Friday's Positive News
- 13 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Wrapping up the week with a selection of positive news nuggets from around the world.
Ocean Dream
There are high-quality diamonds, and then there are the diamonds that exist in a category so singular that the usual vocabulary of the trade barely applies. The fancy, vivid blue-green Ocean Dream, which recently sold in Christie's Magnificent Jewels auction in Geneva for $17.3 million, is one of the latter. This 5.51-carat triangular-cut stone has a colour so improbable that, as the Gemological Institute of America has noted in its materials, some might assume it has been artificially enhanced. In diamonds like the Ocean Dream, the blue-green hue is caused by exposure to natural radiation near the earth’s surface over millions of years - a geological happening so uncommon that no other natural diamond of comparable colour and size has ever been recorded.
Worth a Try?
WikiTrivia is a game that asks you to drag historical events into their correct chronological order on a timeline.
Movie Debut
Premier League superstar and Manchester City striker Erling Haaland is to make his feature acting debut, in an animated film as the voice of a Viking - called Haaland. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the Norwegian international is to play “an animated version of himself” in Viqueens - the story of two courageous Viking girls travelling from Norway to China. Director Harald Zwart said: “Erling has already become a kind of real-life Viking icon around the world - powerful, fearless and uniquely Norwegian. Bringing him into this universe as himself gives the film an unexpected energy and authenticity that felt completely right for this story.” Speaking of movies...
Drive-Way Movies
Huawei's latest XPixel smart headlights upgrade automotive lighting from a safety feature into a full-colour projection system that can play movies, render games, and guide drivers - all from the front of the car. Shown off at the Beijing Auto Show, the new XPixel platform is the first car-headlight system to do full-colour projection. Think welcome-mat light shows in your driveway, a Tron-style grid on the garage floor for your kids, or an outdoor film night thrown straight from the front of your car. However, it's not all party tricks. Huawei says the headlights can intelligently shift colour temperature in rain or fog to improve light penetration and visibility, and the system supports "lighting carpet" effects that follow the curve of the road, plus driving-assist light signals to communicate silently with other drivers and pedestrians.
First Sighting
Iberá National Park and Iberá Provincial Park form the largest park in Argentina. Recently, tour guides were leading tourists through the park when they spotted a jaguar resting on the trail. It was Ombú, a young male born in Iberá Park in Corrientes, Argentina. He marked the first wild jaguar sighting in 70 years. “Since we dedicate ourselves to this work and know what the jaguar represents in Iberá, throughout the province of Corrientes, and here in Argentina, it really fills us with joy,” park ranger Víctor Cereal said. “It’s a mix of many emotions, and honestly, I’ll never forget this. It’s like the greatest reward someone can have as a guide.” Thanks to Rewilding Argentina working in tandem with local institutions, scientists, park rangers, and ranchers, Corrientes went from having no free-roaming jaguars to now containing 50.
Selective Hearing
Hearing aids are so, so much better than they used to be, but one thing that can still be challenging for many users is picking out a single voice in a room full of others that are just as loud - an issue scientists refer to as the “cocktail party problem.” Researchers are trying to help fix that via a “brain-controlled hearing aid” that analyzes brain waves to select which voice the hearing system should amplify (rather than amplifying all of them). How? Researchers have found that individuals’ brain waves show a “signature” that indicates who they want to be listening to in a crowd. This work will hopefully help pave the path for a future hearing aid that can seamlessly pick out voices from a crowd.
“Live each day like it’s your second to the last. That way you can fall asleep at night.” Jason Love
On This Day
22 May 1819: The SS Savannah sets sail from Savanah Harbor in Georgia on an historic journey to become the first steam propelled vessel to cross the Atlantic. The ship used its 90-horsepower steam engine and collapsible paddle wheels for only about 80 hours of the trip. For the vast majority of the voyage, the crew relied on a full spread of sails to conserve the ship's limited coal supply. This pioneering 29-day voyage to Liverpool, England, ushered in a new era of maritime travel.
Today's Articles
Theatrically-Themed: Baz Luhrmann has designed a luxury train carriage that oozes 1930s old-world charm.
England's Coast: World's largest offshore wind farm - to power 3.3 million homes - achieves first milestone.
Mood Boosting Video
Hilarious: Laurel and Hardy dancing to Michael Jackson's Billie Jean.
