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Paris’s Notre-Dame Cathedral has reopened
It’s been a tumultuous year in French politics, but at the end of 2024 there was at least one piece of good news: Notre Dame reopened its doors in December after a five-year renovation following a fire in its roof in 2019. and repairs. The cathedral has a new altar and a dazzling ivory interior. Repair works are ongoing in the exterior of the building. read more about Guardian.
The homicide rate in the United States has continued to decline
In 2020, murders in US cities increased by an average of 30 percent, the largest increase in recorded American history. They stayed high for several years before starting to fall, and are now forecast to return to pre-2020 levels for the first time. The data show that male unemployment and school closures, particularly in low-income neighborhoods, as a result of the pandemic have been key factors in the increase in violence. Read more Brookings.
One of the world’s rarest cats is no longer endangered
One of the rarest cat species in the world, the Iberian lynx is no longer classified as endangered. There are now thought to be more than 2,000 of these feral cats spread across Spain and Portugal – in 2001 there were only 62 mature cats. BBC.
Electric cars last longer than predicted
Instead of having a shorter lifespan than internal combustion engines as everyone thinks, EV batteries can actually last longer. Warranties typically cover EV batteries for eight years, but they look like they can last up to 20. But it’s hard to be sure at the moment – there are very few EVs on the road that are even ten years old. Read more Narrative.
These kids hacked AirPods to give their grandma hearing aids
When Apple released a software update that enabled the AirPods Pro 2 to function as a hearing aid, Rithwik Jayasimha rushed to buy something for his grandmother — only to realize that the feature didn’t work in India due to space constraints. Most people would have conceded defeat, but Jayasimha took two friends, some tin foil and a microwave oven and set about creating a homemade device to escape geolocation restrictions. Read more Narrative.
Baby Pygmy Hippo has taken the Internet by storm
In July, there was a global sensation. Since being unveiled to the public at Thailand’s Khao Kheow Open Zoo on July 25, Moo Deng (translated as “Bouncy Pig”) has become one of the most recognizable faces on the internet. Of course he’s cute. But it’s his cheeky nature that propelled him to stardom: sitting on his mother’s food bowl, biting a zookeeper, charging around and screaming at his guards. Many people can connect in 2024. Read more New York Times.
