The Placebo Diet -- Harvard University psychologist Ellen Langer and her student Alia Crum found that many of the beneficial results of exercise are due to the placebo effect:
The researchers studied 84 female housekeepers from seven hotels. Women in 4 hotels were told that their regular work was enough exercise to meet the requirements for a healthy, active lifestyle, whereas the women in the other three hotels were told nothing. To determine if the placebo effect plays a role in the benefits of exercise, the researchers investigated whether subjects' mind-set (in this case, their perceived levels of exercise) could inhibit or enhance the health benefits of exercise independent of any actual exercise.
Four weeks later, the researchers returned to assess any changes in the women's health. They found that the women in the informed group had lost an average of 2 pounds, lowered their blood pressure by almost 10 percent, and were significantly healthier as measured by body-fat percentage, body mass index, and waist-to-hip ratio. These changes were significantly higher than those reported in the control group and were especially remarkable given the time period of only four weeks.
Convincing myself that I have a "healthy, active lifestyle" will sure be easier than going to the gym. [Here is the full paper online.] (HT: Collision Detection)
13 Rules from a Father to his 6 Kids -- Jamsco has a useful list of parental rules. Sample: "6. Unless you are sitting on it or cleaning it, there is never a reason to touch a toilet."
The Political Web -- Stony Brook University is conducting an online survey designed to help them understand what Americans like you think about internet advertising, modern campaigns, and politics. Click here to take the survey.
Huckabee on Climate Change -- From a Newsweek interview of Gov. Mike Huckabee:
Newsweek: But do you believe there’s a human role in climate change?
Huckabee: There may be. But whether there is or there isn’t, it doesn’t release us from the responsibility to be good stewards of the environment. It’s the old boy scout rule: you leave your campsite in as good or better shape than how you found it. It’s a spiritual issue. [The earth] belongs to God. I have no right to destroy it. I think we work toward alternative energy sources. [We need to make it] like the Manhattan Project or going to the moon. We need to accelerate our energy independence.
My thoughts exactly. (HT: Prosthesis)
Research Tool
The Sunlight Foundation and PPF have collaborated on OpenCongress.org, a useful site for researching legislation that "brings together official government data with news and blog coverage to give you the real story behind each bill."
Why are teenagers so dumb? -- Because they spend all their time hanging around with dumb people -- other teenagers:
Consider that the average teen in the Pew study reported spending about 18 hours a week in some form of social activity with other teens, either in person or online. Another Pew study found, for example, that the majority of American teens are active on one or more social networking sites. Add to this the reality that nearly half of U.S. high-school seniors work 20 or more hours per week during the school year (very likely with other unskilled people), and the picture becomes clearer: a large portion of high-school seniors spend nearly 40 hours a week interacting primarily with other ignorant individuals. It's almost as if we've made the study of stupidity a full-time job for them.
(HT: A Constrained Vision)
Barth? Well, he's no Kuyper… -- Richard Mouw on the influence of Abraham Kuyper:
I have never, for example, come across anyone who has testified that Karl Barth’s theology was a real help to them in understanding how to serve the Lord in the insurance business, or in teaching English literature, or in selling cars. But I can offer dozens of examples of that kind of testimony with reference to Kuyper’s thought.
Dr. Mouw can add me to that list too.
The thing about teenagers being so dumb because of who they hang around with is an interesting twist on something every homeschool parent knows (and constantly has to explain to others). That is, kids get their best socialization from good adult role models (most typically their parents). It's mostly a defensive reflex from parents who send their kids to government schools, but once you've thoroughly shown that homeschool is better academically, you hear "But...but...what about socialization?". Well, let me put it this way. I'm around a lot of homeschool kids and a lot of government school kids because I coach soccer. When I started coaching soccer, I was shocked at the difference in "socialization" between the homeschool kids and the government school kids. And these are 7 and 8 year olds. I can't wait to see what these kids are like when the government has had their mitts on them a few more years.