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True or False – Women talk three times as much as men?

Posted on March 30, 2015

False.61 women talk more than men

It is a popular stereotype that women talk more than men; many people think they talk a lot more. However, very little research has been conducted on this topic. In 2006, a woman by the name of Louann Brizendine published a book called The Female Brain. In the book she wrote that women speak about 20,000 words a day verses about 7,000 words a day for men. However, her claims were not supported by scientific studies. The only well designed study I could find which examined the number of words spoken between men and women was conducted by Mehl and colleagues (2007) and published in the journal Science. The authors studied nearly 400 college students over a seven year period. They used a device called an electronically activated recorder, EAR for short, to record words spoken throughout the day. The EAR device was set to record for thirty second every twelve and a half minutes participants were awake (this averaged about 17 hours a day). However, the device was set up in such a way so the participants didn’t know when the recording was taking place. When the study was completed, the authors learned that women spoke on average 16,215 words a day compared to 15,669 for men. So, women did speak slightly more words per day, but nowhere near 13,000 more. The fewest words spoken throughout the day was 700, and the most was 47,000. The participant who spoke 47,000 words a day was a male! The authors did report that women talked more about other people, and men talked more about concrete topics. If there is no scientific evidence that shows women speak more than men, how did this myth get so widespread? No one is really sure. One idea is that it originally came from marriage counselors, another from the notion that women often want to talk through their problems and men don’t.

Reference:

Mehl M, Vazire S, Ramirez-Esparaza N, Slatcher R, Pennebaker J: Are women really more talkative than men? Science (2007), Vol 317, pg 82.

Categories: Myths

True or False – We only use 10% of our brain?

Posted on March 16, 2015

False. image48

Imagine if you could take a supplement or complete a training program that would allow you to “unleash” the 90% of your brain that you currently don’t use! The truth is we really do use all of our brain. The 10 percent myth has been circulating for a long time. Many self-help gurus like people to think they only use a small capacity of their brain, as it enables them to sell lots of products and make a lot of money. It is thought that famed psychologist Williams James may have inadvertently started this myth when he stated that humans only achieve a portion of their true potential. Somehow 10% got attached to that statement and it morphed into we only use 10% of our brains. Then the 10 percent myth was mentioned in the preface of Dale Carnegie’s book How to Win Friends and Influence People, and that was likely how the myth got to be so widespread. Interestingly, many people still believe this myth. For example, the authors of one study (Higbee 1998) performed on college students (a relatively well educated population) reported that when participants were asked “About what percentage of their potential brain power do you think most people use?” over 31% of the students answered 10%. Brain imaging scans have revealed that all parts of our brain are in fact active. We may use different portions of our brains for different functions; so different parts of our brains may be active at different times, however, there are no black holes or dead spaces in our brains. It is well documented in the medical literature that injury or damage to a small area of the brain can result in devastating neurological consequences. So, rest assured even on days when it doesn’t seem like it, you are using all of our brain.

Reference:

Higbee K & Clay S: College student’s beliefs in the ten-percent myth. The Journal of Psychology (1998), Vol 132, pps. 469-476.

 

Categories: Myths

True or False – Individuals Who Multitask Are More Productive?

Posted on March 2, 2015

False.image47

There has been a fair amount of research performed on multitasking. However, before I reference a scientific study I’d like to discuss an “informal experiment” I conducted with one of my best friends in a canoe on a sunny summer afternoon. My friend and I were fishing, and the fish were biting! My friend has the habit of using 2 or 3 rods at the same time, and this particular day he was using 3. He held one in his hand, had one balanced in his lap, and had the other one propped up diagonally in the canoe. Not paying close attention to any of his rods, he missed many more fish than he caught. I’d estimate I out-fished him 5 to 1 that afternoon. That was all the “evidence” I needed to confirm that it is better to focus on one task than to do multiple things at once. Our brains are wired in such a way as it is difficult for us to take in multiple streams of information at one time. Likewise, we are not wired to be able to perform more than one task at a time very well (try reading and saying the alphabet at the same time). Now you might think that, considering the lives many of us lead, multitasking seems to be a necessity. A vision of a mother paying the family bills, checking her son’s homework, cooking dinner, answering e-mails, talking on the phone, all while listening to her i-pod, comes to mind. The truth is that when we try and do two things at once, our productivity actually decreases. The authors of one study (Ophir et. al., 2009) which examined cognitive control in media multitakers concluded “This led to the surprising result that heavy media multitaskers performed worse on a test of task-switching ability”. Not only can multitasking decrease productivity, it can also be dangerous – think about the dangers of texting while driving!
Reference:
Ophir E, Nass C. Wagner A: Cognitive control in media multitaskers. Psychological and Cognitive Sciences (2009), Vol 106, pps. 15583-15587.

Categories: Myths

True or False – Chocolate is very harmful to dogs and can even kill them?

Posted on February 24, 2015

True. 63 Chocolate can kill dogs

Years ago, my wife and I took a leisurely stroll with our beloved dog, Cody. The walk was uneventful until Cody came to a dead stop that nearly pulled my arm out of its socket. Since he wasn’t doing his doggy duty, I closely inspected my pet to learn the reason for his odd behavior. I discovered that he had found a perfectly intact chocolate bon bon on the ground, and was holding it gently in his mouth, head down, indicating that he knew full well that it was forbidden. To make a long story short, my wife was panicked, certain that Cody would die on the spot and Cody was just as desperate to keep his prize. Amazingly, the dog actually forfeited the chocolate after much coaxing, and lived to see another day. While one bon bon may not have actually killed Cody, it is true that chocolate is harmful to dogs in large quantities, and could result in serious health problems or possibly even death. The authors of a short article which appeared in the British Medical Journal (2005) wrote “The potential hazards to humans of eating too much chocolate are well known (obesity and dental caries to name but two), but you may be unaware that chocolate is potentially lethal to dogs”. There is a chemical in chocolate called theobromine, and this is what is so harmful to dogs. Different types of chocolates contain different amounts of theobromine, however. White chocolate contains very little theobromine and is usually not considered to be harmful to canines. Milk chocolate contains 60 mg per oz, semisweet chocolate 160 mg per oz, and bakers chocolate about 450 mg per oz. Consuming theobromine will likely stimulate a dog’s central nervous system and heart as well as increase their blood pressure. Additional negative effects could include vomiting, diarrhea, muscle spasms, excessive panting, and increased urination. If you have a dog that consumes chocolate, the best thing to do would be to call your veterinarian immediately.

Reference:

Finlay F & Guiton S: Chocolate Poisoning. British Medical Journal (2005), Vol 331, pg 633

Categories: Myths

True or False – The longer you sit at a slot machine, the greater your odds are of winning?

Posted on February 10, 2015

False. image43

Imagine this scenario; you are in your favorite casino playing your favorite slot machine, you’ve been playing about two and a half hours and just put your last quarter in hoping to hit it big.  It didn’t happen and now you’re out $125.  You decide to head to the $19.95 all-you-can-eat buffet and drown your sorrows with BBQ ribs, fried chicken, and soft-serve ice cream.  On your way to the buffet you see the jackpot lights go off on the exact machine you just left.  You think, if only I’d have stayed a couple of minutes longer, that jackpot would have been mine.  The truth is that even if you would have stayed at the slot machine, you likely wouldn’t have hit the jackpot.  Today’s slot machines use random number generators for the symbol combinations, so they are always changing; it is not possible to just “wait a machine out”.  If that were the case, you could just keep playing until you hit the jackpot.  The truth is the odds of hitting a jackpot on the 3rd spin are the same as hitting a jackpot on the 30,000th spin.  You also might think that if a machine hits a jackpot, it won’t hit another one for some time, also not true; the odds are the same on hitting a jackpot the very next spin.  Many people find slot machines fun to play and stimulating.  The authors of one study (Yucha 2007) reported that gambling increased physiological variables such at systolic and diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, respiratory rate, and skin temperature.  It is understandable how people can get addicted to slots.  However, if you’re looking to actually win money at the casino, slots are not a very good bet.  Your odds of winning at games like blackjack or craps are actually higher.  Many slot machines are programmed to pay out roughly 92%, so for every dollar you put in, you win back on average 92 cents.  Good deal for the casino, bad deal for you.

Reference:

Yucha C, Bernhard B, Prato C: Physiological effects of slot play in women. Applied Psychophysiology & Biofeedback (2007), Vol 32, pps. 141-147

 

Categories: Myths

True or False – Some red food colorings are made from ground up bugs?

Posted on February 4, 2015

True.image45

The next time you pull out the red food coloring from your cupboards to make frosting for a cake, keep in mind that the food coloring may have been made from ground up bugs.  The food colorings carmine and cochineal are in fact made from ground up insects – Dactylopius Coccus bugs.  These bugs live on Opuntia Cactus plants in South and Central America.  When harvested and dried, roughly 20% of the volume of these insects is carminic acid; this is what is used to create food coloring.  The bugs are harvested by scraping them off the cactus or collecting them in small baskets or nests attached to the cactus.  It takes about 70,000 bugs to make a pound of coloring!  These particular food colorings are sometimes labeled as “natural coloring”, “cochineal extract”, “carmine”, and “artificial coloring” on food labels.  For obvious reasons, food manufacturing companies have made the decision to stay away from adding “crushed bugs” to their ingredients lists.  These colorings were used by the Aztecs and other Indian populations in Mexico for a variety of reasons (e.g., food coloring, coloring clothing).  Today, cochineal extract and carmine can be found in products like yogurt, candy, fruit juices, and even in cosmetics.  These “natural” food colorings have increased in popularity over the past few years as some have suggested links between synthetic food dyes and cancer.  The food colorings derived from bugs are generally considered to be safe, however, Chung et al, (2001) report a number of cases of allergic reactions after individuals consumed carmine, and reference other studies in their paper where carmine ingestion or exposure contributed to asthma, alveolitis, and food allergy.  Understandably, certain cultures or groups of people are opposed to eating insects for religious or nutritional reasons, and then of course there is always the “eww” factor.

Reference:

Chung K, Baker J, Baldwin J, Chou A: Identification of carmine allergens among three carmine allergy patients. Allergy (2001), Vol 56, pps. 73-77.

Categories: Myths

True or False – Hostess Twinkies have a shelf life of just over two years?

Posted on January 28, 2015

False. image46

As I was preparing to write this post I realized it had been years since I’ve enjoyed the sweet, spongy, cream filled delicacy that is the Twinkie.  So, I made my way to a store and soon realized I couldn’t buy just one individual cake, I had to buy a box of 10.  What I thought was going to cost me a quarter, ended up costing me $3.39!  Twinkies have been around since 1930 when a baker in Chicago wanted to better utilize shortcake pans and started experimenting with the cream filled spongy cakes.  The cakes were initially filled with a banana cream filling but during WWII when bananas were hard to come by, the banana cream filling was replaced with a vanilla flavored filling.  Many people think that Twinkies last a long time.  I’ve read that some believe Twinkies have a shelf life of 2, 5, and even 10 years.  Some have even thought that Twinkies never go bad because they are made from nothing but chemicals.  Not true.  The shelf-life of Twinkies is about 25 days.  Don’t believe it? I didn’t either! In comparison, some MRE’s (Meals Ready to Eat) can last up to 10 years if stored at 60 degrees.  Shelf life is defined as the time that a product is acceptable and meets the consumer’s expectations regarding food quality (Martins 2008).  Things that impact shelf life include temperature, water content, light exposure, and oxygen.  There are a lot of chemicals in Twinkies (too many to list in this short chapter), but there is also flour, sugar, shortening and eggs.  If you indulge, do so in moderation as each cake contains 150 calories, 4.5 grams of fat, 27 grams of carbohydrates and 220 mg of sodium. 

Reference:

Martins R, Lopes V, Vicente A, Teixeira J: Computational shelf-life dating: complex systems approaches to food quality and safety.  Food Bioprocessing Technology (2008), Vol 1, pps. 207-222.

Categories: Myths

True or False – Individuals who multi-task are more productive?

Posted on January 20, 2015

False. image47

There has been a fair amount of research performed on multitasking.  However, before I reference a scientific study I’d like to discuss an “informal experiment” I conducted with one of my best friends in a canoe on a sunny summer afternoon.  My friend and I were fishing, and the fish were biting!  My friend has the habit of using 2 or 3 rods at the same time, and this particular day he was using 3.  He held one in his hand, had one balanced in his lap, and had the other one propped up diagonally in the canoe.  Not paying close attention to any of his rods, he missed many more fish than he caught.  I’d estimate I out-fished him 5 to 1 that afternoon.  That was all the “evidence” I needed to confirm that it is better to focus on one task than to do multiple things at once.  Our brains are wired in such a way as it is difficult for us to take in multiple streams of information at one time.  Likewise, we are not wired to be able to perform more than one task at a time very well (try reading and saying the alphabet at the same time).  Now you might think that, considering the lives many of us lead, multitasking seems to be a necessity.  A vision of a mother paying the family bills, checking her son’s homework, cooking dinner, answering e-mails, talking on the phone, all while listening to her i-pod, comes to mind.  The truth is that when we try and do two things at once, our productivity actually decreases.  The authors of one study (Ophir et. al., 2009) which examined cognitive control in media multitakers concluded “This led to the surprising result that heavy media multitaskers performed worse on a test of task-switching ability”.  Not only can multitasking decrease productivity, it can also be dangerous – think about the dangers of texting while driving!

Reference:

Ophir E, Nass C. Wagner A: Cognitive control in media multitaskers. Psychological and Cognitive Sciences (2009), Vol 106, pps. 15583-15587.

Categories: Myths

True or False – Stress causes hair to turn gray?

Posted on January 13, 2015

False. image44

Have you ever heard someone say something like “you are going to give me gray hair” or “all this stress is going to turn me gray”?  I actually remember saying this a few times in my life, for example when our children were progressing through the terrible twos.  Well, there really is no scientific evidence that links stress and hair turning gray.  Graying often starts in the mid 30’s for Caucasians and the mid 40’s in people of color.  However, graying can start as early as the mid to late teens or not start until an individual is in their 50’s or 60’s.  If you read much on this topic you will likely come across the 50/50/50 principle.  That is roughly 50% of people will have 50% of their hair turn grey by the time they are 50 years old.  As I sit and write this chapter I happen to be attending a meeting and am sitting directly behind a woman in her mid 50’s.  She has very long pretty hair, and I’d say that somewhere between 50% and 60% of her hair is grey.  I’m currently 40 years old and started noticing the appearance of grey hairs 5 or 6 years ago and it is progressing quickly!  My father is in his mid 70’s and has brilliantly white hair, so I anticipate in the next 5 to 10 years I will be completely gray.  Some people work hard to cover up their gray hair with things like artificial coloring products, where others just accept that graying is a normal part of the aging process.  Some people even like to see their hair turn gray as they think it makes them look distinguished.  What actually causes gray hair?  Hair has the color it does due to pigment, this pigment is called melanin.  The cells that create melanin are called melanocytes.  As we age, melanocytes die or produce less pigment resulting in gray hair.  An article (Trueb 2005) about aging hair also states that genetics play a role and autoimmune disorders can turn hair gray.

Reference:

Trueb, R: Aging of Hair. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology (2005), Vol 4, pps. 60-72.

Categories: Myths