The week's good news: December 13, 2018

1. New studies suggest coral reefs are more resilient than previously thought

Hundreds of the Great Barrier Reef's coral species are blossoming deeper in the ocean than biologists previously thought, a report published by The Royal Society revealed. Growing farther away from direct sunlight could save these species from coral bleaching caused by climate change and prove essential for their conservation. Scientists initially thought only a few species could grow more than 100 feet from the surface, but it turns out 195 species can actually grow in the shady, cold depths, the study found. When shallow-water corals die off, scientists might be able to "transplant" these "deep ocean corals" and repopulate the surface. Another recent study published in Nature found that corals that survive one season of bleaching tend to tolerate hotter temperatures the following year. It's not great that any corals are dying, scientists assure, but at least this suggests the strongest ones will live on and repopulate the reef.

The Royal Society Nature

2. America returns treasured church bells it stole during the Philippine-American war

A set of treasured Philippine church bells will soon ring where they belong once again. The Bells of Balangiga first hung in a Catholic church in the Spanish-colonized Philippines. But the island nation came under U.S. control in 1898, quickly sparking the Philippine-American war. Balangiga was the site of a particularly harsh killing of U.S. troops, and after winning the war, Americans stole the bells. Since then, ambassadors and presidents from both countries worked to get the bells sent back, America's ambassador to the Philippines told Fox News. On Tuesday, the U.S. finally returned them. Some American veterans and officials wanted to hold onto the bells as "memorials to American war dead," AP writes. But President Trump's administration, namely Defense Secretary James Mattis, said the move would benefit America's national security and strengthen its relationship with the island country.

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The New York Times The Associated Press

3. World's oldest known wild bird lays another egg

The oldest known wild bird in the world has laid yet another egg. Wisdom, a Laysan albatross who researchers estimate is at least 68 years old, has laid almost 40 eggs, and she returns to the Midway Atoll refuge to nest year after year, even after having lived through a tsunami and flying an estimated total of more than three million miles. Scientists didn't even know Laysan albatrosses could live past the age of 40 before Wisdom, who was first banded in 1956, the Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge says. She has been closely watched by researchers and has taught them quite a bit about her species. The birds don't typically breed every year, especially not into such advanced age. In that way, Wisdom "does seem to be exceptional," one wildlife biologist observed.

NPR The Guardian

4. California woman and her dog reunite after Camp Fire evacuation

A California woman forced to abandon her dog in the Camp Fire came back almost a month later to find not only that he had survived, bu that he had been waiting for her the whole time. Andrea Gaylord's two dogs, Madison and Miguel, were left behind when residents of Paradise received an evacuation order since she wasn't able to retrieve them as the fire spread; the K9 Paw Print Rescue group writes that she "hoped and prayed" they would be okay. A volunteer was able to find Miguel, and another left food and water out for Madison, CNN reports. Gaylord was naturally anxious to return home, and when she was finally allowed to do so this week, she found Madison sitting right there on the property weeks later, even as the home had been completely destroyed, reports USA Today. "Imagine the loyalty of hanging in in the worst of circumstances and being here waiting," Gaylord said. "It was so emotional."

CNN USA Today

5. Researchers find an easy way to improve high school students' grades: Let them sleep in

A Seattle school district's decision to implement a later start time for students allowed them to get more sleep and may have even improved their academic performance, a new study shows. Researchers at the University of Washington tracked sophomores both before and after a school district pushed its start time from 7:50 a.m. to 8:40 a.m. They found that with the 8:40 start, students got on average an extra 34 minutes of sleep each night. The study also found there was a 4.5 percent increase in the students' median grades, and the number of absences and late arrivals also declined in some schools. "These results demonstrate that delaying high school start times brings students closer to reaching the recommended sleep amount and reverses the century-long trend in gradual sleep loss," the researchers say.

Science Advances NPR