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Volunteers in Philadelphia Help Toads Mate

tree frog photo by Steve Richards

tree frog photo by Steve RichardsSpring means breeding season for toads and, in Philadelphia, that means closing off a city street so the tiny creatures are safe from traffic as they seek their mates.

Each year for the month of April, 150 volunteers organize the Toad Detour in the city’s Roxborough neighborhood, where American toads leave the woodlands of the 350-acre Schuylkill Center to breed across the road at an old reservoir.

New Diets for Cows, Sheep Could Cut Emissions

cow

cowNew diets for cows and sheep could reduce their greenhouse gas emissions, research funded by Britain’s Department for environment shows.

Feeding the animals maize silage, naked oats and higher sugar grasses could reduce the amount of methane they produce, which is harmful to the environment and accounts for nine percent of all British greenhouse gas emissions.

Tons of Unsold Food Donated by Sports Arenas in 60 Cities

stadium-food-leftovers-msnbcvid

stadium-food-leftovers-msnbcvid25 tons of leftover food each year was dumped into landfills following Boston Bruin hockey games alone. Now, the lasagna and pizza, Italian sausage and panini sandwiches are donated to the Boston Rescue Mission to feed the city’s hungry, and the entire National Hockey League has followed suit.

Syd Mandelbaum began 21 years ago in Long Island, NY funneling donations of “rock star’ quality leftover food directly to a soup kitchen  that he helped found in 1987. It was the opening chorus in a great symphony of charity and recycling that became “Rock and Wrap it Up”.

Tons of Unsold Food Donated by Sports Arenas in 60 Cities

stadium-food-leftovers-msnbcvid

stadium-food-leftovers-msnbcvid25 tons of leftover food each year was dumped into landfills following Boston Bruin hockey games alone. Now, the lasagna and pizza, Italian sausage and panini sandwiches are donated to the Boston Rescue Mission to feed the city’s hungry, and the entire National Hockey League has followed suit.

Syd Mandelbaum began 21 years ago in Long Island, NY funneling donations of “rock star’ quality leftover food directly to a soup kitchen  that he helped found in 1987. It was the opening chorus in a great symphony of charity and recycling that became “Rock and Wrap it Up”.

14 Tips for Getting Better Fuel Economy

photo by enfinite5, via Morguefile

photo by enfinite5, via MorguefileWith higher gas prices becoming a recurring reality, you should follow these tips to help reduce the amount of gas you use. Including advice about cruise control and what kind of gas and oil you should buy, these tips can save you money

1) Don’t Drive Like You Have a Dying Man in the Car Unless you Do

Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration and braking) wastes gas. It can lower your gas mileage by 33 percent at highway speeds and by 5 percent around town. Sensible driving is also safer for you and others, so you may save more than gas money.

14 Tips for Getting Better Fuel Economy

photo by enfinite5, via Morguefile

photo by enfinite5, via MorguefileWith higher gas prices becoming a recurring reality, you should follow these tips to help reduce the amount of gas you use. Including advice about cruise control and what kind of gas and oil you should buy, these tips can save you money

1) Don’t Drive Like You Have a Dying Man in the Car Unless you Do

Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration and braking) wastes gas. It can lower your gas mileage by 33 percent at highway speeds and by 5 percent around town. Sensible driving is also safer for you and others, so you may save more than gas money.

Boy Uses $8K of College Fund to Acquire Super Bowl Ring and Return it to Player

Super Bowl ring of Joe Theisman

Super Bowl ring of Joe TheismanA 10-year-old Pittsburgh boy took $8,500 out of his college education fund to buy the Super Bowl XX ring that once belonged to former NFL standout “Refrigerator” Perry.

“I Googled Mr. Perry and saw that he had a disease and had to sell it because of rough times,” he said. “I thought he would want it more than I did.”

Pennsylvania Biodiesel Plant on Track for Record Year

biofuel tanks at Hero BX in Pennsylvania

biofuel tanks at Hero BX in PennsylvaniaMixing 70 percent animal fat, and 30 percent used cooking oil, Pennsylvania’s largest biodiesel plant is on track to produce a record 40 million gallons of fuel this year, enough to rank among the nation’s five busiest plants.

Officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture toured the Erie-based Hero BX plant last week, where trucks and trains refuel and 40 employees work round the clock, 365 days a year.

MIT Collaborates to Create Energy From Water, Bring Power to 3 Billion People

water-for-power from Sun Catalytix

water-for-power from Sun CatalytixThe Tata Group announced a collaboration with MIT scientist Daniel Nocera, founder of SunCatalytix, to develop an electrical power source that uses only minute quantities of water. Through a  technique that mimics photosynthesis the process may be able to meet the entire planet’s electricity demands for one day using only a swimming pool-sized container of water.

The process splits hydrogen from water to generate power from the sun.

MIT Collaborates to Create Energy From Water, Bring Power to 3 Billion People

water-for-power from Sun Catalytix

water-for-power from Sun CatalytixThe Tata Group announced a collaboration with MIT scientist Daniel Nocera, founder of SunCatalytix, to develop an electrical power source that uses only miniscule quantities of water. Through a  technique that mimics photosynthesis the process may be able to meet the entire planet’s electricity demands for one day using only a swimming pool-sized container of water.

The process splits hydrogen from water to generate power from the sun.

Macedonians Plant Three Million Trees to Revive Forests

Arbor Day photo

Arbor Day photoThousands of Macedonians took a day off work to plant three million trees to revive the nation’s forests after fires ravaged an estimated 86,000 acres (35,000 hectares) of greenery.

A nationally-known opera singer launched this latest effort. Around 30 million trees have been planted in the last three years by human rights activists, organizations and citizens.

Dog’s Sixth Sense Saves Owner From Tsunami

poodles have been hailed as heroes before like this one

poodle is another hero in CanadaNormally, Babu does not enjoy taking walks. But, the elderly shih tzu, insisted on leaving the house minutes after the March 11 earthquake in Japan.

Babu stubbornly headed for a nearby hill rather than taking their usual route along the coastal city streets of Miyako. The owner relented and followed.

Five New Alzheimer’s Genes Double Total as Doctors Unravel Disease Cause

tennis-oldsters

photo by Sun StarFive new genes have been definitively linked to Alzheimer’s disease, doubling the total confirmed by scientists and opening new areas for research into an illness that affects 35 million people globally.

The genetic pathways were reported in two studies involving more than 50,000 people worldwide. Some of the connections found involve systems that control inflammation and cholesterol in the brain.

Tsunami Victim: Dog Rescued After 3 Weeks Adrift (Video)

dog-rescued-3wks-post-tsunami-japan-ITNvid

dog rescue 3 wks post-tsunami in Japan (ITN video)One mile offshore, search teams in Japan have rescued a survivor – a dog stranded at sea for three weeks atop an expanse of floating debris.

A helicopter searching for missing people spotted the dog on Friday afternoon.

The dog appeared to be in good condition and wore a collar, but it had no contact information. Officials are broadcasting photos so the owner might be found.

Tsunami Victim: Dog Rescued After 3 Weeks Adrift (Video)

dog-rescued-3wks-post-tsunami-japan-ITNvid

dog rescue 3 wks post-tsunami in Japan (ITN video)One mile offshore, search teams in Japan have rescued a survivor – a dog stranded at sea for three weeks atop an expanse of floating debris.

A helicopter searching for missing people spotted the dog on Friday afternoon.

The dog appeared to be in good condition and wore a collar, but it had no contact information. Officials are broadcasting photos so the owner might be found.

US Sending Robots to Japan to Help Nuclear Plant

japanese-child-US-flags-AirForceMilPhoto

japanese-child-US-flags-AirForceMilPhotoThe U.S. government is sending some robotic help to Japan to help regain control of the tsunami-damaged nuclear plant.

A top Energy Department official told a Senate panel Tuesday that a shipment of “radiation hardened robotics”  from the Department’s Idaho National Laboratory is being shipped to Japan along with several radiation-hardened cameras and operators to train people in how to use them.

Hospital’s 5-transplant Kidney Swap Sets California Record

Stethoscope

StethoscopeIn what is the largest single-hospital kidney swap in the state, five patients received new kidneys from five healthy donors in a marathon series of operations performed Friday at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco.

Loved ones were able to contribute kidneys even though they were not a match for their family members. Strangers were matched up with others to produce a transplant chain 10 organs long.

(READ the story in the San Francisco Chronicle)

 

Thanks to Jola for sending the link via our Facebook page!

US Death Rate for Lung Cancer Among Women Begins Declining

cigs

cigsFor the first time, women’s death rates from lung cancer are dropping, a  long-anticipated drop coming more than a decade after a similar decline began in US men.

In the early 1990s, death rates in men began dropping and declined 3 percent per year between 2005 and 2007. Researchers had anticipated the same pattern would appear among women, and it has now begun.

Israeli Soldiers Bring Palestinian Kids With Cancer to Frolic on Ski Slopes

Israel Defense Forces photo via Flickr

Israel Defense Forces photo via Flickr

Israeli Defense Force reservists treated families of Palestinian children diagnosed with cancer to a fun day on snowy Mount Hermon.

The children, accompanied by their families, enjoyed the slopes on March 14 as part of a decade-long project in which soldiers from the Alpine Unit bring up groups of mentally or physically disabled children, as well as children with terminal illnesses, to the mountain in northern Israel for a day of VIP treatment, fun and relaxation.

The project is partly funded by the Civil Administration, an Israeli body responsible for administering and coordinating civilian and humanitarian needs in the West Bank.

(READ more at Israel21c.org)

We Did It! Donations Deliver 55 ‘Good Happens’ T-shirts for Teachers (Photo)

Stevenson Elementary teachers show off new tees from Good News Network

All the teachers at Stevenson Elementary school wore their new tee shirts on Friday. “Everyone was so appreciative and touched by the shirts,” says Lisa Otto, who originally wrote the note asking for ‘Good Happens’ shirts for the staff. (Read her touching plea for help, expressing her desire to close the negativity gap at her school.)

“It has helped me to hear the positive comments from my co-workers,” she added. “I want to thank everyone for their kind words of encouragement. It really works.”

Principle Debby Root was so grateful to Lisa for contacting the Good News Network on behalf of the Dayton, Ohio-area school. “Their generosity was overwhelming.”

Stevenson Elementary teachers show off new tees from Good News Network