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Giving to charity: Why do we donate more money to individuals when they are members of a group?

When charity recipients seem to belong to a cohesive group, donors will make stronger judgments about the victims, which leads to greater concern and increased donations if these judgments are positive, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.

Ownership increases the value of products: How does gender matter?

The price a consumer will pay for a product is often significantly less than the price they will accept to sell it. According to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research, this occurs because ownership of a product enhances its value by creating an association between the product and consumer identity.

Don't burn out: Enjoy your favorite products more by consuming them less frequently

Consumers enjoy products more in the long run if they don't overuse them when first purchased, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.

"Consumers are naturally prone to consume products they enjoy too rapidly for their own good, growing tired of them more quickly than they would if they slowed down," write authors Jeff Galak (Carnegie Mellon University), Justin Kruger (New York University), and George Loewenstein (Carnegie Mellon University).

Long-distance runners: How can differences unite a diverse community of consumers?

Growing communities can overcome conflict and fragmentation, and increase diversity, without losing their sense of collective belonging, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.

Targeting confident consumers? Focus on high-level product features

Confident consumers pay more attention to advertisements and product information that focus on high-level features of a product, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research. Less confident consumers, however, focus on the basics.

PETA addresses USDA's TABST exemption policy plans

In public comments submitted yesterday, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) applauds the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Center for Veterinary Biologics (CVB) for announcing its plans to allow firms to secure exemptions from the target animal batch safety tests (TABST) that have until now been required for each batch of veterinary biologics products, including live and inactivated vaccines.

Future increases in US natural gas exports and domestic prices may not be as large as thought

Amid policy debate over potential liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports from the United States, a new paper from Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy predicts the long-term volume of exports from the U.S. will not likely be very large. The paper also argues that the impact on U.S. domestic natural gas prices will not be large if exports are allowed by the U.S government.

Acute stress alters control of gene activity

Acute stress alters the methylation of the DNA and thus the activity of certain genes. This is reported by researchers at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum together with colleagues from Basel, Trier and London for the first time in the journal Translational Psychiatry. "The results provide evidence how stress could be related to a higher risk of mental or physical illness", says Prof. Dr. Gunther Meinlschmidt from the Clinic of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy at the LWL University Hospital of the RUB.

Danger in the blood: how antibiotic-resisting bacterial infections may form

New research may help explain why hundreds of thousands of Americans a year get sick – and tens of thousands die – after bacteria get into their blood. It also suggests why some of those bloodstream infections resist treatment with even the most powerful antibiotics.

In a new paper in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, a team of University of Michigan researchers demonstrate that bacteria can form antibiotic-resistant clumps in a short time, even in a flowing liquid such as the blood.

By studying animal health, researchers find improved ways for developing, testing cancer therapies

MANHATTAN, KAN. -- A group of Kansas State University researchers has made valuable findings in the search for cancer's cure.

A nonantibiotic approach for treating urinary tract infections

WASHINGTON, Aug. 15, 2012 — The latest episode in the American Chemical Society's (ACS') award-winning Global Challenges/Chemistry Solutions podcast series describes a potential new approach for treating urinary tract infections (UTIs) — which affect millions of people annually — without traditional antibiotics.

Potential new treatment target identified for melanoma skin cancer

New research from Western University, Canada, has identified a potential new target for the treatment of melanoma, the deadliest of all skin cancers. Silvia Penuela and Dale Laird discovered a new channel-forming protein called Pannexin (Panx1) that is expressed in normal levels on the surface of healthy skin cells. But they found, in melanoma, Panx1 is over-produced to a pathological level. The researchers also discovered that if you reduce it or knock it down, the cell becomes more normal.

In Portuguese kids, physical activity levels not enough to counteract sedentary lifestyles

Children who spend more than three-quarters of their time engaging in sedentary behavior, such as watching TV and sitting at computers, have up to nine times poorer motor coordination than their more active peers, reveals a study published in the American Journal of Human Biology.

The study, involving Portuguese children, found that physical activity alone was not enough to overcome the negative effect of sedentary behavior on basic motor coordination skills such as walking, throwing or catching, which are considered the building blocks of more complex movements.

Novel nano-structures to realize hydrogen's energy potential

For the first time, engineers at the University of New South Wales have demonstrated that hydrogen can be released and reabsorbed from a promising storage material, overcoming a major hurdle to its use as an alternative fuel source.

Researchers from the Materials Energy Research Laboratory in nanoscale (MERLin) at UNSW have synthesised nanoparticles of a commonly overlooked chemical compound called sodium borohydride (NaBH4) and encased these inside nickel shells. Their unique nanostructure has demonstrated remarkable hydrogen storage properties.

When it comes to food, chimps only think of themselves

A sense of fairness is an important part of human behaviour, yet a research team involving Queen Mary, University of London (UK) found it did not evolve from our closest living relatives.

The study, published in the journal Biology Letters today (15 August) tested whether our great ape relatives, the chimpanzees and bonobos, have a sense of fairness like humans.

The scientists, involving Professor Keith Jensen, from Queen Mary's School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, put the apes through a series of ultimatum games.