Cartoon Time.

How VERY civilized.... 

People aged 65 to 79 'happiest of all', study suggests

From The BBC

2 February 2016

Sixty-five to 79 is the happiest age group for adults, according to Office for National Statistics research. The survey of more than 300,000 adults across the UK found life satisfaction, happiness and feeling life was worthwhile all peaked in that age bracket, but declined in the over-80s. Those aged 45 to 59 reported the lowest levels of life satisfaction, with men on average less satisfied than women. That age group also reported the highest levels of anxiety. Researchers said one possible reason for the lower happiness and well-being scores among this age group might be the burden of having to care for children and elderly parents at the same time. The struggle to balance work and family commitments might also be a factor, they said. Meanwhile, those who were younger or retired had more free time to spend on activities which promoted their well-being, the researchers suggested. Happiness and well-being dropped off again in those over 80, however, with researchers suggesting this could be down to personal circumstances such as poor health, living alone and feelings of loneliness.

The survey asked people to rate out of 10 how happy and how anxious they had felt the day before, how satisfied they were with their life generally, and how much they felt what they did in life was worthwhile. The published results have been broken down by age, ethnicity, religion, marital status, employment status, religion, and where in the country people live.

They suggest:

  Married people reported the highest levels of happiness, averaging 7.67 out of
  10, higher than co-habiting, single, widowed or divorced people
  People with jobs were happier than unemployed people, with part-time workers
  the happiest. Of those who were not working, retirees had the highest levels
  of happiness, followed by students
  Of those who followed a religion, Hindus were marginally the happiest on
  average, followed by Christians and Sikhs, while those who followed no
  religion the least happy
  Women on average reported higher levels of anxiety than men, but were more
  likely report better well being and feel their life was worthwhile
  People of Arab ethnicity were found to be the most anxious ethnic group, with
  people of Chinese ethnicity the least anxious
  Northern Ireland held on to the crown for happiest of the UK's nations, with
  people there also most satisfied and most likely to say their life was
  worthwhile - but also the most anxious; the least happy people were in
  England, with the North East the unhappiest region

People who said their health was very good reported an average life satisfaction rating of 8.01 out of 10, compared with people who said they were in very bad health, whose average rating was just 4.91. The over-90 age group reported by far the lowest levels of feeling their life was worthwhile, even though their reported levels of happiness and life satisfaction were comparable to those in their 20s and 30s. Understanding how people of different ages rated their personal well-being could help policy makers target issues to improve lives, the study added.

[Putting to one side the whole idea of measuring happiness for a moment this is still an interesting survey, even if some of the results are rather obvious if you think about them. What the survey essential says that people who are in a relationship and have the time to follow their own interests whilst in good health are happy. Go figure! I too expect that my happiness level will raise at 60 when I plan to retire. Hopefully I’ll be able to spend a decade or more doing what I want to do each day rather than what other people want me to do. That’ll be such a nice change. Funnily, when I mentioned at work about retiring in 4 years’ time on of my colleagues asked “Won’t you be bored?” I laughed and said that I didn’t come to work for something to do with my day! Counting the days….. ]  

Been there.... done that... [lol]

Every Bunny deserves......

Just Finished Reading: The Sunrise Lands by S M Stirling (FP: 2007)

It is now Change Year 22. 22 years after the momentous event that stopped all technology down to steam engines and guns working. It is a new world, much reduced in population and largely agricultural. A world with a strange mix of Medieval and modern where memories of the machines is slowly fading into legend and myth. Young Rudi Mackenzie is aware of his place in this world. As heir to Clan Mackenzie he has been groomed from an early age to rule but his youth still calls for adventure. He is about to get his wish and the world will never quite be the same. Stories have been circulating of strange events in Nantucket – both on the night of the change and now, 22 years later. Now he has a more pressing reason to go there. A refugee has arrived with a story to tell and a man to find. After barely surviving an assassination attempt the story is told and Rudi learns his fated path – to travel to Nantucket and solve the mystery of The Change. But other know about Nantucket and plan to do everything in their considerable power to stop him ever reaching there. A man, only known as The Prophet is building an army dedicated to the destruction of all technology – no matter how primitive and Rudi and his eight companions must face them if they have any hope of completing their quest.

I didn’t exactly promise never to revisit the world of The Change after reading the original trilogy some time ago (actually back in December 2007!) but you can see that I wasn’t exactly rushing to read the next books in the series. This wasn’t, as you might guess, because they’ll badly written – they’re not. These books are real pages turners with interesting characters and excellent battle sequences. What leave a bad taste in my mind – if there is such a thing – is the back story (which goes way beyond the merely ridiculous – and the persistent feeling that this is all just a Republican’s wet dream: essentially sweeping aside everything about present society that he doesn’t like and replacing it with everything from the Middle Ages that he does – whist conveniently missing out all the bad bits of being essentially low-tech. On top of that the main characters – although well drawn – and basically superhuman and only remain realistic (overall) by a sliver of a hairs breath. You don’t exactly need a strong stomach to read this but you do have to supress your critical faculties rather more than in a standard SF novel.

I don’t own the next book in the series (at least I don’t think I do) and am not exactly going out of my way to purchase it. I would like to see if my ideas(s) about The Change pan out but with so many other (and probably better) books to read I don’t know if I can bring myself to spend the time and the money to find out. Reasonable if you’re into that sort of thing. Much more apocalypse and post-apocalypse tales to come soon.  

Cartoon Time.

Just Finished Reading: English as a Global Language by David Crystal (FP: 1997)

It’s a standing joke as well as a truism that the English expect everyone else to speak their language when they go ‘abroad’. I’ve actually heard it myself in Paris when an English tourist complained that all of the road signs were in French! Fortunately for people like that it does appear that English is indeed becoming a truly Global Language and might have already reached the point of no return. That’s the author’s opinion anyway which he manages to back up pretty well in this slim volume.

Whilst a little academic at times – complete with tables, graphs and maps – this is a very readable text full of interesting observations, studies and stats. Although on a global scale the number of people speaking English as a first language is, and will remain, in decline (through simple demographics) the number of people who speak English as a second or foreign language has been increasing for decades and is expected to do so for the foreseeable future. Only something truly major can, again according to the author, stop this rise to dominance.

What the author makes very clear is that English isn’t dominant for reasons people sometimes bring up – the languages flexibility, its ability to take in words from other languages and incorporate them, the lack of ‘gendered’ nouns and so on. No, the authors says it’s due purely to historical reasons around power – in the past the British Empire (and it’s Dominions) and presently with the economic and cultural power of America on the world stage. Between them they make the ever expanding number of people across the globe learning English unstoppable.

The author most certainly makes a good case for his idea. With the level of my knowledge on the subject (low) I certainly couldn’t fault it. This is a book that can be read by the non-specialist (like me) with the expectation that you’ll get something out of it. The English language is, I think, a fascinating beast and not just because it’s the only language I’m reasonably fluent in. A well-constructed sentence is, I think, a thing of beauty. Get enough of them together and you produce a work of art. It’s one very good reason why I try to read as many good books as possible and why I keep returning to the classics such as Jane Austen who I think is one of the greatest proponents of the English language still in print. Whilst I wouldn’t go so far as to say that this is a ‘must read’ it might be worth you picking up a library copy if you have more than a passing interest in the subject.

Welcome to Love & Relationships Month here @ SaLT. Be prepared to laugh, cry, ponder and muse! Enjoy! 

"Common sense is completely worthless and irrelevant when trying to understand reality."

[lol]

Professor Brian Cox.

Cartoon Time.