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Facebook use predicts declines in happiness, new study finds

By Guest PostAugust 22, 2013Culture, Technologybelgium, decline, dynamic processes, emre demiralp, ethan kross, facebook accounts, facebook use, facebook user demographic, free networking website, happiness, jiyoung park, life satisfaction levels, philippe verduyn, predict, research foundation flanders, social research, university of leuven, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR — Facebook helps people feel connected, but it doesn’t necessarily make them happier, a new study shows.   Facebook use actually predicts declines in a user’s well-being, according to a University of Michigan study that is the first known published research examining Facebook influence on happiness and satisfaction.

The study about the use of Facebook, a free networking website, appears online in PLOS ONE.

“On the surface, Facebook provides an invaluable resource for fulfilling the basic human need for social connection,” said U-M social psychologist Ethan Kross, lead author of the article and a faculty associate at the U-M Institute for Social Research. “But rather than enhance well-being, we found that Facebook use predicts the opposite result—it undermines it.” (more…)

First global atlas of marine plankton reveals remarkable underwater world

By Guest PostAugust 11, 2013Naturebacteria, c more, chaetoceros decipiens, climate change, computer model, data for plankton, diazotrophs, foraminifera, global atlas, hastigerina digitata, impact, jellyfish, maredat, marine biodiversity, marine biota, marine plankton, marine plankton diatom, nitrogen fixing bacteria, ocean acidification, ocean field data, predict, scott doney, South Pacific, Southern Ocean, subtropical ocean gyres, whoi, yawei luo

Under the microscope, they look like they could be from another planet, but these microscopic organisms inhabit the depths of our oceans in nearly infinite numbers.

To begin to identify where, when, and how much oceanic plankton can be found around the globe, a group of international researchers have compiled the first ever global atlas cataloguing marine plankton ranging in size from bacteria to jellyfish. The atlas was published on July 19, 2013, in a special issue of the journal Earth System Science Data. (more…)

Facial Research

By Guest PostFebruary 23, 2013Scienceaggression, any prejudicial beliefs, automatic, b leitner, context, controversial social behaviors, eric hehman, expression of prejudice, facial, facial research, fwhr, greater fwhr, matthew p deegan, predict, racial prejudice, ratio, reporting prejudices, samuel l gaertner, social dominance, structure of face, testosterone related behaviors, university of delaware, width to height

Structure of face may help predict expression of prejudice, researchers report

The structure of a man’s face may indicate his tendency to express racially prejudiced beliefs, according to new research published in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

Studies have shown that facial width-to-height ratio (fWHR) is associated with testosterone-related behaviors, which some researchers have linked with aggression. But psychological scientist Eric Hehman of Dartmouth College and colleagues at the University of Delaware speculated that these behaviors may have more to do with social dominance than outright aggression. Hehman conducted the research while he was a graduate student at UD. (more…)

Shrinking Snow Depth on Arctic Sea Ice Threatens Ringed Seal Habitat

By Guest PostSeptember 20, 2012EnvironmentArctic, atmospheric sciences, brendan kelly, cecilia bitz, climate change, climate model, ice, important factor, paul hezel, predict, pups, sea ice, seals, shrink, snowfall pattern, thermodynamic impact, thickness, university, Washington

As sea ice in the Arctic continues to shrink during this century, more than two thirds of the area with sufficient snow cover for ringed seals to reproduce also will disappear, challenging their survival, scientists report in a new study.

The ringed seal, currently under consideration for threatened species listing, builds caves to rear its young in snow drifts on sea ice. Snow depths must be on average at least 20 centimeters, or 8 inches, to enable drifts deep enough to support the caves. (more…)

Press Freedom Leads to Happiness, Environmental Quality, MU Study Finds

By Guest PostAugust 9, 2012Culture, Media, Politicsbruno takahashi, democracy, Economy, edson tandoc, environmental degradation, environmental quality, freedom, government, happy, information, life satisfaction, predict, press, united nations, university of missouri

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Freedom of the press is viewed by many as a cornerstone of democracy. But can it actually help improve people’s lives and make them happy? Researchers at the University of Missouri have found that citizens of countries with press freedom tend to be much happier than citizens of countries without free presses. Edson Tandoc, Jr., a doctoral student in the MU School of Journalism, says that press freedom directly predicts life satisfaction across the world.

“We already know that having reliable, objective news sources can benefit democracy, but in this study, we found that press freedom also benefits communities by helping improve the overall quality of life of citizens and, in the process, by also making them happier,” Tandoc said. “People enjoy having an element of choice about where they get their news. Citizens of countries without a free press are forced to rely on the government for information, when what people really want is diversity in content where they are free to get the information they want from the source of their choosing.” (more…)

Study: Consumers Value Safer Food More Than Current Analyses Suggest

By Guest PostFebruary 9, 2011Economy, Healthassess the value, brian roe, consumer behavior, contamination, cost benefit analyses, cost of illness, deaths, e coli, eat bad food, economic model, food borne illnesses, food safety, government regulators, hamburger, hypothetical scenarios, kidney damage, mario teisl, pathogen, predict, roe and teisl, shiga toxin, usda

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Government regulators could more realistically assess the value of improving food safety if they considered the fact that consumers typically want to avoid getting sick – even if it means they have to pay a little extra for safer food, researchers say.

In the world of food regulation, cost-benefit analyses are a primary tool for assessing the societal benefits of mandating more stringent – and more expensive – processing practices. In most cases, regulators determine a dollar value associated with pursuing new rules by estimating how many illnesses and deaths the safer processing would prevent. (more…)

Resolved to Quit Smoking? Brain Scans Predict Likely Success

By Guest PostJanuary 31, 2011Health, Sciencebrain activity, brain scans, carbon monoxide, cigarette, co, danielle whalen, elliot berkman, emily falk, fmri, functional magnetic resonance imaging, heavy smokers, matthew lieberman, medial prefrontal cortex, neural reactions, particular brain region, predict, predict behavior change, quit smoking, resolution, smokers, television ads

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Brain scans showing neural reactions to pro-health messages can predict if you’ll keep that resolution to quit smoking more accurately than you yourself can. That’s according to a new study forthcoming in Health Psychology, a peer-reviewed journal.

“We targeted smokers who were already taking action to quit,” said Emily Falk, the lead author of the study and director of the Communication Neuroscience Laboratory at the U-M Institute for Social Research and Department of Communication Studies. “And we found that neural activity can predict behavior change, above and beyond people’s own assessment of how likely they are to succeed. (more…)

Predicting Divorce: U-M Study Shows How Fight Styles Affect Marriage

By Guest PostSeptember 28, 20101 commentCultureblack american, black couples, conflict patterns, couples, divorce, journal of marriage, kira birditt, marriage, predict, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—It’s common knowledge that newlyweds who yell or call each other names have a higher chance of getting divorced. But a new University of Michigan study shows that other conflict patterns also predict divorce.

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