The 10 Youngest PhDs of All Time

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by Staff Writers

April 2, 2012

http://www.onlinecolleges.net/2012/04/02/the-10-youngest-phds-of-all-time/

Here is fair warning: this article may make you feel stupid. While you were a kid, learning about the mysteries of the screen door, prodigies at your age were solving differential equations and being nominated for Nobel Prizes. Invariably these geniuses skip elementary school altogether, teach themselves high school in a matter of months, and are off to collegearound the time they hit puberty. Some tire of academia and move on to other interests, but a few have proceeded to get doctoral degrees at incredibly early ages. Here are 10 of the youngest PhD recipients ever. 

1. Kim Ung-Yong

   His world-record IQ of 210 makes him a genius nearly twice over. By age 3 (that’s not a typo) he was a physics student at university. NASA brought him from Korea to do research for them at age 8. He worked there for 10 years while earning a PhD in physics at the age of 16. When he left NASA and returned home, amazingly he could not find a job because he needed elementary, middle, and high school diplomas, all of which he had skipped and had to go back and earn.

2. Norbert Wiener

   This brilliant man died in 1964, but two prestigious awards, a math center at the University of Maryland, and a crater on the moon all bear his name. Norbert Wiener went to high school at 9, was out by 11, and by 14 had completed a college degree at Tufts. At the ripe age of 18, for his thesis on math logic, Harvard awarded Wiener a PhD. He would go on to work with guided missiles in World War II, acquiring knowledge that helped him create the field of cybernetics in 1948.

3. Sho Yano

   A 1500 SAT score is great, but every year dozens of students score higher. Only, Sho Yano earned his score when he was 8 years old. By that time he’d been reading for six years and composing music for four. At 9 he enrolled at Loyola University, and would graduate summa cum laude four years later and enter med school. Five years after that, when other kids might have celebrated an 18th birthday by buying cigarettes or emancipating themselves from their parents, Sho was reveling in his hard-earned PhD in molecular genetics and cell biology from the University of Chicago.

4. Sergey N. Mergelyan

   The Armenian man who gave us the theorem for finding holomorphic polynomials was clearly no dummy. After graduating from Yerevan State University at the age of 19, Mergelyan really picked up the pace, earning a doctor of science at age 20. To this day, no younger Russian has done the same. Four years later, he became the youngest ever member of the USSR’s Academy of Sciences. Mergelyan died in 2008 at the age of 80.

5. Akshay Venkatesh

   At the age of 12, Ashkay Venkatesh climbed the medal winners’ podium at the International Mathematics Olympiad and the bronze medal was placed around his neck. In 1997, at the age of 14, he was admitted to the University of Western Australia, becoming the school’s youngest student ever. He headed to the States to work on his PhD in number theory at Princeton University, finishing it in 2002 at just 20. He has since taught at MIT, NYU, and Stanford, lecturing on “equidistribution questions on homogeneous spaces, the interplay between ergodic and spectral techniques,” and other topics that are completely over our heads.

6. Tathagat Avatar Tulsi

   It was never his dream to break records, says Tathagat Avatar Tulsi. But even so, his name went down in the books for world’s youngest post-graduate degree holder at the age of 12 with his Master of Science. Once that was done, he apparently decided to keep the ball rolling by becoming India’s youngest doctorate. It may have taken him longer than he expected, seeing as he was on pace to finish by 17, but the doctorate in quantum computing he earned at the age of 21 was still an incredible feat.

7. Wolfgang Pauli

   Just reading Einstein in your teens puts you in a special category of intelligence. Wolfgang Pauli not only read him, he had published several definitive papers on the theory of relativity by the time he was 18. He had been encouraged by his physics professor at the University of Munich who realized he had nothing to teach the young man. Einstein himself praised a later paper of Pauli’s. Then, in 1921 at the age of 21, Pauli received his doctorate in theoretical physics. Nearly 25 years later, thanks to a nomination from Einstein, Pauli was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics.

8. Christopher Hirata

   Kim Ung-Yong may be in Guinness as the world’s smartest man, but that may need to be updated. Christopher Hirata’s IQ is a mind-boggling, “verified” 225. His life is a stream of similarly amazing facts. He skipped seventh through tenth grades. He would fill in for his physics teacher in high school while himself not even yet a teenager. At 13, he did so well at the International Physics Olympiad that a “Youngest Medalist” award was created and then given to him. His PhD came at the age of 22 from Princeton in the field of astrophysics. Smart kid.

9. Michael Kearney

   The only partying Michael Kearney did in college involved birthday cakes and fruit punch. In 1995 he became the youngest college grad ever at the age of 10, with a bachelor’s in anthropology. A master’s degree in biochemistry from Middle Tennessee State University followed four years later, and by 2006 he was set to receive his doctorate at 22. Kearney had been more an infant prodigy than a child prodigy, telling his doctor “I have a left ear infection” at the age of six months.

10. Ronnie Pavlov

    Ronnie Pavlov was used to being the youngest person at graduation by the time he received his PhD in math from Ohio State University in 2007 at 24 years old. He had been the youngest at his high school graduation in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, too, when he graduated at 13. The story was the same four years later, when he received his undergrad degree at 17. But he said of his doctorate work, “You meet so many brilliant people in graduate school; there are lots of people who could have done what I did.”

8 Amazing Technological Advancements in Today’s Prisons

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http://www.criminaljusticedegreesguide.com/features/8-amazing-technological-advancements-in-todays-prisons.html

April 2, 2012

Technological innovations can spur the growth of businesses and increase quality of life. But what about in places where we never go? Even in prisons, where inmates stay in small cells and wear orange jumpsuits, technology is changing the way that business works. Corrections facilities are their own micro-economy, and technological advancements and new methods are shaping the way that 21st century prisons will look and function. Whether on the warden’s side or the criminal’s, take a look at these eight amazing technological advancements that are changing today’s prisons.

1. WANDD

   With just a few clicks and swipes, the days of worrying about a hidden shiv are over. The Weapons and Non-Permitted Devices Detector, also called the WANDD, is a handheld and operated scanner that makes it easier to detect hidden makeshift weapons that violent inmates often fashion. The product, created by Luna Innovations, Inc., identifies homespun weaponry, regardless of material (metal and non-metal weapons can be spotted with WANDD). The product was tested with success at the Virginia Peninsula Regional Jail in Williamsburg, Va.

2. PharmaJet

   Recently approved by the FDA, PharmaJet is a needle-free injection system, and works well for medicating and immunizing sick inmates. This addition to the prison medical system makes the entire healthcare process safer, for doctors, patients, and those that fear the needle (or what a crazy criminal might do with it).

3. Cell Phones

   Even the inmates can benefit from technology, but they still have to find a way to get it. For inmates, cell phones (which are contraband in most cases) are great tools for organizing and even protesting. In December of 2010, several Georgia state prisons were locked down for more than a few days when inmates used the machines to organize a work-stopping protest against inhumane prison conditions.

4. Biometrics

   Biometrics puts a more intimate spin on the concept of an ID badge. The Corrections Biometric Management System, or CBMS, features technology that detects a person by their retinas, fingerprints, and more. Unlocking cells, cabinets, and storage units, with this leap forward, prison officials will be able to tell exactly who and where their inmates and employees are at all times — and what they’re biologically permitted to access.

6. RFID Tracking

   Radio frequency identification tracking is a great way to keep track of an inmate’s or cell block’s whereabouts. TSI Prism from Black Creek Integrated Systems is a real-time location and tracking tech that was specifically designed for the corrections industry. Saving guards time and energy, RFID tracking will surely change the way that prisons are run and prisoners are tracked.

7. The Wolfhound

   Not so fast, crims. Those cell phones you just used to protest are illegal in prisons, and someone’s going to find and confiscate that contraband. Enter: The Wolfhound. In October 2009, the Berkeley Varitronics Wolfhound detected cell phones (via detecting their calls and text messages) hidden beneath floors and inside walls. The California prison system confiscated more than 4,000 cell phones, and the Wolfhound made prison tech history.

8. TASER X12 Less Lethal Shotgun

   This is the ultimate gun for a prison riot. It’s colored yellow, to indicate that it’s a “less lethal” weapon, and is optimized for use up to 100 feet. After engaging with a target, the gun fires off a painful, 20-second pulse. Bad enough to stun and stop, but usually not enough to kill, the TASER X12 is a seemingly more humane way to play cops and robbers.

9. Telehealth

   Telehealth systems are found in all Texas prisons (of which there are quite a few). This camera-based system, developed to diagnose and deliver health services using telecommunications technology has saved lives and a considerable amount of money for Texas inmates and prisons.

The 7 Reasons Most Americans Don’t Vote

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http://www.zencollegelife.com/the-7-reasons-most-americans-dont-vote/

 

America is a free country, and voting is an important part of that freedom. Unlike other countries where dictators and monarchs make decisions on behalf of the people, Americans get the right to decide who runs the country and what laws should govern citizens. But even though voting is an important privilege, most Americans simply don’t vote, and some of their reasons may surprise you. Here are seven common reasons most Americans don’t vote.

1. They think their vote won’t count

   Many Americans don’t vote because they think their vote doesn’t count. This is a common excuse that’s rooted in the belief that the Electoral College chooses the President, not the voters. In reality, the popular vote in each state determines which candidate the Electoral College endorses for that state. Therefore, your vote does count within your state, and you should get out and exercise your right to vote.

2. Too busy

   Americans are busy people. Work, family, and other life obligations tend to get in the way of civic duties like voting. There’s no doubt that voting presents scheduling challenges, but is that really a good excuse not to vote? After all, people all over the world have fought and died for the right to vote. The least we can do is carve out a few minutes to go to a polling center and cast our vote.

3. Registration requirements

   Voting registration can be confusing, especially for citizens that have moved from county to county or from state to state. But registration itself is painless and takes little more than the presentation of identification. Therefore, to prevent registration requirements from preventing you from voting, make it a point to update your voter registration every time you move.

4. Apathy

   Americans have a reputation for being apathetic to politics and voting in general, but politics in particular can cause Americans’ eyes to glaze over. Many people don’t like the partisan bickering underlying the voting process, and this is a valid concern. However, if you are too apathetic to vote, you should also be sure to hold your complaints about the way things are run. If you don’t voice your opinion by voting, you shouldn’t have the right to voice your complaints when things don’t go the way you want them to.

5. Lines are too long

   Voting lines can sometimes be long, and for busy people waiting in line is a horrible waste of time and energy. But in reality, voting lines are seldom long, even for high-profile presidential races. With the advent of new technology, voting is becoming easier and more efficient than ever before, and this allows voters to get in and out without having to wait in long lines. This excuse is becoming less and less relevant as time goes on.

6. Don’t like the candidates

   Politicians are sometimes easy to dislike. Their flaws are often aired publicly for the entire world to see, and many people generally distrust politicians based on this information. But even if you don’t particularly like any of the candidates, do you really know them? And should it matter whether you like them or not? Perhaps a politician’s stance on issues important to you is more important than whether or not they are likeable. Even if it’s choosing the lesser of two or more evils in your eyes, voting is still an important way for you to voice your opinion about the subjects you care about most.

7. Can’t get to the polls

   Getting to polling locations can be a hassle, especially for the disabled, the sick, and people without transportation. In addition, voting becomes even more difficult for those citizens who are temporarily out of the country on vacation or business. But advocacy groups are making it much easier to get to the polls, even for those with special needs. In addition, absentee voting allows those people who are temporarily out of the country to cast their vote remotely. As a result, claiming that you can’t get to the polls is not a very good excuse not to vote.

10 Big Predictions for the Future of Law School

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By Staff Writers http://www.onlineuniversities.com/blog/2012/04/10-big-predictions-for-the-future-of-law-school/

In its current state, legal education and the legal profession are not as close as you might think, in a system where law students engage in an overwhelmingly scholarly pursuit rather than professional education. This arrangement has worked for many years, but some experts say a change is coming, fueled by a declining economy, ultra-competitive job market, and the growing need for practice-ready legal graduates. We’ve found 10 interesting predictions for the future of law school, from no-frills law degrees to law schools with Enron-style accounting. Read on for an interesting look into what might represent the law school of the future.

1. It will look more like medical school: We’re likely to see an accelerated curriculum in law school, followed by more hands-on experience, much like medical school. Some schools like Northwestern have adopted this model, with a year of case method, a year of clinical, followed by a final year of externship in an area of focus. Experts believe this type of law school education would allow for a more practical legal education and a fast track to employment for law grads.
2. There will be fewer law schools: The value of a law school education is dropping as salaries for graduates are not as high as they used to be and post-graduation jobs become harder to find. This is forcing the break-even point for graduates higher, where the resulting student loan debt becomes higher than the salary that follows. This may lead to fewer students enrolling in law schools, followed by fewer law schools altogether.
3. No frills: It’s entirely possible that the law school we see in the future will be a stripped-down version of the one we see today. Some experts have noted a trend in law schools that are less concerned with rankings and prestige than delivering a high level of value and quality for students. For schools like the North Carolina Central School of Law, that means low student debt loads, a focus on clinical skills, and high first-time bar passage rates, perks that are likely to sound like a great idea for students who have grown weary of mountainous student loans and limited post-graduate success.
4. Schools will be cutting costs: Along the same line of no-frills law schools, we can also expect to see schools cutting their costs. We can’t expect that students will continue to flock to expensive schools for much longer if they’re not getting a good return on their investment, so schools will have to find a way to keep tuition down. This means developments like bigger classes and an increased use of adjunct instructors.
5. An increase in grant funding: Another way schools will likely try to keep tuition down is by increasingly applying for grant funding. Research projects will have to pursue grants, and school administrations are likely to ask administrators to fund portions of their salaries with grants. As a consequence, industry groups and grant-making legal organizations will have the opportunity to influence legal discourse with their grant decisions.

6. Alumni donations will drop: Another squeeze on law school finances is less support from alumni. As law graduates struggle to find high-paying employment, there’s simply less left over for their alma mater. As a result, schools will have to get creative with grants and cuts or raise tuition, putting pressure on already strapped law students.
7. Graduates will be practice-ready: In order to keep students from foregoing a legal education in favor of something making them more immediately employable, law schools have to keep up by graduating students that are reading to enter the legal profession with high-paying jobs right away. This means a focus on practice-ready graduates that are “ready on day one.” Some schools are even adopting a two-year practice-based alternative that is receiving national recognition. In one such school, the entire first graduating class was hired before their graduation date, allowing them to quickly deal with their law school debt.
8. Schools may have to demonstrate employability: Rising tuition, difficulty in the job market, and an overall scrutiny of legal education means that when choosing their law school, many students will look at how likely it is that their degree will actually earn them a high paying job. Schools will not only have to demonstrate prestige and effective educational resources but also a track record of producing employable candidates. Some experts believe that this will be required not just by students but the Education Department, as schools may be required to demonstrate a certain level of employability and income upon graduation in order to receive federal loan money.
9. Students will use e-books: Heavy, expensive legal tomes are well-known among law students. But new students may just get a break when it comes to lugging them around. With e-readers like the Kindle and Apple iPad, many law students are able to leave big books behind and read them digitally instead. Some worry about leaving behind the physical interaction that’s important for learning, as well as the ability to make hand-written notes. But e-readers do allow for bookmarks and notations, as well as helpful search features. Ultimately, we may not see law schools completely ditch printed books, but it is extremely likely that students will be expected to buy casebooks, plus download an e-book supplement.
10. Accounting will be a little tricky: According to statistics, law school graduates are doing quite well: 93% of grads are working, and the median starting salary for law graduates in the private sector is $160,000. But in reality, law grads are not finding a plethora of jobs, and when they do, they are often not reaching six-figure salaries. How can these statistics and this reality both be true? Law professors say it’s “Enron-type accounting standards” that allow schools to game the rankings. In one statistic, which monitors how many of a school’s law grads are employed after nine months, a job at Applebee’s counts the same as a position as an attorney. As attracting legal students becomes a more competitive game, we can expect law schools to engage in more of these creative number crunches.

10 Reasons Workalcoholics Might Force Their Spouses to Adultery

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http://www.topdatingsites.com/blog/2012/10-reasons-workaholics-might-force-their-spouse-to-adultery/

When people first get married it’s usually under the premise of being for the long haul with promises to love and cherish each other for the rest of their lives. Fidelity is generally an assumption that’s contained within those promises. But what happens once the honeymoon phase is over and reality sets in? What happens when one spouse is a workaholic and the fire of romance becomes a barely glowing ember? Here are ten reasons why the spouse of a workaholic might look outside the marriage for satisfaction.

1. Feelings of abandonment – No one likes to feel like they’ve been abandoned. If you’re a workaholic and never home or available, your spouse may very well feel like he or she has been left alone, and in an attempt to remedy those feelings may turn to someone else.
2. Loneliness – The spouse of a workaholic can become lonely. When you first get married, you don’t expect to have to spend a lot of time alone or that you’ll have to compete with your spouse’s job for their time and attention. When the loneliness gets to be chronic then the situation becomes ripe for adultery.
3. Pay back – Some may feel wronged by the fact that their spouse is choosing work over their relationship. He or she may choose involvement in an extramarital affair as a way of getting back at their mate.
4. Friendship – Sometimes a friendship will develop between the spouse of the workaholic and someone else. This friendship can fill a certain need for communication and attention, and before you know it, the connection turns into something more. It may not be an intentional affair, but one that happens as a natural progression of the relationship.
5. Excitement – Workaholics have their work to keep them busy and entertained. Not so with their spouses. The spouse may go looking for some excitement and find it in a willing sex partner.
6. Not satisfied with home life – It would be difficult to be satisfied with your home life when your spouse is always gone and never available. Some spouses may try to make it work for a while, but after realizing that nothing is changing they may decide to find satisfaction elsewhere.
7. Lack of sexual satisfaction – A workaholic is most likely going to come home tired and crabby from over working. The last thing they will be interested in is sex. Meanwhile the spouse has to deal with this lack of sexual stimulation night after night. Along with that, the times when there is sexual activity may not be that rewarding. This could cause the spouse to search out a partner who can be more sexually fulfilling.
8. Boredom – While the workaholic has his or her work to occupy their time, the spouse most likely will get stuck in a boring routine day after day. When boredom sets in, it can create fertile ground for thoughts to occur about roaming in greener fields. In an effort to conquer the boredom the spouse may go seek out thrills with someone else.
9. Unhappiness – Being the spouse of a workaholic can lead to a lot of personal unhappiness. If the spouse is constantly trying to get the workaholic to be a little more considerate of home life and the marriage, but is continuously met with more of the same, the unhappiness will grow. This in turn can lead to one who strays from the marriage in order to find some kind of happiness elsewhere.
10. Frustration – A workaholic may not realize how selfish they are being. They may honestly feel that they are doing what’s best for the family. Meanwhile the spouse may be trying to get the message across that the relationship is the more important of the two. As the message continues to fall on deaf ears the frustration will mount. The spouse may initiate an affair out of frustration thinking that infidelity might just be the wakeup call their spouse needs.

Whatever the reason, and there are many, it’s best to seek counseling before choosing to have an affair. If both partners are willing to work together to save the marriage, chances are it can be saved and possibly made even be stronger.

When Galaxies Collide: Photos of Great Galactic Crashes

Post 689

SPACE.com Staff

When Galaxies Collide

Credit: NASA,

ESA, the Hubble Heritage (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration, and A. Evans (University of Virginia, Charlottesville/NRAO/Stony Brook University)Arp 148 is the staggering aftermath of an encounter between two galaxies, resulting in a ring-shaped galaxy and a long-tailed companion.

Colliding Galaxies Swirl in Dazzling New Photo

Credit: NASA,

ESA, SAO, CXC, JPL-Caltech, and STScI [Full Story]This beautiful composite image of two colliding galaxies was released by NASA’s Great Observatories. The collision between the Antennae galaxies, which are located about 62 million light-years from Earth, began more than 100 million years ago and is still occurring

VV 340 Galaxy Collision Forms Exclamation Point

Credit: X-ray NASA/CXC/IfA/D.Sanders et al;

Optical NASA/STScI/NRAO/A.Evans et alThe deep space object VV 340, also known as Arp 302, is a textbook example of two colliding galaxies in a crash that will take millions of years. VV 340 is 450 million light-years from Earth. This image was released Aug. 11, 2011.

New Look at a Colossal Cosmic Collision

Credit: X-ray (NASA/CXC/CfA/E.O’Sullivan);

Optical (Canada-France-Hawaii-Telescope/Coelum)This beautiful image gives a new look at the interacting galaxies of Stephan’s Quintet. The curved, light blue ridge running down the center of the image shows X-ray data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory. Four of the galaxies in the group are visible in the optical image (yellow, red, white and blue) from the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope. A labeled version (roll over the image above) identifies these galaxies (NGC 7317, NGC 7318a, NGC 7318b and NGC 7319) as well as a prominent foreground galaxy (NGC 7320) that is not a member of the group.

Hubble Photographs Colliding Galaxies

Credit: NASA,

ESA, the Hubble Heritage Team (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration and A. Evans (University of Virginia, Charlottesville/NRAO/Stony Brook University)Markarian 273 is a galaxy with a bizarre structure that vaguely resembles a toothbrush. The “handle” of the brush is about 130 thousand light-years long and is strongly indicative of a merger between two galaxies. Markarian 273 has an intense region of starburst, where 60 solar masses of new stars are born each year. The galaxy is located 500 million light-years away from Earth.

Merging Galaxies, Active Black Holes

Credit: David A. Hardy/UK ATC

This illustration of a system called 4C60.07 shows two colliding galaxies, one of which (left) has already turned most of its gas into stars and its black hole is ejecting jets of charged particles. This galaxy is pulling gas and dust from the neighboring galaxy, where star formation is occurring.

Galactic Collisions Leave Cosmic Skid Marks

Credit: Jin Koda / Stony Brook University

This deep optical image of the Antennae galaxies (main image) shows new tidal debris at the northern tip (inset) that have resulted from two colliding galaxies

Galaxy Collisions Distort

Credit: NASA/Swift/NOAO

/Michael Koss and Richard Mushotzky (Univ. of Maryland)These images, taken with the 2.1-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona, show galaxy shapes that are either physically intertwined or distorted by the gravity of nearby neighbors

The Milkomeda Galaxy

Credit: David A. Aguilar (CfA)

This artist’s conception shows the Milkomeda Galaxy, the result of the predicted collision between the Milky Way and its neighbor Andromeda a trillion years from now

Evolving, Merging Galaxies

Credit: C. Moss, C. Thomas, P. James, Liverpool John Moores U.

Two interacting galaxies in the Perseus cluster about 300 million light years away provide new clues to how galaxies evolve

Merging Galaxies Obscure Huge Black Hole

Credit: NASA, ESA, the Hubble Heritage (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration, and A. Evans (University of Virginia, Charlottesville/NRAO/Stony Brook University)/ E. Treister and K. Teramura (IfA, University of Hawaii)

Examples of merging galaxies containing a heavily obscured growing supermassive black hole observed by the Hubble Space Telescope. The top panels show nearby galaxies at ~500 million light-years from us, while the more distant galaxies in the bottom panels are ~6.5 billion light years away, when the universe was half its current age

Black Hole Knocked Off Axis By Galaxy Collision

Credit: X-ray (NASA/CXC/UMD/Hodges-Kluck et al): Radio (NSF/NRAO/VLA/UMD/Hodges-Kluck et al); Optical (SDSS) Full Story

This X-ray image of hot gas in and around 4C +00.58 reveals four different cavities — regions of lower than average X-ray emission — around a black hole that was disturbed by galaxy interactions. These cavities come in pairs: one in the top-right and bottom-left (labeled cavities #1 and #2 respectively), and another in the top-left and bottom-right (labeled cavities #3 and #4 respectively). Special processing was applied to this image to make the cavities more obvious.

Galaxy Collision May Reveal Insights on Universe’s Evolution

Credit: ESO [Full Story]

This new image shows the results of a vast collision between two galaxies. This strange object is known as NGC 7252, or Arp 226, and has the odd nickname Atoms-for-Peace. The picture was taken at ESO’s La Silla Observatory in Chile. It is a combination of exposures taken through blue and red filters, for a total exposure time of more than four hours

Collisions Don’t Always Feed Black Holes

Credit: NASA, ESA, M. Cisternas

A study using images from the Hubble Space Telescope has found that galaxies with powerful black holes at their cores – called Active Galactic Nuclei or AGN (on the left) need not rely on galaxy collisions to grow. Non-AGN galaxies are shown on the right. The photos come from the COSMOS survey using the Hubble Space Telescope

Space Tadpoles Signal Black Hole Mergers

Credit: A. Straughn/S. Cohen/R. Windhorst/NASA/HUDF team

An image of 36 young galaxies caught in the act of merging. They are called “tadpole” galaxies because of their distinct knot-and-tail shapes.

10 Proven Brain Benefits of Being Bilingual

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Posted on Monday April 2, 2012                        by Staff Writers

http://www.bestcollegesonline.com/blog/2012/04/02/10-proven-brain-benefits-of-being-bilingual/

These days, attaining fluency in two or more languages looks fabulous on college and job applications and presents opportunities in numerous corners of life completely denied to the monolingual. Old or young, however, bilingual individuals enjoy some decidedly physiological rewards for their linguistic capabilities, which aren’t always immediately noticeable. Come to find out, the human body’s most important organ receives generous stimulation from soaking up multiple tongues as well. So before griping about that mandatory foreign language course, take a look at some of the most excellent things that could happen after mastering one.

1. Staves off dementia

   Bilingual individuals with Alzheimer’s take twice as long to develop symptoms as their monolingual counterparts, and scientists at St. Michael’s Hospital believe a distinct correlation exists between language development and delayed dementia. However, the symptoms between both demographics remained equally destructive; the only difference lay in the amount of damage needed for them to materialize. The prevailing hypothesis regarding why this phenomenon occurs involves how the multilingual mind strengthens itself by switching between tongues, which bolsters brain function overall.

2. Improved cognitive skills

   In general, the bilingual tend to enjoy far sharper cognitive skills, keeping the brain constantly active and alert even when only one language prevails. Studies conducted on preschoolers revealed that those capable of speaking multiple languages performed far better on sorting puzzles, both in speed and success. Their ability to strike a balance and switch between different “modes,” as it were, eased the transition between various tasks with swapped out goals. Categorizing shapes by color and form, specifically, even if the denoted form sports a different color than that of the bin.

3. Heightened creativity

   Learning a new language as either a child or an adult greatly benefits those pursuing creative careers or hobbies. Even the more technical still get something amazing out of the bargain, however, as bilingualism still nurtures the “outside-the-box” thinking necessary for sharp problem solving and innovation. Numerous studies linking acumen in multiple languages and creativity exist, and this one by Texas Women’s University stands as one of the clearest, straightforward examples.

4. Easier time focusing on tasks

   When presented with distractions, the bilingual individuals studied by York University maneuvered them more adroitly and displayed heightened concentration on their assignments than the monolingual. The specific languages spoken held no influence over this mental flexibility; anyone fluent in more than one tongue reaps these cognitive rewards. However, some evidence exists that knowing two or more with structural similarities to one another might offer up a slight advantage.

5. Greater control over literacy skills

   York University also noted improvements in literacy and literacy skill acquisition in bilingual children. “Metalinguistic” abilities, which promote a more intimate understanding of verbal and non-verbal communication, receive the biggest boost here. Such abilities do come at cost on the front end, however, as language acquisition in multilingual individuals does progress at a slightly slower pace.

6. Heightened environmental awareness

   University of Pompea Fabra researchers noted that their subjects fluent in one or more languages seem to express a much higher degree of environmental awareness. Essentially, this means their ability to process and “monitor” external stimuli sharpens alongside their verbal abilities. Because they must toggle between tongues, the bilingual’s brains come fine-tuned to pick up on subtleties and patterns both on and off the page.

7. Easier time switching between tasks

   As many of these other studies have no doubt already proven, the bi- and multilingual out there can brag that their brains multitask like a dream. Obviously, this directly ties into their sharpened cognitive skills resulting from bouncing back and forth between languages; which they do even when they’re only using one daily. Being able to switch off distractions with greater aplomb than the monolingual certainly doesn’t hurt the mental gear shifting, either.

8. Denser grey matter

   Most of the brain consists of gray matter, which is responsible for dictating intelligence, particularly when it comes to acquiring and processing language, dictating attention spans, and establishing and storing memories. The bilingual possess more gray matter at a higher density than monolingual counterparts, and a team from Wellcome Department of Imaging and Neuroscience noted that the left hemisphere enjoyed more nervous loving than the right, thought the latter certainly doesn’t get left out of the festivities. Seeing as how the left side impacts language skills, it makes perfect sense that it’d come out a little thicker in the end.

9. Faster response time

   When learning more about bilingualism and the brain, York University researchers noted that individuals who spoke both English and Tamil answered questions faster than those only fluent in the former. Understandable, considering how multilingualism acts as a sort of cognitive steroid dialing up the brain’s Six Million Dollar Man potential. Scientists tested the phenomenon using a series of non-verbal reasoning questions between groups of similarly-educated individuals from more or less homogenous backgrounds.

10. Higher scores on intelligence tests

    Crush together the swelling creativity, greater multitasking, generous environmental awareness, and other hallmarks of bilingualism and it probably comes as little surprise that speakers typically score higher on intelligence tests. Studies conducted in 1974 and 1986 dissected the phenomenon using both verbal and non-verbal measures. Everything seems to boil down to “greater intellectual flexibility” in general, with the language centers of the brain receiving an all-around power up the more a thinker engages with different tongues.

Kurt Wenner’s eye-popping sidewalk 3D art

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http://games.yahoo.com/photos/kurt-wenner-s-eye-popping-sidewalk-art-slideshow/

These illusions add an extra dimension to street life.

The modern trend in anamorphic sidewalk art owes much to the efforts of Kurt Wenner, a former NASA scientific illustrator who has been crafting meticulous public illusions for the past 30 years. From Rome to London to Las Vegas, his art has dazzled all who walk by it (or on it!). Click through to see some of his most striking work, and read an interview with the artist here.

‘The Flying Carpet’ by Kurt Wenner

‘Greenpeace’ by Kurt Wenner

‘Imaginit Technologies’ by Kurt Wenner

‘Rain Forest on the Thames’ by Kurt Wenner

• ‘Reflections’ by Kurt Wenner

‘The Moneypit’ by Kurt Wenner

Wenner’s book, Asphalt Renaissance, contains lavish illustrations of hundreds of his illustrations, as well as Wenner’s commentary on his process and his art. It can be purchased on Amazon here.

Colombia guerrillas free captives held 12 years

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By CESAR GARCIA and VIVIAN SEQUERA | Associated Press – 9 hrs ago

 

VILLAVICENCIO, Colombia (AP) — Colombia’s main rebel group freed what it says were its last 10 military and police captives, a goodwill gesture that President Juan Manuel Santos praised but called insufficient to merit a peace dialogue.

Army sergeant Robinson Salcedo Guarin, center, accompanied by medical personnel, walks with two birds perched on his shoulder upon his arrival at an airport after being released by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, in Villavicencio Colombia, Monday, April 2, 2012. Colombia’s main rebel group on Monday freed what it says were its last 10 soldier and police captives, all of whom had been held in jungle prisons for at least 12 years. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara)

The men had spent between 12 and 14 years in jungle prisons, captured with the leftist Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia was at the height of its military strength.

But Latin America’s oldest and most potent guerrilla band has since been weakened by Colombia’s U.S.-backed military and Monday’s release of six police and four soldiers highlighted its desire for a peaceful solution.

Flown from a secret jungle rendezvous aboard a loaned Brazilian air force helicopter emblazoned with the Red Cross logo, the freed captives waved jubilantly.

Some jumped for joy on the tarmac before reunions with relatives. Nurses helped others walk, while pets accompanied some: a peccary, a monkey, two small birds. A few wore the Colombian flag over their shoulders. Their loved ones were overjoyed.

“I shouted! I jumped up and down!” said Olivia Solarte when got first word her 41-year-old son, police officer Trujillo had been freed. He’d been held since July 1999.

The group was flown to Bogota where other relatives were waiting along with obligatory hospital stays for medical checks.

Former hostages Army sergeant Jose Libardo Forero, left, and police officer Carlos Duarte, right, are accompanied by medical personnel as a small animal known as a peccary trails among them, upon their arrival to a Vanguardia’s airport in Villavicencio Colombia, after being released by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, in Villavicencio, Colombia, Monday, April 2, 2012. Colombia’s main rebel group on Monday freed what it says were its last 10 soldier and police captives, all of whom had been held in jungle prisons for at least 12 years. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara

The rebel group, known as the FARC, had announced Monday’s liberation on Feb. 26 in tandem with a halt in ransom kidnappings as a revenue source.

Santos called the release “a step in the right direction, a very important step” but cautioned against “pure speculation” that it augured peace talks.

He said he wants proof the FARC, which took up arms in 1964, is truly abandoning ransom kidnapping.

“When the government considers that sufficient conditions and guarantees exist to begin a process that brings an end to the conflict the country will know,” he said.

To begin with, the government wants an accounting of two other security force members captured by the FARC in 1998 and 1999. It also wants a reckoning of ransom kidnap victims held by the FARC, along with their freedom.

The head of Colombia’s anti-kidnapping police puts the number at least six, including four Chinese oil workers seized last June. Other officials put the number closer to two dozen.

The citizens’ watchdog group Fundacion Pais Libre maintains a list of at least 400 people the FARC kidnapped or has otherwise held against their will since 1996 who were never freed. It doesn’t expunge a name from its records until the person is released or a body is found.

Two serious government-FARC peace negotiations failed over the past three decades. And although the rebels have praised Santos’ willingness to address land reform and return stolen property to landless peasants, recent weeks have seen an upsurge in violence in the conflict.

The FARC killed at least 11 soldiers in a mid-March attack in Arauca near the Venezuelan border and the military responded with two precision bombings on rebel camps that killed more than 60 insurgents.

The rebels have in recent years suffered their worst setbacks ever, beginning when Santos was defense minister from 2006-2009 and thanks to billions in U.S. military assistance and training.

Their main source of funding is the cocaine trade and military pressure has made holding kidnap victims increasingly difficult for the FARC.

Monday’s mission was brokered by leftist former Sen. Piedad Cordoba, a friend of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez who has served as a go-between in the release of 20 FARC hostages since January 2008.

The FARC has only publicly acknowledged holding captives it considered “exchangeable:” police, soldiers or politicians it held for political leverage, hoping to swap them for imprisoned rebels.

It held scores of such prisoners in the late 1990s when it controlled about half the countryside but gradually released them all, never obtaining the hoped-for exchange.

Some captives were rescued. Franco-Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt and three U.S. military contractors in 2008 were freed in a bold ruse involving Colombian soldiers posing as members of a phony international humanitarian group. But others, at least 25, died in captivity, many killed by FARC insurgents when rescuers real or imagined neared.

Among those in attendance for Monday’s release was Rigoberta Menchu, the Guatemalan rights activist who won the 1992 Nobel Peace prize.

She said it is now time for Colombia’s government to respond to the FARC’s gesture with its own display of political willingness to attain peace.

But analysts caution that peace talks, even back-channel negotiations, could be a long time coming.

Many don’t believe they could happen before 2014 presidential elections.

___

Libardo Cardona in Bogota, Colombia, and Frank Bajak in Lima, Peru, contributed to this report.

Deadly Virus Increases Mosquito Blood Lust

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Jennifer Welsh, LiveScience Staff Writer

This picture shows the presence of the dengue virus in the mosquitoes’ chemosensory (antennae and palp) and feeding organs (proboscis). CREDIT: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Mosquitoes are already blood-sucking machines, but new research indicates that the dengue virus, which the mosquitoes transmit to humans, makes them even thirstier for blood.The virusspecifically turns on mosquito genes that make them hungrier for a blood meal; the activated genes also enhance mosquitoes’ sense of smell, something that likely improves their feeding skills. The result is a mosquito better able to serve the virus by carrying it more efficiently to human hosts.”The virus may, therefore, facilitate the mosquito’s host-seeking ability, and could — at least theoretically — increase transmission efficiency, although we don’t fully understand the relationships between feeding efficiency and virus transmission,” study researcher George Dimopoulus, of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said in a statement. “In other words, a hungrier mosquito with a better ability to sense food is more likely to spread dengue virus.” 

Dengue dangers

The virus doesn’t hurt the mosquitoes that carry it, a specific species called Aedes aegypti, but it lives in them. When the mosquito bites a human, it spreads the deadly disease through its saliva. More than 2.5 billion people live in areas where dengue fever-infected mosquitoes live. The World Health Organization estimates that between 50 million and 100 million dengue infectionsoccur each year.

The researchers analyzed the mosquito genes before and after being infected with the virus, finding changes in 147 genes. These post-infection genes make proteins that are involved in processes that include virus transmission, immunity, blood feeding and host seeking, they found.

“Our study shows that the dengue virus infects mosquito organs, the salivary glands and antennae that are essential for finding and feeding on a human host,” Dimopoulus said. “This infection induces odorant-binding protein genes, which enable the mosquito to sense odors.”

Zombified behavior

“We have, for the first time, shown that a human pathogen can modulate feeding-related genes and behavior of its vector mosquito, and the impact of this on transmission of disease could be significant,” Dimopoulos said.

This is just one of many recent examples of a parasite taking control of an animal for its own benefit. Other examples include a fungus that turns ants into zombies and a virus that causes caterpillars to dissolve and then rain virus particles down on other potential hosts.

The study was published today (March 29) in the journal PLoS Pathogens.