There’s lots of good news out there and I found some great ones this week that will provide encouragement and reassurance about the world today. Sure…there’s no shortage of bad news…but let’s focus on the good for a bit! Happy Weekend!
Surgeon Saves Boy’s Life by Text
Vascular surgeon David Nott helped a 16-year-old while working 24-hour shifts with medical charity in Rutshuru. The boy’s left arm had been ripped off and was badly infected.
Mr Nott had never performed the operation but he was able to follow instructions from a colleague who had.
There was just 6 inches of the boy’s arm remaining, much of the surrounding muscle had died and there was little skin left to fold over the wound. Mr Nott knew he needed to perform a forequarter amputation and this required the removal of the collar bone and shoulder blade.
He contacted Professor Meirion Thomas, who had performed the operation before. The instructions were provided via text messages.
The operation is only performed about 10 times a year in the UK and requires an intensive-care unit because patients usually lose a lot of blood during the procedure.
Study Suggests Good Cheer May Spread Itself
Happiness is contagious and people pass on their good cheer even to total strangers.
American researchers tracked more than 4,700 people as part of a 20-year heart study. They found that whether you’re happy depends not just on your own actions, behaviors, and thoughts, but on those of people you don’t even know.
The study is another sign of the power of social networks but researchers can’t say for sure whether the same effect works online.
Happy people tend to be at the center of social networks and had many friends who were also happy. Having friends or siblings nearby increases your chances of being happy. Happy spouses help as well, but not as much as happy friends of the same gender. Experts think that particularly woman take emotional cues from people who look like them.
Being happy also brings other benefits like a boosted immune system so you produce fewer stress hormones.
Hawaii Jumps On Plan for Statewide Electric Car Grid
Hawaii has announced plans to be first in the nation to roll out electric car stations statewide.
Hawaii imports foreign oil for almost 90 percent of its energy needs. One-third of that oil is used to power cars and buses on its streets.
Better Place, a Palo Alto-based company, will provide the car recharging stations and will also provide recharged batteries for electric cars. The goal is to have the stations open for the mass market by 2011. Between 50,000 and 100,000 charge spots will be built in parking lots, downtown streets, and neighborhoods.
The governor of Hawaii said the state doesn’t expect to spend any money to facilitate the network. The state is ready to offer tax breaks or other incentives to encourage people to buy electric vehicles when they are first offered.
