Table of contents for March 2020 in Readers Digest Australia

THE BEST STORYTELLING brings up surprises and makes the reader raise a fist in support. This was my initial response to reading about the work of Australian physicist Professor Brian O’Brien, an expert on moondust. ‘The Moondust Diaries’ (page 110) by Ceridwen Dovey tells the back story of one of the weirdest, though largely unreported, challenges faced by the 12 astronauts who walked on the moon surface from 1969 to 1972. Moondust! The dust on the moon is super-fine, super-sticky and, according to O’Brien, is an extremely fascinating substance. Today, aged in his 80s, he is considered to be the world’s leading expert on moondust and still contributes to future moon explorations. This month’s issue has some excellent reading on offer, including a true crime that forced a family to…

ONLINE Follow the ‘Contribute’ link at the RD website in your region. www.readersdigest.com.au www.readersdigest.co.nz www.rdasia.com EMAIL AU: editor@readersdigest.com.au NZ: nzeditor@readersdigest.com.au ASIA: asiaeditor@readersdigest.com.au WE MAY EDIT LETTERS AND USE THEM IN ALL MEDIA. SEE WEBSITE FOR FULL TERMS AND CONDITIONS. PRINTED BY OVATO LIMITED, 8 PRIDDLE ST, WARWICK FARM, NSW 2170, FOR THE PROPRIETORS, DIRECT PUBLISHING PTY LTD, 431 WARRINGAH ROAD, FRENCHS FOREST, NSW 2086. © 2020 DIRECT PUBLISHING PTY LTD (ABN 81000565471). ALL RIGHTS RESERVED THROUGHOUT THE WORLD. REPRODUCTION IN ANY MANNER IN WHOLE OR PART IN ENGLISH OR OTHER LANGUAGES PROHIBITED…

VETERINARIAN DR KATRINA shares her expert advice about low-maintenance dog and cat breeds. EXERCISE Most healthy dogs need a certain amount of exercise every day to keep them physically healthy and mentally stimulated. Conversely, cats rarely receive any sort of formal exercise, but they can certainly benefit from general activity and energetic play. Greyhounds are often assumed to need a lot of exercise, whereas they are more likely to be couch-potatoes, happy with a decent regular stroll. Working breeds, such as kelpies and border collies, were bred to run long distances and require daily exercise. They can become bored and destructive if they don’t receive enough stimulation. Dog breeds requiring little exercise include Chihuahuas, French bulldogs, pugs, greyhounds and Maltese poodles. Cat breeds that prefer little physical activity include Persians,…

LIFE SPAN IS BARELY AFFECTED BY GENES If you think you’re golden because both sets of your grandparents lived to a ripe old age, think again. A new study has found that genes account for less than seven per cent of a person’s life span, much less than the 20–30 per cent of most previous estimates. Researchers analysed the 54 million public family trees on ancestry.com, comparing the life spans of 406 million people born from the 19th century to the mid-20th century. They found that spouses and even in-laws had more similar life spans than siblings, indicating that life span is influenced mostly by lifestyle factors, such as access to clean water, not smoking and eating healthily. NEW TEST FOR ALZHEIMER’S Having trouble working out which way to go…

When Sir David Attenborough reopened the restored Temperate House at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, in London on May 3, 2018, he remarked “the best gardener is a good botanist and the best botanist is a good gardener”. It is necessary to have an understanding of both disciplines, if we are to have a full understanding of plants. Botanists are not just scientists who spend their lives in laboratories, squinting down microscopes at the cells of plants – they are the explorers, the trailblazers and the inventors, advancing a range of fields through their studies of the natural world. Patrick Blanc is a left-field genius and modern innovator of the ‘green wall’. Born in France in 1953, Blanc is part artist, part scientist, part landscape architect, and his ideas have…

BIG GULP Marine conservationist Rainer Schimpf was adjusting his camera while snorkelling off the South African shoreline last year when everything went dark. Schimpf felt a tight compression, and realised what had happened: he was sitting in the mouth of a Bryde’s whale. Knowing that Bryde’s whales dive after feeding, Schimpf prepared for a descent. As they plunged underwater, Schimpf’s host clocked its mistake and pushed the passenger back out the way he’d come. Schimpf was relieved to be free – and thrilled that his boatmate had caught the whale of a tale on camera. HAPPY BIRTHDAY The lead-up to Chris Ferry’s 62nd birthday in March last year was bizarre. Instead of just notes from family and friends, Ferry estimates the New Jersey insurance agent received 250,000 calls and texts…

The wheelchair mechanic knocks at the door. My husband, Justin, answers, and a hefty man wearing steel-toed shoes comes through our kitchen carrying a small tool box. It’s 2016 and I’m in the living room, strapping orthotics on my five year old, Fiona. The mechanic stands beside her empty wheelchair, which is waiting in the dining room. “Do you need anything from us?” I call out, pulling the laces of her shoe tight. “Just the passenger,” he says gruffly. I hurry, and when Fiona is all laced up, I lift her to her feet and send her over. In a thump-thump rhythm of deliberate, confident steps, she walks to her wheelchair, a lean, glimmering machine custom-made for her. She almost never uses it now that she walks, but when she…

1 IN 1783, French brothers Joseph-Michel and Jacques-Etienne Montgolfier launched an unmanned 225-kilogram balloon that stayed aloft for about ten minutes. King Louis XVI soon wanted a demonstration. So the Montgolfiers sent up a sheep, a duck and a rooster as the king, the queen (Marie Antoinette) and 130,000 other people witnessed the historic flight over Versailles. The animals landed safely. 2 FRANCE BECAME the epicentre of ballooning, and Americans in Paris, including statesmen Benjamin Franklin, John Adams and John Jay, jumped on the bandwagon. “Travellers may hereafter literally pass from country to country on the wings of the wind,” wrote Jay, who took time out from negotiating the Treaty of Paris to watch a flight. 3 BALLOONING IS still a big spectator sport. The largest balloon event in the…

When I’m on a plane, not in a movie theatre, I want to watch romantic comedies ... I think it’s something to do with the altitude. I cry and I guffaw, and I have the best time. QUENTIN TARANTINO, DIRECTOR DON’T WAIT YOUR TURN. BET ON YOURSELF AND HAVE THE CONFIDENCE TO STAND UP AND SAY, ‘MY TIME IS NOW’. ROBERT F. SMITH, BUSINESSMAN My grandmother had a saying about putting in the hard yards first and then reaping rewards, simply translated from Chinese, it’s ‘first bitter then sweet’. PHAEMIE NG, SOCIAL ENTREPRENEUR AND NOW THAT YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE PERFECT, YOU CAN BE GOOD. JOHN STEINBECK, AUTHOR Whenever it feels uncomfortable to tell the truth, that’s often the most important time to tell it. JENNIFER LOPEZ, SINGER…

Detective Trapp From the Los Angeles Times comes the engrossing true story of homicide detective, undercover cop and master interrogator Julissa Trapp, who embarks on a dark journey to solve the murders of women by a serial killer in Orange County in 2013. Life Kit: All Guides Each episode in the Life Kit from NPR is essentially a how-to guide for different challenges or experiences in life. Topics range from how to sleep and learning to enjoy exercise to finances, family issues, parenting, work issues and much more. RD Talks: Milly’s Last Waltz Both inspirational and touchingly sad, this is the story of a flea-ridden little stray dog. She is rescued by a couple who are adamant they don’t want the responsibility of another dog, until Milly creeps into their…

Sort It Out Difficult The eight pictures below have been sorted into two groups according to a rule. Part of this rule is that in group A’s pictures, the dots are arranged clockwise, whereas in group B, they’re arranged counterclockwise. Four in a Row Easy In this bird’s-eye view, each of the nested squares represents a stack of four blocks, with smaller ones sitting on top of larger ones. Can you find a line of four blocks in a row that are the same colour? You can search in three dimensions, meaning that not all four blocks are necessarily sitting at the same height; they could instead be forming a diagonal line by spanning adjacent heights on the same row, column or long diagonal. Sudoku To Solve This Puzzle Put…

Keep Them Safe ‘The Push to Save Sydney’s Koala Habitat’ (December) about the colony in Campbelltown is an important story. I never knew there was a chlamydia-free population in Sydney. Now, with the bushfires raging, it’s more important than ever to protect the native wildlife, especially this disease-free population. Let’s hope the Campbelltown colony will be spared. AYESHA AZEEM Editor’s Note: At the time of going to print, this colony fortunately had not been affected by the bushfires. The Great Debate Over Decades I’m doing a big catch up on my Reader’s Digest reading, and am a little taken aback by Louise Waterson’s Editor’s Note in the December 2019 edition where she says, “...another decade ... has reached its end.” I beg to differ – as would so many others.…

DIET + WEIGHTLOSS 50 unhealthy foods at the supermarket Not everything that comes in a box or bag is bad, but a lot of it is. From powdered coffee creamer to coated chocolates, nutrition experts reveal 50 unhealthy supermarket foods. MENTAL HEALTH How to be happy: 40+ secrets to a happier life From owning a dog to wearing sunglasses, these tips can boost your mood – and your wellbeing. PETS 14 COMMON ‘FACTS’ ABOUT CATS THAT ARE ACTUALLY FALSE Most cat lovers would do anything to defend their favourite pet, but cats can still be very misunderstood. We debunk some popular myths. JOIN THE CONVERSATION! PLUS SIGN UP TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER FOR MORE HOT OFFERS, TOP STORIES AND PRIZES!…

Self-proclaimed British fortune teller Jemima Packington, 64, is claiming she predicted Prince Harry and Meghan Markle would step back from the royal family after ‘reading’ some asparagus spears. Packington, 64, reportedly the world’s only ‘asparamancer’, says she is able to see the future by throwing asparagus into the air and then observing how the spears land on the ground. For the rest of 2020, Packington foresees “sporting personalities will be embroiled in scandals”. Now that’s a surprise. UPI…

Epilepsy is often misunderstood. Although many people believe that all epileptic attacks involve a violent seizure – with the person falling to the ground and convulsing – the neurological disease actually takes many different forms. Dr Ley Sander, an expert on epilepsy and professor of neurology at University College London, says that though these ‘tonic-clonic’ seizures – formerly referred to as ‘grand mal’ – are indeed common, there are others. “In fact, there are over 40 different types of seizures,” he adds, which include ones where a person stares blankly and doesn’t respond when someone is talking to them, and others that cause the muscles to contract so the body becomes rigid. Epileptic seizures occur when electrical signals in the brain malfunction. They fall under two broad categories: generalised, involving…

Just called the DVD player a VCR in front of the kids. Now this will become their childhood memory. @KSUJULIE My son picked up a phone at my work and said, “What’s that noise?” His first dial tone. @JASONDCRANE Seven year old: Wow, this must be an antique! It’s from way back in the 1900s! Me: OK, calm down. It’s from 1997. @MAUGHAMMOM “Millennials are idiots” – the generation that made a millionaire out of the creator of the Pet Rock. @ANDYLEVY The next time somebody complains about Millennials, maybe remind them which generation linoleumed over all those beautiful hardwood floors. @BOORADLEY My daughter just asked why we say ‘hang up’ the phone, and now I feel 90. @ENGLISHJASON…

To snack or not to snack? That is the question ... for doctors, for nutritionists, and for you, as you try to decide what to do about your grumbling stomach when it’s nowhere close to mealtime. The short answer: have the snack. Snacking has fallen out of favour in certain dieting circles, thanks in part to the popularity of intermittent fasting, in which you restrict your food intake on a periodic basis. Some people interpret the paleo diet, in which the diet-conscious attempt to imitate the food habits of our hunter-gatherer ancestors, as anti-snacking as well. But many modern-day studies have found that snacking can have positive effects on your health, both physical and mental. So, grab a banana – or a handful of peanuts – and read on. WEIGHT…

When a teenage boy in my community committed suicide, I sat down to write the parents a sympathy note. I pulled out a monogrammed card and stared at it blankly for the next two hours. I could think of absolutely nothing to say. Offering a written expression of condolence used to be a staple of polite society. “A letter of condolence may be abrupt, badly constructed, ungrammatical – never mind,” advised the 1960 edition of Emily Post’s Etiquette. “Grace of expression counts for nothing; sincerity alone is of value.” But in these days of Facebooking and Snapchatting, the rules of expressing sympathy have become muddied at best, and concealed in an onslaught of emoji at worst. “Sorry about Mum. Sad face, sad face, crying face, heart, heart, unicorn.” Try these…

Dearest New Neighbour at 657 Boulevard, allow me to welcome you to the neigbourhood. My grandfather watched the house in the 1920s ... It is now my time. The Watcher After he’d finished painting one evening at his new house in Westfield, New Jersey, Derek Broaddus found an envelope addressed in thick, clunky handwriting to “The New Owner”. Dearest new neighbour at 657 Boulevard, allow me to welcome you to the neighbourhood. Buying 657 Boulevard had fulfilled a dream for Derek and his wife, Maria. The house was a few blocks from Maria’s childhood home. Their three kids, who were five, eight and ten years old, were already debating which of the house’s fireplaces Santa Claus would use. The typed note went on: My grandfather watched the house in the…

In the public imagination, the American astronauts who landed on the moon five decades ago were superhumans, not the types to worry about housekeeping. But they did, obsessively. Each time after a moonwalk, they were shocked at how much dust they’d tracked in and how hard it was to banish. This was no earthly grime; it was sticky and abrasive, scratching the visors on helmets, weakening seals on pressure suits, irritating eyes, and giving some of them sinus trouble. “It just sort of inhabits every nook and cranny in the spacecraft and every pore in your skin,” Apollo 17’s Gene Cernan said. Over the six moon landings, the Dusty Dozen fought valiantly with their foe. They stomped their boots outside, then cinched garbage bags around their legs to stop the…

Everyone who works at NASA or Google or SpaceX got excited about science before he or she was ten years old,” TV host Bill ‘The Science Guy’ Nye said recently. “This is well documented. If it isn’t ten, it’s 11 or 12. But it isn’t 17, I’ll tell you that much.” You can plainly see the ten year old inside Nye, who is now 63, just as you can see the ten year old in anyone else who works at the junction where their deep happiness meets the world’s deep needs. Walter Murch, the Oscar-winning film editor who likewise discovered his passion in childhood, followed a twistier – and perhaps more typical – career path than the lifelong science geeks. You can’t do kid stuff for a living, he was…

1. ansible – A: spaceship engine core. B: gadget enabling instantaneous communication over interstellar distances. C: universal translation device. 2. Dyson sphere – A: structure surrounding a star. B: military satellite. C: boundary between a planet’s atmosphere and outer space. 3. cyborg – A: evil or harmful robot. B: self-conscious computer. C: human enhanced by electronic or mechanical parts. 4. terraform – A: transform a planet to resemble earth and sustain life. B: assimilate an alien culture. C: shaped like a globe. 5. sophont – A: easily capable of extrasensory perception. B: carrying the consciousness of more than one person. C: intelligent being. 6. debonair – A: confident, stylish and suave. B: in the countryside. C: musically gifted. 7. infatuation – A: adding padding to a formal gown. B: intense…

Anecdotes and jokes Send in your real-life laugh for Life’s Like That or All in a Day’s Work. Got a joke? Send it in for Laughter is the Best Medicine! Smart Animals Share antics of unique pets or wildlife in up to 300 words. Reminisce Share the tales of an event from your past that made a huge impact in 100–500 words. My Story Do you have an inspiring or life-changing tale to tell? Submissions must be true, unpublished, original and 800–1000 words – see website for more information.…

1 MASSAGE YOURSELF REGULARLY Every morning and evening, hammer out the kinks. Using your fists, gently thump the outside of your body, starting with your legs and arms, working from top to bottom. Then move inwards to your torso and thump from bottom to top. The pummelling will help to strengthen your body, stimulate blood circulation and relax nerve endings. 2 MASSAGE YOUR HANDS DAILY Start with the bottom of your palms by clasping your fingers and rubbing the heels of your palms together in a circular motion. Then, with your hands still clasped, take one thumb and massage the area just below your other thumb in circular motions, moving outwards to the centre of the palm. Repeat with the other hand. Then release your fingers and use your palms…

Gun control is one of the most polarising political issues Americans face today – or is it? There is no doubt that the topic generates fierce opinions from both sides. But on many questions about how to reduce the number of gun-related deaths – something 85 per cent of Americans say they are “concerned” about – there is far more agreement than the debaters or politicians let on. In fact, a recent Ipsos/Reuters poll found that only 37 per cent of Americans are even somewhat confident that their elected officials understand their views on guns. If the public servants in Washington want to follow the will of the people – including the 42 per cent of Americans who have a gun at home, they could start by looking at the…

In 2017, a single sentence reverberated on the internet, skidding across social media and breathless blogs: “They did surgery on a grape.” And they had! A video showed a tiny robot making delicate incisions in my thin purple skin before pulling back the translucent layer to reveal my juicy yellow-green flesh below. The video was meant to demonstrate the surgical tool’s exacting abilities, but the sheer absurdity of the sentence ‘They did surgery on a grape’ caught millions by surprise and I became a nonsensical internet meme. My popularity long predates my online fame, of course. After all, I also become wine! I was grown by early civilisations in Asia and Europe, but am now a resident of Australia, New Zealand, North America and Africa. Early humans in Asia and…

◆ Wash your hands regularly with soap and water for 20 seconds. ◆ Favour hand washing over antibacterial gels. ◆ Avoid antibacterial wipes and sprays when cleaning surfaces. ◆ Don’t ask your doctor for antibiotics. ◆ Never take them if they’re not prescribed. ◆ Take them exactly as directed. ◆ Keep your vaccinations up to date. ◆ Prepare and cook food properly, and keep raw meat separate from vegetables and eating utensils. ◆ When you fall ill, stay at home and rest.…

Librarian/humorist Roz Warren took to Facebook to ask her librarian friends a question: if they died and were sent to hell, which they discovered had just one book available to read, what would it be? Here’s the literature worthy of Satan’s bookshelf: “The manual to our office phone system.” “Dante’s Inferno; it would be like having a Frommer’s travel guide.” “The second book in a trilogy.” “My ex’s diary.” “Brimstone for Dummies.” “The Bible, so I could look for loopholes.”…

On a sunny Saturday in April 2017, the phone rang in my grandmother’s house in São Carlos, Brazil. “I’ve been looking for you for decades,” the man on the line whispered in Italian. “You were my first love.” It had been more than six decades since my grandmother had heard the voice of Aldo Sportelli, now 83. She pictured his youthful face and wondered what he looked like now. Aldo’s voice trembled as he recalled the last time he saw her in southern Italy. He had spent years tracking her down. For ten minutes they caught each other up on how their lives had unfolded – both married for half a century, my grandmother widowed, Aldo’s wife in the last stages of Alzheimer’s, kids, grandkids, careers. “You just don’t think…

A New Zealand advertising executive facing the bleak prospect of being fired decided to inject a bit of humour into the situation by bringing a professional clown to his final meeting, for emotional support, instead of a colleague. Josh Thompson, a copywriter for ad agency FCB New Zealand and a budding comedian, revealed he had spent $200 to hire the clown, dubbed Joe, after getting an email from superiors asking to meet to “discuss your role”. The clown subsequently blew up balloon animals and even mimed crying when Thompson was handed his layoff paperwork. NEW ZEALAND HERALD…

1. In 2016, which nation’s Aichi prefecture announced it was hiring six full-time ninjas to help promote tourism? 1 point 2. In a nod to a dystopian novel by Ray Bradbury, which HTTP status code can be used for websites blocked for legal reasons? 2 points 3. Which multinational beverage corporation’s CEO, Indra Nooyi, pushed it towards healthier offerings before she stepped down in 2018? 1 point 4. Who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1978 and thus became the first Muslim laureate? 2 points 5. By population, what’s the largest national capital located in the Southern Hemisphere? 2 points 6. Which American founding father inspired Lin-Manuel Miranda to write a record-breaking musical? 1 point 7. What title is shared by famous sculptures by Auguste Rodin and Constantin Brancusi? 2…