Aside from lifting up our spirits and giving us companionship, pets are great for mental health because they help us create a semblance of order. Pets make us stick to a routine because most of them thrive on routine as well; they know when it is time to wake up and when to eat. However, pets’ love of routine may harm them — after the pandemic started and old routines were disrupted, some developed behavioral changes consistent with stress. Read full article here
Research
Researcher uses AI to make texts that are thousands of years old readable
The Gilgamesh Epic, the oldest work of world literature, has been brought back to life by LMU researchers in the Electronic Babylonian Literature project. Using their new Fragmentarium tool, they have discovered hundreds of manuscripts, including the most recent tablet of the Gilgamesh Epic which dates from 130 BC – thousands of years after the earliest known version. This shows how highly valued the Epic was, even at a late period. With the public release of the Fragmentarium, anyone can now explore the thousands of cuneiform fragments and explore the ancient Babylonian literature. Read full article here