university of michigan – Page 19 – Shamskm: A site to exchange knowledge and solutions

Public Nuisance? Cell Phone Use Might Actually Spark Conversations with Strangers

By Guest PostMarch 27, 2011Technologycell phone, frequency of cell phone, mobile, mobile communication, mobile phone, nojin kwak, public, relational use, scott campbell, Technology, texting, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Talking or texting on a cell phone in public might seem off-putting to people nearby, but a new study suggests that using mobile devices may actually help spark conversations with strangers.

The University of Michigan study examined how mobile communication influences the extent to which people engage with others in public. The new findings indicate that overall frequency of cell phone use in public does not cause them to shun nearby strangers. In fact, the result may be the opposite. (more…)

Reframing Climate Change: It’s as Much Cultural as Scientific

By Guest PostMarch 16, 2011Culture, EnvironmentAl Gore, andy hoffman, climate change, climate change exists, debate, democrats, diagnostic, Environment, evidence of global warming, logic schism, man made phenomena, newspaper editorials, political ideology, prognostic, republicans, united states, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— While debate on climate change often strikes a caustic tone, the real impediment to meaningful dialogue is that the two sides often talk past each other in what amounts to a “logic schism,” says a University of Michigan researcher.

“In a logic schism, a contest emerges in which opposing sides are debating different issues, seeking only information that supports their position and disconfirms their opponents’ arguments,” said Andy Hoffman, the Holcim (U.S.) Professor of Sustainable Enterprise at U-M’s Ross School of Business and School of Natural Resources and Environment. “Each side views the other with suspicion, even demonizing the other, leading to a strong resistance to any form of engagement, much less negotiation and concession.” (more…)

Mating Mites Trapped in Amber Reveal Sex Role Reversal

By Guest PostMarch 6, 2011Sciencebaltic amber, ekaterina sidorchuk, evolutionary advantage, extinct mite species, female copulatory tubes, female mites, glaesacarus rhombeus, mating game, mating mites, matters of mating, mite species, pavel klimov, penis, reproductive behavior, russian academy of sciences, traditional sex roles, typical behaviors, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— In the mating game, some female mites are mightier than their mates, new research at the University of Michigan and the Russian Academy of Sciences suggests. The evidence comes, in part, from 40 million-year-old mating mites preserved in Baltic amber.

In a paper published March 1 in the Biological Journal of the Linnean Society, researchers Pavel Klimov and Ekaterina Sidorchuk describe an extinct mite species in which the traditional sex roles were reversed. (more…)

Study Reveals Arab American Views on Organ Donation

By Guest PostJanuary 23, 2011Culture, Scienceaasim i padela, arab american community, arab americans, arabic language, arabic media, arabs, christian arab americans, detroit arab american study, muslim arab americans, organ donation, positive organ donation beliefs, Social networking, university of michigan

*New University of Michigan research shows higher education, religion, income levels influence Arab American support of organ donation*

ANN ARBOR, Mich. – U.S. organ procurement organizations looking to increase donation rates among Arab Americans can turn to new University of Michigan Health System research for recruitment ideas.

U-M researchers identified various factors – from education and income levels to gender and religion – that may predict how members of this population view organ donation, says lead study author Aasim I. Padela, M.D., an emergency physician and a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Clinical Scholar at the U-M Health System. (more…)

Have We Changed Our Ways After the BP Oil Spill? Not Really

By Guest PostJanuary 18, 2011Culture, Environmentandrew Hoffman, cultural anomaly, environmental management, fossil fuel production, Halliburton, journal of management, obama administration, offshore drilling, oil spill, transocean, university of Alberta, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—On the heels of last week’s federal recommendations to help prevent another BP oil spill disaster, a University of Michigan researcher says the tragedy has come close to acting as a catalyst for deeper change—but not quite.

“The BP oil spill is, potentially, a ‘cultural anomaly’ for institutional changes in environmental management and fossil fuel production,” said Andrew Hoffman, professor of management and organizations at the Ross School of Business and a professor at the School of Natural Resources and Environment. “But true change in our approach to handling issues related to oil drilling, oil consumption and environmental management have yet to occur.” (more…)

Study: Workplace Diversity Must Include buy-in from Whites

By Guest PostJanuary 18, 20111 commentCulture, Economyamerican lexicon of diversity, basic human need, buy in, colorblindness, conceptualization of multiculturalism, jeffrey sanchez burks, laura buffardi, multicultural environment, multiculturalism, organizational efforts, research, university of michigan, white individuals, whites

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Organizational efforts to create and maintain an inclusive multicultural environment often face resistance by whites, says a University of Michigan researcher.

“Without the support of whites, organizations and educational settings will fail in their attempts to navigate and manage the complexities of diverse work forces and constituencies,” said Jeffrey Sanchez-Burks, an associate professor of management and organizations at Michigan’s Ross School of Business. “In the face of the dramatic projected growth in demographic diversity, such failure could have severe economic, social and political consequences. (more…)

Theoretical Breakthrough: Generating Matter and Antimatter from the Vacuum

By Guest PostDecember 9, 2010Scienceannihilation, anti electron, antimatter components, electron, engineers, fundamental matter, gamma photon, gerard mourou, high energy electron beam, high energy particle of light, igor sokolov, laser pulse, neutron stars, particle accelerator, particles, paul dirac, physicist, positrons, pulsars, qed strong pulsed laser fields, ultra high intensity laser beam, university of michigan, vacuum

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— Under just the right conditions — which involve an ultra-high-intensity laser beam and a two-mile-long particle accelerator — it could be possible to create something out of nothing, according to University of Michigan researchers.

The scientists and engineers have developed new equations that show how a high-energy electron beam combined with an intense laser pulse could rip apart a vacuum into its fundamental matter and antimatter components, and set off a cascade of events that generates additional pairs of particles and antiparticles. (more…)

Pray Tell: Americans Stretching the Truth About Church Attendance

By Guest PostDecember 3, 2010Cultureactual behavior, american behavior, american religiosity, americans, attendance, canada, catholic countries, Europe, Germany, Netherlands, philip brenner, religious services, sunday activities, u s, university of michigan

ANN ARBOR, Mich.— A new University of Michigan study finds that Americans are much more likely to exaggerate their attendance at religious services than are people in many other countries.

“Americans have long been viewed as exceptionally religious compared to other nations in the developed world,” said Philip Brenner, a research fellow at the U-M Institute for Social Research (ISR) and the author of the study. “But this study suggests that American religiosity may be exceptional not in terms of actual behavior, but rather in terms of identity. (more…)

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