Good stuff from my neighbors in the blogosphere:
Laelaps: Homo sapiens: What We Think About Who We Are
How many ribs do humans have? Despite the presence of a known answer, you may get different replies depending on who you ask. Few people will know the exact number (12 pairs), but a surprisingly large amount of people might tell you that while women have a full set, men come up one short.
Pharyngula: Sex for Sale
'Tis the season for ridiculous commercialism: I've been seeing these unbelievable commercials that feature some smug guy surprising his wife by giving her a luxury car (with a bow on top) as a present, or popping open a box with a big honkin' diamond in it. The women always clap their hands with glee and lean in for a hot passionate kiss. I see these and I wonder...just how stupid do advertisers think men are?
Blogfish: Acid oceans worst in North Pacific
If you like the Pacific Ocean, you should start to worry about CO2 in the atmosphere. Because of the way ocean waters move, the acid ocean problem will start here.
Gene Expression: Maternal grandparents go the extra mile?
Family Ties That Bind: Maternal Grandparents Are More Involved In The Lives Of Their Grandchildren:
For grandparents living within 19.5 miles (30 km) of their grandchildren, over 30% of the maternal grandmothers had contact daily or a few times a week. Around 25% of the maternal grandfathers had contact daily or a few times a week. In contrast, only around 15 % of the paternal grandmothers and little more than 15% of the paternal grandfathers would have contact daily or a few times a week.
Respectful Insolence: The Big Pharma conspiracy is not doing its job
If you listen to what advocates of homeopathy, acupuncture, or whatever form of so-called "alternative" medicine you can think of (in reality, non-evidence-based medicine for the most part), you'd think that physicians are in the pockets of Big Pharma, hopeless slaves to its propaganda, addicted to its tchotchkes and swag. Sadly for Big Pharma, they may not be having quite the effect it had hoped, if this roundtable discussion of primary care doctors about a study on NSAIDS and pain is any indication...
The Frontal Cortex: The Teenage Brain
Are teenagers too rational? That, at least, is the conclusion of a recent study showing that teens overestimate the riskiness of things like unprotected sex and drunk driving, yet choose to do them anyways...
