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Researchers Find Cancer News May Contribute to Confusion About Cancer

By Guest PostNovember 11, 2010Culture, Health, Mediaamericans, behavior, cancer, CNN, dale brashers, disease, google news, health information, kami kosenko, msnbc, north carolina state university, online, people, ryan hurley, uncertain terms, yahoo news

New research from North Carolina State University shows that most online news stories about cancer contain language that likely contributes to public uncertainty about the disease – a significant finding, given that at least one-third of Americans seek health information online.

“Previous studies show that more than 100 million Americans seek health information online, and that their findings affect their health decisions,” says Dr. Kami Kosenko, an assistant professor of communication at NC State and co-author of a paper describing the study. “But, while people facing uncertainty about cancer issues are likely to seek out additional information, we’ve found that there are features of the information they’re seeking that may actually exacerbate the uncertainty.” (more…)

Sick at Work and Surfing the Net? You’re Not Alone – or Are You?

By Guest PostNovember 10, 2010Culture, Economy, Generalabsenteeism, buzzword, environmental medicine, Health, presenteeism, reduced productivity, scholars, susan hagen, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Some scholars estimate that presenteeism, a relatively recent buzzword that applies to people who are less productive at work because of health issues, costs employers as much as three times the dollar amount as absenteeism in terms of lost productivity.

But researchers at University of Michigan believe those numbers may be inaccurate. A new opinion paper suggests that the tools for measuring and quantifying hours of lost productivity and translating those hours to dollars are unreliable and don’t capture the entire presenteeism picture, said Susan Hagen, an analyst from the U-M School of Kinesiology Health Management Research Center (HMRC). (more…)

Scientists to Spy on People’s Dreams and Thoughts

By PravdaNovember 6, 2010Culture, General, Scienceamerican scientist, anton evseev, brain injuries, eeg, electrodes, electroencephalography, epilepsy, human, human dream, images, impulses, mapping, marilyn Monroe, moran cerf, neurons, oleg levashov, paranormal abilities, pentagon, soldiers, spying, thinking processes, thoughts, visual images, wilder penfield graves

Image credit: Wikipedia

Until now it was believed that a person is unable to read the thoughts of fellow human beings. “Spying” on the dreams of another person appeared unrealistic. However, recent research by American scientists revealed that both these things are quite possible. Overly complex devices and paranormal abilities are not required to do so.

Recently, a respectable scientific journal Nature published an article that ten years ago would have been considered a fiction and would not have been publication at all. A group of American researchers led by Dr. Moran Cerf claims to have found a way to electronically records and decipher human dreams and thoughts. No complicated devices are required. The entire transcript can successfully go through an electroencephalograph – a device that for decades has been used by neuroscientists around the world. (more…)

The More We Talk, The Less We Might Agree: Study Shows Discussion Can Hurt Consensus-Building On Science/Technology

By Guest PostNovember 4, 2010Culture, Scienceandrew binder, dietram scheufele, global warming, large-scale research initiatives, manhattan, nbaf, north carolina state university, plum island, public consensus, public issues, san Antonio, science and technology, scientific endeavors, stem cell research, talking it out

When it comes to public issues pertaining to science and technology, “talking it out” doesn’t seem to work. A new study from North Carolina State University shows that the more people discuss the risks and benefits associated with scientific endeavors, the more entrenched they become in their viewpoint – and the less likely they are to see the merit of other viewpoints.

“This research highlights the difficulty facing state and federal policy leaders when it comes to high-profile science and technology issues, such as stem cell research or global warming,” says Dr. Andrew Binder, an assistant professor of communication at NC State and lead author of the study. “Government agencies view research on these issues as vital and necessary for the country’s future, but building public consensus for that research is becoming increasingly difficult.” (more…)

Hostile Environments Encourage Political Action In Immigrant Communities

By Guest PostNovember 2, 2010Culture, Politicsafrican communities, anti-immigrant legislation, anti-immigrant practices, asian american, backfire, Chicago, dina okamoto, immigrant, immigrant communities, kim ebert, latino, los angeles, memphis, miami, middle eastern, united states

A new study from North Carolina State University finds that anti-immigrant practices – such as anti-immigrant legislation or protests – are likely to backfire, and spur increased political action from immigrant communities. The study examined political activity in 52 metropolitan areas across the United States.

“U.S. Census data indicate that 60 percent of the foreign-born in the U.S. are not citizens,” says Dr. Kim Ebert, an assistant professor of sociology and co-author of a paper describing the research. “Non-citizens can’t vote, so we wanted to determine how they are participating in political life.” (more…)

Latino Voters Expected to Influence Nov. 2 Election

By Guest PostNovember 1, 2010Culture, Politicsdemocratic candidates, democratic party, julian samora research institute, latinos, michigan state university, msu, non-latino voters, republicans, rubén martinez

Ruben Martinez is director of MSU's Julian Samora Research Institute. Image credit: Michigan State University

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Latinos still tend to favor Democratic candidates, although Latinos who identify themselves as Republicans are more likely to vote in the Nov. 2 midterm elections, a Michigan State University scholar says.

According to the 2010 National Survey of Latinos, 44 percent of Latino Republicans said they had given the election a lot of thought, compared to 28 percent of Latino Democrats.

“While Latinos in general are much more likely to support the Democratic Party, when it comes down to it, Latino Republicans may be more likely to show up at the polls on Tuesday,” said Rubén Martinez, director of MSU’s Julian Samora Research Institute.

According to the national survey data, Latinos generally favor Democrats, with nearly 66 percent of Latino registered voters saying they plan to support the Democratic candidate in their congressional district. In contrast, only 22 percent said they plan to support the Republican candidate in their district. (more…)

Friends with Cognitive Benefits: Mental Function Improves After Certain Kinds of Socializing

By Guest PostOctober 28, 2010Culture, Healthbrain benefits, cognitive benefits, mental boost, social intelligence, social interaction, socializing

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Talking with other people in a friendly way can make it easier to solve common problems, a new University of Michigan study shows. But conversations that are competitive in tone, rather than cooperative, have no cognitive benefits. (more…)

Learning the Truth not Effective in Battling Rumors About NYC Mosque, Study Finds

By Guest PostOctober 28, 2010Culture, Politicsamericans, annenberg public policy center, arab, erik nisbet, factcheck, feisal abdul rauf, ground zero, imam, islamic cultural center, middle east, mosque, new york city, ohio state university, r kelly garrett, rumors, terrorism, united states

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Evidence is no match against the belief in false rumors concerning the proposed Islamic cultural center and mosque near Ground Zero in New York City, a new study finds.

Researchers at Ohio State University found that fewer than one-third of people who had previously heard and believed one of the many rumors about the proposed center changed their minds after reading overwhelming evidence rejecting the rumor.

The false rumor that researchers used in the study was that Feisal Abdul Rauf, the Imam backing the proposed Islamic cultural center and mosque, is a terrorist sympathizer who has refused to condemn Islamic attacks on civilians. (more…)

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