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Earlier Autism Diagnosis Could Mean Earlier Interventions
Autism historically was diagnosed between the ages of 2 and 3, but new research is finding symptoms of autism spectrum disorders in babies during their first years of life.
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Language Lessons From Babies
The New York Times: In today’s 18 and Under column, Dr. Perri Klass writes about new science of bilingualism and how scientists are teasing out the earliest differences between brains exposed to one language and brains exposed to two. The learning of language — and the effects on the brain of the language we hear — may begin even earlier than 6 months of age. Janet Werker, a professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia, studies how babies perceive language and how that shapes their learning.
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How Our Brains Turn Women Into Objects
Scientific American: Recent reports of a mountain lion or cougar stalking the campus of the University of Iowa prompted campus jokesters to tweet their surprise that Michelle Bachman was in town. A cougar, colloquially, is an attractive older woman who seeks out trysts with younger men, and to some, it seems that Bachmann fits the bill. This emphasis on appearance is nothing new for high-profile women who are anything but homely, and feminist scholars are quick to point out its potential detrimental effects on perceptions of female competence. Of course, we don’t need to consider reactions to political candidates to understand this idea.
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Pain At The Plate: Heat Increases Pitcher Retaliation
NPR: Richard Larrick has been bothered by something for two decades. "Twenty years ago, I'd done a paper with some graduate students just showing that in hotter temperatures, pitchers are more likely to hit batters with pitches," says Larrick, a professor at the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University. Was it because they would sweat more, and the ball might get slippery and hard to control? Or was it something intentional? "Laboratory research has shown that if you put people in a hotter room, they're more likely to act aggressively toward someone else," sometimes without even being aware of it, he says.
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Frauen: Aggressiver durchs Stillen
Yahoo Deutschland: Sie absolvierten mit 54 Frauen einen Aggressionstest. Von den Teilnehmerinnen waren 19 kinderlose Frauen, 18 stillende Mütter und 17 Frauen, die ihren Kindern Muttermilchersatz gaben. Bei dem Test sollten sie ein Reaktionsduell an Computern absolvieren. Die angebliche Gegenspielerin war eine von den Forschern eingeschleuste Person, die in der Vorbesprechung durch ein rüdes Verhalten auffiel und so für eine schlechte Atmosphäre gesorgt hatte. Die Gewinnerin des Duells durfte ihre Gegenspielerin per Knopfdruck mit Lärm in zuvor festgelegter Dauer und Lautstärke peinigen. Die Strafe der vermeintlichen Kontrahentin wurde den Frauen zuvor bekannt gegeben.
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When Can Making Medical Decisions Be Hazardous to Your Health?
Huffington Post: "Take two aspirin and call me in the morning" may be really good advice after all. That's because a doctor's decision-making abilities may be related to the time of day. Making decisions, choices, seems highly affected by what social psychologists call "decision fatigue," or the gradual deterioration in decision making as mental exhaustion sets in. A doctor's diagnosis after a stressful day may not be as well contemplated as it was first thing in the morning or after some rest, nourishment and not having plowed through a thousand decisions.