Whether or not the government gave money to these studies and surveys, here are more that I have issues with or just think were a waste of time and money in 2011:
1. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine finds 1 in 4 US workers are affected by insomnia. Some researchers said that statistically Monday is the most depressive day of the week, we don’t smile until 11:16 and we only have 3 ½ hours of productive time. GMA reported that a study found we complain for 34 minutes on Mondays and 22 minutes on the other work days.
2. I heard drug companies are working on a men’s birth control pill. You can see a condom but not a swallowed pill so I don’t think women would trust them to use it. This expense goes right along with the drugs for an erection which I would rather see spent on other things.
3. Researchers said that married people that have been together 8 years or more are more likely to pick up their partners bad habits than the good ones and almost in every case it’s the man that’s the bad influence.
4. A study found that 90% of the perishables in bagged lunches get too warm to prevent food borne illness even with an ice pack. I do wonder how I and obviously many others survived these lunches all these years.
5. A Johns Hopkins researcher said cartoon characters are getting children to nag their parents for fatty food. Critics said food marketers know this and exploit it. When asked by ABC reporter Dan Harris if cartoon characters should be banned like Joe Camel, the researcher said no but wishes they’d use them to market healthier food. She pointed to another study she did that found if you wrap carrots in a McDonald’s packaging that kids actually say the carrots taste better.
6. The University of Arizona came up with a list of the dirtiest things that will make you sick; gas pumps, public mailbox handles, escalator rails, ATM buttons and parking meters. The ladies on the Talk added: elevator buttons, hotel remote controls, phones, bedspreads, light switches and peanuts on a bar.
7. Although Darwin studied it first, the University of Virginia found that when you smile your muscles send a message to the part of your brain that controls emotion and people with smiles are happier; bottom line - a smile is free and it may help you live longer.
8. The Center for Disease Control data showed the top 5 cities with insomniacs are: Detroit, Michigan, Birmingham, Alabama, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, New Orleans, Louisiana and New York City, New York.
9. AAA gas surveys make me crazy. The octane and state gas taxes are not the same in all states; this is not taken into account and their surveys are distorted. The same can be said of the poverty index; the cost of living is not the same in every state therefore poverty in one state could be lower middle class in another.
10. Notre Dame found that nice guys finish last. Less agreeable men make 18% more and women 5% more. I hope people don’t use this information to get belligerent with their bosses. A good boss will listen to a person with different ideas as long as they solve a problem; they will not just argue for argument sake. I think you better have something productive to offer before disagreeing with the boss or you’ll just get fired. There was apparently a study published in the Wall Street Journal that found the more power the person in the office has the less likely they are to take advice from their underlings because they have inflated confidence; the study also found that female bosses listen better than men. Now isn’t that a surprise.
11. There was a study that found 13% of the people faked a phone call so they didn’t have to talk to someone.
12. A Harvard study said attending one rain free 4th of July event before the age of 18 makes children more likely to become Republicans. If this were true it must rain a lot to have so many Democrats, or there’s a lot of people who do not celebrate the event, or we have a lot of Republicans that don’t vote.
13. Ohio State University found that woman put on weight immediately after the wedding (within 2 years) and gain some after a divorce but men put on up to 20 pounds within a year after a divorce. Researchers also said that if you’re older (over 30) when you get divorced it’s more of a shock; you gain more weight and are more likely to keep it on. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill found that dating people are the thinnest, not dating but single are heavier, living with someone still heavier and married the heaviest.
14. Professor Nicholas Christenfeld of the University of California, San Diego, had test subjects read a dozen short stories and found that they enjoyed it more when they already knew the ending; they insist that anticipation is more fun than surprise (knowing an ending doesn’t stop kids from watching a movie over and over).
15. There was a study that found anger drives heart attacks; laughter may be an antidote and a survey by adult products maker Adam & Eve that said 80% of couples talk dirty while having sex.
16. A Philippine study of 600 men found that their testosterone level decreased the more they handled their kids. Dr. Besser says this study says that it’s time to stay home and take care of the kids and stop going out trying to mate. I’m glad this was not paid for with US money but I bet it won’t help with male child care or reduce the number of adulterers. With this logic you’d think men would not want to be polygamists.
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