Worldwide round up of positive news nuggets to help ensure it's a sunny day.
Japanese Honesty
The honest citizens of Tokyo handed in a record ¥3.99bn (£24.5m / $30m) in lost cash to police last year – an average of more than £67,000 ($81,000) a day. There was relief, too, for at least some of those who had mislaid their money. The police department’s lost and found office said it had returned almost ¥3bn, while ¥480m was given as a reward to those who had discovered the cash and, rather than pocketing it, decided to do the honourable thing.
Lucky Colouring
It's not often that a quirky birth mark can save your life but for this fortunate black and white Holstein calf born in Austria, that's exactly what happened. Courtesy of being born earlier this week with a large smiley face on its side, the farmer has decided to keep it as a pet and has christened it: Happy.
Going Backwards
A man who once crawled the London Marathon while dressed as a gorilla is to walk the entire 26.2 miles backwards in aid of Ukraine at the 2023 event in April. Tom Harrison said he is taking on the challenge as a way of “looking over my shoulder for Ukraine”. The project manager said he hopes the “quirky” and “eye-catching” scheme idea will help to draw attention to the cause. His funds will be donated to the Red Cross. To support him and Ukraine, click here
End of Traffic Jams?
What makes traffic even more irritating is that, according to traffic flow experts, most of the congestion on the road is completely unnecessary. According to Alexander Krylatov, a mathematics professor at St. Petersburg University, if traffic flow management was left to mathematicians, urban traffic could be solved forever. Wouldn't that be good news? Krylatov's principal solution relates to navigation systems. To efficiently reroute vehicles, our navigation systems must be the same - and used by everyone. One central hub can then be used to organize all traffic on the road, leading to the most effective passage for each driver that compliments (not obstructs) other vehicles’ journeys. Sorted!
Circular Books
This might be the best news for book-lovers since the invention of the Kindle. PaperBackSwap.com is a service that lets you trade old books for ones you haven’t read yet. For each book you trade in, PaperBackSwap.com gives you a credit to order another. Most paperback novels sell for around $15, and bigger, hardcover books can sell for way more. But once you trade in one of your old books, PaperBackSwap.com lets you order a new one for just the cost of shipping - that means you could save over $10 on every book you get. Sadly, currently, it's only available in the US.
Tall Tales
The Mamenchisaurus sinocanadorum had the longest neck of any animal that has ever existed, measuring nearly 50ft, a new study has found. The Telegraph said that the “crane-like projection” allowed the creature to stand in a single spot “hoovering up tons of vegetation” but “expending little energy”. The Mamenchisauridae family “roamed East Asia” approximately 174 to 114m years ago, say scientists.
VW's Low Price EV
Volkswagen has unveiled its affordable, mass-market electric vehicle in the form of a concept called the ID.2all. With a starting price of 25,000 euros ($26,600) and an estimated range of 450 km (279 miles), the Golf-looking electric hatchback is intended to be that most elusive thing: a plug-in vehicle for the people. It's expected to launch in 2025 and is part of the German carmaker's push to derive 80 percent of VW passenger brand sales in Europe from all-electric vehicles by 2030.
"Why don't you get out of that wet coat and into a dry martini?"
Robert Benchley
On this Day
18 March 1906: The first monoplane, constructed by the Romanian inventor Trajan Vuia, made a flight of 12 metres (40 feet).
Visit Finland are offering 10 lucky people an all-expenses-paid luxury retreat to attend a Masterclass on Happiness. Feeling lucky?
The extraordinary sighting of an adult female killer whale with an adopted calf of another species has astounded scientists. Remarkable...
Mood Booster
Interview with a French job candidate becomes hilarious bingo game about his pronunciation mistakes.