Positive News Thursday
Today's eclectic selection of positive news nuggets from around the globe.
Record-Breaking Catrina
Day of the Dead has grown into the most beloved holiday in Mexico City, drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors this week and prompting locals to take to the streets to visit ofrendas (offerings left for the dead) and enjoy the decorations. This year, one towering figure loomed above it all. A nearly 12-story-tall Catrina was installed in Mexico City’s Zócalo, the main public square, as if commanding the celebrations from great heights. At 33.41 meters (109.6 feet) tall, the Catrina on the Zócalo square broke the Guinness World Record for the tallest Calavera Catrina figure. Behind this achievement, are months of tireless work by the artisans of Taller de Arte Xibalbá, who brought to life the detailed 90-ton work of public art. The entire endeavour took 9 months and required a team of 140 people, including paper artists, sculptors, painters, architects, engineers, and blacksmiths.
Paternity Leave
The times they are indeed a-changin’: In 2004, men in California made up about 18 percent of bonding claim applications for parental leave. Last year, that figure reached 51 percent, with states like Colorado and Washington seeing similar rates of men opting in to paid leave programs. Considering parental leave has been linked to improved caregiver health, lower odds of postpartum depression, and a decrease in infant mortality, this is a good sign.
Mason-Dixon Line
The hand-drawn map showing the Mason-Dixon Line has just been sold at auction for $950,000. It is arguably the most consequential map in American history, and was finished in 1768 by Charles Mason and Jeremiah Dixon. The survey was originally commissioned to settle a border dispute between what were then the colonies of Maryland and Pennsylvania. It was used in the 1820 Missouri Compromise to establish the limits of human bondage in the still adolescent United States and became synonymous with the fundamental divisions that exploded into the Civil War four decades later.
Mogging
This is the 2026 Word of the Year according to the Collins English Dictionary, meaning to completely outshine, upstage, or outperform someone. If you want to casually assert your lingo savvy and leave your kids completely speechless, try something like this: Bake a perfect, artisan loaf of bread. When they grab a slice, look them dead in the eye and say: "My crumb structure absolutely mogs that generic supermarket bread you like." Or put on a sharp, coordinated outfit for a family outing. As you walk out the door, turn around and drop: "Don't stand too close to me at the mall, I'm completely stylemogging you right now."
Still Sharp
Bronze Age metalworkers from what’s now Italy must have been really good at their craft. Either that, or nature decided to spare their work from the wear and tear of time - as demonstrated by a rare underwater discovery of a still-sharp 3,300-year-old sword. It was found in Lake Mezzano, a volcanic crater lake in central Italy, on the Tuscany / Lazio border. “The new discovery further confirms the exceptional scientific significance of Lake Mezzano and the importance of this site for the study of the protohistory of central Italy,” said Italy’s Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape for the Province of Viterbo and Southern Etruria.
Big Rigs
Electric trucks made up just over half of all heavy trucks sold in China in September. That’s 33,100 electric big rigs in a single month, up 37 percent from a year ago. And it’s showing up in the oil data. China’s diesel demand is on track to fall by about 230,000 barrels per day this year, and trucks running on batteries and natural gas are doing most of the work.
"I’m not superstitious, but I am a little stitious." Steve Carell
On This Day
5 November 1905: Roald Amundsen, and his crew of six aboard the small 21-meter sloop Gjøa, reaches Eagle City, Alaska. He announced to the world by telegraph that his is the first expedition, in 400 years of European attempts, to complete a Northwest Passage by ship.
Today's Articles
Most Visited: This little-known European country has the highest percentage increase in international visitors.
First Female 'King': Centuries before Nefertiti or Cleopatra, researchers confirm there was another female ruler.
Mood Boosting Video
Slo-Mo Surfing: It's hot and sunny in Australia as Kelly Slater catches a few perfect waves.
