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A hilarious commercial in Sweden is getting people hyped about public transport.

Sweden has been working on an exciting new technology, dubbed "The Future of Mobility."

Imagine climbing into your car, only now you can stretch your legs comfortably in the roomy cabin. Instead of fighting reckless drivers and morning traffic, you can whip open your phone or laptop, catch up on work, or just zone out, and be sure you'll show up at your destination safe and sound.

And all of that without feeling guilty about polluting the ozone.

It's not just a fantasy anymore. Behold:

Yes, the future of transportation in Sweden is ... a bus.

But it might not be as silly as it sounds.

The clever ad comes from Swedish public transport agency Västtrafik, which wants to encourage more commuters to take the bus (or train) instead of clogging the road with cars. In addition to the ad campaign, Västtrafik is also offering riders two weeks of free public transit to show them how great it can be.

Obviously, public transport isn't a good fit for everyone, especially those who live or work outside major urban centers. But according to a press release, Västtrafik expects to gain over 5,000 new regular riders from the experiment.

Sweden hopes to be "climate neutral" by 2050, and getting more cars off the road is a big part of the plan.

Photo by Erik Martensson/AFP/Getty Images.

We've seen lots of small islands and isolated communities completely wean themselves off fossil fuels, but for a developed nation like Sweden to do it would be a massive feat.

One of the biggest challenges will be to cut the country's carbon emissions — about a third of which come from domestic travel, according to Västtrafik. Frankly, it just makes sense.

"A normal car in Sweden stands still for 97 percent of its lifetime and for every car there are eight parking spaces and many miles of road," said Sweden's environment minister, Karolina Skog. "You can't call that effective."

The country already gets the majority of its energy from renewable sources wind, and it's working on making its fleet of buses and trains even more energy efficient.

Thanks, Sweden, for showing the rest of the world what climate-conscious policy should look like.

Not all nations believe the interests of its people and the planet can be served at the same time, but you have to wonder if they might be singing a different tune as the impact of climate change becomes more severe.

The more of us who are willing to get involved and (gasp!) maybe sit next to another human being on our morning commute, the better chance we have at slowing down this "runaway bus."

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Facebook group brings people together IRL to make meaningful friendships

True

Making new friends as an adult is challenging. While people crave meaningful IRL connections, it can be hard to know where to find them. But thanks to one Facebook Group, meeting your new best friends is easier than ever.

Founded in 2018, NYC Brunch Squad brings together hundreds of people who come as strangers and leave as friends through its in-person events.

“Witnessing the transformative impact our community has on the lives of our members is truly remarkable. We provide the essential support and connections needed to thrive amid the city's chaos,” shares Liza Rubin, the group’s founder.

Despite its name, the group doesn’t just do brunch. They also have book clubs, seasonal parties, and picnics, among other activities.

NYC Brunch Squad curates up to 10 monthly events tailored to the specific interests of its members. Liza handles all the details, taking into account different budgets and event sizes – all people have to do is show up.

“We have members who met at our events and became friends and went on to embark on international journeys to celebrate birthdays together. We have had members get married with bridesmaids by their sides who were women they first connected with at our events. We’ve had members decide to live together and become roommates,” Liza says.

Members also bond over their passion for giving back to their community. The group has hosted many impact-driven events, including a “Picnic with Purpose” to create self-care packages for homeless shelters and recently participated in the #SquadSpreadsJoy challenge. Each day, the 100 members participating receive random acts of kindness to complete. They can also share their stories on the group page to earn extra points. The member with the most points at the end wins a free seat at the group's Friendsgiving event.

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This Map Reveals The True Value Of $100 In Each State

Your purchasing power can swing by 30% from state to state.

Image by Tax Foundation.

Map represents the value of 100 dollars.

As the cost of living in large cities continues to rise, more and more people are realizing that the value of a dollar in the United States is a very relative concept. For decades, cost of living indices have sought to address and benchmark the inconsistencies in what money will buy, but they are often so specific as to prevent a holistic picture or the ability to "browse" the data based on geographic location.

The Tax Foundation addressed many of these shortcomings using the most recent (2015) Bureau of Economic Analysis data to provide a familiar map of the United States overlaid with the relative value of what $100 is "worth" in each state. Granted, going state-by-state still introduces a fair amount of "smoothing" into the process — $100 will go farther in Los Angeles than in Fresno, for instance — but it does provide insight into where the value lies.

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Woman bakes cheeky curse word pies for her grandma and it becomes a quirky holiday tradition

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You never know where a holiday tradition will come from.

Tried-and-true holiday traditions certainly have their merit, but there’s something quite special, magical even, about discovering personal rituals that commemorate one’s unique life. In my household, for instance, nothing quite rings in the Christmas spirit like sipping my partner’s delicious coquito and putting up a cardboard gingerbread house for my cats.

The beauty of creating customized holiday traditions is that they can be as festive, sentimental, or as silly as you want them to be. And you never know how one small moment can become the catalyst for a tradition that sparks joy year after year.

For Jess Lydon, that tradition is baking expletive-laden pies for Thanksgiving. (This is your profanity warning—the images below contain swear words.)

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3,700-year-old Babylonian stone tablet gets translated, changes history

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via UNSW

Dr. Daniel Mansfield and his team at the University of New South Wales in Australia have just made an incredible discovery. While studying a 3,700-year-old tablet from the ancient civilization of Babylon, they found evidence that the Babylonians were doing something astounding: trigonometry!

Most historians have credited the Greeks with creating the study of triangles' sides and angles, but this tablet presents indisputable evidence that the Babylonians were using the technique 1,500 years before the Greeks ever were.

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Pianist uses every part of the instrument in this joyous performance of Toto's 'Africa'

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via Peter Benace/YouTube

Peter Bence's piano cover of "Africa" by Toto

Peter Bence’s performance of “Africa” by Toto has over 17 million views on YouTube because of his creative reimagining of the song and, well, just about everyone loves “Africa.”

Bence is a Hungarian composer and producer who has become a viral sensation for his Michael Jackson, Queen, Sia, and Beatles covers. He has over 1.1 million followers on YouTube and has toured the globe, playing in more than 40 countries across four continents.

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Family posts a very chill note to neighbors explaining why their dog is on the roof

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Meet Huckleberry the dog.

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12 hilariously relatable comics about life as a new mom.

Embarrassing stains on your T-shirt, sniffing someone's bum to check if they have pooped, the first time having sex post-giving birth — as a new mom, your life turns upside-down.

All illustrations by Ingebritt ter Veld. Reprinted here with permission.

Some good not so good moments with babies.



Embarrassing stains on your T-shirt, sniffing someone's bum to check if they have pooped, the first time having sex post-giving birth — as a new mom, your life turns upside-down.

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