Just Good News Tuesday
- Editor OGN Daily
- Jun 20, 2023
- 3 min read
Updated: Jul 6, 2023
Some tasty bite-sized chunks of good news to perk up the day.
Imagination Library
California is kicking off a statewide expansion of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, providing universal access to free books in the mail every month, including bilingual options, for approximately two million children. The program is currently active in 30 counties in California; this expansion will cover all 58 counties by 2028. "I’m so thrilled at the overwhelming support to make my Imagination Library available to every child in California! Today is an amazing milestone for children and families across the state! We still have a lot of work to do, but together we can inspire a love of reading in children across California that will last a lifetime," says Dolly Parton.
Great Wrap
It turns out that one of the best ways to preserve your leftovers... is in a potato. Husband and wife team Julia and Jordy Kay have created a futuristic version of cling wrap that’s made of unwanted potatoes instead of plastic. It’s called Great Wrap, and it could help prevent tons of plastic trash from haunting our landfills and oceans for centuries. Great Wrap breaks down naturally, meaning you can throw it in your backyard or kitchen composter with a clean, trash-free conscience - if you live in Australia or America. The rest of us are going to have to wait a while...
New Cancer Drug
The lung cancer drug osimertinib has been found to reduce the risk of patients dying from the disease after surgery by 51 percent – an outcome described as “unprecedented”. Killing around 1.8 million people a year, lung cancer is the world’s leading cause of cancer deaths. “Thirty years ago, there was nothing we could do for these patients,” said the study’s lead author, Dr Roy Herbst of the Yale Cancer Centre. “Now we have this potent drug.”
Somewhat Tardy
A first-edition copy of George Orwell's dystopian novel 1984 has finally been returned to the library from which it was borrowed - 65 years overdue. And the fine for doing so is even more surprising. The novel was first checked out from a library in Oregon in 1958. And it's just been returned, along with a typed note. The borrower, identified only as "WP" in their note, said they meant to return it when they graduated from Portland State University that year, "but somehow never got around to doing it. After re-reading, I realize that, more than ever, this book should be put back in circulation. Significant parts are as relevant today as they were 65 years ago. Sorry to be so tardy. At age 86, I wanted to finally clear my conscience." And even though it's decades late, the fee for the delayed return is minor. In fact, it's non-existent.
France's Plan Velo
The French government announced a €2 billion ($2.2bn) plan to expand cycling infrastructure as part of a broader effort to encourage people to ditch their cars. The money will be deployed through 2027 with the goal of doubling the nation’s bike lane networks. The government sees the effort to boost bicycle use as part of its broader effort to fight climate change. “Today, half of our trips by car are less than 5km,” said the Transport Minister. “That’s immense potential for bikes. With the Plan Velo, we’re mobilizing €2 billion to accelerate the deployment of bikes everywhere in France."
New Forecast
Bloomberg is now projecting that half of all new cars sold in China will be electric by 2026. Oh, and guess what the best-selling model of car in the world right now is? Not the best-selling electric car, the best-selling car, overall. Yes, it's a Tesla Model Y.
Bikeable Office
Bicycle commuters in Bentonville, Arkansas, can now ride their bikes directly to their office doors, even if they’re five stories up. Ledger, a new flexible office, co-working, and events space in the city’s downtown, was designed with a bike-friendly ramp up its entire side. The 3,900-foot-long switchback allows workers to ride (or walk) nonstop from street level to the front door of their office. It’s easily the most bikeable office building in the world.
“Words are to the anthropologist what rolled pebbles are to the geologist – battered relics of past ages often containing within them indelible records capable of intelligent interpretation.”
John Herschel
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Mood Booster
Why do dogs bark and what are they saying?