news 2023

A study by the Interdisciplinary Reading Research Structure (ERI) of the University of Valencia (UV) concludes that reading for leisure on paper helps comprehension more than if it is done with digital media. The work, published in the Review of Educational Research magazine, the most prestigious in educational policies, and in which more than 450,000 people have participated, also concludes that in primary and secondary schools reading should be encouraged, especially in printed format.

New findings could help explain how social media content appears in our feeds Researchers at the University of Sydney have discovered new structural relationships in complex networks, such as X (formerly Twitter) and political blogs, that could help explain the digital flow of information. Their research published in the latest issue of the journal PNAS Nexus introduces a new method capable of identifying and classifying relationships in networks.

Understanding that even planets in pristine solar systems have some orbital tilt puts Earth's solar system into a larger perspective, researchers say. Share this with Facebook Share this with Twitter Share this with LinkedIn Share this with Email Scientists have long puzzled over why all of the planets in Earth's solar system have slightly slanted orbits around the sun.

Partisan media might deepen political polarization, but we should measure people's media habits more carefully before drawing conclusions, researchers say. In a polarized country, how much does the media influence people's political views? A new study co-authored by MIT scholars finds the answer depends on people's media preferences - and, crucially, how these preferences are measured.

In a collaborative effort involving researchers from the Hot Politics Lab and the SYNC Lab EUR have unveiled intriguing insights into the political attitudes of Dutch adolescents and young adults aged 10 to 25 residing in Rotterdam. The findings shed light on how the youth perceive and engage with politics, offering valuable implications for the future of democracy.

What is the dynamic between political debate in the Dutch House of Representatives and reactions, commentary and framing on social media? Academics of the Utrecht University Faculty of Humanities and Data School, investigated this question. The researchers analysed data from various public sources: publicly accessible groups and accounts on X (previously Twitter) and Telegram where the Dutch language is used.

A University of Queensland study highlights a direct link between young people's exposure to alcohol-related social media content and problem drinking. The study led by PhD candidate Brandon (Hsu-Chen) Cheng from UQ's Australian National Centre for Youth Substance Use Research examined results from 30 international studies of more than 19,000 people aged 24 and younger.

A new study involving UCL that aims to inform mathematical models of sexually transmitted infections shows how the number of sexual partners we have changes as we age, with some surprising findings. A team from the UCL Institute of Health Informatics, the University of East Anglia (UEA) and King's College London surveyed more than 5,000 people aged 18 years and older during the 2022 mpox (previously known as "monkeypox") outbreak.

"Downvotes” and "dislikes” from peers could moderate extreme rhetoric and mitigate echo chambers among social media users, according to new research from the University of Michigan. The study finds such "feedback can serve as the whip that regulates the polarization of opinions by encouraging users to moderate their tone.

An experiment in Egypt suggests ways to spread information for women facing domestic violence. The Covid-19 pandemic created a global increase in domestic violence against women. Now, an MIT-led experiment designed with that fact in mind shows that some forms of social media can increase awareness among women about where to find resources and support for addressing domestic violence.

Researchers with the newly formed International Panel on the Information Environment (IPIE) have found scientific consensus that content labels and corrective information can help people identify and evaluate social media misinformation-but little consensus about strategies to mitigate its negative effects.

Social media play an important role in users' perception of the ideal body - often leading them in an unhealthy direction. Researchers at the University of Würzburg have investigated how this can be counteracted . How can social media contribute to a more diverse concept of body shapes and physical attractiveness? The answer is: body-positive content.

Increasingly divisive messages about science have led some people to see scientists as a group that is "for” or "against” their political or religious social groups, according to new research. This skepticism is happening despite scientists having diverse backgrounds, expertise and identities, said study co-author Ariel Hasell , assistant professor of communication and media at the University of Michigan.

Study: Searching for or reviewing evidence improves crowdworkers' misinformation judgments and reduces partisan bias People make better and less biased judgments about misinformation after searching the internet for corroborating evidence, according to a new University of Michigan study. If members of a large panel of people, described as lay raters or crowdworkers, each make independent judgments after conducting online searches, the research indicates they would make better judgments than a small panel of journalists.

Researchers used Linkedin data to track where professionals want to move within the EU For professionals looking for a new job, Eastern European countries have not been very attractive so far. That's the finding of a study by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Demographic Research in Rostock, Germany, together with a Dutch colleague.

The addition of 'trust' and 'distrust' buttons on social media, alongside standard 'like' buttons, could help to reduce the spread of misinformation, finds a new experimental study led by UCL researchers. Incentivising accuracy cut in half the reach of false posts, according to the findings published in eLife.

Study abstract: Preexisting stereotypes and selection of counter-stereotypical genius representations in entertainment media Entertainment media has increasingly featured diverse representations that have the potential to combat harmful social stereotypes, but a new University of Michigan study raises questions about how effective they can be in the current media landscape.

A new study led by researchers from the University of Sydney has found young women's engagement with social media plays a major role in shaping how they think - and act - in relation to their health. The research, published in the peer reviewed journal Health Marketing Quarterly , studied 30 women aged between 18 and 35 during the 2021 COVID-19 lockdowns to understand the factors influencing them to adopt diet and exercise messages on social media platforms Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.

Study to investigate swearing and bilingualism in South Africa A study by the University of Vienna, in collaboration with researchers from South Africa and the United Kingdom, is investigating the different emotional responses bilingual people have towards swear words in their different languages. The study will focus on English-Afrikaans bilingualism, examining the perceptions of swear words and swearing behaviors of English-Afrikaans bilinguals in South Africa.

Smoke signals: Reddit users concerned by health risks of vaping Researchers use artificial intelligence to analyze thousands of posts on the popular online forum, gaining valuable insights into how people think about vaping A new artificial intelligence analysis of thousands of posts from the popular online discussion forum Reddit reveals that vapers are concerned about e-cigarettes' possible impact on everything from their respiratory, gastrointestinal, and cardiovascular systems to their mental and sexual health and sleep patterns.