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Do Women Who Live Together Menstruate Together?

Sat, 08 Dec 2007 10:45:37 GMT

clipped by: wildcat

It's a classic girl-bonding scenario: While moaning to your roommate about uterine cramps, premenstrual syndrome or some other such periodic inconvenience you realize that she, unlucky girl, is having her period, too. Momentarily distracted, you take a collective step back to marvel at the wonders of human biology that have allowed your ovulation cycles to synchronize.

Though widely accepted as a fact of female life, many psychologists and anthropologists doubt the existence of such menstrual synchrony. Nearly half of the papers published on the topic find no evidence that close co-habitation draws menstrual cycles closer together. What's more, studies that do find an effect have been dogged by harsh criticisms of poor design and naive statistical analyses.

The phenomenon was dubbed "the McClintock effect" and is widely held as the first example of pheromones—unconscious chemical signals that influence behavior and physiology—among humans.

Tags: women, menstruation, synchrony

How Do You Psyche Yourself? Up? Or Out?

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 18:37:44 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks:

The moral of the story? No matter how high you jump, how fast you run or swim, how powerfully you row, you can do better. But sometimes your mind gets in the way.

“All maximum performances are actually pseudo-maximum performances,” Dr. Morgan said. “You are always capable of doing more than you are doing.”

From an article on how athletes trick their brains into letting them achieve what their bodies are capable of. I think this anecdote perfectly encapsulates what makes pushing one's personal boundaries so maddening yet rewarding. If I had more time, I would come up with some witty, insightful comments right about here, but I'm afraid I need to run (for work, unfortunately, not for pleasure). Anyone else have some thoughts?

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

BILL MORGAN, an emeritus professor of kinesiology at the University of Wisconsin, likes to tell the story, which he swears is true, of an Ivy League pole vaulter who held the Division 1 record in the Eastern region.

His coaches and teammates, though, noticed that he could jump even higher. Every time he cleared the pole, he had about a foot to spare. But if they moved the bar up even an inch, the vaulter would hit it every time. One day, when the vaulter was not looking, his teammates raised the bar a good six inches. The man vaulted over it, again with a foot to spare.

When his teammates confessed, the pole vaulter could not believe it. But, Dr. Morgan added, “once he saw what he had done, he walked away from the jumping pit and never came back.”

After all, Dr. Morgan said, everyone would expect him to repeat that performance. And how could he?

Tags: psychology, sports, life, achievment, brain, mind, thinking, how to, running

You Can Die of a Broken Heart

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 17:34:48 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

It is possible to die from a broken heart, mounting evidence shows.

A review of recent work, published in The Lancet, found that the risk of death increases by up to a fifth following bereavement.

Investigator Margaret Stroebe of Utrecht University, The Netherlands, said the psychological distress caused by the loss played a big part.

Heart experts say people who lose a partner often adopted unhealthy habits such as smoking and poor diet.

One study found men were 21% more likely to die after the loss of their wife. Widows had a 17% increased risk of death.

The risk appears to be highest in the early weeks following bereavement and decreased with time.

Men who lose

On the positive side, there is good evidence indicating that the availability of personal support networks are a significant element in helping people who have been bereaved.

"Not everyone is fortunate enough to have a supportive family around. This is where bereavement support networks, such as Cruse Bereavement Care, can help

Tags: bereavement, broken heart, psychological effects on health

Cultivating gratitude- interview

Sat, 08 Dec 2007 11:02:46 GMT

clipped by: wildcat
clipper's remarks: Prof. Robert Emmons studies gratitude for a living as Professor of Psychology at UC Davis and is Editor-In-Chief of the Journal of Positive Psychology. He has just published Thanks: How the New Science of Gratitude Can Make You Happier, an interdisciplinary book that provides a research-based synthesis of the topic as well as practical suggestions.

Clip Source: www.sharpbrains.com

Alvaro Fernandez: Welcome. Prof. Emmons, could you please provide us an overview of the Positive Psychology field so we understand the context for your research?

Robert Emmons: Sure. Martin Seligman and colleagues launched what was called “positive psychology” in the late 90s as an antidote to the traditional nearly exclusive emphasis of “negative psychology” focused on fixing problems like trauma, addiction, and stress. We want to balance our focus and be able to help everyone, including high-functioning individuals. A number of researchers were investigating the field since the late 80s, but Seligman provided a new umbrella, a new category, with credibility, organized networks and funding opportunities for the whole field.

And where does your own research fit into this overall picture?

What are the 3 key messages that you would like readers to take away from your book?

Tags: gratitude, happiness

Fabulous Mae West

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 19:12:14 GMT

clipped by: thisnamecantbetaken
clipper's remarks:

Don't come crawlin' to a man for love -- he likes to get a run for his money.

Clip Source: www.digitaldreamdoor.com

Here are some of the best Mae West quotes attributed to the honorable lady.

When I'm good I'm very good, but when I'm bad I'm better.

It's not the men in my life that counts -- it's the life in my men.

He who hesitates is last.

Too much of a good thing... can be wonderful

I generally avoid temptation unless I can't resist it.

It's better to be looked over, than overlooked

Good sex is like good Bridge... If you don't have a good partner, you'd better have a good hand

I like two kinds of men: domestic and imported

When a girl goes wrong, men go right... after her

I used to be Snow White... but I drifted

Save a boyfriend for a rainy day, and another, in case it doesn't rain

I've been rich and I've been poor... Believe me, rich is better

She's the kind of girl who climbed the ladder of success... wrong by wrong

"Goodness, what beautiful diamonds !" Goodness had nothing to do with it, dearie

I don't like myself, I'm crazy about myself.

Those who are easily shocked... should be shocked more often

Tags: she, reminds, me, of, someone

Fahrenheit 451 Aussie Style

Sat, 08 Dec 2007 10:16:50 GMT

clipped by: thisnamecantbetaken
clipper's remarks: People were gripped with fear, as the title of the book lunged threateningly out towards them. What horror!

Clip Source: www.cairnspost.com.au

Meet our accidental terrorist

BOUNCERS kicked a Melbourne man out of a Cairns pub after paranoid patrons complained that he was reading a book called The Unknown Terrorist.

Teacher Michael Chalk, who was in Cairns for an education conference, left the novel on a ledge at Shenannigans to go and dance.

But he was stunned when a bouncer approached him on the dance floor and escorted him outside.

Mr Chalk, 40, was then told to "move on" because of the book he was reading.

In an eerie parallel, the main character of The Unknown Terrorist is mistaken for a terrorist and subjected to a witch hunt of paranoia and false perceptions.

A Shenannigans manager did not deny Mr Chalk was ejected, but refused to comment on the matter.

The book’s author Richard Flanagan called it an act of "idiocy".

"I was absolutely flabbergasted."

Mr Chalk believes his olive skin and dark hair may have been a factor in his removal, particularly when connected with the title of the book.

distressing

I did feel a little bit scared

Tags: words, can, be, weapons

John Lennon: In Memoriam

Sat, 08 Dec 2007 07:20:24 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: www.oldielyrics.com

People say I'm crazy doing what I'm doing,
Well they give me all kinds of warnings to save me from ruin,
When I say that I'm o.k. they look at me kind of strange,

Surely your not happy now you no longer play the game,

People say I'm lazy dreaming my life away,
Well they give me all kinds of advice designed to enlighten me,
When I tell that I'm doing Fine watching shadows on the wall,

Don't you miss the big time boy you're no longer on the ball?

I'm just sitting here watching the wheels go round and round,
I really love to watch them roll,
No longer riding on the merry-go-round,

I just had to let it go,

People asking questions lost in confusion,
Well I tell them there's no problem,
Only solutions,
Well they shake their heads and they look at me as if I've lost my mind,
I tell them there's no hurry...

I'm just sitting here doing time,

Tags: john lennon

Cognitive Singularity: something very curious is happening

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 20:09:46 GMT

clipped by: abailart

Clip Source: www.accelerationwatch.com

in terms of information flows and technological capacity, not human observation, technological evolutionary development has run exponentially faster every year forward. This has been measured in all manner of informetrics. The more complex the network becomes, the more this acceleration simply dives "under the hood," (think of a modern car engine, stunningly complex) and becomes unseen to the average person. We call this a "cognitive singularity,"

Many careful thinkers now suspect that our increasingly self-directing and self-stabilizing technological and computational systems will continue to speed up for the forseeable future, apparently in the same manner that general developmental change has done for the last six billion years, grossly, for the entire second half, of universal history. Something very curious, and potentially universally significant, is going on.

Tags: technological acceleration, singularity, cognitive singularity

NYC 1930-ish

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 22:17:32 GMT

clipped by: willhelm

Clip Source: wirednewyork.com

Downtown skyline with Singer Building., 1910. World’s tallest.

Downtown skyline with Woolworth Building., 1913. World’s tallest.

Federal Crowd Control, 1918. Machine guns in front, modified phalanx. Soldiers on sides assigned to upstairs windows. Wilson feared antiwar riots, losing mind to small strokes.

Columbus Circle, 1933. No Time-Warner, no Trump International, no Venetian palazzetto.

Just $24 in1626? More than that in 1933.

Rockefeller Ctr., 1937. St. Thomas’ Church at left, site of Jackie O’s funeral. Fairchild.

Hole where plane (B-25) hit Empire State Building, 1945.

Tags: photos

Love does not consist in gazing at each other...

Sat, 08 Dec 2007 00:28:49 GMT

clipped by: mugofcoffee
clipper's remarks: but in looking outward together in the same direction...
Don't put up with the put downs!
The more you avoid change, the more you hinder the process of growth in your life...

Clip Source: www.goal-setting-college.com

Tags: inspirational, posters, interesting, wonderful, lifecoach.

I'm Not Really Running

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 23:05:01 GMT

clipped by: debbyski

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

The moral of the story? No matter how high you jump, how fast you run or swim, how powerfully you row, you can do better. But sometimes your mind gets in the way.

“All maximum performances are actually pseudo-maximum performances,” Dr. Morgan said. “You are always capable of doing more than you are doing.”

The problem for many athletes is how to make a pseudo-maximum performance as close as possible to a maximum one. There are some tricks, exercise physiologists say, but also some risks.

Tags: am, i

Crazy & Bizarre Copies of Pics

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 09:04:02 GMT

clipped by: swampfoxz

Clip Source: lease-color-copiers.com

Some Crazy & Bizarre Copies of Pics

Tags: pics

Somehow I just got to laugh a little

Fri, 07 Dec 2007 00:30:29 GMT

clipped by: ljsdesign
clipper's remarks: probably wasn't on his top ten list of things to do that day.

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

Jenna Bush Makes Surprise Call to Parents From `DeGeneres Show'

The first daughter appeared nervous when Ellen DeGeneres asked her to call her parents during a taping of DeGeneres' talk show Tuesday. The show aired Wednesday.

"They're going to kill me," the 26-year-old told DeGeneres. "I'm going to be in so much trouble."

"They may have wanted some warning," responded Bush, who was on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" to promote her new book, "Ana's Story: A Journey of Hope."

All was well, though, when she reached her parents on speakerphone.

Oh, she's great. She's scared she's going to get in trouble because I just said, `Is it easy to just pick up the phone and call your dad anytime?"' DeGeneres said. "And now she's scared she's not going to get any Christmas presents.

Bush said he wasn't angry.

"I do want to say Merry Christmas to your audience, and I want to tell my little girl I love her," the president said.

"I love you too, Dad," Jenna responded.

Tags: bush, jenna, degeneres, humor