People who have trouble walking or moving around often have a hard time enjoying the beach. But hundreds of beaches in Greece now offer a new way for people in wheelchairs to get into the water by themselves. It’s called Seatrac.

Seatrac is basically a chair on a moving ramp (活动梯) that can smoothly carry a disabled person into the sea. Once in the sea, the person can either remain in the chair, enjoying the water, or go for a swim. The chair is operated by remote control. When the person is ready to get out of the water, the Seatrac system brings the chair back to the top of the ramp. It’s even possible to take a shower in the Seatrac chair after going for a swim.

Seatrac was invented and developed in Greece. The idea for it came when one of the inventors, Ignatios Fotiou, was talking with a friend who used a wheelchair. The friend said he enjoyed the sea, but didn’t like having to be carried into the ocean as if he were a “sack of potatoes”. Mr. Fotiou realized that there must be a way to make it easier for wheelchair users to enjoy the water. He worked with his partner and a professor at a Greek university to design the system. In time, they formed a company called TOBEA to build and sell the systems.

The company worked hard to make the system simple to put in place and easy to run. A wooden walkway allows wheelchair users to reach the Seatrac. The system is solar powered and can continue to run even if the electricity goes out. The Scatrac system can easily be packed up and stored when swimming season ends.

This summer, the Seatrac system is being used at over 220 beaches in Greece, Cyprus, Italy, and Latvia. Thanks to Seatrac, people who use wheelchairs now have the chance to cool down with a dip in the sea.

Just 10 days after a first failed try ended with Franky Zapata up to his neck in water, the French jet-ski champion successfully crossed the English Channel on his self-made “fly-board” Sunday morning.

Taking off at 8:17 a.m., he flew across the 21.7 miles that separate the French town of Sangatte from Saint Margaret’s at Cliffe on British coast. The trip took a total of 22 minutes with one refueling stop in the middle.

The French inventor’s flight came 110 years after famous pioneering pilot Louis Bleriot flew the first plane across the Channel in 1909. Zapata became known as the “flying soldier” when he showed off his invention before the world’s media at France’s annual Bastille Day military parade on July 14.

At a press conference on Saturday, Zapata said he felt much more confident of success than his failed journey just over a week ago. On July 25, Zapata had launched near Sangatte Beach on his flying board, but had to abandon the challenge when he dropped a few minutes later into English waters after hitting the supply boat platform at very low speed.

Zapata arrived on British soil at 8:38 a.m., landing on a platform in a field at the top of a cliff. He thanked his wife, his family and his team upon landing. He also thanked the two. British women who own the field he landed on.

Zapata spoke to the French television networks in Saint Margaret’s, explaining that landing on the stage of the refueling boat was still very tricky. They had planned for the boat to remain still, but it was “impossible” as the boat moved along with the waves. Zapata burst into tears when his interview was interrupted by a call from his 9-year-old son.

Most teenagers are still trying to find their passion and purpose in life. However, not Gitanjali Rao. The 15-year-old girl at STEM School Highlands Ranch has been coming up with innovative solutions to worldwide problems since she was ten. It is, therefore, not surprising that the youngster was selected from 5, 000 equally impressive nominees (被提名者) — aged 8 to 16 — for TIME Magazine’s first-ever “Kid of the Year.”

The young girl, who knew she wanted to bring change and positivity to her community since third grade, was just ten years old when she heard about the lead-tainted (含铅的) water in Flint, Michigan, in 2015. After spending two months researching how the area’s drinking water became polluted, Rao began designing a device called Tethys, which attaches to a cellphone and informs the resident via an APP if their drinking water contains traces of the noxious metal. The prototype (模型) earned her the Young Scientist Challenge Award in 2017. A start-up businessman is-working with scientists and medical professionals to test Tethys’ potential and hopes the device will be ready for commercial use.

In 2019, Rao took on another social issue drug abuse. The apps he designed won the Pillar Prize at the Innovation Student Challenge, which helps to catch drug addiction in young adults before it’s too late. Rao said. “I wanted to come up with a way to diagnose such addiction at a nearly stage so you can take action earlier.”

More recently, the teenager has created another inspiring app. “I started to label some words that could be considered bullying, and then the computer search engine took those words and identified words that are similar. You type in a word or phrase, and it’s able topic kit up if it’s bullying, and it gives you the option to edit it or send it the way it is.” Rao told editor Angelina in an interview. “The goal is not to punish. Instead, it gives you the chance to rethink what you’re saying so that you know what to do next time around.”