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Daily Mail
25-06-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
The secret to a happy marriage? PDA! Couples who display affection have more satisfying relationships, study claims
Honesty, respect and communication are all crucial to a happy marriage. But if you really want to boost your relationship, scientists say you should give your partner a kiss or cuddle in public. Experts have discovered that public displays of affection (PDA) are linked to greater relationship satisfaction. And it could be an easy way to strengthen your romantic bond – even at the risk of making other people feel a bit uncomfortable. Researchers from the University of Silesia in Katowice, Poland, recruited more than 450 participants for their study. They were asked questions about their public and private displays of affection, negative attitudes and behaviours towards other individuals engaging in PDA. Analysis revealed displays of romantic affection – like holding hands, kissing or cuddling – both in public and privately, were linked to enhanced relationship satisfaction. They were also associated with improved wellbeing, reduced stress and greater life satisfaction. The study, which involved individuals from Indonesia, Nepal and Poland, also revealed cultural differences in attitudes towards PDA. Polish participants reported the highest level of PDA, while Indonesian participants reported the lowest. Writing in the journal Plos One the researchers said: 'Across all three countries, positive correlations were observed between displays of affection and relationship satisfaction, underscoring the importance of affectionate behaviours in romantic relationships. 'In practice, these findings may inform relationship counselling, suggesting that encouraging appropriate expressions of affection…can strengthen romantic bonds.' They referenced previous studies that have revealed key differences in how gender shapes an individual's views on PDA. 'Women tend to show affection more frequently than men,' they wrote, 'while men are more likely to report a lack of affectionate touch and greater affection deprivation. 'Although men and women differ in their preferred forms of physical affection – men often prefer kissing, while women favour hugging – these differences are generally modest.' Earlier research has also suggested that people not in romantic relationships exhibit the highest levels of negative attitudes towards public displays of affection. Others ways to maintain a happy marriage include merging bank accounts, according to a study published in 2023. Researchers recruited 230 couples who were either engaged or newly married and followed them over two years as they began their married lives together. Everyone began the study with separate bank accounts. Some couples were assigned to keep their separate accounts, and others were told to open a joint account instead. A third group was also allowed to make the decision on their own. Analysis revealed couples who opened joint bank accounts reported substantially higher relationship quality two years later than those who maintained separate accounts. The scientists said merging funds means couples are more aligned with their financial goals and are more transparent with each other. It also leads to a 'communal understanding of marriage' – when partners respond to each other's needs – they said. WHAT ARE THE FIVE STAGES OF A RELATIONSHIP AND HOW DO THEY AFFECT THE BODY? Psychologists suggest there are five stages of love - butterflies, building, assimilation, honesty and stability. Each of these stages has a different impact on our psyche and health, researchers at eHarmony found in a 2014 survey. 1) Butterflies Marked by intense infatuation and sexual attraction, symptoms noted by couples included weight loss (30 per cent) and a lack of productivity (39 per cent). Biologically, it's reported that during this early stage of dating, both men and women create more of the sex hormones testosterone and oestrogen. As a result more than half - 56 per cent - noted an increase in their libido. 2) Building As the initial attraction gives way to learning more about one another, the honeymoon stage subsides and a couple begin to build their relationship. eHarmony's study estimated around three per cent of Britons in relationship are currently at stage two. The body releases neurochemicals called monoamines, which speed up heart rate, trigger rushes of intense pleasure and replicate the effects of Class A drugs. The biological effect culminates in a feeling of 'happy anxiety', where people can think of little else than their blossoming relationship. Forty-four per cent of the study participants noted a lack of sleep while 29 per cent reported a their attention span had been adversely affected. 3) Assimilation Having established whether the other person is 'right', stage three forces a couple to question whether the 'relationship' itself is right. Questions over the future of the union and forming boundaries in the relationship can lead to a rise in stress levels, reported by 27 per cent of those taking part in the study. 4) Honesty Stage three combines with stage four, where people open up showing the 'real you' sees the first real rise in stress levels and anxiety. 'This stage deals with the concept behind how we all put on our best faces, through social media we edit our lives as well as our pictures to make it appear as though everything is fine,' psychologist Dr Linda Papadopoulos, who assisted with the study, told MailOnline. Opening up completely triggered feelings of doubt and increased vulnerability in 15 per cent of participants. 5) Stability If a couple can weather the emotional rollercoaster of the first four stages, the fifth and final stage, stability, brings with it increased levels of trust and intimacy. eHarmony found 50 per cent of respondents had reached this stage, and 23 per cent reported feeling happier as a result. Biologically, vasopressin - a powerful hormone released by men and women during orgasm - strengthens feelings of attachment. Meanwhile oxytocin - released during childbirth - deepens feelings of attachment. 'This is where we see a real level of contentness,' Dr Papadopolous told MailOnline. 'We found the body releases wonderful hormones which helps couples bond. We noted a real sense of attachment, and a sense of "you have got my back and I've got yours".'
Time of India
18-06-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Sedentary lifestyle impacts reproductive health of men and women: Study
Medical research has highlighted how prolonged sitting can be linked to reproductive issues. A sedentary lifestyle can contribute to infertility in both men and women. Reproduction is a vital biological process essential for the survival of species. A study on this aimed to explore the relationship between physical inactivity, sedentary behaviour, and body composition with idiopathic infertility in men and women. It focused on a French case-control study examining the nutritional determinants of idiopathic fertility to determine if these factors are related to the condition. However, over the past few decades, concerning trends have emerged in developed countries worldwide, suggesting a decline in reproductive health outcomes. Is your sedentary lifestyle harming your fertility? Here's what the study says According to a study published in PlosOne , research has shown mixed results regarding the impact of physical activity on fertility, suggesting that moderate physical activity is positively associated with semen quality in men and increased fecundity in women. Sedentary behaviour and physical inactivity are significant health concerns that can independently affect various health factors, diseases, and mortality. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Buy Brass Idols - Handmade Brass Statues for Home & Gifting Luxeartisanship Buy Now Undo These two behaviours can coexist or occur separately, and physical activity may moderate but not entirely offset the negative effects of sedentary behavior. Sedentary behaviour refers to spending time sitting or lying down, while physical activity means not getting enough exercise (at least 150 minutes of moderate activity per week). Unexplained infertility affects 30-40% of infertile couples and can be difficult for those trying to conceive. Standard investigations include tests for ovulation, tubal patency, and semen analysis, but no clear cause is identified. Lifestyle and health factors in fertile and infertile couples The study involved 302 French participants, including 159 infertile and 142 fertile couples. Infertile participants had unexplained infertility forever a year, while fertile participants had a recent natural pregnancy and delivery. Participants filled out questionnaires covering demographics, lifestyle habits, diet, physical activity, and sedentary behavior. Their blood samples, blood pressure, and body measurements were also taken to assess metabolic health. Insights from the study Infertile participants were younger but had lower education levels and higher body measurements as compared to fertile patients. Infertile men were more likely to have metabolic syndrome. Physical activity levels didn't differ significantly between fertile and infertile groups, although infertile men engaged in less vigorous activity. Sedentary behavior was inversely associated with physical activity only in infertile men. Both groups followed similar nutritional guidelines, but many participants didn't meet recommended physical activity levels. Also read | A simple blood test could indicate how long will you live One step to a healthier you—join Times Health+ Yoga and feel the change
DW
05-06-2025
- Science
- DW
Dead Sea Scrolls older than previously thought says AI – DW – 06/04/2025
An AI trained on radiocarbon dating suggests some Dead Sea Scrolls might be older than previously thought. The findings could reshape our understanding of Judaism and early Christianity. An AI program trained to study the handwriting styles of ancient manuscripts suggests many of the Dead Sea Scrolls might be older than previously thought, as reported in a study published in the journal Plos One on Wednesday . The study is the latest entry in a new era of antiquity studies that has researchers use AI to reveal the secrets written on frayed and crumbling scrolls. The new method combines AI, radiocarbon dating, and handwriting analysis to more accurately estimate an ancient text's age. The now proposed redating could reshape our understanding of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and of Judaism and early Christianity, the authors of the study say. "It is very exciting to set a significant step into solving the dating problem of the Dead Sea Scrolls and also creating a new tool that could be used to study other partially dated manuscript collections from history," said study author Mladen Popovic from the University of Groningen, The Netherlands. Radiocarbon dating and AI analysis of handwriting The Dead Sea Scrolls, the first of which were discovered in a cave in Israel in 1947, are the most momentous manuscript discovery of the past hundred years. There are around 1,000 manuscripts in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Among them are some of the oldest known copies of texts from the Hebrew Bible. Studies of these manuscripts have profoundly changed understanding of the origins of Christianity and the formation of post-biblical Judaism Dating these manuscripts with paleography — the study of ancient handwriting — reveals them to have been written over several hundred years between 250 B.C.E. and 100 C.E. However, scholars have struggled to analyze ancient texts, particularly with distinguishing one writer's style from another, meaning dating isn't very reliable. The researchers aimed to improve analytical methods by using AI to study handwriting and cross-reference this data with radiocarbon dating. Radiocarbon dating estimates the age of materials by measuring carbon-14 isotopes that slowly disappear over time. "The advantage of the [AI] model is that it provides quantified objectivity to palaeography, reducing the method's subjectivity," the authors write. An AI model was first trained on 24 manuscripts with reliable radiocarbon dating. The authors then used this AI model to analyze the handwriting style of 135 scrolls with unknown dates spanning three centuries from around 200 B.C.E. to 100 C.E. This created a better way of dating written manuscripts with 79% accuracy, according to the analysis. "This novel approach allowed [the researchers] to combine historical expertise with technical precision," said Thea Sommerschield and Yannis Assael, who previously developed AI tools for the study of ancient texts at the University of Oxford, UK, in a joint email to DW. Sommerschield and Assael were not involved in the study. Tomorrow Today — The Science Show To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video New Dead Sea Scroll chronology The authors of the study believe their analysis could lead to a new chronology of the scrolls. If verified, it would change understanding of the history of ancient Judea and the people who wrote the texts. The AI analysis found the manuscripts are older than previous estimates overall, suggesting dates in the early second century B.C.E., and sometimes slightly earlier. Scholars often assume that the rise and expansion of the Hasmonaean kingdom from the mid-second century B.C.E. onward caused a rise in "literacy scribal intellectual culture." The authors say their findings suggest that scribes were copying multiple literary manuscripts before this period. Sommerschield and Assael say the new study shows AI could be used to provide more accurate dating of other ancient texts. "This new study shows that computational tools don't diminish the role of human expertise, they enhance it, opening new paths for discovery in even the most well-studied texts," they said in their email. Antiquity scholars believe they are on the brink of a new era of because of AI. Researchers have also, for example, been using AI to translate ancient texts that have been vexing ancient scholars for decades. Edited by: Matthew Ward Agius
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Many of Dead Sea scrolls may be older than thought, experts say
Many of the Dead Sea scrolls could be older than previously thought, with some biblical texts dating from the time of their original authors, researchers say. The first of the ancient scrolls were discovered in the caves of Qumran in the Judean desert by Bedouin shepherds in the mid-20th century. The manuscripts range from legal documents to parts of the Hebrew Bible, and are thought to date from around the third century BCE to the second century CE. Now researchers have used artificial intelligence to glean fresh insights into the dates of individual scrolls – findings experts suggest could challenge ideas about when, where and by whom they were produced. 'It's like a time machine. So we can shake hands with these people from 2,000 years ago, and we can put them in time much better now, said Prof Mladen Popović, first author of the research from the University of Groningen in the Netherlands. While some scrolls were radiocarbon dated in the 1990s, Popović said scholars did not tackle the problem of castor oil contamination – a substance applied in the 1950s to help experts read the manuscripts, but which could skew results. In addition, many of the scrolls had only been dated by handwriting analysis. Writing in the journal Plos One, the team report how they attempted radiocarbon dating of 30 samples from different manuscripts found at four sites and thought to span five centuries. Crucially, the team first cleaned the samples to remove the castor oil contamination. The researchers successfully radiocarbon-dated 27 samples, finding that while two were younger than handwriting analysis had suggested, many were older. Among other findings, the researchers discovered two different writing styles, known as Hasmonean and Herodian scripts, coexisted for a much longer period than previously thought, while a sample from a manuscript called 4Q114 – which contains verses from the book of Daniel – was older than traditional palaeography had suggested. 'It was previously dated to the late second century BCE, a generation after the author of the Book of Daniel. Now, with our study we move back in time contemporary to that author,' said Popović. The team then used a type of AI known as machine learning to build a model they called Enoch – a nod to a biblical figure associated with scientific knowledge. The team trained Enoch by feeding it 62 digital images of ink traces from 24 of the radiocarbon dated manuscripts, together with the carbon-14 dates. They then verified the model by showing Enoch a further 13 images from the same manuscripts. In 85% of cases the model produced ages that tallied with the radiocarbon dates, and in many cases produced a smaller range of probable dates than obtained from radiocarbon dating alone. 'What we have created is a very robust tool that is empirically based – based on physics and on geometry,' said Popović. When Enoch was presented with images from 135 undated manuscripts it had not previously seen, it realistically dated 79% of them – as judged by expert palaeographers. Popović added those deemed unrealistic might have had problematic data, such as poor quality images. The system has already produced new insights including that a copy of the biblical book Ecclesiastes dates from the time of the book's presumed author. Popović said Enoch meant the age of further scrolls could now be uncovered without radiocarbon dating – a process that requires the destruction of small samples. 'There are more than 1,000 Dead Sea scrolls manuscripts so our study is a first but significant step, opening a door unto history with new possibilities for research,' he said. Prof emerita Joan Taylor of King's College London, said the results would have a major impact on Qumran studies. 'These results mean that most of the manuscripts found in the caves near Qumran would not have been written at the site of Qumran, which was not occupied until later,' she said. However, Dr Matthew Collins of the University of Chester cautioned that radiocarbon dating only shed light on the age of the parchment, not when it was written on, while there were also questions about how stylistically representative the small number of training samples were for different periods in time. 'Overall, this is an important and welcome study, and one which may provide us with a significant new tool in our armoury for dating these texts,' he said. 'Nevertheless, it's one that we should adopt with caution, and in careful conjunction with other evidence.'
DW
04-06-2025
- General
- DW
AI finds Dead Sea Scrolls are older than first thought – DW – 06/04/2025
An AI trained on radiocarbon dating suggests some Dead Sea Scrolls might be older than previously thought. The findings could reshape our understanding of Judaism and early Christianity. An AI program trained to study the handwriting styles of ancient manuscripts suggests many of the Dead Sea Scrolls might be older than previously thought. The study is the latest in a new era of antiquity studies which use AI to reveal the secrets written on frayed and crumbling scrolls. The new method combines AI, radiocarbon dating, and handwriting analysis to more accurately estimate an ancient text's age. The proposed redating of some scrolls could reshape our understanding of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and of Judaism and early Christianity, the authors say. "It is very exciting to set a significant step into solving the dating problem of the Dead Sea Scrolls and also creating a new tool that could be used to study other partially dated manuscript collections from history," said study author Mladen Popović from the University of Groningen, The Netherlands. The study appeared today in the journal Plos One. Radiocarbon dating and AI analysis of handwriting The Dead Sea Scrolls, the first of which were discovered in a cave in Israel in 1947, are the most momentous manuscript discovery of the past hundred years. There are around 1,000 manuscripts in the Dead Sea Scrolls. Among them are some of the oldest known copies of texts from the Hebrew Bible. Studies of these manuscripts have profoundly changed understanding of the origins of Christianity and the formation of post-biblical Judaism Dating these manuscripts with paleography — the study of ancient handwriting — reveals them to have been written over several hundred years between 250BCE and 100CE. However, scholars have struggled to analyze ancient texts, particularly distinguishing one writer's style from another, meaning dating isn't very reliable. The researchers aimed to improve analytical methods by using AI to study handwriting and cross reference this data with radiocarbon dating. Radiocarbon dating estimates the age of materials by measuring carbon-14 isotopes that slowly disappear over time. "The advantage of the [AI] model is that it provides quantified objectivity to palaeography, reducing the method's subjectivity," the authors write. An AI model was first trained on 24 manuscripts with reliable radiocarbon dating. The authors then used this AI model to analyze the handwriting style of 135 scrolls with unknown dates spanning three centuries from around 200BCE to 100CE. This created a better way of dating written manuscripts with 79% accuracy, according to the analysis. "This novel approach allowed [the researchers] to combine historical expertise with technical precision," said Thea Sommerschield and Yannis Assael, who previously developed AI tools for the study of ancient texts at the University of Oxford, UK. Sommerschield and Assael were not involved in the study. Tomorrow Today — The Science Show To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video New Dead Sea Scroll chronology The authors believe their analysis could lead to a new chronology of the scrolls. If verified, it would change understanding of the history of ancient Judea and the people who wrote the texts. The AI analysis found the manuscripts are older than previous estimates overall, suggesting dates in the early second century BCE, and sometimes slightly earlier. Scholars often assume that the rise and expansion of the Hasmonaean kingdom from the mid-second century BCE onward caused a rise in "literacy scribal intellectual culture." The authors say their findings suggest that scribes were copying multiple literary manuscripts before this period. Sommerschield and Assael say the new study shows AI could be used to provide more accurate dating of other ancient texts. "This new study shows that computational tools don't diminish the role of human expertise, they enhance it, opening new paths for discovery in even the most well-studied texts," they said in a joint email to DW. Antiquity scholars believe they are on the brink of a new era of because of AI. Other researchers have been using AI to translate ancient texts that have been vexing ancient scholars for decades. Edited by: Matthew Ward Agius
