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Sundays are made for slowing down, recharging, and reflecting on the week ahead. Whether you're spending the day unwinding with a good book, catching up with loved ones, or simply savoring a quiet moment for yourself, take today as a gentle reminder to breathe and reset!

Innovation

New Caption Glasses

Kendyl Pool, a deaf girl, experienced a life-changing moment when she tried a pair of high-tech glasses that allow her to "see" conversations in real time. Born profoundly deaf due to inner ear malformations, Kendyl has relied on American Sign Language (ASL) since she was six months old. Her mother, Bri, discovered the $1,500 caption glasses on TikTok and believed they could make a meaningful difference in her daughter's life. The glasses transcribe spoken words into text and display them on the lenses, offering Kendyl a new way to engage with the world.

On her birthday, Bri surprised Kendyl with the glasses, a moment filled with emotion. “She had no idea these existed, so when she put them on and I started talking, she was shocked,” Bri said. “She was so overwhelmed, she even cried because she couldn’t believe she could read what I was saying.” Developed by HearView, the glasses use Bluetooth and an app with voice recognition to transcribe speech in real time onto a small screen in the lenses. Beyond helping Kendyl follow conversations, they also assist her with speech. “She can’t hear herself, so she uses the glasses to see if she’s pronouncing words correctly,” Bri explained. “When it works, she gets so excited.”

As the only deaf person in her family, Kendyl has sometimes felt isolated, but the glasses have boosted her confidence, allowing her to engage more in social activities and communicate with people who don’t know ASL. They also store conversations in the app, enabling her to review important discussions, such as those with teachers or doctors. “Captions on TVs or devices are often inaccurate or delayed, but these glasses are incredibly accurate,” Bri said. “This is a huge step toward inclusion. These glasses give full access to conversations in real time, and that’s life-changing.”

Culture

The Last Living Student

Ruth Slenczynska, the last living student of Sergei Rachmaninov, continues to perform at 100 years old, often wearing a Fabergé egg necklace gifted to her by the legendary Russian composer. Despite her age, she remains an active musician, most recently performing at the Chopin International Festival and the Polish embassy in New York City in 2021. During the COVID-19 lockdowns, she recorded videos to commemorate Beethoven’s 250th birthday, and at 97, she released a new album, My Life in Music.

“Whoever heard of a pianist my age making another album?” she mused at the time. “Music is meant to bring joy. If mine still brings joy to people, then it’s doing what it’s supposed to do.” The album reflects her long and storied career, featuring works by Chopin—whom she studied rigorously under her father, violinist Josef Slenczynska, who made her play all 25 of Chopin’s Études before breakfast. It also includes pieces by Grieg, Debussy, and Bach. Slenczynska remains committed to the philosophy instilled in her by Rachmaninov, recalling his advice when she wanted to play a piece faster after just three weeks of practice. “He said, ‘Three weeks, that’s nothing! After three years, working with it slowly, fast, until it’s yours, then you can present it; but that takes time.’”

Her connection to Rachmaninov extended beyond the cA Leap of Hopelassroom—she once stepped in for him when he had to cancel a performance due to an injury. Over her illustrious career, she has performed for Presidents Kennedy, Reagan, and Carter and shared stages with figures such as President Truman and Empress Michiko of Japan. On January 15th, she celebrated her 100th birthday, a milestone in a lifetime dedicated to music.

Environment

A Leap of Hope

The birth of 33 Southern Darwin’s frogs at the London Zoo marks a major milestone in the effort to save this endangered species, first described by Charles Darwin during his 19th-century voyage on the HMS Beagle. Native to Chile, these tiny frogs (Rhinoderma darwinii) face a grave threat from chytrid fungus, a deadly pathogen devastating amphibian populations worldwide. Highly vulnerable to the disease, the species required a safe refuge while conservationists worked to restore their forest habitat.

In October, a team of conservationists embarked on a 7,000-mile mission to retrieve healthy frogs from a remote island off Chile’s coast. After collecting 52 individuals and confirming they were free of the fungus, the team transported them in climate-controlled boxes across multiple transport methods to London Zoo. “This is a key moment in our work to protect the Darwin’s frog from chytrid fungus,” said Ben Tapley, Curator of Amphibians at the zoo. Their journey and the broader conservation mission are captured in A Leap of Hope, a new documentary premiering on YouTube tomorrow, February 3.

The 33 newly hatched froglets were raised by 11 male frogs, which practice a rare form of parental care—carrying their developing tadpoles inside their vocal sacs until they are fully formed. With this successful breeding effort, London Zoo hopes to expand its population of Southern Darwin’s frogs and contribute to future reintroduction programs in Chile. Beyond preserving the species, this work offers valuable insights into combating chytrid fungus, which has impacted more than 500 amphibian species worldwide.

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Mind Stretchers

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Answers to yesterday’s Mind Stretchers:

I’m cold and crisp or dark and bold, Found in bottles, cans, or foamed in gold. I cheer the nights and calm the nerves, But too much of me throws off your curves.What am I? —Beer, James Godfrey got this correct first!

The first to send us the correct answer for today’s mind stretcher for a shout-out with the answer tomorrow. Just send us the answer and your name to [email protected] or reply to the email.

If you have any uplifting stories and experience you might want to share, send those over to [email protected] for the chance to be featured