Sep 3

Positive News Tuesday

An eclectic smorgasbord of tasty upbeat news stories to brighten the day.

Times Have Changed

They used to say there were no good roles in Hollywood for women over 40. But times have changed. We’re living through a rare golden age for older actresses thriving. In fact, if you observed the forthcoming attractions at this year’s Venice Film Festival, you might be taken aback by a paucity of roles for women under 40 - so dominant is the star power of these veteran divas. Already, industry legends have been sauntering off vaporetti and bedazzling the world’s press corps. The stellar list includes Nicole Kidman (57), Angelina Jolie (49), Catherine O’Hara (70), and Winona Ryder (52). Elsewhere, there's also Annette Bening (66), Tilda Swinton and Julianne Moore (both 63) and let's not forget Monica Bellucci - who was 50 when she was a 'Bond girl' in 2015's Spectre.

Lightning and a rainbow simultaneously in Minnesota

Natural Magic

During a recent storm in Minnesota, lightning struck at the same time that a rainbow arched across the sky.

Bye Bye Plastic Bricks

For nearly 80 years, Lego has seen its multicoloured bricks be used in the construction of any number of wonderful designs. Now, the company is doubling down on plans to use them in the fight to build a better world. The Danish company is committing to an increased sustainability initiative that will see half of the plastics used in its bricks derive from renewable and recyclable materials, rather than fossil fuels - with the switch complete in its entirety by 2032.

Medieval Masterpiece

A 700-year-old Hebrew Bible from medieval Spain is expected to sell for between $5 million and $7 million at auction next month. The Shem Tov Bible is a 768-page illustrated text written on parchment in the early 14th century. “It’s such a wonderful masterpiece,” says Sharon Liberman Mintz of Sotheby’s. “It’s rare to have illuminated Hebrew Bibles come to the market.” “Illuminated” refers to the Bible’s gold and silver leaf decorations, as well as its colourful pigments. The manuscript is also valuable because it references the Hilleli Codex, a famous copy of the Hebrew Bible made in the seventh century. It was used as a model for many subsequent copies of the Hebrew Bible made between the 13th and 15th centuries, though it is now lost to history.

Ocean Discoveries

During a recent expedition led by the Schmidt Ocean Institute, scientists mapped a newly discovered seamount along the Nazca Ridge off the coast of Chile. And what they found was an ecosystem teeming with rare and previously unknown marine species. “The discovery of a new seamount almost 2 miles tall - almost four times as tall as the Burj Khalifa - with a vibrant ecosystem was very exciting,” co-chief scientist Jyotika Virmani said in a statement. The team found at least 20 new species and documented a Casper octopus for the first time in the Southern Pacific.

Stress Busting

Unexplained delays, sardine-like conditions, sweatbox temperatures … the stress of the commuter life is very real. A new test, however, has found that there is a natural solution to our rail-rage: birdsong. Research undertaken by Britain's South Western Railway on real-life commuters has found that passengers listening to nature sounds, which included birdsong and flowing rivers, were 35 percent less stressed by their travels than those with no audio stimulation, and even 24 percent less stressed than those listening to music or podcasts.

“The results clearly demonstrate that listening to nature-inspired soundscapes exerted a significant calming effect on passengers,” said Charles Spence, a professor of experimental psychology at the University of Oxford, who analysed the results. No such news on whether its impact is as effective a cure for the words “rail replacement bus service”, however.

"Getting old is like climbing a mountain; you get a little out of breath, but the view is much better!" Ingrid Bergman

On This Day

3 September 1609: English navigator Henry Hudson, in a quest for a passage to India on behalf of the Dutch East India Company, sailed into the harbour of present-day New York City and up the river that now bears his name.