Good Morning! 🌞 

Happy National Tourism Day! Observed every May 7 as part of National Travel and Tourism Week, today celebrates the places that inspire us to explore, discover, and reconnect. First proclaimed in 1983 by President Ronald Reagan, it’s a reminder that travel isn’t just a getaway—it’s a gateway to culture, community, and connection.

So, if you could hop on a plane today—no packing, no planning—where would you go? ✈️

Innovation

Wind Turbines Rises

The first of 64 massive wind turbines at the He Dreiht offshore wind farm in the North Sea is now operational, delivering 15 megawatts of clean energy. Once completed, the project will produce around 1,000 MW—enough to power a medium-sized city. Developed by EnBW, one of Germany’s largest energy companies, the wind farm is being built without government subsidies and marks a major step toward expanding the country's renewable energy capacity.

“It will play a key role in helping us to significantly grow our renewable energy output from 6.6 GW to over 10 GW by 2030,” said Michael Class, who heads up EnBW’s generation portfolio development. The turbines are among the most powerful in the world, and when the farm reaches full capacity, it’s expected to generate up to 980 megawatts—enough to supply electricity to 1.1 million homes. “Each turbine is so large that one spin of its blades could power a house for a full day,” according to Michelle Lewis at Electrek.

Construction of the offshore facility is a massive undertaking, with up to 500 workers and 60 vessels involved, depending on weather and sea conditions. The turbine foundations were installed last year, and each unit is now being lifted into place using giant ship-mounted cranes. Ownership of the project is split, with EnBW holding a majority stake and a consortium of Allianz Capital Partners, AIP, and Norges Bank Investment Management owning 49.9%.

Culture

Restoring Antiques

There’s something calming about watching old, forgotten objects get brought back to life—and that’s exactly what this week’s video delivers. It’s an ASMR-style restoration of antique items, with no music or voiceover—just the real sounds of sanding, scraping, and careful repair.

A few things to know about antiques:
🕰️ An item becomes an “antique” at 100+ years old.
🔧 Restoration focuses on preserving original details, not replacing them.
📜 Every piece has a story—sometimes written in rust, dust, and layers of paint.

If you need a few quiet minutes in your day, or just enjoy watching skill and patience at work, this is a great watch. It’s a satisfying reminder that not everything old is outdated—some things are just waiting for a second chance.

Environment

‘Pablo Picasso’ Snail

A newly discovered snail species from Southeast Asia has been named Anauchen picasso, a nod to Pablo Picasso and the snail’s unusually angular shell that resembles Cubist artwork. Measuring just 3 millimeters, the species was identified by an international team led by Serbian PhD student Vukašin Gojšina and Hungarian malacologist Dr. Barna Páll-Gergely. While researching snail biodiversity in Southeast Asian forests, the team was struck by the snail’s distinctive, rectangularly angled whorls—sharply deviating from the typical spiral shape found in most snails.

“Although the shell sizes of these snails are less than 5mm, they are real beauties!” said Dr. Páll-Gergely. The researchers described Anauchen picasso as looking “like a Cubist interpretation of other snails with ‘normal’ shell shapes.” Beyond its angular structure, the shell also features complex adaptations. “Their shells exhibit extraordinary complexity. For example, the aperture—the ‘opening’ of the shell—is armed with numerous tooth-like barriers, which are most probably useful against predators.” Some species in the study even carry their shells upside-down due to the aperture turning sharply upwards or downwards.

The team’s findings, published in ZooKeys, span 300 pages and detail 46 new microsnail species from Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. The snails were identified based on shell characteristics such as apertural barriers and the orientation of the final whorl. Specimens came from both recent fieldwork and historic museum collections, including some stored for decades at the Florida Museum of Natural History. “It is likely—and in some cases, certain—that the locations where these snails were found have already been destroyed by deforestation and limestone quarrying, which are the major threats to locally endemic land snails in Southeast Asia,” said Dr. Páll-Gergely.

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Mind Stretchers

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Yesterday’s Answers to the Mind Stretchers:

I have no spine, yet carry yours. I never walk, but I've seen shores. I hold your world in silent trust, But shed your weight when home is just. — a backpack! Chris Hostetler got this correct! 🌞 

Be 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 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.