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Miami Herald
3 days ago
- General
- Miami Herald
Afghanistan has least hope for future in global history
By Stephen Beech Afghanistan has the lowest well-being levels in recorded history following the withdrawal of American forces, according to new research. Afghans' life satisfaction and hope for the future are both at all-time, global lows, suggest the findings. People living there reported an average life satisfaction of just 1.28, on a scale from zero to 10, following the withdrawal of US troops from the war-torn country and the Taliban regaining power in 2022 - the lowest figure recorded anywhere in the world. The figure is lower than life satisfaction scores recorded in more than 170 countries since 1946, when global ratings were first calculated after World War Two. In 2022, the global mean life satisfaction rating recorded in the Gallup World Poll was 5.48, with most people in economically developed Western countries recording between six and eight, according to the study published in the journal Science Advances. Afghans also showed little hope for the future. When asked to imagine what their lives would be like in five years on the same scale, hope among Afghans fell even lower than their life satisfaction, at 1.02. The War in Afghanistan began in 2001, triggered by the United States and its allies when the Taliban government refused to surrender al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden following the 9/11 terror attacks. The subsequent conflict led to the violent deaths of more than 165,000 Afghans, while it is estimated that at least as many died due to the lack of necessities, such as food and medicine, as a result of the conflict. Study lead author Levi Stutzman, of the University of Toronto in Canada, said: "Globally, people expect their future to be better than their present. "People are optimistic about their future. "Afghanistan is quite different as Afghans have reported low life satisfaction and even lower hope, which likely reflects profound distress and despair within the country." He added: "This research shines a light on the well-being, the life satisfaction, of people who have been left behind. "They've been left behind by the United States, they've been left behind by the international community, and they've been left behind by international news organisations." The research team says their findings also underline the impacts that life circumstances and structural factors, such as war and political unrest, can have on subjective well-being. Life circumstances have previously been downplayed in leading well-being theories and models, which prioritised genetic factors and intentional activities such as exercise and practicing gratitude. Doctoral student Stutzman said: "Our own sense of well-being, our own happiness, isn't solely up to us. "A lot of it is structural." The research team analysed face-to-face interview data collected in Afghanistan over three periods: before the U.S. withdrawal in 2018 and 2019, during the U.S. withdrawal and the first month of Taliban rule in 2021, and after the U.S. withdrawal in 2022. In 2018, Afghans rated their life satisfaction at 2.69, and that did not significantly decline in 2021, during the early stages of the withdrawal of US and UK troops from Afghanistan and the first month of renewed Taliban rule. But after the U.S. withdrawal was completed and the consolidation of Taliban rule in 2022, life satisfaction in Afghanistan dropped to previously unseen levels. In 2022, nearly all Afghans reported a life satisfaction score below five, and two in three Afghans reported a life satisfaction score of either zero or one. A deeper analysis shows that women and people living in rural areas have been disproportionately affected, due to the Taliban placing increased restrictions on women's rights and rural communities lacking resources to help combat food insecurity. The research team said that the struggles facing Afghans have not been widely reported on since 2022, when thousands of them descended on the airport in Kabul desperately trying to flee their country, some clinging to the outside of aircraft trying to take off. Study co-author Dr. Felix Cheung, Assistant Professor in psychology at the University of Toronto, added: "Just because the war has ended, it doesn't mean that every problem has been solved. "That is the first step of a very long recovery process - a process that requires investments in necessities like healthcare, food and water, and infrastructure- and is informed by evidence." The post Afghanistan has least hope for future in global history appeared first on Talker. Copyright Talker News. All Rights Reserved.
Miami Herald
15-05-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
Neuroscience of Zen: How gardens help our brains
By Stephen Beech Well-designed gardens help people relax straight away, as we look at them differently, suggests new research. Our gaze shifts quicker and more often in specially devised green spaces, say scientists. They believe it could be "key" to understanding the relaxing effects gardens can have on viewers. The international research team believes their findings help people affected by neurodegenerative diseases. They explained that observation gardens are specifically designed to let the viewer's gaze wander, but can also fulfil other functions, such as providing aid for meditation. The team investigated what it is about those gardens that makes people feel more relaxed when they sit down to observe them. They assessed the impact of the Murin-an garden in Kyoto, Japan, and compared it to a less vigorously maintained garden. Study first author Professor Seiko Goto said: "Well-designed Japanese gardens have evocative and abstract sceneries designed in great detail. "These sceneries encourage the viewer to observe longer to understand the composition and meaning of the scenery, while the gaze wanders more and faster." Study senior author Professor Karl Herrup, a neurobiologist at the University of Pittsburgh said: "We found a correlation of rapid gaze shifts and a reduction in heart rate and improved mood. "The reduction in stress experienced by viewers of a well-crafted Japanese garden is largely due to the design features that lead the viewer to engage in frequent, rapid horizontal shifts in gaze." During a day of maintenance in 2023, the research team was able to get undisturbed access to the Murin-an garden. Similarly, the garden located at Kyoto University was visited little during the time they conducted the experiment there. A total of 16 students observed both gardens for seven minutes. The researchers recorded eye movements, heart rates before and during the observation, and mood before and after viewing the gardens. Unlike in the university garden, in the Murin-an garden, viewers' fixation points were spread more widely, covering the entirety of the field of view. Goto, a researcher at Nagasaki University in Japan who specialises in landscape architecture, said: "To induce such close attention of the viewer, not only the quality of design but also the quality of the maintenance is important. "Viewers' gaze keeps moving to seek more fascination on the well-pruned trees and speckless ground." All the participants also indicated that they felt more relaxed, liked, and wanted to revisit the Murin-an garden more than the university garden. The Murin-an garden also produced a calming effect on heart rate and improved mood. The researchers said their findings, published in the journal Frontiers in Neuroscience, could have some similarities to other therapies that utilise eye movement to reduce stress. They say other gardens could have a similar effect on onlookers, but the positioning of design elements is "crucial". While both gardens incorporated water features, stones, trees, and a bridge, in the Murin-an garden, the viewer's gaze is guided through horizontally arranged elements. But in the university garden, the objects of greatest interest are in the centre of the visual field. Herrup said: "The Murin-an garden was designed as a viewing garden that should be appreciated from a specific vantage point relative to the design elements. "It is this attention to detail that coaxes the eyes into the patterns that relieve stress." The researchers said their work might help people affected by neurodegenerative diseases. Goto said: "Gardens are generally seen as a hobby for the wealthy, but if appreciating Japanese gardens can induce a relaxing effect, which intuitively everyone feels, it could be used as a form of therapy in hospitals and welfare facilities." She added, "I think it would be good if Japanese gardens are built not just as a luxury but as a means of mental care in our aging society." The post Neuroscience of Zen: How gardens help our brains appeared first on Talker. Copyright Talker News. All Rights Reserved.
Miami Herald
12-05-2025
- Health
- Miami Herald
Few nights of bad sleep increases risk of heart attack and stroke: study
By Stephen Beech Lack of sleep for just a few nights can increase the risk of a heart attack or stroke, warns new research. Even a couple of days with insufficient shuteye promotes molecular mechanisms linked to a greater risk of heart problems, according to the findings. Swedish researchers investigated how sleep deprivation affects biomarkers - in this case, proteins - associated with cardiovascular disease. Study leader Dr. Jonathan Cedernaes, of Uppsala University, said: "Unfortunately, nearly half of all Swedes regularly experience disturbed sleep, and this is particularly common among shift workers. "That is why we wanted to try to identify mechanisms that affect how lack of sleep can increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. "Ultimately, the purpose was to identify opportunities to address these problems." A chronic lack of sleep is a growing public health problem around the world, and in large population studies it has been linked to an increased risk of heart attack, stroke and irregular heartbeat, also known as atrial fibrillation. Dr. Cedernaes says heart health is influenced by several lifestyle factors, including sleep, diet and exercise. To separate out the effects of sleep, he said a number of conditions were controlled in the laboratory environment such as diet and physical activity. The research team studied 16 healthy young men of normal weight who all had healthy sleep habits. The participants spent time in a sleep laboratory where their meals and activity levels were strictly controlled in two sessions. In one session, the participants got a normal amount of sleep for three consecutive nights, while during the other session, they got only about four hours of sleep each night. During both sessions, morning and evening blood samples were taken, and following high-intensity exercise lasting 30 minutes. The research team measured the levels of around 90 proteins in the blood and were able to see that the levels of many of these that are associated with increased inflammation rose when the participants were sleep-deprived. Many of the proteins have already been linked to an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, such as heart failure and coronary artery disease. Dr. Cedernaes said: "Many of the larger studies that have been done on the link between sleep deprivation and the risk of cardiovascular diseases have generally focused on slightly older individuals who already have an increased risk of such diseases. "That is why it was interesting that the levels of these proteins increased in the same way in younger and previously perfectly healthy individuals after only a few nights of sleep deprivation. "This means that it's important to emphasise the importance of sleep for cardiovascular health even early in life." Physical exercise generated a slightly different response after a lack of sleep, according to the findings published in the journal Biomarker Research. However, a number of key proteins increased equally, whether the person was sleep-deprived or not. Dr. Cedernaes said proteins that can be linked to the positive effects of exercise increased, even if the person had too little sleep. The research team has previously shown that exercise in the presence of sleep deprivation can result in a slightly increased load on the heart's muscle cells. Dr. Cedernaes said: "With this study, we have improved our understanding of what role the amount of sleep we get plays in cardiovascular health. "It's important to point out that studies have also shown that physical exercise can offset at least some of the negative effects that poor sleep can cause. "But it's also important to note that exercise cannot replace the essential functions of sleep." He added: "Further research is needed to investigate how these effects might differ in women, older individuals, patients with heart disease, or those with different sleep patterns. "Our ongoing research will hopefully help to develop better guidelines on how sleep, exercise and other lifestyle factors can be harnessed to better prevent cardiovascular diseases." The post Few nights of bad sleep increases risk of heart attack and stroke: study appeared first on Talker. Copyright Talker News. All Rights Reserved.
Miami Herald
08-05-2025
- Science
- Miami Herald
New York and dozens of other cities are sinking
By Stephen Beech New York, Dallas and Seattle are among American cities that are sinking, reveals new research. An analysis of 28 urban areas in the United States revealed that all of them are falling in altitude, potentially affecting 34 million people. The cities are sinking by two to 10 millimeters per year, according to new research published in the journal Nature. The major cause is groundwater extraction, say scientists. The Virginia Tech study used satellite-based radar measurements to create high-resolution maps of subsidence, or sinking land, for 28 of the most populous American cities. The cities are home to 34 million people, around 12% of the total US population. At least 20% of the urban area is sinking in every city studied, and in 25 of the 28 cities, at least 65% is sinking. Study lead author Leonard Ohenhen warned that when land shifts downward, even just a little bit, the structural integrity of buildings, roads, bridges, and dams can be "profoundly" impacted. Ohenhen, a geosciences graduate student who worked with Associate Professor Manoochehr Shirzaei at Virginia Tech's Earth Observation and Innovation Lab, said: "A lot of small changes will build up over time, magnifying weak spots within urban systems and heightening flood risks." New York, Chicago, Seattle, Denver, and five other cities are sinking at around two millimeters per year. Several cities in Texas showed some of the highest measured rates of subsidence at about five millimeters per year, and as much as 10 millimeters per year in certain areas of Houston. Some localised zones are sinking faster than nearby areas, according to the findings. The researchers say the phenomenon represents one of the more harmful yet least visible effects of subsidence. Professor Shirzaei explained that, unlike flood hazards, where risks manifest only when land sinks below a critical threshold, inconsistent land motion can crack and destabilise buildings, foundations, and infrastructure. His team assessed how infrastructure risks increase when subsidence rates vary. Other cities with high subsidence variability include New York, Las Vegas, and Washington, D.C. Shirzaei said: "The latent nature of this risk means that infrastructure can be silently compromised over time with damage only becoming evident when it is severe or potentially catastrophic." He added: "This risk is often exacerbated in rapidly expanding urban centres." The researchers said that as cities continue to grow, so too does the demand for freshwater. If water is extracted from an aquifer faster than it can be replenished, it can crumble and compact in the ground. Shirzaei said: "The compounding effect of shifts in weather patterns with urban population and socioeconomic growth is potentially accelerating subsidence rates and transforming previously stable urban areas into vulnerable zones for flooding, infrastructure failure, and long-term land degradation." The study highlighted the importance of integrating land subsidence monitoring into urban planning policies to prevent worsening infrastructure risks, and recommended targeted "mitigation and adaptation" strategies. These include groundwater management to reduce excessive withdrawals, enhanced infrastructure resilience planning to account for differential subsidence, and long-term monitoring frameworks for early detection and intervention. The post New York and dozens of other cities are sinking appeared first on Talker. Copyright Talker News. All Rights Reserved.
