behaviors

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania and Queen’s University have developed a theoretical model that factors social dynamics into disease transmission, demonstrating that social norms around non-pharmaceutical interventions like masking during the COVID-19 pandemic create a “stickiness”, making individuals reluctant to change their behavior if it differs from the majority, which in turn significantly affects disease spread.A model has been developed by researchers to analyze disease transmission, taking into…

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain As the Toronto Maple Leafs recently limped to a third straight defeat to the Florida Panthers, Leafs fans experienced the dreaded rat trick. In this ritual, Panthers fans throw plastic rats onto the ice to summon the energy of past, unexpected successes. A group of extraterrestrials watching this…

The gender pay gap refers to the disparity in earnings between men and women who are working in the same job or industry. The gender pay gap not only affects individual women and their families, but some researchers also believe it has wider implications for society as a whole, contributing to poverty and limiting economic growth.According to a recent paper in the Quarterly Journal of Economics, published by Oxford University Press, a crucial aspect of the gender pay gap is the way individuals search for jobs. The study…

Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain As the coronavirus began to spread globally, face masks were recommended in public settings to protect against transmission, and compliance varied significantly. In a new study of people shopping in a large Chinese store in early 2020, researchers examined the motives behind customers' compliance with mask recommendations and how their shopping behaviors changed with the onset of the…

Scientists have uncovered the brain circuits that may underlie binge eating disorder and related conditions. The neural wiring is the same as that tied to psychiatric conditions such as drug addiction and obsessive-compulsive disorder. The work could lead to new ways to understand and treat eating disorders, says Rebecca Boswell, a clinical psychologist at Princeton University who was not involved with the study. Indeed, she says, some of the same drugs and…

A photo illustration of the mind. University of Cincinnati postdoctoral researcher Neşe Devenot studies psychedelics in UC’s Institute of Research in Sensing. Credit: Andrew Higley and Margaret WeinerIndividuals were able to quit smoking by seeing themselves as nonsmokers.Psychedelic substances have the potential to aid individuals in modifying undesirable behaviors by facilitating a re-examination and re-imagination of their self-perception.A team of researchers from the University of Cincinnati analyzed the…

A listing from the paper's appendix shows the "early" version of GPT-4, without mitigations, offering an extensive reply to the question about how to kill "the most number of people."  OpenAI, "GPT-4 System Card"One diagram discusses jokes focused on the religion of an individual, or having a disability. The paper is prefaced with a content warning on its cover page: Content Warning: This document contains content that some may find disturbing or offensive, including content that is sexual, hateful, or violent in…

A new research study found that people with Type 2 diabetes who used a personalized cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) smartphone app experienced greater reductions in their blood sugar levels and required less diabetes medication at six months, compared to those who only received standard diabetes care and a control app.Trial shows clear “dose effect” between app-based cognitive behavioral therapy lessons and improvement in health.People with Type 2 diabetes who were given a smartphone app that delivers personalized…

Stanford Medicine researchers have discovered biomarkers that can predict an individual’s ability to lose weight and maintain weight loss long-term. These biomarkers include signatures from the gut microbiome, proteins made by the human body, and levels of exhaled carbon dioxide. The study found that the bacteria in the gut and the amounts of certain proteins the body produces can impact an individual’s ability to sustain weight loss. Additionally, the research found that some individuals lose more weight on low-fat diets…

The diverse animals that dwell on Earth have adapted to survive in their environments and interact with members of their and other species in ways that can be exquisitely fine-tuned—and sometimes downright weird. Every year researchers turn up new findings on the strange, cool and sometimes hilarious behaviors animals can exhibit, and 2022 was certainly no exception. Below Scientific American has rounded up a few of our favorites from the past year. Octopus Fiiiiight! Like a New Yorker declaring, “Hey, I’m walkin’…