Sleeping really late has became a really popular and common thing in teenage lives. We like to go to parties, have fun with our friends or even release school stress. But most of the teenagers did not realize the damage it brings to our body both inside and out.

Problems will start to appear physically such as getting acne on your face and getting these “Panda Eyes“. From the inside, we tends to feel really tired the next day and have low energy. Our body has its own circle which prepares each part of our body for the next day. So imagine if we always sleep really late, then it will disturb the circle and damage our body.

People who likes to sleep late whether you are working on some important homework or review for a test tends to eat during the night. For example, drinking a cup of coffee and eating some dessert could keep us awake, so people who tends to sleep late will have the habit of eating something at night which would cause weight gain.

Sleeping late is one of the main reasons that causes weight gain and brings damage to our body.

Sources:

1. http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/lack-of-sleep-weight-gain#

Science has made several breakthroughs to help infertile women conceive babies. Some of these methods include surgeries, donor eggs/embryos, IVF’s, fertility drugs etc. However, in the most recent discoveries and experiments, scientists are trying to incorporate a 3D printer. The functions of 3D printers have grown exponentially and have been aiding medical advances for a while, especially in areas of artificial limbs. They may now help advance areas of fertility.

A recent experiment held at Northwestern University made use of a 3D printer to build a well functioning ovary. The scientists at the university happened upon a major breakthrough when these ovaries did not only restore ovarian functions, but also enabled natural birth in mice. The procedure involved the creation of an ovary serving three main purposes. The ability to release and nurture immature egg cells, a malleable but strong structure/surface to support the growth of both the egg cells and hormone-releasing cells. The ovary was made from gelatin and was not an exact replica of ovaries found in mice. Scientists used the basic structure and modified it’s shape to serve the best results. Ovarian follicles and other cell tissues were later added to the structure. These artificially built ovaries were now implanted into mice with previously extracted ovaries. After some tries, scientists got the ovaries to function normally and found that the hormonal cycle was restored in the mice. Not expecting it at all, the scientists now discovered that the mice were able to give birth and could also provide for their newborns . The gelatin structure had allowed for blood vessels to integrate within them and allowed for the eggs to grow naturally. This particular breakthrough has shown scientists new hope for infertile women. They believe that not only can this new method enable infertile women to conceive, but it can also increase the lifespan of the eggs. Meaning, that women will be able to conceive until later years of their lives.

However, the method still needs to be perfected. Reasons for infertility in women are varying, and so this one method may not be applicable to all women. It may also be hard to restore ovaries in older women since their eggs and other ovarian structures begin to decay with time. In one of my earlier blogs, I mentioned the use of stem cells. In that blog, these cells were being used to cure brain damage. In this case, scientists believe that the use of stem cells can rebuild damage in the ovaries. This would be a crucial step in the process since ovaries and eggs begin getting damaged over time, and are largely limited.

In conclusion, Dr. Monica Laronda, the head researcher in this study believes that there is bright future in the area of fertility seeing this new development. However, it is a long way out since very limited experiments have been conducted, and have only been conducted on mice.

Citations:

Image 1 (3D print of an ultrasound)

Image 2 (Egg Cell)

1. @SingularityHub. “New 3D Printed Ovaries Allow Infertile Mice to Give Birth.”Singularity HUB. N.p., 03 June 2016. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.
2. Ding, ByKarisa. “Fertility Treatment: Your Options at a Glance | BabyCenter.”BabyCenter. N.p., 22 Sept. 2016. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.
3. “Ovarian Follicle.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

I was an athlete all of my high school career, and I am trying to carry the fitness aspect into college as mush as I can. I participate in fitness clubs, like Penn State CHAARG, and try to go to the gym as often as I can. Running is always viewed as such a respected technique of working out, but I hate it! I started to brainstorm of some ideas that I could do for working out instead of running that would be equivalent or better. This is the reason I decided to research two totally different types of workouts, running and swimming. My goal is to figure out if swimming would be a satisfactory substitution to running.

The New York Times posted an article titled “Run vs. Swim? Statistician Says The Score Is In” that evaluated which type of the two workout methods is more effective. The distance and time traveled was far less important than how hard the actual activity was itself. Based off the studies and observations, it was a consensus decision that swimming was the harder activity out of the two types of workouts. If the same person ran for twenty minutes and then swam for twenty minutes, that person would have the potential to burn up to 25% more calories swimming than running. Swimming is an activity that is more vigorous and demanding of the body, which is why this type of exercise burns more calories.

Within the article posted by The New York Times titled “Run vs. Swim? Statistician Says The Score Is In” the researches made sure to stress other variables that could be affecting the end result. It is important to review all possibilities and ideas in a study to ensure the best possible outcome in the end results. For example, they tested running vs. swimming on different genders. Gender is just one of the many types of factors that can play a huge role in determining the outcome of the study. They found reasons like women being able to retain fat better allows them to swim more easily due to the fact they can remain parallel to the top of the water. Also, the fact that men are built more muscular sets themselves up for more success when it comes to running.

I found a very interesting article that was posted shortly after the 2016 summer Olympic games in Rio De Janeiro. The Article posted by the Wall Street Journal titled “Rio Games: Why Olympians Shatter Records in Swimming but Not Track” I felt directly related to the topic of this blog. After reading the article by the Wall Street Journal, it seems that within the sport of swimming it is easier to break records than within track in field because of training methods. Also the drag that water presents to a swimmer while swimming is something that an athlete has to learn to overcome to find success, and that is exactly what happened.

After researching running vs. swimming, I was excited to find out that swimming had overall more positive results than running. Being a person who hates running, I should definitely try swimming as an alternative workout based off of what I have learned. It also seems as if there is more room to grow towards success with swimming, and not as much with running. In conclusion, if you are anything like me and have a hateful relationship with running but love fitness, try swimming for an alternative!

IMAGE 1 / IMAGE 2 / IMAGE 3

Growing up with blue eyes I always felt as if every time I walked outside into the sun I would have to put on my sunglasses.I always found myself squinting or having to put my hands over my eyes if I didn’t have sunglasses that day. I heard lots of people tell me constantly that it was because I have blue eyes and since they’re a lighter color they are more sensitive to light as oppose to someone that has brown eyes. After hearing those things, they kind of just stuck in my head and now I just believe it. I never felt the need to research this theory until this blog assignment came up.

The answer to my question is, apparently, yes. Lighter colored eyes are indeed more sensitive to bright lights. Dr. Horne, an ophthalmologist explains why photophobia is and how it affects these specific eye colors. Photophobia is basically light sensitivity in the eyes and it affects this with lighter colored eyes because the amount of pigmentation is a lot less than those people with darker colored eyes, therefore it is harder to block out the stress harsh lights put on the eye. The melanin around caucasian babies is usually nonexistent which is why they are almost always born with lighter colored eyes. Since there is no melanin, there is no protection from the sun whatsoever. It is recommended to those with lighter eyes to stay out of the sun for long periods of time and to try and wear protective eyewear because the constant bright lights and squinting can cause damage to eyesight and major headaches (from personal experience).

If you have light eyes, just remember that every time you walk out you are putting yourself at more of a risk to damage your eyesight if you do not wear the protective eyewear or stay out in the sunlight too long. Buy some shades!!!!

Reference Sites:

https://www.dukehealth.org/blog/myth-or-fact-people-light-eyes-are-more-sensitive-sunlight

https://essilorusa.com/content/essilor-usa/en/newsroom/news/sensitive_to_light.html

Overlooking the past few decades, the United States’ population has changed noticeably. The ever-expanding Asian and Latino populations (mostly caused by the influx of immigration) have changed the breakdown and structure of the electorate. Similarly, the United States’ elected officials are changing as well. More recently, there have been gains in terms of the number of political offices held by women have been propelled forward by the accomplishments of candidates that are women of color. In the formation and beginnings of political parties of the United States, there were only white males that represented the entirety of the citizens of the country. However, as time progressed, there has been more representation of other groups as well as genders holding public office. Even with the progression throughout U.S. history, challenges still exist for women candidates, especially those of color, to be granted the opportunity to serve in a public office with respect to their share of the population. The women of color today signify a record high number of women of color in public office.

Black women make up majority of women of color serving in a public office. As of a survey of the national legislature in 2012, 24 women of color serve in Congress, 11 in statewide elected executive offices and 350 in state legislative offices throughout the nation. Their proportion of representation has significantly increased since the Voting Rights Act its passing in 1965. The women of color holding public office today are a byproduct of the women of color that came before them and made tremendous strides. Perhaps one of the most well known of them was Mrs. Shirley Chisholm. This native of Brooklyn, NY was the first African American elected to the United States Congress (1968), where she worked in the Education and Labor Committee. Chisholm made strides for both women and people of color; she supported women’s right to an abortion, supported women professionals (especially in male dominated fields), and helped form the Congressional Black Caucus.

After just four short years in Congress, Chisholm would seek the Democratic nomination for the 1972 Presidential election, thereby becoming both the first African American and woman to run for the presidential nomination or a major political party. Another Black woman that is important to make mention of is Carol Moseley Braun, a Chicago native and University of Illinois College of Law graduate. More important than where she hailed from or where she got her degree from was what she did; she had the opportunity to serve as an Illinois State Representative, women’s rights activist, civil rights activist, and became the first Black woman elected as a United States Senator. While serving as a Democratic US Representative, she advocated for education, government, and healthcare. After Shirley Chisholm, Braun became the second Black woman to run for the office of the Presidency. Unfortunately, she was met with unsuccessful attempts in 2000 & 2004.

Recognizing that the black women that are public office now are not the first, it is also important to acknowledge that the women who blazed a trail for them encountered their fair share of adversity. The trail that women of color take to public office and the challenges they face as candidates are different from those of white women. For example, legislators that are women of color are usually elected from majority-minority districts (congressional district in which majority of the residing constituents are a racial or ethnic minority). These districts were in response to racially/ethnically heavy voting patterns and the ability for voters of color to select candidates that they identify with. Forming these districts propels the progress that Black women have made in being elected into office. Realistically, these majority-minority districts by themselves cannot increase the number of public offices held by black women in the future. Women of color make u about 3.5% of the statewide elected officials, and there is a slim chance of drawing more districts.

In conclusion, I would argue that it is important for women of color to be represented in the political and public offices. In order to uphold the precedent of our U.S. Constitution, we have to strive toward a more perfect union. Part of that is having a representative sample of the governed within the government. We can see how over time women have made significant strides within communities locally and nationally; we even have a women poised to be President of the United States. Nevertheless, having more women of color in the spaces and places of decision making will be crucial for the advancement of both the communities they represent and America overall.

Reference(s):

[1] “Women of Color in American Politics.” PoliticalParity.org. Political Parity. Web. 17 Oct. 2016. <http://www.politicalparity.org/research-inventory/women-of-color-in-american-politics/>.

[2] “Shirley Chisholm.” Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2015. Web. 20 Oct. 2016. < http://www.biography.com/people/shirley-chisholm-9247015.>.

[3] “Carol Moseley Braun.” Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2015. Web. 20 Oct. 2016. <http://www.biography.com/people/carol-moseley-braun-205626#post-senate-work>.

With the season premiere of the Walking Dead coming back on this Sunday it got me thinking if a zombie apocalypse could happen, and in what ways would it be possible.  On the show of the Walking Dead the viewer is never told how the virus started, however; they are given information as the show goes on.  The big problem in the Walking Dead is that everyone is infected with the virus; this means it doesn’t matter how you die you come back as a zombie either way.  Given this information it is said that the virus is airborne and that is why so many people are infected.  The zombies are an added threat in this world and although the bite doesn’t make you a zombie directly it gives you a very high fever.  This fever kills you very fast and that is why it is such a problem.

A way a zombie apocalypse could be real today is through parasites.  There is one parasite known as Toxoplasma Gondii that fits the description of what is in the show.  This parasite is in over half of the worlds population.  The way this parasite works is that is can only reproduce inside of cats as of now.  The parasite is capable of infecting most animals in the world including humans.  This parasite can be in humans without them even knowing it; that is why over half the worlds population is infected and it is not making headlines  When this parasite is in a health human the immune system is able to keep it under control and it is not a problem (Source).  When you become sick and your immune system is weakened and this parasite can become a problem.  In cats this parasite can take over muscle and brain functions which is why this has zombie like characteristics.

This parasite relates to the walking dead because of how many people who already carry the parasite.  Although this disease is dormant in humans now if this parasite were to mutate this could lead to a zombie like scenario.  If the parasite were to become active after the host has died and take over the brain and muscle functions like it can we cats this would be a way for a zombie apocalypse to start.  I don’t believe we have anything to worry about in the near future I am just a fan of the show and thought this was an interesting way of it happening.

Picture Sources

http://screenrant.com/tag/the-walking-dead/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxoplasma_gondii

Now it is 1.32 am in the morning. I still try to finish my blog before the due, but my friend just gives up. He says it’s too late, it’s impossible for him to finish the blog before the due. However, we still have 11 hours, thus I think we still have a chance. If we give up and do nothing, at that time we do not have any chance.I have seen so many people give up easily, and I do not understand why they do not have a try?

They just reminds me a experiment that I learned in my high school. It’s called learned helplessness.”Learned helplessness is behavior that has repeated painful stimuli which it was can not be escape. After going through this experience, the organism can not escape in new situations where such behavior might be helpful. In other words, the organism learned that it is helpless in aversive situations,so it gives up trying. “(Wikipedia) In the first part of the experiment, researchers had three groups of dogs, and they were put in harness. In group one, the dogs just be put in the harness and be release later. In group two, dogs were given electric shocks, but they can stop it by pressing a lever. In group three, dogs were given electric shocks, but the lever in group 3 did not work. Thus it seems that in group three, electric shocks were unescapable. In the second part of the experiment, three groups of dogs were tested in a shuttle box apparatus. Dogs can escape shocks by jumping out of the box. In group one and two, all dogs jumped outside the box. However, dogs in group 3 failed to escape. Actually they did not even try to jump, and they just stayed in the box. They thought no matter how hard they tried, they could not escape.

Video about the learned helplessness experiment

My friend is like the dog in group three. I am very disappointed with him because he still has a chance to finish his blog, but he chose to give up. My father told me that giving up is the most easiest thing in our life but insistence is the hardest. Learned helplessness is related to mental illness that fails to control over the outcome of a situation. If people always give up easily, this is the signal of this type of mental illness. Hope everyone can try before giving up, hope everyone who is still trying to finish their blog can keep working on their blog, and good luck.

URL:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learned_helplessness

https://www.britannica.com/topic/learned-helplessness

https://www.verywell.com/what-is-learned-helplessness-2795326

Learned Helplessness

Vasopressin also known in common language as hangover is a problem for people who go out and drink a lot. When you have a hangover you have a headache, tired, dehydrate, angry, and other symptoms based on the individual person.

The process of a hangover actually starts the moment you start to drink too much alcohol for your body to handle. There is thing called your pituitary gland that is located in your brain. Your pituitary gland produces a hormone that is called vasopressin. Vasopressin is the hormone that regulates the fluid intake and out take of your body. When you drink too much the hormone vasopressin shuts down, and that when dehydrates comes into play. Whenever you drink water you get hydrated, but when your drink alcohol you get dehydrated. Whenever your body goes into this dehydrated state from drinking alcohol it tries to get water from other parts of your body, and that includes the brain. When you lose water from your brain you start to get a headache that’s why that’s a major symptom of a hangover. The type of alcohol you drink also has a roll in the hangover process. Congeners a compounds found in the alcohol. Congeners range from high and low depending on how the alcohol was made. Alcohol like beer will not give you a hangover as bad as some hard liquors would. The higher the congeners, the worse your hangover will be.

“Beer before liquor makes you sicker, liquor before beer and you’re in the clear” was a saying that was hammered into my mind by my friend’s older sister before I was old enough to even think about any type of alcoholic beverage. Now it has become a sort of fact that has always been stuck in my brain, but I wanted to know if there was any truth to the saying that seemed so wise in my little brain so many years ago.

First I wanted to establish a null hypothesis. The null hypothesis means that you administer the research and you discover that nothing is going on. In this scenario the null hypothesis would show that beer before liquor has no effect on making you sicker than if you just drank one, or if you drank the liquor before the beer. If the research shows that something is in fact going on, then they are able to reject the null hypothesis. Obviously that is the goal, because scientists rarely want to investigate an instance where nothing is going on. People tend to think that you can drink beer after drinking hard alcohol with less consequences because beer has less alcohol content. I read one account from someone named Kyle Brubaker, but it seemed to be a more anecdotal piece of data. Brubaker talks about how your liver can process approximately one drink an hour, and any extra alcohol flows through your blood freely. When you drink more than one shot, your liver is hit harder than if you were to have a couple beers, and so It takes longer for your liver to detox that alcohol. However, Brubaker starts his claim with words like personally, which make it seem like his data may not be completely accurate.

The experts seem to have a different opinion than Brubaker. Dr. Keri Peterson attempts to debunk this myth in this article. Dr. Peterson explains that the order is less important than the total amount of alcohol you drink. If you drink ten shots in one night, it isn’t going to matter if you took the shots before you drink the beer, you’re going to be sick no matter what. She also adds that alcohol lowers your inhibitions, which can cause you to drink more. If you start with the liquor, which has a higher percentage of alcohol, your inhibition is going to lower faster and you may find yourself drinking more.

While you may find Dr. Peterson’s facts convincing, it is hard to come to a solid conclusion to our hypothesis without any solid data. From what I have read, it would seem to me that the null hypothesis is correct, and that become ill from drinking has very little to do with the order in which you drink your beverages. However, if you want to continue to say the rhyme and drink that way, there isn’t a lot of hard evidence or threat of harm there to stop you.

IMAGE: http://scicurious.scientopia.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2012/11/beer-vs-liquor.jpg

Stress puts immense tension on the body, both mentally and physically.  One way to ease that stress is through the practice of yoga.  Yoga is a practice which teaches one relaxation both mentally and physically through the process of different poses and breathing techniques.  The physical positions your body is put into alongside the impressive breathing exercises truly relaxes the body into a less stressful state of being.

Ever since I was young, whenever I got mad or worked up about something, my parents would tell me to take deep breaths and count to ten with my eyes clothes.  Although my head strong self wouldn’t admit that at the time, it really did help to relax me.  Proper breathing can truly help lower blood pressure levels and calm the body.  It can also help improve the circulation of both blood and oxygen, and can also improve the strength of your muscles.  By pairing proper breathing with physical movement or, in other words, yoga, can significantly lower one’s stress level and help improve one’s the overall well-being.

Randomized control trials have been conducted to determine the truth behind this idea.  All cases were analyzed carefully due to each person’s current health state, how long they did yoga for, and what their outcomes were.  Overall, the results were very positive and in favor of the idea that yoga helps reduce stress.  Apparently most of the subjects reported immediate satisfactory results that showed improvement on their stress level.  In this particular study, follow up tests were done.    Although no significant data was reported from the follow up test, nothing bad was reported.  Could this specific trial suffer from the file drawer problem?

Stress is an extremely uncomfortable feeling for anyone to experience.  Through the practice of yoga and learning proper breathing, anyone can lower their stress level.

Bibliography:

Chong, Cecilia, Megumi Tsunaka, Hector W. Tsang, Edward Chan, and Wai Ming Cheung. “Effects of Yoga on Stress Management in Healthy Adults: A Systematic Review.” ProQuest. N.p., n.d. Web.

Parshad, O. “Department of Basic Medical Sciences, The University of the West Indies, Kingston 7, Jamaica, West Indies. Oparshad@uwimona.edu.jm.” Role of Yoga in Stress Management. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

Picture:

http://d2kynta7p4ifh2.cloudfront.net/wp-content/uploads/1/2016/09/07082811/yoga-wellnesseuphoria.jpg

Today, almost everybody is on social media. From snapchat, to twitter, to instagram, and everything in between social media is taking over parts of our lives. I personally spend countless hours a week on various social media sites, and frankly I feel my life would be a lot better without them. How deeply does social media effect our lives, and how much of it is in a negative way?

One negative effect of social media is a raging addiction to the sites. A study run by the University of Maryland dug deep into the social media addiction that is sweeping across the country, and killing productivity in the process. According to the survey eighteen percent of people can’t go more than a “few hours” without checking Facebook, this number raises to sixty-one percent of people who can’t go through a twenty four hour day without checking the site. I for one am one that has trouble staying off social media for hours at a time, and it impedes my focus and productivity significantly. Twenty eight percent of people reportedly can’t even get their head off the pillow in the morning before their thumb is scrolling down their twitter feed. A big problem with social media is that a lot of time people go on it just to “kill time”, in fact anywhere between sixty to eighty percent of Americans confess that their main purpose of going online to social media sites is to do just that, kill time (INC). The addiction is most prevalent in millennials, one in every five millennials spends at least six hours a day on social media (Link). Think of that, one fourth of your day is spent on social media, at least another half of your day usually would comprise of sleeping. In that scenario, how much are you really getting done in a twenty four hour period? The time you spend each day on social media, is time you could be spending doing something productive. This is a problem many businesses are finding is a lack of productivity in the work place due to social media.

For businesses, even the slightest bit of time an employee uses on social media could be tons of money lost.  A certain statistic I found really jumped out at me. Social media sites collectively cost employers 650 Billion dollars a year (Huffington). According to an approximate U.S census there are approximately 321 million adults in the U.S (Census). That is over $2,000 per adult in social media caused lost money. The time spent in the work place, and the classroom should be spent entirely focused on the task at hand. Companies and employers everywhere are looking for solutions to squander the problem, and get productivity up again in the work place. This however, is a problem that has spiraled out of control and needs answers quickly.

Another negative effect behind social media use is the sometimes twisted psychology behind it. A lot of times people will make a big deal about how many likes their tweet got or how many likes their Instagram picture got. There are many examples of why this is a bad way of thinking psychologically. In some cases even, it is more important than people lives in reality. In a survey of 1,600 participants 58 percent responded than the attempt to take the “perfect picture” to post on social media took away from the actual experience of the event or situation they were in (Entrepreneur). This is the sad reality with what social media is becoming. It is more important to garner people’s approval in many people’s minds rather than enjoying your life. Social media is turning the world into a more materialistic place by the day.

The best solution to decrease the negative effects of social media sites is to simply stop using them. This will get productivity up both in the work place, and your life overall.

Has anyone ever said to you, “Just don’t think about it” when you’re feeling sick in some way? For some reason, not thinking about the pain, nausea, etc. that we feel almost makes it seem to go away. But does it really? Can our thoughts control how we feel physically?

Picture Link

According to and article in Boston Magazine, we can think ourselves into having an illness or condition that we did not have in the first place. It is called the “nocebo effect”. Nocebo means “I will harm”, therefore, we use that term because many people expect bad things, so that is exactly what they get. There was a study done on fibromyalgia patients which gave the patients a placebo pill without them knowing and warned them of side effects they might experience. Eleven percent of the patients in the study dropped out because they said the side effects were so horrible. This is an example of just how much your mind can make your body act a certain way without you even knowing it. There was another study done that said that thinking that you’re stressed is just as bad for your health as actually being stressed. It’s almost like you are stressing about being stressed. To see just how bad this can be for you, researchers analyzed multiple studies to see the affects that thinking you are stressed has on your heart. They followed the participants around for 14 years, asking them to report whenever they felt stressed and seeing if they were later diagnosed with or died from heart disease. The study found that those with higher stress levels were almost 30 percent more likely to develop the disease.

According to this article, it can work the other way around as well. A doctor named Lissa Rankin explains that sometimes the people that work out and eat healthy are actually more unhealthy than the couch potatoes out there. When Lissa could not figure out why her patients with extremely healthy exercise and eating habits were mysteriously sick, she decided to look into it further. She asked them many questions about their home life, work life, relationships, personal feelings, etc., as well as asking them what they would change about their lives if they could. Their answers ranged from hating their jobs, to wanting a divorce, to feeling the need to make more friends, etc. Meanwhile, Lissa talks about having patients with the terribly unhealthy habits, yet have perfect health. She asked them the same questions and came to find that those patients were much more happy in every aspect of their lives. This does not mean that exercising and eating healthy does nothing for your health; it means that it is not the only thing required for good health. She told the unhealthy patients that they needed to find what they thought was at the root of their bad health and change it. Once her patients made positive changes to their lives that made them happier, their health improved immensely. Lissa even used her own life as a true example that your thoughts and attitudes can make or break your good health. After being unhappy at work for years and having several health issues in her 20’s, Lissa decided that she wasn’t going to deal with it anymore so she quit her job and moved her family to a small quiet town and addressed what was making her unhappy. Since then, she claims that all of her health issues had either greatly diminished or completely gone away.

Picture Link

It seems to be true that the whole mind over matter idea may really affect your health greatly. So if your having odd symptoms that you can’t seem to get rid of, try looking deeper into every aspect of your life and just maybe, with a small fix, you could be feeling better in no time!

Here’s a video about how not to let your mind-body control.

Find image here

Thanksgiving is coming up and that means a nice little break from classes and getting to spend time at home. Obviously the most important part about thanksgiving though is thanksgiving dinner. Sitting around the table with your family, eating turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and etc. Then following dinner that feeling of your stomach about to explode. You make your way over to the couch for a nice nap. Now this a theory that I have heard from many people, that turkey makes you tired and my question is does turkey actually make you tired?

Turkey contains the amino acid tryptophan, which is an amino acid that makes people tired. So naturally people assume that since the turkey contains this that it’s the reason that people tend to fall asleep following their feast. Studies show that this is merely a myth, the turkey doesn’t make you any more tired than any other food that you would have consumed at dinner. There’s numerous amounts of food that contain the exact same amount of tryptophan if not more. The real reason people fall asleep contributes more so to the fact that you’re consuming a lot of carbohydrates. When your body consumes carbs, it triggers the release of insulin in your body which ultimately leads to the production of melatonin which causes you to become tired. In my opinion I think that the third variables are more impactful to falling asleep after thanksgiving dinner. Thanksgiving is a time most people are off from school or work so naturally they are tired from these things additionally. Another thing that contributes to being tired is the fact that you are overeating. You are eating way much more food in less than an hour then you typically would. Your body has to exert a lot of energy in order to digest all of this food. When you are this full, your body directs blood away from your organ systems, which results in that sleepy feeling following your mass consumption. I think with all the contributing factors this is merely just a myth and the real reason that people fall asleep contributes more to third variables.

Few things unite a group of people quite like food does. It truly is a universal language that every single person on the face of the planet understands. There is nothing more that I enjoy than going out to eat at my favorite restaurant. While tipping is usually more stressful and confusing than eating a delicious burger, seeing a few pieces of candy tucked inside the folio of where my check rests made it all worth the complicated tip calculations. Additionally, if there was a jar of mints on my way out of a restaurant I would grab a handful no matter how full I was. During my high school years, I worked as a server at a restaurant in my home state of Florida. I always wondered if there was something I could do to receive a larger tip. Could handing out mints and candy with the check mean a bigger tip for waiters and waitresses?

http://stanfordflipside.com/images/102mints.jpeg

Hypotheses 

In this case, the null hypothesis would be that handing out candy and mints with the check does nothing, meaning that it does not increase the tip percentage in anyway. The alternative hypothesis would be that the mints and candy actually lead to bigger tips. Scientists can choose to either accept or reject the null hypothesis. Personally, I feel like waiters and waitresses will earn bigger tips if they give better service to their customers by checking in on them often and smiling frequently. Although getting a few pieces of candy is nice, it is hard for me to believe that it solely leads to bigger tips.

Studies

A study conducted in 2002 by the Cornell University School of Hotel Administration tried to figure out if handing out candy to customers increased tips. The study was conducted in a small restaurant with a capacity of just 66 people. It was conducted over two weekday and two weekend dinner services. The participants of the study were 92 groups of diners that dined at the restaurant during the duration of the study. Following the meal, the researchers asked the waiters to select a card that was sitting on the table face down. If the card was red, the waiter/waitress was instructed to include a few pieces of candy with the check. If the card was black, they gave the check without including the candy. This study was a randomized control trial because the participants were randomly allocated to either the treatment ground or the control group. Additionally, this was an experimental study because the x-variable, the candy, was manipulated.

https://pix-media.s3.amazonaws.com/blog/356/restaurant_tips1-thumb-550×377.jpg

Results

Since there were 92 participants in this study, 46 participants received a check with mints and the other 46 participants received a check without mints. The results showed that the average tip for people who received the candy was 17.8% compared to an average tip of 15.1% without candy. The p-values for this study was .0001, meaning that the difference between the two groups could not be attributed to chance alone.

Takeaways 

The results proved my hypothesis was wrong. Candy and mints do in fact increase tip percentage on average. Based on the results, scientists can reject the null hypothesis. However, there could be some confounding variables in this study. Since service is not something that is easily measured, it is safe to say that the patrons perception of “good” service varied. Maybe the participants tipped more because they felt that they got better service rather than the candy. Another interesting thing that jumped to mind was what if the customers did not eat the candy, would they still tip more? It would also be interesting if future studies achieved the same result.

http://az616578.vo.msecnd.net/files/2016/07/20/636046272432955834-1631242199_how-much-to-tip-ftr.jpg

Works Cited

Strohmetz, David B., Bruce Rind, Reed Fisher, and Michael Lynn. “Sweetening the Till: The Use of Candy to Increase Restaurant Tipping1.” Journal of Applied Social Psychology 32.2 (2002): 300-09. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

Ciotti, Gregory. “The Psychology of Personalization: How Waiters Increased Tips by 23 Percent (Without Changing Service).” Help Scout Blog. N.p., 03 Apr. 2012. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

As the winter approaches here at state college, I am becoming a bit frightened because I had already had bronchitis twice since I have gotten here, and the peak of the cold weather has not even begun. There is a well-believed and strongly backed fact that people are more likely to get sick in the winter. So there lies a question: what is the cause of this? Is it the weather itself? Through my research on this topic I found that the weather does not directly cause one to get sick. You have to come in contact with a germ or virus to contract a sickness, which is stated here. However there are theories on links between the winter and the likeliness to catch a cold.

Although many of our parents have told us to “come inside, you are going to catch a cold!” That could be a very counterproductive command. There are many possible cofounding variables that could relate the winter with sickness, that have to do with being indoors. For example, this article explains that  In the winter, it is not as desirable to spend time outside, therefore people pack themselves indoors and might become more likely to catch something from someone sick in the same vicinity. Also, there are some theories that central heating has a link to a weakening assume system.

On the other hand, our parents could have been right as they were yelling at us from inside the house. There was a study done on animal cells to test these theories. They tested these cells at different temperatures that correlated with the nose and lungs. The results showed that the decreased temperature did indeed decrease the effectiveness of the immunity to fight off the virus. Although this is good first step in testing the hypothesis, the study did not go beyond this, which makes it difficult to know whether this holds true for humans.

It seems as if the link between the cold and a common cold has not been completely figured out yet, but as the season is approaching I wish everyone luck!

I’m sure that everyone has heard this question at some point or another in their lives. It is instinct to run when it is pouring outside because you want to get out of the rain as quick as possible so you don’t get too wet. However is it possible that this is causing you to get more wet?

According to Andrew Liszewski you would get more wet if you walked in the rain. He says the better option is to run because ultimately you spend less time in the rain so you would not get as wet. There could be some concerns about this, because as you run, you run into rain drops, so you are getting wet from above and from running into it. However, despite this you still get less wet because the amount of time you would be in the rain while walking would cause you to get more wet than from running.

I think that this makes a lot of sense. It seems pretty obvious that the less time you are in the rain, the less wet you will get. Despite arguments that could be made against this, I still believe that the best option is to follow your instincts and to run to get out of the rain as quickly as you can.

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5970075/do-you-get-less-wet-walking-or-running-in-the-rain

Many studies have been done to show the connection between chewing gum and academic performance and also, in general, alertness.  In this study the subjects brought in were involved in a double unblinded placebo test.  Half of the subjects were given chewing gum while the other half were not.  This study was held for the duration of a few weeks.  There were two sessions and each assessed different information.  Both concerned one’s mood, information retention, and testing one’s memory.  This particular study found that chewing gum did increase a person’s alertness and also helped while taking an exam.  I find this interesting because just what about chewing gum improves these functions?

Some may assume that the sugar in gum is the main reason that it boosts alertness.  However, studies have been conducted with sugar free gum and seemed to have gotten the same, or similar, responses.  So what is it then?  It’s actually the act of chewing that improves all these functions.  The movement of one’s jaw while chewing gum helps to wake the body and mind.  But, it’s only temporary.  A few studies have said that improved learning functions due to chewing gum is usually only effective for about 20-30 minutes.  Interestingly enough, the flavor of the gum can have a part on the effectiveness of it on the mind and body as well.  Studies have shown that the mint flavor is the most effective for improving people’s level of tiredness (Lehrer).  Many double blind and unblind placebo tests have been done on this and all lead to similar conclusions, here is another example.

While there are many benefits to chewing gum, there are also many disadvantages. For example, sugary gum can be bad for your teeth.  If you chew gum a lot, consider switching to sugar free.  Additionally it can hurt your jaw from all the chewing.  Yes, it may be helpful cognitively for the first 20 minutes, but after that it could end up hurting your jaw.  The take away message here is that although there may be some downsides to gum, it can definitely improve your cognitive functions for a little bit and may have a great impact on your long term memory.

Bibliography:

Konie, Robin. “Chewing Gum Is Bad: 7 Reasons to Quit.” Thank Your Body. N.p., 13 Apr. 2016. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

Lehrer, Jonah. “The Cognitive Benefits Of Chewing Gum.” Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

Smith, A. “Effects of Chewing Gum on Cognitive Function, Mood and Physiology in Stressed and Non-stressed Volunteers.” National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

Smith, Andrew. “Nutritional Neuroscience.” Effects of Chewing Gum on Mood, Learning, Memory and Performance of an Intelligence Test: : Vol 12, No 2. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

Tucha, Olivia. “Chewing Gum Differentially Affects Aspects of Attention in Healthy Subjects.” Chewing Gum Differentially Affects Aspects of Attention in Healthy Subjects. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Oct. 2016.

Picture:

http://kidshealthyteeth.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/History-of-chewing-gum.jpg

These are my green eyes.

I was born with green eyes, a trait that I took from my mother. At first, I never understood the constant compliments I received for my eye color. I’ve heard a lot of sayings from friends, family members, and even strangers: “Trae, you have really pretty eyes” or “You could kill someone with eyes like that.”  People would even ask me to take off my glasses just to get a glimpse of what color my eyes were. I knew that my eye color was pretty unusual compared to my peers. Before I researched the origins of green eyes, I asked myself—are green eyes really attractive as people make it? Why are green eyes so rare?

One of the most common eye colors in the population is brown eyes. About 55% of people in the world have brown eyes. Brown eyes have dominant traits, and they are usually darker in color. The second common eye color is blue. However, green eyes are considered the rarest eye color. So, what makes green eyes rare? First of all, green eyes, in contrast to the common eye color, lack melanin (dark pigmentation that occurs in specific parts of the human body). Approximately 2% of people in the world have green eyes, and that’s a very small percentage.

Green eye color. Created by Catsastrific.

The most interesting thing about green eyes is that they are not naturally shown until a baby is at least 6 months old. Babies who eventually have green eyes are typically born with lighter eye colors, like gray or blue.

Because of these factors, green eyes prove to be an attractive trait. In fact, based on a study from All About Vision, a survey was created to determine which eye color is considered the most appealing to the person. The results demonstrated that 20.3% of the responses chose ‘green’ as their preference, while ‘light blue’ and ‘hazel’ eye colors have 3.4% less responses. The survey concluded that the majority appeal is due to the unusualness of the eye color.

The conclusion: Green eyes are considered attractive because it’s a rare color. Common eye colors like brown, blue, even black, are typically seen all around because of its pigmentation. Green eyes, however, are rarely seen and that’s what makes them appealing.

I’m pretty satisfied with my eye color. Not just because of the compliments, but my eye color makes me different. Perhaps that’s why people adore Channing Tatum so much?

Channing Tatum’s green eyes. From muscledudelife.com

 Sources:

1. Eye Color Guide – The Most Common Eye Colors, AC Lens: http://www.aclens.com/Most-Common-Eye-Color-c323.html

2. The Genetics of Eye Color, EyeDoctorGuide.com: http://www.eyedoctorguide.com/eye_general/eye_color_genetics.html

3. Green Eyes, EyeDoctorGuide.com: http://www.eyedoctorguide.com/Eye-Color/green-eyes-eye-color.html

4. Hellem, Amy, “Green Eyes: The Most Attractive Eye Color?”, All About Vision: http://www.eyedoctorguide.com/Eye-Color/green-eyes-eye-color.html

All people listen to music. No matter what age, race, religion, or culture someone is a part of, they listen to some sort of music. Music is a constant part of my day. I hear music when I’m on the bus, between classes, in movie scores, through the surround sound system when I get home, and even in cars that drive by me. When I listen to music, the genre of music that I listen to often influences how I am feeling. This is why I have different playlists so the music I turn on is already corresponding with my mood. When I am happy, I do not want to listen to songs that are slow and sad, I want to listen to upbeat and cheerful tunes. I believe music has a large influence over our moods and emotions. For this blog post, my hypothesis is: can music affect a person’s mood?

https://sites.psu.edu/siowfa15/2015/09/11/does-music-affect-our-mood/

When you are watching a movie, have you ever stopped to listen to the music in the background? Some movies are more subtle than others, but according to Dr. Waldie Hanser’s article,  movies add music to the background noise of a lot of scenes to evoke a certain emotion from the audience. Since most new movies have music, you would probably never know how mundane a movie can be without certain musical tunes to tell us how to feel (Hanser). Movies can easily change our emotion based on what is happening in the movie, and since music is the pathos of any scene, music helps change the way feel.

http://oppositeendsofthespectrum.blogspot.com/2011/01/high-on-music-beat-winter-mood.html

When I am driving in the car, I always have music on. Sometimes the music is fast and loud, and other days the music is soothing and quiet. I believe that the music I listen to directly affects the way I drive, including how careful and how fast I drive. Now I know what your thinking, “Jon, it is very unscientific to base your views off of your experience alone.” You are right! That is an anecdote and a very bad way to view every subject. But on the other hand, it is alright to make a hypothesis or ask a question to determine if your experience is similar to everybody else. So my question is: does my music affect my driving?  Well, my next article seems to think that it does. An Ergonomics article studied the connection between music and driving. The experimental studied people’s driving habits while driving in silence and compared it to their driving while upbeat music was playing. The results concluded that upbeat music increases the drivers awareness and lessens the boredom of the driver (van der Zwaag).

http://www.progressiveimpact.org/how-music-improves-your-mood-and-outlook-on-life/

The third article I found explains how music is used to treat anxiety and depression. Aside from normal psychological therapy, there are less conventional branches of therapy such as music therapy. Music therapists are specialized counselors with Masters of Doctoral degrees that treat patients with music. The basis of music therapy is that the connection between music and mood is so strong that people’s anxiety and depression can be treated with the aide of music. The article also describes ways in which music can also help learning, sleep, and stress reduction (Music and Mood).

Conclusion 

My hypothesis asked: can music affect a person’s mood? After analyzing my sources and consulting a plethora of other data, my conclusion is that music can affect mood. In fact, music seems to have a large influence over our mood to the point where it can help us drive, learn, reduce anxiety/depression/stress, and sleep. Music does affect our mood as much as science can be sure of anything. Although this blog post is coming to an end, I am left with more questions than ever about music and mood. Why is the brain stimulated by music? Is liking music in our biology or is it an evolutionary trait? Can we use music to change our moods in a way other than we are already doing?

 

Works Cited:

Hanser, Waldie E., and Ruth E. Mark. “Music Influences Ratings of the Affect of Visual Stimuli.” Psychological Topics, vol. 22, no. 2, 2013., pp. 305-324.

van der Zwaag, Marjolein D, et al. “The Influence of Music on Mood and Performance while Driving.” Ergonomics, vol. 55, no. 1, 2012., pp. 12-22doi:10.1080/00140139.2011.638403.

“Music and Mood.” HealthyChildren.org. American Academy of Pediatrics, 21 Nov. 2015. Web. 21 Oct. 2016. <https://www.healthychildren.org/English/healthy-living/emotional-wellness/Pages/Music-and-Mood.aspx>.

Pictures (in order of appearance):

http://juanita-interests.blogspot.com

http://oppositeendsofthespectrum.blogspot.com/2011/01/high-on-music-beat-winter-mood.html

How Music Improves Your Mood And Outlook On Life

I rarely meet a person that doesn’t like gum and even when I do, it’s usually that they don’t like one flavor over another. I always find myself chewing gum when I have it with me (as I’m writing this I am in fact chewing gum). There are many reasons why people chew gum. Some people chew gum to get rid of bad breath, others chew it because they believe it helps them concentrate more (check out my other blog on chewing gum and academic performance correlation!) and other simply chew gum because they enjoy it! How many people though would chew gum more if they knew it helped with their diet? I’ve heard rumors that chewing sugar-free gum helps your physical health and may even cause you to lose weight. After hearing that, I decided to do some research and see what I could figure out!

First off, let me explain the four situations we have here:

1. Chewing sugar-free gum has a positive effect on your diet (direct causation).
2. A good diet causes you to chew sugar-free gum (reverse causation).
3. A third variable may cause you to chew sugar-free gum and improve your diet.
4. The correlation between chewing sugar-free gum and improving your diet may just be due to chance alone.

Chris Gajilan’s article titled Chew on this: Gum may be good for body, mind, he mentions a student conducted at Louisiana State University. In this study, the researchers specifically chose 115 students who they knew chewed gum habitually. They then fed the students lunch. After lunch they found that students who chewed gum three times an hour after eating ate lunches with less calories. Those same students claimed they weren’t hungry as much either (Gajilan 2009). Although this is an experimental study, there still needs to be more studies conducted and evidence collected. There is always a chance that another variable besides chewing gum can have an effect on the food consumption.

Making a Bubble

According to WebMD, chewing gum can help you decrease your cravings for food. Zelman, writer of the article Diet Myth or Truth: Chewing Gum for Weight Loss, says that this doesn’t mean if all you do is chew gum, you’ll lose all the weight you want. You need to follow a diet on top of the gum chewing. Gum chewing is essentially just an extra thing to help out with your diet. If you’re adding gum to your diet, Zelman recommends that you try sugar-free gum because it has around 5 calories in comparison to a regular pack of gum that has around 10 calories. But she also warns us that like many things in the world, there is such thing as too much. If consumed too much, gum may have you spending a lot more time in the bathroom than expected to a laxative effect (Zelman 2010).

Sugar-Free Gum

Similar to what was mentioned in the previous paragraph, it is said that sugar-free gum is the one people should chew if they want to try to lose weight. According to Tracii Hanes, writer of the article Does Chewing Sugar-Free Gum Help You Lose Weight?, sugar-free gum contains artificial sweeteners such as sorbitol and xylitol. Although these two ingredients give the gum some taste, they also have an effect when consumed in large quantities. The laxative effect was mentioned above and basically what that means is that too much consumption of gum can actually cause irregular bowel movements. That being said, a very large consumption of gum will lead you to dispose of waste, while losing weight in the process (Hanes 2013). If you want to lose some weight (we are talking minimal weight here), then grab yourself a pack of sugar-free gum, but make you don’t eat too much.

Measuring of Waist

According to the article Can Chewing Gum Help You Drop Pounds?, by Casey Gueren, chewing gum is found to have a negative effect on your diet. In the article Gueren includes a study from the University at Buffalo. In the experiment, 44 participants were put through three sessions. In the first session, the participants chewed mint gum, in the second session the participants chewed fruity gum and in the third session, the participants didn’t chew any gum (having this session act as the control). After each session, the people were asked a series of questions in regards to hunger and then given the choice to eat healthy or unhealthy food. According to the article, like other studies, people felt less hungry after the sessions of chewing gum. Here is where the problem appeared though. Although they were less hungry, they were found to have consumed less of the healthy foods (and the same of the junk food). The Women’sHealth article goes on to explain another experiment. Gueren explains that this experiment contained 54 participants who were told to document what they ate for the next few weeks. They were told to chew Ellipse gum for one week, Nutratrium gum for another week and no gum for the last week. According to the article, the studies found that participants consumed less snacks and nutrients but more calories. At the end of the study, researchers claimed that mint gum doesn’t taste good with fruits and vegetables so that’s why they were avoided more (Gueren 2013).

What I’d take away from this experiment is that although some studies have proven this to be true, there are still other studies that say sugar-free gum has no influence on your diet. Much more studies would need to be conducted in order to come to any final conclusions. There are also some harmful effects to consuming sugar-free gum (mostly when consuming too much) so putting yourself through situations like the laxative effect to lose weight might not be something you necessarily want to do. Right now, studies are inconclusive and vary too much to make a statement as to whether the correlation is causal or not. Don’t depend on gum to keep your diet going well and to help lose weight just yet!

Sources:

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/04/22/chewing.gum.benefits/

http://www.womenshealthmag.com/food/can-chewing-gum-help-you-drop-pounds

http://www.livestrong.com/article/541275-does-chewing-sugar-free-gum-help-you-lose-weight/

http://www.webmd.com/diet/obesity/features/diet-myth-or-truth-chewing-gum-for-weight-loss#1

Photo Sources:

Photo 1: http://howshealth.com/disadvantages-of-eating-chewing-gum/

Photo 2: http://www.candymachines.com/Dubble-Bubble-Sugar-Free-Bubble-Gum-P1521.aspx

Photo 3: http://dogsanddoubles.com/phototbdc/where-is-the-waist-measured

As we all know, giraffes are now the tallest animals that exist on earth. Their necks are even longer than their bodies and could reach more than 6 feet which sounds incredible. So do they get these long necks from their ancestors or not?

I searched some pictures of giraffe’s ancestors, and the picture showed the process of development from short necks to these extremely long necks which proves that giraffes’ long necks are affected by external factors.

French naturalist Jean Baptiste Lamarck came up with his theory saying that the reason giraffes have long necks is because of their demand for food. Back then, there were lots of different species that were the same heights as giraffes, so food sources became a serious problem for all of them. In order to get more food to survive, they forced themselves to reach for high trees and leaves. As time went on, their neck started to change and became longer and longer. Now that their babies would inherit their long necks and would grown even longer.

Sources:

1. http://wonderopolis.org/wonder/why-do-giraffes-have-long-necks/
2. https://www.sciencenews.org/blog/wild-things/how-giraffe-got-its-long-neck

I’m sure everyone has their favorite choice of beverage, and I’m sure many of you enjoy a good soda from time to time.My father has coke with dinner,a nd my mother loves her Diet Dr. Pepper. We all know from class that drinking sugary drinks might not be the best choice when it comes to gaining weight. However, have you ever wondered how these drinks can affect your teeth?

My first question was: Does soda decay your teeth and if so, how long does it take?

When you drink a soda the acids mix with the bacteria in your mouth to slowly decay your teeth. This article states that the decay process takes about 20 minutes and restarts every time you take a drink of your soda. It also says that those, such as children, whose enamel are still growing, are more inclined to get tooth decay with excessive amount of soda consumption. So, it isn’t really the sugars in the soda, breathe the acids that attack your mouth.  IT was difficult to find a particular time frame for losing teeth due to soda, however there were many tips on how to prevent this nasty decay. Many of the common tips include  not drinking soda often, Using a straw to prevent the acid from attacking your teeth, brushing your teeth after consumption, and SIMPLY NOT DRINKING IT. A tasty juice or water is a healthy alternative that is much less harsh on your precious teeth.

I was also curious if certain sodas were more acidic or caused more decay than others? Well one very harmful drink is Mountain Dew. This drink is so acidic it has even coined the nickname Mountain Dew Mouth which occurs when the teeth begin to decay. However, it is not even the most acidic drink. According to the Mississippi State Department of Health, Pepsi and Coca Cola are the most acidic drinks, right below battery acid. Their acidic levels are at a4.5 on the scale. Right behind them is minute maid orange soda and then Dr. Peper.

This was very helpful in knowing how to keep my teeth safe and learning what sodas to stay away from. I am not the biggest coke fan as it is, but after learning how acidic the drink is, I plan to not drink it. I don’t drink soda very often, and I once took a year off for sports and it made a big difference. I am not trying to tell you not to drink soda, but it is clear that it does more harm than good, and it seems to me that it just isn’t worth losing teeth over.



Sources: http://www.wda.org/your-oral-health/sip-all-day

http://www.healthline.com/health/dental-and-oral-health/mountain-dew-mouth

http://msdh.ms.gov/msdhsite/_static/43,2809,151,299.html

Pictures: http://www.deardoctor.com/articles/diet-soda-can-damage-teeth-as-severely-as-illegal-drugs/

https://www.rt.com/usa/diet-soda-teeth-meth-963/

Have you ever walked into a room and suddenly your mood changes completely? Well I was thinking about this the other day as I was walking through the abstract section of the Palmer Art Museum. I was wondering, can the color of the room, affect a person’s mood? When I look at the colors on the paintings, each one seems to pull a different emotion out. I think this is why painters play with color so much, and I am curious if it really does affect one’s behavior?

A study was recently done by Alexander S. Soldat and Robert C. Sinclair from the University of Alberta that began to explore this question. They did two studies, but they were both very similar. Overall, they had test subjects complete either high complexity or simple tasks on either blue, red, or white paper. What they found was that in simple tasks, or low motivation, the blue or white paper participants outperformed those who were using red paper. They also later tested how the colors made people feel and they found that the red color was correlated with more positive feelings.

Another study was conducted to see how people responded to purchasing a product based on the background colors in the ads. This study revealed that people were more likely to buy a product if it was associated with the blue color than the red. The article says that red has been associated with tension, and blue with calmness. Thus, when selling a product the blue colors are a better advertising move. THis relates to mood because just based off of a color, we are subliminally changing how we feel and simultaneously changing how we act.

Lastly another study was done where 92 college students were asked to respond to five primary hues, five intermediate hues, and finally three achromatic colors.. The color green ended up getting the highest positive reaction because of its association with nature. White also got a highly positive response. However, green-yellow got a negative response due to the fact that we associate it with sickness.

This is why I believe that color affects someone’s mood. Whether we mean to or not, we associate colors with different emotions, different moments, and it is for this reason that we enjoy some colors more than others. THink about walking into a white room, as opposed to walking into a room splattered with vibrant color. THe colorful mood will most likely strike a more positive reaction because you associate bright colors with happiness. So, when you are down or are looking to change your mood, take into account your surroundings and maybe try to change up the color.

Sources: http://search.proquest.com/docview/848852947?pq-origsite=gscholar

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/mar.4220090502/full

http://search.proquest.com/openview/6745f55bc5de6d73483de3464545ebbb/1?pq-origsite=gscholar

Picture Sources:

http://hubpages.com/health/The-Psychology-of-Color-How-Color-Affects-Human-Behavior

http://www.businessflooring.net/blog/color-by-the-numbers-how-color-influences-mood-in-the-workplace

The entertainment at a senior event hosted by my high school this past spring included hair stylists, fortune tellers, and most fascinating to me, a graphologist, or handwriting analyst. I have always had good penmanship, so I was interested to see what the graphologist had to say about it. He took one quick glance at my small rounded letters and said “So what type of science are you going to be majoring in?”. Considering my presence in this class, which is specifically structured for non-scientists, he missed the mark quite a bit. However, a future art major, whose handwriting was evaluated before mine, had a different experience. Her messy, scripted letters helped the man to label her as a creative artist. I am an undecided student who is still open to pursuing a variety of majors, so this made me wonder if I should actually take the graphologist’s assumption about me into consideration. Is it possible to figure out personality through the judgement of handwriting?

In this case, the null hypothesis is that handwriting does not determine personal traits, and the alternative hypothesis is that handwriting determines personal traits. There are a large number of confounding variables for this hypothesis, like left-handed versus right-handed people, the fact that some people have multiple handwriting styles, the use of different writing utensils, and physical disabilities like poor eyesight or Parkinson’s Disease.

This image came from http://essaypedia.com/

In one experimental study, a large group of judges individually viewed samples of famous artist’s handwriting, and attempted to match each handwriting sample to each artist. The study claims that if chance played a factor here, they would have matched 33% correctly; instead, they matched 68% correctly. However, the researchers did take into account that these results could be connected to the judges’ previous knowledge of each artist’s artwork and style. In addition, similarity between the handwriting should be taken into account. These samples of handwriting were strikingly different from one another, making it easier to match the artist with the handwriting. A more convincing study would include handwriting samples that are similar, yet indicate different personality traits.

Another scientist conducted an experimental study in which judges rated handwriting according to specific traits, and then compared the results with the traits. The results of trying to determine qualities like intelligence and self confidence through the handwriting were not successful. The researchers in this study point out that the method in which the judges viewed the handwriting could influence the results. Rather than looking at each handwriting sample individually, they looked at them in a group and rated them individually.

These two studies were based on intuition, but there is also another way to study handwriting: analysis. With this method, more detail is taken into account, such as the ratio of spacing between letters. In a study by Pascal, handwriting samples were taken from 22 people, who were studied for 36 hours and then classified into 36 personality variables. Pascal ranked and attempted to connect the handwriting variables with the personality variables, but again, his results did not show a connection between handwriting and personality.

In conclusion, there are some qualities of handwriting which are attributed to certain personality traits, but this does not mean that every person has the qualities that their handwriting shows that they should have. The studies which include matching methods have too many confounding variables to determine successful results, and the last study, which used the analytical method, showed no results. The graphologists were able to match more handwritings than normal judges, but this is because they know what to look for, not because the results are actually true. According to Psychology Today, graphologists continue to argue that handwriting does reflect personality, considering the fact that graphology is used in forensic science to help solve crime cases. However, Psychology Today also points out that there is little evidence of mechanisms that explain the link. In these studies, the null hypothesis was accepted, meaning no link was found. The next time you take a Buzzfeed quiz like this, don’t take your results too seriously.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1467-6494.1949.tb01222.x/epdf

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/sideways-view/201605/write-and-wrong-personality-and-handwriting

https://www.buzzfeed.com/adamellis/what-does-your-handwriting-actually-say-about-you?utm_term=.kta55w3yz#.cxp443WYE

http://essaypedia.com/ 

In our generation, it seems that everyone is doing away with non-organic products, and leaning in favor of the seemingly healthier organic options. The USDA has found the prices of organic products to be about fifty percent more expensive than their non-organic counterparts.Though the prices of these organic prices are noticeably higher, are the health benefits of opting in favor of such products significant enough to pay them?

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In wake of the debate over which is better, organic or non-organic, researchers have put a lot of time in uncovering the truth. Three studies carried out in 2009, 2012, and 2014 all found that the difference in nutritional value was extremely insignificant. The only slight difference between organic and in-organic products, was that phosphorous levels were recorded to be higher in organic products.

Consumers, who are aware that organic products contain little to no increased nutritional value,  may still opt to purchase them. Why, you may ask? These consumers argue that non-organic products are sprayed with harmful pesticides, while organic ones are not. If only this argument could be justified, but sadly it is just a myth as well.

Though organic products are thought to be grown in a more natural way, their growth process still requires the use of pesticides. These are referred to a “organic pesticides”.  A study has found that these pesticides are actually needed in larger doses in comparison to the quantity needed to non-organic products. As a consequence they prove to be irreversibly, detrimental to the environment.

These findings have definitely made me think twice before I purchase organic goods in the supermarket, and I hope they urge you to rethink your choices as well!