The week's good news: April 27, 2023

1. Gardener transforms seaweed into sustainable construction blocks

The invasive sargassum seaweed is no match for Omar de Jesús Vazquez Sánchez. It's been taking over beaches in Mexico and the Caribbean, likely due to climate change and pollution. Sargassum smells rotten, and gardeners like Vazquez have been hired to clear it. As he picked up pile after pile in Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, Vasquez decided to "mold something good out of something everyone saw as bad," he told The Christian Science Monitor. In 2018, Vasquez started SargaBlock, which turns sargassum into sustainable blocks used in construction. The sargassum is mixed with organic materials like clay and baked in the sun, and it's estimated these blocks will last 120 years. Since 2021, Vasquez has used nearly 6,000 tons of sargassum to make blocks, and has even utilized some of them to build affordable housing for single moms like Elizabeth Del Carmen Bonolla Lopéz, who told the Monitor, "Now when I see sargassum piling up, I think, 'That's no pest. It's my roof.'"

The Christian Science Monitor

2. New Barbie with Down's syndrome is 'a huge step forward for inclusion'

Mattel has unveiled its first Barbie with Down's syndrome, another move forward in ensuring that all children see themselves in their favorite toys. The company designed the doll in collaboration with the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) and medical experts. This Barbie has a new face, as well as a shorter frame and longer torso, "to be more illustrative of women with Down's syndrome," The Guardian writes. Model Ellie Goldstein, who has Down's syndrome, is featured in ads for the new doll, and said this Barbie makes her "so happy." The doll is part of the Barbie Fashionistas line, which includes a Barbie with a prosthetic leg and another that uses a wheelchair. NDSS President and CEO Kandi Pickard told The Guardian these toys are "a huge step forward for inclusion."

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The Guardian

3. With help from her dog, woman in need of a kidney transplant finds the perfect match

Lucy Humphrey has a new kidney — thanks to her donor, Katie James, and dog Indie, who sniffed James out. In 2016, Humphrey, who has lupus, was told she would only live for another five years without a kidney transplant. The Wales resident started dialysis and was put on a transplant list, but by June 2021, there still wasn't a match. During a day at the beach, Indie kept approaching James, who was sitting about 100 yards away. Humphrey and her partner apologized and invited James to their barbecue. During their conversation, Humphrey shared that she needed a kidney transplant, and James revealed she had just signed up to be on the donor registry. They exchanged numbers, and after James went through testing, doctors delivered the good news: she was a perfect match. The transplant was in October, and both women have recovered well. "It's the best thing I've ever done," James told BBC News.

BBC News

4. A brand new phosphorus material was discovered on a rock bought on eBay

A rock purchased on eBay is changing how scientists study phosphorus. Matthew Pasek, a geoscientist at the University of South Florida, spent around $100 on the rock, which came from a spot in New Port Richey, Florida, that had been hit by lightning. During an examination of the object, Pasek discovered a phosphorus material "similar to what scientists typically find in meteorites and outer space," Axios reports. However, "this is the first instance of it occurring naturally in solid form on Earth." Phosphorus is used to fertilize crops, but when too much of it gets into water, it can cause toxic algae blooms. Pasek and a team of researchers have studied this new material and how high-energy events like lightning strikes can lead to these reactions, and recently published some of their findings in Communications Earth & Environment. "Understanding the natural world and what solids are present is part of the understanding of how elements move, how we recycle things," Pasek told Axios.

Axios Communications Earth & Environment

5. An mRNA vaccine is being developed for Lyme disease

Two mRNA vaccines are in development that could prevent Lyme disease, the pharmaceutical company Moderna announced this week. The vaccine would become the first application of mRNA technology to bacterial pathogens. "Untreated, Lyme disease can be very serious," emergency physician and George Washington University Prof. Leana Wen told Axios. "Some people develop debilitating symptoms that really impact their lives." The disease comes from tick bites and can cause fever, chills, joint pain, and rashes; if left untreated, it can lead to facial palsy and heart palpitations. There are about 120,000 cases of Lyme reported each year in the U.S. and Europe.

Axios