His Invention For Renewable Energy Inspired by the Physics of Northern Lights Just Won the 2020 Dyson Prize

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Nov 27, 2020

A married couple from New Zealand has donated their heritage farming property to the state to ensure the beautiful natural scenery it contains can be enjoyed by the people for all time.

Owners Dick and Jillian Jardine handed their 2,200-acre (900 hectare) property to the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust (QEII) “for the benefit and enjoyment of all New Zealanders,” practically parroting the words of Teddy Roosevelt when he spoke at the completion of the Yellowstone National Park’s welcome archway.

“This land has been in the family for nearly a century and we have endeavoured to improve and enhance it over this time,” said Dick Jardine. “Having QEII as the caretaker of this property gives us the comfort and assurance to proudly pass over this gift for all New Zealand to enjoy and appreciate.”

Shirking development offers for the protection of the area as working pastureland, Dick and Jillian gave the local government of the Wakatipu, on New Zealand’s South Island, something that is becoming increasingly scarce: a wide-open landscape.

Situated at the base of a mountain range aptly called the Remarkables, the Wakatipu landscape is part of the Central Lakes Region. It boasts extraordinarily expensive real estate and contains the nests of several of the more wealthier people on the planet, including PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel, and jewelry juggernaut Michael Hill.

According to the QEII, Jillian Jardine didn’t want to consign the entire area to become something akin to Malibu on South Island.

“We thought about this idea and it just stuck, so it feels like the right thing to do,” she said. “We want to keep it as it is forever, we don’t want buildings all over it or housing, there’s so much housing going in… we want to be part of saving something.”

The ground will be open to anyone in 2022, which will be the 100th anniversary of the Jardine family acquisition—gorgeously squished between the Remarkables Range and a great big lake.

The plan for the property is to create a multi-functional wild area that can be used for “pastoral farming, conservation, public access, and landscape protection.”

MORE: New Zealand Prime Minister Pledges to Reach 100% Renewable Energy Across Nation by 2030

“The gift of this property also comes at a time when protecting biodiversity and promoting a connection to nature is more relevant than ever,” reads a statement on the QEII website, while the trust’s CEO Bruce Wills called it “an extraordinarily generous gift to New Zealand and one that will endure long after we are all gone.”

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Dispel Lockdown Woes and Hectic Holidays With Simple, Science-Backed Tips For Boosting Mood

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Nov 27, 2020

Wintertime weather, holidays, and a pandemic lockdown can make routines difficult, but practicing mindfulness can offer a solution, and be done in very simple forms.

The year has been a real humdinger for some and a tragedy for others, and using mindfulness—the direct mental effort to make yourself present in each passing moment, can help remind so many of us why the holidays are a favorite time of the year.

If one collects enough psychological information, using mindfulness throughout the week—throughout the season, might make us more resilient to whatever life through in our paths.

Walking

Even though the thermometers are reading low, walking is not only a great way to practice mindfulness, but it gets you out of doors—which every psychologist worth their salt would explain is great for your mental health.

During the holiday season and wintertime, it’s even more important for several reasons.

Reduced daylight hours lead to a reduction in the natural absorption of vitamin D from UV light. Vitamin D is one of the most important biochemicals for the immune system and fighting off viruses.
Exposure to cold increases the brain’s production of norepinephrine, a behavioral chemical that can make you feel elated and excited.
Exposure to trees, sky, the stars, and nature has been shown time and time again to help improve mental well-being.

Walking this holiday season allows you to capture all of these benefits as well as offering a great opportunity to practice mindfulness. In Europe, it’s quite common for married couples, friends, or dog moms/dads to take a walk after a meal—particularly dinner.

Several studies have looked at the effects of a post-dinner walk on things like nocturnal glycemia, type-2 diabetes, and gastro reflux. All found that these various symptoms were improved with even just a 20-minute moderate-intensity walk after an evening meal.

“Concentrate on the air as it fills your lungs and expels into the atmosphere. Notice the breath of your exhale becoming one with your surroundings,” advises Veronika Tait, Ph.D. writing for Psychology Today.

Veronica adds that studies have shown walking in forests or in close sight of trees has been shown to lower levels of stress and anxiety.

“Picture yourself expanding into the vastness and reflect on the changing seasons. Ponder what it means to be at the mercy of the sky each day, recognizing our powerlessness over Mother Nature,” she adds.

There’s no better time than December and winter to recognize our powerlessness over nature.

If you’re not the kind of person who likes the cold, a new attitude about winter could be only a matter of how you frame it. Kari Leibowitz is an American psychologist studying Norwegians’ attitudes towards their long sunless winter above the Arctic Circle.

“Most people don’t realize that their beliefs about winter are subjective,” Leibowitz tells the Guardian. “They feel like they’re just someone who hates the winter and there’s nothing they can do about it… But once you put it in people’s heads that mindsets exist, and that you have control over your mindset—I think that that’s tremendously powerful.”

READ: Dreading a Dark Winter Lockdown? Think Like a Norwegian

After accruing all those benefits, there’re still more waiting for you when you finish your walk.

To drive the cold winter away

Another good time to practice mindfulness is after your walk.

Slow down as you approach your door and say out loud how grateful you are for the shelter that keeps you safe from the cold. Once inside, take a moment to feel the warmth of your home’s air reaching the parts of you that are most cold like the nose, lips, and ears.

You know that throbbing feeling when a very cold body part is rapidly warming? Focus on that while you pour yourself a cup of herbal tea, and try and pay attention to the smell and the steam from the water as it enters your cup.

Sit down and drink your tea without moving until it’s finished. Here’s why:

Many herbal teas have therapeutic effects that can be very beneficial for staving off sickness, bettering sleep quality, and helping de-stress after a long day.
A cup of tea is about as long as it takes to finish a short mindfulness routine. It’s been shown, and the HeadSpace app has made a fortune from it, that just 5-8 minutes of mindfulness or meditation is enough to start experiencing the beneficial effects.
Use your fanciest cups, saucers, and other tea paraphernalia. Social psychologist Dan Ariely demonstrated, according once again to Veronika Tait, that “when the coffee ambience looked upscale…the coffee tasted upscale.” “Participants rated the taste of their coffee higher if the condiments were presented in fancy containers versus paper cups,” added Tait.

CHECK OUT: Feeling Stressed? Iceland is Broadcasting People’s Yells of Frustration to Their Scenic Wilderness

Whatever your winter, lockdowns, or holidays look like this year, don’t let stress get in the way of a nice brisk walk and a hot cup of tea, all with 8-10 minutes of focusing on your place in nature, and the things you’re thankful for.

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Prison Camp Survivor is Casually Building and Donating a $50 Million Children’s Hospital in New Zealand

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READ: Billionaire Reaches His Goal Of Giving Away His Entire Fortune After 38 Years Of Secret Donations

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Nov 27, 2020

Mark Dunajtschik-supplied-Mark Dunajtschik — Supplied, Mark Dunajtschik

When Mark Dunajtschik escaped Knicanin prison camp near the end of WWII, he was forced to flee his homeland of Yugoslavia. Five years after the war ended, he became an apprentice toolmaker.

The trade he mastered then may have shaped his career, but it was the life lessons he learned that ultimately forged the character of the man he’d someday become.

With housing in post-war Germany almost nonexistent, Dunajtschick’s only option at that time was living in a housing facility for the mentally and physically disabled. Seeing the daily challenges his housemates faced, he realized how just lucky he was.

“Because I was given the opportunity to live in that home, which was founded by an industrialist in the 1880s, now that I am in a position that I can also do something, naturally I want to do it,” he told the New Zealand Herald.

At the age of 85, as one of the most successful industrialists and real estate developers in New Zealand, Dunajtschik is indeed uniquely poised to deliver on his desire to give back.

Already known for his philanthropic works—having financed the country’s Life Flight Trust helicopter rescue service—Dunajtschik’s latest major humanitarian endeavor is overseeing the construction of a new children’s hospital in Wellington.

In 2017, he committed $50 million dollars of his own money toward building it.

“After a conversation between my business partner and my life partner we decided, why not build it?” he said. (Dunajtschik credits his life partner, 82-year-old New Zealand native, Dorothy Spotswood, with whom he shares a five-decade-long relationship—for much of his success.)

But Dunajtschik had no desire to simply throw money at the new hospital. He takes a hands-on approach to all his projects.

“By utilizing my expertise as a developer we would be able to produce more real estate than if we were to just write out a cheque and leave the bureaucrats to build it,” he explained.

Over the summer, construction passed a major milestone. As Dunajtschik and Spotswood looked on, the industrial support cranes were cleared from the site, signaling the exterior was complete.

Rendering of Wellington Children’s Hospital, Wellington Hospitals Foundation

“It’s exciting to see that in a little over a year the vision will be realized and we will have a magnificent new purpose-built facility that will help generations of sick kids to come,” said Bill Day, Chair of Wellington Hospitals Foundation.

“Those people that are born with a healthy body and mind can look after themselves and those unfortunate to be born with, or suffering ill health, need our help,” said Dunajtschik.

MORE: Generous Boss Gives $12.7 Million to His Staff, Saying ‘Thank You’ As He Retires

And that’s the lesson in compassion this man who puts his money where his mouth is—plus a whole lot more—hopes to pass along.

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“When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.” – Willie Nelson

Quote of the Day

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Nov 27, 2020

Quote of the Day: “When I started counting my blessings, my whole life turned around.” – Willie Nelson

Photo by: Thought Catalog

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Mom Pays For Multiple Strangers’ Groceries on a Whim: ‘I just wanted to bring smiles to people’s faces’

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Nov 26, 2020

grocery-people-aisle-food-public-domain-marie-michele-bouchard — Marie Michele Bouchard

Comfort food is something everyone can appreciate. More than simply sustenance for our bodies, comfort food nourishes the soul and spirit. Now, one New Hampshire woman is taking the concept to a new level, supplying “comfort” groceries in random acts of kindness to her neighbors.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought stress and food anxiety to tables where it’s never been felt before, but it’s also heightened the opportunity to be able to give back in ways that are immediate and meaningful.

After a generous community turn-out that included gifts and a drive-by parade turned her son Thomas’s 7th birthday celebration from doubtful to “epic,” Brandy Bisson took a notion to pay that goodwill forward.

“On a whim,” the mother of three laid out $600 of her own hard-earned dollars to purchase groceries for eight people she’d never met. “With the pandemic and everything and all the election stuff, I just wanted to bring smiles to people’s faces,” Bisson told WMUR-9.

Having been on the giving and receiving end of the equation, even though she’s not wealthy, Bisson learned from her mom’s positive example that giving back is its own reward. “We’ve been on both ends of the spectrum,” she said. “It’s not a good feeling when you don’t know where you’re going to get food for your kids.”

Bisson’s impromptu acts of kindness would have gone unremarked except perhaps by their recipients had not an observant store employee recorded the good deeds and posted them to social media.

CHECK OUT: Customer Buys Beer and Toasts the Staff With $3000 Tip–As Restaurant Voluntarily Shuts Doors During COVID

This week, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, Bisson will further spread the love by supplying holiday meals for two families in need in her community but she isn’t stopping there.

She says she also plans to continue her random acts of groceries when she can, and hopes that others who see her story will be inspired to do the same.

(SEE Bisson’s story in the WOKQ 97.5 video below.)

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Conjure Some Gratitude For Our Planet With These Incredible Siena Award Winning Photos

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Ailsa Ross

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Nov 26, 2020

One simple way to remind ourselves of this incredible planet we inhabit: By seeing the world from the perspective of artists skilled in noticing the tiny, the magnificent, the sublime.

The photographers who took the winning entries in the 2020 Siena International Photo Awards have just that special way of seeing the wold.

Seals swirl like dancers around an iceberg. Athletes dive. Tree leaves change color. Thunder slashes through clouds. It’s stunning, and a great reminder that while we may not be able to travel in the way we have might in other years, the birds are still flying. Nature, and people, continue on.

Take a look at some of the winning Siena entries below.

Frozen Mobile Home, by Greg Lecoeur

Vladik, by Sergey Anisimov

El Cordon Caulle II, by Francisco Negron

Synchro Steam, James Rokop

Spanish Moss, Mauro Battistell

Flamingos in Abstract Landscape, Jose Fragozo

I’m a Bragger, Nicolas Reusens Boden

Jump, Xuebiao Yan

When Rays Fly, Emit Aschel

Good Morning, Wookeun Choi

Benediction, Amirmahdi Najafloo Shahpar

HongKongers, Olesia Kim

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Canadian Scientists Develop Eco-Friendly Substitute for Palm Oil That’s Good for Human Health

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MORE: Bill Gates Has Just Invested in a Company That Grows Palm Oil in a Lab to Save the Rainforests

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Nov 26, 2020

palm oil scientists-released-univeristy of guelph — University of Guelph

Providing a potential solution everybody was looking for, two Canadian food scientists have created a replacement for palm oil.

Their invention replicates how the body creates triglycerides, and can hold liquid vegetable fats in a solid form at room temperature—the key advantage of palm oil.

The researchers’ oil could be used as a replacement for the problematic palm product in a variety of pre-prepared foods like peanut butters, cookies and pizza crust, as well as in cosmetics and even toothpaste.

If you’ve ever seen the words “no palm oil” displayed proudly on a jar of peanut butter or other foodstuffs, it’s because palm oil is perhaps the largest isolated cause of tropical deforestation in the world.

Nations and companies often try and wash their hands of the oil palm crop due to its tendency to create deforestation. The English city of Chester proudly proclaims itself the first “sustainable palm oil city,” while Norway straight up banned palm oil imports from plantations linked with deforestation.

A combination of previous scientific findings and outstanding natural qualities created a 20-year explosion in the cultivation and use of palm oil in global food production. 34% of the world’s vegetable oil comes from the oil palm tree, of which 84% comes from merely two countries, Indonesia and Malaysia, where highly biodiverse tropical rainforest has been cut down to make way for oil palm plantations.

The advantages of palm oil became ascendent during the 1980s and 1990s, after nutritionists began broadly warning about the disastrous health effects of eating partially hydrogenated oils and trans-fats. Producers began substituting those harmful fats with palm oil for several reasons.

Capable of remaining as a solid in room temperature due to its high saturated fat content, palm oil rapidly became the prime choice for manufacturers, not least because production is nearly 500% more per-acre than the next most-productive vegetable oil crop, sunflower oil.

Looking inward

For Alejandro Marangoni, a food scientist at the University of Guelph, the challenge was how to create an oil that would stay solid at room temperature, and one that preferably didn’t contain as much saturated fat content as something like coconut oil.

Saturated fat, while necessary in many processes of our biology including the synthesis of testosterone, is capable of exacerbating risks for coronary heart disease when consumed in large portions by individuals with unhealthy lifestyles such as sedentary days or late-night eating habits.

Marangoni is far from the first scientist to have given it a go. Last year two-former baristas attempted to synthesize a substitute from coffee grounds.

Marangoni on the other hand used a process he called enzymatic glycerolysis, inspired by the way the body naturally produces triglycerides. He combined enzymes with glycerin to produce solid vegetable oil without adding any additional saturated fats.

The process would allow food manufacturers to avoid the destructive oil palm plantations, while still being able to keep prices low, since Marangoni’s process could utilize most vegetable oils such as cottonseed, or peanut oil, which also happen to contain fewer saturated fats, leading to less of a public health burden.

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

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MORE: Boy Created a Word Puzzle to Help Entertain the Queen in Lockdown—And Was Thrilled to Get a Letter Back

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Nov 26, 2020

queen-public domain-gin-released-sandringham estate — Sandringham gin, Sandringham Estate

The pandemic has evidently made 94-year old Queen Elizabeth so bored that she has just launched a specialty dry gin distilled from the botanicals on her 20,000-acre Sandringham country estate.

The gardens on her royal estate in the Norfolk countryside provides all the ingredients for the gin, which costs around $67 per bottle and can take up to two weeks to make; and that regrettably for those outside Britain cannot be shipped overseas.

The gin is made with Sharon fruit, also known as the Chinese persimmon. According to the Sandringham website, the ones used for this gin grow “in the Walled Garden on a sheltered wall at the end of what was a range of glass houses, built on the winnings of the famous racehorse, Persimmon, owned by King Edward VII.”

Every sip therefore is a little taste of history, with the other ingredient, myrtle leaves, coming from plants “also grown on the Estate, [that] originated from a cutting taken from Princess Alexandra’s wedding bouquet on her marriage to Prince Albert Edward, who later became King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra.”

A former Buckingham Palace chef reports, according to People Magazine, that the Queen fancies her gin even in her advanced age, treating herself daily to an iced cocktail of gin and Dubonnet with a slice of lemon with lunch.

The Sandringham Gin is actually only one of several liquor outfits run by the British royals. Buckingham Palace gardens also produces a gin that’s made from “lemon, verbena, hawthorn berries, and mulberry leaves” among eight other hand-picked botanicals from the gardens.

Our new Buckingham Palace gin is available to pre-order online: https://t.co/ccIPwpyZeN

Lemon, verbena, hawthorn berries and mulberry leaves are among the 12 botanicals hand-picked for the gin in the Gardens at Buckingham Palace. pic.twitter.com/Kfeo0jyUL1
— RoyalCollectionTrust (@RCT) July 17, 2020

The Queen’s Balmoral Castle Estate also produces a single-malt whiskey at Royal Lochnagar Distillery, which contains notes of oak and fruit, while Prince Charles’ Highgrove Estate in Cornwall produces a wide range of organic spirits.

If you live in the UK and are fortunate to be able to enjoy the royal booze, Sandringham Estate recommends you enjoy it by “pouring a measure into an ice-filled short tumbler before topping up with tonic and garnishing with a slice of lemon.”

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American Dolls Covered in Crystals Raise Nearly a Million at Auction For Children of First Responders

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Nov 26, 2020

AmericanGirlSwarovski-released-mattel — Mattel

American Girl has been busy auctioning off three exclusive holiday collector dolls made with thousands of Swarovski crystals.

These gowns and complementary accessories took couturiers over 330 hours to design and hand embellish, with 5,000 Swarovski crystals and crystal beads being added to the dolls.

The auction closed last night, and it’s been a ringing success, with the one-of-a-kind items raising $880,400 for charity.

One hundred percent of the net proceeds from this auction are going to support the First Responders Children’s Foundation Toy Express Program–an initiative designed to spread joy to the kids of people on the frontlines of COVID-19 across America.

Mattel is also donating more than $1 million in retail value of toys to the program this holiday season, so American Girl dolls and other popular Mattel products, from Hot Wheels to Barbie and Mega Bloks.

These toys will be distributed to thousands of first responder families— including nurses, firefighters, police officers, EMTs, paramedics, medical personnel, and 911 dispatchers who risk their health every day in service to their local communities across the country.

“As the holidays approach, we know it’s more important than ever to show our gratitude to our country’s dedicated First Responders who have contributed and sacrificed so much to help our friends, families, and communities this year,” said Jamie Cygielman, General Manager of American Girl, in a statement.

MORE: American Girl Has Turned This Virginia Hero Into a Doll: ‘I Had No Words.’

“We’re pleased to donate the proceeds of these three exquisite one-of-a-kind 2020 collector dolls, plus thousands of Mattel toys, to First Responders Children’s Foundation to say thank you to these hard-working frontline heroes and bring some much-needed holiday sparkle to their children and families.”

(WATCH how the glittery gowns were made below.)

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“I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” – G. K. Chesterton (Happy Thanksgiving!)

Quote of the Day

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Nov 26, 2020

Quote of the Day: “I would maintain that thanks are the highest form of thought, and that gratitude is happiness doubled by wonder.” – Gilbert K. Chesterton (Happy Thanksgiving!)

G. K. Chesterton (1874-1936) was an English journalist and author best known for his mystery series featuring the priest-detective Father Brown, and for the metaphysical thriller The Man Who Was Thursday. As a lay theologian, he published some of Christianity’s most influential apologetics, including Heretics, Orthodoxy, and The Everlasting Man.

Photo by: Jed Owen

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?

‘Frankie the Adventure Goat’ Has Traveled Over 60,000 Miles Across America in Epic Road Trip – LOOK

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Nov 25, 2020

Meet Frankie, the adventurous goat who has traveled over 60,000 miles across the US with her owners in their colorful Airstream trailer.

Cate Battles and her husband Chad moved from their house into a trailer in 2016, and they’ve been traveling to beauty spots with their favorite pet ever since.

“She’s an awesome travel companion,” said Cate, a 34-year-old artist and travel writer from Grants Pass in Oregon.

“She’s visited all kinds of scenery with us; lakes, beaches, mountains, and caves. We’ve covered dozens of states and national parks together.

“At this point she’s probably been about 60,000 miles all around the country, all the way from the east to the west coast. She must have been to over 20 states already.

“Frankie loves being on the road and having adventures, she finds joy in any place she goes, in the desserts she climbs all over the rocks and at the beach she loves to lick the salt off the stones.

“She’s a great hiker, wherever we go she loves run around and explore. She’s even been to the Grand Canyon.”

The happy trio have managed to continue to travel during the pandemic, because they stick to places that are way off the beaten track.

“We don’t go to camp grounds, we always go out into the middle of nowhere, so Covid hasn’t really affected us at all. We’ve done multiple trips this year already, including North Eastern Nevada and Idaho,” said Cate.

Frankie, a 6-year-old Nigerian dwarf/pigmy goat, will cover a lot more ground in the coming months.

“Next we’re going to do a whole loop around the south west—Nevada, Arizona, Southern Utah, and New Mexico,” said Cate.

A die hard “goat mom,” Cait said she and Chad couldn’t imagine taking their trips without Frankie by their side.

MORE: A Miracle on 34th Street for Tiny Owl Found Stowed Away in Rockefeller Christmas Tree

“She’s so much fun, she looks tiny but she actually weighs about 80 pounds, she’s a stocky girl and she’s very well fed by us. We have a great time with her.”

Ready to see some more of Frankie?

Looks like someone’s found the perfect salt lick…

And one colorful home to live in on the road…

She’s certainly in her habitat here…

Though, truthfully, every rocky place is pretty darn good when you’re a goat…

So what do you think, would Frankie make the perfect travel companion for you?

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New Study Suggests Mouthwash Can Kill Coronavirus in Saliva in 30 Seconds

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Nov 25, 2020

mouthwash-bathroom-sink-public domain-christine-sandu — Christine Sand

Along with hand washing and other hygiene measures, mouthwash could become a routine part of people’s daily habits after preliminary lab tests from the University of Cardiff found it can combat coronavirus in 30 seconds.

These results, which are yet to be peer-reviewed, stem from a 12-week study where it’s been found that mouthwashes containing at least 0.07 percent cetypyridinium chloride (CPC) show “promising signs” of killing off the virus.

In the laboratory tests, scientists at the university worked with various mouthwash brands, including Listerine and Dentyl. By mimicking the conditions of a person’s naso/oropharynx passage, they tested how various mouthwash ingredients are at killing the virus.

In their report, titled The Virucidal Efficacy of Oral Rinse Components Against SARS-CoV-2 In Vitro, researchers note that three of the mouthwashes tested eradicated the virus completely in the lab.

These early results from Cardiff are not the same as finding a cure: There is no indication that mouthwash has any impact on the virus if it moves from human saliva into lung tissue, for example.

Dr Nick Claydon, a specialist periodontologist, told the Independent he believed the research so far is “very valuable,” adding, “If these positive results are reflected in Cardiff University’s clinical trial, CPC-based mouthwashes… could become an important addition to people’s routine, together with hand washing, physical distancing, and wearing masks—both now and in the future.”

Next up for the scientists, a clinical trial will take place that examines how effective mouthwash is in reducing coronavirus levels in COVID-19 patients at the University Hospital of Wales. Results from that study are expected to be published in early 2021.

(Source: University of Cardiff)

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Customer Buys Beer and Toasts the Staff With $3000 Tip–As Restaurant Voluntarily Shuts Doors During COVID

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Nov 25, 2020

nighttown-receipt-ohio-facebook-nighttown — Brendan Ring @ Nighttown/Facebook

A customer at an Ohio restaurant ordered a single $7 beer on the night it shut down for coronavirus—then dropped an enormous tip for the staff as he was leaving.

Just before closing time on November 22, a man walked into the Cleveland jazz joint Nighttown. He ordered a Stella Artois, asked for the check, and wished the owner Brendan Ring well.

In a Facebook post, Ring said the man asked that the tip he’d left be shared with the waitstaff.

Ring looked down at the credit card slip the man had left with him. When he saw the amount he had left, “I ran after him,” Ring wrote, “and he said no mistake we will see you when you reopen!”

CHECK OUT: Customer Raises Huge $12K Tip to Give His Favorite 89-Year-old Pizza Deliveryman –Watch The Tearful Surprise

Describing the gesture as “unbelievable but symbolic of the kind of quality folks” he and the staff have got to know of the years, Ring said everyone at the restaurant is feeling “humbly grateful for this incredibly kind and grand gesture.”

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In World First, Recycling Plant Uses Special Kiln to Make Disposing of Asbestos Safe For Future Generations

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MORE: Scientists Turn Plastic Waste Into Valuable Commodities, to Create a Bigger Market for Waste Materials

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Nov 25, 2020

asbestos-fix-release-thermal recycling — Thermal Recycling

A recycling plant in England has created the world’s first socially and environmentally responsible way to process asbestos.

Thermal Recycling in the West Midlands town of Wolverhampton can take asbestos, remove it from the cement it’s mixed in, and turn “chrysotile asbestos into a material that is no more harmful than the cement from which it was derived.”

Famed as an electrical insulator and building material, asbestos is now well-known for its health hazards, as breathing the long silicate fibers released into the air when the material is cut or broken can cause fatal lung diseases.

Thermal Recycling has developed a process for “denaturing,” as in, “to remove the nature of” asbestos through heating the material in a special kiln that passed environmental regulations and is set to come online for business in 2021.

“To date, nearly 200 tests of the treated material have been conducted using Polarised Light Microscopy,” explains Thermal Recycling on their website. “No asbestos has been detected in any of these tests. We have also undertaken eight tests using Scanning Electron Microscopy. These have also shown that no asbestos has been detected.”

Not only does their process remove the properties that make asbestos what it is, but it does so without any pre-treatment of chemicals, as other denaturing processes might require. This lowers costs of the final product and prevents the additional step of needing to dispose of chemicals.

Chairman Graham Gould noted at the opening of their test plant that “we can’t continue putting asbestos in landfill sites for future generations to deal with,” highlighting the unfortunate reality of asbestos disposal up until his groundbreaking innovation.

Thermal Recycling was also awarded the Innovate UK Smart Grant, which they’ll use to identify the exact best use for the post-asbestos cement aggregate material leftover from their process.

The market value of this process could be immeasurable, since despite its toxicity and banned-status in 55 different nations, asbestos is still mined in the millions of metric tonnes around the world every year.

Russia produces about one million metric tonnes from its mines in Asbest, northeast of Moscow, while the world’s second largest producer China mines about 400,000 metric tonnes every year. Brazil and Kazakhstan are also significant miners of chrysotile asbestos, and nations like India and Indonesia—though not big producers themselves—import hundreds of thousands of tonnes every year.

Short of dumping the end-use product in landfills, Thermal Recycling is the only environmentally safe option, and the value of their process, in terms of earnings or reductions in lung disease risk from dealing with asbestos disposal in the future, could be priceless.

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“You’ll never find a rainbow if you’re looking down” – Charlie Chaplin

Quote of the Day

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Nov 25, 2020

rainbow over meadow wildflower-pubdomain-Lauren Lopes — Credit: Lauren Lopes

Quote of the Day: “You’ll never find a rainbow if you’re looking down” – Charlie Chaplin

Photo by: Lauren Lopes

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?

Man Becomes Rich When Meteorite From Heaven Crashes Through His Roof

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LOOK: Box of Stained Glass Bought at Auction Solves 80-year Mystery of Church Windows Gone Missing During WWII

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Nov 24, 2020

meteorite-indonesia-FB-family photo Josua Hutagalung — Facebook

One minute, you’re minding your own business, working outside your house building a coffin, and the next minute a smoking meteorite worth a small fortune hurtles through the roof of your veranda and winds up buried in the earth next to your living room.

It wasn’t a typical day, but that’s exactly what happened to a 33-year-old Indonesian coffin maker named Josua Hutagalung. “I was working on a coffin near the street in front of my house when I heard a booming sound that made my house shake. It was as if a tree had fallen on us,” the father of three told the Sun. “[The meteorite] was too hot to pick up so my wife dug it out with a hoe and we took it inside.”

Weighing in at roughly 4.5 pounds, the 4 billion-year-old meteorite was later classified as the extremely rare CM1/2 carbonaceous chondrite variety.

In the space-rock market, it sells for $850 per gram. When you do the math, that’s roughly $1,858,556 of ka-ching!

As soon as news of the incident went public, American space rock guru Jared Collins hopped on a plane to Sumatra to purchase the precious cargo. After fielding a crazy number of offers, Collins sold the extra-terrestrial treasure to Indianapolis-based meteorite collector Dr. Jay Piateck, who mailed it for safe-keeping to the Center for Meteorite Studies at Arizona State University (where it’s currently being stored in liquid nitrogen).

While Hutagalung won’t reveal the exact dollar amount he wound up accepting for his 4.5-pound chunk of outer-space booty, guesstimates range well in excess of a million bucks.

With his new-found fortune, Hutagalung says he plans to help build a church for his community. He’s also got a more personal wish. Money can’t buy it, but he’s optimistic that his streak of good fortune hasn’t run its full course just yet.

“I have always wanted a daughter, and I hope this is a sign that I will be lucky enough now to have one,” he said.

As far as signs go, wishing on a meteorite might not be the same as wishing on a shooting star, but, odds are, having been singled out by meteor manna from heaven may go a long way toward upping those odds considerably. Here’s hoping they do.

WATCH the video taken by Josua…

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If You’re Feeling the Weight of the World, This Beautiful Book Will Lighten Your Load

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Nov 24, 2020

Brad Aaronson author — Brad Aaronson and family

During a darker time than he’d ever known, Brad Aronson discovered shining examples of human kindness that just might have saved his sanity. It happened while his wife, Mia, was being treated for leukemia. Since her treatment would be close to three years, a patient advocate advised her and Brad to each take on a project that would allow them to lose themselves in something other than her illness.

For Brad, a teacher and entrepreneur from Philadelphia, that project was passing on the kindness that friends, family and even strangers had shown his family during this hard time. Literally—he documented that kindness and packaged it in stories that others could appreciate and take to heart. And that was just the tip of the iceberg. Inspired by the life-changing impact small acts of kindness had on his family, he decided to start collecting others’ stories, too.

Like the story about the $20 gift that gave birth to thousands of Secret Santas who have given away over $1.5 million to people in need. And the story about Gabriel Aljalian, who at six years old created a “Day of Kindness” that inspires thousands of kind acts around the world every year. And the one about Pamela Rainey Lawler, who saw opportunity in the food that restaurants threw away. Although experts told her she was crazy, she started delivering that food to nonprofits in her station wagon with her kids in tow, and her efforts sparked a movement that now feeds more than 90,000 people a week.

By the time he was done gathering stories, Brad had the makings of a book, and that book is HumanKind: Changing the World One Small Act at a Time.

“When my family was in distress, I saw how much of a difference a single gesture could make, and the people I wrote about demonstrated that and more,” he says. “These amazing stories of kindness kept me going during the most stressful time of my life, and through my book, I’m hoping to share that gift of support with others.”

Aronson’s book, a national bestseller, has been called “the most uplifting and life-affirming book in years” (Forbes) and lauded by Deepak Chopra, People magazine, and many others.

“The most satisfying part of writing my book has been the emails I’m getting from people who tell me how much better they feel after reading it and how they’re inspired to take action,” he says. “Hearing about what they’ve started doing in their communities is just incredible.”

It’s the perfect antidote for these times. If you’re feeling the weight of the world, these beautifully told stories will lighten your load. They’ll remind you that despite the crises that seem to hit us one after another, there’s also a powerful force of good in the world.

And on a practical level, HumanKind will give you the tools to be part of that force. Every chapter includes suggestions for improving your own community through small acts of kindness, and the comprehensive resources section lists avenues for aiding and donating to just about any cause devoted to filling the massive needs out there.

Maybe best of all, HumanKind gives us unforgettable stories to carry around with us when the darkness of the times is at its darkest. Stories that will leave us grateful for what we have and inspire us to be the same kinds of shining examples that made such a difference in Brad’s life.

And, on top of that, ALL proceeds from sales of HumanKind go to the nonprofit Big Brothers Big Sisters.

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This 2-Acre Vertical Farm Produces More Than ‘Flat Farms’ That Are Using 720 Acres

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MORE: World’s Biggest Rooftop Greenhouse in Montreal is as Big as 3 Football Fields – Now Can Feed 2% of the City

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Nov 24, 2020

Plenty vertical farm-Instagram-social-Plenty — Plenty

Another massively successful vertical farming startup is pushing the future of farming towards the sky, literally and figuratively.

From an ag-tech startup named Plenty, a two-acre indoor vertical farm produces yields that would normally require a 720-acre ‘flat farm’—and it can be done with 95% less water.

Saving water is critical in an agricultural state like arid California, where Plenty is set to supply fresh produce for 430 Albertsons grocery stores.

The vision is truly one out of Star Trek, with Plenty’s use of robotics and artificial intelligence to ensure perfect plants year round.

The reasons to support indoor vertical farming are varied, ranging from climate-related benefits to removing cumbersome logistical challenges like long-distance transportation.

The company’s website says the technology “frees‌ ‌agriculture‌ ‌from‌ ‌the‌ ‌constraints‌ ‌of‌ ‌weather,‌ ‌seasons,‌ ‌time,‌ ‌distance,‌ ‌pests,‌ ‌natural‌ ‌disasters,‌ ‌and‌ ‌climate” that makes GMO-free ‌‌nutrient-rich‌ ‌plants‌ at scale ‌with‌ ‌“extraordinary‌ ‌flavor.”

Perhaps that is why Driscoll’s, America’s largest fresh berry farmers, have agreed to grow their strawberries year-round in Plenty’s expanding portfolio of vertical farms.

And investors are seeing the potential of seeding their own portfolios with Plenty.

The company’s method for growing greens, like baby kale and lettuce, on giant vertical racks moved around by robotics recently garnered $400 million in investment capital from the likes of SoftBank, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, and former Google chairman Eric Schmidt.

Time to grow

Reductions in transportation chains would eliminate millions of tons of CO2 every year, since instead of importing produce into city centers from farms across the country or the world, you could order it from a warehouse on the edge of town.

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A post shared by Plenty (@plenty)

Furthermore, Plenty’s farms grow non-GMO crops without the use of pesticides or herbicides, and recycle every drop of water that’s not used, making them extremely friendly to the environment—except for their power usage.

A spokesperson told GNN they were using 100% renewable energy for their flagship farm in San Francisco, to keep emissions down.

Bathed in sun-mimicking LED lights in climate-controlled spaces year round, the farm ensures veggies grow at an astounding rate, which produces 350-times more food per-acre.

Supply-chain breakdowns resulting from COVID-19 and natural disruptions like this year’s California wildfires, demonstrate the need for a predictable and durable supply of produce can only come from vertical farming, says Nate Storey, co-founder of Plenty.

This will be all the more important if continual warming of the planet leads to droughts or other climate-related disruptions that can’t be overcome by farmers and biologists attempting to make crops more climate and drought-resistant.

MORE: The Largest Urban Rooftop Farm in the World is Now Bearing Fruit (and More) in Paris

Furthermore, vegetables and fruits contain far more micronutrients than cereals, but they also spoil fast and therefore are more expensive. Nations and inner cities that have to import all fresh produce places the poorest in the society at an extreme disadvantage nutritionally speaking. Vertical farming could be the way to solve that problem permanently.

Not only that, Plenty told GNN they have introduced new packaging that is not only made of recycled plastic, it is 100% recyclable, and it keeps food fresh longer to cut food waste.

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This Paralyzed Gymnast Rebounded to Start a Tea Company—And it’s One of Oprah’s Favorite Things in 2020

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