Is it good to listen to music at work?

There’s one thing you notice whenever you come back from camping. The noise.

In the car, the shops, the gym: the beat of a drum, the strum of a guitar, the sound of synth – it can feel like we live world of tunes. Arrive at work and what do we do? Turn the radio on or put the headphones in. A survey published last year showed that UK office workers spend a third of their working week listening to music. Why? We use music as a stress relief; to improve concentration or to trigger inspiration.

Let’s cast a scientific eye and find out when listening to music at work really is good or bad… Read more

January 23, 2012

The Debt we owe to Dyslexia: Are you reading this correctly?

Most of us think dyslexia is a bad thing. At school I had a friend who was told by a teacher that he was “thick” and “wouldn’t achieve anything in life”. Not because he was stupid (he was, and still is, extremely intelligent) but because his reading and writing abilities were horrendous.

Things have thankfully changed, but probably not enough. Many consider dyslexia a disability or a disorder. And this isn’t just in popular culture: if you search through the academic literature, nine out of ten articles describe dyslexia as an impairment. (Try it yourself at Google Scholar)

Shame on us. Today’s society is so dependent on alphanumeric communication that it is difficult to see it dyslexia as anything other than disability. But our ancestors wouldn’t have seen it that way – the success of our species probably owes much to the ‘dyslexia trait’. It’s high time we all got re-educated…(myself included) Read more

January 14, 2012

26 reasons not to trust what you read in the newspaper

So we all know we shouldn’t believe everything we read. Tabloids and science have never been the best of bed fellows (or should that be tabloids and the truth?).

But just how widespread is fallacious newspaper reporting? An intriguing little investigation from University College Chester made an attempt to measure the terribleness (or not) of health and nutrition reporting in the British press. For one month, two intrepid investigators bought a British tabloid every day of the week.

Focusing on articles covering food and nutrition, they compared what the newspaper wrote and the research it was (purportedly) based on. Here’s what they found… Read more

January 6, 2012

Are Bible-bashers scientifically stupid?

It never used to be like this. Sir Isaac Newton, one of the influential scientists to grace the Earth would be horrified. An outspoken Bible-believer, Newton believed that his observations of the Universe made the existence of God irrefutable.

How times change.

‘New Atheism’ is the increasingly popular movement within top science thinkers. Its advocates say that religion should not be tolerated and ought be actively criticised. There is many a scientist who would argue an atheistic world view with all the fervour of Newton: Biologist Richard Dawkins likens a religious education to child abuse; Chemist Peter Atkins forcefully argues that religion is for those of ‘adipose’ minds (i.e. brains containing only fat).

But how much truth is there in idea that religion results in ignorance of science and logic? New research would suggest not very much… Read more

December 12, 2011

New Research says: Men Think About Sex More Often Than Women. Really?

If you want to do some headline-grabbing research it doesn’t get much better than this. Recent research published in the Journal of Sex Research (yes, I was surprised it existed as well) from the University of Ohio tries to give the most accurate-to-date answer to the age old stereotype of whether men really think about sex more than women.

In a slightly more risque blog post that normal (I don’t particularly want to be found on Google searches relating to ‘sex’, for obvious reasons), It nevertheless seemed important to explore such a relevant issue – well, a friend asked me to comment on said research – so that’s good enough.

Sex researcher Terri Fischer (with the help of two obliging students) concluded that men do think about sex more than women – but not by much. If her results are to be believed, it’s a far cry from the claim that ‘men think about sex every seven seconds’. Intriguingly, she also concludes that there are some factors that make women more likely to have erotic preoccupations… Read more

December 4, 2011

Forget a ‘broken society’ – did Boredom cause the London Riots?

Albert Nerenbert- the man who claims boredom was the cause of the UK's summer riots. (Source: AlbertNerenberg.com)

The official report on the reasons behind last year’s riots in the UK will be published tomorrow. It concludes that half a million families in the UK aren’t getting the support they need. It also points the finger at poor parenting, and materialism brought on by advertising. But perhaps there is a more basic, scientific and primitive urge that triggered the rioting? One man thinks that boredom may have been the cause. And he’s not the only one – and has some compelling science to back up his claims.

It sounds an outrageous proposition, but the notion that being ‘fed up’ causes rioting is the put forward in a forthcoming documentary by Canadian film producers, Elevator Films (for release May 2012). The documentary, led by director/producer Albert Nerenberg (of ‘Laughology’ fame), explores the idea that widespread boredom across the UK (through unemployment and poor-schooling) was a key factor in the wide-spread looting of otherwise ‘normal’ English men and women. The film travels the globe, interviewing some of the world’s top thinkers on boredom research. They also asked me to give an opinion. Read more

November 18, 2011

What’s the best month to be born?

It’s nice to feel special.

Astrologers would say your birth month dictates your personality, temperament and chances of future success. Clearly, that’s a load of tosh and designed to make us feel special. However, my wife’s recent remark that ‘all the best people are born in June’ got me thinking. True, she does share her birth month with Donald Trump, George Orwell and Prince William – but surely that’s down to chance. Or is it?

For a long time it has been said that children born in different seasons are more or less susceptible to certain illnesses. Experts have usually cast a wary eye, sceptical of such an absurd notion. Such a suggestion reeks of star signs, planetary alignments, and other such astrological mumbo-jumbo.

However, Virgo’s scales are tipping in favour this idea. Whilst not predicting who your future love, or whether you should turn up for work today, your birth month may dictate your long-term health, your height and ultimately, how long you will live… Read more

November 8, 2011

Smart Homes: Clever ideas for tomorrow’s health

As anyone who’s spent time in a hospital ward will know, dementia is a big problem.

The elderly with memory problems occupy a disproportionate number of hospital beds. Often admitted for a simple illness, they represent a forgotten populace left in limbo. No longer able to fully care for themselves yet not needing full-time care; they wait in hospital are get labelled ‘bed-blockers’. People with dementia don’t get a fair deal. ‘Care packages’ – designed to let them live in their own home are all-too-often delayed by bureaucracy and lack of funding.

Technology is now offering new hope for those afflicted with one of the most feared conditions. Smart-homes – houses integrated with electronic devices are letting people who would otherwise be in nursing homes lead independent lives.

A residence wired with technological wizardry is no longer just for Bill Gates – it’s coming to a neighbourhood near you… Read more

November 1, 2011

Dr Kanazawa: a Fascist Scientist, or Science Censorship?

A note to lawyers – today’s blog post in no way endorses fascism, racism or any other perverse ideologies. It is intended to stimulate debate and thought.

Science - Racist?

Phew, I think I’m safe from a libel suit.

Last week Dr Satoshi Kanazawa, lecturer and psychology guru, was suspended from most of his teaching duties at the London School of Economics. After writing a blog article entitled “Why are black women less physically attractive than other women?”, a furore erupted.

The far-right English Defence League lapped it up, citing it as evidence for their cause. Everyone else said it was utter tosh. Dr Kanazawa, being no stranger to controversy, has a publication list that would enrage women, ethnic minorities, the poor, Jewish, and… well, pretty much everybody who isn’t rich and middle class.

But this all raises a far more pressing question: Should scientific research, like Kanazawa’s, ever be censored? Are there ever any ‘no-go’ areas in the quest for greater knowledge and understanding? Read more