Weekly News Recap: August 6, 2021

Weekly News Recap: August 6, 2021

Canada's Andre De Grasse celebrates after winning the gold medal in the men's 200m final on Wednesday at Olympic Stadium in Tokyo, Japan. (Getty Images)

I always loved running... it was something you could do by yourself, and under your own power. You could go in any direction, fast or slow as you wanted, fighting the wind if you felt like it, seeking out new sights just on the strength of your feet and the courage of your lungs.
-- Jesse Owens

SOME GOOD NEWS

  • VIDEO: This guy combined obstacle course, Chain reaction, and gymnastics. All in one in less than a minute. Brilliant!! (reddit) This is fun to watch and...amazing.

  • Japanese Artist Creates Amazing Miniature Dioramas Every Day For 10 Years (Digital Synopsis) #Mindbending "Miniature Calendar is an incredible ongoing project by Japanese artist Tatsuya Tanaka, that features beautiful miniature dioramas of everyday life using common household objects such as food, cloth, stationery, electronic devices, and even masks."

  • A birthday gift: Israeli woman donates kidney to Gaza boy (AP News) Watch the video, it is very moving. "Idit Harel Segal was turning 50, and she had chosen a gift: She was going to give one of her own kidneys to a stranger. The kindergarten teacher from northern Israel, a proud Israeli, hoped her choice would set an example of generosity in a land of perpetual conflict. She was spurred by memories of her late grandfather, a Holocaust survivor, who told her to live meaningfully, and by Jewish tradition, which holds that there’s no higher duty than saving a life. So Segal contacted a group that links donors and recipients, launching a nine-month process to transfer her kidney to someone who needed one. That someone turned out to be a 3-year-old Palestinian boy from the Gaza Strip."

  • Dad builds robotic exoskeleton to help son walk (BBC) #ADadsLove "Oscar, a wheelchair user, activates the suit by saying 'Robot, stand up' and it then walks for him. Jean-Louis co-founded the company that builds the suit, which can allow users to move upright for a few hours a day."

  • Youngster scraps birthday presents, turns party into fundraiser for local zoo (Stuff) I heart this kid. "While most 7-year-olds cherish birthday presents, one Christchurch lad decided to scrap the gifts and take an environmental approach. Young animal and nature lover Willem Freed was spurred into action after seeing on the news four Canterbury councils had rejected Orana Wildlife Park’s plea for long-term funding. The youngster decided he would forgo presents at his 7th birthday party on July 14, instead asking his friends and family to make donations to help the Christchurch zoo."

  • Apollo astronauts went through customs after returning from Moon, form goes viral (Indian Express) Ah Buzz, you are still one in a million. "In his post, Buzz Aldrin shared a picture of the custom form along with a caption that read, 'Imagine spending 8 days in space, including nearly 22 hours on the Moon and returning home to Earth only to have to go through customs! #Apollo11'."

TOP TEN STORIES OF THE WEEK

  1. 'Now he's a legend': Andre De Grasse wins Olympic gold in men's 200m (CBC) CANADIAN STORY #Congrats #GoCanadaGo If you have not watched it, watch it...it's a very exciting race to watch. "On this night in Tokyo, nothing was going to stop Canada's Andre De Grasse. With three Americans bearing down on the five-foot-eight Canadian on a stifling night, De Grasse found a different gear in the final seconds of the 200-metre final. De Grasse surged down the stretch in lane six – powerful, precise, and explosive strides to the line. In a Canadian record time of 19.62 seconds, he crossed the line first to become Olympic [champion.]"

  2. Central Alberta pit stop growing into its own community, entrepreneurs say (CBC) RED DEER STORY Rebranding does not always mean a name change. Nice work Red Deer. "Just beyond Red Deer's city limits, Gasoline Alley is growing. The central Alberta pit stop is now a place to grab a craft beer, a haircut, or fresh vegetables at the indoor farmers market. More than a dozen new businesses recently opened along Leva Avenue in Gasoline Alley."

  3. Hay bale heist near Hazenmore highlights difficulties Sask. producers face in hot, dry year (CBC) SASKATCHEWAN STORY #Eek "Saskatchewan's latest target for thieves isn't the neighbour's unlocked bike or the jewelry case at the local mall. It's round hay bales, which at nearly two meters in diameter and about 700 kilograms require more than your standard pair of black gloves and a getaway car to successfully steal. 'It is pretty unusual because you need specialized equipment and brashness to go ahead and do that,' said Ryder Lee, CEO of the Saskatchewan Cattlemen's Association."

  4. Alberta to explore possibility of Edmonton's Stollery Children's Hospital becoming stand-alone facility (CBC) EDMONTON STORY Interesting! Will be watching this story closely. "The Alberta government has committed $1 million to explore the possibility of Edmonton's Stollery Children's Hospital becoming a stand-alone facility. [...] 'The Stollery Children's Hospital is one of the largest catchment areas of any hospital in North America,' health minister Tyler Shandro said at the press conference."

  5. The Future Will Be Weirder Than We Think (Bloomberg) #Weird "How weird is the future going to be? Just a little bit — or plain flat-out radically unthinkably weird? And is this future 1,000 years from now — or 100? The notion that the future will be weirder than we think, and come sooner, is a possibility raised by Holden Karnofsky, the co-chief executive officer of Open Philanthropy."

  6. Lethbridge philanthropist Cor Van Raay dies at 85: ‘A kind, generous man’ (Global News) LETHBRIDGE STORY I worked on gifts with Mr. Van Raay. RIP. We will not see your like again. "Condolences are coming in after Lethbridge philanthropist Cor Van Raay died at 85 on Thursday. Colleen Mackey, Van Raay’s daughter, said the family is grateful for the outpouring of support. 'Our dad was a kind, generous man, and we are going to miss his love, humour and guidance.'"

  7. Glenbow Museum to close at the end of August for major renovations (CBC) CALGARY STORY #CantWait "The Glenbow Museum in downtown Calgary will close its doors for three years starting at the end of August, as major renovations start on the building. 'It's a big concrete box, essentially,' said Melanie Kjorlien, the museum's chief operating officer and VP of engagement. 'And so part of what we're envisioning for this renovation is to really open up that box, if you will, and just make it more accessible to the public.'"

  8. Millions meant for residential school survivors spent on Catholic Church lawyers, administration: documents (CBC) CANADIAN STORY #ICantEven "The Roman Catholic Church spent millions of dollars that were supposed to go to residential school survivors on lawyers, administration, a private fundraising company and unapproved loans, according to documents obtained by CBC News. The documents include a host of other revelations. They appear to contradict the Catholic Church's public claims about money paid to survivors."

  9. Edmonton's Oliver Square changes name after community consultation (CBC) EDMONTON STORY Good move Edmonton. "A member of Parliament and federal minister first elected to office in 1883, Oliver is known for drafting discriminatory legislation, including policies that pushed Indigenous people off their traditional lands. He was instrumental in shaping Canada's Immigration Act of 1906 and subsequent policies which restricted immigration based on ethnic origin. He also wrote an order-in-council to bar Black immigrants fleeing persecution in the American South from entering Canada. [...] Efforts to remove Oliver's name from the neighbourhood have been ongoing since last summer when the Oliver Community Renaming Project was announced and #UncoverOliver campaign was launched."

  10. Desperate employers dangle signing bonuses to lure in workers (CBC) CANADIAN STORY "Security systems firm Fitch Security Integration had to lay off employees at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic last year. Now the company is facing the opposite problem: it is in desperate need of technicians to install and service security systems and willing to pay a $7,000 bonus to anyone who makes the cut."

SEVEN LIFE AND CAREER HACKS

  1. The Secret to Making your Good Soup Glorious (Illumination) I love soup and I love making soup. This is my secret too.

  2. The German Idea of “Hate Days” Helps Me Power Through My Most Annoying Tasks (Simple) So smart #KleinscheissTag

  3. 6 Fascinating Books That Will Expand Your Horizons (Books Are Our Superpower) Rewilding, the story of time, contagions, polarization, humanism, and dying: pick one or pick them all. This is a small but mighty list.

  4. 3 Non-Verbal Behaviors That Will Quickly Upgrade Your Life (Mind Cafe) Be kind. Rewind.

  5. How Metaverses Will Redefine How We Work, Shop & Invest (Start It Up) *This used to be a comic book term. Not anymore. Now, Facebook (and others) are trying to redefine how we live. Again.

  6. How to Tell an Employee They’re Not Meeting Expectations (Small Business Strong) Great advice.

  7. 10 of the most romantic places to kiss in Calgary (Daily Hive) CANADIAN CONTENT #ValentinesInTheSummer

TOP THREE GIFTS OF THE WEEK

  1. Melinda French Gates and MacKenzie Scott team up for $40M donation (New York Post) #WOW "The ex and soon-to-be ex of two of the richest men in the world are teaming up to give away $40 million to four organizations that promote gender equality. Melinda French Gates, the estranged wife of Microsoft founder Bill Gates, and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ ex-wife MacKenzie Scott announced the donation together. The awardees were selected through the Equality Can’t Wait Challenge, hosted by French Gates’ investment firm Pivotal Ventures and supported by Scott and her science teacher husband Dan Jewett."

  2. LEGO Foundation pledges $30 million to Global Partnership for Education fund (European Foundation Centre) "The LEGO Foundation has announced a $30 million pledge to the Global Partnership for Education (GPE) fund, to drive inclusive access to quality education for all children. At the 2021 Global Education Summit, underlining its support of the GPE fund, the LEGO Foundation announced an additional contribution [...] to provide additional support for teaching and learning opportunities to help address some of the difficulties children, especially those from the poorest families, are facing due to COVID-19."

  3. MSU School of Packaging gets $10.8 million donation from Amcor (WLNS) Cool Gift "The Michigan State University School of Packaging has received a $10.8 million gift from Amcor. The gift will go towards establishing an endowed faculty position to focus on sustainability and to help renovate the School of Packaging. The gift is the largest corporate gift to the school’s College of Agriculture and Natural Resources ever."

LAST WEEK'S MOST POPULAR STORIES

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