By Christy Barritt

New Study Claims that Sitting Is Harmful to Health

A NASA scientist wrote a new book revealing why sitting can be deadly. Dr. Joan Vernikos, author of “Sitting Kills, Moving Heals,” found that medical studies on astronauts prove that gravity-challenging, all-day movement is essential to good health.

Vernikos, the former director of NASA’s Life Sciences Division, said that Americans don’t move enough against the force of gravity to stay healthy. According to Vernikos, habitual, low-intensity, gravity-effective movements made throughout the day in the course of living is better than exercise. Doing simple things like walking, climbing stairs, gardening, dancing, golf, and even just playing can have tremendous health benefits.

The book is based on NASA’s research concerning Gravity Deprivation Syndrome, a medical condition found in astronauts who spend extended periods in near zero gravity. These astronauts seem to rapidly age while in space by losing muscle and bone density and developing osteoporosis and aching joints.

Best Jobs in America

Glassdoor just released its report highlighting the 25 best jobs in America. Factors taken into consideration for this distinction are: earning potential based on average annual base salary, career opportunities rating, and number of job openings.

The number one job was physician assistant, followed by software engineer and business development manager. Also making the top 10 were: human resources manager, finance manager, marketing manager, database administrator, product manager, data scientist, and sales manager.

Glassdoor is a career website that helps match people with available jobs. The full list of best jobs can be found on the company’s website.

Most Bible-Minded Cities in America for 2015

Barna Group released their annual “Bible-Minded” cities report. The research organization defined a Bible-minded city as one whose citizens report reading the Bible in a typical week and who strongly assert that the Bible is accurate in the principles it teaches.

As in the past, the “Bible Belt” of America—the South—had the most cities in the top rankings. In fact, all of the cities in the top 10 were found in the South. 

Alabama took over the top spot from Tennessee this year, with 51 percent of Birmingham’s population qualifying as Bible-minded. Chattanooga, Tennessee, came in second at 50 percent. Other cities in the top 10 were: Roanoke/Lynchburg, Virginia (48 percent), Shreveport, Louisiana (46 percent), Springfield, Missouri (46 percent), Jackson, Mississippi (46 percent), Charlotte, North Carolina (46 percent), Greenville, South Carolina/Asheville, North Carolina (46 percent), and Little Rock, Arkansas (46 percent).

The least Bible-minded city was Providence, Rhode Island (9 percent), followed by Albany, New York (10 percent), and Boston, Massachusetts (14 percent).

The results were based on interviews with 62,896 adults.

Cat Returns from the Grave 

A Florida cat owner was heartbroken when his feline friend was struck by a car and left for dead in the road. He couldn’t even bring himself to bury Bart, his cat, but instead asked his neighbor to help him dig a hole in his yard. The cat was laid to rest.

But five days later, Bart strode up to the neighbor with matted hair. He was dehydrated, injured, and hungry—but he was alive.

The cat was treated at the Humane Society of Tampa Bay. He had to have surgery to remove a broken jaw and one of his eyes had to be removed. However, the cat’s owner is grateful that his pet is now back home with him after the harrowing near-death experience.

Christy Barritt is an award-winning author in Chesapeake, Virginia (christybarritt.com). She and her husband, Scott, have two sons.