Latest science news in Psychology & Sociology
Is your left hand more motivated than your right hand?
Motivation doesn't have to be conscious; your brain can decide how much it wants something without input from your conscious mind. Now a new study shows that both halves of...
World Cup: Is Altitude Training Beneficial For Athletes Or Just A Waste Of Time?
Altitude training is a popular training method expected to improve the physical performance of athletes …and horses! Recently, several national football teams spent some time at altitude on the Austrian...
Closing the science-to-policy gap in maternal and child health in Africa
In the third of five papers in the PLoS Medicine series on maternal, neonatal, and child health in sub-Saharan Africa, Sara Bennett and Freddie Ssengooba this week discuss the challenges...
Impulsive, weak-willed or just too much dopamine?
It's a common scenario: you're on a diet, determined to give up eating cakes, but as you pass the cake counter, all resolve disappears... Now, scientists at the Wellcome Trust...
Examining risks and benefits of alcohol consumption
A discussion by renowned epidemiologist Kenneth Mukamal has recently been published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, JAMA. It provides a discussion in response to a theoretical question,...
Large decline in impulsivity in early adulthood related to decrease in alcohol consumption
Previous studies have found that the personality trait impulsivity, or a lack of planning and forethought regarding behaviours, is associated with alcohol use and alcohol-use disorders. For most individuals, impulsivity...
Study shows age doesn't necessarily affect decision-making
Many people believe that getting older means losing a mental edge, leading to poor decision-making. But a new study from North Carolina State University shows that when it comes to...
SKorea votes to legalize chemical castration
By SANGWON YOON 2010-06-29T19:42:39Z SEOUL, South Korea (AP) -- South Korea's parliament voted Tuesday to legalize chemical castration as...
Can you make a snail remember?
Researchers at the University of Calgary say they've been able to change the ability of pond snails to form long-term memory by changing stresses in their environment.
Lower IQs found in disease-rife countries, scientists claim
Energy can be diverted away from brain development to fight infection, explaining 'lower intelligence in warmer countries'People who live in countries where disease is rife may have lower IQs because they have to...
Scientists From Mars Face Public From Venus
Scientists bemoaning a lack of science-based policy need to bone up on (social) science.
AAAS Criticizes Government Charges Against Italian Scientists
Earlier this month, an Italian prosecutor issued indictments against six scientists and a government...
Stem Cell Decision Could Have Broader Reach
Some biomedical research watchers are feeling blindsided by a federal appeals court decision last...
New PhDs Have High Employment And Above Average Salaries - Study
A survey taken by the Science and Technology Facilities Council says their funded PhD students have high employment rates and above average salaries. Since 2007, STFC has funded over 250 new students...
CFL to implement year-round drug testing
The CFL and its players say they have ratified a new collective bargaining agreement, which includes year-round drug testing.
Fireworks can cause hearing loss in children
(PhysOrg.com) -- As the Fourth of July approaches, parents should remember that fireworks could cause permanent hearing loss in children, says a Purdue expert.
Mad? Sad? Glad? People with severe mental illness can't easily 'read' their partner's feelings
(PhysOrg.com) -- For a healthy couple in a romantic relationship, getting along can be hard enough. But what if one person has been diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or major...
Richard Dawkins's backwards logic over atheist schooling | Andrew Brown
Richard Dawkins's belief that any properly brought up child will naturally be an atheist leads him into absurdityRichard Dawkins on Mumsnet came up with a remark to silence all his critics: "What have...
Public health systems compared: Germans more dissatisfied than the rest
One patient in four in Germany is in favor of complete reform of the public health system. Most respondents in other nations are more satisfied. A working group around Prof....
People Who Suppress Anger Become Violent When Drunk
Getting drunk increases the risk for violent behavior, but only for people who have a strong tendency to suppress feelings of anger, a new study suggests.
Partners create human balance
Our sense of balance comes from the inner ear and the visual system working together, according to a new study.
'Sex' drove fossil animal traits
Several prehistoric creatures developed elaborate body traits in order to attract members of the opposite sex, a study says.
Older adults watch more TV than younger people, enjoy it less
We usually scold our children and teenagers for watching too much TV. It turns out that their grandmas and grandpas spend even more of their time watching TV, and it...
National School Lunch Program increases educational achievement, study finds
A new study is the first to evaluate the long-term health and educational effects of participation in the National School Lunch Program. Researchers found that the program leads to a...
Cynicism in the Supreme Court Hearings
Ari Melber: Knocking Kagan?s Experience, the Republican Attack May Backfire
Divorce lawyers: Facebook tops in online evidence
(AP) -- Forgot to de-friend your wife on Facebook while posting vacation shots of your mistress? Her divorce lawyer will be thrilled.
McChrystal tells Army he'll retire
Gen. Stanley McChrystal, who was fired last week as the top U.S. general in the stalemated Afghanistan war, has told the Army that he will retire.
Observatory: Linking Personality to Brain Structure
Could personality traits actually be related to measurable differences in brain structure?