Stressed at work? Anxious about the wider world? You might be part of 'The Great Exhaustion'

The Great Exhaustion is a new term coined by analysts and economists to describe a pervasive form of burnout. (Shutterstock)

There was the great resignation, when people left their jobs en masse circa 2021. 

"Quiet quitting" described people refusing to work outside their paid hours amid pressure to work overtime or be constantly on-call.

Now a new term has emerged: The Great Exhaustion, which starts with stress directly related to work and piles on wider anxieties about the state of the world — such as climate change, war, political instability and the rising cost of living.

"The Great Exhaustion is a reflection of this collective experience of being burned out, tired, emotionally fatigued, by work and all things in our world, as well, that go beyond work," said Jennifer Dimoff, an organizational psychologist.

Wild 'superpigs' from Canada could soon invade some U.S. states, study suggests

University of Saskatchewan researcher Ryan Brook says wild pigs are destructive and adaptable. (Submitted by Ryan Brook)

Wild pigs are already a widespread issue in the southern U.S., with an estimated six million pigs in at least 35 states per the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 

Population numbers in Canada are unknown, but scientists working to document their range say that they are expanding quickly.

"They are spreading out of control as we speak," said Ryan Brook, director of the Canadian Wild Pig Research Project. "They're spread over an area about one million square kilometres of Canada, which is bigger than many, many countries."

Brook and his colleagues at the University of Saskatchewan recently led a study — funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture — to look at whether Canada's pigs pose a threat to currently pig-free northern states such as Montana, Minnesota and North Dakota.

They found that Canada's invasive swine has a "high potential" to cross the border. The research was published earlier this month in the journal Biological Invasions.

Scientists tested replica Bronze Age armour on Greek marines. Here's what they learned

A volunteer marine from Greece's Hellenic Armed Forces dons a replica of 3,500-year-old copper armour to test its combat suitability. (Andreas Flouris and Marija Marković/University of Thessaly)

More than a dozen elite Greek marines dressed up like Bronze Age warriors and practised ancient fighting techniques — all in the name of science.

The 13 soldiers, all members of the Hellenic Armed Forces, roleplayed as warriors from Greece's late Bronze Age, known as the Mycenaean civilization, in order to test the combat suitability of a 3,500-year-old suit of armour.

The study, published last week in the journal PLOS One, is being hailed by some experts for its innovative approach of mixing physiology, the study of how the human body works, with archeology, the study of ancient materials and remains. 

But they also questioned the historical accuracy of the simulated combat, and cautioned against using this one suit of armour to draw broad conclusions about the Mycenaeans — people whose cultures and societies remain something of a mystery.

Walking backwards might 'look a little weird,' but it could be just the exercise you need

Walking backwards as exercise was popular the 1980s and '90s, experts say. (Shutterstock)

Videos and tutorials about walking backwards have been popping up on social media recently, but biomechanist Janet Dufek has been studying this form of exercise for about 20 years.

"It had been somewhat trendy and hip many years ago, I'd say in the late 1980s, 1990s, and had gone dark for a bit. So it's the new fad that's being revisited," said Dufek, a professor of  kinesiology and nutrition sciences at the University of Nevada.

And according to Dufek, it can have benefits. Her research into walking backwards has shown that there's less impact on the joints by using these different muscles — and it can increase flexibility and even help alleviate back pain.