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A team of researchers led by the University of Bristol have found that the smell of stress, released through human sweat and breath can change a dog’s behaviour, and could lead to them making more pessimistic choices.
In the study they placed a dog bowl in specific locations; one with a treat, one without, and then introduced a new bowl in between the two, to see how quickly the pooches would approach the new one.
The dogs were exposed to either no odour, or the sweat and breath samples of a stressed or relaxed person.
According to the findings, the stress smell made dogs slower to approach the new bowl, but this wasn’t the case after they’d been exposed to the relaxed odour.
The researchers said this pessimistic response reflects a negative emotional state and could possibly be a way for the dog to conserve energy and avoid disappointment.
New research suggests humans and chimpanzees have yet another thing in common: the way we make conversation.
Dr Gal Badihi, postdoctoral research fellow at the University of St Andrews was part of the team behind this latest research, based on up to 20 years of data from chimps living in rainforests and woodland in Uganda and Tanzania.
Dr Badihi tells Tech & Science Daily why chimpanzees and humans communicate in a similar way, and what their research reveals about how humans’ turn-taking conversations developed.
A London police officer who called 999 to report an emergency while high on magic mushrooms has resigned.
The officer, known as ‘officer X’, took the class A drug in August 2023 after drinking alcohol and while on medication.
He called 999 claiming that his friend had jumped into the River Thames, prompting a police response.
At a misconduct hearing, Commissioner Peter O’Doherty said Officer X had a record of “excellent service” in the force, and he was struggling with mental health issues, and was also under stress at work.
Ofcom is banning mid-contract price rises linked to inflation.
From January 2025 mobile phone carriers and broadband providers can’t link prices to high inflation figures in the middle of a customer’s contract.
Instead, under the new rules, companies will have to tell their customers about any price rises in pounds and pence within their contract at the point of sale.
Ofcom said the inflation-linked price hikes leave customers without sufficient certainty and clarity about the prices they will pay, which is why they’ve banned the practice.
Also in this episode:
‘Dark oxygen’ produced by metals on deep-ocean floor, study finds
Blood proteins predict risk of developing more than 60 diseases
Male elephants use deep rumbles to signal when it is time to go
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