BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM To wrap up our Best of 2025 series, we’re sharing something a little more personal… our Staff Picks! These are the articles that sparked extra chats, late-night musings, and genuine delight among our team. They made us think, smile, and (of course) feel a little more optimistic. We hope they do the same for you. Fighting malaria has always been a game of adaptation. As mosquitoes evolve resistance to insecticides and Plasmodium parasites dodge existing drugs, scientists have been racing to find smarter solutions. Now, a team from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) and Johns Hopkins University may have made a breakthrough: a simple genetic edit that could stop the disease in its tracks. Using CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing technology, researchers introduced a naturally occurring variation into mosquitoes, effectively making them immune to malaria infection. Their study, published in Nature, reveals a promising new method for rendering mosquitoes inhospitable to both major human malaria parasites, Plasmodium falciparum and Plasmodium vivax. How one amino acid makes all the difference At the center of this innovation is a mosquito protein called Fibrinogen-related protein 1, or FREP1. This protein, which plays an essential role in mosquito physiology, also unwittingly helps malaria parasites make their way from the mosquito’s gut to its salivary glands, the final step before human infection. Previous studies had identified a variant of the FREP1 gene that seemed to block this process. So UCSD biologist Ethan Bier and his colleagues decided to see what would happen if they replaced the most common form of FREP1 (one that includes the amino acid leucine at position 224) with a naturally occurring version that swaps in glutamine instead. That one-letter substitution had big effects. Mosquitoes with the altered FREP1 gene (Q224) showed strong resistance to infection from both P. falciparum and P. vivax parasites, effectively cutting off malaria transmission without harming the mosquitoes themselves. The phantom gene drive What makes this strategy especially clever is how it spreads through mosquito populations. Rather than using a traditional gene drive, a genetic hack that forces an entire gene to spread rapidly and persist indefinitely, the researchers created what they call a “phantom” allelic drive. This more subtle version nudges the natural Q224 variant into the population but allows it to fade over time. “You can insert the cassette in a gene where it incurs a fitness cost, and when you do that, over time it disappears,” Bier explained. In other words, the edit can work its magic while it’s needed, but won’t permanently alter wild populations. This reduces the risk of long-term ecological consequences, which has been one of the chief criticisms of gene drive technologies. The concept isn’t entirely new. Bier’s team has previously used a similar method to “re-wild” pesticide-resistant fruit flies. But this is the first time such an approach has shown strong promise against malaria. A new ally in the global fight Though the gene tweak is powerful, Bier stressed that it’s not a silver bullet. The strategy is meant to complement, not replace, existing malaria interventions. “The idea is to use them in combination with what’s out there in terms of the standard vector control mechanisms and have that whole package hopefully work together,” he said. Other experts are taking note. Maciej Maselko, a mosquito genetics researcher at Macquarie University who was not involved in the study, called the approach “a promising path toward modifying wild mosquito populations.” He added that with global public health funding under pressure, cost-effective and scalable solutions like this one are urgently needed. The next step? Field trials to test the approach in real-world settings. If successful, this microscopic tweak could help rewrite the story of one of humanity’s oldest and deadliest foes.   Did this solution from 2025 stand out to you? Support The Optimist Daily so we can fill 2026 with more positive headlines like this. Become an Emissary and help guide more people to solutions with us here.

'nobody is shedding a tear'

One Year Later: LAFD Admits Palisades Fire Report Was Edited to Protect Leadership

Greenmars/Wikimedia CommonsThe SS Edmund Fitzgerald was the largest ship to ever sink in Lake Superior. “Superior, they said, never gives up her dead when the gales of November come early,” Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot wrote in the aftermath of the 1975 sinking of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald. On Nov. 10, 1975, the 729-foot-long freighter went down in Lake Superior during a vicious storm, resulting in the loss of the entire crew of 29 men. The vessel remains the largest ship to have ever sunk in the Great Lakes. In the days after the wreck, aircraft detected a magnetic anomaly under the lake’s surface around 17 miles off the coast of Michigan. And in May 1976, an underwater recovery vehicle was deployed to the site and photographed the Edmund Fitzgerald beneath more than 500 feet of water. The ship had split in two, earning it the nickname the “Titanic of the Great Lakes.” The story of the vessel’s final voyage was immortalized by Gordon Lightfoot’s song “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” which was released in 1976. As the lyrics go, “All that remains is the faces and the names of the wives and the sons and the daughters.” The Story Of The SS ‘Edmund Fitzgerald’ When the SS Edmund Fitzgerald was launched in June 1958, it was the largest ship on the Great Lakes. Its 729-foot-long hull earned the vessel the nickname the “Queen of the Lakes” until the 730-foot SS Murray Bay came along the following year. It was named after the president and chairman of the board of the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, the company that invested in the construction of the ship. An estimated 15,000 people gathered to watch the massive vessel enter the water for the first time — but the event was marked by a series of bad omens. The champagne bottle that was smashed over the bow didn’t break until the third attempt, the crew of the shipyard struggled to get the freighter into the lake, and one attendee died from a heart attack. Still, once the Edmund Fitzgerald was in service, it quickly became a legend. Public DomainThe Edmund Fitzgerald without cargo, on its way to collect a shipment. Date unknown. The Fitz, as the freighter came to be known, carried iron ore from mines in Minnesota to foundries in Detroit, Toledo, and other Midwestern port cities. In addition to being one of the largest ships on the Great Lakes, the SS Edmund Fitzgerald was also one of the most efficient. It set seasonal hauling records multiple times, and it became so famous that onlookers would gather along its route to watch it float by. At the time, the Great Lakes were known to be dangerous for ships. Between 1875 and 1975, an average of one vessel was lost in the region every week. But the Fitz was so large that it seemed untouchable. Then, on Nov. 10, 1975, a violent snow storm struck. The ‘Fitz’ Meets Its Fate On Lake Superior The final voyage of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald began on the afternoon of Nov. 9, 1975. There were 29 crew members onboard, including Captain Ernest McSorley. The ship departed from Superior, Wisconsin, carrying nearly 30,000 tons of taconite, a type of iron ore. The Fitz was heading toward a steel mill on Zug Island near Detroit, a journey of nearly 750 miles. That evening, the National Weather Service (NWS) issued a gale warning for all of Lake Superior. The U.S. Coast Guard Marine Board of Investigation reported in the aftermath of the sinking that the NWS was predicting wind speeds of up to 60 miles per hour and 16-foot waves for the morning and afternoon of Nov. 10. However, conditions were seemingly much worse than that. Public DomainThe route likely taken by the Fitz on its final voyage. The Edmund Fitzgerald was traveling slightly ahead of another freighter, the Arthur M. Anderson, which was captained by Bernie Cooper. Around 2:45 p.m. on Nov. 10, it started snowing heavily, and the Anderson lost sight of the Fitz. Less than an hour later, Captain McSorley radioed Captain Cooper to let him know that the Edmund Fitzgerald was taking on water. “Anderson, this is the Fitzgerald,” said McSorley, as reported by the SS Edmund Fitzgerald Online. “I have sustained some topside damage. I have a fence rail laid down, two vents lost or damaged, and a list. I’m checking down. Will you stay by me ’til I get to Whitefish?” The two freighters began to make their way to Whitefish Bay on the coast of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, hoping for some reprieve from the harsh storm. McSorley’s last communication from Fitz to the Anderson came at around 7 p.m. Cooper had asked McSorley, “Fitzgerald, how are you making out with your problem?” “We are holding our own,” McSorley responded. This was the last and final message of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald. Shortly after, the ship vanished from the radar. James Lefevre/Wikimedia CommonsA lifeboat salvaged from the Edmund Fitzgerald on display at the Museum Ship Valley Camp in Michigan. According to a 2005 issue of Telescope, the magazine of the Great Lakes Maritime Institute, Captain Cooper radioed the Coast Guard not long after the Fitz disappeared saying, “I am very concerned with the welfare of the steamer Edmund Fitzgerald. He was right in front of us, experiencing a little difficulty. He was taking on a small amount of water and none of the upbound ships have passed him. I can see no lights as before, and don’t have him on radar. I just hope he didn’t take a nose dive.” Tragically, Cooper’s words proved prophetic. The Fitz seemingly sank so quickly that McSorley didn’t even have time to make a mayday call. So, what exactly happened to the Edmund Fitzgerald? The Mystery Surrounding The Sinking Of The SS ‘Edmund Fitzgerald’ While it’s clear that the violent storm caused the Fitz to sink, theories differ on why exactly the vessel went down. The low visibility caused by the snow may have caused the ship to accidentally pass through shallow water, leading to structural damage. Another theory posits that the Edmund Fitzgerald was taken down by a group of rogue waves reported in the area at the time. Great Lakes Shipwreck Historical SocietyFor a time, the Edmund Fitzgerald was the longest ship on the Great Lakes. However, when the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) published their investigation in 1978, they noted that “the probable cause of this accident was the sudden massive flooding of the cargo hold due to the collapse of one or more hatch covers.” A few days after the Edmund Fitzgerald sank, a U.S. Navy plane flew above Lake Superior scanning for magnetic anomalies and detected an inconsistency around 17 miles from Whitefish Point, Michigan. Several months later, a remotely operated underwater vehicle captured striking photos of a shipwreck at that very spot. The name Edmund Fitzgerald was clearly visible on the hull of the vessel. The wreckage was located 530 feet beneath Lake Superior. The Fitz had been torn in half, with its bow sitting upright and its stern resting upside down on the floor of the lake. However, there was no sign of the 29 crew members, who all perished. Two decades later, in 1994, the remains of one man were found nearby, but he was left undisturbed in his watery grave. Rklawton/Wikimedia CommonsA memorial to the wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald at Whitefish Point. The SS Edmund Fitzgerald was the largest ship to ever sink in the Great Lakes, joining thousands of other vessels that have gone down in the region over the centuries. The SS Arlington sank in Lake Superior in 1940, and the SS Western Reserve wrecked in a storm in 1892. Divers are still discovering other ships beneath the surface, too, such as the SS James Carruthers, which sank in Lake Huron during a blizzard in 1913, and the Frank D. Barker, which sat beneath Lake Michigan for 134 years before it was found in 2025. Still, the Fitz remains perhaps the most famous of all the ships lost in the Great Lakes. This is partly due to Gordon Lightfoot’s song, “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” which he wrote after reading news reports in the immediate aftermath of the sinking: “In a musty old hall in Detroit, they prayed in the Maritime Sailors’ Cathedral. The church bell chimed ’til it rang 29 times for each man on the Edmund Fitzgerald.” After reading about the wreck of the SS Edmund Fitzgerald, discover the stories behind nine other famous shipwrecks. Then, look through 33 photographs of the Titanic. The post The Story Of The SS Edmund Fitzgerald, The 729-Foot Freighter That Split In Two During A Violent Storm On Lake Superior appeared first on All That's Interesting.

To many Americans, it seemed that June 4, 1968, could change the country forever. That day, Robert F. Kennedy won the South Dakota and California primaries, putting him in a strong position to claim the Democratic nomination for the presidency. Many believed that Kennedy, who had run on an optimistic, idealistic campaign, could not only defeat Richard Nixon, the presumptive Republican nominee, but also fundamentally transform the United States. Instead, RFK’s assassination changed history in a completely different way. Click here to view slideshow Just after midnight on June 5, Kennedy was shot by a 24-year-old assassin named Sirhan Sirhan at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles. Moments before, he'd triumphantly addressed an ebullient crowd in the hotel ballroom. Upon the conclusion of his speech, Kennedy stopped to greet staff in the hotel's kitchen pantry on his way to a press conference. As he shook hands with a busboy named Juan Romero, Sirhan stepped out of the shadows and fired eight shots, three of which hit Kennedy. Fatally wounded, the candidate fell to the ground. Romero dropped down with him as the panicked crowd scuffled with, disarmed, and detained RFK's assassin. Amid the commotion, Kennedy purportedly asked Romero if everyone was OK. Romero told him that everyone was fine. Then, Kennedy spoke some of his last words: "Everything's going to be OK." Robert F. Kennedy died roughly 24 hours later, in the early morning hours of June 6, 1968. With him died the promise of his optimistic campaign. That November, Richard Nixon was elected president. In the gallery above, discover the story of Robert F. Kennedy's assassination. Then, read on to learn more about the tragic death of the presidential candidate. The Idealistic Presidential Campaign Of 1968 By the time Robert F. Kennedy decided to run for president in 1968, his family had experienced considerable tragedy. Less than five years earlier, his brother, President John F. Kennedy, had been assassinated in Dallas, Texas. The nation endured dark times in the years following JFK's death. Not only was the United States reeling from the loss of a president, but the country had also become mired in the Vietnam War. The sitting Democratic president, Lyndon B. Johnson, was deeply unpopular. And so, on March 16, 1968, Senator Robert F. Kennedy of New York announced his intention to run for president against the incumbent of his own party. Sven Walnum, The Sven Walnum Photograph Collection/John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum, BostonRobert F. Kennedy speaking at a campaign stop in March 1968. "I am today announcing my candidacy for the presidency of the United States," Kennedy stated. "I do not run for the presidency merely to oppose any man but to propose new policies. I run because I am convinced that this country is on a perilous course and because I have such strong feelings about what must be done, and I feel that I'm obliged to do all that I can." Kennedy ran on a campaign that embraced civil rights, promising to unite Americans and end the war in Vietnam. When President Johnson declared just a few weeks after Kennedy's announcement that he would not run for reelection, it seemed more likely than ever that Robert F. Kennedy would be the Democratic nominee for president in 1968. But that summer, on a night that should have been a celebration, Robert F. Kennedy died after being fatally shot in Los Angeles. The Death Of RFK: Inside His Assassination At The Ambassador Hotel Though his campaign was short, Robert F. Kennedy quickly gained momentum. Winning the California and South Dakota primaries on June 5, 1968, all but secured his hold on the Democratic nomination. His supporters gathered that night at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles to celebrate. With his pregnant wife, Ethel, at his side, a jubilant Kennedy told the crowd: "We are a great country, an unselfish country, a compassionate country. And I intend to make that my basis for running... So my thanks to all of you and on to Chicago and let's win there." YouTubeRobert F. Kennedy speaking at the Ambassador Hotel. His pregnant wife, Ethel, stands next to him. Kennedy then left the stage. He planned to take a shortcut through the hotel's kitchens to meet with the press, but he paused to shake hands with the kitchen staff. He was greeting a busboy named Juan Romero when a young, slight man stepped forward from the crowd. His name was Sirhan Sirhan, and he was holding a gun. Before anyone could react, RFK's assassin lifted his weapon, aimed it at Kennedy, and fired off eight shots. Three hit the senator, who collapsed to the ground. Two bullets had entered Kennedy's upper back, and the fatal shot had smashed through his skull, just behind his right ear. Still, Kennedy was conscious enough to ask Romero if everyone was OK. Romero assured him that they were, though five other people in the room were wounded. Kennedy was still alive, but doctors were ultimately unable to save his life. Robert F. Kennedy died roughly 24 hours later, at 1:44 a.m. on June 6, 1968. He was 42 years old. The Aftermath Of Robert F. Kennedy's Assassination The assassination of Robert F. Kennedy sent the nation reeling, especially since it came just months after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. by James Earl Ray in Memphis. In the end, the Democratic nomination went to Hubert Humphrey, Johnson's vice president, who auspiciously won as anti-war riots broke out in Chicago. CBS Photo Archive/Getty ImagesProtestors face off with the National Guard outside of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. Meanwhile, investigators found that Sirhan Sirhan, who had been born in Palestine, seemingly bore a violent grudge against Kennedy for his stance on Israel. RFK's assassin had written about killing Kennedy in his journals, including entries that read: "RFK must be disposed of" and "Robert Fitzgerald Kennedy must soon die die die die die die die die die die." At his trial, as reported by The New York Times in 1971, RFK's assassin stated that Kennedy's support for Israel "burned me up; if he were in front of me, the way I felt then, so help me God, he would have died right then and there." Sirhan was ultimately sentenced to death but is now serving life in prison. He's also changed his story about the incident: RFK's assassin has since stated that he has no memory of killing Kennedy. His attorney has also claimed that Sirhan was brainwashed, and some, including Kennedy's own son, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., have suggested that Sirhan is innocent. They believe that the story of RFK's assassination has multiple inconsistencies, including the number of shots that people heard on the night of the tragedy. For now, at least, there's no evidence that anyone but Sirhan Sirhan was involved in Robert F. Kennedy's assassination. And, ultimately, Kennedy's death stands as a sad example of a historical what-if. If he had survived, could Kennedy's idealistic hopes for the United States have come true? Tragically, we'll never know. For a closer look at the assassination of RFK, look through the photos in the gallery above. After learning about RFK's assassination, discover the full story of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Or, go inside the mystery of who killed Malcolm X. The post 25 Haunting Photos Of Robert F. Kennedy’s Assassination During His 1968 Presidential Campaign appeared first on All That's Interesting.

WaPo: Trump Didn’t Back Venezuelan Opposition Leader Over Jealousy Over Nobel Peace Prize

Secretary of State Marco Rubio told lawmakers this week that President Donald Trump wants to acquire Greenland through a purchase, not military action, reviving a proposal that has drawn European backlash and renewed Arctic strategy debate.

Aldrich Ames, the former CIA counterintelligence officer whose treason helped Moscow dismantle U.S. spy networks and led to the deaths of American and allied assets, died Monday in federal custody, U.S. authorities confirmed to the Associated Press.

Indiana U.S. Rep. Jim Baird is expected to make a full recovery after his vehicle was struck in a car accident that hospitalized him, the Republican's office said Tuesday.

House Democrats marked the fifth anniversary of the Jan. 6 Capitol breach Tuesday with a hearing focused on democratic norms and political violence, while Republicans announced a new, GOP-led investigation toward unresolved security failures.