It almost seems hard to believe but your clothes may soon be able to detect illness, repel insects, monitor your heart rate and even keep cigarette smoke from infiltrating the fabric…AND never have to be washed!

“The world is your oyster when it comes to the sorts of things you can do with clothing and technology. You’re only limited by your imagination, really,” says Dr Adam Best, a research scientist who has created a shirt that produces electricity simply by being moved, such as when the wearer is walking.

One of the more monumental developments in “smart clothing” includes a smart bra, which could allow the wearer to detect breast cancer at its earliest stages.

Professor Elias Siores, (University of Bolton, England) says the bra can detect cancer before the tumor can develop and metastasize into surrounding areas. Professor Siores states that the bra can also monitor the efficacy of any breast cancer treatment the wearer is undergoing as well. It is hoped the bra will be available in a couple of years.

“If clothes could talk, they could tell us so much about our bodies,” says one doctor.

Sometimes technology seems to be flying so forward, it’s hard to keep up and easy to feel overwhelmed. But it’s also a wonderful marriage between these advancements and amazing and creative minds. Positive news for fashion!

Source: CNN

When I heard that 34 year-old Jdimytai Damour was trampled to death when a Walmart opened this past “Black Friday” in Long Island, it only reinforced my feeling that we have to bring it down a notch for the holiday. A big notch.

I thought the economy would naturally reign it in; we wouldn’t have the same amount of money to spend and maybe, this would be a good thing. Maybe we would realize that the real focus should be on giving, celebrating, and sharing love with one another. But alas, there’s still this driving force of commercialism that blinds us like a snowstorm.

This holiday, I humbly suggest buying a little less and giving a little more. I suggest spending quality time, instead of money you don’t have. I suggest recalling holidays of yesteryear, when a handmade gift was more than sufficient, when sharing food and wine with one another was the real gift. I suggest turning off the radio, the television and the computer and feel what the holidays are like when you’re not being bombarded with ideas of what the holidays are supposed to be like!

I suggest sending a kind prayer to Jdimytai Damour, a man just trying to get by, like the rest of us.

Relax this holiday. Have fun. Take some time for yourself. Go for a long walk and count your blessings. Bring it down a notch.

Where’s the positive news in this Positive News blog? That we still stand a chance.

Jdimytai Damour - a Fellow Human Being

Janice Kamenir-Reznik is one practical women. She is a retired environmental lawyer who works tirelessly for human rights.

“I’m a very pragmatic activist,” Janice says. “Just pondering ideas is not my thing.” When asked to help the refugees in Darfur, Janice and her rabbi, Harold Schulweis, organized a meeting for all of the synagogue leaders in Los Angeles. They knew that women were threatened with rape and abuse whenever they ventured outside of their settlements for firewood. Their organization, JWW (Jewish World Watch), dedicated itself to the cause.

“The price they had to pay for feeding their families was rape,” says Janice. “That just seemed outrageous.”

One of the members of the groups suggested supplying the camps with solar cookers, which were inexpensive and easy to assemble. While they didn’t cook as quickly as an open fire, most didn’t mind the extra time for their own personal safety.

“I no longer need to go to the bush for firewood,” one woman told Kamenir-Reznik. “The wood that used to last me a week now lasts me a month, and because there is no smoke, it is very clean and the food tastes better.”
The Solar Cooker Project has made its way into Chad’s Touloum and Oure Cassoni camps in 2007. To date, Janice’s organization has raised more than $1.6 million across the United States and distributed more than 25,000 cookers.

As Janice puts it:

“Until we started this organization, I believed that Darfur was a faraway problem, one that I couldn’t fix. But now nobody can say that there’s nothing we can do about it.

Rachel Andres of the Solar Cooker Project

Maybe you’ve already seen Randy Pausch’s well-known “Last Lecture?” It became a very popular download for some time. He was also interviewed at length by Diane Sawyer, a good friend of his.

Who is this man and why is he considered one of the most inspiring people of 2008?

Randy was a Carnegie Mellon University professor who had only 6 months to live because of his pancreatic cancer. He gave a final lecture on time management at the University of Virginia on November 27, 2007.

This wasn’t your ordinary lecture, given by an ordinary professor. This was one man’s last chance to relay some powerful messages to the world before he passed on, leaving his wife and children.

If you can only watch a few minutes of this inspiring lecture, do so:

The Last Lecture

Eric Shanteau is being touted as the swimmer’s Lance Armstrong, a professional, accomplished athlete who contended with cancer and prevailed. Shanteau returned to competitive swimming for the first time since he was treated for testicular cancer.

He recently participated in the U.S. Short Course Nationals in Atlanta with the men’s 200-yard individual medley, clocking 1:42.59 (a personal best for Eric) and finishing second to Ryan Lochte, who holds the American record - not bad for someone who just had a very serious illness.

“For me to go the times I just did is pretty incredible,” Shanteau told CNN.

The 25-year-old from Georgia received international attention, when he participated in the Beijing Olympic Games and postponed his medical treatment. While there, he swam his personal best in the 200 meter but did not qualify for the finals.

One week after returning to the United States, he had surgery in Atlanta to remove the cancer. Tests revealed that majority of the cancer was successfully removed and that he would not need chemotherapy.

He returned to the water three weeks later but it was a little too soon:

“That didn’t work out so well,” Eric told CNN. “I pushed off the wall the first time and I felt everything stretching in my abs, so I got right back out and my coach said to give it another week.”

But after some more healing, he was ready to “jump back in the pool” in Atlanta, finishing second to Ryan Lochte, who holds the American record.

——————–

Cancer is a frightening situation for just about anyone. But of course, its very much a reality in many of our lives, either with ourselves or loved ones. People like Eric serve as inspirations; that cancer doesn’t always have to mean an ending. For some, it can be the beginning of a new life with a new perspective.

Positive News for Eric Shanteau

Positive News for Abandoned Cubs

There was some problems at the Kansas zoo. Three tiger cubs had been born and the mother didn’t really want anything to do with them. The cubs wandered around, looking for someone to call “mom.” That’s when Tom Harvey thought of a possible solution: the zoo’s Golden Retriever had recently had pups and was still in mothering mode.

Harvey did say its unusual for dogs to care for tiger cubs but it can happen. And sure enough, it did. The Golden Retriever (Isabella) jumped in and saved the day, making the cubs more comfortable and less stressed.

What are some unlikely ways you can help today? What’s outside of your comfort zone as far as giving to people? Everybody loves a feeling of being tended to, just like those tiger cubs. Give today, in a warm, nurturing way. Think “Isabella.”

Send us your feedback or comments. We’d love to hear from you.

When 84-year old Norman Beckman entered the hospital for a medical issue, the last thing on his mind was his quarterly water bill. He ended up spending several months in the hospital, arriving home to a $3000 water bill that he couldn’t pay.

Why was the bill so high? Apparently his pipes had frozen and leaked a considerable amount of water, though fortunately, not causing any damage to his home.

Luckily for Norman, community member Bryan Kassube started a drive to assist him. In no time flat, Kassube and 100 contributors raised $4,027.

“The donations ranged from $5 to $500,” Kassube said. “I’m just floored we reached our goal in one week.”

The remaining amount will be given to Beckman.

“I want to give it to the Salvation Army, but I’m going to wait until Dec. 5 when Thrivent Financial for Lutherans has promised to match donations to the Army’s Red Kettle campaign,” Beckman said.

Thrivent recently announced it would match any donations made on Dec. 5 up to $125,000, potentially the largest one-day donation in the country to the Red Kettle campaign.

“I’ve always had a good opinion of the Salvation Army. I served in World War II and they were always there for the soldiers,” said Beckman.

“I couldn’t tell you my first thought, I just fell over on the floor,” said Angilee Wallis, when finding out that her son, Terry Wallis, had awaken from a 19-year old comatose slumber.

Wallis, 39 had been in an accident in July of 1984 when a car he was a passenger in plunged into a creek. The driver of the vehicle, Terry’s friend, died. Mr Wallis was discovered by rescuers a day later, but at that point, was comatose.

He literally floored his family by speaking suddenly almost a month ago. The first words uttered from Terry? “He started out with ‘Mom’ and then it was ‘Pepsi’ and then it was ‘milk,’” said Alesha Badgley, Stone County Nursing and Rehabilitation Center social director.

“And now it’s anything he wants to say,” says mother Angilee.

Doctors at the rehabilitation center said Terry’s recovery might be due in part to his family taking him out at weekends and special occasions.

“The doctor said that’s why he remembers things; we might have kept his mind going,” Sandi Wallis said.

When you think your presence doesn’t mean much in other’s lives, think again. We are constant forms of energy, sharing and recharging one another. If someone you know is ill or down, remember that even your mere presence makes a difference in his or her life.

Send us a sample of your positive news. We’d be happy to post it. It doesn’t matter how small or large, we’d love to hear from you!

You probably haven’t heard of Ray Lopez. He’s a quiet guy plus people like Ray are too busy working in communities to bask in the limelight. Ray is the environmental program manager at Little Sisters of the Assumption (LSA) Family Health Service in New York City. His job isn’t particularly glamorous but his impact is constantly being felt by those around him.

Ray works with residents in Easy Harlem to help combat unhealthy environmental conditions such as mold, insect infestation and poor air quality. He teaches residents practical solutions to long-standing problems in order to improve their quality of life. An example? Wrapping duct tape around the edge of a cleaned mattress to form a kind of sticky moat to prevent bed bug re-infestation.

See? Not glamorous? But it’s quiet people like Ray who are making daily differences in their neighborhoods, with a totally hands-on approach (Ray is just as comfortable strapping on a mask and removing mold from a household as lecturing to community members.)

Because of the contributions of people like Ray, Little Sisters of Assumption has become widely recognized for its environmental interventions, receiving the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Region 2 Environmental Quality Award for its asthma program, which Ray Lopez oversees.

Sometimes, making change in our frenzied world can seem overwhelming. That’s when you can remember soft-spoken men like Ray making differences in subtle ways that make big differences.

Listen to Ray talk about his positive news: http://www.rwjf.org/newsroom/product.jsp

Ray Lopez does NOT let the bed bugs bite

This story is so inspirational, positive and ongoing that it deserves a revisit from Only Positive News.

There are over 1 billion homeless people existing on this planet. The Homeless World Cup was established to put an end to this prevalent problem and to also showcase the skills of people who are often too busy struggling to survive. If you think this is a small, grassroots effort, think again.

This event has taken the world by storm. The first tournament began in Graz in 2003 with 17 national teams. At the 5th Homeless World Cup in Copenhagen in the summer of this year, 48 nations, 500 players were brought together for a once in a lifetime opportunity to represent their country. Melbourne is the host city for the upcoming tournament from 1-7 December 2008.

In preparation, a new Australian team was announced this week to compete. This is the first time a dedicated women’s competition will be held in the history of the Homeless World Cup.

“Apart from coming to Melbourne to represent my country, getting selected to be the Captain of the Women’s team is probably the best thing to have ever happened to me,” Toni Whelan had to say. Whelan was awarded Best Female Player of the 2008 National Street Soccer Championships as well.

Says founder Mel Young:

“The Homeless World Cup has demonstrated the power of sport to change lives, to change the world. The sixth Homeless World Cup in Melbourne is the pinnacle of the year round work by grass-roots football programs in 56 nations, which bring together over 30,000 players for training, to rebuild their lives and communities.

“The Homeless World Cup is growing fast, traveling to the far corners of the globe to engage people who are homeless, to change hearts and minds, and to pioneer imaginative solutions to address this key global issue.”

Australia’s Street Matildas take Uganda’s victory in their stride after their Homeless World Cup match at Federation Square yesterday. Photo: Penny Stephens