Culture

ROCHESTER, Minn. -- Feelings of burnout persist among internal medicine residents despite significant cutbacks in duty hours for doctors-in-training in recent years, a national study by Mayo Clinic found.

A poor quality of life took a toll on performance: Stressors affecting well-being such as lack of a work-life balance contributed to lower test scores on a standardized exam. Residents reporting a quality of life "as bad as it could be" and daily burnout symptoms attained mean scores nearly 3 percent lower than their counterparts with a good quality of life.

Most U.S. medical schools offer their students poor health insurance coverage for the treatment of mental health and substance abuse disorders, a practice that imperils the well-being of our nation's future doctors and their patients, a group of Boston-area researchers report in JAMA today [Sept. 7].

A majority of first-year medical students at a single medical school who were surveyed regarding race and social class preferences had scores consistent with an unconscious preference towards white people and upper social class, although when presented with various clinical scenarios, these biases were not associated with the students’ clinical assessments or decision making, according to a study in the September 7 issue of JAMA.

A flat tax system, in which everyone pays at the same rate regardless of income and would eliminate deductions, would make more money for the government, but progressive taxation, where wealthier people are taxed at higher rates, would make people happier, says a new study..

The new study comparing 54 nations found that flattening the tax risks flattening social wellbeing as well. "The more progressive the tax policy is, the happier the citizens are," says University of Virginia psychologist Shigehiro Oishi, summarizing the findings in Psychological Science.

CAMDEN — Just-below pricing, prices that end with 99-cents, are a common marketing gimmick but a penny saved doesn't always translate into a penny earned for retailers.

In a meta-analysis of the effect 99-cent price endings have on consumers, Robert Schindler, a professor of marketing at the Rutgers School of Business–Camden, studied the marketing strategy behind pricing an item at, say, $29.99 instead of $30. The penny may not seem like much, but people actually perceive a big difference in price and think they're getting a bargain.

Do sexualized lyrics in popular music have an impact on the sexual behavior and attitudes of adolescents? Researchers Cougar Hall, Joshua H. West, and Shane Hill from Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, take a look at the trend of increasing use of sexually explicit lyrics in music. Their findings, published online in Springer's journal Sexuality & Culture, provide food for thought for educators whose focus is to promote healthy sexual development.

The scientific and political worlds were transfixed in late 2009 when UK drugs advisor Dr.

New research shows that chondroitin sulfate significantly decreased pain and improved hand function in patients with osteoarthritis (OA) of the hand compared with those in the placebo group. Results of the clinical trial available today in Arthritis & Rheumatism, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American College of Rheumatology (ACR), also report that chondroitin sulfate improves grip strength and relieves morning stiffness.

INDIANAPOLIS – Cognitive impairment, even when detected at an early, mild stage, is a significant predictor of decreased life expectancy.

According to a new, long-term study from Regenstrief Institute and Indiana University researchers, cognitive impairment, especially at the moderate to severe stages has an impact on life expectancy similar to chronic conditions such as diabetes or chronic heart failure. Their findings, "Cognitive Impairment: An Independent Predictor of Excess Mortality. A Cohort Study" appears in the Sept. 6, 2011 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine.

Children who live in households where they are exposed to tobacco smoke miss more days of school than do children living in smoke-free homes, a new nationwide study says. Investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) found these children have higher rates of respiratory illnesses that can be caused by second-hand smoke and details the probable economic costs of their increased school absence in Pediatrics.

Hyderabad, India: A large proportion of teenagers regularly and frequently take some form of medication without receiving targeted information about the risks and benefits, according to a review of current research at the annual congress of the International Pharmaceutical Federation.

The importance of friendship in romantic love and the time it takes to perceive falling in love are two key differences in how residents in the US, Lithuania and Russia see romantic love, according to a study recently published in Cross-Cultural Research, a SAGE journal.

It's the year 1800. You're a slave in southeast Virginia. You manage to escape. Your freedom is only going to last as long as you can hide. Where do you go? The Great Dismal Swamp(officially the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge since the 1970s), says Dan Sayers, assistant professor of anthropology at American University.

A dollar is a dollar is a dollar, so goes the economic theory of fungibility. But do people really act that way? In a new working paper, Brown University economist Justine Hastings and Jesse Shapiro of Chicago Booth School of Business find striking evidence that basic consumer choice behavior violates this bedrock theory.

The Wildlife Conservation Society and other organizations released a new study recommending a disease screening program for farm-raised caiman in ranching facilities in Argentina to ensure the safety of people and wildlife alike.