Salt crystal flares are fired into the updraft of suitable clouds in the UAE in the hope that it will trigger more rainfall. The idea is that water vapour condenses around the salt, crystallises to form ice and then falls as rain. Only natural salts and no harmful chemicals are used in the seeding operations. The UAE established the Research Programme for Rain Enhancement in 2015 to look into ways to tackle water security. https://www.thenational.ae/uae/environment/six-cloud-seeding-missions-over-uae-in-past-two-days-1.693975

Homeshare has the potential to combat loneliness and change the face of social care, starting in the UK. How? Homeshare enables two unrelated people to share a home for mutual benefit. The Homesharer benefits from low cost accommodation, while the Householder receives companionship and practical help in and around their home. https://homeshareuk.org/

The first stage of new light rail tracks were opened before Christmas in George St Sydney and decorated. I?m looking forward to the light rail coming to the top of my street in Randwick!

In the same way you can go into a library today and look through newspapers and other documentation, the NSW State Library's?new social media archive?creates?a collection of data that will allow?researchers?in the future to gain insights into?the life and times of people living in New South Wales in the digital age. The Library identifies keywords and hashtags to collect.?The Archive?then?gathers?the?social media posts?that contain these keywords and hashtags?from a range of sources, including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. You can view the latest activity and the?hourly emotion clock on the?Live?section?of?archive?or search for a specific topic or hashtag in the?Explorer?section. The image above shows current thoughts on Education with an emotion clock that looks positive.  

Suns of Mercury is a creative collaboration between musicians around the world that blends folklore with emerging styles to create new music. They aim to build common ground across languages and cultures with music. www.sunsofmercury.com

Scientists from the Centre of Sustainable Chemical Technologies (CSCT) at the University of Bath have successfully created a plastic that doesn't use harmful chemicals, and is biodegradable. It's made from nothing more than sugar and carbon dioxide. http://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/10/scientists-have-made-biodegradable-plastic-from-sugar-and-carbon-dioxide