Good News Thursday: Stroke survivor regains movement following brain implant trial, Couple gets engaged at finish line following half-marathon
Stroke survivor regains movement following brain implant trial
The Cleveland Clinic offers new deep brain stimulation technology to help stroke survivors regain mobility.
Stan Nicholas, 72, suffered a stroke in 2017. Nicholas described himself as a born performer and spent decades on stage performing, which came to end following his stroke.
“So I couldn’t walk,” Nicholas said about when he woke up in the hospital following his stroke. “When I woke up, I couldn’t move my left arm or my left hand. I thought that I was gonna be disabled for life. I had a lot of therapy.”
In September 2020 Nicholas underwent an eight-hour-long operation where doctors implanted a 1.3 millimeter probe, wide as a grain of sand, in the cerebellum of his brain. Nicholas’ doctor reported seeing changes in Nicholas’ health within the first month, describing his improvement as a “transition of hope.” Nicholas can now lift his left arm and live independently.
Couple gets engaged at finish line following half-marathon
Eric Memmel and Becca Kaja got engaged after they completed the Madison Mini half-marathon in Madison, Wisconsin.
“It just felt like the right time and the right place. We love coming here, and I love her,” Memmel said regarding his decision to propose at the race.
Memmel finished the race ahead of Kaja and then turned around to run with Kaja until she finished the race. He proposed at the finish line.
“I had a feeling it was happening this summer,” Kaja said. “But we’ve run this race before, and I was wanting it to happen here so it was like the best surprise ever.”
Researchers discover 41 million-year-old whale fossil in Egypt
Researchers discovered the smallest species of whale known to science — dating back 41 million years — in Egypt on Aug. 10.
The whale fossil was discovered 25 miles away from the Wadi Al-Hitan World Heritage Site. The fossil was named Tutcetus Rayanensis, named after Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamen, more commonly known as King Tut.
Scientists estimated that the whale weighed more than 400 pounds and was eight feet long, comparable to the size of a bottlenose dolphin.
Paleontologists continue to work in the area where the whale was found and predict that they will find even earlier aquatic whales.