At the top of annually, it’s easy to look back and see all of the challenges we’ve faced. Wars, economic hardship, health crises, natural disasters and crime might represent the lion’s share of the news alerts that flashed across our devices every day. Nevertheless, every single day, there are people on the planet making incredible things occur, and their stories are sure to bring you a smile.
As 2022 winds down, let’s shine a light-weight on among the positive news that made headlines but you could have missed, and even forgotten. In any case, it’s been an extended 12 months. Listed here are 22 stories from 2022 that made us smile or simply gave us a reason to rejoice.
U.S. NEWS
Lottery Player Becomes Overnight Billionaire
In November, one extremely lucky person from Southern California became a billionaire because of hitting the largest Powerball jackpot in history at $2.04 billion. With the lottery seeing no winners since Aug. 3, the grand prize reached its highest amount because it had hit $1.58 billion in 2016. That previous prize was split by three winners.
U.S. Currency to Feature Its First Asian-American Figure
The U.S. Mint announced in late October that Hollywood legend Anna May Wong can be a part of the American Women’s Quarters Series. Wong will likely be the fifth woman on this series and the primary Asian American to be featured on American money.
American Travel Rebounds After Early-Pandemic Lows
After nearly two years of sticking near home as a consequence of concerns over COVID-19, Americans began packing up and hitting the roads and skies in earnest this 12 months. Travel within the U.S. has been steadily climbing as people look to return to their pre-pandemic travel routines. Airlines and tourist destinations are working to satisfy demand that has grown for people to get away from all of it or finally spend time with long-distance family and friends in person.
WORLD NEWS
France Dedicates Memorial to Its Hero Dogs
In recognition of their service to the French people and military, the French Army’s canine infantry was celebrated in October with a memorial dedication and tribute. Greater than 500 dogs, many wearing their military honors, were in attendance (together with their service people) for the statue’s dedication.
Finland and Sweden on Verge of Joining NATO
After a long time of neutrality policies, each Finland and Sweden requested to hitch the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in May. The unprecedented move to align with NATO got here in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February. Membership requires approval from all 30 member nations. In August, the U.S. Senate voted overwhelmingly to welcome the 2 Nordic countries to the alliance. The brand new members may very well be granted membership early in 2023.
Family Connections Found Amongst Neanderthals
Family ties are strong, and researchers are taking a look at how they even played a job within the lives of our most distant ancestors. Studies in 2022 on Neanderthal stays present in Serbia show evidence that our distant relatives could have lived in familial communities just like ours. There’s comfort in knowing that, regardless of how much life has modified since then, family continues to be vital.
SPORTS NEWS
NBA Star Brittney Griner Goes Home
After nearly a 12 months in Russian custody, Brittney Griner — a star basketball champion on the NCAA, WNBA and Olympic levels — was released in a prisoner exchange on Dec. 8 in what should have felt like a Christmas miracle to her family, friends and fans. The next day, she arrived in her home state of Texas, where she was given immediate medical care.
Griner, 32, was arrested in February at a Russian airport after she was accused of getting cannabis oil inside vape cartridges. A Russian court sentenced her to nine years in prison in August and an appeal was rejected in October, making her outlook for release look grim.
Aaron Judge Breaks Legendary MLB Record
Recent York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge brought renewed mainstream attention to Major League Baseball in 2022 when he stalked and at last broke a record of legendary stature. On Oct. 4, Judge hit his 62nd home run of the season, breaking the American League single-season record for home runs that had stood since Yankee Roger Maris hit 61 in 1961, surpassing Babe Ruth on the time.
On Dec. 7, Judge was rewarded with a $360-million contract to maintain him within the Bronx for nine more years.
U.S. Men’s Soccer Makes Run at World Cup
American soccer fans had plenty to cheer about on the FIFA World Cup. For some time, the U.S. Men’s National Team made quite a run in probably the most prestigious international tournament — after not even getting a bid to play in 2018. The 2022 squad made it to the round of 16, where they faced a formidable Netherlands squad. It was the farthest the American men had made it within the World Cup since 2002, after they reached the quarterfinals.
U.S. Women’s Soccer Reaches Pay Equity Agreement
In February, the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team reached a $24 million settlement of their six-year legal battle with the game’s governing body over pay equity with the boys’s national team. Along with the settlement payout, the U.S. Soccer Federation pledged to pay the ladies and men equally in future contracts. Though many of the settlement will go to claimants to cover the wage gap, $2 million was earmarked for a charitable fund designed to support girls’ and girls’s soccer.
MLB Manager Wins Long-Awaited Ring
Three-time manager of the 12 months Dusty Baker waited an awful very long time to be called a World Series winner. After 1 / 4 of a century as manager for plenty of teams who almost earned him the elusive world championship, Baker, 73, finally hoisted the trophy when his Houston Astros knocked off the Philadelphia Phillies in six games.
ENTERTAINMENT NEWS
Musicians Return to Live Performances in Big Ways
Live performances made a powerful comeback in 2022 as major artists launched latest concert tours. One legendary performer, Elton John, used 2022 to proceed his lengthy final tour, Farewell Yellow Brick Road.
Taylor Swift Sets Billboard Record
Taylor Swift once more dominated music headlines late in 2022. She released her latest album, “Midnights,” on Oct. 21 and quickly shattered a Billboard Hot 100 record when songs from the record claimed the entire Top 10 of the chart in a single week.
Following that triumph, though, presale tickets for Swift’s 2023 Eras concert tour went on sale on Nov. 15, resulting in unprecedented demand and stress on Ticketmaster systems — and disappointment for a lot of fans who couldn’t get tickets.
Dolly Parton Joins Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Though the country music legend first declined the invitation, saying she felt she wasn’t worthy, Dolly Parton lit up the stage in Los Angeles as a part of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 2022 class. An awesome wave of support from the organization and fans convinced the “Jolene” singer to simply accept the award and take part in the Nov. 5 event where she even sang alongside fellow inductees Judas Priest for a collaboration no person predicted.
Beyoncé and Jay-Z Reach Grammy Milestones
Arguably music’s most influential couple, Beyoncé and Jay-Z, each had reasons to rejoice when this 12 months’s Grammy nominations got here out in November. First, each musician earned multiple nominations for his or her 2022 releases, with Beyonce’s nine nods tying a single-year record — set by Jay-Z. But, that pales to the huge Grammy record milestone hit by each artist for total nominations of their careers. They’ll compete against one another in the distinguished category of song of the 12 months, as Beyoncé’s “Break My Soul” goes against DJ Khaled’s “God Did,” which features her spouse.
Movies Returned—And So Did Favorite Franchises
From “Wakanda Eternally” to “Top Gun: Maverick,” movie sequels made big waves on the silver screen in 2022. Tom Cruise’s return to his role because the rules-defying aviator took the top spot within the domestic box office in 2022, grossing $718 million, followed by the “Black Panther” sequel, earning $418 gross domestically. “Jurassic Park: Dominion” took the fourth spot, and the brand new Minions movie, “Minions: The Rise of Gru,” got here in fifth for the 12 months. Meanwhile, stories from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, including movies featuring Doctor Strange and Thor, snapped up spots in the highest 10 as well.
TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE
NASA’s Webb Telescope Takes Us Deep Into Space
NASA shared its first images from the James Webb Space Telescope in July, and it was clear from the primary that the futuristic $10 billion telescope would show the world far more than galaxies far, distant. Because it began transmitting images back to Earth, the telescope has shown us dying stars, dancing galaxies and images from deeper in space than we’ve ever seen before.
Texas Hospital Makes Strides in Prosthetics
Amputee patients got more reasons to be hopeful this 12 months, because of the work of surgeons at TIRR Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston. The hospital’s highly trained orthopedic surgeons are providing a latest procedure that would eliminate the necessity for traditional prosthetic limbs by implanting titanium into leg bones and turning it right into a working joint.
Detroit Auto Show Returns, and Electric Cars Go Mainstream
After a three-year break, the Detroit Auto Show returned and saw electric cars take center stage. What once was considered a fad or a luxury item is now becoming a mainstream trend in auto sales, and manufacturers are also pledging to roll out more electric vehicles in the approaching years.
Cities Embrace Zoom, Lure Staff To Relocate
n the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many staff learned the ins and outs of using Zoom to telecommute. Meetings were moved online and job roles modified drastically as we adapted to living in quarantine. Nevertheless, plenty of cities and towns have branded themselves “Zoom Towns” to entice individuals with a supportive work-at-home incentive. It means more freedom for American staff, with reference to where they’ll live and the way much commuting they should do, which is cause for a lot of to rejoice.
Wordle Tops Search Traffic
You would possibly think that heavier topics dominated online search traffic in 2022, but it surely was actually something far more fun that topped the rostrum. Wordle, the viral word game that challenges everyone to search out the identical word in six guesses or less, was the most searched topic in 2022, in accordance with Google.
The sport edged searches in regards to the late Queen Elizabeth for the year-end honor. Nevertheless, for some Wordle players, its popularity could be coloured by one other story from 2022: A report found that because the Recent York Times acquired the sport, there was a rise in searches for the every day word that indicates an increase in Wordle cheating.
Recent Drug Shows Promise In Slowing Alzheimer’s Disease
A clinical trial of the brand new drug lecanemab gave hope to friends and relations of individuals living with Alzheimer’s. Within the study, participants who received the drug had moderately less cognitive decline than those that took the placebo. The drug targets amyloid plaques, which researchers imagine play a job within the disease. Experts in Alzheimer’s say that with such an advanced disease, having yet one more drug available will likely be a welcome addition for doctors as they treat patients.
Meanwhile, individuals who work with adults with dementia are exploring latest treatments as well, and a few are finding that music could be a powerful type of therapy for memory loss.
