Tag Archives: oceania

Working out at a specific time could be the key to better sleep

Working out at a specific time of day could seriously boost sleep and heart health.

But what time of day works best varies from person to person.

New research has shown timing exercise to match your body clock chronotype can improve sleep quality and may also lower heart disease risk factors like high blood pressure, fasting glucose, and 'bad' cholesterol.

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Sad lonely tired man home alone.

Your body clock chronotype is an innate predisposition to sleeping at waking at certain times, and explains why some people are early risers or night owls.

It also affects hormone secretion and energy availability across the day.

Researchers from Pakistan and Scotland have found that timing your exercise to your body clock chronotype could boost positive health outcomes.

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They tested 150 people aged 40 to 60 with at least one cardiovascular risk factor to figure out their chronotypes, then randomly assigned them a time to work out.

Some were given time slots that matched their chronotypes, like between 8am to 11am for morning people, while others were given mismatched slots.

They were then told to work out five times a week for 12 weeks and their results monitored.

Data showed that all the participants experiences better aerobic fitness and sleep quality, and lower cardiovascular disease risk factors after the 12 weeks were up.

But those who had their exercise time slot matched to their chronotype showed much bigger improvements.

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People are seen enjoying the warm weather around the TAMs in Melbourne  on Sunday  13 April 2025.

Their blood pressure, autonomic function (including heart rate), aerobic capacity, metabolic markers, and sleep quality were significantly better than those who had mismatched exercise time slots.

Morning people who had exercise slots matched to their chronotype showed even better results.

"This study adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that the timing of exercise when aligned with an individual's internal biological clock can significantly enhance health outcomes," the researchers wrote in journal Open Heart.

Working out your own chronotype can be as simple as filling out the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire online, which was used to assess the chronotypes of the people in the study.

Those wanting a more concrete assessment can speak to a health professional.

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JD Vance criticises Pope Leo for not ‘being careful speaking about theology’

Donald Trump's vice president has said the pope 'needs to be careful' when commenting on theology.

JD Vance, who converted to Catholicism seven years ago, made the comments at a Turning Point USA event.

"In the same way that it's important for the vice president of the United States to be careful when I talk about matters of public policy, I think it's very, very important for the Pope to be careful when he talks about matters of theology," Vance said.

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JD Vance criticised Pope Leo on this theology.

"If you're going to opine on matters of theology, you've got to be careful, you've got to make sure it's anchored in the truth. 

"That's one of the things that I try to do, and it's certainly something I would expect from the clergy, whether they're Catholic or Protestant."

Vance was responding to Pope Leo XIV's message days ago in favour of peace.

"God does not bless any conflict," the pope said.

"Anyone who is a disciple of Christ, the Prince of Peace, is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drop bombs."

Vance said the pope's comments were in contradiction to a "more than thousand-year tradition of Just War theory".

"He said that God is never on the side of those who wield the sword…how can you say that?" Vance said.

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JD Vance converted to Catholicism seven years ago.

"Was God on the side of the Americans who liberated France from the Nazis?

"Was God on the side of the Americans who liberated Holocaust camps and liberated those innocent people from those who had survived the Holocaust?"

Vance has publicly espoused his Catholic faith, including penning an autobiography about his faith journey this year.

The vice president was baptised as a Catholic in 2019, three years before he entered electoral politics. Before that he identified as an atheist.

Vance's comments come days after Trump drew the ire of Christians by posting an AI-generated image of himself as Jesus Christ.

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This meme appears to depict Donald Trump as a Christ-like figure healing a sick man as serving military personnel surround him.

In the image, Trump is dressed in robes and healing a man with glowing light from his hand. In the foreground a kneeling woman prays to him.

Trump later deleted the image and claimed he was actually being depicted as a doctor.

Vance meanwhile brushed off the criticism by claiming Trump was making a joke.

"I think the president was posting a joke, and of course, he took it down because he recognised a lot of people weren't understanding his humour," Vance said.

Earlier this week, Trump accused Pope Leo as being "weak on crime".

The first American pope, Leo XIV has been the head of the Catholic Church for less than a year.

The Chicago-born pontiff was ordained in 1982 and became a cardinal in 2023.

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Pope Leo was chosen to lead the Catholic church last year.

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SA cop in charge of road safety fined over cycling selfie

A South Australia Police superintendent in charge of enforcing road safety has been fined after he used a mobile phone while riding a bike.

Superintendent Shane Johnson, who heads up SA Police's Traffic Services Branch, was issued an expiation notice after taking a selfie while cycling down a back street and posting it to his Strava account.

Johnson said he had been "winding down" after a 202-kilometre ride with friends on October 18 and was less than 100 metres from his home when he took the photo.

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The image, obtained by the Adelaide Advertiser, shows the superintendent wearing a helmet and smiling while holding his phone for a selfie.

Johnson shared the image to GPS tracking app Strava, which cyclists and runners regularly use to log their rides.

Under SA law, cyclists must obey the same road rules as drivers and using a mobile phone while riding a bike is considered a traffic offence.

Johnson admitted using his phone while on a bike was a "lapse in judgement".

Officer-in-charge of the Traffic Services Branch Superintendent Shane Johnson has been issued with an expiation notice for using a mobile telephone while riding a bicycle.

"I take full responsibility for my actions. I acknowledge I have done the wrong thing and accept the consequences," Johnson added.

"No-one is immune from road traffic laws.

"Every road user needs to remain alert and aware of the rules when using mobile phones not just for their own safety, but that of other road users."

The incident has been referred to the to SAPOL's Ethical and Professional Standards Branch.

An internal conduct investigation remains ongoing.

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Israeli police discover 70 men packed inside garbage truck

Israeli police say they found about 70 Palestinian men hiding in a garbage truck as they attempted to cross into Israel, apparently in search of work.

The men were discovered on Monday at a West Bank checkpoint, north of Jerusalem, reports Associated Press.

Footage from the scene shows the men packed inside the truck, piled one on top of another in the vehicle's waste compartment.

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Police are seen in the video, some with their weapons drawn, surrounding the truck.

Within minutes of their discovery, officers removed them one by one as garbage fell from the vehicle.

The 30-year-old Israeli man driving the garbage truck was arrested and questioned by police.

Israel's Defence Ministry said the men were "trying to infiltrate central Israel" and that they were stopped at a West Bank checkpoint.

Authorities did not provide details on the motive for the attempted entry, but Ital Almog, a local police commander, described them as "illegal entrants," a term that usually refers to Palestinians entering Israel in search of work.

Israeli police have routinely reported illegal entrants from the Israeli-occupied West Bank after Israel revoked tens of thousands of Palestinian work permits since Hamas' October 7, 2023 attack.

The large number of men and grim conditions of the garbage truck incident highlighted the level of desperation and the lengths that some are willing to go.

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‘I despise you’: Sister’s anger as she confronts killer

Sky Daly-Holt was cradling her six-week-old daughter when she received the news no loved one wants to hear.

Her sister Autumn Baker had been violently murdered by a man she had considered a friend.

"What should have been a joyous time in my life … turned into a horror show," Sky said.

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Mark Ludbrook, 53, admitted he killed his friend Autumn Baker at his Hoppers Crossing home in Melbourne's south-west on August 3, 2023.

Baker had been visiting Mark Ludbrook at his home in Melbourne's south-west in August 2023 when he attacked her with a knife.

She had tried to stop him from self-harming when he turned the weapon on her, stabbing her multiple times to the chest, arms and eyes.

Ludbrook claimed his mind was altered by PCE, an illicit drug he had taken earlier that morning to manage pain from his neurological condition.

But a Victorian Supreme Court jury found the 54-year-old was conscious of his actions and therefore guilty of murder.

Sky was among Baker's friends and family who confronted Ludbrook as he faced a pre-sentence hearing on Tuesday.

She described the violence and sorrow he had brought into her life, saying Ludbrook had destroyed her family.

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"You have stolen my first and forever friend, my childhood witness, a person who knew me better than anyone else," Sky said.

"Every day I tell Autumn I love her and I miss her. No one will love me like Autumn did."

Ludbrook had also robbed Baker's two young children of a loving, caring and empathetic mother, Sky said.

"I despise you," she told Ludbrook, who watched on a video link from prison.

"I wish Autumn had never met you. I wish she had let you kill yourself that day. Your life is worthless."

Baker's mother, Annie Daly-Holt, said she was afraid to live each day without her daughter and it was only her grandchildren who kept her going.

"My life has been about ensuring my daughter is not forgotten," she said.

"She was exuding light everywhere she went and left beauty in her wake. There was nothing she couldn't do."

Baker's father, Lance Daly-Holt, said there was no adequate sentence for Ludbrook.

"I miss my daughter every day," he said.

"This man's actions have taken everything from my family."

On the morning of the murder, Ludbrook's carer saw him walking around naked despite him normally only managing three steps at a time.

He also thanked different colours and told his carer how he needed to sleep with her to save the animals.

Crown prosecutor Jim Shaw said the verdict made it clear Ludbrook was acting consciously and deliberately at the time of the murder, regardless of the drugs he had taken.

Lubdrook's moral culpability was therefore high and he still had not taken any responsibility for his actions, Shaw argued.

Ludbrook's barrister will make submissions when the case returns to court on Friday.

If you or someone you know is in need of support contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue. In the event of an emergency dial Triple Zero (000).

Four face charges of stealing crocodile eggs in Kakadu

Four men are facing charges of stealing hundreds of crocodile eggs from a world-famous national park.

Pilot Sebastian Robinson along with Timothy Luck, Dean Larsen and Stephen Slark are all charged with taking, keeping and moving a species from Kakadu National Park in February 2024.

A company, SDRL Pty Ltd, operating under the name Kinga Contracting, is also charged with obtaining a financial advantage by deception in relation to the case.

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Kakadu National Park is an enormous, biodiverse nature reserve in Australiaâ€Â™s Northern Territory

The egg-stealing charges follow a joint investigation by Parks Australia, the Australian Federal Police and the Northern Territory Parks and Wildlife Commission.

Legal crocodile egg collecting in the Northern Territory provides eggs to crocodile farms and involves helicopter pilots lowering a man on a line onto nests to do the collecting in remote wetlands.

In the Darwin Local Court today Ruth Champion, appearing for the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions, said the charges of illegally taking crocodile eggs involved serious offending.

That took into account the sophistication and complexity of the operation, the number of accused acting in concert, the use of a helicopter and the very large number of eggs taken, she told the court.

"We're not talking about one, two or three, but something in the hundreds."

Champion also noted the impact of the alleged egg stealing on Traditional Owners and the cultural harm felt by them.

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Defence lawyer Thomas Clelland told the court the matter was a complicated one involving the complex area of DNA analysis.

Judge Elizabeth Morris set a five-day hearing from November 30 to December 4, with 10 witnesses to be called.

In February 2022 Robinson was piloting a helicopter on a legal crocodile egg collecting mission in the Top End when the machine crashed, killing egg collector Chris "Willow" Wilson and leaving Robinson a paraplegic.

Their employer, helicopter operator and reality TV star Matt Wright, was found guilty in December of attempting to pervert the course of justice in relation to the crash investigation.

The star of hit TV shows Outback Wrangler and Wild Croc Territory is behind bars in Darwin, serving a five-month term for trying to tamper with evidence to cover up the disconnecting of flight time meters.

Wright was not accused of causing the crash, the death of his co-star Wilson or the injuries of Robinson and is not involved in the egg-stealing case.