Fitness Factoids #7
Science confirms men have no idea wh
at women are thinking
It seems science has finally confirmed something men and women have known for a very long time, men have no idea what the hell women are thinking. In the study German researchers asked 22 men, ranging from 21-52 in age, to look at 36 different sets of eyes, half of which were from women. During the study researchers used a functional magnetic resonance imaging scanner to measure the blood flow to the brain during the activity. On average, men took longer, and had more trouble accurately emotions from women’s eyes. An area of the brain known as the right amygdala, which is known for activating various emotional responses, responded more strongly when looking at men’s eyes as opposed to women’s. These findings suggest that men fair much worse at reading the emotions of women, but the reasons why still remain unclear.
http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0060278#s1
Can meditation boost test scores?
Researchers in the department of psychology
and brain science and UC-Santa Barbara recently published a study in the journal Psychological Science in which they detailed their findings testing the effects of two-week mindfulness training program had on test scores. For the study, the researchers enrolled 48 University of California undergraduates in a study intended, they told them, to improve cognitive performance. Each student was evaluated for working memory capacity, mind-wandering and performance on a G.R.E. reading comprehension section. Half of the group was randomly assigned to take part in nutrition program while the other half took part in the mindfulness training protocol. Following the two week programs students were redministered the reading comprehension tests, with the results show an increase in scores from the group who underwent the mindfulness training program. The scores of the group who took part in the nutritional program did not improve.
http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/04/03/how-meditation-might-boost-your-test-scores/
Aerobic Exercise May Protect Cognitive Abilities of Heavy D
rinkers
A study published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical & Experimental Research suggests aerobic exercise may have the ability to prevent brain damage from heavy alcohol consumption. The study, done by The University of Colorado Boulder, found that white matter, which is composed of bundles or nerve cells that facilitate communication between regions in the brain, was protected against the damaging effects of alcohol on the brain by aerobic exercise. Professor Angela Bryan said "What our data suggest is that beyond just giving people a different outlet for cravings or urges for alcohol, exercise might also help to repair the damage that may have been done to the brain."
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/04/130416161844.htm
Bad Decisions Stem from Faulty Information, not Faulty Brain Circuits
Are you a horrible decision maker? Good news,
researchers at Princeton University found that bad choices might be caused by the brain receiving bad information rather than the brain’s actually decision making processes being bad. The recent study, which was published in the journal Science. concluded that erroneous decisions tend to arise from errors, or "noise," in the information coming into the brain rather than errors in how the brain accumulates information. The next time your diet falls apart because you lost your mind and ate an entire ice cream cake remember, it’s not your fault. It was probably just “noise” keeping your brain from understanding that eating 300g of sugar at one sitting is not in your best interest.
http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S36/56/16S65/index.xml?section=topstories
Researchers Discover Appetite Stem Cells That Could Treat Obesity
A study published by researchers at The University of Anglia has discovered the existence of a new stem cell population that has the capacity to transform into appetite neurons. During the study, the researchers explored the hypothalamus area of the brain. The researchers focused their study on the neurons that control appetite. This led them to a cell population called "tanycytes". The researchers say that these cells have a stem cell-like nature, being able to generate n
ew, appetite controlling neurons. This ability is even maintained even during adulthood. Dr. Mohammad K. Hajihosseini said “Unlike dieting, translation of this discovery could eventually offer a permanent solution for tackling obesity."
Read more: http://www.stemcellsfreak.com/2013/04/appetite-stem-cells.html#ixzz2R3Vbxqtx
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