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Total number of posts: 23873
March 6, 2020
A weekday read of our top news stories featuring solutions and people creating solutions to make the world a better place. Subscribe to The Optimist Daily Update for a positive Read More...
6 feng shui tips to help you rediscover your creativity
Not all of us have jobs or passions that fall into a classically "creative" category, but you don't need to be a writer, singer, or painter to know when your creativity is humming and when it feels blocked. If you feel sapped of creative energy, here are some quick strategies for dialing up Read More...
Nike’s Team USA Olympic uniforms are stylish and more sustainable than ever
The 2020 Olympics are coming up in Tokyo this summer and Nike has released its highly anticipated Team USA uniforms. This year, the uniforms are making not only a fashion statement but a sustainability statement as well. The athletic clothing features sustainable recycled materials such as Read More...
New prosthetic gives amputees real-time mind control of robotic hand
Machine learning algorithms and new techniques in biomedical engineering are leading to the creation of robotic hands that amputees can use to regain the functions of a real hand. Recently, researchers at the University of Michigan tapped faint, latent signals from arm nerves and amplified them Read More...
Scientists make earthquake-proof concrete without energy-intensive cement
Concrete is the world’s most widely-used building material thanks to its incredible strength – but it doesn’t stand up well against bending. Now, researchers at Swinburne University have developed a new type of concrete that can not only bend better, but doesn’t require cement to make, Read More...
Fruit waste shows great potential as energy-storage technology
Biowaste has been used for energy production for some time already (see this story about using coffee grounds in your tank!), but tapping into its potential for energy storage is quite a recent phenomenon. Particularly, two unusual tropical fruits have been standing out as attractive candidates to Read More...
A rare video of a sloth giving birth has scientists thrilled. Here’s why
When Steven Vela, a tour guide in Costa Rica, spotted a brown-throated sloth up in a tree near La Fortuna, he had no idea the animal was in the late stages of labor—or of the drama that would unfold next. With the camera rolling, the sloth gives birth to its baby, but seconds later the baby Read More...
This bio-film could revolutionize immunization campaigns around the globe
While vaccination rates across the world have been on the rise over the past decade, they are still low — 13.5 million children were not vaccinated in 2018. One of the main challenges posed by global immunization campaigns is keeping the vaccines refrigerated during transportation, which is Read More...
How the ski world is addressing the problem of harmful wax chemicals
The wax applied to the bottom of skis helps them glide smoothly across the snow, but it also has a heavy environmental footprint. The wax contains perfluoroalkyl and poly-fluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS, or 'fluoro' in the ski world, which are harmful to ecosystems and human Read More...
McDonald’s and Starbucks are getting on the reusable cups wagon
Starbuck’s and McDonald’s blow through billions of disposable cups a year, feeding them into a never-ending stream of plastic waste. But in the future, when you order a coffee from them, it could be served in the same cup you used a few months ago. That’s the vision behind the NextGen Cup Read More...