Latest science news in Psychology & Sociology
Disadvantaged neighborhoods set children's reading skills on negative course
A landmark study from the University of British Columbia finds that the neighborhoods in which children reside at kindergarten predict their reading comprehension skills seven years later. The study, published...
Parkinson’s patients who are pathological gamblers also display abnormal social behaviour
People with Parkinson’s Disease are more likely to display abnormal social behaviour and make poor decisions in ambiguous circumstances if they are pathological gamblers. A number of studies have already...
Bifocals may help children with myopia
Giving children bifocals may help reduce their degree of myopia, a new study suggests.
Friends Influence How Much Children Eat
Parents are acutely aware of the influence that friends exert over their children's behavior -- how they dress, how they wear their hair, whether they drink or smoke. And now...
Got cognitive activity? It does a mind good
If you don't have a college degree, you're at greater risk of developing memory problems or even Alzheimer's. Education influences lifelong memory performance and risk for dementia, and those with...
Music Sounds Like Moving People
Joggers love their head phones. If you ask them why, they’ll tell you it keeps them motivated. The right song can transform what is by all rights an arduous half...
Brain food: how to stick to your New Year resolutions
What's the best incentive to hang in there with that diet? HumiliationIf Harold Wilson reckoned a week was a long time in politics, he should have tried 12 days of keeping a...
Chimps and Monkeys Could Talk. Why Don’t They?
Scientests are studying the babble of monkeys and apes in the hope of finding the key to how human communication evolved.
Vital Signs: Awareness: To Measure Medicine, Mind the Spoon
A study of 195 students asked to dole out a teaspoon of liquid found that they underdosed or overdosed, depending on the size of the spoon.
Findings: The Madness of Crowds and an Internet Delusion
If the mantras of “open culture” and “information wants to be free” have produced a destructive new social contract, how can it be reversed?.
Study quantifies minority enrollment losses if affirmative action is eliminated
(PhysOrg.com) -- A nationwide ban on affirmative action in college admissions would cause a 10 percent drop in black and Hispanic enrollment at the nation`s most selective colleges and universities,...
Judge has questions in gay marriage trial in CA
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- The first federal trial to determine if the U.S. Constitution prohibits states from outlawing same-sex marriage got under way Monday, with a...
Less than six hours sleep a night more dangerous for premenopausal women
(PhysOrg.com) -- Getting less than six hours sleep a night is more dangerous for younger women who have not yet been through the menopause, according to researchers at the University...
AOL to lay off up to 1,200 workers to reach target
(AP) -- The struggling Internet company AOL will lay off up to 1,200 workers because it didn't get enough volunteers to accept buyouts.
Research Reveals First Evidence of Bimusicalism in Untrained Listeners
(PhysOrg.com) -- Music, like language, is affected by the mass cultural exchanges resulting from globalization. Bilingualism is increasing, and now a University of Arkansas researcher and her colleagues present the...
How high can a rock climber go?
The maximum time an athlete is able to continue climbing to exhaustion may be the only determinant of his/her performance. Until now, performance indicators for climbing have been low body...
UK vicar invokes God's blessing on BlackBerrys
(AP) -- God bless this BlackBerry. A venerable British church has done what e-mail addicts and workaholics have been doing for years - invoking the Almighty's blessing on their...
Why do people 'play the longshot' and buy insurance? It's in our genes
Why do some people like to take risks by playing "longshot" payoffs while, on the other hand, taking the opposite tack by buying insurance to reduce risks? A team of...
The Asia-Pacific Partnership and the Kyoto Protocols: In conflict or cooperation?
President Obama's visit to China before December's Copenhagen conference underlined views that the international strategy to tackle climate change truly hinges on cooperation between the United...
Liver donations from living donors increase 42 percent after educational intervention
A recent study found that living donation increased 42% and the number of individuals who presented for donation evaluation increased 74% at centres in New York. The surge in live...
Early puberty leads to increased aggression in women
(PhysOrg.com) -- A University of Queensland study has found that females who experience early puberty have increased levels of aggression.
UC Prof Creates iPhone Application Resulting from Personal 'To Do' List
(PhysOrg.com) -- David Kuschner is an associate professor in the early childhood education program at the University of Cincinnati. He has presented and published research relating to how children`s play...
Will Lidia Brito put the science back into UNESCO?
UNESCO has a new science policy division head. Lidia Brito talks to Linda Nordling about her plans.
Layout hinders travel chatting
A researcher has found that public transport layout can make talking more difficult, in positions where it is hard to send non-verbal cues.
Brain activity levels affect self-perception: 'Rose-colored glasses' correlate with less frontal lobe use
The less you use your brain's frontal lobes, the more you see yourself through rose-colored glasses, researchers have found.
Kids' movie safety portrayals improved: study
The entertainment industry has improved its portrayals of walking, cycling and boating in movies aimed at children, but half of scenes still show risky behaviour, U.S. researchers found.
Sex Robot Appeals with Conversation
Life-Size Doll's Makers Bet That Companionship Is More of a Turn On Than Pure Physical Contact
Why Bright Light Worsens Migraine Headache Pain
Relief form migraine headaches could result from study that shows why light increases pain.