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Since Jan. 20 many Americans have watched article after article come out about executive orders, immigration, bird flu and what the next four years could bring. That can be overwhelming and exhausting. The rebirth of TikTok was exciting for many Americans, however, no matter how many filtered keywords are in place, negative videos still seem to slip through the cracks.
Good news fills the world, however, though we tend to focus on the bad. So here is some good news to make the bad news seem a little less stressful!
For those animal lovers, an Arizona man who never stopped trying to reunite with his lost dog found him after eight years in Oklahoma!
Paul Guilbeault and his family moved from Massachusetts to Arizona in 2017. At a rest stop on the way there his miniature pincher, Damian, got scared and jumped off his leash, disappearing for eight years. Then one day in Oklahoma City a woman narrowly missed a small brown dog who ran across the road. She got out of her car and tried to pick him up, and although he was weary he soon trusted the woman. She brought him to a vet where they scanned for a microchip. Halfway across the country Guilbeault and his husband were driving towards LA to donate clothes to fire victims when he got a life-changing text. He was told Damian was found and after a 16-hour drive, he had an unforgettable reunion!
For those fans of astrology and space, in 2018 a NASA mission arrived at the asteroid Bennu located near Earth to collect samples for analysis. Bennu had more indicators of ingredients for life than any single extraterrestrial material of any kind. Bennu carried all five DNA, RNA nucleo-bases and enough amino acids to mimic an immune system. The mission was called OSIRIS-REx and was the first in human history to land on an asteroid and bring a sample back. 14 of the 20 amino acids contained in life on Earth including all nine essential amino acids, blended together with another 19 non-protein amino acids. This asteroid shows that there is a possibility that somewhere in our universe resembles a life form like ours!
Over 200 companies in the UK sign up for a permanent four-day work week! This was organized by the 4-Day Week Foundation. It follows the four-day trend that a lot of people adapted to after COVID-19. A four-day work week can be achieved by many more people. Even giving those who need to work from home a chance to have their home be a home, and not work. It gives people the ability to have a day to recharge and be ready for the end of the week. Economists in the UK agree that if enjoying more free time leads to greater employee retention and motivation, then four-day weeks could really stick everywhere!
A breakthrough single-dose drug has been found to wipe out breast cancer tumors in mice without any side effects! Many medical schools have been in search of a more effective and less invasive treatment for breast cancer. Medical researchers at The University of Illinois have made a remarkable discovery; in small tumors, a single dose of ErSO-TFPy eliminated them entirely! On top of that, the same dose significantly shrunk large tumors in both mice and rats, and no side effects were observed. While ER+ breast cancer is the most common, treatments usually consist of surgery and hormone therapy. Those can be incredibly invasive and cause issues like blood clots, sexual dysfunction and osteoporosis. This new treatment has shown that it can drastically reduce the size of ER+ tumors. That can be so helpful to women suffering from the effects of breast cancer treatment!
Guitar Center is replacing instruments lost in the LA Fires! Trying to make a living as a musician is insanely challenging and on top of that, instruments can be thousands of dollars. Guitar Center is working to create a one-time grant to replace instruments and gear lost to the fires. Music programs from local schools have also been invited to apply. Any school that conducts music classes, community music classes and music therapy programs can also request this grant. Guitar Center is a two-billion-dollar company, and they are more than willing to help those who are down on their luck!
Although it seems like only bad news surrounds us, you can really find good news everywhere! Try to take brain breaks throughout the day, and remind yourself that we live life one day at a time. Take a walk outside and enjoy the sun and clouds. Hang out with your friends, or maybe even make new friends! Processing this much news can be difficult, and although it seems like it is never-ending, there is always good news somewhere!
Lauren Matrisciano is a first-year Early Education major. LM1036097@wcupa.edu.