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Disabled US Veterans Could Have Student Loan Debts Automatically Erased Thanks to New Bipartisan Bill

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A trailblazing new piece of bipartisan legislation could wipe away millions of dollars worth of student debt for disabled US veterans.

At the end of June, a group of representatives from both sides of the partisan divide introduced the Federally Requiring Earned Education-Debt Discharges for Veterans Act (FREED Vets Act) in the House and the Senate.

The act would automatically forgive the student loan debt of any eligible veteran who is permanently disabled.

In October 2018, the U.S Department of Education established a program with the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to identify vets who are disabled or unable to work. Under the current program, the Department of Education then notifies veterans who are eligible for debt forgiveness of the opportunity to apply.

MORE: Veterans Are Finding Peace From PTSD Through ‘Float Therapy’

More than 42,000 eligible veterans have been identified by the Department of Education, yet only 20% of those eligible have applied for the program.

The FREED Vets Act, however, would automatically forgive these loans and eliminate the paperwork barrier that prevents eligible veterans from attaining student loan debt relief.

Congressman Conor Lamb, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, who also happens to be a former Marine, introduced the legislation last month along with two Republicans from that state—Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick and Rep. Guy Reschenthaler.

Congressman Conor Lamb with disabled veteran

“Congress has an obligation to ease the challenges our veterans face when they come home and return to civilian life,” Lamb wrote in a statement. “This important bipartisan legislation provides a clear pathway for eligible disabled veterans to receive a benefit they have earned through their service and sacrifice.”

CHECK OUT: Answering Trivia Questions With This App Can Pay Off Other People’s Student Loans

Reschenthaler added: “As a veteran, I’m proud to join with my colleagues to introduce legislation that streamlines student loan forgiveness for disabled veterans. These men and women served on the front lines defending our nation, and this bill will cut the red tape that stops them from receiving their benefits. I look forward to working with my colleagues in support of our nation’s heroes.”

The automatic discharge of student loan debt for eligible disabled veterans has been supported by multiple veterans groups and tax law experts, as well as 51 state attorneys general.

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“Psychoanalysis is in essence a cure through love.” – Sigmund Freud, in a Letter to Carl Jung (1906)

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Quote of the Day: “Psychoanalysis is in essence a cure through love.” – Sigmund Freud, in a Letter to Carl Jung (1906)

Photo: by christopher walling, CC license on Flickr

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University of Texas Announces Full Scholarships to Residents With Family Incomes Under $65K by 2020

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The University of Texas in Austin is making an investment in the future of students in the ‘Longhorn state’ by increasing tuition assistance for those from middle- and low-income families and making its flagship research school even more affordable.

The Board of Regents voted unanimously Tuesday to establish a $160 million endowment from the state’s Permanent University Fund that will generate money for financial assistance beginning in the fall of 2020.

“Recognizing the need for improved access to higher education,” the new endowment will be used to expand UT Austin’s Texas Advance Commitment program for in-state undergraduate students.

  • It will completely cover full tuition and fees for students from families that earn up to $65,000 a year who have financial need—for more than 8,600 undergraduates a year.
  • It will expand a program to provide some assured tuition support to students from families with incomes of up to $125,000 who have financial need—for an additional 5,700 students

RELATED: Banker Picks Up College Tuition for School’s Entire Graduating Class… Again

“I am grateful to the UT System Board of Regents and Chairman Kevin Eltife for prioritizing students and investing in the future of our great state,” said UT Austin President Gregory L. Fenves. “College affordability is one of the most critical issues affecting all Texans. Thanks to his leadership and the board’s action, this new endowment will go a long way toward making our university affordable for talented Texas students from every background and region.”

The regents’ vote represents one of the largest financial aid commitments to improve the predictability and affordability of higher education among the nation’s leading public research universities. The endowment (from a fund that includes money from oil and gas royalties earned from state-owned land) will support undergraduates from across Texas, including first-year through fourth-year and transfer students.

MORE: Disney Offers to Pay Tuition for 80,000 Hourly Workers

“There is no greater engine of social and economic mobility than a college degree, and this initiative ensures that more Texans will benefit” said Chancellor James B. Milliken.

UT Austin, recognized as one of the world’s leading research universities, already has a smaller annual average for its undergraduate in-state tuition ($10,314 with fees) than 12 other Texas public universities, according to data published by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board.

Thanks to recent financial aid expenditures by the school in 2016 and 2018, it currently provides full tuition assistance for students from families earning up to $30,000 a year and guaranteed financial aid for qualified families earning up to $100,000. More than 4,000 students were supported by that program during this past academic year, its first year of implementation.

ALSO: Watch Billionaire Tell College Grads He Will Pay Off All $40 Million of Their Collective Student Loan Debt

In awarding financial aid to middle- and low-income students, the university will continue to draw from multiple sources, including federal Pell grants, and the TEXAS Grants program, which received additional support from the Texas Legislature this year. The funds from the new endowment will then be used to supplement grants and scholarships.

In 2018, Kiplinger’s Best Value Colleges ranked UT Austin No. 8 in the nation, in a state where median household income was $59,206 in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

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‘Lemon Aid’ From a Kind 10-year-old Soothes Sad Neighbors After House Fire

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A family who lost everything in a house blaze has been humbled by their ten-year-old neighbor who raised a surprising about of money on their behalf by serving homemade lemonade.

Kayley Cross, 10, was devastated when she saw flames destroy the home of Brooke and Josh Rummonds while they raced to safety with their young sons.

The fire, which started in bins outside their Fresno home, destroyed all their possessions. Two days later, Kayley sat across from the building’s remains and sold 100 cups in return for donations, raising $1,000.

People drove from far and wide to donate cash, after hearing about dedicated California youth.

The Rummonds are being helped by friends and family—but said Kayley’s thoughtful gesture touched them the most.

“We know our neighbors really well,” said Kayley. “I sat on the front step and watched the fire, and wanted to help in some way.”

RELATED: Teen Girls Have Raised Over $1.5 Million for Clean Water Simply By Embracing Their Love of Origami

She had already planned to raise money for a dog shelter, but after the fire, she chose to donate that money to the Rummonds instead.

“We didn’t expect so many people to donate so much money,” said the young philanthropist.

Kayley Cross, 10, raised $1,000 for her neighbors with lemonade. Photos by SWNS

“We saw our neighbors come out their homes and instinctively rally to our side and look after us,” said Mrs. Rummonds. “That spirit of friendship was summed up in Kayley, who is a wonderful girl.”

“It’s going to be hard for a while, but we’re so humbled by these wonderful people who’ve come together for us in such a big way.”

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“All that I hope to say in books, all that I ever hope to say, is that I love the world.” – E.B. White (born 120 years ago today)

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Quote of the Day: “All that I hope to say in books, all that I ever hope to say, is that I love the world.” – E.B. White (born 120 years ago today)

Photo: by McKinley Corbley, Copyright 2019

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New Research Says That Short Bursts of Exercise Could Make You Smarter

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Most people know that regular exercise is good for your health – but this new research shows that it may make you smarter, too.

Neuroscientists working with mice at the Oregon Health and Science University in Portland have discovered that a short burst of exercise directly boosts the function of a gene that increases connections between neurons in the hippocampus, the region of the brain associated with learning and memory.

The research is published online in the journal eLife.

“Exercise is cheap, and you don’t necessarily need a fancy gym membership or have to run 10 miles a day,” said co-senior author Gary Westbrook, senior scientist at the OHSU Vollum Institute.

MORE: Training for Your First Marathon ‘Reverses’ Aging of Major Blood Vessels on Par With Medication

Previous research in animals and in people shows that regular exercise promotes general brain health. However, it’s hard to untangle the overall benefits of exercise to the heart, liver and muscles from the specific effect on the brain. For example, a healthy heart oxygenates the whole body, including the brain.

“Previous studies of exercise almost all focus on sustained exercise,” Westbrook said. “As neuroscientists, it’s not that we don’t care about the benefits on the heart and muscles, but we wanted to know the brain-specific benefit of exercise.”

So the scientists designed a study in mice that specifically measured the brain’s response to single bouts of exercise in otherwise sedentary mice that were placed for short periods on running wheels. The mice ran a few kilometers in two hours.

CHECK OUT: 86-Year-old Has Lost 120 Pounds Simply By Walking Around Her One-Bedroom Apartment

The study found that short-term bursts of exercise – the human equivalent of a weekly game of pickup basketball, or 4,000 steps – promoted an increase in synapses in the hippocampus. Scientists made the key discovery by analyzing genes that were increased in single neurons activated during exercise.

One particular gene stood out: Mtss1L. This gene had been largely ignored in prior studies in the brain.

“That was the most exciting thing,” said co-lead author Dr. Christina Chatzi.

LOOK: 78-Year-old Bodybuilder Opens His Home Gym to Youngsters for Free So They Won’t Get Into Trouble

The Mtss1L gene encodes a protein that causes bending of the cell membrane. Researchers discovered that when this gene is activated by short bursts of exercise, it promotes small growths on neurons known as dendritic spines – the site at which synapses form.

In effect, the study showed that an acute burst of exercise is enough to prime the brain for learning.

In the next stage of research, scientists plan to pair acute bouts of exercise with learning tasks to better understand the impact on learning and memory.

Reprinted from the Oregon Health and Science Institute

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Two Little Girls Have a Petition and Powerful Video for McDonald’s—It May Signal the End of Wasteful Plastic Toys

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McKinley Corbley
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Two determined little girls are rallying thousands of people to sign a petition demanding that Burger King and McDonald’s stop giving away free plastic toys – and they have almost met their goal of half a million signatures.

With the help of their mother, 9-year-old Ella and 7-year-old Caitlin Wood started an online Change.org petition in order to persuade the fast food giants to do away with the wasteful toys that come with Happy Meals and Junior Meals.

Since launching the petition, the youngsters have garnered over 350,000 signatures of their 500,000 goal – and the call to action has already accumulated further support from adults and children alike.

“We’ve been learning all about the environment at school and the problem of plastic. It made us very sad to see how plastic harms wildlife and pollutes the ocean, and we want to change this,” reads the petition. “That’s why we want Burger King and McDonald’s to think of the environment and stop giving plastic toys with their kids meals.

CHECK OUT: Another Victory Against Plastic – These Water Brands Will Soon Be Packaged in Aluminum Cans

“We like to go to eat at Burger King and McDonald’s, but children only play with the plastic toys they give us for a few minutes before they get thrown away and harm animals and pollute the sea. We want anything they give us to be sustainable so we can protect the planet for us and for future generations,” they continued.

In addition to the girls making a compelling argument, the amount of signatures on the petition almost doubled after reporters with the BBC 1’s “War on Plastic” followed the determined young activists to the McDonald’s headquarters in order to hand-deliver the petition.

Since the little girls’ story started being picked up by international news outlets, Burger King and McDonald’s have both emailed statements to CNBC detailing their plans for making their free toys more sustainable.

(WATCH the powerful BBC coverage below) – Photo by BBC1

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Jaden Smith Celebrates 21st Birthday By Deploying Vegan Food Truck to Hand Out Free Meals to Homeless

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McKinley Corbley
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Jaden Smith is already famous for being a beloved musician and actor, but now he is doing even more to add to his growing reputation as a philanthropist.

Earlier this week, the young celebrity celebrated his 21st birthday by giving away free vegan meals to homeless people on Skid Row.

The giveaway was just the first of many pop-up events that will be hosted by Jaden’s new “I Love You Restaurant” vegan food truck.

Though Jaden has not disclosed any details about how often the truck will be distributing the free meals, the project has already garnered an outpouring of praise and support on social media.

This is not the first time that Jada Pinkett and Will Smith’s son has made headlines for charity work, either. In March, Jaden’s foundation collaborated with a church in Flint, Michigan in order to deploy various water filtration systems.

MORE: Robert Downey Jr. is Creating a Foundation That Will Use Robots to Clean Up the Environment

He is now asking his fans to keep an eye out for the I Love You Restaurant vegan food truck in Los Angeles because it will reportedly be making many more appearances in the days to come.

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“We were singing strictly gospel, but then (we heard Joan Baez and Dylan) and saw that those songs were very fitting for us because they were singing the truth, and truth is gospel.” – Mavis Staples (turns 80 today)

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Joan Baez and Dylan at the Civil Rights March on Washington, D.C. in 1963 – Rowland Scherman, CC license / National Archives

Quote of the Day: “We were singing strictly gospel, but then (we heard Joan Baez and Dylan) and saw that those songs were very fitting for us because they were singing the truth, and truth is gospel.” – Mavis Staples (80 years old today)

Photo: by Rowland Scherman in D.C. in 1963, CC license

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In a Town That Straddles Two Different US States, the Border Actually Brings People Together

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This story was submitted as a nomination to the Reader’s Digest “Top 50 Nicest Places in America” contest: a crowd-sourced effort to uncover nooks where people are still kind and respectful in an era of cultural and political divides. Be sure and vote for which story you think should be nominated as the Nicest Place by visiting the Reader’s Digest website.

Photo by David Orr via Reader’s Digest

In most places, a dividing line acts to separate people – but in this border town, the line brings folks together.

Texarkana is one city that happens to straddle two states, so it has plenty of built-in divisions.

As its name suggests, the Texas-Arkansas border runs right through the town of nearly 70,000. And as you might expect in this part of the country, a high-school football rivalry between the Texas High Tigers and Arkansas High Razorbacks goes back more than 100 years. The annual game draws 10,000 fans.

MORE: Days After Woman’s Husband Died, 125 of the ‘Nicest’ Neighbors Cleaned Her Entire Building

Of course, few disputes can’t be solved by breaking bread, and that’s exactly what the town does with another of their annual traditions: the Dine on the Line dinner.

Tables are set up down the middle of State Line Avenue (the state border runs right down the double-yellow traffic lines) and more than 1,000 people come to eat, talk, and have the unique experience of passing the salt across state lines. Diners are invited to sit on either side of the table, and mayors from both towns make a speech.

“You want to focus on working together as one community,” says Bob Bruggeman, mayor of the Texas side. “We don’t talk about ourselves as Texarkana, Texas, and Texarkana, Arkansas; we market ourselves as ‘two cities, one community.’”

WATCH: After 12 Years of Waving to Students From Her Window, Watch Her Reaction to 400 Kids Saying Goodbye

Sounds good when a politician says it, but goals aren’t always aligned. A recent water-system dispute (the cities share the system but have different laws governing it) divided leaders in town, according to Les Minor, editor of the Texarkana Gazette. Eventually, differences were settled, and then it was time to make up—over a handshake on State Line Avenue.

These days, the city is coming closer together all the time. Bruggeman, who graduated from Texas High in 1980, recalls the days when the week of the big game would mean pranks all across town.

“That’s really toned down over the years,” he says. After all, locals want to live up to the longtime city motto, written in huge letters on a water tower right by I-30: “Twice as Nice.”

Reprinted with permission from Reader’s Digest. To learn more about GNN’s part in searching for the Top 10 Nicest Places, click here.

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Want to Get Your Creative Juices Flowing? This New Study Says You Could Try Playing Minecraft

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Photo by Iowa State University

The next time you need to get the creative juices flowing, playing some types of video games may help.

Video games that foster creative freedom can increase creativity under certain conditions, according to new research from Iowa State University. The experimental study compared the effect of playing Minecraft, with or without instruction, to watching a TV show or playing a race car video game. Those given the freedom to play Minecraft without instruction were most creative.

“It’s not just that Minecraft can help induce creativity. There seems to be something about choosing to do it that also matters,” said Douglas Gentile, a professor of psychology.

If you are not familiar with the game, Gentile says Minecraft is like a virtual Lego world. The game, which has sold more than 100 million copies, allows players to explore unique worlds and create anything they can imagine. Study participants randomly assigned to play Minecraft were split into two groups. The one receiving instruction was told to play as creatively as possible.

CHECK OUT: Next Time You’re Feeling Stressed or Anxious, This Study Says You Should Play Tetris

After 40 minutes of play or watching TV, the 352 participants completed several creativity tasks. To measure creative production, they were asked to draw a creature from a world much different than Earth. More human-like creatures scored low for creativity and those less human-like scored high. Surprisingly, those instructed to be creative while playing Minecraft were the least creative.

Gentile says there’s no clear explanation for this finding. In the paper published by the Creativity Research Journal, he and Jorge Blanco-Herrera, lead author and former master’s student in psychology, outlined possible reasons why the instructed Minecraft group scored lower. Blanco-Herrera says the instructions may have changed subjects’ motivation for play.

Photo by Iowa State University

“Being told to be creative may have actually limited their options while playing, resulting in a less creative experience,” Blanco-Herrera said. “It’s also possible they used all their ‘creative juices’ while playing and had nothing left when it came time to complete the test.”

WATCH: Children’s Hospital Uses ‘Pokemon GO’ to Get Patients Excited and Out of Bed 

Video games can have both harmful and beneficial effects. Gentile’s previous research has shown the amount, content and context of video games influence what players learn through repeated experiences. While much of Gentile’s research has focused on aggression or prosocial behavior, he says the same appears to be true for creativity.

Most video games encourage players to practice some level of creativity. For example, players may create a character and story for role-playing games or be rewarded for creative strategies in competitive games. The researchers say even first-person shooter games can potentially inspire creativity as players think about strategy and look for advantages in combat.

MORE: High School Performance of ‘Alien’ So Impressive, Sigourney Weaver Surprises Students at Second Show

“The research is starting to tell a more interesting, nuanced picture. Our results are similar to other gaming research in that you get better at what you practice, but how you practice might matter just as much,” Gentile said.

The researchers say based on these findings, it is important to not disregard the potential video games have as engaging and adaptive educational opportunities.

Reprinted from Iowa State University

(WATCH the video pertaining to the study below)

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Phenomenal Good Samaritan Drives 1,300 Miles to Rescue Stranded Family and Their Cross-Country Voyage

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McKinley Corbley
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An Aussie family vacation has been saved thanks to a compassionate stranger who felt compelled to help the stranded travelers after learning about their plight on social media.

The Melrose family had been in the middle of a 4,000-kilometer (2,500-mile) road trip across Australia last week when their car broke down in the middle of the Northern Territories.

Daryn Melrose, his wife, and two daughters had left their home in Gippsland with two boats in tow so they could compete in the national minnow sailing championships in Darwin.

Since the youngsters had spent all year training for the tournament, they were heartbroken over the idea that all of their efforts had been for naught – but with 620 miles standing between them and Darwin, it seemed as if they had no chance but to give up on their dreams of competing.

RELATED: 18-Year-Old Drives 225 Miles to Make Pizzeria’s First and Only Delivery After Receiving Special Phone Call

Upon learning about their dilemma, ABC News made a social media post with the hopes that one of their readers would feel spurred to help the Melrose family.

As fate would have it, Darwin resident Rodney Sims had been scrolling through his news feed when he saw the plea for help and recalled a time when he had been in the same predicament.

“About 30 years ago, strangely enough, I was in a similar situation with a broken-down car and someone helped me out … this was my time to give back,” Sims told ABC News.

Sims then hopped in his truck and drove all the way down to where the family was staying in a Tenant Creek motel. After hitching up their boats to his vehicle, he brought the Melroses all the way back to Darwin, amounting to a staggering 1,250-mile round-trip journey.

Needless to say, the Melroses were incredibly touched by the stranger’s act of kindness.

CHECK OUT: Opposing Congressmen Become Besties When Forced on D.C. Road Trip

“What a legend – what a fantastic effort,” Daryn told the news outlet. “He drove all the way down to us, hooked up the trailer, and drove us all the way back to Darwin.

“My daughters and I could not be more grateful for his efforts,” he added. “They got here on time and are hoping for podium finishes after their competitions.”

Photo by Daryn Melrose

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Toyota is Now Testing New Prius That Uses Ultra-Thin Solar Panels to Charge Batteries On the Go

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Toyota has begun testing a new Prius model that uses ultra-thin solar panels to eliminate the risk of a car running out of juice on the road.

The company announced earlier this week that they plan to commence public road trials from late July 2019.

The trials, which will be conducted in collaboration with the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) and electronics corporation Sharp, aim to assess the effectiveness of improvements in cruising range and fuel efficiency of electrified vehicles equipped with high-efficiency solar batteries.

To facilitate the execution of this trial, Sharp modularized its high-efficiency solar battery cells (with conversion efficiency of 34%), previously developed for a NEDO-led project, to create an onboard solar battery panel.

LOOK: 316 Dutch Bus Stops Are Getting Green Roofs Covered in Plants as a Gift For Honeybees

The solar battery cell is a thin film about 0.03 mm in thickness, which makes it possible to efficiently install to fit the curves of vehicle parts with limited space.

Toyota then installed this panel on the roof, hood, rear hatch door, and other parts of its “Prius PHV” and produced a demo car for public road trials. By enhancing the solar battery panel’s efficiency and expanding its onboard area, Toyota was able to achieve a rated power generation output of around 860W, which is approximately 4.8-times higher in comparison with the commercial model Prius PHV (equipped with a solar-charging system).

In addition to substantially boosting its power generation output, the demo car employs a system that charges the driving battery while the vehicle is parked and also while it’s being driven – a development that is expected to lead to considerable improvements in electric-powered cruising range and fuel efficiency.

Toyota plans to conduct the trials under various driving conditions in Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture, Tokyo, and other areas. Various data, including the power generation output of the solar battery panel and the amount the drive battery is charged, will be obtained and verified, and then used in the development of an onboard solar recharging system.

The PV-powered Vehicle Strategy Committee, which NEDO launched in 2016 in collaboration with several other entities, will evaluate the benefits based on improvements in CO2 emissions reductions and convenience, such as the number of times a vehicle requires recharging.

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Guy Dressed as Batman Has Rescued Dozens of Shelter Pets From Euthanasia

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McKinley Corbley
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Photo by Batman4Paws

Not all heroes wear capes, but this guy has already saved dozens of dogs and cats from euthanasia – and he has done it all while dressed as Batman.

27-year-old Chris Van Dorn has always been a fan of the beloved Caped Crusader; so when he began volunteering for various animal rescue organizations around Orlando, Florida, he decided to combine his two passions and use a Batman suit to bring attention to the importance of pet adoption.

“It kind of just came as a way to embody all the good I wanted to do in the world,” Van Dorn told The Dodo, “and make it easy for people to talk to me right off the bat.”

Photo by Batman4Paws

Not only has he used the suit as a conversation starter for why people should adopt shelter pets, he has also donned the suit to transport dozens of animals from the shelter to their loving forever homes.

Initially, Van Dorn used the superhero costume as a means of keeping all of his rescue missions anonymous – but his good deeds finally brought his real identity into the limelight after he was featured as an honorary GoFundMe Hero in May.

WATCH: Dog That Shoplifted a Book on ‘Abandonment’ is Given the Love It Was Asking For

Since Van Dorn launched his nonprofit Batman4Paws in 2018, he has embarked on dozens of hours-long cross-country road trips to rescue dogs from euthanasia and bring them to loving families that are willing to adopt them.

Thankfully, the GoFundMe article helped to finance Van Dorn’s rescue missions since his crowdfunding page has collectively raised about $32,000 over the course of the last 10 months.

Photo by Batman4Paws

“When I was first starting out, I was keeping everything really anonymous,” Van Dorn told the news outlet. “I would sign everything ‘Bruce Wayne’ and not put my real name out there … My catchphrase is, ‘It’s not who I am underneath but what I do that defines me’ and I still hold that true today.”

Van Dorn now hopes that he will be able to find a compassionate citizen to donate a bigger van so he can replace his current Batmobile – a humble Honda Accord – and transport more animals on his rescue missions.

CHECK OUT: ‘Walking Dead’ Star Gives Happy Ending to Emu and Donkey That Refused to Be Separated

He also aims to use his pilot’s license as a means of using air travel as a more efficient means of transporting his doggos in distress.

Additionally, since he recently got his trusty sidekick Mr. Boots licensed as a therapy dog, the two have been making plenty of guest appearances as Batman and Robin at various hospitals around Florida.

Photo by Batman4Paws

The Dynamic Duo has also donned their costumes for adoption events and animal shelter fundraisers.

Van Dorn says that the costume helps to draw in more visitors, and he takes every opportunity to hand out brochures and stickers concerning the importance of adoption.

If you would like to learn more about Van Dorn’s mission or make a donation to his nonprofit, you can visit the Batman4Paws website.

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“Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ballpark. Aim for the company of immortals.” – David Ogilvy

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Quote of the Day: “Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ballpark. Aim for the company of immortals.” – David Ogilvy

Photo: by Jon Scally, CC license

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

 

‘Good Samaritan’ App That Alerts Nearby Users to Medical Emergencies Has Saved Thousands

By
McKinley Corbley
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Photo by Ambulance Victoria

An ingenious new app is recruiting thousands of Good Samaritans as volunteers for medical emergencies.

If an ambulance is dispatched in response to someone in the midst of cardiac arrest or some other life-threatening emergency, the “GoodSAM” app sends a cell phone alert to first responders and medically trained civilians who are nearby to the person in distress.

The Ambulance Victoria website says that for every minute that a cardiac arrest patient doesn’t get CPR or defibrillation, their chances of survival fall by 10% – so recruiting the help of nearby pedestrians can often make a world of difference for a patient’s recovery.

The app’s life-saving potential recently made headlines in Australia after an off-duty paramedic received a GoodSAM notification concerning a 49-year-old man who had collapsed at his Melbourne home in the dead of night.

CHECK OUT: Answering Trivia Questions With This App Can Pay Off Other People’s Student Loans

Since the man lived close to her home, the paramedic was able to rush to his side and give him CPR until the ambulance arrived.

“I didn’t even take the time to get out of my pajamas,” the paramedic told 9News. “I just threw on a hoodie and went down to [his] house.”

Her quick actions ended up saving the man’s life – and her rescue is just one of the app’s many success stories; Victorian Health Minister Jenny Mikakos told the news outlet that the platform has already helped to save 20 people since the start of the year.

Photo by Ambulance Victoria

Though the app originally limited its volunteer participants to nurses and professionally trained medical professionals, Victorian representatives are now allowing any regional residents with basic CPR and first aid training to enlist as a volunteer with the app.

According to the GoodSAM website, over 40,000 trained volunteers are registered with the app’s international alert system, and they have already responded to roughly 8,000 alerts.

If you would like to learn more about the life-saving platform or register as a respondent, you can visit the app’s official website.

(WATCH the explanatory video below)

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316 Dutch Bus Stops Are Getting Green Roofs Covered in Plants as a Gift For Honeybees

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McKinley Corbley
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Hundreds of Dutch bus stops are getting eco-friendly makeovers so they can be transformed into lush green sanctuaries for honeybees and humans alike.

All 316 bus stops in the city of Utrecht are receiving green rooftops covered in sedum plants. Not only are the succulents good for improving air quality, they are also good for helping to support dwindling pollinator populations.

The city also says that succulents are good for storing rain water, capturing dust particulates from the air, and providing a cooling environment in the summertime.

LOOK: City is Converting Highway Pillars into Vertical Gardens to Clean the Air

The sedum roofs are just one of the ways that the city is improving upon their transit shelters; over the course of the next few years, Utrecht will be installing solar panels on every single one of their bus stops.

In February, the city also announced that they would be replacing their current transit vehicles with a new fleet of electric buses.

Regional officials are aiming to employ an entirely carbon-neutral transit fleet before 2028.

 

Furthermore, Utrecht is offering subsidies to city residents who want to replace their own worn-out rooftops with sedum roofing or solar panels.

“A green roof is good for a healthy and livable city … that can therefore better cope with climate problems. It helps to prevent flooding and ensures that we suffer less from heat,” reads the city website.

“A good time to install a green roof is when your old roof covering is worn out or if you still have to replace a roof with asbestos,” it continues. “To be eligible for a subsidy, your roof must be larger than 20 square meters – or you can also apply for a subsidy together with your neighbors to get to the 20 square meter mark.”

(WATCH the video of the bus stops in action below)

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When it Snows in This Town, People Race to See Who Can Clear the Most Sidewalks for Their Neighbors

By
Good News Network
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This story was submitted as a nomination to the Reader’s Digest “Top 50 Nicest Places in America” contest: a crowd-sourced effort to uncover nooks where people are still kind and respectful in an era of cultural and political divides. Be sure and vote for which story you think should be nominated as the Nicest Place by visiting the Reader’s Digest website.

When snow falls, it’s a race to the snowblowers to see who can do their neighbors’ walks first. Everyone wins!

When the first snow falls in winter on South Chestnut Street in Casper, Wyoming, for some, the silent precipitation is a starting gun. Whoever gets up and out first will snow-blow everyone’s sidewalk, winning the “race.” They also have the same race to mow one another’s lawns in the summer – or so our nominator, Danica Sveda, tells us.

To anyone who has had to shovel snow or cut grass, it seemed too good to be true – so we called up one of her neighbors, Marlene Ashbaugh, who lives just a block over on Walnut Street.

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She couldn’t vouch for what happens on Chestnut, but says, “My next-door neighbor, he always goes up and snow-blows all of ours. There’s probably one on Chestnut Street who does that,” adding that “it happens all over” the community.

Hard to believe, but we can confirm that it’s true at least in “Big Tree,” as the neighborhood is known. The name calls out the huge, older trees that line the streets, a rarity in high-plains towns. But in Casper, a city of 55,000 in the center of the state that sits at 5,100 feet of elevation, there are 123,000 trees.

They’re like old friends who occasionally make a big mess, as one big storm showed recently.

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“Lemme tell ya, Mother Nature has her own way of pruning. Branches, trees, everything was knocked over,” Ashbaugh recalls.

City officials said they’d haul the trash out as long as the residents piled it up—so they jumped into action.

“Instead of being mad, they were out there laughing, gathering the branches. Kids were helping, it was absolutely amazing,” says Ashbaugh. “I don’t know how many tons of branches and debris were hauled to the dump that year, but it was incredible.”

WATCH: After 12 Years of Waving to Students From Her Window, Watch Her Reaction to 400 Kids Saying Goodbye

This summer, Sveda’s mother is getting married, and instead of having a big wedding, they’re going to have a neighborhood party.

“The people that mean the most live right next door,” she says. “This area is a diamond in a world of disconnectedness.”

Reprinted with permission from Reader’s Digest. To learn more about GNN’s part in searching for the Top 10 Nicest Places, click here.

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Doctor Uses Table Salt to Bring Down Cost of Artificial Skin Grafts From $900 to $5 Per Square Inch

By
McKinley Corbley
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A Pakistani doctor has come up with a revolutionary new form of artificial skin for acid attack survivors that will likely only cost a fraction of the price of current treatment methods.

Currently, burn victims can either be treated with skin that has been grafted from another part of their body or doctors can use skin that has been sourced from a donor. That being said, the procedure for grafting skin from the patient’s own body can be particularly expensive; and since donated skin can’t be stored for long periods of time, these grafts are often in short supply.

Doctors can use artificial skin that has been grown in a lab, but it usually costs about $900 per square inch – which is particularly unaffordable for young women who have fallen victim to acid attacks in rural or underdeveloped regions.

Thankfully, Dr. Rauf Ahmed from the Jinnah Burn and Reconstructive Surgery Center in the Pakistani city of Lahore told CNN that he has developed a much more inexpensive solution to the problem of costly artificial skin grafts.

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Rather than use the trypizine enzyme to cultivate artificial skin cells, he began using sodium chloride – also known as salt – to develop the skin samples.

According to the doctor, his breakthrough will likely bring the cost of skin grafts down from $900 to about $5 per square inch. Furthermore, it can be stored for up to two years.

After the artificial skin was successfully tested on animals, Ahmed began human trials on a number of acid attack survivors and burn victims back in October 2018 – and with the trials set to conclude at the end of the summer, he says the results have been “outstanding”.

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“Mortality rate among patients with more than 70% of their bodies burnt is 90%. However, with the large-scale production of the biological human skin, surgeons will be able to reduce the burns to 20% and allow patients to live longer,” University of Health Science (UHS) Vice Chancellor Professor Javed Ikram told the Express Tribune about Ahmed’s work.

“In fact, the skin which we have prepared in Pakistan is better than its imported counterpart in many aspects,” he added. “We already have our skin specimen approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and … although we cannot give a date, the commercial production of these medicines and artificial body parts will begin soon and we will try to keep the prices at the lowest.”

Be Sure And Share The Groundbreaking News With Your Friends On Social Media – File photo by Narayan Nath/FCO/Department for International Development, CC

Too Drunk to Drive, Man Saves Baby Bird’s Life By Paying Uber to Bring it to a Rescue Center

By
McKinley Corbley
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A baby bird has been given a new lease on life after a resourceful partygoer made sure that it could be transported to a rescue center in the safest – and most modern way possible.

Animal rescuers from the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center of Northern Utah (WRCNU) were surprised to find an Uber waiting outside of their front doors last week. The only passenger that had been waiting in the backseat of the car was a tiny baby bird.

Tim Crowley and his friends had rescued the bird as they were in the middle of enjoying a weekend get-together in Clinton.

They had been sitting outside when the bird suddenly fell out of the sky – and they could not figure out where it had come from.

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Upon calling the WRCNU, rescuers said that Crowley ought to bring the bird in for treatment as soon as possible. Since Crowley had been drinking, however, he and his friends did not feel capable of driving the little lesser goldfinch to the animal hospital.

“At first it was a joke, like, ‘Hey, maybe we should just call Uber!’” he told KSTU. “Then we were like, ‘No, really. Why not? We’re paying them.’”

Crowley and his friends then called an Uber for the bird and told the driver about their unusual passenger. When the driver canceled the trip due to the bizarre nature of the journey, Crowley then waited to tell their second driver about the feathery passenger until she had already arrived.

WATCH: Bald Eagle Weighed Down by Large Ball of Ice is Freed By Locals Who Jumped into Frozen Lake

Luckily, the woman agreed to drive the bird to the rescue center.

Though WRCNU rescuers were confused by the arrival of the little bird, they quickly took it under its wing and made sure that it got the proper treatment.

The bird, who has fondly been named “Petey Uber” by the rescuers, will most likely be ready to be released back in the wild just in time for the migration season at the end of the summer – and it’s all thanks to Crowley’s quick thinking.

(WATCH the news coverage below) – Photo by the WRCNU

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