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Stunning photos capture 10 years of Hurricane Katrina recovery.

This week marks the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

The devastating storm and subsequent levee failure caused over 1,800 deaths, left over a million people displaced, and damaged or destroyed more than a million homes and businesses on the Gulf Coast.



Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

New Orleans is on the road to recovery, but racial inequities persist.

Tourism is booming and neighborhoods are coming back to life. But on Aug. 24, 2015, a new study revealed that while a majority of white residents think the recovery is complete, a majority of black residents think the job isn't done.

The community has a long way to go, but everywhere you look, there are signs of progress.

Getty Images photographer Mario Tama, who captured all of the photos featured in this story, was on the ground in New Orleans immediately after Hurricane Katrina and has followed the recovery effort.

"While there is still a tremendous amount of work to be done, to see the city well on the road to recovery is simply glorious to witness," he told Upworthy. "There is an energy, a vibrancy, a positive outlook among more residents than ever before."

Captured here in a series of five before-and-after photo sets is a closer look at the recovery effort in New Orleans over the last 10 years.

1. Gratitude at the Christian Community Baptist Church

In the top photo, parishioners gather during Sunday services in the rebuilt Christian Community Baptist Church in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans. Below that is the church in 2007, early in the rebuilding process.

Photos by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

2. Rising from the ashes in the Seventh Ward

The top photo shows homes that were rebuilt in the city's Seventh Ward, once home to many of the original New Orleans jazz greats like Jelly Roll Morton and Sidney Bechet. The image beneath it captures the area in the aftermath of the storm, with widespread flooding and fires.

Photos by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

3. Making it right in the Ninth Ward

Founded by Brad Pitt in 2007, the Make It Right Foundation builds eco-friendly homes for communities in need. Since then, more than 100 brightly painted homes have been built in the Ninth Ward, and Pitt says more are on the way. Some of the new homes are featured in the first photo.

Below, a group of Amish volunteers tour the devastated Ninth Ward in February 2006.

Photos by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

4. The bridge back to normal

In the top photo, a girl gets off the school bus near the Claiborne Bridge in the Ninth Ward. Beneath it, survivors use makeshift oars to paddle their way to safety when flood waters inundated the city a decade ago.

Photos by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

5. The Saints go marching in

Fresh off their Super-Bowl-winning season, this 2010 photo captures the Saints and their return to glory in the Superdome. The stadium was a grim place during the storm, as shown in the photo below. Survivors were directed there for shelter but were met with a lack of resources, violence, and unlivable conditions.

Photos by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

10 years later, the recovery is far from over.

As schools succeed and local economies improve, there is hope for a return to normal. Or, at least, the start of a new norm, in a renewed New Orleans.

"I don't think I could have imagined the city so full of life 10 years on after seeing folks plucked from rooftops in 2005," Tama told Upworthy. "Having said that, there are some who haven't been able to return home, often those who have been priced out of the city due to climbing rents. Let's hope the city can find a way for those former residents to come home as well."


The sun sets over the Mississippi River in New Orleans. Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images.

A pitbull stares at the window, looking for the mailman.


Dogs are naturally driven by a sense of purpose and a need for belonging, which are all part of their instinctual pack behavior. When a dog has a job to do, it taps into its needs for structure, purpose, and the feeling of contributing to its pack, which in a domestic setting translates to its human family.

But let’s be honest: In a traditional domestic setting, dogs have fewer chores they can do as they would on a farm or as part of a rescue unit. A doggy mom in Vancouver Island, Canada had fun with her dog’s purposeful uselessness by sharing the 5 “chores” her pitbull-Lab mix does around the house.

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Joy

5-star Scottish resort offers whimsical afternoon tea experience with 'naughty sheep'

Cameron House's Woolly Wellness retreat includes tea in the garden with adorably rude guests.

Cameron House/Naughty Sheep

Cameron House's Woolly Wellness retreat includes a unique sheep encounter.

Remember when "goat yoga" was all the rage? And then "cow cuddling" and "turkey cuddling" made everyone's bucket lists?

Now we can add "nuzzling with naughty sheep" to the mix, but with a fancy Scottish twist.

Less than an hour from Glasgow, Scotland, the Cameron House resort sits on the bonnie banks of Loch Lomond, looking as if it were plucked straight out of a fairy tale. Sprawling green grounds, gorgeous lake views and a four-story castled mansion greet guests as their "home away from home" (only better), and a perusal of the reviews show guests raving about the 5-star resort's elegance, beauty and exceptional service.

I mean, just look at this place:

drone view of cameron house grounds and lakeCameron House sit on Lake Lochmond in Scotland.Cameron House


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Innovation

A student accidentally created a rechargeable battery that could last 400 years

"This thing has been cycling 10,000 cycles and it’s still going." ⚡️⚡️

There's an old saying that luck happens when preparation meets opportunity.

There's no better example of that than a 2016 discovery at the University of California, Irvine, by doctoral student Mya Le Thai. After playing around in the lab, she made a discovery that could lead to a rechargeable battery that could last up to 400 years. That means longer-lasting laptops and smartphones and fewer lithium ion batteries piling up in landfills.

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@caitlin.the.realtor/TikTok, used with permission

Wait, so 90's fashion is in, but 90's hair is out?

Every era has its own version of what’s attractive. And very rarely does that aesthetic hold power with the following generation. In fact, it often becomes the opposite of cool.

Just think of Elvis. He might have been a universal sex symbol for a time, but it also wasn’t long before his pompadour became passé. Same goes for Paul Newman’s rugged manliness, David Cassidy’s babyface, Tom Selleck’s mustache. Indeed, for everything a season.

Which brings us to the 90s. The age of beach blonde surfer boys (real surfing skills not required, but a plus). Of flannel, lots of flannel, and super chiseled bodies. Let’s not forget this was the dawning of the term “metrosexual,” and also the time period that brought us that Calvin Klein ad with Mark Wahlburg.

How exactly would these guys measure up with the Gen Z kids today?

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A Eurasian crow.

A family from Denmark has created a touching video montage documenting their unique friendship with a wild Eurasian crow. This crow, affectionately named Russell, has become an honorary member of their household, forming special bonds with each family member, including the pets.

However, the crow's relationship with their son, 2-year-old Otto, is truly extraordinary. “They could spend hours just playing,” Otto’s mother, Laerke Luna, says in a video shared by The Dodo. "When Otto is outside, he will never leave Otto’s side.”

Russell, the free-spirited crow, ventures away from the family's home from time to time, but never for too long. He always comes back and announces his return by tapping on the door, swooping in to lounge on the sofa, or awaiting Otto's return from school atop their roof.

“When we are inside, he will sit inside the window because he wants Otto to go outside with him,” Laerke said.

The family’s relationship with Russell didn’t come out of nowhere. When Russell was a young bird, he had health problems so the family took him and nursed the bird back to health. Eventually, they witnessed his first attempts to fly.

Recently, Russell became friends with another family member, their second child, Hedwig. Although he does get a little annoyed with the bird’s frequent attempts to nab his pacifier.

Even though it’s rare for humans to strike up such a close bond with a crow, according to research, it’s not that surprising. Audubon says that crows are “some of the smartest animals in the world” with an intelligence “on par with chimpanzees.” They are also very social and family-oriented, so no wonder Russell loves Otto and his family.

Crow Named Russell Waits For His Favorite Kid To Get Home From School | The Dodo


Learning

Why you shouldn't throw your dishwasher pod into the bottom of your dishwasher

Dishwashers actually use the dirty water to know how to wash your dishes.

Photos by cottonbro studio and PhotoMIX Ltd. via Canva

Why your detergent shouldn't go in the bottom of the dishwasher

There always seem to be something going on with the pods and powders you're supposed to use in the dishwasher to clean your dishes. Either the pods don't dissolve completely or the powder gets all goopy and hard, never really fully dispensing into the dishwasher.

The inconsistency in product dispensing can leave you wondering if the dishes are even getting cleaned, causing some to toss the detergent pod into the bottom of the dishwasher. It would seem that placing the detergent at the bottom would allow for it to actually reach your dirty dishes. But Melissa Pateras, a domestic expert, explains that doing it that way isn't doing what you think it's doing.

Pateras actually breaks down exactly how dishwashers work to clean your dishes while explaining why putting the detergent on the bottom is ineffective.

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