What better way to start the day than with some upbeat news?
Exceptionally Colourful
Among the different species of birds, hummingbirds are amongst the most remarkable. And now there is another startling fact about these creatures. They have the most wide-ranging colours in their plumage of all other birds. A study from Yale University showed that hummingbirds, in fact, exceed the colour diversity of all other bird species combined. “We knew that hummingbirds were colorful, but we never imagined that they would rival all the rest of the birds combined,” says Richard Prum, a professor of ornithology of ecology and evolutionary biology at Yale University.
Stunning Drop
The EU's emissions dropped 8.3 percent in 2023 - the largest annual decrease in decades - and it looks like they will plummet again in 2024, thanks to coal- and gas-fired power declining faster than predicted, says new flagship report. “We are on track to meet our 2030 targets to reduce emissions by at least 55 percent if this momentum is maintained."
Free School Meals
Kenya commits to universal school meals coverage by 2030. Supported by the UN and The Rockefeller Foundation, Kenya has announced a new plan to expand its region-leading School Meals Programme from 1.9 million learners in 2023 to over 10 million by 2030. The government has also committed to a 'planet-friendly' approach to school feeding.
Good News For Students
The Biden administration has forgiven another $4.5 billion in student debt for more than 60,000 borrowers. The latest round of relief is a result of the U.S. Department of Education’s fixes to the popular, but once-troubled, Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. President Biden, who has forgiven more education debt than any other president in U.S history, said that the number of borrowers to benefit from the program under his administration now exceeded 1 million.
Wildlife Trafficking
Researchers have successfully trained African giant pouched rats to sniff out illegally traded animal parts and alert their handlers. The rats were taught to pick up on and remember the scents of elephant ivory, rhino horn, and pangolin scales against background scents, helping law enforcement to identify black market wildlife products.
Eliminating Insulin
New research from Amsterdam University Medical Center introduces a promising new treatment approach for type 2 diabetes (T2D) that has the potential to greatly reduce or even eliminate the need for insulin therapy. This innovative approach, which combines a novel procedure known as ReCET (Re-Cellularization via Electroporation Therapy) with semaglutide, resulted in the elimination of insulin therapy for 86 percent of the 14 patients participating in initial trials.
"When you come to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on." Franklin D. Roosevelt
On This Day
7 November 1916: Jeannette Rankin won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, becoming the first woman elected to Congress.
Today's Articles
Plastics Deception: Los Angeles sues PepsiCo and Coca-Cola for being intentionally misleading about the recyclability of plastic.
Food From Thin Air: World's first commercial-scale factory for making nutrient-rich protein from air and sustainable energy has opened.
Mood Boosting Video
Poetry Reading: Ode To Autumn by John Keats.