—they’re crying, they’re surviving.

“It’s really emotional,” said father Steve, 52. “140 days ago we didn’t think we’d be here.”

LOOK: Premature Baby Born So Small She Was Kept Alive in a Sandwich Bag Has Defied the Odds to Start School

SWNS

They experienced three heartbreaking miscarriages on IVF, too. “Steve and I have been together for 14 years, and 11 of those have been spent doing IVF,” says Jade.

“The few bits of clothes that I did buy made me think that I better keep the tags on just in case – you just don’t want to let yourself believe.”

When she was checked into the hospital on October 26, at 22 weeks pregnant, the doctor kept saying it was a miscarriage—but Jade said it couldn’t be because she could feel the babies moving.

A nurse explained after the birth why Jade couldn’t hear the baby cry—because it was born far too early.

“But then I heard this little cry. Harry did the same when he was born an hour later.”

“Their little cries sounded like a tiny kitten.

The couple was told that the twins weren’t going to survive.

“After they were born, I was Googling twins who survive at 22 weeks and trying to find any to give me hope,” said Jade. “I found a set of twins in America who had survived—they’re four now. I’ve connected with their mum on Instagram and she guided me through the first few days of being in the unit and what to ask for.

POPULAR: Premature Baby Becomes a Prodigy at 3, Joining Mensa After They Run Out of Questions For the Toddler

SWNS

The babies were born with lung and other problems. They were also diagnosed with a serious gastrointestinal problem, which can be fatal, and Jade was told to prepare to say goodbye.

Thankfully, the newborns have defied the odds and Harley finally joined her brother at home on Monday.

CHECK OUT: Scientists Found Flute Music That Helps to Build the Brains of Premature Babies

“They’ll go down in medical history – I’m pretty sure they’ll be having one of the wards named after them because everyone is just amazed by them!”

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Resetting Clock on Aging Cells Safely Reversed Signs of Decline in Mice

Age may be just a number, but it’s a number that often carries unwanted side effects, from brittle bones and weaker muscles to increased risks of cardiovascular disease and cancer. Now, scientists at the Salk Institute have shown that they can reverse the aging process in middle-aged and elderly mice, leading to a variety of benefits.

The technique works by partially resetting their cells to more youthful states, which impact skin, eyesight, muscles, and the brain.

“We are elated that we can use this approach across the life span to slow down aging in normal animals. The technique is both safe and effective in mice,” says co-corresponding author Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte, professor in Salk’s Gene Expression Laboratory.

When injured, the youthful skin of the treated mice had a greater ability to heal and was less likely to form permanent scars.

Both the kidneys and blood of treated animals more closely resembled epigenetic patterns seen in younger animals.

RELATED: Molecule Combo Actually Reverses Arthritis in Human Cartilage, Says ‘Exciting’ New Study

As organisms age, it is not just their outward appearances and health that change; every cell in their bodies carries a molecular clock that records the passage of time. Cells isolated from older people or animals have different patterns of chemicals along their DNA—called epigenetic markers. Scientists know that adding a mixture of four reprogramming molecules—Oct4, Sox2, Klf4 and cMyc, also known as ‘Yamanaka factors’—to cells can reset these epigenetic marks to their original patterns.

Scientists have used this approach in experiments to improve the function of other tissues like the heart, brain, and eyesight.

At Salk, they tested three groups of mice at varying ages equivalent to humans being 35, 50 and age 80, and found after seven or 10 months, the mice resembled younger animals in both appearance and ability.

CHECK OUT: Fountain-of-Youth Pill Could Be on Horizon After Scientists Dramatically Extended Longevity in Mice Using Flavanoid

This youthfulness was observed in the animals treated with the Yamanaka factors for seven or 10 months, but not the animals treated for just one month. What’s more, when the treated animals were analyzed midway through their treatment, the effects were not yet as evident. This suggests that the treatment is not simply pausing aging, but actively turning it backwards—although more research is needed to differentiate between the two.

Metabolism remained stable showing no form of age. Furthermore, there were no blood cell alterations or neurological changes in the mice that received the treatment, and no cancers or other health problems in any of the groups.

“At the end of the day, we want to bring resilience and function back to older cells so that they are more resistant to stress, injury and disease,” says co-author Dr Pradeep Reddy, of the Salk Institute.

POPULAR: 4 Common Medicines Have Reversed Alzheimer’s in Mice

“In addition to tackling age-related diseases, this approach may provide the biomedical community with a new tool to restore tissue and organism health by improving cell function and resilience in different disease situations, such as neurodegenerative diseases.”

The study, published in the journal Nature Aging, shows that, at least in mice, “there’s a path forward to achieving that.”

YOU ARE Not Getting Any Younger… SHARE This on Social Media..

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

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 March 19, 2022
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
“Never underestimate the wisdom of being easily satisfied,” wrote aphorist Marty Rubin. If you’re open to welcoming such a challenge, Pisces, I propose that you work on being very easily satisfied during the coming weeks. See if you can figure out how to enjoy even the smallest daily events with blissful gratitude. Exult in the details that make your daily rhythm so rich. Use your ingenuity to deepen your capacity for regarding life as an ongoing miracle. If you do this right, there will be no need to pretend you’re having fun. You will vividly enhance your sensitivity to the ordinary glories we all tend to take for granted.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):
Singer, dancer, and comedian Sammy Davis Jr. disliked the song The Candy Man, but he recorded it anyway, heeding his advisors. He spent just a brief time in the studio, finishing his vocals in two takes. “The song is going straight to the toilet,” he complained, “pulling my career down with it.” Surprise! It became the best-selling tune of his career, topping the Billboard charts for three weeks. I suspect there could be a similar phenomenon (or two!) in your life during the coming months, Aries. Don’t be too sure you know how or where your interesting accomplishments will arise.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
I love author Maya Angelou‘s definition of high accomplishment, and I recommend you take steps to make it your own in the coming weeks. She wrote, “Success is liking yourself, liking what you do, and liking how you do it.” Please note that in her view, success is not primarily about being popular, prestigious, powerful, or prosperous. I’m sure she wouldn’t exclude those qualities from her formula, but the key point is that they are all less crucial than self-love. Please devote quality time to refining and upgrading this aspect of your drive for success.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
“I’m not fake in any way,” declared Gemini actor Courteney Cox. On the face of it, that’s an amazing statement for a Gemini to make. After all, many in your tribe are masters of disguise and shapeshifting. Cox herself has won accolades for playing a wide variety of characters during her film and TV career, ranging from comedy to drama to horror. But let’s consider the possibility that, yes, you Geminis can be versatile, mutable, and mercurial, yet also authentic and genuine. I think this specialty of yours could and should be extra prominent in the coming weeks.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):
“Sometimes I prayed for Baby Jesus to make me good, but Baby Jesus didn’t,” wrote author Barbara Kingsolver about her childhood approach to self-improvement. Just because this method failed to work for her, however, doesn’t mean it won’t work for others. In saying that, I’m not implying you should send out appeals to Baby Jesus. But I suggest you call on your imagination to help you figure out what influences may, in fact, boost your goodness. It’s an excellent time to seek help as you elevate your integrity, expand your compassion, and deepen your commitment to ethical behavior. It’s not that you’re deficient in those departments; just that now is your special time to do what we all need to do periodically: Make sure our actual behavior is in rapt alignment with our high ideals.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
Leo classicist and author Edith Hamilton specialized in the history of ancient Greece. The poet Homer was one of the most influential voices of that world. Hamilton wrote, “An ancient writer said of Homer that he touched nothing without somehow honoring and glorifying it.” I love that about his work, and I invite you to match his energy in the coming weeks. I realize that’s a lot to ask. But according to my reading of the astrological omens, you will indeed have a knack for honoring and glorifying all you touch.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Blogger Starhawk reminds us that “sexuality is the expression of the creative life force of the universe. It is not dirty, nor is it merely ‘normal’; it is sacred. And sacred can also be affectionate, joyful, pleasurable, passionate, funny, or purely animal.” I hope you enjoy an abundance of such lushness in the coming weeks, Virgo. It’s a favorable time in your astrological cycle for synergizing eros and spirituality. You have poetic license to express your delight about being alive with imaginative acts of sublime love.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
English poet John Milton coined the phrase “silver lining.” It has become an idiom referring to a redemptive aspect of an experience that falls short of expectations. Over 350 years later, American author Arthur Yorinks wrote, “Too many people miss the silver lining because they’re expecting gold.” Now I’m relaying his message to you. Hopefully, my heads-up will ensure that you won’t miss the silver lining for any reason, including the possibility that you’re fixated on gold.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
“This is the most profound spiritual truth I know,” declares author Anne Lamott. “That even when we’re most sure that love can’t conquer all, it seems to anyway. It goes down into the rat hole with us, in the guise of our friends, and there it swells and comforts. It gives us second winds, third winds, hundredth winds.” Lamott’s thoughts will be your wisdom to live by during the next eight weeks, Scorpio. Even if you think you already know everything there is to know about the powers of love to heal and transform, I urge you to be open to new powers that you have never before seen in action.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
Witty Sagittarian author Ashleigh Brilliant has created thousands of cheerful yet often sardonic epigrams. In accordance with current astrological omens, I have chosen six that will be useful for you to treat as your own in the coming weeks. 1. “I may not be totally perfect, but parts of me are excellent.” 2. “I have abandoned my search for truth and am now looking for a good fantasy.” 3. “All I want is a warm bed and a kind word and unlimited power.” 4. “Do your best to satisfy me—that’s all I ask of everybody.” 5. “I’m just moving clouds today, tomorrow I’ll try mountains.” 6. “A terrible thing has happened. I have lost my will to suffer.”

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
“All experience is an enrichment rather than an impoverishment,” wrote author Eudora Welty. That may seem like a simple and obvious statement, but in my view, it’s profound and revolutionary. Too often, we are inclined to conclude that a relatively unpleasant or inconvenient event has diminished us. And while it may indeed have drained some of our vitality or caused us angst, it has almost certainly taught us a lesson or given us insight that will serve us well in the long run—if only to help us avoid similar downers in the future. According to my analysis of your current astrological omens, these thoughts are of prime importance for you right now.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
“Life swarms with innocent monsters,” observed poet Charles Baudelaire. Who are the “innocent monsters”? I’ll suggest a few candidates. Boring people who waste your time but who aren’t inherently evil. Cute advertisements that subtly coax you to want stuff you don’t really need. Social media that seem like amusing diversions except for the fact that they suck your time and drain your energy. That’s the bad news, Aquarius. The good news is that the coming weeks will be a favorable time to eliminate from your life at least some of those innocent monsters. You’re entering a period when you’ll have a strong knack for purging “nice” influences that aren’t really very nice.

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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“Sometimes, being true to yourself means changing your mind.” – Vera Nazarian

Credit: Shad Meeg

Quote of the Day: “Sometimes, being true to yourself means changing your mind.” – Vera Nazarian

Photo by: Shad Meeg

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?

Researchers Make ‘Giant Leap’ to Produce Affordable Renewable Hydrogen

An Australian company has invented a totally new electrolyzer to expand use of hydrogen fuel, which they say represents the first real revolution in the technology in 200 years.

Separating water into hydrogen gas and oxygen through electrical current, known as “electrolysis,” is both the chief method behind green hydrogen energy, and expensive and inefficient.

Yet for long-haul trucking, steel manufacturing, and more, hydrogen could be the only input available in green energy’s arsenal to replace petroleum products. The Swedish company SSAB is already making steel a bit greener by using hydrogen power to replace coal as a carbon input.

The Australian firm Hysata has changed the design of the major component to make the cost of pure hydrogen fuel competitive with fossil fuels by decreasing the heat and resistance generated through separating hydrogen.

“What we did differently was just to start completely over and to think about it from a very high level,” Gerry Swiegers, Hysata’s chief technology officer and a professor at the Univ. of Wollongong, New South Wales, told the Guardian. “Everyone else was looking at improving materials or an existing design.”

RELATED: Scientists Develop Breakthrough Method for Recycling Industrial Plastics at Room Temperature in 20 Minutes

In a scientific paper, published in Nature, demonstrating their new electrolyzer’s potential, they first outline the problem with the old ones—namely that even state-of-the-art water electrolyzers typically require ~53  kilowatt-hours of electricity to produce 1 kg of hydrogen, which contains 39.4 kWh of energy: a deficit of ~12.

Bubble Trouble

University of Wollongong

Before we can understand why that deficit exists, it bares a short explanation of how these devices work.

An electrolyzer consists of an anode and a cathode separated by a sponge-like membrane. H2O is sent into the anode, where its electrons are stripped and turned into electricity, powering whatever it’s connected to. Its positively charged protons then cross through the membrane into the cathode, where oxygen is pulled into. There, the protons, reunited with their electrons post-electricity harvest, combine with the oxygen to form water and heat: the only emissions.

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Where Hysata break from long tradition is that in their electrolyzer’s circular shape, the hydrophilic membrane sits immersed only a little in an electrolyte reservoir in the same place as where the water enters. The membrane continuously pulls up the water and the electrolyte in steady amounts that allow electrolysis to occur without the formation of hydrogen gas bubbles typical of electrolyzers which house the anode and cathode entirely within the hydrogen reservoir.

These gas bubbles block physical access to the catalyst on the anode and cathode, reducing efficiency. The elimination of the gas bubble problem results in Hysata’s efficiency rate of 95%, or 41.5 kWh per kilogram of hydrogen.

Hysata aren’t just scientists however, and the economics of their electrolyzer make sense. The membranes are easy to manufacture and the process can be automated at scale.

The International Renewables Energy Agency set a target of 2050 to invent new methods of electrolysis that will reduce the kWh required per kilogram produced to 42. Hysata are now the only entity on Earth to have achieved that, and if a long-haul trucking sector required 1 million tons of hydrogen per year, generating that with Hysata’s technology would save $3 billion.

GREEN UP Those News Feeds With the Good News…