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Hello Friends! What do you know for sure, in the depths of your core? This week's stories skate the spectrum of being lost, found, and the process of finding. For thousands of years, the skill of wayfinding uses a navigation system of stars, ocean waves, bird flight patterns, and a practice of discernment. Today, despite the fact that technology can track our location at the tap of a finger, wayfinding has inspired a resurgence of traditional sailing! In an era of rapid change and uncertainty, it's not uncommon to lose sight of life's deeper intentions. But the journey of finding is one that connects us all. May these stories remind us that the journey is the destination -- and of the joy in lifting each other up along the way!
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Braden Jarvis | Unsplash
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A double-hulled Polynesian sailing canoe glides up to a busy dock in San Diego, California. Hōkūleʻa's two short wooden masts are dwarfed by the historic schooner that escorted it into the harbor. Dozens of small outrigger canoes trail in its wake, honoring the crew's arrival. The celebration in San Diego is partly to honor Hōkūleʻa's 2,800-mile voyage down the west coast of North America with no compass, charts or GPS. It is also about honoring this small craft's leading role in inspiring a cultural renaissance in traditional sailing that has rippled well beyond the Hawaiian shores where it was launched 49 years ago. First launched in O'ahu in 1975, Hōkūleʻa means "star of gladness" – the Hawaiian name for the zenith star used in celestial navigation, better known as Arcturus, which appears directly over Hawaii. The Polynesian Voyaging Society constructed the replica of an ocean-voyaging canoe to disprove the theory that ancient Polynesians drifted across the Pacific instead of purposefully navigating to their desired destinations. Since then, the craft has inspired many people to re-learn the traditional skill of wayfinding, navigating without instruments.
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Pixabay | Pexels
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Experts say that a simple test that can identify 18 early-stage cancers could represent a medical "gamechanger". Writing in the journal BMJ Oncology, the team from US biotech firm Novelna, said: "This finding is the foundation for a multi-cancer screening test for the early detection of 18 solid tumors that cover all major human organs of origin for such cancers at the earliest stage of their development with high accuracy." They added: "These findings pave the way for a cost-effective, highly accurate, multi-cancer screening test that can be implemented on a population-wide scale." However, the team said their relatively small sample size meant further studies were needed in bigger groups of people. Blood plasma samples were collected from 440 people diagnosed with 18 different types of cancer, and from 44 healthy blood donors.
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Handout via The Guardian
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Shalom Koray, a Holocaust survivor who was smuggled out of the Warsaw ghetto at the age of two, has discovered his long-lost family at the age of 83 with the help of a DNA test. Hidden in orphanages after the war, Koray's identity remained unknown until recently when a Polish academic, Magdalena Smo-czyńska, researched the fates of Holocaust survivors in orphanages. Smoczyńska approached Koray for a DNA test, and a match was found with Ann Meddin Hellman in the US, who was tracing her ancestry. The test revealed that Koray is likely the grandson of Hellman's relative who emigrated in 1893, saving his side of the family from the Holocaust. This discovery brings closure and family connection to Koray, emphasizing the impact of technology and research in reuniting Holocaust survivors with their roots.
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Jerome Delay | AP Photos
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Cameroon will be the first country to routinely give children a new malaria vaccine as the shots are rolled out in Africa. The continent accounts for 95% of the world's malaria deaths. The Central Africa nation hopes to vaccinate about 250,000 children this year and next year, using the first of two recently approved malaria vaccines, Mosquirix. The shot is only about 30% effective, requires four doses and protection begins to fade after several months; GSK can only produce about 15 million doses of Mosquirix a year. A second malaria vaccine developed by Oxford University and approved by WHO in October is cheaper, requires three doses and India's Serum Institute could make up to 200 million doses a year. Gavi hopes enough of the Oxford vaccines will be available to begin immunizing people later this year. As neither of the malaria vaccines stop transmission, other tools like bed nets and insecticidal spraying will still be critical.
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Mikhail Nilov/Pexels
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New York City intends to wipe out more than $2 billion in medical debt for up to 500,000 residents, tackling a top cause of personal bankruptcy. The city is working with RIP Medical Debt, a nonprofit that buys medical debt in bulk from hospitals and debt collectors for pennies on the dollar. The group targets the debt of people with low incomes or financial hardships and then forgives the amounts. Under the program, the city will spend $18 million over three years. "For middle- and working-class New Yorkers, medical bills can be financially devastating," said Mayor Eric Adams. "If you are able to ... save $2 billion in debt, that $2 billion trickles down to those households, who are not going to fall into our safety net," he said. "They're not going to fall into our homeless system."
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