Astronomers Uncover Possibly the Largest Black Hole: It ‘Bends Light into a Giant Einstein Ring’

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Aug 10, 2025

The Cosmic Horseshoe gravitational lens: The newly discovered ultramassive blackhole lies at the centre of the orange galaxy. Far behind it is a blue galaxy that is being warped into the horseshoe shaped ring by distortions in spacetime created by the immense mass of the foreground orange galaxy. Credit: NASA/ESA

It may be the most massive black hole ever found.

36 billion times larger than the mass of our Sun, it was previously hidden from astronomers while existing at the heart of the Cosmic Horseshoe galaxy, previously photographed by space telescopes.

The giant space phenomenon bends light into a perfect Einstein ring and “whips nearby stars” at incredible speeds.

Astronomers from the University of Portsmouth’s Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation in England and collaborators at the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande in Brazil, made the discovery—a giant cosmic phenomenon estimated to be 10,000 times heavier than the black hole at the center of our own Milky Way galaxy.

It is close to the theoretical upper limit of what is possible in the Universe, according to the authors of a new paper published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

The Cosmic Horseshoe galaxy is one of the most massive galaxies ever observed—so big, it distorts spacetime and warps the passing light of a background galaxy into a giant horseshoe-shaped ‘Einstein ring’.

“This is amongst the top 10 most massive black holes ever discovered, and quite possibly the most massive,” said researcher Thomas Collett, Professor of Astrophysics at the University of Portsmouth.

Researchers detected the Cosmic Horseshoe black hole using a combination of gravitational lensing and stellar kinematics (the study of the motion of stars within galaxies and the speed and way they move around black holes).

MORE BLACK HOLE NEWS:
• Largest Black Hole Merger Ever Observed Detected by LIGO–a Universe-Shaking Event
• NASA Visualizes What it Would Be Like to Plunge into a Black Hole – WATCH
• Eerie Echo Detected Coming From Milky Way’s Black Hole 200 Years Ago – LISTEN

The latter is seen as the gold standard for measuring black hole masses, but doesn’t really work outside of the very nearby universe because galaxies appear too small on the sky to resolve the region where a supermassive or ultramassive black hole lies.

But thanks to ‘gravitational lensing’, the team pushed much further out into the universe, Professor Collett explained.

“It is altering the path that light takes as it travels past the black hole and it is causing the stars in the inner regions of its host galaxy to move extremely quickly—almost 400 kilometers per second.

“We detected the effect of the black hole,” he said in a media release.

Lead researcher, PhD candidate Carlos Melo, of the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) in Brazil, added: “What is particularly exciting is that this method allows us to detect and measure the mass of these hidden ultramassive black holes across the universe, even when they are completely silent.”

The Cosmic Horseshoe black hole is located a long way away from Earth, at a distance of some 5 billion light-years. Our own galaxy, the Milky Way, hosts a 4 million solar mass black hole. Currently it’s not growing fast enough to blast out energy as a quasar but we know it has done in the past, and it may well do again in the future.

“It is likely that all of the supermassive black holes that were originally in the companion galaxies have also now merged to form the ultramassive black hole that we have detected,” said Professor Collett.

The discovery of the Cosmic Horseshoe black hole came as the researchers were studying the galaxy’s dark matter distribution in an attempt to learn more about the “mysterious hypothetical substance”, according to the release.

Now that they’ve proven their new method works for black holes, they hope to use data from the European Space Agency’s Euclid space telescope to detect more supermassive black holes—and their hosts—to uncover more mysteries.

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Hero Lifeguards Race Toward Cries of Help and Rescue Mother and Son Drowning in a Rushing River Nearby

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Nathan Frederick

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Aug 10, 2025

Screams were coming from the woods, but the three lifeguards who had just started their shift at the Ohio pool didn’t hesitate.

They sprinted away from the Pataskala Municipal Park and raced toward the screams, through the trees to the rushing river that flowed beyond.

Eighteen-year-old lifeguard Kaden Ross ran the 150 yards to the woods, hopped a fence, and made it to the river first. A woman was drowning in the murky waters of the Licking River, which had been surging after a series of summer storms.

“There’s a water hole down there, probably 12 to 15 feet deep, and I see a woman actively drowning,” Ross told WSYX-TV in Columbus (see their video below). “I saved the mother. I bring her to a log, and then she tells me, ‘My boy’s under there’. So when she tells me this, I look in the water and I don’t see anyone.

“Another guy came and got into the water with me. As I am saving the mom, I give her to one of my guards. He sees the little boy’s feet. The only thing we can see are his little feet above the water.”

While the other lifeguards (Kaden’s sister McKenzie, and Lily Ward) attended to the panicking mother, Kaden and the other impromptu hero worked to retrieve her 7-year-old son, who was almost completely submerged.

When the two men got him out of the water, he was unconscious and not breathing at all. Kaden used his lifeguard training to administer a couple of rescue breaths, then immediately started CPR.

The CPR forced fluid from the boy’s mouth, which is usually a positive sign in water rescues.

LOOK AT THIS CRAZY: Fishermen Pull Off Dramatic Rescue of 38 Dogs Treading Water with No Shore in Sight

Local police and first responders arrived soon afterward to continue the rescue. But it was the lifeguards who made it all possible, providing heroism without hesitation at the most critical moments.

“That creek goes on forever in those woods,” Kaden told WBNS in an interview. “It just happened to be in a spot where it was by a pool, where there were lifeguards that are trained to save people drowning—and we heard the screams.

“I know God put us there in the right place and the right time.”

WATCH HEROIC TRAIN-TRACK RESCUE: Fearless Hero Sprints in Front of Train to Rescue Man Collapsed on Track

The perfect place so a group of heroes could rush to save a mother and her son—and both are expected to make a full recovery.

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Hospital Tailors Kidney Transplant to Protect Teen Baseball Player’s Swing–Putting it on Other Side of his Body

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Nathan Frederick

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Aug 10, 2025

It was a parent’s worst nightmare, but doctors showed extra compassion for the patient who had dreams of being a baseball player when he grows up.

Five-year-old Sam Heintz was in the intensive care unit of Michigan’s Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital with failing kidneys and a grim diagnosis. He had a rare life-threatening disease (atypical hemolytic uremic syndrome) that produces blood clots in the kidney that can eventually lead to organ failure.

The little kid who loved baseball would need a kidney transplant if he ever hoped to play again. Fortunately, the next bounce of life fell in Sam’s favor when, at eight years old, the hospital located an organ donor.

Sam was a getting a new kidney. But the baseball player was a left-handed batter—so the family made a special request.

Typically, kidneys are transplanted into the lower right side of the body, which means every time Sam stepped into the batter’s box, the kidney would be directly exposed and vulnerable if a pitcher he were facing threw an errant fastball.

“When this is all done, can he still play baseball? If that’s gone, then our life is going to drastically change,” Sam’s mom told their provider, Corewell Health.

Could they place his kidney on the left side so it would be safer on the baseball diamond?

“They said that’s never been a request before,” Sam’s mother Alicia told WZZM-13, a TV news crew in Grand Rapids, Mich.

Luckily for the lefty, they were happy to do it. “They were happy to make it happen.”

“It was super cool,” Sam said. “I’m a lefty, and when I’m up to bat it’s pretty vulnerable if I turn and foul one off, or get hit there.”

CHECK OUT THESE BASEBALL TRIUMPHS:
• ‘Miracles Happen’: Woman Uses CPR Training she Learned 40 Years Ago to Save Teen Baseball Player’s Life
• Phillies Team Makes Hype Video That Wins Their Bat Boy Cancer Survivor a Trip to the All-Star Game

“It makes sense, right?” Cristina Brini, a a physician assistant in pediatric nephrology at DeVos Hospital, said in the article. “If you’re left-handed and you have the bat up, you don’t want to be exposed to where all of these balls are coming at you at 100 miles per hour.”

Sam has now returned to the baseball field, and in an interesting twist of fate, the wife of the boy’s coach was his nurse as a child—so the story has come full circle.

Although the early innings of his life didn’t go the way Sam—or his parents—had planned, his medical team and a new kidney have helped him make a valiant comeback.

And you can be sure that baseball will continue to be a big part of it.

WATCH the TV-13 video below…

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Top Secret D-Day Maps Found in Cardboard Box Detail Scary Defenses Faced By Allies at the 5 Landing Beaches

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Good News Network

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Aug 10, 2025

Top Secret D-Day Map shows Gold beach – via SWNS

Top-secret WWII maps used by Allied troops for the famous D-Day landings were found in a cardboard box after being purchased for just $10.

Five of the six maps provide restricted-access detail of the five landing beaches of Utah, Omaha, Gold, Juno and Sword, with the sixth one—for landing craft pilots—showing all the beaches

Each map features the French terrain—hills, woods, villages, and roads—but most importantly, they outline in chilling detail the German defenses, including barbed wire, minefields marked in purple ink, and even flamethrowers.

The collection had been in the possession of Royal Naval sub-lieutenant Walter Page who served on Landing Craft Tank 2138. His landing craft was one of 900 which played a vital role in transporting men and supplies across the English Channel on that fateful day.

The maps only came to light when their current owner finally looked through a box of memorabilia purchased at a previous auction—for which he paid just ten bucks.

This week, the documents will be auctioned off by Hansons Auctioneers in Derbyshire, England, beginning August 13. Bids can be placed online at their website.

The six maps will be sold individually, but they’re expected to fetch up to $20,000 in total.

“Imagine landing on a strange shore under enemy fire and not knowing where you were going or what hazards awaited,” said Hansons’ military expert, Matt Crowson.

“It is amazing to think, had it not been for the eagle-eyed vendor [sorting through his newly purchased box of papers] they would likely never have seen the light of day.”

More than 150,000 Allied troops were involved in the successful effort to push the Nazi defenders back from the Normandy beaches, as they sought to decisively turn the tide of WWII.

While the Americans focused on the western beaches of Utah and Omaha, the British and Canadians landed on the eastern shores of Gold, Juno and Sword.

Creating up-to-date maps of the shorelines was vital for Allied success, so, for months, photo-reconnaissance aircraft had helped create an accurate record of the French coast.

ANOTHER LUCKY FIND: War Hero Codebreaker Alan Turing’s Papers Found in Loft And Saved From Shredder to Fetch Record $625,000

And because it wasn’t known exactly where D-Day would take place, maps had to be developed for a wide area of France.

The formidable German fortifications featured 2,500 anti-tank obstacles acting as shoreline defense, while hundreds of submerged mines proved fatal to troops wading ashore.

Minefields behind the beaches coupled with barbed wire and anti-tank ditches also made advancement even more difficult.

The detailed D-Day maps were 1:12,500 scale, meaning that one kilometer on the ground is represented by eight centimeters.

Juno Beach D-Day map showing the size – SWNS

The maps are also divided into different sectors, in the case of Gold Beach, the area is further made up of Item, Jig and King (using the phonetic alphabet of the 1940s). Each sector was then sub-divided into “red” and “green”.

Walter Page and his Landing Craft crew were part of Assault Force ‘U’1, when soldiers stormed Utah Beach in the first wave of landings at 6:30 AM on June 6, 1944.

EVER HEARD OF THIS? Rare WWII Pigeon Parachute Used to Carry Messages to French Resistance Ahead of D-Day Found in Old Shoebox

“The maps are rare and important documents that mark the beginning of the liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany,” said the Auctioneer’s website.

Visit the Auctioneer’s website for more information and to place a bid starting on Wednesday (scroll down a little to see the maps).

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“Every great inspiration is but an experiment, though every experiment is not a great inspiration.” – Charles Ives

Quote of the Day

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Good News Network

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Aug 10, 2025

Quote of the Day: “Every great inspiration is but an experiment, though every experiment is not a great inspiration.” – Charles Ives

Photo by: Jakob Owens (cropped)

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Good News in History, August 10

This Day In History

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Good News Network

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Aug 10, 2025

A painting entitled the Fall of Nineveh - public domain

Today is the approximate date for the fall of Nineveh, capital of the Ancient Assyrian Empire, one of the most brutal and despotic of all Near-Eastern states. Though this history column never suggests the conquering of a people or the destruction of a city as a good thing, the fall of Nineveh essentially liberated a half-dozen other states from a tyrannical yoke, and recentered power around Babylon, which seems, as we view it today, to have prepared the table for the arrival of the modern Mediterranean. READ more about this mega-battle from history… (612 BCE)

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First 3D-Printed Home Made Primarily From Soil is Built in Japan–Ditching Unsustainable Concrete

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Aug 9, 2025

First 3D printed Earth House by Lib Work, Ltd

Collaborating with robotics engineers and Italian 3D printer manufacturers, a Japanese company is building “homes of earth” made primarily from soil.

Utilizing AI technology from design through construction, Lib Work, Ltd. completed their first 3D-printed earth home in Yamaga, Kumamoto on July 22, calling their creative process “uncharted territory where tradition and convention offered no guide”.

While the automotive industry has undergone rapid transformation through technological advances, the housing industry has seen virtually no fundamental innovation in construction methods, materials, or structures for over 50 years.

With an eye toward recycling, sustainability, and reduced carbon emissions, Lib Work focused on combining 3D-printing with natural materials enhanced for strength, constructibility, and design quality.

The walls of the completed Lib Earth House Model B use no cement (which produces industrial waste). Instead, they utilized only naturally derived materials with soil as the primary component to create sustainable earthen walls.

Compared to the previous model (Model A) that used some cement, the building’s strength has improved approximately fivefold while significantly reducing CO2 emissions from the manufacturing process itself.

The inventions from this development are patent pending, but pre-orders are being accepted this summer, according to their media release.

3D printing walls – Lib Work via YouTube

The walls contain cutting-edge sensors as part of a wall condensation monitoring system that monitors in real-time the temperature and humidity inside the walls. This system enables the house to manage its own condition by detecting condensation in advance to maintain a long-lasting, comfortable living environment.

Additionally, the homes include remote operation of air conditioning, lighting, and bath controls via smartphone or dedicated monitor. It also features an off-grid energy system that combines Tesla’s Powerwall battery storage with solar panels to create an electrically independent, self-sufficient home.

A courtyard incorporates natural light and ventilation.

“Together with Lib Work, we hope to continue to provide architectural solutions that contribute to achieving a recycling-centered society,” said 3D Printer collaborators Ove Arup and Partners.

“By using local soil for on-site material production, and by making all components easily removable, separable, and reusable/recyclable, we aim to provide reusable architecture that produces no waste when demolished.”

3D PRINTED HOMES OF WOOD: The World’s Largest 3D Printer Is Building Cozy Homes from Wood

The 3D printer manufacturer, Wasp, which provided the crane printer “heartily” congratulated the Lib Work team who paved the way for Japan to play a leading role in sustainable architecture.

“Their work fuses minimal design with organic inspiration, creating an aesthetic sensibility reminiscent of the Japanese ‘kintsugi’ philosophy that celebrates uniqueness and the beauty of natural materials.”

LOOK: World’s Tallest 3D-Printed Structure Rises 4 Stories into the Air Like a Wedding Cake, Inspired by Local Bakeries

The AI development partner, Maket Technologies, said, “Our envisioned future is not about building the same houses faster but designing and optimizing the most suitable housing for each individual—accessible housing for everyone.

Through these cutting-edge initiatives, Lib Work’s goal is the construction of 10,000 units by 2040—but there was no information yet on their cost.

GREAT NEWS: First 3D Printed Neighborhood is Providing 100 Sturdy Affordable Solar Homes Near Austin For $400K+

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Canadian Mountie Sits Down With a Senior–And The Conversation Saved His Life

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Aug 9, 2025

Courtesy of British Columbia Royal Canadian Mounted Police – FB

A family member called the Royal Canadian Mounted Police in British Columbia requesting a visit to the home of their loved one to check on his well-being—and the officer ultimately ended up saving the senior’s life.

In April, the Salt Spring Island Mounties received the request from an out-of-town family to check on their elderly father who they’d not heard from in a couple of months.

Police attended the residence and found the senior appeared to have been living in unhealthy conditions. Initially, he was reluctant to engage and was adamant that he was fine and not needing help.

But the officer, Cst. Lloyd, continued to speak with him for over an hour and built up a rapport with the man, who eventually agreed to be transported to hospital by ambulance where his health was checked.

Just in the nick of time

Then, last month, the man showed up at the Salt Spring Island office of the RCMP to show his appreciation for the officer and share the outcome of the medical diagnosis.

It turns out the man had unknowingly been bleeding internally for some time and, according to doctors, would have succumbed in the next 24 hours had it not been for the intervention of Officer Lloyd who convinced him to go to the hospital.

“What started as a standard call became something far more profound,” said Supt. Bruce Singer, commanding officer for the Island District RCMP.

“Despite being met with hesitation and resistance, Cst. Lloyd stayed present, didn’t rush, didn’t retreat, but instead listened, showed compassion, and built a connection that ultimately saved his life.”

MORE GOOD POLICE:
• Philadelphia Police Officer Sets Aside Fear of Heights to Rescue Child from a Roof
• Dog Sits Down in Middle of Road Unmoving–Til Officer Follows to Save Her Owner
• ‘We got him!’ Hero Michigan Police Use Heat Cam to Rescue Missing Toddler Wearing Only Diapers on Frigid Night

“This is what ‘Beyond the Mission’ truly means — acting not just out of obligation, but out of care and commitment to another human being,” Singer said proudly.

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Historic Moment as Red-Billed Bird Takes to the Skies for First Time in 200 Years–A Win for Chough Species in England

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Good News Network

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Aug 9, 2025

A wild-born red-billed chough (CHUF) has taken to the skies in South East England for the first time in over 200 years.

The young chough took flight from a wild nest in Dover, marking the first time in more than two centuries that the bird has lived independently in the wild in Kent.

Liz Corry, the Chough Release Supervisor at Wildwood Trust, says the fledging is a powerful indicator that the species is starting to re-establish itself naturally in the region.

“This is a moment we’ve all been hoping for. To see a wild chick not only hatch but fledge and take to the skies is a major step forward.

“It confirms that the birds are finding suitable nesting habitat, and pairing up to raise young—exactly what we’ve been working towards.”

Once a familiar sight in Kent, the red-billed chough vanished from the county more than 200 years ago, due mostly to habitat loss.

Its cultural ties to the region endure—most famously on the coat-of-arms of Canterbury, and in the legend of Thomas Becket, where it’s said the bird’s red beak and legs were stained by the martyr’s blood.

Wild-born red-billed chough takes to the skies in Dover England – SWNS

Earlier this spring, a nest was discovered at Dover Castle that produced the chick which successfully fledged last month.

Conservationists say this “remarkable” milestone comes just three years after the launch of an ambitious reintroduction program, led by Wildwood Trust, Kent Wildlife Trust, and Paradise Park.

The project’s five-year plan is to introduce up to 50 birds to the South East region.

The Kent population is also part of a broader strategy to link up chough populations across southern England—being overseen by a collaborative steering group involving Natural England and other conservationists.

They explained how decades of work to restore and manage vital chalk grassland habitat in East Kent have laid the foundation for this species’ return. Kent Wildlife Trust has worked closely with landowners and partners including the National Trust and White Cliffs Countryside Partnership to bring grazing areas back to the region, creating the ideal conditions for the birds—which are in the crow family—to forage and breed.

TWEET THIS GREAT NEWS: UK Zoo Helps Hatch Three of World’s Rarest Birds–Blue-Eyed Doves–with Only 11 Left in Wild

“This project shows what’s possible when long-term habitat restoration meets ambitious species recovery,” said Paul Hadaway, Director of Conservation and Engagement at Kent Wildlife Trust.

“A thriving chough population in Kent not only revives a lost species, it also proves the value of restoring rare habitats like chalk grassland, which are vital for a huge range of wildlife.”

Chalk grassland is among the most biodiverse habitats in the UK, supporting rich communities of wildflowers and invertebrates. The insects and larvae found in dung from grazing animals are a crucial food source for choughs during the breeding season.

LOOK: First Egg Laid in the Wild by Guam Kingfishers in 40 Years–Hanging on to Survival Thousands of Miles from Home

The project was funded by the Natural England Species Recovery Capital Grant Programme for 18 months until March this year, alongside conservationists and donors who have contributed to the Chough Appeal launched by Kent Wildlife Trust, which has brought in significant funding to help the project continue.

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Your Weekly Horoscope – ‘Free Will Astrology’ by Rob Brezsny

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Aug 9, 2025

Our partner Rob Brezsny, who has a new book out, Astrology Is Real: Revelations from My Life as an Oracle, 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 August 9, 2025
Copyright by Rob Brezsny, FreeWillAstrology.com

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22):
In the Arctic, the sun shines for 24 hours a day during midsummer. There is no night, only the surreal glow of prolonged gold. The human body, confused by the unending day, may be confused about when to sleep. For some, this creates disorientation, and for others, a strange euphoria. In my astrological opinion, Leo, you have entered a metaphorical version of this solar dreamscape. Your creative powers are beaming like a relentless sun. There may be little darkness in sight. So how will you rest? How will you replenish under the glow of fervent possibility? Be wisely discerning with your energy. Don’t mistake illumination for invincibility. Bask in the light, yes, but protect your rhythms.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22):
Now is an excellent time for you to swear sacred oaths. I suggest you get less comfortable with transitory arrangements and short-term promises. The near future will also be a ripe phase to make brave commitments that require you to go farther and deeper than you’ve dared to before. I recommend you forgo the cheap thrills of skipping along from one random moment to the next. Embrace a game plan. Finally, I urge you to cast magic spells on yourself that will release your unconscious mind from old fixations that subtly drain your power to fulfill your dreams. Please please please surrender trivial obsessions that distract you from your life’s key goals.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22):
In West African traditions, griots are key figures in their communities. They serve as storytellers, oral historians, poets, genealogists, and advisors. Their presence is often central to events like weddings, funerals, and ceremonies. In the coming weeks, Libra, I hope that you will embrace a role that resembles the griot. Your ability to enhance and nurture your network is at a peak. You have extra power to weave together threads that have become frayed or unraveled. Given your potential potency as a social glue, I advise you to avoid gossip and instead favor wise, kind words that foster connection.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21):
The phrase “elegant sufficiency” is an old English expression meaning “just enough” or “a sufficient amount in a refined or tasteful way.” I am expanding it to also mean “the simplest solution that solves a problem completely without unnecessary complexity.” It’s your power phrase, Scorpio. What you need is not intricate perfection, but elegant sufficiency: enoughness. I suggest you welcome this gift with enthusiasm—not in a resigned way, but with a quiet triumph. Maybe your plan doesn’t need more bullet points. Maybe the relationship doesn’t require further analysis. Maybe your offering is already thorough. Allow yourself the sweet satisfaction of having just the right amount. What you have created may be more organically whole than you realize.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21):
How do you become a maestro of desire? What must you do to honor your beautiful yearnings and cull your mediocre ones? What’s the magic that will help you fulfill your life’s purpose by trusting your deepest cravings? Here are some tips. First, jettison your inessential desires and cherish the precious yearnings that are crucial. Second, dispose of outmoded goals so you can make expansive space for robust goals that steer you away from the past and guide you toward the future. These are challenging tasks! The very good news is that the coming weeks can be a turning point in your quest to claim this birthright.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19):
I’m writing a fairy tale about an ancient land whose queen regards poetry as essential to the public good. She often invites poets to perform for her and her court. When they finish a stirring passage, they bow—not to the queen or other observers, but to the silence they mined to access their inspiration; to the pregnant chaos from which the poem was born. The pause is a gesture of gratitude and acknowledgment. I invite you to partake in similar acts of appreciation, Capricorn. Bow toward the mysteries from which your blessings flow. Honor the quiet sources that keep you fertile. Praise the treasures in the dark that fuel your intense activities.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18):
When I advise you to get naked, I’m not necessarily suggesting that you doff your clothes. What I primarily mean is the following: Shed the armor around your heart; strip off your defense mechanisms; discard knee pads you wear while kissing butt or paying excessive homage; recycle shoes, jackets, pants, and opinions that don’t fit you; and discard pride-spawned obstacles that impede your communions with those you love.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20):
The Finnish word sisu describes a radical, unglamorous persistence. Those who possess sisu can summon extraordinary determination, tenacity, and resilience in the face of confusion or difficulty. It’s not about bravado or flair, but about soulful gutsiness. I suspect it’s time for you to draw on your *sisu*, Pisces. It will empower you to tap into reserves of strength that have previously been unavailable. You will activate potentials that have been half-dormant.

ARIES (March 21-April 19):
The Tagalog word gigil refers to the urge to squeeze or pinch something adorable. It’s an ecstatic tension that verges on overflowing the container of decorum. In the coming weeks, you Aries could feel gigil for the whole world. Everything may seem almost too vivid, too raw, too marvelous, and altogether *too much*. I advise you to welcome these surges and allow them to enhance your perceptions. Laugh hard. Cry freely. Invite goosebumps. (But you may not want to actually squeeze anyone without their permission!)

TAURUS (April 20-May 20):
In Japan’s Snow Country, artisans practice yuki-sarashi. It involves laying woven cloth on snow under sunlight to bleach, brighten, purify, and soften the fibers through the effects of snow, sunlight, cold, and ozone. Because this process doesn’t require harsh chemicals, it helps maintain the fabric’s strength and prevents it from yellowing over time. I propose you make yuki-sarashi a useful metaphor, Taurus. Something fragile and fine is ready to emerge, but it needs your gentle touch and natural methods. You are often grounded in the adept manipulation of raw material—what works, what holds, what can be relied on. But this burgeoning treasure needs maximum nuance and the blessings of sensitive care.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20):
When African American dancer Josephine Baker arrived in Paris in 1925 at age 19, she was seeking refuge from her home country’s racism. Her electrifying performances soon made her a celebrity. Author Ernest Hemingway said she was “the most sensational woman anyone ever saw.” As she grew wealthy, she donated generously to French charities, hospitals, and schools. Her compassionate works evolved further, too. During World War II, she worked as a spy for the French Resistance against the Nazi occupation. Later, she became a civil rights activist in the US. Can you guess the astrological sign of this multi-faceted star? Gemini! I hope you will be inspired by her in the coming weeks. May you, too, use your natural gifts and stylish flair to serve the greater good. Look for opportunities to mentor, encourage, and advocate for those lacking your advantages.

CANCER (June 21-July 22):
When a glacier moves, it doesn’t rush. It presses forward incrementally, reshaping mountains, carving valleys, and transporting boulders. In a metaphorical sense, Cancerian, you are now in glacier time. A slow, relentless, and ultimately magnificent process is afoot in your life. Others may not yet see the forward momentum. Even you may doubt it. But the shift is real and permanent. Trust the deep, inexorable push. Your soul is hauling whole landscapes into new configurations.

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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“There is no love that is not an echo.” – Theodor Adorno

Quote of the Day

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Aug 9, 2025

Quote of the Day: “There is no love that is not an echo.” – Theodor Adorno

Photo by: Getty Images for Unsplash+

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

Orangutans by Getty Images for Unsplash+

Good News in History, August 9

This Day In History

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Aug 9, 2025

60 years ago today, Singapore became the first country ever to gain independence unwillingly, after it was expelled from Malaysia. Affirmative action policies that granted privileges to Malays over other ethnic minorities caused significant unrest after a merger with Sabah, Sarawak, Malaysia, and Singapore. Two years later, the Malaysian Prime Minister Tunku Abdul Rahman decided to expel Singapore from the federation. The Parliament of Malaysia voted 126–0, with all Singaporean MPs boycotting the vote, in favor of the expulsion on 9 August 1965. READ the miracle that happened next… (1965)

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New Research on Genes Linked to Stuttering Could Be ‘Life-Changing‘ for Those with Speech Disorder

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Andy Corbley

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Aug 8, 2025

An illustration of Demosthenes of Athens and a photograph of King George VI, both of whom had stutters

A genetic analysis of a million individuals with stutters has clued Australian researchers into a potential genetic component that would revolutionize the diagnosis and treatment of this common disorder.

400 million people worldwide have stutters, and a cross-Pacific partnership between Curtin Stuttering Treatment Clinic in Western Australia a Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, identified 48 genes that show a hereditary link.

Scientists will almost always feel that pause will give pride, yet the authors heralded their work as “groundbreaking” and something that will help pave the way towards pre-verbal diagnosis of stuttering.

Stutters tend to emerge shortly after a child becomes verbal, but the longer a stutter is in the child’s speech motor system, one of the study authors said, the more of a habit it becomes.

“[The study finding] means those particular young people will be offered early intervention straight away hopefully, and in doing that we can curtail what can be otherwise a lifelong disability,” said Associate Professor at the Curtin Clinic, Janet Beilby, told ABC News Australia.

“We found consistent DNA results, 48 of them, and in addition to that we found 57 [genomic] hot spots so it’s very exciting because with these hot spots we can dig further,” she added.

Stuttering, or stammering as it’s called in British English, has afflicted hundreds of notable people over the years, from public figures like Demosthenes of Classical Athens and King George VI of the UK, to entertainers like Bill Withers and Hugh Grant.

It can be corrected through speech therapy, and the earlier such therapy starts the better are the outcomes it produces. Beilby et al’s research will go along way toward reducing the impact of stuttering on the self-esteems of the next generation.

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Scarlett Johansson and AC/DC Are Being Used to Scare off Wolves by American Farmers

By

Andy Corbley

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Aug 8, 2025

credit (left) Unsplash (right) Brian Johnson, from ACDC - credit Matt Becker, CC 3.0. BY-SA

From Wyoming and Oregon comes a story most bizarre: Scarlett Johansson’s voice being used to frighten away wolves.

Famed for their emotional intelligence, the gray wolf population around Greater Yellowstone are obviously not adept enough to detect acting when they hear it, as it was a scene from Johansson’s film Marriage Story that has them spooked.

Ever since gray wolves were reintroduced to Yellowstone National Park, farmers have had to deal with attacks on their livestock. Some were seeing double digit losses of cattle in a single month.

They are protected and cannot be fired upon or poisoned, so according to multiple reports farmers are using drones to pass over their land playing AC/DC music and the aforementioned Johansson film.

Most could probably understand how “Hell’s Bells” could scare an animal away, but biologists have noted that wolves, for whatever reason, find the sounds of humans arguing disturbing enough to be deterred by them.

“I need the wolves to respond and know that, hey, humans are bad,” the aptly-named Paul Wolf, a USDA district supervisor in Oregon, told the Wall Street Journal, who first confirmed that Johansson’s voice from that particular film clip was being played by the drones.

OTHER WOLF NEWS: Mexican Wolf Numbers Growing in U.S. for 8th Consecutive Year, Soon to Be Howling at a Reserve Near You

Euronews reports that the drones and their broadcasts have worked dramatically to lesson predation, with one monitoring period seeing wolf attack numbers fall from 11 in 20 days to just 2 in 85 days.

That’s a huge economic relief to ranchers, and probably good for a laugh and a story for dinner guests too.

WATCH the scene that the wolves find frightening…

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In Belize, Maya Descendants Are Reviving an Ancient, Sacred Ballgame

By

Andy Corbley

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Aug 8, 2025

One of the first things we learn about the Maya is that they played a curious ball and court game, and that these courts can be found in all the major Mayan archaeological sites.

From the former Maya stronghold of Belize comes the story of the slow revival of this ancient ball game—perhaps the oldest of its kind, and of the pride and ethnic joy that comes along with it.

Pok-ta-pok is billed as the world’s oldest team ballgame, and today is the national sport of Belize. They were the reigning world champions three times in a row before Mexico unseated them in 2023.

No one knows for certain how long pok-ta-pok has been played. Some scholars believe it originated with the Olmec culture, but it has been played among the Maya for probably 2,000 years. Thousands of ball courts have been found across Mesoamerica, including Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala, all bearing similar features of a long court with tapered sides ending in stone walls and two vertical-standing hoops mounted to the sides of the walls.

It was played with a ball, probably weighing around 9 pounds, made from the congealed sap of the Panama rubber tree, and various versions of the game saw players strike the ball with their hips, or potentially also the forearms.

Carved reliefs on the side of the Great Ball Court in the Mexican Mayan city of Chichen Itza suggest it was played with teams of men. Courts bore stone markers on the floors or walls that archaeologists believe were part of the scoring system, though the ball was likely kept in continuous play, with a well timed and angled strike from one player holding the power to send the ball soaring 90 feet across the court.

When Spanish Catholic missionaries witnessed pok-ta-pok in the 1600s, they were equally awed and offended, but fortunately it was their accounts that give us some details about the game.

Points were scored by striking the ball through the ring, moving it into the opponent’s “end zone,” or hitting stone markers. On important occasions, certain players would have almost certainly been ritually murdered at the end as a nod to a Mayan creation myth where a pair of twins defeat the lord of the underworld in a ball game, according to Smithsonian.

Youth athletes play pok-ta-pok on a modern court in a regulation match – credit, Asociación Centroamericana y del Caribe del Deporte Ancestral de la Pelota Maya, via Facebook

The modern version of the game is often called “Pelota Maya” in Spanish, and was played in secret by Mayan communities in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. This state eventually gave an exhibition of the game at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City.

Since then, it’s gradually grown into an internationally federated sport, with national teams competing from Honduras, Belize, Guatemala, Panama, and nine Mexican states. Additionally, Las Vegas, East Los Angeles, and Yuma, Arizona, along with the San Bernadino Valley in the US have teams.

The game is played on a 200 by 13 feet court, A fajado or leather and suede loincloth, is worn around the waist with extra padding on the dominant hip bone used to strike the ball.

If a poor hip strike causes the bounce to fade, players still use their hips to strike the ball by scooting themselves along the ground. Penalties are incurred for performing this maneuver and accidently sitting on the ball, as well as allowing the ball to strike other parts of their body.

Scoring a hoop goal during the game results in 10 tens, while in a semifinal or final match of a tournament, a hoop goal results in an automatic victory. A hoop goal is particularly difficult since the hoop is about the same size as the ball itself.

Belize’s talent pool is about 40 athletes deep, from youth teams to senior and women’s teams as well.

WATCH a an exhibition match below…

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Relative of Extinct Xerces Butterfly Helps Restore California Habitat Destroyed in its Demise

By

Andy Corbley

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Aug 8, 2025

(left the Xerxes blue butterly in a museum collection (right) the silvery blue butterfly - credit, Brianwray26 CC 4.0. - D Gordon Robertson, CC BY-SA 3.0. — (left the Xerxes blue butterly in a museum collection (right) the silvery blue butterfly - credit, Brianwray26 CC 4.0. / D Gordon Robertson, CC BY-SA 3.0.

(left the Xerxes blue butterfly in a museum collection (right) the silvery blue butterfly – credit, Brianwray26 CC 4.0. / D Gordon Robertson, CC BY-SA 3.0.

The coastal dunes of the San Francisco peninsula serve as the natural backdrop to the dramatic curve of the Golden Gate Bridge, but just recently they also became the test bed for an “amazing” experiment in rewilding.

Can an extinct species, which played a key role in its ecosystem, live on through its close relatives? That’s what ecologist at the California Academy of Sciences are trying to figure out.

Using silvery blue butterflies, the ecologists are attempting to replicate the role and activity of the extinct Xerxes blue butterfly, an important regional pollinator that became the first known invertebrate species to go extinct in North America post-industrialization.

The Gold Rush saw rapid urban development, and populations boomed in the Golden State. On the Presidio Peninsula, coastal dunes with vegetated and forested upper reaches were the home of the Xerxes blue, but the loss of this habitat meant we lost the Xerxes as well.

Professor Durrell Kapan, senior research fellow at the academy who led the field work, confirmed through lab tests that the closest living relative of the Xerxes blue was the silvery blue, and now that the Presidio dunes were restored through 30 long years of protection by the Presidio Trust and the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, it was time to give them back their butterflies.

“[The project is] an amazing opportunity to try to regenerate those missing connections using its closest relative,” Kapan told CBS. “It’s an opportunity to try to practice how we fix the environment.”

On an early morning, Kapan and colleagues arrived on the vegetated hillsides carrying cooler bags filled with small plastic ramakins containing one silvery blue each, which were contentedly feeding away on a cotton ball soaked in fruit juice.

BUTTERFLY BITES: After 20 Years He Finally Spotted the Elusive North American Butterfly Beauty in a Nearby Bog

Released upon native flowers, volunteers tracked their movements for one hour post-release. Several immediately laid eggs, others flitted about feeding on nectar.

This is the second year in a row that silvery blues have been released in the Presidio. The original batch were released with marks on their wings for identification, but the team said they’re now seeing butterflies without marks, suggesting success.

Dr. Phoebe Parker-Shames, a wildlife ecologist for the Presidio, said it’s as much about preparing for the future as it is about correcting mistakes made in the past.

“If one year it’s too hot for a particular species and their population sort of has a dip, there’s another species there that can help fill the same role,” she noted.

WATCH the story below from CBS…

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“Every song is like a painting.” – Dick Dale

Quote of the Day

By

Good News Network

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Aug 8, 2025

Quote of the Day: “Every song is like a painting.” – Dick Dale

Photo by: Meg Aghamyan for Unsplash+

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

Good News in History, August 8

This Day In History

By

Good News Network

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Aug 8, 2025

41 years ago today, Nawal El Moutawakel, the Amazigh-Moroccan athlete, became the first Moroccan, and the first woman from a Muslim nation to win Olympic gold when she finished top in the 400-meter hurdle event. A member of the IOC, and Minister of Sport for Morocco, she was a pioneer for Muslim and African athletes in that she confounded long-held beliefs that women of such backgrounds could not succeed in athletics. READ about her career after the games… (1984)

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Intuition and a Devoted Dog Guided a Man to An Unconscious Couple Whose Lives He Saved

By

Andy Corbley

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Aug 7, 2025

pitbull in encampment-by rescuer Gary Ellgene Thynes-Facebook released — Hero pitbull –Credit: Gary ‘Ellgene‘ Thynes via Facebook

Hero pitbull –Credit: Gary ‘Ellgene‘ Thynes via Facebook

A Pittsburgher and a mysterious dog recently teamed up to save two unconscious individuals in a story that has earned the pair thousands of plaudits.

Gary Thynes shared both on Facebook and to local news station WTAE that he was playing with his own dog in a park when a leashed male pit bull arrived without an owner and made what was clearly a plea for attention.

“He would get just close enough where he was out of arms reach and he would bark and turn and run a few steps and turn back around,” Thynes shared on Facebook. “Something put the idea in my head, VERY STRONGLY, that this dog wanted me to follow him. So I did.”

That Facebook post opened with a dedication of personal gratitude for his sobriety—that it allowed him to get in touch with his intuition, which told him the dog was trying to get help.

That personal journey of sobriety, which Thynes told WTAE has stretched now for 16 months, clued him in on what was wrong when the pit bull he was following led him down a secluded, overgrown path to a tent encampment, where he found a pair of unresponsive bodies lying on the ground.

“At first I saw just the one gentleman, I tried to get his attention and wake him up, but he was completely unresponsive,” Thynes said. “I didn’t even know if he was breathing or not. Then I turned around and I saw a pair of legs sticking out of the tent, and I tried to shake them, and it was a woman who would not respond to me either.”

He called 911 and emergency dispatchers arrived in minutes to take a male and female to the hospital for unconfirmed reasons. As the only eyewitness though, Thynes was contemplative.

“As someone in recovery myself that’s dealt with similar—I’m assuming—issues that they have… I’m 16 months sober from heroine addiction, I know how quick you have to react to save someone’s life,” he said.

MORE NEWS LIKE THIS: Hero Service Dog Senses Owner’s Irregular Heartbeat–Saving the Veteran From a Catastrophic Stroke

Since then, the Guardian, reporting on the story, added that when Thynes recounted the story on Facebook, a commenter reached out sharing that she was the woman whose life he had saved, and that she would sincerely like to meet him.

Thynes responded in the affirmative, and that her dog—whom he had agreed to foster while the pair were in the hospital, was waiting for her.

MORE DOGS LIKE THIS PIT BULL: Update: Shelter Dog Who Recognized Man’s Oncoming Seizure Finds Forever Home

“It is an honor for me to take care of this guy until his humans are well enough to reunite with a dog that loves them very much,” Thynes had written in his post.

He told the news that the pit bull is “a persistent little puppy, … amazing, and … definitely saved some lives.”

WATCH the story below…

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Car Wash Hires All-Autistic Staff to Wash Away Barriers: 10 Years Later, There’s Now 4 Florida Locations

By

Andy Corbley

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Aug 7, 2025

credit - Rising Tide Car Wash, via Facebook

In 2015, GNN reported on the opening of Rising Tide Car Wash in Florida, where a man’s autistic son could acquire all the merits of hard work, earn a paycheck, and become more independent.

Now 10-years-later, founder John D’Eri’s original vision has been shared by thousands—both on the spectrum and off of it; both in the driver’s seat, and out of it.

Washing, buffing, and waxing at Margate, Parkland, and Coral Springs, with a fourth location set for Pompano Bay in 2026, Rising Tide now employs 90 neurodivergent adults.

When GNN first reported on the story they had just started, and managed 35 employees.

“I don’t want him to sit in a room, taken care of by others once I’m gone,” John D’Eri said at the time “I want him to have a job, I want him to have friends.”

He was imagining life after his son Andrew graduated high school; what would fill up his days? How would we be able to take care of himself?

Other fathers and mothers around Florida and the country bedsides will undoubtedly have had a similar questions, but if there’s one the last 10 years of operations has answered, it’s that a Rising Tide lifts all boats.

AUTISM STORIES: Joyous New York City Coffee Shop Hires and Trains People with Autism and Down Syndrome

“I like working on the cars because it’s so easy for me,” said Ryan Brodie, one of the employees who works with Andrew. “The best thing of having a job is that I make so much money.”

“There’s not many meaningful opportunities for individuals who have high-functioning autism, and this is something that they can do and be successful at and feel a part of,” said Michelle Hintz, a psychologist at Cadenza Center for Psychotherapy & the Arts in Hollywood, who regularly patronizes Rising Tide.

MORE NEURO-NEWS: Carpet Cleaner with Autism Has Learned 40 Languages – Watch His Talent in Action

Speaking with CBS, she said there’s a clear arc of success in cleaning a car, which arrives dirty, is covered in suds, and then gradually, through application, begins to sparkle and shine.

There’s a metaphor in there, maybe, but for now WATCH them in action below…

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