Health, features and articles | Educational Science

Oct 31, 2009

Unhealthy Food Ads Pervasive on Kids' Shows

If you think SpongeBob puts junk in your kids' heads, then you need to pay closer attention to the commercials. A new study finds that about one-fifth of commercials kids are likely to see on late-afternoon and Saturday morning television are food-related, and of those, 70 percent advertise fast-food restaurants,...

Oct 31, 2009

Music Improves Brain Function

WASHINGTON (ISNS) -- For most people music is an enjoyable, although momentary, form of entertainment. But for those who seriously practiced a musical instrument when they were young, perhaps when they played in a school orchestra or even a rock band, the musical experience can be something more. Recent research...

Oct 31, 2009

Cell Phone Use Linked to Brain Changes

Peasants waving pitchforks and torches are not exactly storming the castle, but the scientists are sure restless. Yet another scientific study has come out questioning whether cell phone use is good for your brain — and there's more on the way. The Swedish Research Council announced yesterday that researchers at...

Oct 31, 2009

Attractiveness Based Partly on Skin Color

When it comes to an attractive face, color can make all the difference, suggests a new study. The research focused on facial skin color among Caucasians, finding a light, yellowish complexion looks the healthiest. The skin color could indicate a healthy diet of fruits and vegetables, whose pigments are known...

Oct 31, 2009

Thinspiration: Do Web Sites Encourage Anorexia?

Recently there has been increased concern over hundreds of pro-eating disorder Web sites that provide thinspiration to legions of young women who want to become stick-thin. These sites provide an online community to swap tips on how to fast, disguise disordered eating, and generally encourage anorexia (though people don't really...

Oct 31, 2009

Shocking Treatment Helps Erectile Dysfunction

If you experience impotence, instead of a little blue pill maybe you want to apply shockwaves to your privates instead. Experiments now suggest directing shockwaves at penises can help treat erectile dysfunction. We can really reverse erectile problems with this, researcher Yoram Vardi, head of the neuro-urology department at Rambam...

Oct 31, 2009

Smoking Gun Found in Rejected Heart Transplants

Scientists have long suspected that smoking increased the risk that a transplanted heart would be rejected. Now they have a smoking gun. And it doesn't matter who smokes, recipient or donor. A new study conducted on rats provides the first direct evidence that cigarette smoke exposure before a heart transplant...

Sep 30, 2009

Goal Posts Appear Smaller After Kicker Misses

In football, kicking a field goal can be a nail-biter for players and sports fans alike. Turns out, if a kicker is having a bad day, with several failed attempts, the target could seem even more elusive on his next chance to score, according to a new study. People trying...

Sep 30, 2009

3 Detroit Marathon Deaths Likely a Fluke

The deaths of three runners at Sunday's Detroit Marathon were tragic, but probably not representative of any increasing danger inherent in the sport. In fact, the deaths are likely to be a statistical fluke, doctors say. A 26-year-old half-marathon runner, and two other runners — a 36-year-old and 65-year-old —...

Sep 30, 2009

Why Some Men Can't Control Arousal

Is sex a state of mind? A recent study from the University of British Columbia finds that while most men can regulate their physical and mental sexual arousal to some degree, the men most able to do so are able to control their other emotions as well. “We suspect that...

Sep 30, 2009

Cleanliness May Foster Morality

A simple spritz of a fresh-smelling window cleaner made people more fair and generous in a new study. The researchers figure cleanliness fosters morality. They conducted fairness tests, with subjects completing tasks in a room that was either unscented or one that was sprayed with a common citrus-scented window cleaner....

Sep 30, 2009

Why 'Sleeping on It' Helps

We're often told, You should sleep on it before you make an important decision. Why is that? How does sleeping on it help your decision-making process? Conventional wisdom suggests that by sleeping on it, we clear our minds and relieve ourselves of the immediacy (and accompanying stress) of making a...

Sep 30, 2009

Study: Bad Driving Is Genetic

Some people really are just bad drivers. That's according to new research suggesting individuals born with a certain variant of a gene don't stay on the road as well as their counterparts. If the results do in fact hold up, and this gene equals bad driving, 30 percent of Americans...

Sep 30, 2009

Stem Cells Turned into Precursors of Sperm and Eggs

Researchers have discovered how to transform human embryonic stem cells into germ cells, a type of embryonic cell that gives rise to sperm and eggs. The breakthrough could ultimately lead to research that would help infertile couples. The work did not create sperm or eggs, but the advance will allow...

Aug 31, 2009

Your Brain Is Organized Like a City

A big city might seem chaotic, but somehow everything gets where it needs to go and the whole thing manages to function on most days, even if it all seems a little worse for the wear at the end of the day. Sound a bit like your brain? Neurobiologist Mark...