Absence from work at record high as Americans feel strain from Covid - from The Guardian

For many Americans it feels like everyone is out sick right now. But there is a good reason: work absences from illness are at an all-time annual high in the US and show few signs of relenting. And it’s not just acute illness and caregiving duties keeping workers away.

About 1.5 million Americans missed work because of sickness in December. Each month, more than a million people have called out sick for the past three years. In June 2022, about 7% of adult Americans had long Covid, which can affect productivity and ability to work, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

One analysis in New York found that 71% of long Covid patients who filed for worker’s compensation still had symptoms requiring medical attention or were unable to work completely for at least six months. Two in five returned to work within two months, but still needed medical treatment. Nearly one in five (18%) of claimants with long Covid could not return to work for a year or longer after first getting sick. The majority were under the age of 60.

Anyone else picturing The Backrooms?


Scientists Tried to Break Cuddling. Instead, They Broke 30 Years of Research - from The Atlantic

Of the dozens of hormones found in the human body, oxytocin might just be the most overrated. Linked to the pleasures of romance, orgasms, philanthropy, and more, the chemical has been endlessly billed as the “hug hormone,” the “moral molecule,” even “the source of love and prosperity.” It has inspired popular books and TED Talks. Scientists and writers have insisted that spritzing it up human nostrils can instill compassion and generosity; online sellers have marketed snake-oil oxytocin concoctions as “Liquid Trust.”

I always knew that hugging was overrated!


Origami is revolutionizing technology, from medicine to space - from National Geographic

A single sheet of white corrugated plastic folded into what looks like a large suitcase….I hear a shockingly loud pop.

But nothing’s broken. Instead, the plastic suitcase has transformed, and suddenly a full-size kayak is sitting in my living room.

The boat, created by the company Oru Kayak, is part of a scientific and technological revolution inspired by the centuries-old art of origami. What began as efforts to understand the math behind fold patterns has opened up surprising possibilities for manipulating the shape, movement, and properties of all kinds of materials—filters of face masks, the plastic of kayaks, even living cells.

If only my hobbies were this useful.


Planting more trees in urban heat islands could cut deaths from extreme temps, model predicts - from STAT

It’s winter in the Northern Hemisphere, but we can easily recall the heat waves and wildfires of last summer when those extremely high temperatures endangered people’s health, especially if they had chronic illnesses. A new study in The Lancet looks at how to prevent premature deaths attributed to higher temperatures in 93 European cities. The answer could be above heads: Their model predicts planting more trees in cities could cut deaths from extreme heat by one-third. 

Going green could counteract urban heat islands, where asphalt on the ground and certain materials in buildings absorb heat. From their analysis of 2015 data, the researchers say doubling the current average tree coverage in cities to 30% could have prevented 2,644 of 6,700 deaths by lowering temperatures. “Planting urban trees offers an important opportunity to mitigate high temperatures and, compared with other strategies, is relatively simple and cost-effective to implement,” they write.

Extreme heat is no joke.