#067 - The Best News of Last Week - December 19, 2022
⚡ - The power of the sun, in the palm of my hand!
1. Biden to sign Respect for Marriage Act, reflecting his and the country's evolution
President Biden signed into law Tuesday a bipartisan bill that codifies same-sex and interracial marriages with a large celebration on the South Lawn of the White House.
The president spoke before a crowd of thousands gathered to celebrate the federal protections in the Respect for Marriage Act.
"The road to this moment has been long, but those who believe in equality and justice – you never gave up," Biden said.
2. MacKenzie Scott reveals details of her $14bn in donations to 1,600 non-profits
She has signed pledge promising to give away over half of her wealth. The billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott's donations have yielded more than $14bn for about 1,600 non-profits since 2019, according to her new website Yield Giving, which was unveiled on Wednesday night.
3. A stranger on a plane gave two girls fleeing civil war $100. Decades later, they reunited.
This is so heartwarming! I’m so glad they’re able to meet again!
Ayda Zugay was a nearly 12-year-old refugee fleeing the former Yugoslavia with her older sister when a stranger handed them the envelope on a flight to the United States in 1999. The woman made them promise not to open it until they got off the plane. The girls were later shocked to discover dangly earrings and a $100 bill inside.
A note scribbled on the outside of the envelope is signed with only a first name — Tracy. And for almost a decade, Zugay says she's been trying to find her.
After years, her message finally made it to Tracy Peck of Blaine, Minnesota. Her daughter reached out to Zugay: "You are looking for my mom Tracy Peck! Her handwriting is unmistakable. She remembers you girls from the flight!"
4. US scientists boost clean power hopes with fusion energy breakthrough
US government scientists have made a breakthrough in the pursuit of limitless, zero-carbon power by achieving a net energy gain in a fusion reaction for the first time, according to three people with knowledge of preliminary results from a recent experiment.
Physicists have since the 1950s sought to harness the fusion reaction that powers the sun, but no group had been able to produce more energy from the reaction than it consumes
5. Cancer mRNA vaccine completes pivotal trial
Researchers say they have successfully completed a trial of a personalised cancer vaccine that uses the same messenger-RNA technology as Covid jabs. The experimental vaccine, made by Moderna and MSD, is designed to prime the immune system to seek and destroy cancerous cells.
Doctors hope work such as this could lead to revolutionary new ways to fight skin, bowel and other types of cancer. Moderna and MSD called it "a new paradigm" moment.
6. Historic ban on shark fin trade poised to become U.S. law
The U.S. is poised to ban the lucrative trade in shark fins, a move conservationists hope will help protect millions of sharks that are butchered every year to satisfy demand in China and other parts of Asia.
The practice of shark finning, whereby sharks are caught for their fins and their carcasses then dumped back into the ocean, has been banned in U.S. waters for decades. But the U.S. remains a major hub for the brisk trade where the fins of as many as 73 million sharks are cut off around the world each year.
7. Ukraine says power restored to almost 6 million people in last 24 hours
Ukraine has managed to restore power to almost 6 million people in the last 24 hours after massive Russian strikes against the electricity generating system, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Saturday.
"Repair work continues without a break after yesterday's terrorist attack," he said in a video address.
That's it for this week. If you liked this post you can support this newsletter with a small kofi donation:
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