Spring is here: Flowering starts one to two weeks earlier

Spring plants are beginning to bloom one to two weeks earlier than the average in the past decades. This is because January and February were almost consistently too mild, explains Geosphere Austria (formerly ZAMG). Therefore, many plants’ development started significantly earlier than in an average year. For example, forsythia and dirndl are already blooming in many places at lower altitudes. The flowering of the apricot has also already begun, as in the Wachau, in the Vienna area and northern Burgenland around the Leithagebirge. “This means that the development of the…

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Vienna on TIME Magazine’s list of top travel destinations for the first time

Vienna is the first destination in Austria to make it onto TIME Magazine’s list of “World’s Greatest Places.” Since 2018, TIME Magazine has been selecting a list of the “World’s Greatest Places.” This year, Vienna also made it to the top 50 destinations. What makes Vienna a top travel destination for TIME Magazine?In its citation, TIME Magazine praises Vienna as a “classical city, modernized” and highlights those developments that have made the federal capital the world’s most livable city in various rankings. These include, for example, bicycle and pedestrian friendliness,…

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The City of Vienna seeks 21,000 new employees

The City of Vienna is on the lookout: 21,000 positions must be filled by 2030. For this reason, one starts now a large personnel offensive, including an advertising campaign, as mayor Michael Ludwig and personnel city councillor Jürgen Czernohorszky (both SPÖ) communicated on Friday. The fields of work, so it was assured, are various. Employees are being sought in social, technical or even digital areas.In total, the city employs around 67,000 people. For example, the City of Vienna is now organizing its job fair for the first time to fill…

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WHO: Corona threat aligns with flu

According to estimates by the World Health Organization (WHO), the risk from the coronavirus will decrease to that of influenza before the end of this year. This was said by the head of the WHO emergency program, Michael Ryan, in Geneva on Friday. “I think we’re now getting to the point where we can see Covid-19 in the same way that we see seasonal influenza: as a health threat, as a virus that will continue to kill, but a virus that won’t wreak havoc on our society or bring our…

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Last chance for energy bonus: Applications are only possible until March 31

Austria’s households have submitted around 3 million vouchers for energy cost compensation. This corresponds to a relief volume of 440 million euros, calculated by the Ministry of Finance on Friday in a release. However, of the vouchers submitted, around 365,000 were rejected due to incorrect information, so only a relief volume of 375 million euros was realized. Applications are still possible until the end of March. The vouchers can be presented to the respective electricity provider, reducing the annual bill by 150 euros. As one of the first anti-inflation measures,…

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Little sleep dramatically increases risk of artery occlusion

The Karolinska Institute in Sweden has been researching sleep and health for years. A recent study by the institute now suggests that less than five hours of sleep more than doubles the risk of clogged arteries. Specifically, the risk is increased by 74 percent, as can be read in the European Heart Journal, where the study was published. “Our study suggests that seven to eight hours of sleep per night is a good habit to reduce the risk of pAVD,” explains study author Shuai Yuan. Abbreviated as pAVD or PAD,…

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Penalty for cell phone driving to increase significantly

Fines for violations of the cell phone ban behind the wheel will be increased – and significantly. Cell phone behind the wheel: higher fines to be paid in futureIf drivers are caught while driving, it will cost 100 euros instead of 50 euros. If payment is refused or drivers are caught in a speed trap with a cell phone in their hand, the fine can be up to 140 euros. Previously, it was 72 euros. The Traffic Committee of the National Council passed a corresponding amendment to the Motor Vehicle…

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New clues to the origin of the coronavirus

According to Berlin-based virologist Christian Drosten, preliminary results of a genetic study support the assumption of a natural origin of Sars-CoV-2. The analysis, which has not yet been independently verified, implicates tanuki in Wuhan, China, as potential carriers of the coronavirus. According to The Atlantic magazine, scientists had come across previously unknown Chinese data from the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market. This market is associated with the first Corona outbreak. He said the genetic sequences were obtained from swabs taken at and near market stalls at the beginning of the pandemic.…

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March 20 is the beginning of spring: day and night are of equal length

On March 20, the longed-for astronomical spring begins: day and night are of equal length. The sun crosses the celestial equator from the southern half of the sky, as seen from the earth’s center, and moves to the northern half of the sky. This so-called spring equinox occurs this year on Monday at 22.24 CET. Beginning of spring on March 20: Day and night are of equal lengthAt the beginning of spring, our central star rises in the east, stands at noon in the south and sets exactly in the…

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