Latest science news in Psychology & Sociology
Group Apologizes for Its Racial Bias
The American Medical Association formally apologized on Thursday for more than a century of policies that excluded blacks from the group, long considered to be the voice of American doctors.
Research identifies brain cells related to fear
The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that in any given year, about 40 million adults (18 or older) will suffer from some form of anxiety disorder, including debilitating conditions...
Age-old Money Matters: Positivity In Older Adults Leads To Balanced Investments
The economic and psychological term known as "sunk-cost fallacy" is a bias that leads someone to make a decision based solely on a previous financial investment. For example, a baseball...
Octopuses Choose Favorite Tentacles
There are plenty of times when a third hand would be helpful, but solving a Rubik's Cube isn't really one of them. Despite that, a study in England has been...
Embryo research debate delayed
The government today risked accusations of running scared of the Glasgow East byelection after it called off a controversial vote on embryology research
Fashion Bug: Teens Turn Dead Cicadas Into Jewelry
Two 17-year-old jewelry makers from Cape Cod, Massachusetts are hoping swarms of customers will want their latest creations: earrings and necklaces made from dead bugs.
Doctor calls for ER to reopen following woman's death
A woman's life might have been saved on Wednesday night if the Tobique Valley Hospital in Plaster Rock, N.B., still had emergency services available, says Dr. Barry Wecker.
Realities of One-Night Stands Revealed
Women seek one-night stands even though they feel crappy the morning after.
Revolutionary Chefs? Not Likely, Shows Physics Research
However much the likes of Jamie Oliver or Gordon Ramsay might want to shake up our diets, culinary evolution dictates that our cultural cuisines remain little changed as generations move...
Even fruit flies have an orientation memory: Recall tested in a virtual space
In order to cope with their environment, animals must be able to remember the location of their destination in situations in which they temporarily lose sight of it. This ability,...
Fifi more aggressive than Fang, says dog study
Small dogs, especially dachshunds, are likelier to attack strangers and other dogs compared with pitbulls, rottweilers and other macho breeds, a study published on Wednesday finds.
Past science papers stump pupils
Students who sat a chemistry exam made up of questions from over five decades scored an average of only 25%.
Why Musicians Make Us Weep And Computers Don't
Music can soothe the savage breast much better if played by musicians rather than clever computers, according to a new study. Neuroscientists looked at the brain's response to piano sonatas...
The world is becoming a happier place: study
The world is becoming a happier place, a study published in this month's Perspectives of Psychological Science shows.
Verbally aggressive mothers direct their children's behavior
A new study in Human Communication Research reveals that verbally aggressive mothers tend to control their children's choice of activities as well as use physical negative touch, along with directives,...
Saskatoon doctor facing sexual charges identified
The name of a Saskatoon doctor charged with sexually assaulting two female patients was made public Wednesday when the case moved into the courts.
Brain activity encodes reward magnitude and delay during choice
Good things may come to those who wait, but research has proven that humans and animals actually prefer an immediate rather than a delayed reward. Now, a study published by...
1 year community service for HIV-positive woman guilty of assault
A Quebec woman living with AIDS has been sentenced to one year of community service for hiding her HIV status from her former boyfriend.
Vietnam plans to tempt expat scientists back
A proposal for a scheme to attract expat scientists back to Vietnam with good salaries and research funding is under discussion.
Psychiatric genetics: The brains of the family
Does the difficulty in finding the genes responsible for mental illness reflect the complexity of the genetics or the poor definitions of psychiatric disorders? Alison Abbott reports.
Avatars As Communicators Of Emotions
Current interactive systems enable users to communicate with computers in many ways, but not taking into account emotional communication. A Ph.D. thesis puts forward the use of avatars or virtual...
Money makes the heart grow less fond... but more hardworking
Money is a necessity: it provides us with material objects that are important for survival and for entertainment, and it is often used as a reward. But recent studies have...
More sex please, we're 70
Men and women in their early seventies are having sex more often and enjoying it more than their counterparts three and four decades ago, according to a Swedish study published...
Male kidneys for men only?
The gender of donor and recipient plays a larger role in kidney transplants than previously assumed. Female donor kidneys do not function as well in men - due to...
Weight Gain In Adolescent Girls: Role Of Internet, Alcohol And Sleep
Girls moving through adolescence may experience unhealthy levels of weight gain, but the reasons for this are not always clear. In fact, many potential causes of weight gain are easily...
Do we think that machines can think?
When our PC goes on strike again we tend to curse it as if it was a human. The question of why and under what circumstances we attribute human-like properties...
The first autism disease genes
The autistic disorder, a neurodevelopmental disease first described in 1943, represents a challenge for treatment and a puzzle for research. Alongside Asperger syndrome, a milder form of the disorder, autism...
Sex Really Does Get Better With Age (Just Ask A 70 Year Old)
An increasing number of 70 year olds are having good sex and more often, and women in this age group are particularly satisfied with their sex lives, according to a...