Category: Feature Stories

“Nuts and Christmas” – this traditional duo of pleasure and nostalgia is an integral part of the gift table. Walnuts, almonds, and hazelnuts are indispensable to the cold, cozy winter season. Why is that so? The origin nuts and Christmas were found together not for nutritional reasons but received their deep meaning as decoration for the fir tree, which moved many years ago as a unique Christmas custom in the warm rooms. Originally it was decorated with red apples and nuts. The apples symbolize God’s love and the expulsion from…

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The distribution of gifts on the eve of St. Nicholas Day is based on the many legends about the saint who saved the city of Myra from famine and three young women from forced prostitution with the secret gift of golden balls. St. Nicholas saved young women from forced prostitution with the secret gift of golden balls. December 6 is the commemoration day of St. Nicholas of Myra. The distribution of gifts on the eve of St. Nicholas Day is based on the many legends about the saint who saved…

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Due to the Corona pandemic, life expectancy in the EU region fell by more than a year in 2021 compared to pre-crisis levels. This is the highest decline for most countries since World War II, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) announced in Paris on Monday. According to the report, life expectancy in 2021 was just over 80 years. The pandemic has strained health systems everywhere, it said. As a result of the Corona pandemic, life expectancy in the EU region fell by more than a year in…

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Many theories arose to explain the sudden appearance of omicron – now, this mystery has been solved.Omicron was officially detected in November 2021, but according to a new study, the corona variant existed much earlier – it was just overlooked. Omicron spread gradually in AfricaThe original coronavirus was followed by alpha, beta, gamma, and delta as variants with high transmissibility. Every few months, a new variant emerged, some dominating soon after. Until Omicron appeared at the end of 2021 – and remained. According to a study published in the journal…

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Especially in the pre-Christmas period, parcels are often ordered via Amazon. Criminals use this time to steal users’ data* and, in the worst case, credit card data through a false SMS. Watchlist Internet, a project of the Austrian Internet Ombudsman’s Office, warns against such methods. The criminals would send an SMS saying that the Amazon account will be temporarily blocked if the account information is not updated. Underneath, there is a link where the data can supposedly be entered. However, the link does not lead to an Amazon page but…

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The rule of thumb of drinking two liters daily is getting shaken up by a new study. This is because the amount of water needed depends on various factors. Drinking two liters a day – that used to be a rule of thumb. A new study puts an end to this. It was recently published in the journal Science. Since about half of our daily water intake comes from food, researchers estimate that we only need about 1.3 to 1.8 liters per day. Previous studies in this area were based…

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Infants initially feed exclusively on their mother’s nutritious milk. Thanks to the enzyme lactase, they can digest milk without any problems. As the child grows up, the lactase activity decreases, resulting in lactose intolerance and milk intolerance. This mainly affects the population in Africa and Asia. For example, people in Europe, North America, and Australia are an exception. For almost 7,500 years, milk and milk products have been an integral part of the diet here – even in adulthood. Over time, a genetic adaptation has taken place. It is, therefore,…

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Blue whales, the largest animals on earth, ingest around ten million microplastics daily with their food. According to a study published on Tuesday, marine mammals thus “eat” up to 43.6 kilograms of microplastics per day. This estimate was arrived at by U.S. experts who studied microplastic data and the feeding behavior of blue, humpback, and other baleen whales off the coast of California. These whales filter feed from the water. The study appeared in the journal Nature Communications. In the preyMicroplastics are plastic particles smaller than five millimeters. The concentration…

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By 2030, the United Nations wanted to eliminate AIDS. But the number of new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths is rising in some parts of the world. Inequalities are the main reason for the lack of progress, the U.N. Program to Fight AIDS (UNAIDS) said in an analysis for today’s World AIDS Day. Around 9,000 were infected in AustriaWorldwide, 38.4 million people are living with HIV infection, and there are about 9,000 infected people in Austria. Three hundred seventy-six more people in Austria were infected with the virus last year.…

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