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Multiple Fathers Prevalent in Amazonian Cultures

By Guest PostNovember 12, 20101 commentCultureaamazonian culture, brazil, extramarital sexual affairs, extramarital sexual partners, kim hill, mark flinn, modern culture, multiple paternity, part biological father, robert walker, sexual freedom, sexual promiscuity, south american societies, university of missouri

*MU researchers find that up to 70 percent of Amazonian cultures practiced multiple paternity*

COLUMBIA, Mo. – In modern culture, it is not considered socially acceptable for married people to have extramarital sexual partners. However, in some Amazonian cultures, extramarital sexual affairs were common, and people believed that when a woman became pregnant, each of her sexual partners would be considered part-biological father. Now, a new University of Missouri study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Science has found that up to 70 percent of Amazonian cultures may have believed in the principle of multiple paternity.

“In these cultures, if the mother had sexual relations with multiple men, people believed that each of the men was, in part, the child’s biological father,” said Robert Walker, assistant professor of Anthropology in the College of Arts and Science. “It was socially acceptable for children to have multiple fathers, and secondary fathers often contributed to their children’s upbringing.” (more…)

Women Do Not Detect Internet Scams As Well as Men Do

By PravdaNovember 12, 2010Culture, Technologyfake, internet scams, knowthenet, pravda, scam, social networking pages, tech savvy, women

Women are significantly more likely than men to fall for Internet scams, a new piece of research has claimed after conducting an online test.

In six out of seven tests, women were less likely to detect a scam than men, with females in the supposedly tech-savvy 25-34 age group especially easy to fool, according to Nominet-backed website, Knowthenet. (more…)

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…)

Amazon.com Editorial Team Unveils Best Books of 2010 List

By Guest PostNovember 4, 2010Culture, TechnologyAmazon, best books of 2010, daphne durham, faithful place, frank mackey, isabel wilkerson, jonathan franzen, novel, oprah, rebecca skloot, tana french, the immortal life of henrietta lacks

*Just in time for holiday shopping, Amazon book editors announce the 100 best books of the year, as well as the top 100 customer favorites*

SEATTLE, Nov 04, 2010 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Amazon.com, Inc. today announced its picks for Best Books of 2010. This annual feature includes the Editors’ Picks for the Top 100 Books of the Year, the Top 100 Customer Favorites and Top 10 lists in nearly two dozen categories, from Literature & Fiction to Children’s Picture Books. To see all of our Best Books of 2010, or to download one of the picks to your Kindle, go to www.amazon.com/bestbooks2010.

“Whether it was Jonathan Franzen’s reunion with Oprah or the eagerly anticipated final books in blockbuster trilogies, 2010 had everyone talking about reading,” said Daphne Durham, Managing Editor of Books at Amazon.com. “Deciding on our Top 100 Books is always a tough assignment, but our choice for the Best Book of the Year, Rebecca Skloot’s ‘The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks,’ was unanimous.” (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…)

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