A sparkling round up of positive news gems from around the globe.
Emerald for Ukraine
In 1622, a ship called the Nuestra Señora de Atocha sank in a hurricane - with a 6.25-carat emerald, among many other treasures, on board. The emerald originally came from Colombia and the ship carrying it was discovered off the coast of what is now Florida. On 7 December, the sparkling emerald will be sold at Sotheby’s Magnificent Jewels auction, where it is expected to fetch between $50,000 and $70,000. The good news is that the proceeds from the sale will go toward humanitarian efforts in Ukraine.
Safe to Swim
Paris has pledged to make the River Seine swimmable by the 2024 Summer Olympics, investing a further $1.6 billion to get the job finished. It’s part of a decade long mission to clean up a river that was declared biologically dead in the 1960s.
Record Breaker
As it traveled through the Swiss Alps, a 1.2-mile-long locomotive has just set the record for the world’s longest passenger train. The Rhaetian Railway company cinched the record to honour the 175th anniversary of Switzerland’s first railway, and to highlight some of Switzerland’s most impressive engineering feats. The locomotive was made up of 25 electric trains connected to each other. Each of those had four carriages, which brings the train’s overall total to 100 carriages.
Underground Farms
Taiwan is turning vacant metro spaces into underground vertical farms to grow sustainable, clean, and organic food. These smart farms use high-tech equipment to regulate light, temperature and nutrients. It’s an ingenious way to tackle food security in a small country with a big population.
World’s Largest Vertical Farm to be Built in UK: The objective is to reduce the carbon footprint of food consumed in the UK, eliminate the limitations of the seasons and boost the country’s food security. Read on...
The Evidence
In California, prosecutors are launching a new front in the fight against deceptive recycling claims. The Golden State’s Department of Justice has sent letters to seven top plastic bag manufacturers asking them to substantiate claims that their bags are recyclable. “Let’s see the evidence,” Attorney General Rob Bonta said. The probe builds on an ongoing investigation into the fossil fuel and petrochemical industry, which his office says has orchestrated a decades-long “deception campaign” to convince the public that plastics are recyclable.
Glastonbury 2023
Tickets for the event sold out in 63 minutes. That may sound quick, but it was twice as long as normal, due to technical glitches online. In 2019, the last time tickets went on sale, about 2.4 million people tried to get tickets for the event, which has a capacity of 210,000 including staff and volunteers. The cost of tickets has risen from £265 ($303) in 2019 to £335 ($383) for next year, but the increase doesn't seem to have deterred festival goers - and they don't even know the line up of performers yet. What cost of living crisis?
Super Fast
Engineers have built a chip so fast and efficient that they have been able to transmit data at a rate of almost twice the combined internet traffic of the world in a second. This head-scratching achievement was made with just a laser and single optical chip. The significant knock-on benefit is the potential for replacing hundreds of thousands of lasers located at Internet hubs and data centers, all of which guzzle power and generate, so it's expected that it will contribute to achieving an Internet that leaves a smaller climate footprint.
This week's OGN Daily is kindly supported by Vita Brevis
Quote of the Day
“I’m not offended by blonde jokes because I know I’m not dumb…and I also know that I’m not blonde.” Dolly Parton
On this Day
8 November 2005: Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf is elected president of Liberia, the first woman to lead an African country.
After a successful trial, unlimited travel by rail, tram and bus anywhere in Germany will cost €49 per month next year. Read on...
Conventional wisdom is that a calorie is a calorie, no matter when you eat it, and that weight gain is caused by eating more calories than you use. Not necessarily. Read on...
Carbon Paw Print: Here's something that might surprise you. Pet foods account for more than twice the carbon emissions of the aviation industry. Read on...
Mood Booster
Tribute to the 80s: Eclectic mix of movie clips edited to the sound track of Waiting on a Star. A blast from the past!
Comments