At 11:30 on September 11, teenager Darryl Ross was shot and killed by police. Boom. One sentence and you’re hooked. Part of being a human being is wanting to know more, and as a result, people are naturally drawn to tragedy. It is why people slow down to look at bad accidents on the highway, or why true crime shows are so popular. It is why you want to know more about Darryl Ross. 

Due to our psychology, there is a glaring lack of positivity in the news. Media corporations and news networks know what kinds of stories will jump off the page and sell their content. Lucky for you, my aim is to shed light on some of the optimism that is missing from the media.

First of all, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is shrinking. The collection of trash in the middle of the Pacific Ocean is now 100,000 kg smaller. Thanks to organizations like The Ocean Cleanup, the waste is getting disposed of properly and the ocean is becoming cleaner. Not only will cleaner oceans positively benefit our world, but they will also help repair habitats in the Pacific Ocean as well as provide safer homes for the animals that are trying to survive there.

Now, our journey will take us away from our planet to our solar system; After 50 years, NASA is finally sending astronauts back to the moon. Although the mission isn’t necessarily as exciting as a moon landing, astronauts are going to be returning to lunar orbit. This will come following the launch of NASA’s new Orion Vessel, a part of their Artemis program. The purpose of this return to moon research is to look into the possibility of lunar colonization and survival.

In another instance of happy space news, scientists have discovered that there may be other planets which contain water. These planets are dubbed ‘super Earths’ meaning that they may be able to support human life. Not only that, but these planets are only around 100 light years away, which is very close when you consider the vast expanse that space is. This finding comes as a result of improved telescopic technology, giving scientists a wider range of planets to explore.

Scientists have discovered that getting plants drunk can help them protect themselves from droughts. Unfortunately, while it would be funny, pouring a 12 pack on your plants does not make them invincible. However, soaking the soil around your plants in ethanol alcohol can increase your plants’ chance at survival. After two weeks without water, popular crop plants such as rice and wheat were still able to thrive when using this method.Popular crop plants were even thriving after two weeks without water after using this method.