Useful Science

http://www.usefulscience.org/podcast/5 This week we learn about eating fast food after a workout, xenophobic 6 year olds, and HIV prevention. Show Notes: When adjusted for carbohydrate, fat, and protein content, fast food was equally as effective as sports supplements (such as energy bars) for post-workout recovery in a study with 11 trained male athletes. Fat adapted diet Lore of Running, Timothy Noakes Marathon Training Academy DoubleBlinded.com When treated unfairly, six-year-old children punished the perpetrator more harshly if they were an 'outsider' to the child's social group, displaying an 'in-group bias'. By age eight, children punished 'insiders' and 'outsiders' more similarly, demonstrating less of this bias. It is estimated that in the USA, 30.2% of new HIV infections are transmitted by people who do not know they have the virus. Getting tested is the only way to know for sure if you have HIV. Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP)

http://www.usefulscience.org/podcast/5 This week we're talking about placebos. We cover placebo clothing, placebo surgeries, and how placebos are getting stronger over time. Show Notes: Compression garments provide no measurable performance gain in sports, though they may help reduce muscle soreness if worn for 24 hours after exercise. Influence of compressive gear on powerlifting performance: role of blood flow restriction training. Powerlifting equipment Kinesio Tape Kinesio Taping - The Latest Sports Fad Nocebo effect Nocebo as a potential confounding factor in clinical trials for Parkinson's disease treatment: a meta-analysis DoubleBlinded.com - The Self Experimentation Platform Arthroscopic knee surgery for osteoarthritis is not an effective treatment, and helps people no more than fake surgery. Current guidelines argue against doing this procedure, however it remains a common occurrence. Peristalsis #EverybodyPoops QWOP The placebo effect has increased over time. That Mitchell and Webb Look: Homeopathi

http://www.usefulscience.org/podcast/4 This week we learn about the benefits of napping, how music makes you smarter, and why you should be playing more video games. Show Notes: Morning and afternoon naps helped prevent some of the hormonal and immune changes that occurred following a night of sleep deprivation. People who regularly played action video games such as Call of Duty or Assassin's Creed were better at learning a new sensorimotor skill on the computer than their non-playing peers. Underground game Music training resulted in improved cognitive performance in children.

http://www.usefulscience.org/podcast/3 This week, all of our topics come from the happiness section of our site. We learn about how the wealth of others affects your happiness, the effectiveness of anti-depressant drugs, and why being happy all the time may not make you happy all the time. Show Notes: ‘Emodiversity’ (feeling a balance of different emotions) has been found to be predictive of better mental and physical health. People who cried while watching a movie experienced a more negative emotional state initially, but within 90 minutes recovered to an even better mood than before watching the movie. Pixar's Inside Out Feeling poorer than one's peers decreases health and happiness (for example, in measures of life expectancy, diet, or exercise). Reducing conspicuous consumption may make communities happier and healthier. Canadian Thanksgiving The Perfect Salary for Happiness: $75,000 (Wall Street Journal) An analysis of over 6500 depressed patients found that antidepressant drugs were effective and consi

http://www.usefulscience.org/podcast/2 This week we learn about how walking enhances creativity, power posing, and why arguing with your teenager may be a good idea. Show Notes: Power-posing for two minutes (i.e. feet resting on a surface while sitting with fingers interlaced behind the head or, standing and leaning slightly forward over a surface supported by firmly planted hands) temporarily elevates testosterone levels and lowers cortisol levels. This increases feelings of power and promotes focus on reward instead of risk. Amy Cuddy Power-Posing TED Talk Zurich study on power posing Amy Cuddy's meta-analysis Data Colada article on power posing Photo of power poses Placebos without Deception: A Randomized Controlled Trial in Irritable Bowel Syndrome Walking, whether outside or on a treadmill, leads to more creative thinking. Cultured bacteria from the hand of an eight-year-old Teenagers who engaged in healthy debate with their parents (listening to each other and discussing, though not necessarily agreein

http://www.usefulscience.org/podcast/1 This week, all of our topics come from the persuasion section of our site. We learn about why people suck at giving gifts, all about vocal fry, and how to create love in an hour… in a lab at least. Show Notes: Gift givers tended to prioritize desirability in a gift, although a more practical version of the same gift was more likely to please the recipient. People speaking with vocal fry (a 'creaky' speech pattern increasingly common in American women) were judged as less competent, less trustworthy, and less employable. Ryan Kane Asking a series of progressively more personal questions brought pairs of strangers emotionally closer than other ice-breaking exercises.

http://www.usefulscience.org/podcast/0 This week we learn about sleep paralysis, whether cool 13 year olds have already washed out by the age of 22, is your cat’s poop affecting your behavior, and how reliable is medical information on Wikipedia. The is the first ever episode of the Useful Science Podcast. We're still figuring this thing out, and we can really use your help to make it as good as possible. Let us know what you think at podcast@usefulscience.org. Show Notes: Sleep paralysis, in which a temporary inability to move occurs as one wakes up, is fairly common (~7.6% of general population). It can be frightening and sometimes occurs with hallucinations, but quickly goes away. The 'cool kids' at age 13 tend to be less popular and have worse social skills than others by the time they turn 22. People who own cats are more likely to be infected with the Toxoplasma gondii parasite. This parasite causes behavior changes in infected mice and may affect human behavior as well. Wikipedia articles about the to