1. 102-Year-old Woman Becomes Britain’s Oldest Skydiver–to Inspire People in Their 80s or 90s ‘Not to Give up Anything’
A 102-year-old woman has become the oldest skydiver in Britain after jumping out of a plane at 7,000-feet.
Daredevil Manette Baillie celebrated her latest birthday this month with a tandem skydive at Beccles Airfield in Suffolk, England—her first ever parachute jump.
She said she was ‘breathless’ after the jump, which also raised money for charity.
“I just want other people who are getting towards 80 and 90 not to give up anything.”
Manette, who served during WWII in the Woman’s Royal Naval Service (WRENS), has always had a thirst for adventure.
2. Scientists Make Stunning Breakthrough, Turning Banana Peels into Textiles and Renewable Fuels
Off-grid communities in parts of rural Pakistan could soon have access to a reliable source of electricity for the first time thanks to a new project that aims to convert waste from the banana-growing industry into energy.
80 million metric tons of agricultural waste are generated in Pakistan every year from growing bananas.
Academics from Northumbria University have now teamed up with partners in the UK and Pakistan to create a new solution that will make use of this waste product and provide benefits for local people at the same time.
Together the project partners are developing an innovative two-part system – the first part of which will use new technology to convert the banana waste into textile fibers, with the second part taking the waste generated from that process and using it to produce renewable energy.
This will not only reduce the environmental impact of Pakistan’s textile industry, but also bring cleaner electricity to the 50% of people living in rural areas of the country who live off-grid and currently rely on fossil fuels for energy.
3. Baby Rhino’s First Video: Adorable Footage of Southern White Calf Born in Aussie Zoo
A zoo in Melbourne welcomed a trunkload of joy last week as their resident rhino gave birth to a little male.
It’s the second calf that Mother Kipensi has had at the zoo, and it’s already displayed a “forthright” personality.
Kipenzi is an 11-year-old southern white rhino, one of the most numerous rhino subspecies. Her calf was born on August 18th, and unlike her first baby which she tragically rejected years ago, she has been an attentive mother this time around.
Sheltered from public view as the two bond, visitors will soon be able to see the new boy stomping about his enclosure. Dr. Mark Pilgrim, the zoo’s director, said that Kipenzi was “doing her best to shepherd it and keep it close to her, and making sure that it’s not wandering off too far. So she’s just doing the perfect thing we expect a mother rhino to do.”
Kipenzi herself was born at Werribee Zoo in 2013 to resident rhino Sisi, who also presented a danger to her calf as she would not let Kipenzi out of her sight, even just to walk alongside her to nurse.
The new rhino calf will be named by public vote in the coming weeks. His mother’s name means “precious one” in Swahili.
