Evergreen
How paying people to protect a rainforest is rewriting colonial history on a tiny African island
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For centuries, the tiny West African island of Príncipe was a place where nature was exploited and people were brought in chains to work it. Today, the descendants of those laborers are being paid to protect it. The Faya Foundation, funded by South Read More...
A wireless eye implant is helping people with macular degeneration read again
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Age-related macular degeneration eliminates the center of your vision – the ability to read, to recognize faces, to see what's right in front of you. For the more than five million people worldwide living with its most advanced form, geographic atrophy, Read More...
A new drug is producing "stunning" results in men with advanced prostate cancer
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Immunotherapy has reshaped cancer treatment over the past decade. It has worked for melanoma, lung cancer, and several other tumor types. Prostate cancer, though, has largely been left out. Researchers classify it as "immune-cold," meaning the body's immune Read More...
Cancer-fighting bacteria: how engineered microbes could "eat" tumors from the inside out
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Cancer treatment has no shortage of big ideas, but this one has a certain dark charm: send in bacteria that thrive where healthy human cells struggle, then let them chew through a tumor's interior. A research team led by the University of Waterloo is Read More...
Heart health study of 200,000 people finds food quality matters more than low-carb or low-fat diets
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For decades, nutrition debates have centered on a familiar question: Is it better for heart health to cut carbohydrates or reduce fat? A large long-term study suggests that the question may be missing the bigger picture. According to new research tracking Read More...
China’s Great Green Wall turns Taklamakan desert into a growing carbon sink
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For decades, the Taklamakan Desert was described in stark terms: a “biological void,” a vast expanse of shifting sand where little could survive. Slightly larger than the state of Montana and ringed by mountains that block most incoming moisture, it Read More...
Where and when to catch peak cherry blossom bloom across the US this spring
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM The beauty of the cherry blooms doesn't last long, but that's what makes it a spectacular phenomenon to catch each year. Once the trees are fully open, you typically have one to two weeks before wind, rain, or a temperature swing brings them down. Knowing Read More...
Pink noise for sleep: what it is and whether it actually helps you rest
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For many people, a completely silent bedroom doesn’t feel relaxing but rather quite unsettling. A soft hum in the background, the sound of rain, or a steady stream of white noise can make drifting off easier. That habit is more common than you might Read More...
First baby born after womb transplant from deceased donor offers new hope
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For years, the idea sounded almost impossible: transplant a womb, establish a pregnancy, and welcome a healthy child into the world. In the United Kingdom, that vision has now become reality in a way that expands the possibilities for women who once had very Read More...
Panama’s golden frogs return to the wild after 17-year battle with deadly fungus
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For the first time in nearly two decades, Panama’s forest streams are once again home to flashes of bright yellow. The Panamanian golden frog (Atelopus zeteki) is being reintroduced to the wild 17 years after a fungal epidemic wiped it out in its native Read More...