scientific study

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'Hedonometer' Gauges US Mood Via Blogs, Tweets

(Newser) - If you think blogs are useless, think again: Scientists have developed a “hedonometer,” or happiness gauge, that analyzes personal online statements to pinpoint the overall contentment of the US population on a given day, the Discovery Channel reports. The program looks at sentences beginning with “I feel”...

Toucan's Beak Really Outsized Thermostat

Toucans control blood flow to outsized bill to raise or lower body temperature

(Newser) - New research reveals an unexpected use for the toucan’s outsized bill, Wired reports. Thermal imaging shows that the bird can regulate its body temperature by increasing or restricting blood flow to its beak. “Bird bills are not ‘dead tissues’ incapable of playing a role in heat balance,...

Fish Oil Reverses Tide on Memory Loss

(Newser) - Regular doses of Omega 3, found in fish oil, can help reduce memory loss, reports the Telegraph. Healthy 70-year-old subjects taking capsules containing 900 mg of the fatty acid docosahexaenoic slashed errors on a test that measured learning and memory, according to researchers. The improvement, exhibited over a six-month period,...

Cycling May Take Toll on Sperm Quality

(Newser) - Men who train vigorously on bicycles have low sperm quality verging on infertility, LiveScience reports. A recent study of Spanish triathletes found that those who rode more than 180 miles a week saw the percentage of healthy sperm drop from a group average of 10% to 4%. “We found...

Night Owls Outmuscle Early Birds: Study

(Newser) - Night owls may have a tough time conforming to normal work schedules, but they do have one advantage in athletic ability that early birds can’t match, CNN reports. A new study tested leg strength at various times during the day and found that morning people were consistent while late...

Genetic Faults Link Manic Depression, Schizophrenia

Research slowly unravels genetic causes of mental illnesses

(Newser) - Scientists have discovered genetic variations that link schizophrenia to manic depression for the first time, the Independent reports. Research made possible by technical advances found that thousands of tiny genetic faults raised the risk of both mental illnesses, which had previously been believed to be completely distinct conditions. Experts hope...

Boys Hardwired to Like Trucks
 Boys Hardwired to Like Trucks 
Jun 29, 2009 6:33 AM CDT

Boys Hardwired to Like Trucks

(Newser) - The gender stereotypes found in the toy aisle may merely be a reinforcement of genetic preferences, the Daily Mail reports. In a recent study of infants aged 3 to 8 months, boys expressed more interest in a toy truck, whereas girls preferred a doll—leading researchers to believe the predilection...

15% of Teens Expect to Die Young

Expectation linked to risky behavior

(Newser) - Teenagers who engage in risky behavior may do so because they believe they’re going to die young anyway, and may create a self-fulfilling prophecy with that belief, reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune. A study that tracked 20,000 kids in grades 7 through 12 found that 15% thought they...

Overweight People Live Longer: Study

(Newser) - A few extra pounds can actually be good for you, the Globe and Mail reports. A recent long-term study of Canadian health records shows that people classified as overweight—with a Body Mass Index of 25 to 30—are 17% less likely to die than those with “normal” BMI,...

Family Moves Double Teen Suicide Risk

(Newser) - Teens forced to move often by their parents’ jobs are much more likely to attempt suicide than those who stay put, MSNBC reports. Kids between 11 and 17 who moved three or more times were twice as likely to try to kill themselves as children who grew up in the...

Want to Bum a Smoke? Whisper in Their Right Ear

(Newser) - People prefer to listen with their right ears and are more giving when addressed from that side, LiveScience reports. An Italian study conducted in nightclubs shows that almost three-quarters of people observed listen with their right ear. Moreover, the researchers cadged significantly more cigarettes when they approached clubgoers on the...

Sand May Be 5th State of Matter: Study

(Newser) - Sand exhibits so many unexplainable physical properties that some think granularity is a form of matter unto itself, Wired reports. Granular matter acts like a solid, a liquid, or a gas depending on the circumstance. “You walk on the beach, and the sand supports your weight,” said physicist...

Mammals Evolve Faster in Hot Weather: Study

Faster metabolism thought to be why

(Newser) - Evolution happens faster in warmer climates, a new study finds. Researchers found that DNA changes more frequently among mammals in the species-rich tropics than among comparable species elsewhere, the BBC reports. Scientists believe the germ cells that become sperm and eggs divide more often in hotter weather, perhaps because those...

Dog's 'Guilty' Look Is All in Your Head

(Newser) - You can tell when Rover’s misbehaved by that guilty look on his face, right? Ruff—er, wrong, researchers say. If owners believed their dogs had misbehaved, they projected that famed "guilty" expression onto the animals’ faces regardless of whether any rule-breaking had happened, a new study says. Any...

Rail Travel Pollutes as Much as Flying: Study

(Newser) - Train riders might not actually have that much to lord over their jet-setting rivals as far as pollution goes, Scientific American reports. A new study shows that although planes emit three times more greenhouse gasses per passenger per mile than trains, the industrial emissions necessary to rail infrastructure makes the...

Stone Age Humans Found Wisdom in Crowds: Study

(Newser) - The jump in human ingenuity during the Stone Age could have resulted not from a biological change but from closer, more populous communities, NPR reports. “Anything that we teach is going to be susceptible to loss, or to decay,” said the British scientist who cooked up the theory....

Apes, Humans Share a Laugh
 Apes, Humans Share a Laugh 
Jun 4, 2009 2:04 PM CDT

Apes, Humans Share a Laugh

Commonalities show laughter is pre-human

(Newser) - After tickling two dozen apes and several children, scientists have concluded that laughter developed long before humans did. In fact, a common ancestor of both apes and humans probably emitted the first chuckle at least 10 million years ago. The study measuring 800 vocalizations found that all subjects shared the...

Study Predicts Rising Seas in Northeast

(Newser) - Increases in sea level caused by climate change could be dramatically larger than the world average in the densely populated Northeast, LiveScience reports. A new study shows that the melting Greenland ice cap and ocean dynamics will push 12 to 20 more inches of water toward New England and Canada...

Sorry, Exercise Doesn't Boost Metabolism

Research busts myth that workouts keep burning fat hours later

(Newser) - You went for a half-hour run this afternoon, so it’s OK to have that extra slice of cake tonight, right? That’s actually wrong, say scientists, and they’re just as surprised about it as you. The now-debunked assumption was that exercise leaves the body with more power to...

Got a Temper? Blame Your Genes

(Newser) - Why some people get steamed while others stay cool depends on which version of a certain gene they carry, the Daily Telegraph reports. German scientists isolated a gene that affects dopamine levels. In a study, people with the least common variation showed little anger. Those with the other two mutations...

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