USA TODAY articles from April 2011

USA TODAY archives from April 2011

Are male viewers distracted by provocatively-dressed newswomen?(Mass Media)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... Women looking to break through the glass ceiling into senior broadcast news positions or more prominent on-camera roles in television may find their job affected when they dress in a sexually alluring manner, according to a study by Indiana...

Vain women post more on Facebook.(Social Networking)(Report)
April 1, 2011... Females who base their self worth on their appearance tend to share more photos online and maintain larger networks on social sites, points out a study published in Cyberpsychology, Behavior and Social Networking. The results suggest that...

Working moms are thinking about careers.(Life in America)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... American families are undergoing a sea change as the nation rethinks who works, who stays home to care for the kids, and why we work. This reexamination of how citizens live comes at a lime when women make up more than half of the people on U.S....

"Dumb" Female Workforce Is Sexed Up
April 1, 2011... Pick a decade, any decade. From secretaries in miniskirts in the "Mad Men"-style 1960s to Southwest Airlines' "hostesses" in hot pants in the "liberated" 1970s to the present-day surge of provocatively dressed young female service workers--the...

Money-Saving Tips for Filing Tax Returns
April 1, 2011... Most money-saving options to defer income or accelerate deductions are much more limited after Dec. 31, but there still are plenty of last-minute strategies you can use to save money on your lax return. The National Society of Accountants,...

Facebook has become a primary means of finding and expressing romance for millions of Americans.(NOTEWORTHY)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... Facebook has become a primary means of finding and expressing romance for millions of Americans. Nearly one-half of this nation's adults use it to tell the world they are in a relationship with someone. Almost three-fourths of all users who are...

Parents should plan to have more than just "a talk" with their children about cyberbullying, indicates Judith Walls, professor emerita in the Department of Child Development and Family Studies at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind.(NOTEWORTHY)(Interview)
April 1, 2011... Parents should plan to have more than just "a talk" with their children about cyberbullying, indicates Judith Walls, professor emerita in the Department of Child Development and Family Studies at Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. "There...

The Federal anti-drug campaign "Above the Influence" appears to have reduced marijuana use by teenagers effectively, shows research from Ohio State University, Columbus.(NOTEWORTHY)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... The Federal anti-drug campaign "Above the Influence" appears to have reduced marijuana use by teenagers effectively, shows research from Ohio State University, Columbus. By the end of eighth grade, 12% of those who had not reported having seen...

Some 5.9% of adolescents aged 12 to 14 drank alcohol in the past month and 93.4% of them received it for free the last time they drank.(NOTEWORTHY)(Survey)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... Some 5.9% of adolescents aged 12 to 14 drank alcohol in the past month and 93.4% of them received it for free the last time they drank. About 317,000 (44.8%) who drank in the pest month received their liquor for free from their family or at...

A photograph may provide the first sign of an eye abnormality.(NOTEWORTHY)(Report)
April 1, 2011... A photograph may provide the first sign of an eye abnormality. Flash photography is similar to an ophthalmoscope, a lighted instrument used to examine the interior of the eye, says Nick Hogan of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical...

A signaling pathway in the brain that is sufficient to induce cellular leptin resistance, a problem that decreases the body's ability to "hear" that it is full and should stop eating, has been identified in a study appearing in Cell Metabolism.(NOTEWORTHY)(Report)
April 1, 2011... A signaling pathway in the brain that is sufficient to induce cellular leptin resistance, a problem that decreases the body's ability to "hear" that it is full and should stop eating, has been identified in a study appearing in Cell Metabolism....

A 65-year-old problem in combinatorial geometry that sought to determine the minimum number of distinct distances between any finite set of points in a plane has been solved by a professor of mathematics at Indiana University, Bloomington.(NOTEWORTHY)(Nets Hawk Katz and Larry Gutz)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... A 65-year-old problem in combinatorial geometry that sought to determine the minimum number of distinct distances between any finite set of points in a plane has been solved by a professor of mathematics at Indiana University, Bloomington....

You can run, but you can't hide.(Internal Revenue Service)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... Running from the Internal Revenue Service is like the postman trying to get away from a big dog. You can run but, eventually, it will catch up and bite you on the leg. Yet, it does not have to be that way. "The more you run from the IRS, the...

Things people would rather do than taxes.(Tax Season)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... Just in case procrastination is a problem for you, the National Association of Accountants, Alexandria, Va., offers these "Things People Would Rather Do Than Taxes": Hire the kid next door to mow your lawn. You will not be able to claim any...

Ways to Make New EPA Rules Feasible
April 1, 2011... The Environmental Protection Agency could have a workable, cost-effective plan for regulating large emitters of greenhouse gases under the Clean Air Act, according to a report by Duke University's Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions,...

New Light from the Dimwits in Congress
April 1, 2011... "[Federal lawmakers are] making every home in the U.5. a future hazardous material site. All Americans will be forced to spend more money for--and be at risk of mercury toxicity from--every fight fixture in the house." Most of us think...

Looking Deeper for Coal Ash Hazards
April 1, 2011... As the Environmental Protection Agency weighs whether to define coal ash as hazardous waste, a study published in Environmental Science and Technology identifies new monitoring protocols and insights that can help investigators more accurately...

Escaping Employment Danger Zones
April 1, 2011... Whether you have been assigned to work overseas, are traveling to another country for business, or are sending your child on a semester abroad, you should have an exit strategy if an emergency occurs, says former White House attorney Mary Anne...

Systemic Failures Are All around Us
April 1, 2011... There needs to be development of a new cross-disciplinary approach for analyzing and preventing systemic failures in complex systems that play a role in calamities ranging from huge power blackouts to the British Petroleum Deepwater Horizon...

Nuclear Reactors Endanger World
April 1, 2011... The U.S. makes widespread use of the same aging reactors that are in crisis in Japan. Five of the six reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi 1 site are General Electric Mark I Boiling Water Reactors. including Unit 1, which suffered an explosion that...

Cascading effect destroys Japan.(Natural Disasters)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... The magnitude 8.9 earthquake off the coast of northern Japan and the tsunami it triggered demonstrate the need for an integrated approach to preparing for, mitigating, and responding to extreme events, say researchers at the Multidisciplinary...

Tsunami Changes Future of Nuclear Power
April 1, 2011... The design of next-generation nuclear power plants and other critical energy facilities undoubtedly will be influenced by the Japanese tsunami and its devastating effects on that nation's nuclear reactors, asserts Michael C. Constantinou, a...

What to Do When There Is Gunfire
April 1, 2011... You are shopping with the kids and chaos breaks out at the mall. What strategies will you use to stay safe and escape with your family intact? In light of recent episodes--from disruptions at shopping centers to the tragic shooting at a Safeway...

How American Women Rebuilt France
April 1, 2011... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] The exhibition "American Women Rebuilding France, 1917-1924" showcases vintage photographs and rare silent film footage that bring to life the extraordinary work undertaken by 350 female volunteers who left comfortable...

Oscar Winner Puts Spotlight on Stuttering
April 1, 2011... "The King's Speech" shows how a man coped with stuttering almost a century ago, and now the film and its Academy Award-winning buzz have people talking about this speaking disorder in the 21st century. "The history of stuttering goes back to the...

War images can trigger PTS response from vets.(Video Games)(post-traumatic stress disorder)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... Popular war-simulation video games pose a bigger threat to veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder than people realize, as exposure can serve as a volatile trigger, contends Stay Strong Nation, Maul, Hawaii. While it has been reported that...

Troubled veterans turn to bartenders.(Sociology)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... For troubled war veterans, a friendly bartender can be the source of more than just drinks. A pilot study by Ohio State University, Columbus, suggests that some bartenders may be in a good position to identify veterans in need of mental health...

Kids come through on Radio City's big stage.(GARDEN OF DREAMS)(Garden of Dreams Foundation Spring Talent Show)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... From the children's eyes, shining as bright as the famed Radio City Music Hall marquee, to their smiles. stretching as wide as the Great Stage. all those who participate in this months Garden of Dreams Foundation Spring Talent Show will serve to...

Software Helps Quadriplegic Vets
April 1, 2011... Computer science might not be the obvious major for those looking to change the world, but two teams of University at Buffalo (N.Y.) students are proving that programming can translate into compassion, as classmates in a computer engineering...

Political rumors spread via e-mail.(Internet)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... Despite the fears of some, use of the Internet in general does not make people more likely to believe political rumors, suggests a study published in Human Communications Research. However, one form of Internet communication--e-mail--does seem...

Audiences to go wild at "Madagascar live".(Entertainment)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... All of those crack-a-lackin friends are out of the zoo and onto the stage in "Madagascar Live," as Alex the Lion. Marty the Zebra, Melman the Giraffe, Gloria the (hip hip) Hippo, and, of course, those hilarious, plotting penguins escape from...

Sex and Money Rank Behind Self-Esteem
April 1, 2011... Young people may crave boosts to their self-esteem a little too much, maintains a study from Ohio Slate University, Columbus, and Brookhaven (N.Y.) National Laboratory. Researchers found that college students value boosts to their self-esteem...

Colossal Masterworks of Ancient Mexico
April 1, 2011... [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] Considered the "mother culture" of Mesoamerica and recognized as the continent's oldest civilization, the people known today as the Olmec developed an iconic and sophisticated artistic style as early as the second...

Grads need to maintain high hopes.(Job Market)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... As MBA graduates begin the job quest in earnest this spring, research indicates those with an optimistic outlook about life will have better career prospects than those with a pessimistic disposition. In addition, optimists spend less time and...

Tweets predict Dow's performance.(Stock Market)(Dow Jones Industrial Average)(Brief article)
April 1, 2011... Measurements of the collective public mood derived from millions of tweets can predict the rise and fall of the Dow Jones Industrial Average up to a weak in advance with an accuracy approaching 90%, information scientists from Indiana...

Securitized Mortgages Rarely Renegotiated
April 1, 2011... One factor, little-known by borrowers, can play a large role in whether banks are willing to renegotiate mortgages with homeowners who are struggling to meet payments. However, it is a factor that homeowners have no control over. Researchers...

Default Less Likely at Local Banks
April 1, 2011... While the nation's foreclosure crisis has focused blame on bad loan practices by various lenders, research shows how some banks actually may have reduced the default risk of their homebuyers. Researchers found that low-income homeowners who...

New Rules Needed for Teen Texting
April 1, 2011... Between the proliferation of cyberbullying that has been dominating the headlines and the inappropriate communications that cell phones enable among young people, the author of YNK--You Never Know believes it is time for parents to set up new...

Enhancing Perceptions of Tennis Players
April 1, 2011... When tennis players are on their game, they perceive the ball as moving slower and the net as lower to the ground, suggest researchers from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Ind. "It is not unusual for individuals who played well or poorly to...

Who Is the Best Player of All Time?
April 1, 2011... Fans may think of Jimmy Connors as an "old school" tennis player but, according to a new ranking system developed by a researcher at Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill., Connors is the best player in the (modern) history of the game. Men who...

They May Be Giants: The New Season Has Begun with an Unfamiliar Ring-That of San Francisco Defending Its Title as the World Champion of Baseball
April 1, 2011... MOSES ONLY had to wander the desert 40 years before reaching the Promised Land; not so San Francisco Giants fans. When the congratulatory phone calls came in from kids from he old neighborhood (now men pushing the upper limits of middle...