The Know Daily - Monday 15 January 2024

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A Canadian conservation group has purchased exclusive hunting rights for part of a British Columbia rainforest in a bid to protect wildlife. The Rainforest Conservation Foundation said it would continue to buy more hunting rights in the area, with the ultimate aim of ending commercial trophy hunting in the Great Bear Rainforest altogether.

📣 Measles PSA

Health officials have urged parents to check that their children have had two doses of the MMR jab, amid a rise in measles cases across the country.

Tell me more.
There were 1,603 suspected cases of measles in England and Wales in 2023, new data from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has revealed. This is up from 735 in 2022, and just 360 the year before. 

On Friday, BBC News reported that the West Midlands is experiencing the highest number of measles cases outside of London. Public Health Scotland said it has seen “very few” cases, however.

What’s behind it?
It’s all down to vaccine hesitancy, with a low uptake of the MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) jab. While uptake needs to be 95% to stop measles from spreading in the community, in 2022-23 just 84.5% of children had two doses by the time they were five, reported Sky News.

Dr Naveed Sye, a consultant in health protection for the UKHSA, told the BBC that the Covid pandemic had “stirred up a lot of issues”, with “fake news” behind the reluctance to have the MMR jab.

What should we be doing?
The UKHSA has urged parents to check that their children have had two doses of MMR, while the NHS is organising catch-up vaccination clinics in some areas.

🗓️ The Blue Monday myth

The third Monday in January is technically not more depressing than any other day of the year. So why do we keep talking about so-called “Blue Monday”? 

Go on…
The whole concept of Blue Monday is nothing more than a PR stunt - albeit a hugely successful one. It was dreamed up in 2005 by the UK company Sky Travel, which suggested that the “cure” for Blue Monday was - surprise surprise - booking a holiday. 

But why did Sky Travel choose the third Monday in January? The date supposedly accounts for the “worsening weather, the long stretch until payday underscored by festive debt, lapsed New Year's resolutions and the joy of Christmas fading in the rearview mirror”, said Sky News.

Is there any science behind this?
Nope. “Blue Monday is more shrouded with controversy than actual science,” noted The Evening Standard, which pointed out that there are zero studies that back up what it stands for. “It is unscientific. It is pseudoscientific. It is uberpseudoscientific,” wrote one psychologist in The Guardian.

So why are we still talking about it?
Good question. The Mental Health Foundation has described Blue Monday as a “rather tedious yearly PR event”, and the influx of marketing emails and promotional events that still accompany the date keep the Blue Monday myth alive and well.

But this isn’t the whole picture. While Blue Monday may be manufactured, seasonal affective disorder (SAD) is not, with lots of us finding that our mood dips over winter, perhaps due in part to the lack of sunlight. 

So how should we spend Blue Monday?
Spending time in nature, getting enough sleep and chatting with friends are all mood boosters - whether you opt to do that this Monday or any other day this year!

📝 Yemen strikes: Today, the PM will deliver a statement in the House of Commons about what he has described as “limited” and “necessary” strikes on Iran-backed Houthi targets in Yemen.

🇹🇼 Taiwan election: Lai Ching-te, Taiwan’s vice president, has been elected the island’s next president - a result that will “anger Beijing and heighten tensions” across the strait, said The Guardian.

🚧 Pothole pain: In 2023, reports of potholes and the damage they caused hit a five-year high, possibly costing UK drivers as much as £500m in repairs, new data has shown. 

🏆 Emmy Awards: The 75th Emmy Awards - rescheduled from September due to the Hollywood strikes - are being held in Los Angeles tonight. See the nominees for the top prizes here.

🎞️ Not so fetch?: The first reviews of the new Mean Girls movie are in - and the musical based on a Broadway production seems to have divided critics.

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Trivia answer: B) South Korea has unveiled a new digital nomad visa which will allow foreign residents to stay in the country for up to two years while working a remote job back home. Sound up your street? You might want to check out the pretty strict conditions that come with it…

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