BITS ‘N’ PIECES

Sometimes that’s just one of those days – the traffic was horrible, your meeting went wrong, your new client goes crazy, even your hair isn’t looking its best.

When the world piles up on the reasons for the bad mood, it may seem like the only thing left to do is crawl into bed and hope for better luck tomorrow. But according to a huge new study, getting out of your funk can be a lot easier than you realize.

It’s as easy as getting up.

For the study, researchers at the University of Cambridge and the University of Essex used a smartphone app to collect real-time information about the moods and activities of more than 10,000 participants. When they summed up this huge set of data, they came to a simple conclusion: if you want to be happier instantly, get up and move around.

The incredible (but research-backed) benefits of a little activity:

This is a compelling result, and one that adds to a long list of previous studies showing that simply bringing a little more movement into your day can have disproportionate benefits, not only on your mood, but on your body. your health, your thinking and maybe even your creativity.

For example, previous research shows that periodic short walks are enough to counteract the truly horrible health effects of sitting all day, while another study found that just standing increases your intelligence by 7 %. Another recent discovery has linked physical movements, like rhythm and gestures, to creativity in children. And some types of fun and not too strenuous activities (like climbing a tree) have even been shown to boost memory.

So I ask you: when was the last time you got up and took a walk? Maybe you should do it now.

You are looking at a clone. This is Elizabeth-Anne, a black-footed ferret that was cloned from the cells of a ferret that lived 33 years ago! As America’s most endangered species, it is one of 600 ferrets alive today, all of which are descendants of just 7 ancestors. As a result, the genetic diversity of species is extremely low, making them even more vulnerable to extinction. But since Elizabeth-Anne has 3x the genetic variation of her counterparts, she is a valuable asset in the effort to build her population.

Compiled by SG