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It really IS happy hour, study finds
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review: They didn’t exactly raise the bar on alcohol-related fact-finding. University of Pittsburgh researchers recently released a study concluding that moderate amounts of booze, consumed while socializing, increases the likelihood of people feeling pleasant and bonding with others. In short, the analysis concluded that drinking in a group is a more positive experience than drinking alone. If those findings sound familiar, it’s because they almost mirror those of generations of folks who conducted research and found that having cocktails with chums is fun.
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How to Make Optimism Work for You
The New York Times: My recent column on optimism drew hundreds of comments from readers who testified to the value of living life as a glass half full. But one in particular — from a 90-year-old man living in Calabasas, Calif. — was especially telling. The reader, William Richmond, wrote that a phrase in the column, “Fake it until you make it,” summed up his long and very successful life. His approach to life could serve as a battle plan for the millions of recent college graduates now searching for work in an unforgiving job market, as well as for older adults trying to re-enter the workplace after a long hiatus and those who lost jobs and must now reinvent themselves. ...
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Eons after words, why do humans still need body language?
msnbc: Flat screens, phones and laptops soon will blaze with a body-language blitz: sweaty palms clasping mouths in disbelief, muscled arms folded in disagreement and – the sweetest Olympic pose – two fists hoisted aloft in displays of golden bliss. “That position – the arms raised high – evokes triumph and it’s very ancient,” says Margaret J. King, director of the Center for Cultural Studies & Analysis in Philadelphia. ... “We still use body language because that’s the way our brains worked (eons) years ago when we first became human,” King said.
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Something for the weekend
Financial Times: The lamentation that there are not enough hours in the day is a familiar one. Busy working schedules combined with family life often mean that individuals feel unable to commit to additional duties such as joining a committee at work or volunteering at the local school. But new research from academics suggests that by spending time on others – helping a failing student to edit an essay or helping out at the local club for the elderly for example – can counter-intuitively create a feeling of expanded time.
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Left-Leaning Research
89.3 KPCC Public Radio: Remember, from math class, the number line? Smaller numbers on the left, bigger ones on the right? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, saying don't worry, I won't ask you about absolute value. But Dutch psychologist Anita Eerland might. She suspects people internalize the number line both mentally and physically. So she and colleagues had subjects stand on a Wii balance board while answering questions projected on a screen. The questions? All estimating quantities: Height of the Eiffel Tower. Average lifespan of a parrot. Everyday stuff. While subjects were answering, the team tilted the Wii board subtly left or right.
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Want to Get Teens Interested in Math and Science? Target Their Parents
Efforts focused on increasing students’ interest in STEM often take place within the classroom, but findings suggest that parents can play an important role in these efforts.
