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Bin Laden mythology lives on as fast sea burial sows doubt among believers that he is dead
The Canadian Press: WASHINGTON — Knowing there would be disbelievers, the U.S. says it used convincing means to confirm Osama bin Laden's identity during and after the firefight that killed him. But the mystique that surrounded the terrorist chieftain in life is persisting in death. Was it really him? How do we know? Where are the pictures? Already, those questions are spreading in Pakistan and surely beyond. In the absence of photos and with his body given up to the sea, many people do not believe bin Laden — the Great Emir to some, the fabled escape artist of the Tora Bora mountains to foe and friend alike — is really dead. U.S.
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‘Fatting in’: Immigrant groups eat high-calorie American meals to fit in
Immigrants to the United States and their U.S.-born children gain more than a new life and new citizenship. They gain weight. The wide availability of cheap, convenient, fatty American foods and large meal portions have been blamed for immigrants packing on pounds, approaching U.S. levels of obesity within 15 years of their move. Psychologists show that it’s not simply the abundance of high-calorie American junk food that causes weight gain. Instead, members of U.S. immigrant groups choose typical American dishes as a way to show that they belong and to prove their American-ness.
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A Thief That Robs the Brain of Language
The New York Times: Steve Riedner of Schaumberg, Ill., was a 55-year-old tool-and-die maker, a job that involves difficult mental calculations, and a frequent speaker at community meetings when he found himself increasingly at a loss for words and unable to remember numbers. He even began to have difficulty reading his own written comments. The neurologist he consulted thought Mr. Riedner had suffered a stroke and for three years treated him with cholesterol-lowering medication. But instead of his language ability stabilizing or improving, as should happen following a stroke, it got worse. A second neurologist concluded after further testing that Mr.
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Plus les hommes ont du pouvoir, moins ils sont fidèles
Yahoo France: Le pouvoir et la libido sont-ils étroitement liés? La question mérite d'être posée. Bill Clinton. Newt Gingrich. Eliot Spitzer. Mark Sanford. Le Time s'amuse à citer les hommes politiques dont le point commun n'est pas le parti ou la philosophie, mais l'infidélité. Les probabilités [d'infidélité] augmentent avec le pouvoir de la personne», affirme Joris Lammers, auteur d'une étude qui se penche sur les liens entre sexe et pouvoir. Publiée dans Psychological Science, l'étude se fonde sur l'analyse des résultats d'un sondage mené sur 1.561 lecteurs d'une revue d'affaires néerlandaise.
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Erfolge machen männlich
Men's Health Germany: Männlichkeit ist offenbar kein biologisches Phänomen, sondern sie hängt von der Wahrung der Ehre und Erfolgen ab, so eine US-Studie. Männern sei es wichtig vor anderen gut da zu stehen und als stark und furchtlos gelten, erklären die Studienleiter Jennifer K. Bosson und Joseph A. Vandello von der University of South Florida. Männlichkeit sei ein sozialer Status, den man sich schwer verdienen müsse und leicht wieder verlieren könne, so die Psychologen. Ein gedemütigter Mann beispielsweise, reagiere mit Aggression, um vor seinen Geschlechtsgenossen keine Schwäche zu zeigen. Die Forscher bezeichnen männliche Aggressionen als "Männlichkeitswiederherstellungs-Taktik".
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“The Young Ones” nominated for BAFTA
Harvard Gazette: “The Young Ones,” a BBC series filmed with Harvard Professor of Psychology Ellen Langer, which replicates her Counterclockwise study using British celebrities, has been nominated for a British Academy of Film and Television Awards (BAFTA) Award. The BAFTAs are the British equivalent of the Emmy Awards. The awards ceremony will be held May 22. Read the whole story: Harvard Gazette
