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As Minds Get Quicker, Teenagers Get Smarter
Adolescents become smarter because they become mentally quicker. That is the conclusion of a new study by a group of psychologists at University of Texas at San Antonio. “Our findings make intuitive sense,” says lead author Thomas Coyle, who conducted the study with David Pillow, Anissa Snyder, and Peter Kochunov. But this is the first time psychologists have been able to confirm this important connection. The study appears in the forthcoming issue of Psychological Science, a journal published by the Association for Psychological Science. “Our research was based on two well-known findings, Coyle continues. “The first is that performance on intelligence tests increases during adolescence.
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‘Self-Compassion’ Can Help Divorced People Heal
U.S. News & World Report: Self-compassion can help the newly divorced get through one of the most difficult periods of their lives, researchers suggest. They explained that self-compassion -- a combination of kindness toward oneself, recognition of common humanity, and the ability to let painful emotions pass -- "can promote resilience and positive outcomes in the face of divorce." The University of Arizona researchers studied 38 men and 67 women with an average age of 40 who were married for more than 13 years and were divorced for an average of three to four months. Those with higher levels of self-compassion were able to recover faster from the emotional impact of divorce.
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Kids’ Sugar Cravings Might Be Biological
NPR: Ask a child if they like sweets and the answer is almost universally a resounding "Yes!" It's no surprise to most parents that kids love candy, cookies, sweetened drinks, and some kids have even been known to add sugar to a bowl of Frosted Flakes. But don't blame the kids, say researchers: It's biology. Scientific evidence shows that children not only have a stronger preference for sugar than adults – but that sweet-tooth is hardwired from Day One. "We know that the newborn can detect sweet and will actually prefer sweeter solutions to less sweet ones. The basic biology of the child is that they don't have to learn to like sweet or salt.
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Good Moms Seem to Help Poor Kids Become Healthy Adults
Yahoo Health: Poor children are more likely to become unhealthy adults -- vulnerable to infection and disease -- than kids from higher-income families, according to a new study. However, the study findings revealed, some disadvantaged children grow up into healthy adults. Their secret: a nurturing and attentive mother. Upward mobility also has been cited as a reason that children from low-income families become healthy adults, the study pointed out. Yet the researchers found that income in adulthood didn't offset childhood poverty.
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How brain buys time for tough choices
Zee News: Some people who receive deep brain stimulation for Parkinson’s disease are impulsive, leading them to make quick and often, bad, decisions. Now, a new study has explained why and shown how under normal circumstances key parts of the brain collaborate to devote time to reflect on tough choices. Michael Frank, professor of cognitive, linguistic, and psychological sciences at Brown University, studied the impulsive behavior of Parkinson’s patients when he was at the University of Arizona several years ago. Read the full story: Zee News
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Los babuinos son capaces de establecer analogías
RTVE: Un equipo de expertos afirma haber hallado que los monos babuinos son capaces de establecer analogías a pesar de no disponer de un lenguaje, de forma que pueden relacionar dos contextos diferentes pero simbólicamente parecidos, según ha informado el Centro Nacional de Investigación Científica francés (CNRS). Esta nueva teoría desmiente la hipótesis según la cual "solo los seres humanos o los grandes primates -a los que se haya enseñado previamente un lenguaje- son capaces de razonar de ese modo".
