Category: Feature Stories

The World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe is sounding the alarm: In the first ten months of 2023, 30 times more measles cases were reported in the region than in the entire previous year. More measles and diphtheria cases in AustriaOf the 54 member states in the region, which extends as far as Central Asia, over 30,000 measles cases were reported from 40 countries during this period. In comparison, only 941 cases were registered in the whole of 2022, the WHO office announced on Tuesday. Kazakhstan and Russia…

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Flipping a coin to make a decision is more likely to lead to choosing a new path—and make you happier in the long run. Should I get up, or should I stay in bed? As soon as we wake up, we must make decisions and face the consequences. Because if you stay in bed any longer, you’re too late. But it doesn’t always stop at small decisions. Sometimes, we have to face big changes. Quitting your job, leaving your partner, or moving to another country. These are not easy decisions…

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How well-intentioned tips for online research lead users to even more misinformation—and how to get out of this predicament. “Do some research,” “Think about it,” and “Do not rely on the media” are all examples of well-intentioned advice that is not always beneficial. What appears to be advice on handling information responsibly is especially popular among lateral thinkers, troublemakers, and fake news disseminators. “Do the research” is a QAnon conspiracy theorist mantra. Why do those who spread questionable information themselves recommend that readers verify this information via online research? Users…

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Happiness in life tends to increase up to the age of 70. However, young people aged 9 to 16 are generally dissatisfied with their lives. The very term “midlife crisis” implies that during menopause, not only hormone levels but also moods start to slide. However, according to a German-Swiss study, life satisfaction rises slightly up to 70, with a slight dip well before menopause. The research team led by Susanne Bücker from Witten/Herdecke University analyzed 443 studies in which a total of over 460,000 female test subjects from a wide…

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Some people always seem to underestimate the skills of hackers and carelessly choose passwords that can be guessed without great technical know-how. The top 3 most popular passwords have now been published. Whether for online shopping, email accounts, or social media, passwords have become indispensable for protecting users. Some people make it a little too easy for themselves when choosing their password. Number sequences are particularly commonStoring passwords in browsers is not a good idea, but neither are easy-to-guess combinations of letters and numbers. The Hasso Plattner Institute has determined…

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Airplanes are becoming safer and safer, and flying is generally the safest form of transportation. Regarding flight safety, 2023 was the second safest year on record. The Flight Safety Foundation evaluates incidents and accidents every year. There were 135 accidents, five fatalities, and 105 passenger deaths on the 35 million routes examined. The average over the last five years is 13 fatal accidents and 300 deaths per year. That may sound like a lot, but it’s still dramatically low. A study by Northwestern University in the USA compared the death…

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Everything under 100 euros and two free printers to boot: Who wouldn’t go for it? But, as usual, there is a catch. Online stores with breathtakingly low prices are no longer a rarity. We come across them on almost all platforms, and they are becoming increasingly visible with all kinds of advertising campaigns. The online mail-order company Temu, in particular, has been indispensable in Europe since the beginning of 2023 at the latest and is currently high up on the app charts. According to lawyer Christian Solmecke, partner at law…

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