Good Week — #1

Hello, friends, and welcome to Good Week, our good-news roundup for the week of June 20 — issue No. 1. Tea is hot, headlines are kind, and yes, Jack, I am ready to be delighted.

That is a promising start. And we do have a gem to open with — a very human, very practical breakthrough.

UC Davis demonstrated a brain-computer interface that let a severely paralyzed 47-year-old participant type text and control a cursor — and he’s working full-time with it. That is the kind of sentence you want to hear on a Monday, or any day.

It is. The team used decoding algorithms to translate neural signals into on-screen characters and cursor movements. The key outcome here isn’t a lab trick; it’s everyday agency — writing, clicking, doing your job.

I love that they didn’t stop at “we decoded a signal,” but showed how it folds right back into a normal life. That is the dream: tech that quietly disappears into the background so someone can just get on with their day.

And to be clear, this is a demonstration, not a mass-market device you can buy this afternoon. But it’s a proof that the approach works at a level that matters: communication, productivity, independence.

If you needed one reason to feel good about where brain tech is headed, that person at a keyboard is it. Congratulations to the UC Davis team — and to the participant who is showing what’s possible.

Agreed. Quiet milestone, big impact.

Let’s slide into a “people-first health” corner, because there are some wins you can feel in daily life — starting with sunscreen. The Food and Drug Administration approved the UV filter bemotrizinol for over-the-counter sunscreens, adding it to the list for the first time in more than two decades. That means more options on the shelf.

More options, more formulations, same goal: better protection. The approval expands the ingredient toolkit for U.S. sunscreen makers, which has lagged behind some other markets.

The other seasonal helper is a vote of confidence for older adults: a federal advisory committee voted 9–0 to recommend Moderna’s mRNA influenza vaccine for people 50 and up. That unanimous nod says, “Yes, bring this to the lineup.”

Important qualifier: this was the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee. It’s a recommendation step, not the final word. But a 9–0 vote is notable. The panel reviewed company data and liked what it saw for that age group.

I like what I see: better sun protection, more flu tools for parents and grandparents and all the folks who power families. It’s not flashy — it’s useful.

The best public health often is.

Staying with health, three more practical stories with a heart underneath them. First, the Department of Veterans Affairs looked at more than a million veterans and found that the latest COVID-19 booster lowered the risk of major cardiovascular events and deaths. That’s powerful.

The analysis compared veterans who got the updated booster at the same time as their seasonal flu shot to those who received only the flu shot. Lower cardiovascular risk and mortality in the boosted group — that is a real-world data point with weight behind it.

Second, for people using weight-loss medications: a study presented at a major endocrine meeting found that patients with type 2 diabetes who used semaglutide-based drugs had 15 percent fewer bone fractures than those on other weight-loss medications. That is a striking secondary benefit.

And here’s the precision: it was a retrospective analysis of medical records presented by a researcher at the Endocrine Society’s annual meeting in Chicago. It shows an association — not proof of causation — but it is encouraging.

Third, if you’ve stopped GLP-1 therapy and worry about weight regain, a minimally invasive procedure called duodenal mucosal resurfacing helped trial participants retain more than 80 percent of the weight they had lost after stopping. That’s a mouthful to say, but it could be a meaningful bridge for people navigating life after the meds.

The team evaluating it — a weight center physician and colleagues — reported on safety and efficacy in a clinical investigation. Early signals suggest it can help preserve weight loss after discontinuation.

The throughline here is gentle: protection and support. A booster that quietly guards the heart, a medication that may also be friendly to bones, a procedure that helps people keep the gains they’ve worked so hard for.

Small hinges, big doors.

Time to wander into science, with the promise that we keep it friendly and curious, not head-spinning. First stop: space, where an observatory we all learned to pronounce is earning its laurels.

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope cleared all 344 identified single-point failure risks associated with its launch and deployment. It is now operating at roughly one kilowatt of power at the Sun–Earth L2 point. In short: they identified the things that could go wrong, designed safeguards, and made it through. And it sips power for something that unfurls the cosmos for us.

The idea that it’s running on about a kilowatt out there — it’s like a very patient lamp that can see galaxies. I will never get tired of that.

Nor will I.

Back on Earth and way back in time, archaeologists uncovered a 5,000-year-old wooden structure near Stonehenge — two upright poles lined up with the midsummer sunrise and midwinter sunset. The alignment suggests people used it to mark the solstices, and some researchers think it could be a kind of prototype for what came later in stone.

Two poles, big ideas. It’s a reminder that precision and meaning don’t always require massive monuments — sometimes just knowing where the sun touches the horizon can knit a community together.

And for the delightfully theoretical: researchers reported that a large number of light axion particles predicted by string theory could increase the spin of primordial black holes. The idea is that Hawking emission of many axion species transfers angular momentum, and those ancient black holes end up spinning faster.

This is a theoretical study, not a direct observation. It lives in the land of “if the universe has these particles, here’s a surprising consequence.” But it is an elegant example of how big-picture physics can generate testable ideas.

Curiosity as a lifestyle choice — endorsed.

Sports fans, your week is sparkling. The United States men’s national soccer team beat Australia 2–0 in Seattle and moved on to the World Cup round of 32. That follows a 4–1 win over Paraguay — momentum looks good.

Getting through to the next round is always the job; doing it with a clean sheet helps the nerves. Good week for them.

Mexico also clinched top spot in Group A with a 1–0 win over South Korea. It stayed scoreless until the second half, when a mishandled cross opened the door and Mexico walked right through it. Top of the group, ticket punched.

And in a blast of history, Argentina opened with a 3–0 win over Algeria, and Lionel Messi scored a hat trick to tie the all-time World Cup scoring record. That is a sentence that sounds like folklore, except it just happened.

The man keeps turning record books into diaries. It’s wild.

Basketball next: the New York Knicks are set to face the San Antonio Spurs in the 2026 NBA Finals. It’s the Knicks’ first Finals since 1999 and the Spurs’ first since 2014, and reporting says the series is currently tilted in the Knicks’ favor.

New York is ready to exhale, cautiously. It’s a great matchup — classic pedigree on both sides.

On the ice, reports said the Carolina Hurricanes secured their second Stanley Cup with a 3–0 win over the Vegas Golden Knights. That is a cup for the cabinet and a shutout to seal it.

That’s a trio of happy fan bases and a lot of celebratory playlists.

Hydrate, celebrate, repeat.

To culture now. Chicago had a proud moment as the Obama Presidential Center was dedicated in Jackson Park, with an invitation-only ceremony that featured performances by major artists and a guest list of former presidents and first ladies.

The dedication took place on June 18. It marks the formal opening of a space that will function as a community and cultural anchor — archives and programs, but also a place to gather.

I love when civic spaces remember to be joyful spaces, too — not just rooms for history, but stages for the next thing to start. If you were there, I hope your camera roll is full; if you weren’t, the ripple is still real.

Ceremonies matter. They tell you where a city believes its future should sit.

Right in the park, with music, feels about right.

Let’s talk pocketbook positives. There were signs of easing tensions and markets taking a breath. The president announced the cancellation of planned strikes against Iran, citing progress toward a possible peace agreement, and markets rallied on cease-fire hopes. Later, a provisional agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was signed, and the national average for regular gasoline fell below four dollars per gallon.

Two quick notes. One: cancellation of strikes and a memorandum about reopening a critical waterway were described as progress toward de-escalation — good news, but still provisional. Two: the national average at three ninety-nine was specifically reported. For anyone filling up: round numbers feel different.

They really do. Meanwhile, Hong Kong climbed to second place in a global competitiveness ranking from the International Institute for Management Development — a strong signal for its economic momentum.

In the business-of-space category, SpaceX’s chief operating officer talked about her job as translating big ambitions into realistic schedules while keeping investors informed. She emphasized that realistic planning is how you actually hit long-term goals.

Music to the ears of anyone who has ever moved a deadline from “Thursday” to “a real Thursday.”

And on tech’s labor future, one founder said at a major conference that artificial intelligence would widen the labor gap rather than replace workers, because it will greenlight more ideas than we have people to build. It’s a counterintuitive hope: more demand for human hands.

I like the thought that clever tools expand horizons instead of shrinking them — more “help me make this” than “do this for me.”

Ambition tends to be job-creating.

On the world stage, some constructive movement. The European Union resumed formal accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova in Luxembourg after a veto was lifted. Ambassadors agreed to reopen membership negotiations — a procedural step, but a meaningful one.

Process matters. Reopening those talks signals a direction and a timetable.

In the United States, a Jackson County judge in Missouri struck down several state abortion restrictions, finding them inconsistent with a voter-approved constitutional amendment. That nullified a 72-hour waiting period and an in-person medication requirement.

And the governor of Ohio called for abolishing the state’s death penalty, arguing that evidence shows it does not deter violent crime. It’s a policy stance with a clear data claim attached to it.

At a summit lunch in France, leaders met with heads of major AI firms — OpenAI, Google DeepMind, Anthropic, Mistral and others — to talk about risks from frontier models. The message was joint action, shared responsibility.

And one more diplomatic note: there were phone calls between President Donald J. Trump and the leaders of Ukraine and Russia before the summit, discussing the war and prospects for peace. Talks are not outcomes, but the fact of conversation is notable.

Progress is sometimes a door opening. It’s good to hear hinges moving.

Better than rust.

Climate and infrastructure brought a big swing this week: the SunZia high-voltage direct-current line began delivering wind power from New Mexico to the Southwest, sending electricity to Arizona and California. The project is about eleven billion dollars, and it can transmit up to three point six five gigawatts.

That capacity is large — enough to make a dent you can feel on regional grids. The key is long-distance transmission from good wind territory to big demand centers.

And it is not just a line on a map; it’s a line of clean air in people’s lungs, a little more stability on a hot afternoon, a little less noise from old machines. I like that this is not a “someday” piece — it is operational now.

Correct. Operational and delivering power. The less glamorous backbone work — wires, substations, permits — is what actually moves the needle.

Here is to the teams that turn maps into megawatts.

And to the people who will barely notice, which is a sign it’s working.

That’s our lap around the bright side. If you want more of this calm, grounded good-news energy, come visit factslane.com — and grab the app on the App Store or Google Play. There is a Zen mode in there, which is like this show: only positive news, none of the doom scroll.

If you found a story here that lightened your day, pass it to someone who could use the lift. Share the oxygen.

Thank you for spending time with us. Take care of yourselves and each other, and we’ll see you next week.

Be well, everyone.