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Released: 20-Apr-2010 8:00 AM EDT
Educational Historian Looks at Origins of the Culture Wars
Binghamton University, State University of New York

In a new book, Fundamentalism and Education in the Scopes Era: God, Darwin and the Roots of America's Culture Wars, Binghamton University educational historian Adam Laats turns his attention to Protestant fundamentalism in the 1920s. He found that the movement has had a major effect on the American school system and also helped lay the foundation for today's culture wars.

Released: 19-Apr-2010 1:10 PM EDT
Professor Reappraises Mark Twain on the 100th Anniversary of Twain's Death -- April 21
Baylor University

Professor used Twain's anonymous newspaper articles for a book about Twain's evolution from a "bushwhacker" Confederate to a skeptical champion of racial justice.

Released: 14-Apr-2010 1:20 PM EDT
U.S. Church Attendance Steady, but Makeup of Churchgoers Changes
University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Sizeable shifts have occurred within traditionally reliable churchgoing groups – women, southerners and Catholics – that suggest those groups’ overall impact on church attendance rates in the United States has begun to wane.

Released: 12-Apr-2010 4:15 PM EDT
Nationwide “Jane’s Walks” Show What Makes Cities Livable
University of Utah

The first weekend in May marks urbanist Jane Jacob's legacy across the country with neighbors walking together to discover what makes their cities—from Boston to Los Angeles—vibrant and livable.

Released: 12-Apr-2010 8:00 AM EDT
Inside the Worlds of Exotic Dance
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

Research by sociologist Mindy S. Bradley-Engen reveals how the organization of an exotic dance establishment affects how the women who work there perceive their jobs.

Released: 7-Apr-2010 11:50 AM EDT
For Listening Pleasure, Skip the Program Notes?
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

Research by University of Arkansas music theorist suggests re-thinking the effect of program notes on listeners.

29-Mar-2010 10:40 AM EDT
For Dual-Income Husbands and Wives, It’s Still a Man’s World
Cornell University

New research demonstrates that hard-working women in dual-earner couples are at a distinct disadvantage to their male peers. These women are expected to do more housework and caregiving, making them much more likely to quit their jobs. The study will appear in the April 2010 edition of American Sociological Review.

Released: 1-Apr-2010 11:30 AM EDT
Jokester Jesus? Scholars, Pastors and Bloggers Muse about Whether Christ was Comical
Baylor University

Academicians, theologians and bloggers discuss whether Jesus had a sense of humor.

Released: 31-Mar-2010 8:00 AM EDT
Bullies Are Like Balloons
lynch coll

A professor at Westfield State College has conducted bullying workshops for area schools and has advice for victims and school administrators, alike. Bullying is in the national news following a tragic case in South Hadley, Mass. where a high school student committed suicide and nine students are being prosecuted.

Released: 28-Mar-2010 9:00 PM EDT
A Different Kind of Religious War
Baylor University

A new book, "Jesus Wars: How Four Patriarchs, Three Queens and Two Emperors Decided What Christians Would Believe for the Next 1,500 Years," by Philip Jenkins of Baylor University's Institute for Studies of Religion, explores how the world view of Jesus Christ was shaped through bitter and violent struggle.

Released: 26-Mar-2010 10:25 AM EDT
Finding God in Lost: Butler University Expert Offers Explanation
Butler University

Religion took center stage in the March 23 episode of the ABC television series Lost, “Ab Aeterno.” And that shouldn’t be a surprise, Butler University Associate Professor of Religion James McGrath said, because religion has always been part of the show’s journey.

Released: 24-Mar-2010 10:40 AM EDT
Top Students Earn Big Money for Egg Donations
Georgia Institute of Technology

Many egg donation agencies and private couples routinely exceed compensation recommendation limits for potential donors, a new study finds.

   
Released: 18-Mar-2010 3:15 PM EDT
Military Application of Transcendental Meditation Gaining Acceptance
Center for Advanced Military Science (CAMS)

Paper on Invincible Defense Technology published in peer-reviewed Pakistani journal.

Released: 17-Mar-2010 1:20 PM EDT
Search-and-Rescue Mission for Lost Gospel Music Is Reason for a Hallelujah
Baylor University

Baylor University's Black Gospel Music Restoration Project means that lost, never-released and discarded recordings are being preserved for free downloads by modern listeners.

Released: 11-Mar-2010 10:35 AM EST
Treatment for Violence Among Couples Should Consider Both Male and Female Offenders and the Possibility They'll Stay Together
Kansas State University

Sandra Stith, an expert in intimate partner violence, says research supports treatment that considers women can be violent themselves and that some couples choose to stay together regardless of violence in the relationship.

Released: 10-Mar-2010 7:00 AM EST
Youngest Americans at Forefront of Rapid Changes in U.S. Demographic Makeup
University of New Hampshire

In 2009, 48 percent of the children born in the United States were minorities, underscoring trends that show America’s youth are at the forefront of the country’s rapidly shifting demographic makeup, according to new research from the University of New Hampshire.

Released: 9-Mar-2010 8:00 PM EST
Social Scientists Decipher the Values Underlying the U.S. Social Safety Net
Urban Institute

Strongly held but conflicting values have shaped the U.S. social safety net and the policy debates since its expansion in the 1960s. A new Urban Institute Press book disentangles these beliefs and shows how they have led to the patchwork of mostly uncoordinated programs the safety net is today.

Released: 9-Mar-2010 2:15 PM EST
Male Batterers Consistently Overestimate Rates of Violence Toward Partners
University of Washington

Men who engaged in domestic violence consistently overestimated how common such behavior is by two or three times, and the more they overestimated it the more they engaged in abusing their partner in the previous 90 days.

Released: 9-Mar-2010 12:10 PM EST
Research Reveals Massive Extent of 'Faith Slavery' for 3 Centuries
Ohio State University

Although most people think of slavery as a matter of racial oppression, new research has suggested that, between 1500 and 1800, human bondage was often based on religion rather than on race.

Released: 8-Mar-2010 12:00 PM EST
Violent Crime 'Race Gap' Narrows, But Persists in U.S.
University of Maryland, College Park

The race gap in the commission of violent crime has narrowed substantially, yet persists - with murder arrest rates for African Americans out-distancing those for whites - concludes a new 80-city study. “It seems safe to conclude the gap won't disappear any time soon," says University of Maryland criminologist Gary LaFree.

Released: 3-Mar-2010 2:00 PM EST
Maverick Film Director Quentin Tarantino Subject of New Book by City Tech Professor Aaron Barlow
New York City College of Technology

“No contemporary filmmakers take risks the way Quentin Tarantino does. No one else is quite so willing to fail. And no one is as dedicated to reinvention as he is. He is the perfect topic for a film writer, for there is always something new to say, even about his old films, each time one watches a movie he has made,” Aaron Barlow says.

Released: 2-Mar-2010 5:00 PM EST
Shopping for Happiness? Get a Massage, Forget the Flat-Screen TV
Cornell University

Consumers found that satisfaction with “experiential purchases” – from massages to family vacations – starts high and increases over time. In contrast, spending money on material things feels good at first, but actually makes people less happy in the end, says Thomas Gilovich, Cornell University professor of psychology and Travis J. Carter, Cornell Ph.D. ’10. (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology).

Released: 2-Mar-2010 10:00 AM EST
Trying Too Hard to Track Spending Counterproductive for Grocery Shoppers
Georgia Institute of Technology

During economic downturns, staying within budget at the grocery store may be more important than ever for many shoppers, especially those with low incomes. But a new study shows that the harder shoppers try to accurately calculate the total value of items placed in their carts, the worse they do.

Released: 25-Feb-2010 10:00 AM EST
Mad as a Hatter and Other Deadly Fashion Faux Pas
Toronto Metropolitan University

According to Alison Matthews David, Professor in Ryerson’s School of Fashion, the depiction of Lewis Carroll's Mad Hatter may not be such a tall tale. Matthews David’s research on health and fashion is the foundation for her first book, Fashion Victims: Clothing and Health in Historical Perspective.

Released: 24-Feb-2010 2:10 PM EST
Recent Top Films Lack Females on Screen and Behind Camera
University of Southern California (USC)

USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism releases a new study examining gender oppression in cinematic content and behind the camera.

Released: 24-Feb-2010 11:00 AM EST
Intelligent People Have “Unnatural” Preferences and Values That Are Novel in Human Evolutionary History
American Sociological Association (ASA)

Higher intelligence is associated with liberal political ideology, atheism, and men’s (but not women’s) preference for sexual exclusivity. More intelligent people are statistically more likely to exhibit social values and religious and political preferences novel human evolutionary history.

Released: 24-Feb-2010 11:00 AM EST
Anti-Drinking Ads Can Increase Alcohol Use
Indiana University

Public service advertising campaigns that use guilt or shame to warn against alcohol abuse can actually have the reverse effect, spurring increased drinking among target audiences, according to new research from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business.

Released: 24-Feb-2010 10:45 AM EST
Census Expert: Rural Areas Risk Being Overlooked
University of New Hampshire

As the United States prepares for the 2010 census, rural areas are at risk of being undercounted, says demographer William O’Hare, senior policy fellow at the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire. O’Hare is available to comment on the characteristics of rural America that may make certain rural areas difficult to count.

Released: 24-Feb-2010 10:30 AM EST
Geography, Performance Order Influence Voting on American Idol
Dick Jones Communications

Geography and order of performance contribute to voting biases in American Idol, says a mathematician.

Released: 23-Feb-2010 11:35 AM EST
The Science of Hollywood Blockbusters
Association for Psychological Science

There is something about the rhythm and texture of early cinema that has a very different “feel” than modern films. But it’s hard to put one’s finger on just what that something is. New research may help explain this elusive quality.

Released: 19-Feb-2010 12:30 PM EST
Profs Use Animated Short to Highlight the Health Concerns of Homeless Youth
Dalhousie University

Researchers at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia use animation to shine a light on homeless youth.

Released: 18-Feb-2010 10:40 AM EST
Lack of Black Doctors Traced Primarily To Pre-College Factors
University of Virginia

African-Americans have long been underrepresented among health care professionals. As of 2005, blacks made up slightly more than 8 percent of first-year medical students in the United States – roughly half of their share of the U.S. population (15.4 percent in 2007), and just 1 percent more than their share of first-year medical students in 1975.

Released: 17-Feb-2010 10:00 AM EST
Researchers Use Geographic Information Systems to Quantify Impact of Place on French Wine
Kansas State University

Using geography, a Kansas State University professor and his colleague are working to back up what wine-lovers already know to be true. That is, the difference that soil, weather and location make in the taste of a vintage. The French refer to it as "terroir," and the researchers' goal is to scientifically identify and map terroir categories that will benefit the producers who make wines and the connoisseurs who enjoy drinking them.

Released: 17-Feb-2010 9:45 AM EST
Study of “The Lazy Bureaucrat” Problem Cited in Guardian (U.K) Article
Stony Brook University

Researchers developed mathematical formulas for scheduling procrastinators.

Released: 11-Feb-2010 8:45 PM EST
Violence Among College Couples Often Mutual Pushing, Shoving
Kansas State University

"In the research on college students in particular, we're finding both men and women can be perpetrators," Sandra Stith said. "In our growing-up years, we teach boys not hit their sister, but we don't teach girls not to hit their brother."

Released: 11-Feb-2010 12:10 PM EST
Sociologists Find Reasons Older Adults Turned to Online Options to Find Love, Marriage
Iowa State University

A new national survey of adults found that the Internet is now second to only friends in the way people first meet. Two Iowa State University sociologists are conducting related research on newlywed couples who first met online.

Released: 8-Feb-2010 3:00 PM EST
Book Questions Successes of Welfare Reform in Oregon
University of Oregon

University of Oregon authors focus on key perspectives and experiences, provide roadmap for changes.

Released: 8-Feb-2010 11:25 AM EST
Underdogs Have More Motivation? Not so Fast
Ohio State University

Members of a group or team will work harder when they’re competing against a group with lower status than when pitted against a more highly ranked group, according to a new study.

   
Released: 8-Feb-2010 8:00 AM EST
Has the Mystery of the Portrait of Maud Abrantes Been Solved?
University of Haifa

A century after Amedeo Modigliani painted the Portrait of Maud Abrantes, the mystery behind the painting might be solved. Ofra Rimon, Director and Curator of the Hecht Museum at the University of Haifa, discovered that hidden in the painting is the portrait of another woman. "Modigliani was probably not happy with that painting and decided to paint over it in favor of a portrait of Maud," she claims.

Released: 5-Feb-2010 10:40 AM EST
Equity and Opportunity Threatened by Growing National "Excellence Gap"
Indiana University

A new report from Indiana University finds that achievement gaps among high ability students from different economic, racial and linguistic backgrounds in the U.S. are large and growing.

Released: 4-Feb-2010 10:45 AM EST
Study Reveals Potential Evolutionary Role for Same-Sex Attraction
Association for Psychological Science

Male homosexuality doesn’t make complete sense from an evolutionary point of view. One possible explanation is what evolutionary psychologists call the “kin selection hypothesis.” Homosexuality may convey an indirect benefit by enhancing the survival prospects of close relatives.

Released: 4-Feb-2010 6:00 AM EST
Rather than the 'How,' Professor's New Book Examines the 'Why' of Photojournalism
Indiana University

There have been many books about what photographers see looking through the camera lens. A new book by an Indiana University journalism professor examines what drives the people who click the shutter.

Released: 3-Feb-2010 1:45 PM EST
Earning a Little Respect for Heavy Metal
Dalhousie University

As the first student to enroll in Dalhousie University's new master’s of musicology program, Eric Hardiman also aims to bring recognition to heavy metal music.

Released: 3-Feb-2010 12:10 PM EST
Altria’s Push to Promote Smokeless Tobacco Latest Route Around Regulations
Washington University in St. Louis

“The tobacco industry has always been very nimble and aggressive in its responses to new regulations, and Altria’s current attempts to market smokeless tobacco as ‘less harmful’ are no exception,” says Douglas Luke, Ph.D., professor and director of the Center for Tobacco Policy Research at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. “Part of what we're seeing here is the tobacco industry trying to position smokeless tobacco products so that they either do not come under the new Food and Drug Administration regulations or they come under weaker regulations.”

Released: 1-Feb-2010 2:45 PM EST
Documentary 'Blacking Up' Examines Racial Identity Through Hip-hop Music and Culture
Indiana University

When young whites embrace rap and hip-hop culture, is it an example of America moving toward being a colorblind society. Or is it just another case of cultural theft and mockery? That's the fundamental question of a provocative new documentary produced by an Indiana University doctoral candidate, Blacking Up: Hip-Hop's Remix of Race and Identity, which is airing on public television stations nationally through early March.

Released: 1-Feb-2010 11:00 AM EST
Researchers Offer First Projections of 2009, 2010 Charitable Giving by U.S. Households
Boston College

Researchers at Boston College's Center on Wealth and Philanthropy have developed the first model designed to estimate future charitable giving by households on a quarterly basis, and have issued first projections for 2009 and 2010.

Released: 29-Jan-2010 3:00 PM EST
Emo-Journalism: Should Reporters be the News?
Saint Joseph's University

Though professional journalists are taught to remain removed from and objective about the subject of their story, sometimes the events are so tragic it is impossible to maintain that distance. But a recent trend in news reporting, known as "emo-journalism," has taken understandably human responses to the next level. Former AP reporter Mike Lyons, Ph.D., assistant professor of English at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, Pa., discusses the trend.

Released: 29-Jan-2010 3:00 PM EST
Emo-Journalism: Should Reporters be the News?
Saint Joseph's University

Though professional journalists are taught to remain removed from and objective about the subject of their story, sometimes the events are so tragic it is impossible to maintain that distance. But a recent trend in news reporting, known as "emo-journalism," has taken understandably human responses to the next level. Former AP reporter Mike Lyons, Ph.D., assistant professor of English at Saint Joseph's University in Philadelphia, Pa., discusses the trend.

Released: 28-Jan-2010 10:45 AM EST
Government Financial Support of News Media Continues Steep Decline
University of Southern California (USC)

Government financial support that has bolstered this country's commercial news business since its colonial days is in sharp decline and is likely to fall further, according to a report released today by the University of Southern California’s Center on Communication Leadership & Policy. Because these cutbacks are occurring at the height of the digital revolution, they will have an especially powerful impact on a weakened news industry.

   
Released: 27-Jan-2010 1:45 PM EST
"The Grammy Awards Honor the Art – Not the Commerce – of Music"
Saint Joseph's University

Entertainment marketing expert Brent Smith, Ph.D., says that, despite the shift toward more popular music genres, the Grammy Awards should still be taken seriously by viewers as an event where artists are recognized for the quality of their work.



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