Donations pour in after single mom’s lost food stamp plight

Good News Notes: “When Nicole Finn blamed the Department of Economic Opportunity for a mistake that cut her weekly food stamps to $16, the News 6 community responded with a wave of generosity. According to News 6 Make Ends Meet’s partner Addition Financial, 30 viewers offered donations from a few dollars to $500 and in fact, one…

How cities are using nature to keep heatwaves at bay

Good News Notes: “The more the planet warms, the more cities are finding they need new ways to keep urban temperatures down and protect their residents. Heatwaves are already by far the deadliest weather-related disasters in Europe; 140,000 deaths associated with 83 heatwaves have been recorded since the beginning of this century. Today, only 8…

“Stealth” food banks serve the undocumented

Good News Notes: “Underground food distributions, direct financial assistance, and postings on WhatsApp are some of the ways food banks are reaching out to undocumented clients, a population that has been particularly hard hit by the coronavirus crisis.  The efforts are designed to combat the chilling effects of the current administration’s immigration policies, which seek…

Google is granting another $4 million towards affordable Bay Area housing

Good News Notes: “Last year, Google committed $1 billion towards addressing the lack of affordable housing in the Bay Area, acknowledging that as one of the largest employers in the region it has a responsibility to help. Today, the company shared updates on its progress, and announced it is giving $4 million in new grants to organizations that are…

Portable DNA device can detect tree pests in under two hours

Good News Notes:  “Asian gypsy moths feed on a wide range of important plants and trees. White pine blister rust can kill young trees in only a couple of years. But it’s not always easy to detect the presence of these destructive species just by looking at spots and bumps on a tree, or on…

Portable blood ammonia detector could be “life-changing”

Good News Notes: “In people with liver disease or other metabolic disorders, blood ammonia levels can quickly climb to dangerous levels. And unfortunately, checking those levels is not a fast and easy process. A newly developed device, however, could change that.” “A byproduct of the digestive process, ammonia is converted into urea by the liver,…

Rare yellow turtle discovered in India

Good News Notes: “A farmer in eastern India has found a yellow turtle which experts say is the product of albinism. Basudev Mahapatra spotted the turtle while he was working in his fields in the village of Sujanpur, in Odisha’s Balasore district, and decided to bring it home, forest official Susanta Nanda told CNN on Tuesday. Mahapatra found…