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Moral Evaluations of Harm are Instant and Emotional, Brain Study Shows

Science

People are able to detect, within a split second, if a hurtful action they are witnessing is intentional or accidental, new research on the brain at the University of Chicago shows.

The study is the first to explain how the brain is hard-wired to recognize when another person is being intentionally harmed. It also provides new insights into how such recognition is connected with emotion and morality, said lead author Jean Decety, the Irving B. Harris Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry at UChicago. (more…)

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New UMD Poll Shows Israelis Doubt Benefit from Gaza Conflict

Politics

Three in Five Israelis Now View Obama Favorably

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – A new University of Maryland poll shows that in the aftermath of November’s round of fighting with Hamas and other groups in the Gaza Strip, only 36% of Israelis think that Israel is better off than it was before the escalation, while a majority feel Israel is either about the same (38%) or worse off (21%). (more…)

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The Placebo Effect Goes Beyond Humans, UF Researchers Find

Health, Science

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Rats and humans have at least one thing in common: They both react the same way to a placebo, according to a new University of Florida study.

“That was the big finding — that the animals that expected pain relief actually got pain relief when you gave them an inert substance,” said co-author John Neubert, a pain specialist and an associate professor with the UF College of Dentistry department of orthodontics. “It helps validate our model that what we do in the rats, we believe, is a good representation of what’s being seen in humans.”

The investigation of placebo effects might lead to the identification of new therapeutic targets in the brain and of novel treatment strategies for a variety of health conditions. (more…)

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Modeling the Breaking Points of Metallic Glasses

Science

Mathematical methods developed by a Berkeley Lab researcher help explain why liquid metals have wildly different breaking points, depending on how they are made

Metallic glass alloys (or liquid metals) are three times stronger than the best industrial steel, but can be molded into complex shapes with the same ease as plastic. These materials are highly resistant to scratching, denting, shattering and corrosion. So far, they have been used in a variety of products from golf clubs to aircraft components. And, some smartphone manufacturers are even looking to cast their next-generation phone cases out of it. (more…)

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Advocate for Women in STEM Disciplines Speaks on Today’s Barriers to ‘Breaking into The Lab’

Media, Science

For Sue Rosser, the obstacles women in the STEM disciplines face today may be less obvious than they were 40 years ago, but they’re as real as ever.

“Today, barriers and discrimination are more subtle and there’s a different language, but it’s still going on,” Rosser said. “It’s old wine in new bottles.”

Rosser, the first woman to serve as provost and vice president for academic affairs at San Francisco State University, presented “Breaking into the Lab: Engineering Progress for Women in Science,” on Nov. 12, at the Knapp Center for Biomedical Discovery. Her talk outlined barriers to women’s advancement in scientific fields, and offered advice for women and academic mentors to avoid discrimination. The event, which is part of the annual lecture series, “How to Advance Women in Science and Engineering,” is a collaboration between the Center for the Study of Gender and Sexuality and the Office of the Provost at the University of Chicago. Rosser’s talk is the second annual colloquium on how to support and advance women in the STEM fields. (more…)

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