Researchers celebrate sudden uptick in Antarctic blue whale sightings
South Georgia, a sub-Antarctic island, was at the epicenter for whale hunting in the early 20th century. The territory's boats with their steam-powered harpoons caused populations of the Antarctic blue whale to drop so badly that there had only been a few isolated sightings of the whale around the Read More...
Airbus unveils fuel-saving plane model that blends wing and body together
In the wake of increased awareness about the negative impact of flying on the environment, aircraft manufacturers are not falling behind on coming up with new solutions that reduce aviation's carbon footprint. Now, Airbus is proposing a “blended wing body” design that could reduce fuel Read More...
5 ways to bring some ease to your anxious teenager
Teenagers are overwhelmed with emotions that they don't understand. Uncertainty and insecurity plague them. Add to their struggles a daily dose of social, sexual, and academic tension, and in a single day, teenagers may experience euphoria, crushing hurt, overwhelming anxiety, or deep despair. No Read More...
Optimist View: Getting Busy on Operation Waterway Cleanup
By: Amelia Buckley “If you want to do something, do it as soon as possible.” -Boyan Slat In the age of the internet, we at The Optimist Daily hope that stories of gratitude and positivity go viral alongside cute videos of baby animals and awkward memes. This week we are diving deeper into a Read More...
What cities can learn from Spokane’s approach to homelessness
The common approach cities take to deal with homelessness is tough enforcement: ticketing people for panhandling or sleeping in doorways or busing them to shelters, sometimes in other cities. But as Spokane has found it first-hand, this approach just doesn’t work. That’s why Washington’s Read More...
Kickstarter becomes first major tech company to unionize
Full-time employees at Kickstarter, the popular crowdfunding website, have voted to unionize after nearly a year of staff organizing. That makes Kickstarter the first major tech company to unionize, paving the way for other companies in the industry to do the same. The organizing group has Read More...
Philadelphia’s library system joins in on ditching fines for overdue books
Following into the steps of Chicago, and Los Angeles, Philadelphia’s library system has officially joined the movement of ending the policy of charging patrons for past-due materials, also eliminating any existing overdue fines from library cards. The library’s former policy imposed fines of Read More...
New York is bringing down the hammer on plastic bottles
Earlier this month, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio signed an executive order banning the sale of single-use plastic beverage bottles on city-owned and -leased properties — which means the bottles could vanish from an area nearly equivalent to a quarter of the city. The move also bars city Read More...
Condiment sachets are a huge source of waste. Could this be the solution?
In a bid to slash the massive amount of plastic waste that gets left behind after big sporting events like marathons, for the second year in a row, the organizers of the half-marathon in London are planning to ditch plastic water bottles and cups and offer runners edible water blobs instead. Read More...
Public vehicles in New York are doubling as air pollution monitors
New York City operates over 30,000 city-owned vehicles, the largest municipal fleet in the country. Police cars, fire engines, and public buses drive up and down the city streets performing their public services duties. But what if while completing their routine routes, doing their regular jobs, Read More...