Happiness Atlas…Germans’ Life satisfaction Sees Continuous Growth

 A horse-drawn carriage makes its way on the snowy Rennsteig hiking path in Oberhof in the Thuringian Forest region, central Germany. Martin Schutt/AFP
A horse-drawn carriage makes its way on the snowy Rennsteig hiking path in Oberhof in the Thuringian Forest region, central Germany. Martin Schutt/AFP
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Happiness Atlas…Germans’ Life satisfaction Sees Continuous Growth

 A horse-drawn carriage makes its way on the snowy Rennsteig hiking path in Oberhof in the Thuringian Forest region, central Germany. Martin Schutt/AFP
A horse-drawn carriage makes its way on the snowy Rennsteig hiking path in Oberhof in the Thuringian Forest region, central Germany. Martin Schutt/AFP

“Happiness Atlas”, which is an annual study conducted to measure Germans' happiness level, showed that German satisfaction with their life in general remains high.

According to the study, which was published in Munich, the level of life satisfaction among Germans has hit 7.07 on a scale from 0 to 10 this year, compared to 7.11 degrees last year.

The German news agency said the study’s authors considered that the slight decline in the ratio was triggered by a statistical fear of recording the same rate.

The study, commissioned by the Deutsche Post for the seventh year in a row, is about a long-term assessment of the lives of the involved individuals, their wishes, goals and expectations.

Bernd Raffelhüsen, the co-author of the study, said the high German satisfaction with life has been driven by the positive economic development, lower rates of unemployment and higher wages.

According to the study, the happiest citizens in Germany were in the state of Schleswig-Holstein (7.43 points), while the state of Saxony-Anhalt comes in last place (6.83 points).

Satisfaction with life in the eastern states hit 6.89 points, slightly higher than in 2004 (6.3 points). Satisfaction in Western states remained stable at 7.11 points.

"The standards of life are still not equal, but there are many things that have happened," Raffelhüsen said, adding that the widespread perception of continued frustration in the eastern states was not confirmed by the figures.



French Scientists Find New Blood Type in Guadeloupe Woman

A French woman from the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe has been identified as the only known carrier of a new blood type. (AFP)
A French woman from the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe has been identified as the only known carrier of a new blood type. (AFP)
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French Scientists Find New Blood Type in Guadeloupe Woman

A French woman from the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe has been identified as the only known carrier of a new blood type. (AFP)
A French woman from the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe has been identified as the only known carrier of a new blood type. (AFP)

A French woman from the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe has been identified as the only known carrier of a new blood type, dubbed "Gwada negative," France's blood supply agency has announced.

The announcement was made 15 years after researchers received a blood sample from a patient who was undergoing routine tests ahead of surgery, the French Blood Establishment (EFS) said on Friday.

"The EFS has just discovered the 48th blood group system in the world!" the agency said in a statement on social network LinkedIn.

"This discovery was officially recognized in early June in Milan by the International Society of Blood Transfusion (ISBT)."

The scientific association had until now recognized 47 blood group systems.

Thierry Peyrard, a medical biologist at the EFS involved in the discovery, told AFP that a "very unusual" antibody was first found in the patient in 2011.

However, resources at the time did not allow for further research, he added.

Scientists were finally able to unravel the mystery in 2019 thanks to "high-throughput DNA sequencing", which highlighted a genetic mutation, Peyrard said.

The patient, who was 54 at the time and lived in Paris, was undergoing routine tests before surgery when the unknown antibody was detected, Peyrard said.

This woman "is undoubtedly the only known case in the world," said the expert.

"She is the only person in the world who is compatible with herself," he said.

Peyrard said the woman inherited the blood type from her father and mother, who each had the mutated gene.

The name "Gwada negative", which refers to the patient's origins and "sounds good in all languages", has been popular with the experts, said Peyrard.

The ABO blood group system was first discovered in the early 1900s. Thanks to DNA sequencing, the discovery of new blood groups has accelerated in recent years.

Peyrard and colleagues are now hoping to find other people with the same blood group.

"Discovering new blood groups means offering patients with rare blood types a better level of care," the EFS said.