Amazing
Twins Turn Chance Encounter With Steve Irwin Into Lifelong Pursuit of Animal Conservation
Paula and Bridgette Powers were just another pair of twins living in Australia when they met Steve Irwin. At the time, Irwin had been in a carrier with a crew of camera people. Getting the call to visit the Australia Zoo to assist with a sick sea turtle, Irwin had dove into the water while still wearing his boots — that was just the kind of person Steve Irwin was.
When Steve found himself face-to-face with the turtle, he also met the twins that had been treating the creature. Paula and Bridgette were known by their friends as the Twinnies, and they were equally excited to meet Steve. The meeting would become momentous as it fueled the twin’s ambitions to do more with their lives in the area of animal rights and conservation. Steve was fascinated by the Twins and the trio got off to an electric start. Says Bob Irwin of his son Steve, “He had a skill for being able to recognize special things that people might have.”
Path Towards Seabird Rehabilitation
While this meeting with Steve proved to be quite momentous, it wasn’t the only defining step along the path for Paula and Bridgette. The twins had been forced to leave school at the young age of ten due to health-related issues. Despite leaving school behind at a young age, the sisters wouldn’t give up on their aspirations. Helen, the children’s mother, would say, “What’s a mum supposed to do?”
The chance meeting with Steve Irwin would guide the twins toward what would become their calling, work at the Australia Zoo as well as the establishment of their charity, Twinnies Pelican and Seabird Rescue. At the time of this writing, the Twin’s charity has been operational for more than 21 years, providing services to help animals recover and acclimate to the wild once more.
Claire Smith is a friend of the twins as well as a fellow worker in the wildlife rescue field. Claire pointed out that Paula and Bridgette both had a seemingly ‘incredible ability’ to read birds and to better understand what was going wrong with them. Claire also says, “Nobody else has gone that far in understanding the psyche of birds…”
What makes the Twinnies a particularly notable story is the quirk that goes along with their relationship: the way that they speak at the same time! After showing up for an interview on Good Morning Britain, anchor Piers Morgan would say of the twins, “It’s one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen.”
For their own part, Paula and Bridgette don’t seem too bothered by the Twinning aspect of their relationship. The Twinnies allege that they ‘feel complete’ when they are dressed in completely identical clothing, though they note that they have tried dressing differently than one another.
While there is a lot that goes into the Twinnies’ relationship, friends like Claire don’t want people to get Paula and Bridgette mistaken. Claire says, “People make the mistake of seeing them as some sort of novelty.”
The truth is, at least according to those who know the twins, that Paula and Bridgette are among the leading experts in their area of expertise. Claire says, “They are experts, absolute pros.”
Jeff Craig is an epigenetics researcher at Deakin University, and he had nothing but glowing words for the twins. Craig says, “I’ve heard such twins described as two bodies and one soul. I think that’s a perfect way to talk about them.”
Google is making strides in the world of artificial intelligence (AI), particularly with a system that could revolutionize how doctors diagnose diseases. Imagine a world where your cough could be the key to an early diagnosis of illnesses like COVID-19 or tuberculosis. Google’s AI, known as Health Acoustic Representations (HeAR), is a step towards this future.
HeAR has been trained on millions of audio clips that capture a wide range of human sounds, including coughs. This massive collection of sounds is what sets HeAR apart. It allows the AI to learn and identify the unique characteristics of different respiratory diseases.
Traditionally, doctors diagnose diseases based on symptoms, tests, and sometimes, the sounds of a patient’s cough or breathing. However, this method can be subjective and limited by the doctor’s experience. Google’s AI system aims to make this process more objective and accurate by using machine learning. This means that the AI can improve its diagnostic abilities over time, learning from the vast array of sounds it has been trained on.
Dr. Yael Bensoussan, a laryngologist at the University of South Florida, points out that while supervised learning in medicine has its benefits, such as clinical validation, it’s often restricted by the availability of annotated data sets. HeAR’s approach overcomes this by learning from a vast and diverse set of sounds, not limited to annotated or labeled data.
In the near future, this AI could assist physicians in diagnosing diseases more quickly and accurately. It might even help in assessing lung function, providing a valuable tool in managing and treating respiratory illnesses.
The development of HeAR by Google represents an exciting advancement in the use of AI in medicine. It showcases the potential of machine learning to enhance diagnostic processes and improve patient outcomes, making it a fascinating development in the field of medical technology.
In Dallas, there’s a man named Ron Post who made a huge difference in the lives of millions of people needing health care. His journey began 45 years ago when he saw something on the news that changed his life.
Post and his wife were watching a report about Cambodian refugees fleeing to Thailand from the Khmer Rouge’s “Killing Fields,” where about 2 million people died due to starvation, overwork, and execution. One image struck him hard: the frail body of a teenage girl, which reminded him of his own daughter. This moment touched his heart deeply, and he felt a strong call to take action.
“I believe God put it in my heart that I was to raise up a medical team, and I was to help them,” Post said. And that’s exactly what he did. Although he was a Dallas-based business owner with no experience in medicine, Post’s determination was unstoppable. Within just two weeks, he managed to raise $250,000 and gathered a group of 28 volunteers. Together, they traveled to Thailand to offer their assistance at a refugee camp.
That act of kindness and determination was the start of something much bigger. The organization he founded, Medical Teams International, has grown significantly over the years. Today, it helps around 3 million refugees across eight different camps, providing them with the medical care they desperately need.
But Medical Teams International didn’t stop there. They expanded their services and now operate 13 mobile dental clinics, reaching about 25,000 people every year. These clinics travel to different locations, offering dental care to those who otherwise might not have access to it.
Ron Post’s story shows how one person’s compassion and drive can lead to extraordinary achievements. From his initial heartfelt response to a crisis far from home, he built an organization that continues to provide vital health services to millions of people. Medical Teams International stands as a testament to what can be achieved when someone decides to make a positive change in the world.
In Paradise, California, a community came together to find a much-loved cat named Dundee, who had survived the devastating 2018 Camp Fire. Dundee’s adventure began when his owner, Suise Heffernan, took him to the vet. After the appointment, she stopped to get pet food, locking her truck with Dundee inside. But when she returned, the truck and Dundee were gone.
Surveillance footage from a nearby store showed someone breaking into the vehicle and driving off with Dundee still inside. Heffernan was especially worried because Dundee has a thyroid condition and needed his medication.
The whole community of Paradise stepped up to help find Dundee. After four long days, their efforts paid off, and Dundee was found. Heffernan had adopted Dundee in 2018, just before the Camp Fire. She lost her home, a barn, and hundreds of acres of timber in the fire. Despite being displaced, Dundee transformed from a feral cat into a warm and cuddly companion.
One community member pleaded, “Just return the cat! Trucks can be replaced, and anyone living on the ridge has lost so much already.” Heffernan shared her agony over not knowing Dundee’s whereabouts, a feeling she knew all too well from losing another cat in the Camp Fire.
Heffernan and her friends, along with independent volunteers, continued their search. Finally, on Saturday, they received a call from someone who had Dundee. A group drove to Chico that evening, where Heffernan was reunited with Dundee, who started purring immediately.
Heffernan expressed her gratitude for the community’s support: “There’s something about the people – they just come together and they are there for you. I just can’t even imagine the hours that people that I’ll never meet put in on his behalf. It is so appreciated.”
This heartwarming story showcases the power of community and the unbreakable bond between humans and their pets.
In a remarkable display of veterinary ingenuity, a grasshopper at a Texas zoo was fitted with a miniature “neck brace” after experiencing a unique health issue. The grasshopper, a stick-like breed known as a Peruvian jumping stick, recently underwent a common process for insects: molting. At around six months old, these grasshoppers shed their exoskeleton, allowing for growth. However, this particular grasshopper faced a challenge after molting.
According to a recent zoo blog post, the grasshopper had a weakened area around part of its body resembling a “neck” due to a crease in its thoracic region. This crease caused its head to flop backward when climbing upwards, as these grasshoppers spend most of their time in tree branches.
To address this issue, zookeepers developed a miniature neck brace to temporarily support the insect’s neck in a neutral position while its exoskeleton hardened. The brace was created using a sterile Q-tip shaft and microspore tape to secure it. This innovative solution allowed the grasshopper to continue its normal activities without further injury.
The zoo emphasized the importance of providing exceptional care to all its animals, regardless of their size. “Whether it’s a mammal, reptile, bird, or even insect, all of our animals receive extraordinary care from our veterinary team, no matter how big or small it may be,” the zoo stated.
This story highlights the dedication of zookeepers and veterinarians to the well-being of all creatures in their care and showcases the creative approaches they take to ensure the health and safety of even the smallest residents.
In a story that sounds like it’s straight out of a movie, a dog named Ullr, who had been missing for almost a year, was finally spotted alive and well. Ullr, a mix of Border Collie and Rottweiler, had been living in the wild all by himself after surviving an avalanche. For Jacob Dalbey, Ullr’s owner, this news was the light at the end of a very long and dark tunnel.
Jacob Dalbey’s world turned upside down on March 17, when he was caught in an avalanche near Chair Mountain while skiing with friends. The terrifying incident left Jacob seriously injured and hospitalized, and tragically, one of his friends did not survive. Amidst the chaos, Ullr, who was with them, ran away from the avalanche site. Rescue teams later found dog tracks leading away from the debris, sparking hope that Ullr had survived.
For 341 days, Jacob never gave up hope of finding his beloved pet. He set up trail cameras and left food in various locations, hoping to lure Ullr into view. And then, on a day that seemed like any other, the unimaginable happened. Ullr was captured on a trail camera not once, but two days in a row. “After 341 days, 11 months to the day…it has happened,” Jacob shared on his GoFundMe page, a platform where he had been updating supporters and raising funds to aid in the search for Ullr.
The joy and relief in Jacob’s message were palpable as he thanked his friends and supporters for their unwavering belief and support. “Knowing you believe in us really means a lot,” he wrote, acknowledging the tough journey and the difference their support made.
Jacob’s next steps are focused on bringing Ullr safely back home. In the meantime, he has asked for the community’s help in keeping an eye out for any signs of Ullr, including pawprints, barking, or sightings.
Jacob’s harrowing experience during the avalanche, where he was buried under the snow for over three hours with a broken hand and frostbitten fingers, adds a layer of awe to Ullr’s survival story. Jacob’s determination to dig himself out and survive mirrored Ullr’s own fight for survival in the wild.