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This e-nose can detect fraudulent whisky
Unless you are a whisky enthusiast, it’s pretty hard to pick out a great whisky purely from the smell. Most people rely on the drink’s label to tell the good from the bad or the ugly. The alcoholic beverage is one of the most popular worldwide, and with some labels charging hundreds (sometimes Read More...
Waking up stressed? You might be overestimating how much you can do in a day
If you wake up feeling like you’re already behind and overwhelmed, perhaps it’s time to reframe the way you look at the day. The issue may not be that you don’t have enough time in the day to get things done, it could just be that you planned unrealistically. Why do we fall into this Read More...
For the first time, scientists have recorded squids' camouflage abilities
Octopus and cuttlefish are known for their impressive ability to camouflage into their surroundings, changing the color of their skin to escape their predators and catch unsuspecting prey. Squids are cephalopods like octopus and cuttlefish, so one could assume they can camouflage too. However, Read More...
This MIT team designed a desert shelter for humans and animals
We have often written about animal agencies at The Optimist Daily and sharing our space on the planet with our furry or winged neighbors. It’s important to recognize the rights of nature and cohabitate with animals as peacefully as possible, but a design team from MIT just took it to the next Read More...
Five health benefits of argan oil
With time and real-world experience, humans often discover multiple uses for a single plant or vegetable. Okra is a delicious and highly nutritious vegetable that goes great in a variety of spicy dishes, and the gooey compound it excretes can be used to extract microplastics from water. A Read More...
Love and Action: Happy Earth Day!
“There are no passengers on Spaceship Earth. We are all crew.” — Marshall McLuhan, philosopher As far as we know, Earth is the best place in the Universe. The search for life beyond our planet and even our solar system is ongoing, and one day we could very well make the Read More...
Viv for your V: championing sustainable periods for menstruators everywhere
Here at The Optimist Daily, we are always excited to feature solutions that elegantly address multiple problems at once. That’s why we were so pleased to interview Katie Diasti, the founder of earth-friendly period care company Viv for your V on our podcast, The Optimist Daily Update. The Read More...
Greece is home to Europe’s largest double-sided solar farm
In April 2022, the Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis inaugurated an enormous two-sided 204-megawatt solar park—the biggest system in all of Europe. The installation of this bifacial solar farm is part of Greece’s aim to double its installed capacity from renewables to approximately 19 Read More...
This startup proves that electric cargo ships actually make sense
Designing solutions targeting the shipping industry’s humongous carbon footprint is key to ensuring a sustainable future for sea transport. While we’ve seen such solutions in ships that replaced fossil fuels with hydrogen, most experts argue that it’s not feasible to design electric cargo Read More...
Wait! Don’t throw out old mascara wands, send them here instead
For all mascara users out there, there may be a better destination for your old, dried-out mascara wands than a stinking landfill—the nearest wildlife rehabilitation center! That’s right, when teeny tiny animals (like cute baby birds or squirrels) are rescued, their fur or skin can sometimes Read More...