Culture

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -States with small governments, low taxes and labor market freedom enjoy greater benefits from natural resource development than states with large and intrusive government policies, according to a new study by a Florida State University researcher.

NEW YORK, N.Y. (December 18, 2009) – In the wake of today's new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) stating that autism now affects 1 in every 110 American children, Autism Speaks, the nation's largest autism science and advocacy organization, called on the federal government to immediately step up its efforts – and dramatically increase funding – to address the growing national autism public health crisis.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Autism and related development disorders are becoming more common, with a prevalence rate approaching 1 percent among American 8-year-olds, according to new data from researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) School of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The study is a partnership between UAB, the CDC and 10 other U.S. research sites. It shows that one in 110 American 8-year-olds is classified as having an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a 57 percent increase in ASD cases compared to four years earlier.

Nanotechnology has already made it to the shelves of your local pharmacy and grocery: nanoparticles are found in anti-odor socks, makeup, makeup remover, sunscreen, anti-graffiti paint, home pregnancy tests, plastic beer bottles, anti-bacterial doorknobs, plastic bags for storing vegetables, and more than 800 other products.

December 18, 2009, New York, New York—An overwhelming majority—88 percent—of young adults across the political spectrum think it is important for Congress and the President to pass health reform legislation that would assure affordable health insurance for all and improve health care, according to a Commonwealth Fund survey released today.

A comprehensive review of evidence-informed health policymaking was recently launched in BioMed Central's journal Health Research Policy and Systems. This free supplement, entitled 'SUPPORT tools for evidence-informed health policymaking' provides an essential reference and set of tools that can be used by those involved in finding and using research evidence to support evidence-informed health policymaking.

New university students might be thinking about exploring another rite of passage when they get to campus: the joy of sex. However, depending on their level of maturity, some students may find less joy than others.

New research from University of Alberta psychologists has found that emotionally mature students may get more positive benefits from sex than their less-mature counterparts.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – It's a given that many children will ask their parents for cell phones this Christmas. Now, a recent study by University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) sociologist Shelia Cotten, Ph.D., finds that the way the kids will use their new phones depends on their gender.

Ann Arbor, Mich. — One quarter of Detroit-area Arab Americans reported personal or familial abuse because of race, ethnicity or religion since 9/11, leading to higher odds of adverse health effects, according to a new University of Michigan study.

The study was published today in the American Journal of Public Health.

The consumption of wild cereals among prehistoric hunters and gatherers appears to be far more ancient than previously thought, according to a University of Calgary archaeologist who has found the oldest example of extensive reliance on cereal and root staples in the diet of early Homo sapiens more than 100,000 years ago.

CORAL GABLES FL (December 17, 2009)—When bombs and bullets left 37 dead during Friday prayers at a mosque in Pakistan, earlier this month, the insurgency was using the element of surprise. Unpredictability is the hallmark of modern insurgent attacks such as this one. However, the likelihood of such events, their timing and strength can now be estimated and managed before occurring, according to a new study by researchers at the University of Miami.

St. Louis, MO, December 17, 2009 – Time and time again, it has been documented that regular exercise has many health benefits including lowering risks associated with the comorbidities of obesity. With only 30% of Americans trying to lose weight meeting the National Institutes of Health exercise guidelines of 300 minutes/week, a study in the January/February 2010 issue of the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior explores the paradox that exists —an antidote for obesity and its comorbidities is exercise, but the majority of obese Americans do not exercise.

Montreal, December 17, 2009 – Childhood obesity is directly related to how close kids live to convenience stores, according to the preliminary findings of a major Canadian study presented at the Entretiens Jacques-Cartier in Lyon, France. The ongoing study is named QUALITY for Quebec Adipose and Lifestyle InvesTigation in Youth.

If you've seen an Internet ad for capacitor-type power factor correction devices, you might be led to believe that using one can save you money on your residential electricity bill. However, a team including specialists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have recently explained* why the devices actually provide no savings by discussing the underlying physics.

December 14, 2009, Amsterdam, The Netherlands – IOS Press announces the publication of a special excerpt of Environmental Policy and Law. This unique excerpt calls attention to the important topic of human rights and the environment.