Quick summary of all the best news from around the world.
After about two months of high-profile uncertainty in the media and an excessive amount of scare-mongering, NASA has now declared that the chance of a recently discovered asteroid hitting Earth in 2032 has dropped to a miniscule fraction of one percent. “That’s zero folks!” says Richard Binzel, an astronomer at MIT, after NASA and the European Space Agency announced the "all clear". So we can now relax, on this subject at least, and concentrate on looking forward to the joys of Spring. Meanwhile, in other news...
Health & Wellbeing
Going Nuts: Eating walnuts at breakfast boosts brain performance, according to a new study. Adults who ate about two ounces of walnuts with muesli and yogurt in the morning had faster reaction times and better memory throughout the day. Brain scans showed improved neural efficiency, while blood tests indicated positive changes in glucose and fatty acids. Scientists posit that the nut's mix of omega-3s, protein and polyphenols enhances cognitive function.
80 Percent: The reduction in maternal mortality in Tanzania over a seven-year period.
Morning Cuppa: Scientists discover that tea leaves remove toxic heavy metals from water.
Hear Hear: Britain is the latest country to approve Apple's AirPods Pro 2 earbuds for use as "clinical grade" hearing aids. Users take a five-minute hearing test, and if mild to moderate hearing loss is detected, the AirPods can "boost certain sound frequencies" when necessary. In the U.S., the FDA approved the hearing aid feature last fall.
Nature & Conservation
Conservation Success: Once down to just 10,000 birds, American Oystercatcher populations are soaring. The American Oystercatcher is a coastal bird vital to salt marsh ecosystems, and populations have rebounded by 45 percent since 2008, thanks to a data-driven, public-private conservation effort focused on habitat restoration, predator control, and nesting site protection.
New Delivery: The world's ecological backup plan got much more comprehensive, as over 14,000 new samples were sent to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. “The seeds deposited this week represent not just biodiversity, but also the knowledge, culture, and resilience of the communities that steward them,”
A First For England: In a groundbreaking decision, councillors have agreed to recognise the Rights of the River Ouse - which flows into the sea on England's south coast - paving the way for the it to become the first in England to have its legal rights. The initiative follows successful models in New Zealand, Canada and Colombia where rivers have been recognised as living entities with intrinsic rights to exist, rights to flow, thrive and be free from pollution and the appointment of guardians to act on their behalf.
Railway Travel
Rail Renaissance: Europe’s rail renaissance has reached the Baltics, where a new train line has linked the capitals of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia. The new line comes amid a boom in rail travel in Europe, where new night trains and long-distance routes are enticing more travellers out of the skies.
High Speed Canada: Canada is set to begin work on a 185 mph high-speed inter-city rail network - the largest infrastructure project in the country's history. Spanning 621 miles, the fully electric new rail network will serve 18 million people - nearly half of Canada's population - across the Toronto-Quebec City corridor. It's expected to serve 13 times more passengers annually than the current service.
Clean Energy
Solar Windows: A California-based company has unveiled what it claims is the world’s largest fully transparent photovoltaic window, paving the way for transforming commercial buildings into clean energy-generating facades.
Solar Cell Breakthrough: A new method makes perovskite panels fully recyclable. Researchers from Sweden's Linkoping University and America's Cornell University have developed a water-based sustainable method to fully recycle perovskite solar cells using water instead of toxic solvents. The recycled cells retain their original efficiency, addressing both environmental and technological concerns.
Good Use of Land: Medicine Hat, Alberta to become North America’s future largest urban solar park - able to meet peak load demand for both industrial and commercial buildings, and supply demand for its 65,000 residents. Even better: The project will be built on a 1,600-acre contaminated plot. So, instead of sitting there useless, it will help bring clean energy to the community (which has environmental and health benefits of its own).
Reality Check: Countries like the UK and the US, have much more land allocated for golf courses than renewable energy facilities.
UK Net Zero Economy: The net zero sector is growing three times faster than the overall UK economy, analysis has found, providing high-wage jobs across the country while cutting climate-heating emissions and increasing energy security. The net zero economy grew by 10 percent in 2024 (it grew by 9 percent in 2023).
And Finally...
The news that made us laugh the loudest this week at OGN Towers comes from the Financial Times which reported that Citigroup mistakenly credited a client’s account with $81 trillion when it only meant to send $280. The input error was eventually spotted - but only after two employees had missed it. $81 trillion, by the way, is enough to buy the entire US stock market, with enough spare to buy China’s entire stock market, if you felt like it.
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Today's Articles
Hydrodynamic: Heart-shaped buoy converts wave motion to clean energy - and is already plugged into the grid.
Age-Old Craft: The Netherlands has a record number of new millers, as its iconic windmills enjoy a renaissance.
19th Century Images: Historic England has acquired 8,000 early photos of England, including one of the earliest of London, to add to its online archive.