Washington, Mar 22 - Feeling lonely? Have a bowl of chicken soup or eat some mashed potatoes and macaroni with cheese, as a new study has claimed that comfort food helps fight forlornness.
Though these comfort food -- which gives a sense of wellbeing or satisfaction -- may be bad for arteries, they are good for heart and emotions, found the study to be published in the journal Psychological Science.
For me personally, food has always played a big role in my family, said Jordan Troisi, a graduate student at the University of Buffalo, and lead author on the study.
The study came out of the research programme of his co-author Shira Gabriel, which looked at social surrogates and non-human things that make people feel like they belong.
Some people counteract loneliness by bonding with their favourite TV show, while others do so by building virtual relationships with a celebrity or a movie character, or looking at pictures and mementos of loved ones.
Troisi and Gabriel wondered if comfort food could have the same effect by making people think of their nearest and dearest.
In one experiment, in an attempt to make participants feel lonely, the researchers had them write for six minutes about a fight with someone close to them. Others were given an emotionally neutral writing assignment.
Then, some people in each group wrote about the experience of eating a comfort food and others wrote about eating a new food. Finally, the researchers asked participants to complete questions about their levels of loneliness.
Writing about a fight with a close person made people feel lonely. But people who were generally secure in their relationships -- something that was assessed before the experiment -- were able to rescue themselves from loneliness by writing about a comfort food.
We have found that comfort foods are foods which are consistently associated with those close to us, said Troisi.
Thinking about or consuming these foods later then serves as a reminder of those close others.
In their essays on comfort food, many people wrote about the experience of eating food with family and friends.
In another experiment, eating chicken soup in the lab made people think more about relationships, but only if they considered chicken soup to be a comfort food -- a question they'd been asked long before the experiment, along with many other questions, so they wouldn't remember it.
Troisi said: Throughout everyone's daily lives they experience stress, often associated with our connections with others.
Comfort food can serve as a ready-made, easy resource for remedying a sense of loneliness. Keeping in mind this new research, it seems humans can find a number of ways to feel like we're connected with others.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Monday, March 21, 2011
Testosterone key to financial risk-taking: Study
Washington, Mar 21- Are you among those who don't hesitate to take financial risks? Then, blame the level of the male sex hormone, scientists say.
Researchers at the Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, found that people who have high or low levels of testosterone are likely to be financial risk-takers.
It has been believed that those with high levels of testosterone generally show certain risk-seeking behaviours.
To find out whether this tendency also exist among those with low level of the sex hormone, the Duke researchers led by Scott Huettel recruited 298 people and measured their level of testosterone.
The volunteers were then put on trials in which they chose between a fixed known reward or a gamble between getting a payout or nothing.
Overall, the participants preferred the known return than the gamble on average. But those with very high or very low testosterone chose to take the biggest risks.
Testosterone is positively associated with risk-taking behaviour in social domains such as crime, physical aggression. However, the scant research linking testosterone to economic risk preferences presents inconsistent findings, the team wrote in the journal Psychological Science.
We examined the relationship between endogenous testosterone and individuals' economic preferences... We found that endogenous testosterone levels have a significant U-shaped association with individuals' risk and ambiguity preferences, but not loss aversion.
Specifically, individuals with low or high levels of testosterone were risk and ambiguity neutral, whereas individuals with intermediate levels of testosterone were risk and ambiguity averse. This relationship was highly similar in men and women.
In contrast to received wisdom regarding testosterone and risk, the researchers added, the present data provide the first robust evidence for a nonlinear association between economic preferences and levels of endogenous testosterone.
Researchers at the Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, found that people who have high or low levels of testosterone are likely to be financial risk-takers.
It has been believed that those with high levels of testosterone generally show certain risk-seeking behaviours.
To find out whether this tendency also exist among those with low level of the sex hormone, the Duke researchers led by Scott Huettel recruited 298 people and measured their level of testosterone.
The volunteers were then put on trials in which they chose between a fixed known reward or a gamble between getting a payout or nothing.
Overall, the participants preferred the known return than the gamble on average. But those with very high or very low testosterone chose to take the biggest risks.
Testosterone is positively associated with risk-taking behaviour in social domains such as crime, physical aggression. However, the scant research linking testosterone to economic risk preferences presents inconsistent findings, the team wrote in the journal Psychological Science.
We examined the relationship between endogenous testosterone and individuals' economic preferences... We found that endogenous testosterone levels have a significant U-shaped association with individuals' risk and ambiguity preferences, but not loss aversion.
Specifically, individuals with low or high levels of testosterone were risk and ambiguity neutral, whereas individuals with intermediate levels of testosterone were risk and ambiguity averse. This relationship was highly similar in men and women.
In contrast to received wisdom regarding testosterone and risk, the researchers added, the present data provide the first robust evidence for a nonlinear association between economic preferences and levels of endogenous testosterone.
LHL may unlock secret of time travel: Scientists
Washington, Mar 21 - It has long been a subject for science fictions, but time travel could be a possibility for some tiny particles in the Large Hadron Collider (LHC) based underground near Geneva, scientists believe.
In a long shot theory, physicists proposed that the world's largest atom smasher could be used as a time machine to send a special kind of matter backward in time.
They outlined a way to use the 27-km-long LHC particle accelerator to send a hypothetical particle called the Higgs singlet to the past.
There are a lot ofÒifs to the conjecture, including the major question of whether or not the Higgs singlet even exists and could be created in the machine, LiveScience reported.
Our theory is a long shot, but it doesn't violate any laws of physics or experimental constraints, physicist Tom Weiler of Vanderbilt University said in a statement.
However, if the theory proves correct, the researchers said the method could be used to send messages to the past or the future.
The Higgs singlet is related to another theorized but not yet detected particle called the Higgs boson.
This particle, and its related Higgs field, are thought to confer mass on all the other particles, and its discovery could help scientists answer the question, why do some particles have more mass than others? Writing on the research website arxiv.org, Weiler and fellow scientist Chui Man Ho explain that if the LHC manages to find the elusive Higgs boson then a Higgs singlet may be produced at the same time.
To prove their theory the team needs the LHC to show evidence of Higgs singlet particles and their decay products appearing at the same.
This particle may have a unique ability to jump out of the normal three dimensions of space and one dimension of time that we inhabit, and into a hidden dimension theorized to exist by some advanced physics models.
By traveling through the hidden dimension, Higgs singlets could reenter our dimensions at a point forward or backward in time from when they exited.
ÒOne of the attractive things about this approach to time travel is that it avoids all the big paradoxes,Ó Weiler said.
Because time travel is limited to these special particles, it is not possible for a man to travel back in time and murder one of his parents before he himself is born, for example.
However, if scientists could control the production of Higgs singlets, they might be able to send messages to the past or future.
The search for the Higgs boson was one of the main motive behind building the LHC in the first place. Since the atom smasher began regular operation last year, it has yet to find evidence of the Higgs boson, but the machine is still ramping up to its peak energies.
In a long shot theory, physicists proposed that the world's largest atom smasher could be used as a time machine to send a special kind of matter backward in time.
They outlined a way to use the 27-km-long LHC particle accelerator to send a hypothetical particle called the Higgs singlet to the past.
There are a lot ofÒifs to the conjecture, including the major question of whether or not the Higgs singlet even exists and could be created in the machine, LiveScience reported.
Our theory is a long shot, but it doesn't violate any laws of physics or experimental constraints, physicist Tom Weiler of Vanderbilt University said in a statement.
However, if the theory proves correct, the researchers said the method could be used to send messages to the past or the future.
The Higgs singlet is related to another theorized but not yet detected particle called the Higgs boson.
This particle, and its related Higgs field, are thought to confer mass on all the other particles, and its discovery could help scientists answer the question, why do some particles have more mass than others? Writing on the research website arxiv.org, Weiler and fellow scientist Chui Man Ho explain that if the LHC manages to find the elusive Higgs boson then a Higgs singlet may be produced at the same time.
To prove their theory the team needs the LHC to show evidence of Higgs singlet particles and their decay products appearing at the same.
This particle may have a unique ability to jump out of the normal three dimensions of space and one dimension of time that we inhabit, and into a hidden dimension theorized to exist by some advanced physics models.
By traveling through the hidden dimension, Higgs singlets could reenter our dimensions at a point forward or backward in time from when they exited.
ÒOne of the attractive things about this approach to time travel is that it avoids all the big paradoxes,Ó Weiler said.
Because time travel is limited to these special particles, it is not possible for a man to travel back in time and murder one of his parents before he himself is born, for example.
However, if scientists could control the production of Higgs singlets, they might be able to send messages to the past or future.
The search for the Higgs boson was one of the main motive behind building the LHC in the first place. Since the atom smasher began regular operation last year, it has yet to find evidence of the Higgs boson, but the machine is still ramping up to its peak energies.
'Leaked cables are exchanges culled out from diplomatic bag'
New Delhi, Mar 21 - India today said the leaked American diplomatic cables by WikiLeaks are set of exchanges culled out from the diplomatic bag which were getting wide publicity in the country.
ÒWe have always said that we are not going to comment upon WikiLeaks you know. They are culled out from the diplomatic bag as set of exchanges and then they are getting wide publicity. Government of India doesn't believe in commenting upon them,Ó External Affairs Minister S M Krishna told reporters here.
The Minister was asked to react on the latest WikiLeaks revelations suggesting that certain External Affairs Ministry officials were involved in passing information to the US.
ÒWe have always said that we are not going to comment upon WikiLeaks you know. They are culled out from the diplomatic bag as set of exchanges and then they are getting wide publicity. Government of India doesn't believe in commenting upon them,Ó External Affairs Minister S M Krishna told reporters here.
The Minister was asked to react on the latest WikiLeaks revelations suggesting that certain External Affairs Ministry officials were involved in passing information to the US.
Tanks deploy in Sanaa as top army general defects
Sanaa, Mar 21 - Three army commanders, including a top general, defected today to the opposition calling for President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down as army tanks and armoured vehicles deployed in the streets of the Yemeni capital.
The most senior of the three officers is Maj Gen Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, a longtime confidante of Saleh and commander of the army's powerful 1st Armoured Division.
Units of the division deployed today in a major square in Sanaa where protesters have been camping out to call for Saleh to step down.
All three officers belong to Saleh's Hashid tribe, which called on Saleh to step down yesterday, dealing his desperate attempts to cling on to power a serious blow.
The two others are Mohammed Ali Mohsen and Hameed al-Qusaibi, who both have the rank of brigadier.
News of the defections came one day after crowds flooded cities and towns across Yemen to mourn dozens of protesters killed Friday when Saleh's security forces opened fire from rooftops on a demonstration in Sanaa.
Al-Ahmar has been a close confidante to Saleh for most of the 32 years the Yemeni president has been in power. He is a veteran of the 1994 civil war that saw Saleh's army suppress an attempt by southern Yemen to secede four years after the two parts of the impoverished Arab nation united.
The south had until then been a separate nation. Al-Ahmar also fought in recent years against Shiite rebels in the north of the country.
Al-Ahmar announced his defection in a message delivered by a close aide to the protest leaders at the Sanaa square that has for weeks been the epicentre of their movement.
The most senior of the three officers is Maj Gen Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, a longtime confidante of Saleh and commander of the army's powerful 1st Armoured Division.
Units of the division deployed today in a major square in Sanaa where protesters have been camping out to call for Saleh to step down.
All three officers belong to Saleh's Hashid tribe, which called on Saleh to step down yesterday, dealing his desperate attempts to cling on to power a serious blow.
The two others are Mohammed Ali Mohsen and Hameed al-Qusaibi, who both have the rank of brigadier.
News of the defections came one day after crowds flooded cities and towns across Yemen to mourn dozens of protesters killed Friday when Saleh's security forces opened fire from rooftops on a demonstration in Sanaa.
Al-Ahmar has been a close confidante to Saleh for most of the 32 years the Yemeni president has been in power. He is a veteran of the 1994 civil war that saw Saleh's army suppress an attempt by southern Yemen to secede four years after the two parts of the impoverished Arab nation united.
The south had until then been a separate nation. Al-Ahmar also fought in recent years against Shiite rebels in the north of the country.
Al-Ahmar announced his defection in a message delivered by a close aide to the protest leaders at the Sanaa square that has for weeks been the epicentre of their movement.
US army apologizes for pictures of abuse in Afghanistan
Washington, Mar 21- The US Army today formally apologized for the distress caused by pictures portraying abuse allegedly committed by US troops serving in Afghanistan.
We apologize for the distress these photos cause, said a statement released by the Army.
German weekly Der Spiegel earlier today published photos that it said showed two US soldiers in Afghanistan from a rogue army unit posing with dead Afghans.
Two photos, which Spiegel said US authorities had sought to keep secret, appear to show two members of a unit that allegedly killed Afghan civilians for sport.
In one, a purported soldier, cigarette in hand, holds up the head of a blood-spattered man who is apparently dead. In a second, another purported soldier is grinning widely while also holding up the same man.
A third photo shows two bodies propped up against a post. Again the people in the picture appear to be dead.
The Army statement said the actions seen in the pictures were Òrepugnant to us as human beings and contrary to the standards and values of the United States Army.Ó
It noted that the actions portrayed in these photographs were under investigation and subject to ongoing US court-martial proceedings.
These court-martial proceedings speak for themselves,Ó the Army said. ÒThe photos appear in stark contrast to the discipline, professionalism and respect that have characterized our soldiers' performance during nearly 10 years of sustained operations.
The photos relate to an ongoing high-profile case of soldiers accused of killing civilians, mutilating their bodies and collecting trophies.
Spiegel said one of the troops in the photos is Corporal Jeremy Morlock, who faces charges of premeditated murder in the deaths of three Afghans.
The other, Private Andrew Holmes, stands accused of participating in a plot to execute an Afghan man in January, the magazine said.
We apologize for the distress these photos cause, said a statement released by the Army.
German weekly Der Spiegel earlier today published photos that it said showed two US soldiers in Afghanistan from a rogue army unit posing with dead Afghans.
Two photos, which Spiegel said US authorities had sought to keep secret, appear to show two members of a unit that allegedly killed Afghan civilians for sport.
In one, a purported soldier, cigarette in hand, holds up the head of a blood-spattered man who is apparently dead. In a second, another purported soldier is grinning widely while also holding up the same man.
A third photo shows two bodies propped up against a post. Again the people in the picture appear to be dead.
The Army statement said the actions seen in the pictures were Òrepugnant to us as human beings and contrary to the standards and values of the United States Army.Ó
It noted that the actions portrayed in these photographs were under investigation and subject to ongoing US court-martial proceedings.
These court-martial proceedings speak for themselves,Ó the Army said. ÒThe photos appear in stark contrast to the discipline, professionalism and respect that have characterized our soldiers' performance during nearly 10 years of sustained operations.
The photos relate to an ongoing high-profile case of soldiers accused of killing civilians, mutilating their bodies and collecting trophies.
Spiegel said one of the troops in the photos is Corporal Jeremy Morlock, who faces charges of premeditated murder in the deaths of three Afghans.
The other, Private Andrew Holmes, stands accused of participating in a plot to execute an Afghan man in January, the magazine said.
OrbusNeich Files Lawsuit Against Dr. Pavel Cervinka for Defamation
HONG KONG, March 21, 2011 - OrbusNeich today announced that it has filed a lawsuit in the Netherlands against Dr. Pavel Cervinka and Masaryk Hospital in Usti nad Labem, Czech Republic, where Dr. Cervinka is head of the hospital's Cardiology Department. The suit relates to a clinical study conducted at the Masaryk Hospital, in which Dr. Cervinka was the Principal Investigator, which purported to randomly compare OrbusNeich's Genous stent with a bare metal stent for treatment of a class of heart attack patients.
The results of the study reported certain adverse events with the OrbusNeich stent. However, upon a review of the study by OrbusNeich and independent evaluators, it was revealed that there were many inaccuracies, misrepresentations and inconsistencies in the study, the study methods, and the reporting of the study conclusion.
The lawsuit alleges that Dr. Cervinka and the Masaryk Hospital have committed unlawful acts and asks for an injunction against further presentations or publications of the study. Additionally, OrbusNeich requests that the court's decision be submitted for publication in the U.S. Journal in which the study was published by Dr. Cervinka and an acknowledgement of the decision also be placed by Dr. Cervinka in the Journal, as well as other remedies.
After the first presentation of the study at the American College of Cardiology in March 2009, in accordance with the practice of proper corporate responsibility and a serious concern for patient welfare, OrbusNeich personnel contacted Dr. Cervinka to discuss the study and investigate the circumstances surrounding the reported adverse events. In response, Dr. Cervinka provided limited information on three patients who experienced a stent thrombosis (blood clot). An independent evaluation of the data relating to those patients revealed procedural complications for all three patients, namely under-expansion, geographic miss and malapposed struts in a jailed diagonal branch, which are recognized risk factors for stent thrombosis. It also revealed discrepancies in the reported data and inconsistencies and misrepresentations in the study and the reporting of the study. Upon presentation of the findings of the independent evaluation, Dr. Cervinka admitted that he had made mistakes; however, changes which he made to subsequent presentations and the publication of the study in a medical Journal did not correct the reporting of the defects in the study, nor admit nor publish the errors and invalidity of the study.
Dr. Cervinka presented the results and conclusions of the study a number of times after he and the Masaryk Hospital were made aware of the defects in the study and the study reporting. As a result of the wide dissemination of the study and its erroneous conclusions that were not supported by the data, numerous clinicians stopped using the product and terminated clinical trials, and OrbusNeich suffered reputational damage. Despite many requests by OrbusNeich, neither Dr. Cervinka nor the Masaryk Hospital has made public disclosure of the defects or deficiencies in this invalid study.
Alfred J. Novak, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of OrbusNeich, said, "OrbusNeich stents and its other products provide innovative therapies that improve the lives of patients around the world. We have taken this action only after many unsuccessful attempts to try to work with Dr. Cervinka and the Masaryk Hospital to correct the record. We informed Dr. Cervinka and the Masaryk Hospital about the inaccuracies, misrepresentations and inconsistencies that were unveiled by an independent reviewer of the study, and they acknowledged our position. Nevertheless Dr. Cervinka and Masaryk Hospital continued to widely present and publish the flawed and invalid study, resulting in damages to OrbusNeich's business and reputation. While we attempted to resolve this issue amicably, the actions by Dr. Cervinka and Masaryk Hospital have left us no other choice but to protect the reputation of OrbusNeich and our products in court."
About OrbusNeich
OrbusNeich is a global company that designs, develops, manufactures and markets innovative medical devices for the treatment of vascular diseases. Current products are the world's first pro-healing stent, the Genous Stent, as well as other stents and balloons marketed under the names of Azule™, R stent, Scoreflex™, Sapphire™, Sapphire II and Sapphire NC. Development stage products include the Combo™ Bio-engineered Sirolimus Eluting Stent, or Combo Stent, which combines the Genous pro-healing technology for rapid endothelial coverage with an abluminal sirolimus drug elution for the control of neointimal proliferation. OrbusNeich is headquartered in Hong Kong and has operations in Shenzhen, China; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Hoevelaken, The Netherlands; and Tokyo, Japan.
The results of the study reported certain adverse events with the OrbusNeich stent. However, upon a review of the study by OrbusNeich and independent evaluators, it was revealed that there were many inaccuracies, misrepresentations and inconsistencies in the study, the study methods, and the reporting of the study conclusion.
The lawsuit alleges that Dr. Cervinka and the Masaryk Hospital have committed unlawful acts and asks for an injunction against further presentations or publications of the study. Additionally, OrbusNeich requests that the court's decision be submitted for publication in the U.S. Journal in which the study was published by Dr. Cervinka and an acknowledgement of the decision also be placed by Dr. Cervinka in the Journal, as well as other remedies.
After the first presentation of the study at the American College of Cardiology in March 2009, in accordance with the practice of proper corporate responsibility and a serious concern for patient welfare, OrbusNeich personnel contacted Dr. Cervinka to discuss the study and investigate the circumstances surrounding the reported adverse events. In response, Dr. Cervinka provided limited information on three patients who experienced a stent thrombosis (blood clot). An independent evaluation of the data relating to those patients revealed procedural complications for all three patients, namely under-expansion, geographic miss and malapposed struts in a jailed diagonal branch, which are recognized risk factors for stent thrombosis. It also revealed discrepancies in the reported data and inconsistencies and misrepresentations in the study and the reporting of the study. Upon presentation of the findings of the independent evaluation, Dr. Cervinka admitted that he had made mistakes; however, changes which he made to subsequent presentations and the publication of the study in a medical Journal did not correct the reporting of the defects in the study, nor admit nor publish the errors and invalidity of the study.
Dr. Cervinka presented the results and conclusions of the study a number of times after he and the Masaryk Hospital were made aware of the defects in the study and the study reporting. As a result of the wide dissemination of the study and its erroneous conclusions that were not supported by the data, numerous clinicians stopped using the product and terminated clinical trials, and OrbusNeich suffered reputational damage. Despite many requests by OrbusNeich, neither Dr. Cervinka nor the Masaryk Hospital has made public disclosure of the defects or deficiencies in this invalid study.
Alfred J. Novak, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of OrbusNeich, said, "OrbusNeich stents and its other products provide innovative therapies that improve the lives of patients around the world. We have taken this action only after many unsuccessful attempts to try to work with Dr. Cervinka and the Masaryk Hospital to correct the record. We informed Dr. Cervinka and the Masaryk Hospital about the inaccuracies, misrepresentations and inconsistencies that were unveiled by an independent reviewer of the study, and they acknowledged our position. Nevertheless Dr. Cervinka and Masaryk Hospital continued to widely present and publish the flawed and invalid study, resulting in damages to OrbusNeich's business and reputation. While we attempted to resolve this issue amicably, the actions by Dr. Cervinka and Masaryk Hospital have left us no other choice but to protect the reputation of OrbusNeich and our products in court."
About OrbusNeich
OrbusNeich is a global company that designs, develops, manufactures and markets innovative medical devices for the treatment of vascular diseases. Current products are the world's first pro-healing stent, the Genous Stent, as well as other stents and balloons marketed under the names of Azule™, R stent, Scoreflex™, Sapphire™, Sapphire II and Sapphire NC. Development stage products include the Combo™ Bio-engineered Sirolimus Eluting Stent, or Combo Stent, which combines the Genous pro-healing technology for rapid endothelial coverage with an abluminal sirolimus drug elution for the control of neointimal proliferation. OrbusNeich is headquartered in Hong Kong and has operations in Shenzhen, China; Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; Hoevelaken, The Netherlands; and Tokyo, Japan.
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