Latest science news in Psychology & Sociology
Individual animals have personalities
YORK, England, May 1 (UPI) -- Pet owners may have known this, but Scottish and British researchers confirm individual animals have personalities of their own.
Our own status affects the way our brains respond to others
Our own social status influences the way our brains respond to others of higher or lower rank, according to a new study. People of higher subjective socioeconomic status show greater...
Great (Dane) minds don’t think alike
Female and male dogs react differently to the same thing
The GM debate is about more than biosafety
Biosafety is important, but so is ensuring that GM crops benefit the rural poor and that decisions are based on sound science.
Genetic risk for major depression found
MUNICH, Germany, April 27 (UPI) -- A study in Germany has identified a gene associated with major depression, a finding that may guide therapeutic strategies for the debilitating mood...
Sleep-deprived brains can go 'off-line'
MADISON, Wis., April 27 (UPI) -- Some regions of the brain can take a quick nap even when we're awake, leading to mistakes and errors in our performance, U.S....
Neurorobotics reveals brain mechanisms of self-consciousness
A new study uses creative engineering to unravel brain mechanisms associated with one of the most fundamental subjective human feelings: self-consciousness. The research identifies a brain region called the temporo-parietal...
Andrew Toms Receives AMS Centennial Fellowship
Toms of Purdue University receives the fellowship for the 2011-2012 academic year.
Live Chat: Is it Ethical to Study Dolphins in Captivity?
Experts answer your questions about the challenges of research with sentient animals
Myths and truths of life with schizophrenia
(Medical Xpress) -- Most people believe schizophrenics are overly medicated, hospitalized and suicidal. And clinicians are no exception. However, a new study published in the Canadian Journal of Psychiatry by...
Music changes perception
Music is not only able to affect your mood – listening to particularly happy or sad music can even change the way we perceive the world, according to new research.
Spanish scientific journals must raise professional standards in order to compete
A study by the Spanish Foundation for Science and Technology (FECYT) shows a lack of standardisation in the peer review systems whereby independent experts assess the content of scientific publications...
Training program for dealing with behavioral problems is available for home computers
A full, home-computer version of Behavior Breakthroughs, an interactive program developed by Southwest Research Institute (SwRI), is now available to help train parents, caretakers and others who work with children...
Simon Baron-Cohen talks empathy, evil and justice at the Royal Institution | Carole Jahme
Baron-Cohen spoke at the RI last week about his theory that 'empathic erosion' is behind human cruelty. Carole Jahme asked him about the implications for the caring professions and criminal justiceThe Royal Institution...
Smoking during pregnancy factor in childhood behavioural disorders
(PhysOrg.com) -- New University of Otago, Christchurch, research has identified common factors in the far-reaching childhood behavioural conditions, Conduct Disorder (CD) and Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), including maternal smoking during...
Lawsuit to legalize assisted suicide filed in B.C.
A B.C. woman who escorted her ill 89-year-old mother on a trip abroad to end her life is challenging the law that makes the same act a criminal offence in...
MacNeil's Downfall: PBS's Autism Now Closes On Just As Sour A Note
Last night on PBS's NewsHour, Robert MacNeil answered viewers' questions. ROBERT MACNEIL: Well, perhaps he's right.We tried to concentrate on what we thought were urgent issues, urgent problems. And a lot of...
Mouse Study Suggests Why Addictions Are Hard to Forget
Recovering addicts are often told to avoid the people, places, and things connected with their addiction--tried-and-true advice that may be gaining support from neuroscience. A view widely accepted among addiction...
Study: True memories are rich with varied details
(Medical Xpress) -- To "tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth" is the maxim guiding legal testimony. But what if the witness recalls something that didn't really happen?...
Teen sleep study adds to evidence of a 'neural fingerprint'
New research finds that consistent, "signature" brainwave patterns first noticed in short-term studies of adults are so robust that they're also detectable over a matter of years in the notoriously...
Cosmic Log: Family history meets Facebook
Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: FamilyVillage is a Facebook app that's a cross between genealogy and social gaming. Think of it as a CityVille populated by your own ancestors.
Seabirds Use The Sniff Test to Avoid Incest
Seabirds called petrels have distinct odors, suggesting they could avoid mating with relatives using a sniff test.
Are Female Dogs More Intelligent Than Males?
Female dogs beat out male dogs in at least one brainy task.
What can twins tell us about mate choice?
What factors influence our choice of a mate? Is it our genes? Does a man look for someone like his mother and a woman someone her father? None of the...
Endeavour's last skipper thrives on speed, risk
(AP) -- Space shuttle Endeavour's commander, Mark Kelly, has spent his entire military career considering the options, weighing the risks, making a decision, then forging ahead.
Gift of opportunity
Harvard President Drew Faust gathered Monday (April 25) with faculty, staff, students, and other members of the University community to celebrate the largest gift dedicated to the study of the humanities in Harvard...
Synthesized speech: More human by the day
Recent tech breakthroughs make for more nuance in synthesized speech approximating voices of real humans
What does my child's sneeze mean?
(Medical Xpress) -- Though much of the beauty of spring is its vivid colors, rosy-red eyes and noses arent usually considered a welcome part of the landscape. Runny noses, sneezing...