Latest Science and Society News

Practice makes perfect? Not so much

New research led by Michigan State University’s Zach Hambrick finds that a copious amount of practice is not enough to explain why people differ in level of skill in two widely studied activities, chess and music.

 

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Youth bullying because of perceived sexual orientation widespread and damaging

Bullying because of perceived sexual orientation is prevalent among school-aged youths, according to a study led by Donald Patrick, professor of health services at the UW School of Public Health.  The study was published online May 16 in the American Journal of Public Health.

 

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Trying to be Happier Works When Listening to Upbeat Music

The song, “Get Happy,” famously performed by Judy Garland, has encouraged people to improve their mood for decades. Recent research at the University of Missouri discovered that an individual can indeed successfully try to be happier, especially when cheery music aids the process. This research points to ways that people can actively improve their moods and corroborates earlier MU research.

 

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Male Testosterone Levels Increase When Victorious in Competition Against Rivals, but Not Friends

Sporting events can bring a community together, such as when the Louisville Cardinals won the NCAA championship and University of Louisville campus was filled with camaraderie. They also can fuel bitter rivalries, such as the long-standing animosity between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs. A new University of Missouri study has found that testosterone levels during group competition are modulated depending on the relationships among the competitors and may be related to the formation of alliances in warfare.

 

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Traumatized moms avoid tough talks with kids, study shows

Mothers who have experienced childhood abuse, neglect or other traumatic experiences show an unwillingness to talk with their children about the child’s emotional experiences, a new study from the University of Notre Dame shows.

 

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Bigger birth weight babies at greater risk of autism

The biggest study of fetal growth and autism ever has reported that babies whose growth is at either extreme in the womb, either very small or very large, are at greater risk of developing autism.

 

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