A new study said people are more likely to return a lost wallet if it contains money than if it doesn't. And the more cash, the better. Researchers planted more than 17,000 supposedly lost wallets in 40 countries, and kept track of how often somebody contacted the supposed owners. That happened more often for wallets with the equivalent of about $13 than for those without any cash. And in an experiment within the U.S., the United Kingdom and Poland, the researchers found that contact rates were higher if the wallets contained the equivalent of about $94, rather than $13. Results were presented in the journal Science. Researchers said they think that people feel like thieves if they keep a wallet that contains money, so they're more likely to return it instead.
Rare right whale's song recorded
Scientists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said they have recorded singing by a rare right whale for the first time. Researchers used moored acoustic recorders to capture patterned calls made by male North Pacific right whales. Researchers detected four distinct songs over eight years in the southeast Bering Sea. Humpback, bowhead and other whales previously have been recorded singing. Right whales have been recorded making individual sounds. NOAA Fisheries marine biologist Jessica Crance said the recordings are the first time right whales have been detected using patterned phrases that make up a song. Right whales make sounds described as gunshot calls, upcalls, screams and warbles.
People who get outside are more satisfied
It's been established that people who spend more time in parks and other natural settings tend to report higher levels of health and happiness, but new research shows there's actually a magic number for it.
A study published in the journal Nature Scientific Reports said spending 120 minutes a week strolling a tree-lined street or sitting by a lake can enhance a person's overall sense of well-being. Less time didn't yield any significant benefit, the research showed.
Those who spent two to three hours in nature were about 20% more likely to report high overall satisfaction than those who spent no time outdoors at all. The benefits to physical health were even greater, with those who met the outdoors benchmark being 60% more likely to report being in good health than their cooped-in counterparts.
News services
Bagels from Thousands of years ago
Researchers in Austria found three pieces of 3,000-year-old charred bread that look like the remains of bagels. They are not complete rings — only parts of rings that would have measured 1 to 1.5 inches in diameter. The site covers 54 acres near the Slovakian border and consists of an elevated Bronze Age fortification and settlements that flourished around 1500 to 500 B.C. When archaeologists excavated the area, they found ovens and vessels containing barley, wheat and corn millet, and some foodlike preparations, including the "bagels." The rings, which date from about 960 to 900 B.C., were formed with uncooked dough and baked at low temperature or air-dried. Andreas G. Heiss, a postdoctoral fellow at the Austrian Archaeological Institute, said that food remains of this age are rare, since they quickly deteriorate.
New York Times
