Good News Tuesday

Editor OGN Daily
18 minutes ago
4 min read

Some tasty bite-sized chunks of positive news to brighten the day.

Billie Jean King wearing pink glasses — Credit: Women's Sports Foundation

Another Accomplishment

Billie Jean King has done it all - almost. She founded the Women’s Tennis Association and fought for equal pay; she’s been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the Congressional Gold Medal; founded the Women's Sports Foundation, and she’s received the biopic treatment. What she didn’t have was a college degree. Until (almost) now! King is a few months away from graduating, finally, with a degree in History from Cal State University, Los Angeles. She nearly finished the job in the 1960s, completing three years of her program before leaving to make her own history. By the time she graduates, she’ll be 82, with yet another accomplishment to add to her very long list. Just imagine how much more she'll do by the time she's 90!

A moment that would change the sport forever: The Foundation of The Women's Lawn Tennis Association.

Goat eating weeds on Maclellan Island — Credit: Chattanooga Audubon Society

Another GOAT

Here's one more story about GOATS, but it's not about sporting greats. These are goat-goats, though they’re also at the top of their game - which just happens to be clearing land. Meet the hardworking hoofstock of Maclellan Island, a 20-acre nature preserve in the middle of the Tennessee River. The preserve, across from downtown Chattanooga, has been overrun for years by invasive plant species that choke out native wildlife. Eager to “rewild” the island to make it more welcoming for people, plants and local animals, Chattanooga Audubon Society hired a herd of goats to chew their way across the island. Since the summer, they’ve already cleared five acres.

Bamboo to Bioplastic

Scientists at China’s Shenyang University of Chemical Engineering have created a method for turning cellulose from bamboo into a rigid plastic that is biodegradable and recyclable. Quick-growing bamboo is a renewable resource, and this bioplastic is tough enough to be used in cars, tools and appliances. The plastic is biodegradable within 50 days and keeps 90 percent of its original strength when recycled, the team said in a recent study published in the journal Nature.

The fastest-growing plant on Earth: Why Does Bamboo Grow So Fast?

WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus — Credit: @DrTedros | X

Polio Plummets

The number of polio cases globally has plummeted by more than 99 percent in just 35 years, according to new data from the World Health Organization. Some 350,000 children per year were left paralysed by polio in the eighties - a figure that now stands at around 50, thanks to the mass rollout of polio vaccines. Welcoming the data, WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged nations to “finish the job”. “Decades ago, the world overcame geopolitical and geographic barriers to end smallpox,” he said. “Let’s do the same for polio.”

‘Breaking The Cycle’

For the first time, homeless people in the UK will be able to open bank accounts as part of a broader scheme to boost financial inclusivity. The UK’s major banks will waive the need for people to have a fixed address to open a bank account. The ‘breaking the cycle’ programme will end the catch-22 situation that many homeless people find themselves in, whereby they need an address to open a bank account, and a bank account to apply for rental accommodation.

Computer screen featuring lines of code — Creating code using AI

Vibe Coding

The Collins Dictionary 2025 word of the year is for the techies. 'Vibe coding', a form of software development that involves turning natural language into computer code by using artificial intelligence (AI), has been named the dictionary’s Word of the Year. Although obviously two words, 'vibe coding' was chosen by the UK-published dictionary at a time when AI plays an increasing role in our daily lives. Collins defines it as “the use of artificial intelligence prompted by natural language to assist with the writing of computer code.” Or, as a blog post on the dictionary’s website explains: “Basically, telling a machine what you want rather than painstakingly coding it yourself.”

Low Cost Laptop

Apple is preparing to launch a new, low cost laptop. The computer would be Apple’s first firmly low-cost laptop, aimed at competing with other computers such as Google’s Chromebooks and cheap PC notebooks, according to a report from Bloomberg. Those computers are popular in settings such as education, where schools need to buy multiple computers cheaply for relatively non-intensive tasks. The new Apple laptop will be focused on allowing users to easily browse the web or work on documents.

I dream of a better tomorrow, where chickens can cross the road and not be questioned about their motives. Ralph Waldo Emerson

On This Day

11 November 1865: For her work as a surgeon during the American Civil War, physician Mary Edwards Walker became the first woman to be granted the U.S. Medal of Honor; the award was rescinded in 1917 but reinstated in 1977.