Latest news with #EotvosLorandUniversity
Yahoo
a day ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Low Danube waters bring huge mayfly swarms in Budapest
STORY: :: Mayflies swarm the river Danube earlier than usual and in greater numbers :: Budapest, Hungary :: July 23, 2025 :: Gyorgy Kriska, Associate Professor, Eotvos Lorand University 'Since 2012 we have seen huge swarming in those years when the water levels are quite low. We think it is because the sun lights the riverbed more and the algae can breed more and that way the larvae find more food.' :: Researchers put up special blue lights to guide the mayflies, which get confused by city lights :: July 26, 2025 'What our lights are doing is that they keep them here, they don't let them fly above so they keep swarming around the lights, and often a swirl of insects form around the lights, which reaches the surface of the water and they splash into the water. Where the mayflies reach the water they place their eggs there. What we can achieve is that they stay in place over the water and the next generation is saved. They cannot go further up but at least their offspring survive.' :: Mayflies, a protected species in Hungary, live for less than a day after they hatch Hundreds of thousands, sometimes millions, of mayflies engage in a frantic rush to mate and reproduce before they perish within just a few hours. Mayflies live for less than a day after they hatch, and their abundance is closely connected to the health of the Danube. Danube mayflies usually start swarming in August, but this year it began in mid-July, and is expected to last for weeks. Danube mayflies, a protected species, did not swarm for about four decades as the river was too polluted. They returned in 2012 when the Danube became cleaner due to the construction of wastewater treating plants, he added. As mayflies swarm upriver after mating, they can be confused by city lights or the shadows of bridges, causing them to crash on the riverbank instead of laying their eggs in the water. To help them as much as possible, Hungarian researchers installed special blue lights on two bridges. Solve the daily Crossword
Reuters
2 days ago
- Science
- Reuters
Low Danube waters bring huge mayfly swarms in Budapest
BUDAPEST, July 28 (Reuters) - Mayflies on the river Danube in Budapest are swarming earlier and in greater numbers than usual this year due to low water levels and an unusually hot summer, filling the air along the riverbanks as they are drawn to the city lights. Hundreds of thousands, sometimes millions, of mayflies engage in a frantic rush to mate and reproduce before they perish within just a few hours. Mayflies live for less than a day after they hatch, and their abundance is closely connected to the health of the Danube. Danube mayflies usually start swarming in August, but this year it began in mid-July, and is expected to last for weeks. Researchers say their early appearance in huge swarms could be linked to higher temperatures. "We have observed that massive mayfly swarms occur in years when the water levels are particularly low," said Gyorgy Kriska, associate professor at Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest. Earlier this month unusually low water levels disrupted shipping, opens new tab along the Danube, Europe's second-longest river. Low water means more sunlight reaches the riverbed, helping algae grow, which provide food for the mayfly larvae, Kriska said. Danube mayflies did not swarm for about four decades as the river was too polluted. They returned in 2012 when the Danube became cleaner due to the construction of wastewater treating plants, he added. The mayfly is a protected species, with the notional value of a single specimen being 10,000 forints ($30). As mayflies swarm upriver after mating, they can be confused by city lights or the shadows of bridges, causing them to crash on the riverbank instead of laying their eggs in the water. To help them as much as possible, Hungarian researchers invented and installed special blue lights on two bridges. "Our lights simply keep them here, ... they continue to fly in front of the lamp ... and crash into the water," Kriska said. "This way, we can ensure they stay above the water, and the next generation survives."
Perth Now
02-07-2025
- Health
- Perth Now
Dog ownership doesn't lead to happiness
Owning a dog doesn't make a person happy. A major new study has cast doubt on the 'pet effect' theory that those who surround themselves with pooches get a boost in terms of health and happiness. Research involving 3,000 Hungarians during Covid lockdowns found that while new dog owners saw a small initial burst of cheer, it faded fast. Over time, levels of calmness, contentment, and activity actually dropped - and feelings of loneliness weren't cured. In fact, many who owned canines said that they felt more anxious as a result of caring for their pets. Judit Mokos, one of the first authors of the study at Eotvos Lorand University in Budapest, said: "What surprised me most was that a new pet in the household had no effect on the respondents' loneliness. "Dog adoption is often promoted as a solution for elderly and/or lonely people. Shelters and pet food companies promote adoption as a means of alleviating loneliness. "However, our research suggests that dogs do not provide a real solution to loneliness; rather, they make the new owners more anxious."
Yahoo
28-01-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
European watchdog takes aim at online gambling, gaming among youths
Online gambling and gaming can cause depression and other mental health issues in young people, which the Council of Europe rights watchdog is trying to counter with a new project encouraging good policy and awareness raising. The 46-member bloc, which launched its project at the start of a two-day conference in Rome on Tuesday, is seeking to help countries tackle the problem as online gambling and gaming grow in popularity among young people. "It is only a minority (of adolescents) who experience addiction-like symptoms," Orsolya Kiraly, a researcher at the Eotvos Lorand University's Institute of Psychology in Budapest, told the conference. "But in these cases these lead to severe negative consequences and functional impairment," she said. Excessive online gambling and gaming are particularly dangerous for children, whose brains and personalities are still developing, she said. The dangers include mental and physical health problems ranging from family conflict and sleep disturbances to bad eating habits and poor physical hygiene, Kiraly said. The Council of Europe's Pompidou Group, which coordinates anti-drug and addiction policy and is in charge of the new project, said in a 2024 report that gambling and gaming products were deliberately crafted to make the activities "as immersive and addictive as possible". Detailed research on the topic is not yet widely available, but the World Health Organization has already identified disorders from online gambling and gaming as public health concerns. - 'Conflicts of interest' - Gambling disorders could affect 26.4 percent of adolescents who are gambling on online platforms, and 16.3 percent of those gambling using sports betting, Kiraly said, citing recent research. More video games, meanwhile, are incorporating gambling-like features, including "loot boxes" -- items that can be bought within video games that contain other unknown objects. Boys are more affected, while girls are more at risk of addiction-like disorders from social media, Kiraly said. "There is a great need for more research in this area," she said. "The industry has a lot of data but they don't share it or they share it only with researchers who have conflicts of interest." The global gaming industry could exceed $300 billion in revenue by 2028, doubling since 2019, according to a 2024 report by the consulting group PwC. Italy is one of the largest gambling markets in the world, with 148 billion euros ($125 billion) spent in 2023, up from 89 billion euros in 2012, said Elisa Benedetti from Italy's National Research Council. - Adults 'desperate' - The Council of Europe hopes to help states to fix a problem that most of its members do not even have strategies for yet. Experts said one of the issues was the contrasting ways in which people of different ages deal with the stigma and the difficulties. Simona Pichini, director of the addiction centre at Italy's National Health Institute (ISS), pointed out that the national Italian gambling hotline most often received calls from adults. "When do they call? When they're desperate, when they arrive with no money, no house, outside the family. They call at the end of the problem," she said. It was a marked contrast with young people. "Not youngsters. They don't perceive the problem," she said. ams/ide/jxb/js
