These puppers are on their way to being star service dogs – but they have to put in the work first.
The nonprofit Puppy Prodigies Neo-Natal and Early Learning Program trains little hounds to become service dogs. By the time the pups are 12 weeks old, they already know how to open the fridge, unzip a jacket, turn on a light switch, and fetch the mail.
Even if the canines don’t go on to become service dogs, the training has been shown to have long-term advantages in preventing future behavioral issues.
“Working with puppies at this neo-natal and early age instills a deep rooted bond to humans, gives them a solid foundation for all future endeavors, builds confidence, fosters enthusiasm for training, instills a willingness to be of service (in the case of a working dog future), reduces the possibility of a mature dog ending up in a shelter because of behavioral issues, and so much more,” says the organization.
Ricochet the surf dog – famous for assisting kids with disabilities and veterans with PTSD – is just one of many pups who has completed the program.
Not only is it good for the dogs, but it’s also adorable for us humans to watch as well.
According to an exciting new study released this week, more and more American seniors are resisting the debilitating effects of dementia.
Researchers reported a drop in the prevalence of dementia from 2000 to 2012 in the United States, but the factors contributing to the decline remain uncertain.
Dementia affects an estimated 4 to 5 million older adults in the U.S. every year. Some recent studies have suggested the age-specific risk of dementia may have declined in some high-income countries over the past few decades. Rising levels of education may have contributed to decreased dementia risk through multiple pathways, including a direct effect on brain development and function, as well as health behaviors. The intensity of treatment for cardiovascular risk factors, such as diabetes, hypertension and high cholesterol, also may have had an impact on decreased dementia risk.
Kenneth M. Langa, M.D., Ph.D., of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and his coauthors of an article published online by JAMA Internal Medicine, used data from the Health and Retirement Study, a large nationally representative group of U.S. adults, to compare the prevalence of dementia in 2000 and 2012. The study included more than 21,000 adults 65 or older (10,546 adults in 2000 and 10,511 in 2012).
Dementia prevalence decreased from 11.6 percent in 2000 to 8.8 percent in 2012, which corresponds to an absolute decrease of 2.8 percentage points, which translates into 200 000 fewer cases of dementia, and a “relative decrease of about 24%,” according to the results.
Older adults in the 2012 group had, on average, about one year more education compared with those adults in the 2000 group. Improvements in treating cardiovascular risk factors also may have played some role in the decrease, the study concludes. The study also notes several limitations.
“The full set of social, behavioral and medical factors contributing to the decline in dementia prevalence is still uncertain. Continued monitoring of trends in dementia incidence and prevalence will be important for better gauging the full future societal impact of dementia as the number of older adults increases in the decades ahead, as well as clarifying potential protective and risk factors for cognitive decline,” the study concludes.
Emergency situations are usually resolved in the first 72 hours, but anything can happen in those three days.
That’s why these engineers created the SEVENTY2 — a backpack system that has been certified as the smartest survival kit in the world.
Everything in the package has been designed and curated to withstand any survival situation: the contents contain over 30 tools that are waterproof, reflective, and most importantly, easy to understand. The small backpack, itself, has been engineered to distribute weight efficiently and to be used as a floatation device. The tools include everything from a magnesium fire starter, to a safety whistle, survival knife, reflective duct tape, thermal blanket, and convertible snow shovel and pick-ax.
Though the creators of the system are based in Los Angeles—where earthquakes, fires, and mudslides are a real possibility—the young team behind the Uncharted Supply Company has collectively visited over 100 countries, gathering tons of hands-on experience with sandstorms, hiking, camping, and adventure.
“In our world today, emergencies can strike at any moment and calling 911 and waiting for help may not be enough,” says Dr. Eric Meyer, a mountain climber and survival expert recruited for the backpack’s design team.. “You must be prepared, and being prepared means having ready access to the right gear. With that in mind, we developed the SEVENTY2.”
The company’s Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign originally sought a minimum of $25,000 to start production and ensure sales in time for the holiday, but 669 dedicated backers ended up pre-ordering the item for $275-$300, or supporting their goal through smaller donations, to raise a whopping of $248,000.
“What can we say, but thank you! For all of your support in our first few days,” exclaimed founder and CEO, Christian Schauf. “We believed this was a product that was needed in the marketplace and our backers reinforced that belief! It’s been amazing watching our goal get funded and beyond and we are grateful!”
Fetene Yezengaw is a crossing guard who has brought smiles and laughter to the same intersection for the last decade – so now, the community is repaying him for all the kindness.
When Fetene was a 15-year-old child soldier in Ethiopia, he stepped on a land mine that blew his leg off. After healing in a refugee camp, he was eventually granted political asylum in the United States.
The now 42-year-old has used a prosthetic limb ever since, but it currently requires repairs that he can’t afford. He also recently lost his second job and medical insurance, but the kids and parents of Harvard Elementary School in Houston, Texas decided to raise the money themselves, to care for the beloved school official.
A school club, Girls on the Run, hosted a bake sale, while one of the moms, Karen Johnson, created a GoFundMe page. Together, they have raised over $10,00 for his medical needs.
Yezengaw was so overwhelmed by the community’s generosity, he came to tears.
“When I told Fetene about the money being raised for his medical needs he began to cry and is beyond grateful for each and every one of you. He said, ‘I am so blessed and Harvard is my family.’” says Karen Johnson. “He wishes he could write each and everyone of you a personal letter thanking you for making his life easier.”
Earlier this Tuesday, 1,000 different low-income families in Washington D.C. were treated to free Thanksgiving turkeys and meals thanks to a local Islamic-centered nonprofit.
Islamic Relief USA is an organization that provides empowerment, resources, and aid to communities in over 50 countries around the world, including the United States. Together with the American Third Pillar Charities, the Muslim volunteers hosted the annual giveaway at the Deanwood Recreational Center in the nation’s capital.
“The community was incredibly warm and grateful for the service,” read one of the website’s blog posts. “The event was about more than turkeys — it was about community.”
This was the third year that B.C. Dodge, a U.S. Military Veteran and New Media Specialist with Islamic Relief USA participated in the thanksgiving meal donation.
“It is important to participate in programs of this nature because hunger can’t read a calendar and poverty knows no faith, As Muslims, we are taught to help those who have less.”
Let’s Be Grateful For Kindness: Click To Share With Your Friends – Photos by Islamic Relief USA
More home fires occur on Thanksgiving than on any other day of the year and 87 percent of those fires are caused by cooking. In the future, families might need to be grateful that these clever students invented the Fire Mitt.
Though many kitchens are equipped with fire extinguishers, often families either don’t know where they’re located or they don’t know how to work them. That’s why Scott Johnson and Emma Spencer designed an oven mitt that can unfold into a fire blanket .
The invention became their submission to The Paradigm Challenge: one of the world’s largest youth-based innovation competitions. The competition challenged students to use science, math, or engineering skills, “plus kindness, creativity, and collaboration,” to generate new ideas to prevent injuries and fatalities from home fires, which kill thousands of Americans every year.
The Fire Mitt design includes a pocket to hold a fire blanket that can be unfolded to smother small-to-medium sized fires.
“When a fire breaks out in the kitchen, people need to grab something and put it out in a hurry,” Spencer said in a news release.
Tips about how to put out grease fires and what to do are printed on the outside of the mitt. The idea was recognized as especially ingenious because chefs will know, more consistently, where to find their oven mitt in case of emergency, as opposed to the fire extinguisher.
Judged to be the best idea among those submitted by the 50,000 participating students from around the world, the Arizona State University and Mesa Community College students’ design won them $50,000 in prize money and an all-expense-paid patent application to help implement their idea.
“We are excited about winning the $50,000 so we can pay for college,” said Spencer, “but we are even more excited to have won the patent application because now we can ensure that the Fire Mitt will make it to market and into people’s homes.”
The theme for the next Paradigm Challenge is the reduction of waste in homes, schools, and communities.. The deadline for entries is May 1, 2017.
This year’s Medal of Freedom Ceremony continued to honor some of the nation’s greatest thinkers, artists, innovators, and athletes with the highest civilian award of the United States
The recipients included Bruce Springsteen, Robert De Niro, Ellen Degeneres, Elouise Cobell, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Richard Garwin, Bill and Melinda Gates, Frank Gehry, Margaret H. Hamilton, Tom Hanks, Grace Hopper, Michael Jordan, Maya Lin, Lorne Michaels, Newt Minow, Eduardo Padrón, Diana Ross, Robert Redford, Vin Scully, and Cicely Tyson.
Introductory comments were as cheeky as calling Jordan “that guy from Space Jam” to remarks as inspiring as “there is a place for everyone in Bruce Springsteen’s America.”
“The Presidential Medal of Freedom is not just our nation’s highest civilian honor – it’s a tribute to the idea that all of us, no matter where we come from, have the opportunity to change this country for the better,” said President Barack Obama. “From scientists, philanthropists, and public servants to activists, athletes, and artists, these 21 individuals have helped push America forward, inspiring millions of people around the world along the way.”
Ann Turner Cook was only 4 months old when a family friend turned her into the one of the most recognizable babies in the world – and today is her 90th birthday.
Dorothy Hope Smith did a charcoal sketch of Ann in 1927 after the Gerber baby food company announced a nationwide search for the official face of the company. When she submitted the portrait, she included a note saying that it wasn’t finished yet – but if it was chosen, she could touch it up for the company.
Ever since the single-use plastic bag tax was introduced to the United Kingdom over the last five years, there has been a dramatic drop in bags found on the nation’s beaches.
The September 2016 Great British Beach Clean organized by the Marine Conservation Society found there were 40% less bags per 100 square meters cleaned than last year, bringing the rate to an all time low.
The five pence tax was introduced in Wales in 2011, Northern Ireland in 2013, Scotland in 2014 and England in 2015, due to pressure from the MCS, as well as other partners. Wales showed the lowest amount of plastic bags, amounting to 4 bags per 100 meters. The U.K. average was 7 plastic bags per 100 meters rather than the recorded 11 bags from 2015.
The cleanup recruited the help of over 6,000 volunteers to clean 364 beaches around the U.K. The crew collected 268,384 individual pieces of litter – which is reportedly less than they found last year.
Christmas came early for Ben Millar after a compassionate patron left him a hefty gratuity for a flight home to the Emerald Isle.
Ben was sweating through a serving shift at a restaurant in Houston, Texas when he struck up a conversation about U2 with one of the diners. The man – only known as Jeffrey – said that he had just been to Ireland to see the rock and roll band. Ben remarked that he was from Belfast himself and that he wished he had the money to go home and see his family.
When Ben came to collect the bill, he was shocked to see that Jeffrey had left him a $750 tip with a note reading “Hopefully, this can get you back to Ireland for the holidays”.
Jeffrey had already left before he had the chance to thank him, but Ben’s 8-months pregnant girlfriend Taryn Keith says that it couldn’t have happened to a better hardworking guy.
The couple plans on flying home to visit their family as soon as their son Killian – whose due date is January 20th – is old enough to fly.
Jim Ford has repossessed a lot of cars in his day – but never has he felt as terrible about taking someone’s automobile than when he had to take Stanford and Patty Kipping’s 1998 Buick.
Jim knew that the elderly couple had fallen on tough financial times, causing them to miss five car payments. So when he did tow the car, he resolved to lend a hand instead.
The repo man created a GoFundMe asking for $2,500 to cover the rest of the car payments. After seeking help from his fellow mechanic friends and the community, the campaign made its goal in hours – and people are still paying to help cover the couple’s prescriptions.
“They’d fallen behind because on the price of her husband’s medications that have doubled over the last year,” Jim wrote on the page. “I was told he has the beginning stages of dementia and that they couldn’t even afford to get a few of his scripts this month because of the price increases!”
While Jim’s friend took the money to the bank and settled the debt, the team topped off the fluids and changed the headlights. Then, they put the extra cash earned from the campaign into an envelope along with a Thanksgiving turkey in the passenger seat to boot.
When they returned the car to the Kipping home, Patty and Stanford were shocked.
“It’s like a miracle,” Patty whispered in amazement.
Jim says that in the 20 years that he’s been a repo man, he’s seen a lot. Car owners have shot at him, tackled him, and even attempted to run him over. By the time he was done with the Kippings, however, he was beaming from ear to ear.
(WATCH the video below)
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Two Chinese firms have announced plans to construct a solar power plant inside the exclusion zone surrounding Chernobyl starting next year.
Chernobyl is a Ukrainian city that was abandoned in 1986 following a massive explosion caused by their nuclear reactor. The disaster polluted the surrounding area with radiation, making it mostly inaccessible – until now.
No clear blueprints or exact locations have been confirmed by the companies –GCL System Integration Technology and China National Complete Engineering Corp, however the plant’s construction is projected to power over 150,000 homes, amounting to over 1,000 megawatts of energy.
“There will be remarkable social benefits and economic ones as we try to renovate the once damaged area with green and renewable energy,” Shu Hua, the chairman of GCL-SI, said in a press release.
Though they have become the number one manufacturer in solar power, China has been encouraged to slash their carbon footprint since they reportedly derive 66% of their energy from coal use, according to the Energy Information Administration. The nation has since announced plans to eliminate all CO2 emissions by 2030 by expanding their international solar power presence and tripling their generated wind power.
Build Some Positivity: Click To Share – Photo by СмdяСояd, CC
Alyssa Sanderford may be a pretty petite woman, but this triathlon champ is being hailed as a hero after rescuing a stolen dog from a thief.
The 34-year-old first saw the dog in a lost poster on Facebook that was shared by a friend. The dog’s owners, Angela and Sterling Ream, were distraught after their chocolate Labrador Chesapeake mix named Wiley had been stolen from the Trader Joe’s ‘doggie dock’ – an outpost outside the store that can be used to restrain pets on leashes while customers shop.
Angela had only been inside the store for a few minutes when she returned to find her beloved pup had disappeared. Wiley wasn’t the kind of canine to run away, so she guessed that he had been stolen.
The day after Alyssa saw the lost poster on Facebook, she was driving through Dallas, Texas when she saw a lab that looked a lot like Wiley being walked by a clean-cut man in his 20s. She noticed that the dog was wearing an orange collar just like the one in the Facebook post.
The determined driver parked her car, and – after confirming that it was indeed Wiley – confronted the man.
“I probably didn’t do the smartest thing. I just walked up to him and said, ‘That dog’s stolen. You need to give it back.’” Alyssa told the Dallas Observer. “He was like, ‘I don’t know what you’re talking about.’ I said, ‘You took that dog last night at Trader Joe’s. Give me the leash.’”
When she tried to take the leash out of his hand, he jerked it away and started to run. Alyssa gave chase even though she had to take off her flip flops and dash barefoot across the concrete.
Throughout the 35 minute chase, Alyssa drew help from passerby, including two Goodwill workers and a couple in an SUV. She called the police just before the pursuit eventually ceased thanks to one of the workers who used his own car to corner the dog thief. By the time the cops arrived, she had also called the Reams to report that she had found Wiley.
When Angela arrived on the scene. Wiley became overwhelmed with excitement, licking her owner’s face and jumping for joy.
“I don’t even know this girl, and she risked so much to bring our dog home to us. It’s an unbelievable story. It sounds a little silly, but it restores your faith in humanity. For the one bad guy who had her, there were so many people who reached out and cared.”
Click To Share This Pawesome Story With Your Friends – Photo by Jim Schutz
The Wollyung family was stricken by disaster when their 4-year-old granddaughter Ayla passed away after an accident with the farming machinery.
A longtime family friend Tara Henry heard about the tragedy and called the household, asking if they needed any assistance following the incident. Carmen Wollyung said that her husband Steve still had 112 acres of wheat that needed harvesting – but she didn’t know how they would finish it all while dealing with such grief.
Tara wasted no time in calling farmers from all over Indiana to aid the distressed family. Workers and neighbors showed up with every bit of machinery necessary to complete the job. Over 60 farmers took to the fields at 10AM and finished by 5PM, turning what would ordinarily have been a week-long endeavor into seven hours of work.
The neighbors that didn’t have any equipment to lend simply showed up with sandwiches and cookies for the team.
Steve told FOX59 he was totally shocked. “I couldn’t believe it when I saw everyone show up to help. All of the support and the number of people wanting to help is just overwhelming,” Steve said. “It was emotional to see everyone. Whatever we needed, they brought.”
Grow Some Positivity: Click To Share – Photo by Elflonglyn, CC
Patagonia – the international clothing and travel gear retailer –will be donating all of its Black Friday sales made online and in-store to over 800 environmental groups in the world.
This is not the first time the company has made headlines through their contributions to conservation and fighting climate change. Patagonia actually pays its employees to bike to work; asks consumers to only buy their products if they need them; and converted dozens of their apparel to fair trade.
They also donate 1% of their total sales to environmental grassroots organizations, which amounted to $7.1 million last year. To date, it amounts to $74 million.
“By getting active in communities, we can effect local change to protect the food our children and we eat, the water we drink, the air we breathe and the treasured places we love the most,” announced Patagonia CEO Rose Marcario. “And we can impact global priorities, too, by raising our voices to defend policies and regulations that will reduce carbon emissions, build a modern energy economy based on investment in renewables and, most crucially, ensure the United States remains fully committed to the vital goals set forth in the Paris Climate Agreement.”
Kids react to bullies in a multitude of ways, but most of them probably don’t end up becoming friends like Jimmy Timpson and Nicholas.
9-year-old Jimmy was being verbally abused by another boy named Nicholas at Garden Elementary School in Venice, Florida. Though he could have fought fire with fire, he invited Nicholas to pass out birthday cookies to their other second grade classmates.
Though it was a surprising gesture, Nicholas was apparently ecstatic to help pass out the special pastries.
“They are at peace with each other though they are in different classes and don’t see each other that much. Our son has a big, good heart,” Jimmy’s mom Paula Timpson told the Good News Network. “He tries to be friends with everyone – even bullies.”
That’s what we call a sweet ending to a story.
Multiply The Good: Click To Share –Photo by Paula Timpson and Stadtbraut, CC
Chase Coleman had been running on the cross-country team for three years when he was pushed to the ground by a stranger during a race.
The 15-year-old teen with autism was so heartbroken, he handed in his uniform and gave up his favorite hobby, saying he would never run again.
Chase’s mother, Christine Coleman, wouldn’t give up so easily – and nor would the community of Syracuse, New York. Thousands of messages of encouragement and love for Chase started pouring in on social media – Christine read each message to her son until he started to feel better.
Christine, Chase’s coach, and a team of volunteers started recruiting runners from Baltimore to Syracuse to encourage Chase in a fun run. The race was held at Corcoran High School on Saturday morning where over 600 runners registered to participate. Over 1,000 people simply showed up in solidarity.
Though the event was sparked because of one cruel action, the community made sure that it became ‘an explosions of kindness’. Everyone wore tee shirts emblazoned with ‘Run With Chase’ and spectators waved signs featuring messages of love for the star athlete.
By the time the race ended, Chase could reportedly be seen grinning from ear to ear.
(WATCH the video below)
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Following last week’s 7.8 magnitude earthquake, military personnel and emergency crews have already evacuated over 900 Kaikoura residents along with all of their most prized possessions.
One of those residents, however, had some pretty unusual baggage that he refused to leave without: his 30,000 bees.
The New Zealand Defense Force lent a hand in the rescue and moved the insects onto the evacuation ship in a wooden crate.
“The ship does a meticulous count of everything we bring on board as a matter of course. Last Saturday, we evacuated 192 people together with 2.3 tonnes of baggage, one cat, 14 dogs and about 30,000 bees. They were one thing we didn’t count exactly,” Commander Simon Rooke of HMNZS Canterbury told the NZ Herald. “I smiled when I read the cargo manifest just before we sailed. It is the type of entry you’d probably see if they did an inventory of what went into Noah’s Ark.”
Kaikoura is a relatively small tourist town on the east coast of the South Island, New Zealand with a population of 3,500 people. Since the earthquake struck last week, 250 tons of supplies have already been delivered.
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These functioning sculptures may look like they’re being manipulated by wires or magnets – but they’re actually being manipulated by perspective.
Kokichi Sugihara is a 68-year-old Japanese professor who creates optical illusions. The illusions are based off of the position from which the viewer is looking at the sculpture. Since the human eyes calculates what it sees in relation to 3D space, Sugihara creates his models to have a manipulated sense of depth.
This crowdfunding company doesn’t just rely on their community of 25 million donors to raise money for nonprofits, projects, and innovators in need – they’re just as ready to open their hearts and wallets to the very campaigns they host.
GoFundMe, the world’s largest social fundraising platform in the world, has been giving away over $100,000 a month through their Gives Back program. Each company employee chooses a different campaign that they think deserves a boost for the month. Then the website donates $1,000 to that fundraiser in their honor. This month’s annual donation will land on Giving Tuesday.
“In a year of dramatic news, we’ve seen such a hunger for uplifting stories of people helping other people out,” GoFundMe CEO Rob Solomon told the Good News Network. “And what’s been most incredible is how more and more people are inspired to start campaigns when they’ve seen what a difference they can make.”
In addition to the philanthropic program, the company is asking people to celebrate Giving Tuesday by creating crowdfunding pages for community improvement projects, charities, or just people in need.
If the organizer uses the hashtag #GoBeyondGiving, the campaign will be entered for a chance to win a $10,000 surprise donation on December 9th, alongside the corporation’s monthly $1,000 donations to the staff’s favorite pages.
Since the platform’s launch in 2010, over $3 billion has been raised for campaigns in need – Solomon hopes, however, that the contest will drive even more people to start and contribute to meaningful causes during the holiday seasons.
“There is a positive, viral effect to starting GoFundMes, and we’re thrilled to see more folks out there realize they have the power to change someone’s world. That’s why we’re challenging everyone to look around their community to see how they can #GoBeyondGiving by starting a GoFundMe.”
