Sunny Saturday News
- 5 hours ago
- 4 min read
What better way to start the day than with some upbeat news stories?
Giving Back
In 1940, American artist Georgia O’Keeffe was quoted as saying, “My painting is what I have to give back to the world for what the world gives to me.” Today, that spirit of generosity lives on through the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum in Sante Fe, which has been working to make every single one of her artworks available to view online via a newly launched portal. O’Keeffe’s stunning flower paintings are some of the most iconic paintings from the 20th century, but the artist painted many more subjects, including landscapes, animals, skulls, and the sky. Now, on Access O’Keeffe, you can browse over 2,000 of the artist’s works by theme, timeframe, or medium.
Some Good Numbers
70: A village in Ireland has agreed to grant its children a smartphone-free youth, after 70 percent of parents opted in to the idea. The movement, called “It Takes a Village,” has since grown well beyond this small town of 22,000 residents.
99: The extraordinary percentage decline in battery costs over the past three decades.
52: Democratic Republic of Congo declares national holiday after its soccer team qualifies for its first World Cup in 52 years.
Bowelbabe Fund
A cancer research fund set up by Dame Deborah James has reached an "incredible milestone" after it hit the £20m mark, the Prince of Wales says. The Bowelbabe Fund, set up in May 2022 shortly before Dame Deborah died of bowel cancer, has reached the milestone in less than four years, having initially aimed to raise £250,000. In a message on Instagram, Prince William praised the "amazing legacy" of Dame Deborah. Cancer Research UK, which benefits from the fund, said the money raised had been used to support 16 research projects, including a "Bowelbabe vaccine" aimed at boosting immunity against bowel cancer. Dame Deborah's mother added that her daughter "would be absolutely over the moon if she were here today to see this."
April Fools
The originator of some of the greatest April Fools' pranks of all time, the BBC itself fell for a rather perverse hoax that claimed that Jonathan, the world's oldest known tortoise (called Jonathan, aged 193, and living on the island of St. Helena, situated in the middle of the South Atlantic Ocean) had died. An account on X that had purported to belong to Joe Hollins, a vet who has previously cared for Jonathan, posted that it was "heartbroken to share" that the tortoise had died. Media outlets including the BBC, USA Today and Daily Mail published news reports about the post. "Jonathan the tortoise is very much alive," Hollins has since told USA Today. "I believe on X the person purporting to be me is asking for crypto donations, so it's not even an April Fool joke. It's a con."
Hair Samples
A century of (don’t get creeped out) hair samples shows how sharply lead exposure fell after modern environmental rules took hold in the United States. A recent PNAS study found that current lead concentrations in hair from Utah’s Wasatch Front are almost 100 times lower than before the Environmental Protection Agency was established in 1970, documenting the long-running collapse after regulation of leaded petrol and other major sources.
Why Humans Have Hair on Their Heads: “There are naked mammals, there are furry mammals, but we’re the only weirdos that have a naked body and fur on our heads.”
Headache For Putin
On the basis that anything that causes a dilemma for Putin, it's good news to hear that construction has started on the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway line, which could redraw Central Asia’s economic map. The project is expected to be completed in 2030, and Kyrgyzstan’s President Japarov says it will transform the country from a “dead-end” to a “transit power.” It will also reduce China’s dependence on Russian transit routes and create a shorter, faster southern corridor for freight between China, Europe and the Middle East, directly eroding Moscow’s influence as the primary Eurasian trade conduit, reports The Diplomat.
FYI
OGN will next be back in your in-box again on Tuesday. In the meantime, have a great weekend!
"My mother was against me being an actress - until I introduced her to Frank Sinatra." Angie Dickinson
On This Day
4 April 1975: Microsoft is founded as a partnership between Bill Gates and Paul Allen in Albuquerque, New Mexico, to develop and sell BASIC interpreters for the Altair 8800 microcomputer. Inspired by a Popular Electronics magazine cover, the duo developed software for the Altair 8800 to create a programming language, which became their first product. Following the success of the BASIC interpreter, Microsoft later shifted focus, developing operating systems, including MS-DOS for IBM in 1980, before launching Windows in 1985.
Today's Articles
Fabulous Progress: The first quarter of the 21st century has been the most expansive era for schooling in human history.
Mood Boosting Video
Beautifully filmed story of Ukraine’s rewilding of the Danube Delta.