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United Academics Magazine publishes popular science news on a daily basis.

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January 15, 2013
08:47 AM
115 views

Waxing and Trimming Brings The End of Pubic Lice

by Zach Urbina in United Academics

There are few, if any, species of organisms whose extinction we could all agree would be beneficial, however in the case of the pubic louse, we may have found an exception. Commonly known as “crabs,” the notorious pubic louse is disappearing.

Australia’s sexual health clinic in Sydney has not reported a woman with pubic lice since 2008 and male cases are down 80%, from roughly 100 incidences ten years ago.

‘It used to be extremely common; its now rarely seen,’ says Basil Donovan, head of sexual health at the University of New South Wale’s Kirby Institute. ‘Without doubt, it’s better grooming,’ reports Donovan, who also works as a physician at the Sydney Sexual Health Centre.... Read more »

Smolak, L., & Murnen, S. (2011) Gender, Self-Objectification and Pubic Hair Removal. Sex Roles, 65(7-8), 506-517. DOI: 10.1007/s11199-010-9922-z

Other

January 15, 2013
04:21 AM
159 views

Alternative Music Taste in Teens Predicts Criminal Behavior

by Katja Keuchenius in United Academics

Did you listen to alternative music when you were twelve years old? And did you get rebellious during puberty? There’s a good chance you have the same answer to both questions. Early music taste predicts later criminal behavior, Dutch researchers discovered.... Read more »

Tom F.M. ter Bogt, Loes Keijsers and Wim H.J. Meeus. (2013) Early Adolescent Music Preferences and Minor Delinquency. PEDIATRICS . info:/

Social Science

January 15, 2013
04:13 AM
117 views

Data Visualization: Detecting International Election Fraud Using Statistics

by Zach Urbina in United Academics

Even if you cheat, the geeks will always win. This simple but elegant statistical approach proves to be a remarkable method of detecting centrally sanctioned election fraud. Two glaring examples in Uganda and Russia show clusters of outlying votes in the upper right region of the plots. Those questionable areas, circled in red, indicate 100% turnout and 100% of votes for the winner. The Canadian plot show two diverse clusters, indicating differntiation between the Québécois and English-speaking Canada... Read more »

Klimek P,, Yegorov Y,, Hanel R, , & Thurner S. (2012) Statistical Detection of Systematic Election Irregularities. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 109(41), 16469-16473. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1210722109

Other

January 14, 2013
10:37 AM
105 views

Bilingualism Protects Against Cognitive Impairment In Aging

by Lizabeth Dijkstra in United Academics

The process of aging usually involves a decrease in the flexibility of one’s cognitive capacities. For example, elderly people often experience more trouble with switching between tasks that both require a significant amount of attention. Recent research has no shown that lifelong bilingualism has a positive effect on this process: people who are born and raised speaking two or more languages, maintain youthful cognitive control abilities in aging.... Read more »

Gold, B., Kim, C., Johnson, N., Kryscio, R., & Smith, C. (2013) Lifelong Bilingualism Maintains Neural Efficiency for Cognitive Control in Aging. Journal of Neuroscience, 33(2), 387-396. DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3837-12.2013

January 10, 2013
01:09 PM
152 views

Q&A: The increasing arrogance of American students

by katja keuchenius in United Academics

An analysis of freshman surveys that were held in the United States every year since 1996 shows that the modern youth is alarmingly happy with itself. Students nowadays rate their own abilities much higher than their peers did in the past. What does that say about this new generation? ... Read more »

Twenge, J., Campbell, W., & Gentile, B. (2012) Generational Increases in Agentic Self-evaluations among American College Students, 1966–2009. Self and Identity, 11(4), 409-427. DOI: 10.1080/15298868.2011.576820

January 10, 2013
11:13 AM
103 views

Q&A: The Increasing Arrogance of American Students

by Katja Keuchenius in United Academics

An analysis of freshman surveys that were held in the United States every year since 1996 shows that the modern youth is alarmingly happy with itself. Students nowadays rate their own abilities much higher than their peers did in the past. What does that say about this new generation? Researcher Keith Campbell, co-author of the publication in Self and Identity, explains:... Read more »

Twenge, J., Campbell, W., & Gentile, B. (2012) Generational Increases in Agentic Self-evaluations among American College Students, 1966–2009. Self and Identity, 11(4), 409-427. DOI: 10.1080/15298868.2011.576820

January 10, 2013
10:47 AM
135 views

5 Personality Traits, Not So Universal after All

by Carian Thus in United Academics

For decades, 5 personality traits were considered universal to all humans. But a new study of an isolated indigenous group in Bolivia, the Tsimane, raises doubt.

Openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. These five broad dimensions of personality are referred to as the “Big Five”. Anthropologists translated a questionnaire into the Tsimane language that assesses the Big Five personality traits, and interviewed 632 adults from 28 villages. In a second study, the researchers tested the reliability of the self-report interviews by instead focusing on reports by peers.... Read more »

Gurven, M., von Rueden, C., Massenkoff, M., Kaplan, H., & Lero Vie, M. (2012) How Universal Is the Big Five? Testing the Five-Factor Model of Personality Variation Among Forager–Farmers in the Bolivian Amazon. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. DOI: 10.1037/a0030841

Other

January 10, 2013
04:50 AM
114 views

Ancient Egyptians Paid a Monthly Fee to Become Voluntary Temple Slaves

by Zach Urbina in United Academics

Anything for a quiet life? Egyptologist Kim Ryholt, from the University of Copenhagen recently published a paper that identified translated slave contracts from 2,200 years ago indicating that some Egyptians voluntarily elected to become slaves, in exchange for a monthly fee.... Read more »

Ryholt, K. (2012) A Self-Dedication Addressed to Anubis - Divine Protection against Malevolent Forces or Forced Labor?. Lotus and Laurel - Studies on Egyptian Language and Religion. info:other/

Other

January 9, 2013
10:10 AM
131 views

Sexual Desire in Penicillin-Producing Fungus Using Darkness and Oxygen Deprivation

by Zach Urbina in United Academics

Even fungus molds need sex once in a while, provided that scientists set the right mood. Since the initial research into Penicillium chrysogenum, a century ago, it was long believed that the penicillin-producing fungus mold reproduced only by spores. Spores spread by getting caught in the wind, moving through water, or attaching to the fur of an animal.

However, recent findings by an international research team at Ruhr-Universitat determined that P. chrysogenum has a sexual cycle, as in, two genders and is able to reproduce sexually.... Read more »

Böhm J, Hoff B, O’Gorman CM, Wolfers S, Klix V, Binger D, Zadra I, Kürnsteiner H, Pöggeler S, Dyer PS, . (2013) Sexual Reproduction and Mating-Type – Mediated Strain Development in the Penicillin-Producing Fungus Penicillium Chrysogenum. PNAS. info:/10.1073/pnas.1217943110

Other

January 9, 2013
05:15 AM
152 views

The power of color

by Katja Keuchenius in United Academics

The color of a cup can not only make your hot chocolate look more appealing, it also makes the chocolate taste better, new research reveals. This video shows you more about the power of colours.... Read more »

Piqueras-Fiszman, B., & Spence, C. (2012) The Influence of the Color of the Cup on Consumers' Perception of a Hot Beverage. Journal of Sensory Studies, 27(5), 324-331. DOI: 10.1111/j.1745-459X.2012.00397.x

January 8, 2013
11:10 AM
203 views

4 Easy Ways to Feel More Attractive

by Carian Thus in United Academics

Having a bad hair day, a huge pimple or did you gain some weight during the holidays? Don’t feel ugly, use these tips:... Read more »

Bègue, L., Bushman, B., Zerhouni, O., Subra, B., & Ourabah, M. (2012) ‘Beauty is in the eye of the beer holder’: People who think they are drunk also think they are attractive. British Journal of Psychology. DOI: 10.1111/j.2044-8295.2012.02114.x

Ashikali, E., & Dittmar, H. (2012) The effect of priming materialism on women's responses to thin-ideal media. British Journal of Social Psychology, 51(4), 514-533. DOI: 10.1111/j.2044-8309.2011.02020.x

Other

January 7, 2013
07:12 AM
172 views

How the kilogram itself put on weight

by Katja Keuchenius in United Academics

Don't trust your weighing scale too much, it might nog be that accurate anymore.... Read more »

Cumpson, P., & Sano, N. (2013) Stability of reference masses V: UV/ozone treatment of gold and platinum surfaces. Metrologia, 50(1), 27-36. DOI: 10.1088/0026-1394/50/1/27

January 7, 2013
04:16 AM
319 views

How Being a Macho Man or a Girly Girl Can Be Good for Your Love Life

by Annemarie van Oosten in United Academics

Are you a macho man? Or a girly girl? Well, this may be a good thing if you want to have a long and exciting relationship with your partner. Researchers from the University of North Carolina have shown that coupling and sexual behavior are related to our gendered behavior.... Read more »

Udry, J., & Chantala, K. (2004) Masculinity-Femininity Guides Sexual Union Formation in Adolescents. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30(1), 44-55. DOI: 10.1177/0146167203258840

Other

January 5, 2013
07:00 PM
156 views

Getting the Lead Out of Urban Crime

by Patrick Meyer in United Academics

Police and prisons aren’t the only way to fight crime; economist Rick Nevins found a direct causality between atmospheric lead (created primarily by leaded gasoline emissions and lead paint) and criminality as well as other deleterious psychological, physical, and behavioral effects. The causality is so blatant that Tulane University researchers Howard Mielke and Sammy Zahran found that in New Orleans, when maps of lead contamination and crime statistics are overlapped, they are nearly identical.... Read more »

Nevin, R. (2000) How Lead Exposure Relates to Temporal Changes in IQ, Violent Crime, and Unwed Pregnancy. Environmental Research, 83(1), 1-22. DOI: 10.1006/enrs.1999.4045

Reyes, J. (2007) Environmental Policy as Social Policy? The Impact of Childhood Lead Exposure on Crime. The B.E. Journal of Economic Analysis , 7(1). DOI: 10.2202/1935-1682.1796

Other

January 4, 2013
09:20 AM
145 views

Electric Stimulation of Brain Releases Powerful, Opiate-Like Painkiller

by Zach Urbina in United Academics

Certain regions of the brain pack a mighty punch, releasing a substance similar to pharmaceutical-grade opiates when provided with a tiny jolt of electricity. Researchers from the University of Michigan published findings that uncovered one of the human body’s most powerful painkillers, while treating the brain of a patient with severe, recurring facial pain.... Read more »

Dos Santos, M, Love, T, Martikainen, I, Nascimento, T, Fregni, F, Cummiford, C, Deboer, M, Zubieta, J, & DaSilva, A. (2012) Immediate Effects of tDCS on the μ-Opioid System of a Chronic Pain Patient. Frontiers in Psychiatry. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2012.00093

Other

January 3, 2013
07:36 AM
163 views

Natural Gas May Harm Environment More

by Andrew Porterfield in United Academics

Natural gas wells, seen as a “greener” alternative to coal and oil and more immediately accessible than solar or wind power, may actually be leaking more harmful gases than expected. The reports of this leakage are casting more doubts on the true effectiveness and environmental benefit of natural gas production.
... Read more »

Pétron, G., Frost, G., Miller, B., Hirsch, A., Montzka, S., Karion, A., Trainer, M., Sweeney, C., Andrews, A., Miller, L.... (2012) Hydrocarbon emissions characterization in the Colorado Front Range: A pilot study. Journal of Geophysical Research, 117(D4). DOI: 10.1029/2011JD016360

Other

January 3, 2013
05:45 AM
127 views

Maybe Humans Only Recently Descended From the Trees

by Katja Keuchenius in United Academics

If you’re fond of tree climbing, here’s some good news: if you stretch up your calf muscle, you can radically improve your skills. That’s how Ugandan Twa people learn to ascend trees almost as good as chimpanzees, researchers find out.... Read more »

Venkataraman, V., Kraft, T., & Dominy, N. (2012) Tree climbing and human evolution. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1208717110

January 2, 2013
09:13 AM
176 views

Embarrassing Conditions: Bed-Wetting during Sex

by Carian Thus in United Academics

The world is full of of embarrassing conditions you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy. Every week, Carian discusses one. This week: Urination during sex.... Read more »

Hines, T. (2001) The G-spot: A modern gynecologic myth. American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, 185(2), 359-362. DOI: 10.1067/mob.2001.115995

HILTON, P. (1988) Urinary incontinence during sexual intercourse: a common, but rarely volunteered, symptom. BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 95(4), 377-381. DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.1988.tb06609.x