Author: D. J. Moore

Good News Friday

~ D. J. Moore ~ Leave a comment
  • US Congress passed multiple bills with bipartisan support that will benefit nature. The Nature Conservancy.
  • In the US, we now have 10x more EVs on the road, nearly twice as many heat pumps, and 100x as much battery storage capacity as in 2016. RMI.
  • Global EV sales were up 25% in 2024. The Progress Playbook.
  • AI spots unreported California wildfire, proving its ’emerging’ role in fire safety. Good Good Good.
  • The Great Salt Lake could disappear in 5 years. This teen is using hydrogels to save it little by little. Good Good Good.
  • Indonesia kicks off first free meal program for children, pregnant women in effort to counter malnutrition. Al Jazeera.
  • Norway on track to be the first country to eliminate petrol and diesel engine cars. Fast Company.
  • Renewables and nuclear accounted for 82% of the electricity generated in Spain and Portugal in 2024. The Progress Playbook.
  • Chile has reduced 1.03 million tons of carbon emissions from deforestation and forest degradation. World Bank Group.
  • Two new methods break down forever chemicals using ordinary light. Nature.
  • US airlines have transported passengers for more than two light-years since the last plane crash. Our World in Data.
  • In 2023, unemployment in the European Union declined to the lowest point in over three decades. Our World in Data.
  • Veteran homelessness in the US reaches record low, decreasing by 7.5% since 2023. VA.
  • There’s been a 97.5% reduction in sleeping-sickness cases over the past two decades. Nature.
  • Poverty in Indonesia drops by 1.84 million people since 2023. Jakarta Globe.
  • Childhood cancer deaths in the United States have declined six-fold over the last seventy years. Our World in Data.

For more good news, check out Fix the News and The Progress Network.

The Book of Elsewhere by Keanu Reeves and China Miéville

~ D. J. Moore ~ Leave a comment

“I have always used writing to learn what it is that I think. And I find myself disinclined to leave these mysteries unexamined. I would like to know what I think about this.”

Unute, also known as B, is an immortal warrior who occasionally goes into uncontrollable killing frenzies. This novel is based on the BRZRKR comic books, so if you haven’t read those, it’ll be a little bit confusing at first. From what little I’ve read of the comic, it seems to primarily be a celebration of violence, while this novel is more philosophical and thoughtful.

Continue reading →

Good News Friday

~ D. J. Moore ~ Leave a comment
  • In the US, mass shootings dropped 24 percent in 2024 and gun deaths dropped 12 percent. The Trace.
  • Florida high schooler invents accessible tech that alerts visually impaired users to oncoming obstacles. Good Good Good.
  • Wind overtakes gas as the UK’s largest source of electricity in 2024. The Progress Playbook.
  • All of Chicago’s city buildings now run entirely on clean power. The Progress Playbook.
  • Six highlights of the global energy transition in 2024. Ember.
  • Tuberculosis rates dropped by more than 50% when Brazilian families living in poverty got a monthly cash payout. NPR.
  • Kazakhstan’s snow leopard population reaches near-historic levels. The Times of Central Asia.

For more good news, check out Fix the News and The Progress Network.

Good News Friday

~ D. J. Moore ~ Leave a comment
  • All fact-based optimistic news from 2024. Warp News.
  • World’s largest volunteer network offers over 39,000 places to donate your time this holiday season. Good Good Good.
  • Unprecedented decline in teen drug use continues, surprising experts. Ars Technica.
  • Starting next September, daycare will be free for all preschool-aged children in Tokyo, Japan. Motherly.
  • The House passed the Paris Hilton-championed Stop Institutionalized Child Abuse bill after nearly three years she’s spent lobbying politicians in Washington on the issue of reform in the “troubled teen” industry. ABC News.

For more good news, check out Fix the News and The Progress Network.

Good News Friday

~ D. J. Moore ~ Leave a comment
  • The top 10 energy transition developments of 2024. The Progress Playbook.
  • How AI monitoring is cutting stillbirths and neonatal deaths in a clinic in Malawi by 82% in three years. The Guardian.
  • MIT lab designs biodegradable material to replace microplastics in beauty products. Good Good Good.
  • The gray seal population at a remote UK coastline has doubled in three years. BBC.
  • Robots are fueling the next wave of solar farm development. Bloomberg.
  • Between 2000 and 2020, access to safe water in China increased significantly from 45.7% to 91.3%, access to sanitary toilets rose from 18.7% to 78.5%, and access to hygiene bathing facilities climbed from 26.0% to 88.4%. BMC.

For more good news, check out Fix the News and The Progress Network.

500th Post

~ D. J. Moore ~ Leave a comment

Wow. I can’t believe I’ve made it to 500 posts. I began this blog back in January 2017 so I’ve been at this for almost 8 years. The time has really flown by. I started out with the goal of posting at least once a month, now I post at least once a week. I typically never look at my site statics, but now seems like a good time to check them out.

Continue reading →

Evil and Some Other TV Shows I’ve Watched Recently

~ D. J. Moore ~ Leave a comment

After yesterday’s post in which I expressed my disappointment in Deadpool & Wolverine, it occurs to me I tend to spend more time reviewing movies and TV shows I don’t like while not even mentioning shows I do like. Shows I’ve enjoyed recently include Evil, The Penguin, Agatha All Along, and Dune: Prophecy, but I don’t have much to say about them other than I like them. I think this is because when I love a show, I simply go along for the ride, but when I don’t like a show, my brain has to do something to keep from being bored, so I start to analyze it and pick it apart.

Continue reading →

Deadpool & Wolverine

~ D. J. Moore ~ Leave a comment

I remember thinking the first two Deadpool movies were hilarious, plus there’s been a lot of positive reviews for the third film, so I was looking forward to Deadpool & Wolverine. Unfortunately, I was disappointed. I didn’t laugh once. The main joke of the movie seems to be that’s it’s funny to play a pop song during a fight scene as they do this repeatedly. I think the first time I saw a show play upbeat music during a violent scene, it was an episode of the X-Files back in the 90s. I was impressed at the time since it was so unexpected, but decades later, upbeat music playing during a bloody scene no longer feels novel.

Continue reading →

Good News Friday

~ D. J. Moore ~ Leave a comment
  • Middle schooler finds novel compound in goose poop. Scientists say it may fight cancer. Good Good Good.
  • Sudan rolls out first malaria vaccines. Gavi.
  • Amazon deforestation in Brazil plunges 31% to lowest level in 9 years. Mongabay.
  • 2024 will be the first full year in which renewables generate more electricity than fossil fuels in the UK. The Progress Playbook.
  • India now outpaces China in green investments as renewables surge. The Progress Playbook.
  • Five medical breakthroughs in 2024. Scientific Discovery.
  • Hawaiian crows return to wild for 1st time in more than 20 years. Axios.

For more good news, check out Fix the News and The Progress Network.