Why February Is the Shortest Month: The Strange Story Behind 28 (and Sometimes 29) Days

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Every year, February arrives like a brief pause in the calendar—swift, compact, and slightly peculiar. While other months stretch confidently across 30 or 31 days, February seems almost shy, offering just 28 days most years and a bonus 29th day only once every four years. But this oddity isn’t a mistake or a cosmic coincidence. It’s the result of ancient politics, astronomical precision, and a bit of Roman ego. A Calendar Born From Chaos To understand February’s unusual length, we need to travel back more than 2,700 years to the…

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Like Alcohol: What Smartphone Addiction Is Really Doing to Us

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A quick glance at your phone — and suddenly 20 minutes have vanished. Checking messages, scrolling through social media, watching a short video: for many people, the smartphone has become a constant companion. But where does useful connectivity end, and where does dependency begin? More and more experts are warning about the consequences of excessive phone use, from concentration problems to sleep disturbances. “Smartphone addiction” isn’t an official medical diagnosis, but it describes a pattern of behavior that is becoming increasingly visible in everyday life. According to Alfred U. Musalek…

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Switch to Daylight Saving Time: When We Need to Change the Clocks

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Every year—at least twice—the same questions come up: When does daylight saving time start again? When does standard time return? And do we move the clocks forward or back? In Austria, daylight saving time officially begins on Sunday, 29 March 2026. At 2:00 a.m., clocks will be set forward to 3:00 a.m. This means the night is one hour shorter, but evenings will stay brighter for longer. This year’s date falls one day earlier than last year, when the change took place on 30 March. The reason is simple: according…

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UNWG Leadership Joins Hungarian National Assembly President at Hungarian Reception

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12 January 2026, Vienna, Austria- The President, Ruiqing Zhou and the 1st Vice President, Maria Zelda Rojas, of the United Nations Women’s Guild (UNWG) attended the New Year’s Reception hosted by Her Excellency Edit Szilágyiné Bátorfi, Ambassador of Hungary to the Republic of Austria, on the evening of 12 January 2026. Ambassador Bátorfi, a seasoned diplomat with a distinguished career in Hungary’s foreign service, has led the Hungarian diplomatic mission in Austria since her appointment, focusing on deepening bilateral relations and cultural ties. The event was held at the historic…

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Most Vienna Residents Rarely or Never Drive a Car

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Most people aged 16 and older living in Vienna rarely or never drive a car, according to a VCÖ analysis based on data from Statistics Austria. “Car fasting” isn’t limited to the traditional fasting season in Austria. Nationwide, 34 percent of people aged 16 and over rarely or never drive. In Vienna, that number rises to 63 percent, according to the latest analysis by the Austrian Transport Club (VCÖ). Interestingly, outside Vienna, people in the western federal states drive significantly less than those in the eastern regions. 1.8 Million People…

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Police Warn: More Burglars Using Italy’s Strange “Cookie Trick”

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As the darker months set in, concerns about home break-ins rise across Europe. Police are now warning about a particularly unusual method spreading from Italy to other countries, including Germany: the so‑called “cookie trick.” What sounds almost humorous at first glance is, in fact, a simple but effective tactic used by burglars to identify empty homes. A New Burglary Method From Italy According to the Italian daily Leggo.it, authorities have reported a surge in break-ins involving this peculiar strategy. German outlets, including Ippen Media, note that similar cases have already…

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Headache Alert as Weather Swings Hit — What’s Really Behind It

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Forecasts indicate a noticeable weather shift — and for those sensitive to rapid changes, that often spells trouble. A weather change typically means temperatures rise or fall significantly within just a few hours. Such fluctuations can strain the body and have long been suspected of triggering various symptoms, especially headaches. A long-term U.S. study now sheds new light on the connection. Seven-Year Study Links Temperature Spikes to Headaches Researchers in the United States analyzed data from more than 7,000 patients over a period of seven years. All participants had sought…

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94% of Austrian Teenagers Use AI Chatbots — But Turn to Humans for Sensitive Issues

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Vienna – Artificial intelligence has become firmly embedded in the everyday lives of young people in Austria. According to new data from saferinternet.at, 94 percent of surveyed teenagers report using AI chatbots. Yet despite this widespread adoption, young Austrians remain cautious and discerning in how they rely on the technology. For many adults—especially parents—AI still feels like an unpredictable factor in their children’s lives. But insights from Rat auf Draht, Austria’s national youth counseling service, paint a more nuanced picture: teenagers are not blindly trusting AI. Instead, they approach it…

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5,000-Year-Old “Superbug” Discovered in Romanian Ice Cave

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A team led by microbiologist Cristina Purcarea from the Institute of Biology at the Romanian Academy has uncovered a remarkable ancient microorganism deep within the Scarisoara Ice Cave in the Carpathian Mountains. The discovery, published in Frontiers in Microbiology, sheds new light on the origins of antibiotic resistance — and may even point toward future medical breakthroughs. A Window Into the Distant Past To reach the bacterium, researchers drilled a 25‑meter ice core from an underground glacier inside the cave. The sample containing the strain Psychrobacter sp. SC65A.3 was extracted…

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