Monthly Archive for November, 2010
Contagious Cooperation
Humans, and other animals, tend to cooperate with each other in a variety of social situations. Without working together toward a common goal, species as a whole would suffer and evolution may have been short-lived. In general, humans tend to be most cooperative and apt to help others when the costs are small to the donor, but the benefits are great to the recipient. Accordingly, this leads to a disconnect between what is best for the group and what is best for the individual. A survival-of-the-fittest mentality would assume that individual needs should prevail, since only the strong survive. However, new research asserts that human cooperation is contagious, with a likely evolutionary basis, and a pay-it-forward mentality spreads through social connections like a virus.
Brain Development and College Football
Most of us have experienced the thrills and agonies of watching our chosen sports teams either perform well or poorly. During college football season in the United States, millions of fans devote their weekends to watching people run up and down fields while trying to avoid getting too injured. Those who follow college football notice that there are not many freshman players who are starting quarterbacks. Why is this? Other than the generally obvious fact that most teams already have quarterbacks who are farther along in their schooling, another reason why there are not many starting freshman quarterbacks is not as obvious.
Are Rhesus Monkeys Self-Aware?
Conventional wisdom from cognitive science posits that a variety of animals can recognize themselves in the mirror and, therefore, possess self-awareness. Traditionally, macaque monkeys have not been included among them, but a new study utilizing refined behavioral methods reveals that rhesus monkeys can indeed recognize themselves in the mirror. The results appear to reconcile a decades-old conundrum about presumably variable self-recognition abilities among evolutionarily distinct primates.
The Lonely Hearts Club
Loneliness is a complex set of emotions that encompasses feelings of social isolation, unfilled intimate needs, and heightened feelings of vulnerability. Though transient for some people, chronic loneliness can take a physical and psychological toll on individuals, leading to increased morbidity and mortality. Specifically, new research indicates that loneliness raises blood pressure – a silent killer that increases the risk for other cardiovascular conditions, as well as vision loss, kidney dysfunction, and memory deficits.
Popular Posts
- Mind Games - Science's Attempts at Thought Control
- The Science of Stuttering
- Intelligence - Are You Holding Back Your Brain?
- Risks of Personalized Medicine
- Is Grief a Mental Illness?
- The Brain's Buying Power
- The Cost of a Good Night's Sleep
- Risk Factors for Recurrence of Depression
- Salvia Divinorum - DEA Control over Magic in the Mint
- The Many Emerging Roles of Astrocytes
Future Posts
Latest Posts
- Thinking Fast Equals Risky Business
- A Gateway to Weight Loss?
- Intelligence – Do You Need it to be Successful?
- A Trip for Terminal Patients
- Memory Ain’t What It Used to Be – And That’s Good for Psychotherapy
- The Science of Stuttering
- Are Your Friends Making You Fat?
- Beer – The Smarter Drink
- Macroeconomics and Suicide
- From Nymphomania to Hypersexuality
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- Veronica Pamoukaghlian, MA: Thank you for your insightful
