Synopsis of today's uplifting, positive news stories from around the globe.
Marine Paradise
Peru's new Mar Tropical de Grau National Reserve will protect 1,157 km2 (447 square miles) between two large existing marine ecosystems: the cold waters of the Humboldt Current and the warm waters of the Southern Equatorial Current. The area is home to the rare Humboldt penguin, the Pacific seahorse, the endangered hammerhead shark, and humpback whales, which travel to the area to give birth.
More Northern Lights
There is good news for anyone who enjoyed the recent show-stopping aurora borealis - or missed it: there are almost certainly more on the way. The huge sunspot cluster that hurled energy and gas towards Earth will rotate back towards us in around two weeks. Scientists say it will probably still be large and complex enough to generate more explosions that could hit Earth’s magnetic field, creating more Northern Lights.
90 Year Old Sprinter
Emma Maria Mazzenga claimed another world record in the 90 and over age group this month when she ran the 200 metres outdoors in 51.47 seconds. Born in 1933, Mazzenga is one of the unsung stars of Italian athletics, currently holding five world records, nine European records and 28 best Italian performances in various categories of Masters sprinting - competitive races for older runners organised by age group. The women’s 200 metres world record, one of the oldest athletics records on the books, was set by the late American athlete Florence Griffith Joyner with a time of 21.34 seconds in 1988. She was 28 at the time.
Most Expensive Napkin?
The document that first linked a young Lionel Messi to Barcelona was actually a restaurant napkin. It just sold for $965,000 at auction. An agreement in principle to sign the-then 13-year-old Messi was written on the napkin almost 25 years ago at a Barcelona tennis club. A more formal and detailed contract with the club followed soon after. The contract language, written in blue ink, was intended to reassure the teenager’s father, Jorge Messi, that the deal would go through. The napkin bears the signatures of two agents and Barcelona’s then-sporting director, Carles Rexach, who met at a tennis club. Rexach had asked a waiter for paper and was given a blank napkin.
First Ever Emojis
Can you decipher these ancient hieroglyphics? In the age of hyper-evolving tech, the innovative emojis of today make those of yesteryear seem digitally prehistoric. We have been so conditioned to this new-age technology, that attempting to decrypt some of these first ever emoticons is near-impossible - just look at these from 1988.
Today's Stat
$260: That's how much the average American spends each year on disposable water bottles, so one high-quality reusable option can save a ton of money over the long run and, of course, save 30 pounds of ghastly plastic trash over a 10 year period.
“Each friend represents a world in us, a world possibly not born until they arrive, and it is only by this meeting that a new world is born.” Anais Nin
On This Day
21 May 1927: American aviator Charles Lindbergh completed the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic Ocean, traveling from New York to Paris in the monoplane Spirit of Saint Louis in about 33.5 hours.
Today's Articles
First Crush: An 88-year-old woman has married her first crush after reconnecting with him during their 50th high school reunion.
Mood Boosting Video
The moment ABBA were launched on to the world stage in 1974.