Quick hits: He's not Santa, he's Belsnickel; 'phantom' towns; how music can reframe memories; going out for a walk

A local constabulary lends the town's Belsnickel
a hand. (Photo via Lancaster Farming)

Belsnickel may not be as famous as Santa (or as clean), but he gives Christmas gifts to children in Manheim, Pennsylvania. A Belsnickel is "a crotchety, fur-clad gift giver related to other companions of St. Nicholas in the folklore of southwestern Germany," reports Dan Sullivan of Lancaster Farming. A Belsnickel is tasked "to carry out duties somewhat similar to Santa, ferreting out the naughty and nice and dispensing just punishment or reward. Traditionally, Belsnickel carried a switch in one hand as corporal punishment for the bad kids and a pocketful of treats for the good ones."

When financial times are tight, not as many Americans buy new cars or repair the vehicles they have. "Pinched by inflation, higher interest rates, and supply-chain woes, Americans just haven’t been buying as many new vehicles lately," reports Spencer Jakob of The Wall Street Journal. U.S. consumers choosing to keep aging autos may sound "like great news for auto parts and repair companies. . . . [but] there are some surprising signs that Americans are choosing cheaper options or even deferring purchases of the goods and services that keep them running. . . . Skimping has rarely made less sense, though. . ."

Cartographic 'phantoms' are mapped towns where there isn't a town. (Illustration by Piper Olsen, L&S)

Most mapped towns exist but not all. "The Wisconsin state map is full of phantoms," reports Alli Watters of Letters & Science at the University of Wisconsin. Cartographer Howard Veregin spends his days scouting possible phantom towns, which includes exploring some of the state's most rural places. On one phantom sleuthing day, Veregin works to verify a mapped town called "Walker." He comes upon a friendly cranberry truck driver and this conversation ensues:

Truck driver: Good morning. Looking for something in particular?
Veregin: Well, I’m looking for cartographic phantoms.
Truck driver: What’s a cartographic phantom?
Veregin: It’s a community that is listed on a map, but it doesn’t exist on the ground.
Truck driver: This place exists.
Veregin: Sure, but it doesn’t really look like a community. What is it?
Truck driver: Well, this is our family cranberry farm. We’ve been farming cranberries here for 125 years. I’m a fifth-generation cranberry grower. Most of this area is private property. . .

"Veregin’s suspicions were confirmed. . . . He had found yet another cartographic phantom."

Beginning the new year a little wiser never hurts. In simplest terms, surviving 2025 is the first goal. Field & Stream experts "weighed in on four survival myths that could get you killed," reports Jim Baird. Many people think humans can live off nature's food and survive -- that's not true. "The myth here is that you can survive off them for an extended length of time. But the reality is if you are only eating 'survival foods,' you’ll start feeling sick and weak after a day or two." Another myth is if you kill large game "you're set" because you'll have all the protein you need. Not true, you can also get sick and die from eating too much protein without adequate fat. Read four debunked survival myths here.

Music may subtly shift emotional memories.
(Adobe Stock photo)

As a new year begins, people often reflect on how life has gone over the past year or years. Sometimes there are memories people wish they could change, and while history isn't alterable, music can help shift how people feel about past experiences. "Listening to music can change how you feel about what you remember – potentially offering new ways to help people cope with difficult memories, writes Yiren Ren, a cognitive brain science researcher at the Georgia Institute of Technology for The Conversation. "Our [research] results suggest that music acts as an emotional lure, becoming intertwined with memories and subtly altering their emotional tone. Memories may also be more flexible than previously thought and could be influenced by external auditory cues during recall."

Walking alone or with a buddy can be great exercise. 
(Adobe Stock photo)

Ernest Tubb twanged about "Walking the Floor over You." Johnny Cash confessed, "I Walk the Line." Aerosmith cranked the amps to "Walk this Way." Besides belting out catchy tracks, these musicians were onto something -- walking is an outstanding activity. "Walking can help meet the U.S. surgeon general’s recommendation that adults get at least 2 1/2 hours of moderate-intensity physical activity every week," reports Laura Ungar of The Associated Press. "This helps lower the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, dementia, depression and many types of cancer. . . .While it’s not the only sort of exercise people should do, it’s a great first step toward a healthy life."