October 27, 2020
Today Kristy searches for her pet snake while we cover sunglasses made from recovered ocean plastic and the "Uber of car repairs." Listen to The Optimist Daily Update with Summers & Kristy - Making Solutions the Read More...
New skin test can provide an early diagnosis of Parkinson’s
In order to diagnose patients with Parkinson’s disease, physicians rely on clinical signs and symptoms. The problem, however, is that this method of diagnosing is not entirely accurate, which complicates clinical trials of potential treatments. Not to mention the fact that if a patient is Read More...
6 tips to keep your houseplants thriving during the colder months
The summer has passed and you’ve kept your houseplants alive during the hottest months of the year. Bravo! Now we’re entering the darker, colder half of the year, which means you need a new strategy for keeping your lovely houseplants in tip-top shape. With that in mind, here are six tips Read More...
RepairSmith is changing car repairs with convenience and philanthropy
Traditional car repairs involve dropping off your car at the mechanic, waiting around for a few hours, then picking it back up. RepairSmith is looking to change up car repairs by modernizing the whole system. Advertised as the “Uber of car repairs,” the company lets you book a repair online so Read More...
Tiny sponge converts dirty cooking oil into biodiesel
Scientists in Australia have developed an incredible sponge-like material that can convert discarded cooking oil and other waste materials into biodiesel. The sponge, which is being described as the first of its kind, is micron-sized and highly porous. When molecules are fed into the sponge, they Read More...
Japan, the world’s third largest economy, vows to go carbon-neutral by 2050
As extreme weather events associated with climate change are becoming more common all over the world, we’ve recently seen an increasing number of economies pledge to do their part in solving this urgent global challenge. The most recent commitment of the like comes from Japan, the world’s Read More...
This skin-like device could help ALS patients communicate more easily
People with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) gradually lose control over the muscles that allow them to speak. And while there are some communication devices for ALS patients, most of them are quite cumbersome to use on a daily basis because of their bulky size and the fact that they’re Read More...
Spice up your cooking skills with one of these online classes
Are you one of the many who have gotten a little more adventurous in the kitchen during the pandemic? From sourdough to whipped coffee, cooking trends have kept us somewhat sane during long hours at home, but whether you’re a fad cooker or an aspiring lifelong chef, these seven online courses Read More...
These sunglasses are made of plastic waste from the Ocean Cleanup project
The promise of the Ocean Cleanup project was that it would not only help clean up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, but also recycle the plastic so it doesn’t become waste again. Now, one year after collecting its first load of plastic waste, the nonprofit unveiled its first ocean plastic product: Read More...
Conservation win: South Carolina bans commercial trade of native turtles
Following increasing pressure from wildlife conservation groups, the state of South Carolina has finally passed legislation banning the commercial trade of native turtles, along with amphibians and other reptiles. Signed by the state’s governor Henry McMaster, the new bill makes it illegal to Read More...