Tech & Innovation Good News

Stories About Using Technology and Innovation To Make a Difference

Two photos side-by-side of a young man with shaggy hair wearing a white bike helmet. The front of the helmet has white LED lights, and the back has red LED lights. They glow in the evening sky.

Equipped with tail lights and crash detection tech, this new helmet could save cyclists' lives

The new helmet integrates smart LED and motion-tracking technology to make cyclists even safer.
Read More
A plate of leftover fried chicken bones with a fork on the side.

New invention uses animal bones to filter water, promising a nearly 'zero cost' solution to water filtration

Middle schooler Tina Jin was looking for a sustainable solution to clean water filtration and saw potential in the honeycomb-like structure of animal bones.
Read More
A close up of two newborn black-footed ferret kits in the blue-gloved hands of a zookeeper

Cloned black-footed ferret gives birth in historic first, a victory for the highly endangered species

Meet Sibert and Red Cloud, baby black-footed ferrets that mark the first successful live births from a cloned endangered species.
Read More
A photo collage of a person holding a disposable vape, a carved pumpkin, a wildlife refuge located from Minnesota to Illinois, a pumpkin, and three people inside a climate lab at the University of Chicago's Climate Institute

Good News This Week: November 2, 2024 - Vapes, Trees, & Pumpkins

Your weekly roundup of the best good news worth celebrating...
Read More
An African giant pouched rat sits on a person's lap, wearing a small red vest with a ball attached to its chest

First, rats were trained to sniff out landmines and tuberculosis. Now, they're detecting wildlife smugglers

Rats trained by researchers at nonprofit Apopo may soon be the next fleet of scent-sniffing heroes to save wildlife.
Read More
Three individuals study a clean energy reactor

University of Chicago opens first-of-its-kind climate institute: 'A game change is needed in the climate fight'

The University of Chicago’s new Institute for Climate and Sustainable Growth includes a number of new degree programs for undergraduate and graduate students.
Read More
A photo collage of Robert Smalls, a mosquito up-close, a whale's tail peeking out from underwater, a solar panel farm atop a building in New York, and Betty Cartledge being interviewed on the news

Good News This Week: October 26, 2024 - Fathers, Oceans, & Butterflies

Your weekly roundup of the best good news worth celebrating...
Read More
A yellow robotic arm sorts recyclable items as they come down a conveyer belt

AI robots recover recyclables from Chicago's waste, saving them from the landfill

The new RecycleOS robot is ensuring every last aluminum can gets recycled from Chicago’s LRS facilities.
Read More
On the TED stage in Atlanta, Georgia, Adam Munder speaks to Hasiba Haq through his AI American Sign Language translation software: Omnibridge

In TED Talk, Deaf engineer debuts AI model that transcribes sign language to text in seconds

Adam Munder is a software engineer. Since 2015, he’s been working to bridge the gap between sign language and spoken word. Now, a decade later, he brought it to the TED stage.
Read More
A hand holds up a small vial of bright yellow powder on the UC Berkeley campus

Berkeley researchers use turmeric-like powder to 'clean the air entirely' of carbon dioxide

UC Berkeley researchers have made strides in direct air carbon capture — all thanks to a vial of bright yellow powder.
Read More
An ac unit outside of a window, framed by a tree branch.

Experts find that simple attachments to HVAC systems could divert 300 metric tons of CO2 emissions

Scientists found a simple, and scalable solution, to harnessing all of that extra wind coming off of AC units and HVAC systems.
Read More
A photo collage of an electric grid tower, a building at the University of California San Diego, two men posing for the camera, an 'Early Voting Available Here' signage, and the Kinderspital building

Good News This Week: October 19, 2024 - Hospitals, Ballots, & Donations

Your weekly roundup of the best good news worth celebrating...
Read More