Latest science news in Psychology & Sociology
Disgraced cloning expert convicted for embezzlement and false claims
National hero cleared for fraud but gets two-year sentence for embezzling research funds and illegally buying human eggs
Exercise May Help You Quit Smoking
Exercise makes cigarettes less attractive, says a new study from the University of Exeter. Exercise can lessen the power of cigarettes and smoking-related images to grab the attention of smokers,...
Sex-based Prenatal Brain Differences Found
Prenatal sex-based biological differences extend to genetic expression in cerebral cortices. The differences in question are probably associated with later divergences in how our brains develop, according to a new...
Crossing paths
Existing research shows that rates of binge eating among adult women is virtually identical across race. However, among college age women, it's a different story: Caucasian women are more apt...
Music makes you smarter
Regularly playing a musical instrument changes the anatomy and function of the brain and may be used in therapy to improve cognitive skills.
Adolescents' gambling a part of a cluster of problem behaviours
Ten percent of young adolescent boys - or one in 10 - exhibit a symptom of conduct disorder as well as a symptom of risky or problem gambling, according to...
Finding the seat of language? Researchers look into Broca's brain
(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of Harvard and University of California, San Diego, researchers report having pinpointed an area of the brain where three essential components of language -- word identification,...
Darwin teaching 'divides opinion'
Millions of adults across the world think evolutionary theories should be taught alongside creationism in schools, a survey suggests.
Researchers question evidence linking overlapping sexual partners and African HIV rates
Contrary to conventional wisdom, scientific evidence proving that overlapping multiple sexual partners - concurrency - drives the HIV epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa is actually quite limited, Brown University researchers have...
You, yourself and you
Caspar Hare would like you to try a thought experiment. Consider that 100,000 people around the world tomorrow will suffer epileptic seizures. "That probably doesn't trouble you tremendously," says Hare, an associate professor...
Alien Vision Revolution (Halloween Edition)
Later this evening I’ll be giving a talk to a group of astronomers on what its like to see like an alien. The beauty of this is that I can...
The curious case of H.M.
Recently I watched a lecture by the renown neuroscientist, Eric Kandel, on Youtube. In his talk he unsurprisingly made mention of the famous patient H.M. in which most of us...
Flies Remember Smells Better When In A Group Than When Alone
Positive social interactions exist within flies: When in a group, Drosophila flies have better memory than when they are isolated.
Power At Work Has Payoffs, But Not For Health
Being at the top has its perks, but new research shows people in positions of authority at work are more likely to experience certain psychological and physical problems that can...
Clean Smells Promote Moral Behavior, Study Suggests
People are unconsciously fairer and more generous when they are in clean-smelling environments, according to new study. The research found a dramatic improvement in ethical behavior with just a few...
Crowded theaters build momentum for 3-D at home
(AP) -- Fans scrambled to see 3-D movies such as "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" in theaters this year and new 3-D televisions could soon have home viewers...
Happiness: A Theory -- Fear of Death
Why do we abhor death? Why don’t we conceive of death as a pleasant reward at the end of a life of travail? As far as we can...
Internet 'a teenager' at 40
Leonard Kleinrock never imagined Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube that day 40 years ago when his team gave birth to what is now taken for granted as the Internet.
Could Drugs For Mood Disorders, Pain And Epilepsy Cause Psychiatric Disorders Later In Life?
Young animals treated with commonly-prescribed drugs develop behavioral abnormalities in adulthood say researchers. The drugs tested include those used to treat epilepsy, mood disorders and pain.
Pelosi Intensifies Pressure on House Democrats for Government Insurance Plan
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s action came amid indications that she had not locked down the votes for the proposal.
Children adapt to Type 1 diabetes
Despite the managing, testing and planning, diabetic kids like Reilly Reynolds have relatively normal lives. Restless from math calculations using play money, the second-graders look relieved when their teacher instructs them to gather their...
Economics: The Purpose Of Business
If the question were asked, what is the primary purpose of business, the most likely response would be "to make money". However, this is an unsatisfactory answer since it clearly...
"Haunted People" Potentially Explained: A Mind-Body Basis for Anomalous Perceptions
People seeing ghosts? There may be a genuine mind-body foundation for such anomalous perceptions, according to two researchers, Michael Jawer and Marc Micozzi, MD, PhD.
Openings begin in Broadcom backdating trial
(AP) -- A jury has been picked for the federal trial of former Broadcom Corp. Chief Financial Officer William Ruehle, who faces conspiracy and fraud charges in an alleged...
Probing Question: What is citizen journalism?
The last time you watched CNN or read The New York Times online, you might have been surprised to see reporting by ordinary people. From photos uploaded instantly of the...
Who Don't Antidepressants Work?
Antidepressants are ineffective in fully 50% of the people who take them. It is clearly early 20th century medicine, where you keep trying things and hope something happens while...
Altruism: Genetic or Cultural Evolution?
(PhysOrg.com) -- The origins of altruism, the willingness to make personal sacrifices for the benefit of others often unknown to us, has perplexed evolutionary social scientists and biologists for years.
Why Do We Need The Unconscious?
WHY DO WE NEED THE ‘UNCONSCIOUS’? Ayad Gharbawi October 19, 2009 Does the unconscious exist? Obviously the field of psychology has much to say about the unconscious, but I am asking a question...