ScienceDaily: Mind & Brain News

Voices in people's heads more complex than previously thought Posted: 10 Mar 2015 05:57 PM PDT Voices in people's heads are far more varied and complex than previously thought. One of the largest and most detailed studies to date on the experience of auditory hallucinations, commonly referred to as voice hearing, found that the majority of voice-hearers hear multiple voices with distinct character-like qualities, with many also experiencing physical effects on their bodies. The study also confirmed that both people with and without psychiatric diagnoses hear voices.

Look, something shiny! How color images can influence consumers Posted: 10 Mar 2015 01:00 PM PDT When it comes to buying things, our brains can’t see the big, black-and-white forest for all the tiny, colorful trees. That’s the conclusion of a new study, which found that people who were shown product images in color were more likely to focus on small product details -- even superfluous ones -- instead of practical concerns such as cost and functionality.

Alarms in cars could cut crash rates Posted: 10 Mar 2015 09:36 AM PDT An in-car alarm that sounds when sensors on the vehicle detect an imminent crash could cut crash rates from one in five to one in 10 for drivers over the of 60 suffering tiredness on long journeys, according to a study.

Combination therapy best for low-grade brain tumors, clinical trial suggests Posted: 10 Mar 2015 09:33 AM PDT Combining chemotherapy with radiation therapy is the best treatment for people with a low-grade form of brain cancer, mew clinical-trial findings suggest, providing further evidence to support this approach.

Risk of motor vehicle accidents is higher in people with sleep apnea Posted: 10 Mar 2015 09:33 AM PDT A new study finds that obstructive sleep apnea is associated with a significantly increased risk of motor vehicle accidents, and this risk is reduced when sleep apnea is treated effectively using continuous positive airway pressure therapy.

Being 'laid off' leads to a decade of distrust Posted: 10 Mar 2015 09:32 AM PDT People who lose their jobs are less willing to trust others for up to a decade after being laid-off, according to new research. The author finds that being made redundant from your job not only makes people less willing to trust others but that this increased distrust and cynicism lasts for years after being forced out of work. It also finds that far from dissipating over time, an individual can remain distrustful of others even after they find a new job.

Repeated exposure of children to secondhand smoke is child abuse, expert argues Posted: 10 Mar 2015 09:30 AM PDT Purposefully and repeatedly exposing children to secondhand smoke -- a known human carcinogen -- is child abuse, according to an opinion piece written by a physician expert.

CEO bonuses could cost companies in the long term Posted: 10 Mar 2015 07:53 AM PDT The culture of CEO bonus payments creates a mentality where executives chase quick wins and short term strategies, which are often not in the best interest of companies.

Work-family conflict linked to verbal abuse Posted: 10 Mar 2015 07:53 AM PDT People whose family life regularly interferes with their job are more likely to become emotionally exhausted and, in turn, verbally abusive to co-workers and loved ones, a new study indicates.

Autism risk genes also linked to higher intelligence Posted: 10 Mar 2015 07:52 AM PDT Genes linked with a greater risk of developing autism may also be associated with higher intelligence, a study suggests.

Committing 'gamblers fallacy' may be in the cards, new research shows Posted: 10 Mar 2015 06:15 AM PDT It's called the gambler's fallacy: After a long streak of losses, you feel you are going to win. But in reality, your odds of winning are no different than they were before. For years, the gambler's fallacy has been thought to be a prime example of human irrationality, but a new study suggests that our brains naturally soak up the strange statistics of random sequences.

Proteins critical in day-night cycles also protect cells from mutations Posted: 10 Mar 2015 06:13 AM PDT Two proteins critical for maintaining healthy day-night cycles also protect against mutations that could lead to cancer, scientists report. The study shows that the two proteins have an unexpected role in DNA repair, possibly protecting cells from cancer-causing mutations triggered by UV radiation.

Detecting deception online is not so easy Posted: 10 Mar 2015 06:13 AM PDT Phishing scams are such a problem that some businesses are sending out fake phishing emails to employees. A professor says the scams work in part because it's harder to detect deception online.

Product placement, branding growing in popular music Posted: 10 Mar 2015 04:44 AM PDT As branding and advertising creep into almost every facet of life, a new study shows it's now making substantial inroads into popular music. The study examined in detail the yearly top 30 Billboard songs from 1960 to 2013 -- a total of 1,583 -- and found a steep increase in `advertainment' or the use of product placement, branding and name dropping among the most popular music in the United States.

Hormone replacement therapy for postmenopausal women: Does it help or harm your heart? Posted: 10 Mar 2015 04:44 AM PDT New evidence shows that hormone replacement therapy does not protect post-menopausal women against cardiovascular disease, and may even cause an increased risk of stroke.

Boredom, frustration trigger skin-picking, other compulsive behaviors Posted: 10 Mar 2015 04:41 AM PDT Individuals who get easily bored, frustrated or impatient are more inclined to develop skin-picking and other body-focused repetitive behaviors, say researchers. “Chronic hair-pulling, skin-picking disorder and nail-biting and various other habits are known as body-focused repetitive behaviors. Although these behaviors can induce important distress, they also seem to satisfy an urge and deliver some form of reward’’, says the principal investigator.

Depression puts low-income population at even greater risk for obesity and poor nutrition Posted: 10 Mar 2015 04:40 AM PDT In a new study, researchers report that for people receiving food assistance there are significant links between depression, poor dietary quality, and high body mass index (BMI). They suggest that understanding the risk of depression among Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participants could be important to understanding the relationship among SNAP participation, diet, and weight.

Gene networks for innate immunity linked to PTSD risk Posted: 10 Mar 2015 04:38 AM PDT Researchers have identified genetic markers, derived from blood samples that are linked to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The markers are associated with gene networks that regulate innate immune function and interferon signaling.

Psychedelic drug use could reduce psychological distress, suicidal thinking, study suggests Posted: 09 Mar 2015 02:45 PM PDT A history of psychedelic drug use is associated with less psychological distress and fewer suicidal thoughts, planning and attempts, according to new research. The findings suggest that some nonaddictive psychedelic drugs, while illegal, may hold promise for depression, and that these psychedelics' highly restricted legal status should be reconsidered to facilitate scientific studies.

Assumptions of equality lead to poorer group decisions Posted: 09 Mar 2015 12:55 PM PDT People of differing competence tend to give each other's views equal weight, preventing them from making the best group decisions, finds new research.This suggests that people with similar levels of competence make the best decision-making groups, as otherwise the tendency to assume equal competence can give undue weight to the opinions of less capable members.

Content creators leave social networks when messaging gets too easy Posted: 09 Mar 2015 12:53 PM PDT It's not much harder or more expensive to send a tweet or a Facebook post to hundreds or even thousands of people than to just a handful. So you'd think that the ease of communicating with lots of people via social networks would result in more and more people sharing their thoughts, political views, and cat videos. But that's not the case, experts say.

Understanding how neurons shape memories of smells Posted: 09 Mar 2015 11:57 AM PDT In study that helps to deconstruct how olfaction is encoded in the brain, neuroscientists have identified a type of neuron that appears to help tune, amplify and dampen neuronal responses to chemosensory inputs from the nasal cavity.

A real eye-opener: Narcolepsy bears classic autoimmune hallmarks Posted: 09 Mar 2015 10:50 AM PDT Narcoleptics suffer from bouts of sleepiness and sleep attacks, which impair their ability to function in daily life, but the precise cause of narcolepsy has long eluded scientists. Now a new study finds that narcolepsy bears the hallmarks of a classic autoimmune disorder and should be treated accordingly.