Of the many benefits friends provide us, acting as sounding boards for our rants and raves has got to be high on the list, right? Not really, according to developmental psychologist Amanda Rose. While it’s a common belief that rehashing our problems with buddies makes us feel better, the opposite may actually be true. Learn what Rose has to say about “co-rumination” and how to avoid its pitfalls.
If you’re in the U.S. and fancy a Slurpee or hot dog, 7-Eleven is the place to go. In Japan, however, the chain’s customers can choose from a far wider range of food options, including higher quality prepared dishes curated for each establishment’s location and clientele. Now, American stores are starting to follow suit. The shift represents a new business strategy for the brand, as fewer people are smoking and more are driving electric vehicles. “We believe that we need to change our business model from one that relies on gasoline and cigarettes to one in which customers choose us based on our products,” Ryuichi Isaka, president and CEO of 7-Eleven’s Japanese parent company, explained to Bloomberg Television. “The key to this change is fresh food.” By introducing new, fresher fare, the world’s largest convenience store chain is hoping to make one-third of its total sales from store-brand goods, like food, next year, TheWall Street Journal reports. “In Asia I think there is so much excitement around convenience stores and the types of food and snacks they offer,” said JinJoo Lee, a columnist for the outlet. “So if they can bring even a little bit of that excitement to the U.S., that would be a great success.”Look inside a Japanese 7-Eleven.
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Conservationists often come up with creative strategies to protect various species — from harnessing bees as peacekeepers to developing robot fish. Another one to add to the list? Using hand puppets to help raise shoebill chicks. A little backstory on this quirky idea: The prehistoric-looking (and meme-worthy) bird is currently under threat, particularly in a wetland in Zambia where only 215 are left, according to CNN. And although they face an uncertain future due to a variety of factors, their competitive nature makes it all the more difficult to keep their numbers up, as shoebills typically lay two eggs and one chick usually kills the other. So before this can happen, Maggie Hirschauer, the shoebill program manager at Bangweulu Wetlands, African Parks, takes one of the chicks and raises it herself. But to avoid habituating the young animals to people, so they can be released one day, she dons a special, all-black costume designed by a Muppets puppeteer. “The chicks very much focus on the puppet as if it was their parent,” Hirschauer told the outlet. See the costume.
Science
Coffee Beans Might Be 600,000 Years Old, Study Says
For many of us, drinking coffee in the morning is a ritual that helps us get out of bed and ready for the day ahead. To thank for this cozy and caffeinated routine, we may have to go many millennia in reverse, as a recent study found the roots of coffee beans might stretch back 600,000 years. Researchers constructed a family tree for arabica — often referred to as “the backbone” of the coffee industry — in an aim to learn how to better protect the plant from pests and climate change. Studying more than 30 different arabica plants, they found that the species emerged through the natural crossbreeding of two other coffee species around a half a million years ago. “In other words, prior to any intervention from man,” Victor Albert, a biologist at the University at Buffalo who co-led the study, explained to the Associated Press. The hope is to use these findings to protect the crop and keep our cups of Joe filled to the brim for many years to come. “We could use this information to, for example, develop new coffee varieties that would be resistant to climate changes,” Patrick Descombes, one of the researchers involved in the study who also works with Nestlé, told NPR. (As we sip our coffees writing this, we sure hope so!)
Springbox Mini Grow Kits Afraid you’re not a plant person? These affordable kits take the guesswork out of gardening. Simply empty the seed packet into the soil of the small wooden planter, and enjoy the satisfaction of nurturing a plant from scratch. Choose from scores of flowers, herbs, and pretty greenery to sprinkle throughout your home. Associate Editor Ally’s oregano kit just started sprouting.
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Inspiring Story
Mini and mighty alpinist
Lydia Pearson has summited all 48 peaks of New Hampshire’s mountains that are over 4,000 feet in elevation — and she’s only 4 years old. “The outdoors is all she knows,” said her mother, who took Lydia up her first mountain when she was 2 months old. Meet the determined hiker.
It’s rice planting season for farming families in Sharkia Governorate, Egypt, and these children were captured splishing and splashing in one of the fields late last month.
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