The purr-fect study break

On Tuesday, a group of classics students enticed Sidge’s resident cat, Odysseus, into the classics common room, where he stayed for a few hours to enjoy attention and pictures. Odysseus is often found hanging around Sidgwick Site and the University Library. He’s the perfect way to soothe the exam term nerves!

There’s no bat-er time to go punting

For all the punting fanatics out there, Scudamore’s and Wildlife Trust have collaborated to run bat punting tours, or “Bat Punt Safaris,” from May to September. This “exciting evening experience” starts just before dusk so you can see sunset views of Cambridge before searching for bats. Wildlife Trust guides on board will help you to interpret the types of bats from their clicks and squeaks. Look out for herons, tawny owls, and foxes too!

Procrastinate with Guessbridge

A new daily guessing game called ‘Guessbridge’ has been launched on Instagram, offering Cambridge residents their very own version of the famous ‘GeoGuessr’. Each day, the account posts four zoomed-in photos from locations around Cambridge. Followers who want to guess the location hinted at by the clues can go to the guessbridge.co.uk website to play. Forget Wordle or Connections, this is the new best way to procrastinate revision!

Beauty and the brain

A study by Cambridge University has revealed that people’s ability to think in abstract ways is improved by “pondering” art. 187 people were invited to participate in the study at Kettle's Yard. They were split into two groups, with one of the groups being asked to actively consider and judge the appearance of the art presented to them, and the other asked to simply look at the art. The group which rated the beauty of the artwork, rather than simply looking at it, displayed the most abstract thinking. Researchers concluded that engaging with art in this way helps people to escape the “mental trappings of daily life”.