05.14.08
From the blogzone
Epigenetic markers linked to mood disorders
05.10.08
Cards Are Stacked Against Mothers
The Cards Are Stacked Against Mothers in America – Here’s How We Can Fix It
By Don Hazen, AlterNet. Posted May 10, 2008.
Joan Blades, founder of MomsRising.org, discusses bias against mothers in the workplace and the “mommy wars.” (with video)
05.06.08
Articles from SW
Here’s what’s new at SocialistWorker.org
http://socialistworker.org
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SocialistWorker.org’s Election 2008 coverage
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05.03.08
GI’s pulling rank
Soldiers who need special waivers to get into the Army because of bad
behavior go AWOL more often and face more courts-martial. But they
also get promoted faster and re-enlist at a higher rate, according to
an internal military study obtained by The Associated Press.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gnIfsfrfGQjc4cS3DhzbdUzQAzSwD90BTEG01
Spiders in love
Spiders “talk” to potential mates using a type of light not visible to
the human eye, scientists report.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7378196.stm
Bone detectives
Sue Black’s job involves rummaging around in mass graves, examining
the remains of dead children and identifying people from their severed
limbs. The forensic anthropologist tells Julie Bindel about the many
secrets revealed by our skeletons and why 95% of her students are female
http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/women/story/0,,2276881,00.html
Neanderthals
Jaw and facial structures in the ancient human relatives shows that
they could gape widely, although researchers are stumped as to why
they had this ability.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/05/080502-neandertal-mouth.html
05.02.08
Female starlings
Female starlings with a testosterone top-up are better defenders of
the nest, but skimp on parental care. The finding may offer clues to
why females in general do not have as much testosterone as males
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg19826534.700-testosterone-turns-birds-into-bad-parents.html
Genes as therapy
The prospects for using genes as a therapy may be improving
http://www.economist.com/science/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11288399
DNA discrimination
A bill that would prohibit discrimination by health insurers and
employers based on the information that people carry in their genes
won final approval in Congress on Thursday by an overwhelming vote.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/02/health/policy/02gene.html
Estrogen
Estrogen fuels feelings of power and competition in women in much the
same way testosterone does in men, researchers said on Wednesday in a
study that shows the need to win is every bit as feminine as it is
masculine.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080430/hl_nm/estrogen_women_dc;_ylt=Ar0qkgglh_HAXUHmjQTdKI0Q.3QA
Bird brains
Zebra finches use a different part of the brain for random babbling
than the one used to create adult calls, a find that could give new
insight into how human infants learn to talk, a new study says.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/05/080501-bird-brains.html
04.29.08
Brainwork
Scientists say they have found a task that can add points to a
person’s IQ – and the harder you train, the more you gain
http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn13786-simple-brain-exercise-can-boost-iq.html
Biobigotry
Biobigotry is the persistent and often irrational desire to be
surrounded only by those species of which one approves.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/29/science/29angi.html
04.28.08
How race began
Simon Ings reviews The Finger Book by John Manning
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2008/04/19/boman119.xml
Technology moulding children
Technology is moulding a generation of children unable to think for
themselves or empathise with others, says the leading brain scientist
Susan Greenfield. Is it time to switch off?
http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/families/article3805196.ece
Ritalin and the aged
Taking methylphenidate — familiar as the drug Ritalin used to treat
attention-deficit disorder — could help older people reduce their
risk of falling by sharpening their mental function, Israeli researchers
http://www.reuters.com/article/healthNews/idUSCOL55741020080425
DNA forensics
The state will search its database for relatives of unidentified
suspects in hopes of developing leads. Critics voice privacy concerns.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-dna26apr26,1,55052.story
04.26.08
Senate dna bill
The Senate has passed a bill banning employers and insurers from
discrimination based on DNA tests. The bill would bar health insurance
companies from using genetic information to set premiums or determine
enrollment eligibility.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89934197
Critical thinking
Learned flies die young
http://www.economist.com/science/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11088507
04.25.08
Neanderthal diet
Neanderthals living in southwestern France 55,000 to 40,000 years ago
mostly ate red meat from extinct ancestors of modern bison, cattle and
horses, according to a new study on a large, worn Neanderthal tooth.
http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/04/23/neanderthal-meal.html
Oil painting
The idea that oil painting was invented in Europe is overturned today
by a remarkable discovery made as a result of one of the worst
examples of cultural vandalism in recent years.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/04/22/sciart122.xml
All female fish species
A fish species, which is all female, has survived for 70,000 years
without reproducing sexually, experts believe.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/7360770.stm