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Good News Roundup Thursday, December 22, 2022: On this Fourth Night of Hannukkah [1]
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Date: 2022-12-22
Before we get into the good news, I do want to highlight President Zelenskyy’s visit to the U.S., his visit with President Biden, and his historical address of Congress on, yes, the fourth night of Hannukkah. I was watching it on PBS while texting my dad about it — I will spare you the comments — but I will say I had tears in my eyes almost the entire time. If you were not able to watch, or if you simply wish to do so again, I offer PBS’ coverage of it on YouTube for your viewing pleasure. President Zelenskyy enters at approximately the 9:00 minute mark; Speaker Pelosi tries to call order at 10:45 to introduce him formally but isn’t able to until 11:00. President Zelenskyy starts his speech around 11:40 after thanks for the prolonged applause, if you wish to skip to the speech itself.
x YouTube Video
Those of you who have read my contributions to the GNR library are likely aware that A) I am Jewish and B) I have a love of acapella music. And since this is smack dab in the middle of Hannukkah of 2022, have some Hannukkah music by Six13:
x YouTube Video
With all the attention on wind and solar power generation, it’s easy to miss other sources coming to fruition — one of them being wave power:
Swedish Firm to Unlock the Electricity of the Sea With Largest Wave Power Station in the World Turkey will soon host the world’s largest tidal power station—a 77 megawatt system of large pier-like machines that generate clean energy from the sea’s endless rhythm. Swedish firm Eco Wave Power (EWP) entered into the agreement for the potential construction in Ordu, Turkey, starting with a small pilot project. EWP said that if it proves viable, the estimated $150 million power station would be Turkey’s first grid-connected tidal energy station, and upon completion, would be the biggest in the world. Anchored to structures such as jetties or seawalls, the rising and falling motion of the waves powers hydraulic pistons inside the metal hulls—called “floaters”—which in turn powers a turbine on land which then sends energy to the grid via an inverter. … “Subject to certain conditions, including, among others, receiving favorable results from feasibility studies and receipt of applicable licenses and permits, the 77 MW power station is planned to be constructed in several stages, starting with an up to 4 MW pilot station, and continuing with the construction, operation, and maintenance of the remaining capacity of the plant of up to 73MW,” said the company.
I have had discussions with a friend about the possibility of smaller wave-powered generators being used here in Ohio, along the edges of Lake Eerie. I’m glad to see options being pursued, provided environmental impact is also a major consideration.
Get out the tissues, because I was bawling my eyes out at this. (Good tears, every one of them. I promise.)
x Because everything else on Twitter feels upside down right now, give yourself 90-seconds to watch this.
THIS is the power of this platform.
(Caution: you'll be crying happy tears 🥹)pic.twitter.com/xOIjPUIxyZ — Goodable (@Goodable) December 16, 2022
[Text: @Goodable Because everything else on Twitter feels upside down right now, give yourself 90 seconds to watch this. THIS is the power of this platform. (Caution: You'll be crying happy tears.) [Video of Make-a-Wish 8000th flight to Disney]]
Science goes in many directions: We are constantly making new discoveries about how the universe works, and we are also? Solving puzzles that have mystified us for hundreds, or thousands, of years.
(I still want to know where the city of Punt was located. Perhaps that will be discovered in my lifetime.)
Ancient Grammatical Puzzle That Has Baffled Scientists for 2,500 Years Solved by Cambridge University Student A 27-year-old PhD scholar finally cracked the riddle which has defeated Sanskrit experts since the 5th Century BC—by decoding a rule taught by “the father of linguistics” Pāṇini. The discovery makes it possible to ‘derive’ any Sanskrit word—to construct millions of grammatically correct words including ‘mantra’ and ‘guru’—using Pāṇini’s revered ‘language machine’ which is widely considered to be one of the great intellectual achievements in history. Leading Sanskrit scholars have described the discovery as ‘revolutionary’—and it now means that Pāṇini’s grammar can be taught to computers for the first time. Six months before Indian-born Rishi Rajpopat finally decoded the 2,500 year old algorithm, his supervisor at Cambridge, Sanskrit Professor Vincenzo Vergiani, gave him some prescient advice: “If the solution is complicated, you are probably wrong.” … Rajpopat, who was born in Mumbai and learned Sanskrit in high school, explained, “Some of the most ancient wisdom of India has been produced in Sanskrit and we still don’t fully understand what our ancestors achieved.
From the “The Kids Are All Right” Files:
x This is Madison Checketts.
After learning about plastic pollution, she designed a water bottle that is 100% edible.
It's made with a thin gel that you can eat — similar to the bubbles in bubble tea.
She's only 12. pic.twitter.com/WaGDNWnfOS — Goodable (@Goodable) December 15, 2022
[Text:
@Goodable
This is Madison Checketts.
After learning about plastic polution, she designed a water bottle that is 100% edible.
It's made with a thin gel you can eat - similar to the bubbles in bubble tea.
She's only 12.
(Photograph of Madison Checketts in front of science fair project display and first place certificates)]
Something that went well, and something I’d like to see a lot more of, on a much larger scale:
Why people lined up in Everett to turn in their guns The [Everett Police] department hosted a “guns for gift cards” event Saturday, offering up to $300 per firearm. Some gun owners waited in line almost two hours to cash in on the deal, with cars wrapped around the building and down the street as the event started. No gun-rights debate. No big political statements. This was transactional, and in more than a few cases, about safety. To participate, Everett residents had to bring an official document to prove they live in town, like a driver’s license or utility bill, but didn’t have to sign up or file paperwork. Within the first 20 minutes, officers took in nearly 40 firearms – big and small, new and old. Some of the forfeited firearms had been used in wars, or passed down through generations after being brought overseas in the 1800s. One person brought a gun her boyfriend gave to her in 1968 before he went to Vietnam. … Everett isn’t the only department in the region recently offering gun buybacks. Mukilteo police hosted a similar event earlier this month. Everett police Officer Ora Hamel said her department was inspired by successful buybacks in Kirkland. Over the summer, 151 firearms were given to the Kirkland Police Department in exchange for gift cards. Kirkland hosted a third buyback in October.
I know someone who’s getting spoiled rotten this holiday season:
x This is River.
When her dad, a cocker spaniel named Bruce, fell through a frozen lake, she ran to their owner, started whimpering, and ran towards the lake.
Her owner saw Bruce drowning, called firefighters, and they rescued him.
She's a good, good girl. pic.twitter.com/3r1dLojhUc — Goodable (@Goodable) December 20, 2022
[Text:
@Goodable
This is River.
When her dad, a cocker spaniel named Bruce, fell through a frozen lake, she ran to their owner, started whimpering, and ran towards the lake.
Her owner saw Bruce drowning, called firefighters, and they rescued him.
She's a good, good girl.
(Photo of River on left; Photo of members of the West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service in raft, holding a soaking and presumably very cold Bruce)]
The much missed and dearly beloved Fred Rogers always said to look for the helpers. Sometimes, it’s the helpers who look for those who need it. Like these only recently discovered tiny geckos:
Rare, critically endangered gecko making dramatic recovery in Caribbean The Union Island gecko (Gonatodes daudini), known for its jewel-like markings, has seen its population grow from around 10,000 in 2018 to around 18,000 today — an increase of 80%. The gecko resides in an approximately 50-hecatre (123-acre) swath of old-growth forest on Union Island, part of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. When it was discovered in 2005, the animal almost immediately became the target of exotic pet collectors, according to Fauna & Flora International (FFI), a wildlife conservation organization focused on protecting biodiversity. … “As a Unionite and a community leader, I am extremely proud to be a part of this success story,” Roseman Adams, co-founder of the local Union Island Environmental Alliance, said in a press release. “Without a doubt, our shared, unwavering dedication and sacrifice has brought us this far. We now have to be entirely consistent with further improvements in our management and protection of the gecko’s habitat for this success to be maintained.” In 2019, the government of St. Vincent and the Grenadines also managed to list the Union Island gecko on Appendix I of CITES (the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora), meaning the species now has the highest level of protection against exploitation and illegal trade. It gives authorities around the world the power to take concrete legal action against poachers and international traders. “It is truly a testimony to the determination of the Forestry Department — and the amazing community wardens on Union Island — that this gecko has become one of the best guarded reptiles in the world,” Jenny Daltry, Caribbean Alliance director for Re:wild and FFI, said in the release. “This is something for which the whole community of Union Island can be rightly proud.”
Considering how small — they are tiny — and beautiful — you’ll have to click through to see photos of these geckos because they are gorgeous — I am not at all surprised they got trafficked for the pet trade. I’m so glad to hear that they’re being protected now.
Survival. Defiance. Liberation. Finding joy even in the darkest of times. Very Jewish. Very Ukrainian.
x Amid darkness from Russian missile strikes, Ukraine lights up Europe's largest Menorah on Maidan Nezalezhnosti in Kyiv. It will burn for eight days to celebrate Hannukah- a holiday that marks victory of light over darknesspic.twitter.com/Hm26tu9tNl — Euromaidan Press (@EuromaidanPress) December 20, 2022
Locomotion via temperature shifts? What will robots do next?
These Flabby Gel Robots Could Deliver Life-Saving Drugs by Inching Along Using Changes in Temperature These “gelbots” aren’t really robots at all, but little capsules filled with a water-based gel that through expansion and contraction, pushes the tiny robot along like an inchworm. ... Water-based gels, which feel like gummy bears, are one of the most promising materials in the field of soft robotics. Researchers have previously demonstrated that gels which swell or shrink in response to temperature can be used to create smart structures. ... “It seems very simplistic but this is an object moving without batteries, without wiring, without an external power supply of any kind—just on the swelling and shrinking of gel,” said senior author David Gracias, a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at Johns Hopkins University. ... As well as potentially delivering targeted medications inside the human body, the development team considers them ideal for oceanfloor monitoring. Made of little more than simple stuff, the team 3D-printed all their gelbots, and posit it as another advantage of soft robotics over hard robotics. Gracias hopes to train the gelbots to crawl in response to variations in human biomarkers and biochemicals, although skin surface temperature manipulation with hot and cold objects could also work to inch it along.
My first thought for possible uses of these things? Cleaning microbeads from waterways and the ocean. Not sure how it’d work, but that was my idea.
Just in case a simple congratulations wasn’t enough, have some video of Argentina’s post-win celebration:
x Wanna see the power of sports to bring people together?
Buenos Aires, today.
Sports, bruh.pic.twitter.com/LA4JyX7Dup — Goodable (@Goodable) December 19, 2022
That is it for me for this Hannukkah edition of the Good News, signing off for 2022.
Have some more music!
[END]
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