http://www.dailygood.org/ Extraordinary, positive changes are happening all around the world and are often overlooked. Come in and get inspired as we showcase the uplifting news stories you might have otherwise missed. en-us qad@charityfocus.org When you walk in Japan's Ogori Cafe, you get whatever the person before you ordered and paid for; then, in return you order something for the person behind you. It doesn't matter what you order -- that's a surprise! The whole point is to get something random from a stranger, and buy something random for a stranger. http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4012 http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4012 Mon, 08 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800 For many months, the GEO600 team-members had been scratching their heads over inexplicable noise that is plaguing their giant detector. Then, out of the blue, a researcher approached them with an explanation. In fact, he had even predicted the noise before he knew they were detecting it. According to Craig Hogan, a physicist at the Fermilab particle physics lab in Batavia, Illinois, GEO600 has stumbled upon the fundamental limit of space-time. "If the GEO600 result is what I suspect it is, then we are all living in a giant cosmic hologram," he said. Our everyday experience might itself be a holographic projection of physical processes that take place on a distant, 2 dimensional surface. http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4011 http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4011 Sun, 07 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800 A woman who wanted to clear her conscience after she bought three blankets but was only charged for one -- 38 years ago -- returned to the shop and paid it back, with interest. Unable to believe that someone would do this, the shopkeeper pinched himself and then paid it forward! http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3962 http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3962 Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800 An airplane traveler and companion get an unexpected upgrade to first class. They decide to turn that potential short-term luxury into a simple and powerful act of kindness, and long-term satisfaction... http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3831 http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3831 Fri, 05 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800 Concerned about the future? Want to do something about greenhouse gases and climate change? Colin Beavan (founder of the No Impact Project who wrote a book about the year his family reduced their environmental impact to close to zero and found they were healthier, and happier as a result) lists ten actions for you to consider to reduce your carbon footprint. Ideas range from reduce your waste by reusing and repairing rather than replacing, and walk or bike to try an Eco-Sabbath by turning off the electricity and not buying anything for a day (or an hour). http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3980 http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3980 Thu, 04 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800 In chaotic times, an executive's instinct may be to strive for greater efficiency by tightening control. But the truth is that relinquishing authority and giving employees considerable autonomy can boost innovation and success at knowledge firms, even during crises. Our research provides hard evidence that leaders who give in to the urge to clamp down can end up doing their companies a serious disservice. Although business thinkers have long proposed that companies can engage workers and stimulate innovation by abdicating control -- establishing nonhierarchical teams that focus on various issues and allowing those teams to make most of the company's decisions-- guidance on implementing such a policy is lacking. So is evidence of its consequences. Indeed, companies that actually practice abdication of control are rare. Two of them, however, compellingly demonstrate that if it's implemented properly, this counterintuitive idea can dramatically improve results. http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3984 http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3984 Wed, 03 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800 Seth Godin, the innovator, writer, and blogger extraordinaire, persuaded 70 other innovators, writers, and bloggers to participate in a project he calls What Matters Now.The idea is simple: Each of us suggests one word -- literally one word -- that all of us should think about in 2010, and then takes one page to explain why and how that word matters. The result is an intriguing, inspiring, and at times downright moving collection of unconventional wisdom that is available free to everyone. http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3982 http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=3982 Tue, 02 Feb 2010 00:00:00 -0800