WEIRD STUFF

Music heals the heart

Music can help heart patients recover faster, new research shows.

A study conducted by the University of Guanajuato in Mexico found that cardiac patients in intensive care who listened to 45 minutes of soft music daily experienced better health outcomes than those who did not.

Over five days, the music group showed lower heart rates, reduced blood pressure, and fewer complications related to ventilators.

The trial involved 24 patients split evenly into two groups. One group was exposed to quiet music sessions at around 15 decibels -- roughly the volume of rustling leaves -- while the control group received no musical intervention.

Despite the low volume, the music produced measurable benefits.

Study author Dr Ilani Perez said: "Music therapy has beneficial effects on physiological distress signs such as heart rate and blood pressure. This suggests it can be a non-invasive intervention to improve stability in a high-stress setting such as the cardiac intensive care unit."

She added: "Doctors should consider incorporating music into their practice as it is safe and low-cost. By reducing physiological distress and enhancing patient comfort, music therapy ultimately improves both the patient experience and clinical outcomes."

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A study by the University of Bath found that German students who consumed a modest amount of alcohol performed better when speaking Dutch compared to those who drank only water.

Their pronunciation was smoother, and their confidence higher, suggesting that alcohol reduced language anxiety and allowed them to speak more freely.

The experiment involved 50 German students who were asked to engage in conversation in Dutch after drinking either water or a vodka and lemon mix equivalent to one glass of wine.

Native Dutch speakers who listened to the recordings, without knowing who drank what, rated the alcohol group as significantly more fluent.

Co-author Dr Inge Kersbergen told The Times: "While our study highlights how a small amount of alcohol may reduce language anxiety, I would not recommend that anyone use alcohol to improve their fluency in a second language. To me, the real takeaway is how complex and fascinating the psychological processes are that support communication in a second language."

The researchers cautioned that excessive drinking could have the opposite effect and impair speaking skills.

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Zebra looking cows to keep flies away

A team of Japanese researchers won an Ig Nobel Prize for spray-painting cows with zebra stripes to reduce fly bites.

Led by Tomoki Kojima, the group taped Japanese beef cows before painting them with black-and-white stripes.

The experiment showed that flies were less attracted to the striped cows, which also appeared calmer.

Speaking to Huffington Post, Kojima said: "When I did this experiment, I hoped that I would win the Ig Nobel. It's my dream. Unbelievable. Just unbelievable."

He accepted the award on stage dressed in stripes, surrounded by colleagues holding cardboard flies.

The Ig Nobel Prizes, now in their 35th year, recognise unusual scientific achievements that first make people laugh, then think. This year's ceremony at Boston University included eccentric acts like a mini-opera about digestion and paper airplanes thrown at the stage.