Good News Thursday
- 32 minutes ago
- 4 min read
Today's eclectic collection of positive news stories from around the world.
Gotta Have Faith
A long lost film centered on George Michael’s landmark 1988 Faith tour is set for cinema release later this year, in addition to a new album of previously unheard live performances. George Michael: The Faith Tour is being lined up for a global big screen rollout, with footage taken from a previously unseen 14-camera shoot of Michael’s performance at Paris’ Bercy Arena in 1988. A press release bills the project as a tour de force in archival film-making, celebrating Michael’s ambition and artistry at its peak. Michael’s Faith album is widely regarded as one of the defining pop albums of the 1980s, with more than 25m global sales and four US No 1 singles including Faith, Father Figure, One More Try and Monkey.
Ancient Graffiti
Around 2,000 years ago, a man from India named Cikai Korran scratched his name in several places inside rocky tombs in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings, the sacred burial site of pharaohs and elites, including Tutankhamun. Korran’s graffiti, written in the Old Tamil language, appears eight times across five tombs. It’s surrounded by similar etchings made by several others, all of which date to between the first and third centuries C.E. Altogether, these nearly 30 inscriptions - written in four Indian languages and found inside six tombs - provide new evidence that people from South Asia visited ancient Egypt. “We knew that traders from Tamil Nadu visited Egypt through other inscriptions found in the ancient port cities,” Ingo Strauch, a scholar at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland, tells the Times of India. “This shows that they did not only come with ships and return, but they also stayed here for a longer period of time. They took time even to visit sites that are far away.”
Rude Roman Graffiti on Hadrian's Wall: Specialists in Roman epigraphy recognise engraving as mangled version of ‘Secundinus cacator’.
Rather Embarrassing
For months, callers to Washington state’s Department of Licensing who requested the Spanish-language option were greeted by an automated voice speaking English, in a strongly Spanish-accented voice. “Your estimated wait time is less than tres minutes.” Now, happily, the department said that the problem had been caused by a new AI-powered service, and that it had been fixed. Que alivio!
Lazarus Species
Two marsupial species presumed to be extinct have “risen from the dead” after being rediscovered on the island of New Guinea, which lies north of Australia. One is the pygmy long-fingered possum - Dactylonax kambuayai - a small, striped animal with one exceptionally long digit on each hand - see image. The other is the ring-tailed glider - Tous ayamaruensis - which nests in holes in trees. Both creatures were believed to have disappeared more than 6,000 years ago, which makes them rare examples of “Lazarus species,” named after a biblical figure who was brought back to life. The chances of finding one Lazarus mammal species is “almost zero,” a zoologist at the Australian Museum told The Guardian. But finding two is “unprecedented and groundbreaking.”
Can-Do Attitude
A 13-year-old boy in England's West Midlands has raised tens of thousands for charity by recycling more than 1.5 million drink cans over the past three years. Ryan Hulance, founder of the We Can initiative, launched his passion project as a way to make money for food banks while also caring for the environment. He was only 10 when he began contacting businesses asking if they could spare any cans that he could sell to be recycled. Scrap metal firms pay, on average, around 55 pence ($0.80) for aluminium that is the equivalent to roughly 65 cans. “I came up with the idea because I wanted to help people and the environment at the same time.”
Bear Necessities
The Swiss canton of Bern has rejected a request to castrate the bear that appears on its official crest. The black bear, a symbol of Bern since the 15th century, “has always been depicted on official documents with a red phallus”, said SwissInfo. A Liberal Green party councillor had asked the cantonal government to consider if it would be “more appropriate to depict the bear without its masculine attributes”. The authority ruled that, in view of the long history of the motif, it was “reasonable” to keep the bear intact.
“Husbands are like fires - they go out when unattended.” Zsa Zsa Gabor
On This Day
12 March 1894: Coca-Cola was first bottled by Joseph A. Biedenharn, a candy store owner in Vicksburg, Mississippi. Seeking to make the drink portable, Biedenharn installed bottling machinery in his Biedenharn Candy Co. on Washington Street. These early bottles were sold to local customers, marking a major shift from fountain-only sales.
Today's Articles
Polarising Jaguar EV: The Type 00 is Jaguar's endeavour at going ultra-luxury and competing with the likes of Bentley and Rolls-Royce.
Mood Boosting Video
Aerial Views: Collection of stunning drone shots captured by Denis Barbas during years of travel and adventure.
