Thursday's Positive News
- Mar 19
- 3 min read
Today's eclectic global selection of upbeat news to brighten the day.
Take Note, Parents
Albert Einstein spent his life trying to understand how the universe was built - its hidden order, its baffling symmetries, the strange ways space and time could bend. Long before the German physicist’s theory of relativity, and long before his work became legend, geometry entered his life in a more humble form, not as abstraction but as play: a box of building blocks on the floor of his childhood home. The pieces were known as Anker-Steinbaukasten, or Anchor Stone Building Sets, a German construction toy introduced in the late 19th century. Unlike ordinary wooden blocks, these were made of compressed quartz sand, chalk and linseed oil, pressed into dense geometric forms and tinted in muted colors. In the hand, they feel not like toys but like fragments of miniature masonry. With patience, a child could use them to build arches, towers and elaborate facades that resembled real buildings. Is this partly how his genius was originally formed?
New Grand Child
The US Fish and Wildlife Service is shining a light on a new member of a famous feathered family - that of the world’s oldest known breeding bird, a Laysan albatross called Wisdom, who is now 70 years old and a happy grandmother. The agency posted a video on social media featuring a scruffy looking hatchling seemingly yawning as it hangs out in the sand in close contact with a giant bird - presumably one of its parents. The parent occasionally touches the baby bird with its long beak, and the entire sequence is, rather appropriately, accompanied by the sound of Olivia Dean’s So Easy (To Fall In Love). Indeed, it’s hard not to fall in love with the baby bird.
Feeling Blue
A man rushed to A&E after his skin turned blue - only for doctors to discover it was dye from his new navy-coloured bedsheets. Tommy Lynch from Derbyshire in northern England said he woke up looking like “an Avatar” and was convinced by a friend to go to the emergency department where he was “whisked” straight through and given oxygen, said the BBC. But the “penny dropped” when a medic preparing to take a blood sample rubbed his arm with an alcohol wipe and it turned blue. “Then it clicked,” said Lynch. “I was mortified but they said I’d given them a good laugh.”
Fee Reduction
The Trump administration has agreed to take a financial loss in order to make it easier for Americans to walk away from their US citizenship. In April, the cost to formally renounce citizenship will plunge from $2,350 to just $450, below the actual cost to the government of processing the requests - but fulfilling a years-long promise to reverse an unpopular fee adopted in 2015.
Split Keyboard
The Jiffy 75 split keyboard concept separates the familiar layout into two adjustable halves to promote a more natural typing posture. The CNC-machined aluminum board comes with silent switches, wireless connectivity and long battery life. The split format means that you can keep each half in line with your shoulders rather than having to angle your wrists inward. If you’re someone who needs to type for long stretches, this new ergonomic design could help encourage a more natural, relaxed posture. It's currently part of a fundraiser on Kickstarter and, if successful, will retail for $249.
Super Sniffer Dogs
Detection dogs can now detect trafficked wildlife hidden in shipping containers from tiny air samples. Thanks to a new portable device that captures the samples, trained dogs were able to detect trafficked animals with 98 percent accuracy. The advantage is that inspectors don't have to investigate the entire shipping container - one tiny air sample is all that's required thanks to the incredible power of a dogs’ nose.
“Storms make trees take deeper roots.” Dolly Parton
On This Day
19 March 1882: First stone is laid for the Sagrada Familia basilica in Barcelona, Spain, designed by Antoni Gaudí. In February 2026, the central Tower of Jesus Christ was completed, reaching 566 feet (172.5m), making it the world's tallest church.
Today's Articles
David Gilmour's Guitar: His 1969 Fender Stratocaster, used on The Dark Side of the Moon, becomes most expensive ever sold - obliterating previous record.
Mood Boosting Video
Words of wisdom from across the ages.
