Psychology news

• Studying altruism through virtual reality

  08-03-2017 19:13
  A computer-based environment has been developed with the aim to shed light on the origins of altruism. This new study immersed participants in a virtual environment that reproduced a building on fire which they had to evacuate in a hurry, deciding whether to save their lives or interrupt their escape and help rescue an injured person. The results showed that altruistic individuals self-reported to have greater concern for others’ wellbeing and had larger right anterior insula (a brain area
  
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• Super-sized memory is trainable and long lasting

  08-03-2017 19:12
  The ability to perform astonishing feats of memory, such as remembering lists of several dozen words, can be learned, researchers report. After 40 days using a strategic memory improvement technique, individuals who had typical memory skills at the start and no previous memory training more than doubled their memory capacity, going from recalling an average of 26 words from a list of 72 to remembering 62. Four months later, recall performance remained high.
  
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• New insights into how inhibitory neurons contribute to functional networks in the cortex

  08-03-2017 19:12
  Networks consist of many types of neurons, including some that send excitatory signals, increasing the likelihood of other neurons firing, and some that send inhibitory signals, decreasing the likelihood of other neurons firing. Researchers have now demonstrated that inhibitory neurons participate in finely-tuned, functionally-specific networks, similarly to excitatory neurons. Researchers suspect that abnormalities in these networks may play a role in a variety of brain disorders.
  
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• Researchers find neurological link between religious experiences and epilepsy

  08-03-2017 19:11
  A relationship between epilepsy and heightened religious experiences has been recognized since at least the 19th century. In a recent study, researchers found a neurological relationship exists between religiosity -- a disposition for spiritual experience and religious activity -- and epilepsy. This finding sheds light on the connection between religion and neuropsychological processes within the human brain.
  
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• Probiotic found in yogurt can reverse depression symptoms

  08-03-2017 17:47
  Researchers have reversed depression symptoms in mice by feeding them Lactobacillus, a probiotic bacteria found in live-cultures yogurt. Further, they have discovered a specific mechanism for how the bacteria affect mood, providing a direct link between the health of the gut microbiome and mental health.
  
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• Diabetes drug shows promise for safely treating, detecting Alzheimer's disease

  08-03-2017 17:47
  Treatment with the diabetes drug amylin (or pramlintide) safely improves learning and memory function in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients and reduces the AD pathology in their brains. The findings also may lead to the development of a blood test for AD.
  
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• Five of the best meditation apps: Which one is right for you?

  08-03-2017 17:00
  
  More people are turning to meditation apps to help them relieve stress and anxiety. But with hundreds of apps out there, which one should you choose?
  
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• A nose for smells? Practice makes perfect

  08-03-2017 14:39
  The human brain has the ability to recognize and process a very wide range of sensory stimuli, from which it builds a mental representation. But do these representations change over time? Can we learn to classify and interpret stimuli more effectively? Neuroscientists have been trying to answer these questions by studying the olfactory system of mammals.
  
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• Microwave helmet yields fast, safe evaluation of head injuries

  08-03-2017 14:37
  Microwave measurements can be used for a rapid detection of intracranial bleeding in traumatic brain injuries, results from a clinical study demonstrate. A recently published scientific paper shows that health care professionals get vital information and can quickly decide on appropriate treatment if patients are examined using a microwave helmet.
  
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• Researchers identify how inflammation spreads through the brain after injury

  08-03-2017 14:10
  Researchers have identified a new mechanism by which inflammation can spread throughout the brain after injury. This mechanism may explain the widespread and long-lasting inflammation that occurs after traumatic brain injury, and may play a role in other neurodegenerative diseases.
  
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• Women's Day: Rallies for Equal Rights Around World

  08-03-2017 13:55 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: CNN - WorldWomen around the world are marking International Women's Day on Wednesday, with some wearing red to work and others skipping work to go on strike or to join rallies calling for equal rights.
  
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• In World First, Iceland to Require Firms to Prove Equal Pay

  08-03-2017 13:54 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: U.S. News and World ReportIceland says it will be the first country in the world to make employers prove they offer equal pay regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexuality or nationality.
  
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• Female Pedestrian Crossing Lights Signal Gender Equality

  08-03-2017 13:53 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Time MagazinePedestrian lights at a crossing in the Australian city of Melbourne will feature female figures, in what's been billed as an initiative to "reduce unconscious bias" in the move towards greater gender equality.
  
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• LGBT Film Breaks Taboos and Ignites Debate in South Africa

  08-03-2017 13:52 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: CNN - Top StoriesJohn Trengrove's taboo-breaking feature explores the fate of three gay men in the hyper-masculine environment of a secretive Xhosa initiation. Debuting at Sundance in January, "The Wound" has caused controversy and its leading man is receiving homophobic hate mail -- and it hasn't even been released in South Africa yet.
  
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• IBM Watson Takes on Autism

  08-03-2017 13:52 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  Source: Yahoo News - ScienceIBM Watson burst onto the world stage in 2011 when it participated in the trivia-based game show Jeopardy!. Since then, Watson has embarked on a number of challenges across a variety of domains, from identifying the best cancer treatments to improving weather forecasting. For its latest endeavor, Watson is looking to improve the quality of life for individuals with autism and other cognitive disorders.
  
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• American Blacks Disproportionately Victims of Judicial Errors

  08-03-2017 13:51 via feeds.socialpsychology.org
  
  Source: Yahoo News - Top HeadlinesA black man named Ulysses Charles was wrongfully identified by three female rape victims in Boston as their attacker and spent 20 years in prison before being exonerated by DNA tests. In America, tragic judicial errors like this are not simply random: African Americans are much more often the victim of such mistakes than whites, and before being cleared they spend more time behind bars, according to a study released Tuesday.
  
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• 3 myths that shape the transgender bathroom debate

  08-03-2017 04:16 via cnn.com
  
  Arguments tend to focus on public safety and whether gender identity should be protected.
  
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• As obesity keeps rising, more Americans are just giving up

  08-03-2017 04:14 via latimes.com
  
  If you know you’re overweight or obese, you may not be making a stab at losing weight anymore.
  
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