Here are are a few stories that I have found interesting and I hope you will, too!
Mistakes can explain cooperative behavior
“The research shows that mistakes or ‘imperfect behaviour’ made by players in a game setting can lead to a systematic bias in how much or little they cooperate.
‘Our results suggest that players avoid both completely ‘selfish’ and ‘fully cooperative’ behaviour, even if one of these strategies delivers maximum benefit,’ said Professor West”
Education depends on books in the home
“Having books in the home is twice as important as the father’s education level, and more important than whether a child was reared in China or the United States.”
How antidepressants can subtly alter a baby’s brain
“The glow of pregnancy is no shield against depression. Millions of expectant mothers rely on antidepressant medication for help. But treating mom with drugs at this time in her life may have long-term consequences for baby.”
2 Comments
Sherilyn · May 23, 2010 at 5:26 pm
I read the article about “Education depends on books in the home”. I definitely agree that reading does make the child smarter either by reading stories to them or having them read. I had a great time with spelling tests and vocab because I am an avid reader. Seeing the words in the book really help one remember what they look like and make it more likely to spell them right. This article never said what kind of books were in the house though to make kids seem smarter than others. If they were educational books then that would make sense but if they were just childrens books, then I am not sure if kids would be that much smarter reading them than kids who wouldnt read them.
Bianca Vasvani · May 23, 2010 at 5:36 pm
The article on pregnancy and antidepressants was interesting. Ten percent of women suffer from being depressed because of the hormones associated with pregnancy or even in the months after delivery. Women are taking SSRI’s that life their mood by temporarily by boosting their serotonin level. I found it interesting that children who were exposed to antidepressants in the womb were more likely to appear sad or withdraw at 3 years old than those who were not exposed to antidepressants. It was also interesting that there is not a change in the child’s brain development by serotonin but a change in the child’s personality traits.
It is also important to recognize that personality traits that are developed in childhood could be chronic and cause even more serious and long lasting effects in the child’s adolescent and adult years. It was also important to not in this article that the SSRI’s cross the placenta, which is the source of nourishment for an infant, and it can also be detected in breast milk as well.
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