science wire

Women are much more likely to be persuaded to either eat healthily or undertake dangerous dieting by other women, not men, according to new ANU research.

The latest psychiatric treatments, developments and research will be presented to healthcare professionals and the public when the University of Sydney's Brain and Mind Research Institute (BMRI) host

University Park, Pa. Preschool teachers can inadvertently pass on lessons in stereotypes to their students when they highlight gender differences, according to Penn State psychologists.

A flagship programme introduced by the previous Government across the UK to improve the social and emotional wellbeing of secondary school pupils is ineffective, a study has suggested.

Seeing meat provokes a sense of non-aggression that could be related to primate's family feasting Frank Kachanoff was surprised.

Following the launch of the College's £500 million fundraising campaign, alumni and friends in the United States will have the opportunity to hear first hand from the Principal about the Campaign, in

Psychiatrist David Spiegel, who is internationally known for his work studying the effects of the mind on physical health, recently took the helm of the Faculty Senate.

Publishing ideas in a hard-to-read typeface may make concepts harder to learn but easier to retain, according to a new study by researchers from Princeton University and Indiana University.

October 28, 2010 — Coral Gables — To help unravel the mysteries of human cognitive development and reach new the frontiers in robotics, University of Miami (UM) developmental psychologists and computer scientists from the University of California in San Diego (UC San Diego) are studying infant-mother interactions and working to implement their findings in a baby robot capable of learning social skills.

The undertaking was an effort to answer questions asked by social scientists: Are American seniors who say they're happy simply part of an era that predisposed them to good cheer?

PASADENA, Calif.—Five years ago, neuroscientist Christof Koch of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) , neurosurgeon Itzhak Fried of UCLA, and their colleagues discovered that a single neuron in the human brain can function much like a sophisticated computer and recognize people, landmarks, and objects, suggesting that a consistent and explicit code may help transform complex visual representations into long-term and more abstract memories.

How do jurors arrive at a dollar amount they award to plaintiffs? This is among the questions Valerie Reyna, professor of human development, is investigating with colleagues in the Institute for the Social Sciences' 2009-12 theme project "Judgment, Decision Making, and Social Behavior" (JDSB).

Psychological well-being is powerful enough to counteract the pull of socioeconomic status on the long-term health of the disadvantaged, according to a study by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Science 22 Oct 10 A new baby sleep lab enabling research into the impact of napping on infant memory and learning is one of several new facilities opened this week as part of the launch of Oxford's centre for the study of infant and child development.

October 19, 2010 AUSTIN, Texas — Because of impairments in their insulin sensitivity, obese individuals demonstrate different brain responses than their normal-weight peers while completing a challenging cognitive task, according to new research by psychologists at The University of Texas at Austin.

What are the physical processes in the brain that create conscious thought and memory? How do billions of neurons inside our heads generate the experience of a melody? To illuminate these complex ques

The researchers' findings challenge the long-held theory that willpower is a limited resource that needs to be replenished. BY ADAM GORLICK It could happen to students cramming for exams, people working long hours or just about anyone burning the candle at both ends: Something tells you to take a break.

Giving antidepressants to women with postnatal depression early in the course of the illness is likely to result in the greatest improvement in symptoms, according to new research carried out at the Institute of Psychiatry (IoP) at King's College London.

Teenagers think mental illness carries much more stigma than it actually does, according to new research from The Australian National University.

Vivan Zayas has been playing Ultimate since her sophomore year at Cornell. Now an assistant professor, she travels each weekend to compete with the elite women's team, the Boston Brutes.

Children who spend longer than two hours in front of a computer or television screen are more likely to suffer psychological difficulties, regardless of how physically active they are. The PEACH project, a study of over a 1,000 children aged between ten and 11, measured the time children spent in front of a screen as well as their psychological well being.

King's contributes to WHO Intervention Guidelines 08 Oct 2010, PR 212/10 The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched new mental health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) Intervention Guidelines with i

The World Health Organization (WHO) has launched new mental health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) Intervention Guidelines with important contributions from Professors Graham Thornicroft, Martin Prince

6 Oct 2010 Excessive pressure at work is costing Australia's economy $730 million a year due to job-stress related depression, a University of Melbourne and VicHealth report has revealed.

October 4, 2010 AUSTIN, Texas — People match each other's language styles more during happier periods of their relationship than at other times, according to new research from psychologists at The University of Texas at Austin. "When two people start a conversation, they usually begin talking alike within a matter of seconds," says James Pennebaker, psychology professor and co-author of the study.

People who smoke potent strains of cannabis that are low in cannabidiol (such as skunk) are putting themselves at far greater risk of acute memory loss than people who smoke other types of the drug, according to new research published in the October issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry .

Research reveals pitfalls of employees working remotely Misunderstandings are more likely to occur when working remotely from colleagues, according to research by the University of Sheffield.

A system which enables psychologists to track people's emotional behaviour through their mobile phones has been successfully road-tested by researchers.

ANN ARBOR, Mich.—Apparently your mom had it right when she threatened to wash your mouth out with soap if you talked dirty. Lying really does create a desire to clean the "dirty" body part, according to a University of Michigan study.

AUSTIN, Texas — Men who are looking for short-term companionship are more interested in a woman's body than those looking for a long-term relationship, who focused on a woman's face, according to new research from psychologists at The University of Texas at Austin. A woman's body generally provides cues about her state of fertility while her face gives insight into her long-term reproductive value, according to previous research.

Birmingham research shows link between stress and failing immunity in elderly people. Immunologists at the University of Birmingham are shedding fresh light on the links between life stresses, such as the death of a spouse or a serious fall, and failing health in older people.

By Chris Tachibana Research/Penn Sta te Celebrity moms Gwyneth Paltrow, Marie Osmond and Brooke Shields have all opened up publicly about their battles with postpartum depression, or PPD.

Interactive online mental health resources combined with traditional counselling help improve the mental wellbeing of teenagers, according to new research by the University of Sydney published in the Journal of Technology in Human Services .

Waiting times for young people experiencing serious mental health problems such as psychosis could be drastically cut thanks to a research project being led by the University of Birmingham. The delay between the onset of symptoms and effective treatment currently stands at around a year but experts are aiming to reduce this to just three months.

'Mindfulness', the process of learning to become more aware of our ongoing experiences, increases well-being in adolescent boys, a new study reports.

One of the most difficult times when caring for a friend or family member with dementia is the period before diagnosis, according to new research led by UCL and published online today in the British Medical Journal .