caffeinepig

Liars' Brains Wired Differently 
This finding is interesting...

A USC study of pathological liars shows first evidence of structural differences in the area of the brain that enables most people to feel remorse.A University of Southern California study has found the first proof of structural brain abnormalities in people who habitually lie, cheat and manipulate others.
While previous research has shown that there is heightened activity in the prefrontal cortex, the area of the brain that enables most people to feel remorse or learn moral behavior when normal people lie, this is the first study to provide evidence of structural differences in that area among pathological liars.The research led by Yaling Yang and Adrian Raine, both of the USC College of Letters, Arts and Sciences is published in the October issue of the British Journal of Psychiatry.The subjects were taken from a sample of 108 volunteers pulled from Los Angeles' temporary employment pool. A series of psychological tests and interviews placed 12 in the category of people who had a history of repeated lying (11 men, one woman); 16 who exhibited signs of antisocial personality disorder but not pathological lying (15 men, one woman); and 21 who were normal controls (15 men, six women).

前天，找到「鹹酥雞」的食譜 (CarrieC)，今天心血來潮，打算「下廚」....（這是用五根手指數得出來的次數)
那我平常都吃什麼呢？？
喔...我都是挑簡單的煮啦...像是..快煮麵...可以加一大堆青菜、丸子、小餛飩等等...很快又方便；有時後，會下餃子；時間多一點的話，就會炒個飯...都是很簡單的，所以不算是「下廚」...
但是，我今天「下廚」了喔...所以要記錄一下...
食譜如下：
1.雞胸肉, 切小小塊 --> 我有切小小塊的
2.用 蒜泥, 醬油, 酒, 一個蛋黃, 一點的五香粉, 醃至少10分鐘 --> 我醃了一個晚上哩... 
3.熱油 --> Yes..
4.醃過的雞胸肉沾上地瓜粉, 用大火炸到金黃--> Right...
5.起鍋前加入九層塔, 這個動作要快, 放下去馬上就可以撈起來了. 還 要小心, 因為油會亂噴喔! -->  真得很會亂噴勒，而且，我太慢撈起來了 （因為在躲噴起來的油）..九層塔就有點變的脆脆的....
6.趁熱灑上鹽酥雞胡椒粉. 真的很好吃喔!!!  --> 我沒有鹽酥雞專的胡椒粉，我用白胡椒粉，味道可能差勒點...
這是成果:
   
我下次在醃的時候，醬油可能要多放一點，因為好像不夠鹹...
不過，整體來說，還蠻好吃的...
謝謝CarrieC的食譜...

這是一篇轉寄的文章....
標題是：紅玫瑰白玫瑰
日子不斷流逝，我們各自過著彼此的生活，我終於如願進了大學，也一直守候在和他的感情路上；你也順利通過了大學的插班考，並結識了另一名女孩。不過我們始終沒有斷了聯絡，就像候鳥一樣，每年總會回到季節的棲息地，做短暫的停留。
 
 
你要結婚了為什麼我悵然若失
      幾年來，聽聞你的感情路似乎並不順遂，和那名女孩最終還是因個性不合而分手。知曉這個消息時，我竟然在心中升起了一絲喜悅--這究竟是什麼心態呢？在潛意識裡，我似乎不允許喜歡過我的人，再去喜歡別的女孩；就像以前一名女同事，已婚的她仍然享受著前男友對她的癡情，當作是婚姻生活之外的甜點。即使我面對自己的感情如此堅貞，但是我卻莫名的希望能證實你仍然惦念著我。
 
      直到傳來了你結婚的消息。看到你的喜帖，新娘還是她，才知道你們又復合了，照理應該恭喜你，可心頭就是有那麼一點悵然。此時在喜帖中掉出一張小紙條，我拾起一看，上面寫了幾行密密的小字：「收到妳的簡訊回覆，很高興，情緒上卻也有些矛盾，不知該向你說些什麼。自己要結婚了，理應將這訊息告訴妳，希望妳也能分享這喜悅。小時候每天花許多心思想著妳，惟時空因素沒能與妳有進一步的交往。但，維繫友情，是我仍可以做到的。」 
 
      看完後，一股難以言喻的感受在心中迴盪著。如果說，心的空間層層密密，那麼，我必然是把你放在愛情和友情中間的那層灰色地帶吧！ 
 
     張愛玲曾說，每個男人的心中一定有一朵紅玫瑰和白玫瑰，娶了紅玫瑰，紅的就變成了牆壁上的一抹蚊子血，白的卻還是晶瑩的月光；娶了白玫瑰，白的就變成了衣服上的飯黏子，而紅的卻是心中永遠的硃砂痣。似乎，得不到的、無緣的永遠是最美。但是，在我心中，已經在我身邊的他，永遠是鮮明的硃砂痣；而你，也會是那窗前的月光，微微照亮心中某處隱密的一隅。

ScienceDaily

Children Whose Parents Smoked Are Twice As Likely To Begin Smoking Between 13 And 21Twelve-year-olds whose parents smoked were more than two times as likely to begin smoking cigarettes on a daily basis between the ages of 13 and 21 than were children whose parents didn't use tobacco, according to a new study that looked at family influences on smoking habits. The research indicated that parental behavior about smoking, not attitudes, is the key factor in delaying the onset of daily smoking, according to Karl Hill, director of the University of Washington's Seattle Social Development Project and an associate research professor of social work.Hill said other elements that influenced whether or not adolescents began daily smoking were consistent family monitoring and rules, family bonding or a strong emotional attachment inside the family, and parents not involving children in their own smoking behavior. The later includes such activities as asking their children to get a pack of cigarettes from the car or having them light a cigarette for the parent."All of these factors are important in delaying or preventing daily smoking, but parental smoking is the biggest contributor to children initiating smoking," said Hill. "It really is a matter of 'do as I do' not 'do as I say' when it comes to smoking." The study is one of the first to look at the initiation of daily smoking rather than the experimental use of tobacco. It defined daily smoking as smoking between one and five cigarettes daily in the previous 30 days at the time of each interview.The research is part of the ongoing Seattle Social Development Project supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse that is tracking the development of positive and antisocial behaviors among 808 individuals. They originally were recruited as fifth-grade students from elementary schools in high-crime Seattle neighborhoods.For this study, the individuals were interviewed at ages 13, 14, 15, 16, 18 and 21. The group was nearly equally divided among males and females. Forty-six percent were white, 24 percent were black, 21 percent were Asian Americans, 6 percent were American Indians and 3 percent were from other ethnic backgrounds.The study found differences in daily smoking rates both by gender and racial background.Over all, 37 percent of the individuals reported daily smoking by age 21 - 42 percent of the males and 32 percent of the females.Whites (43 percent) were more likely to have begun regular smoking by 21 than were blacks (35 percent) and Asian Americans (24 percent). However, Indians (54 percent) were the group most likely to have begun daily smoking by age 21.Smoking rates predictably increased as the individuals got older. Just a little more than 2 percent had ever smoked daily at 13. That rate increased to 5 percent at 14, 12 percent at 15, 18 percent at 16, and 27 percent at 18."Parents may feel that they don't matter to their teens, but this study indicates, they really do," said Hill. "It shows that such factors as not smoking, having good family management skills in setting rules and monitoring behavior, and having a strong emotional relationship with their children matter until the end of adolescence."Smoking prevention programs, he said, need components focused on parents, something they generally ignore, to help reduce adolescent smoking. Such programs are important since tobacco use is the leading preventable cause of death in the United States, accounting for about 440,000 deaths annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."Keeping children from smoking starts with parents and their behavior. Some parents say they disapprove of teenage smoking, but continue to smoke themselves. The evidence is clear from this study that if parents don't want their children to start smoking, it is important for them to stop or reduce their own smoking," Hill said.

走路去紐約第一次聽到這首歌的時候，就很喜歡...
...有時候真得應該放慢腳步...沈澱自己的心情... 靜下心品嚐生命沿路的美景...
這也是一種幸福...作詞：林秋離　作曲：張蔚源　編曲：吳慶隆＊每一次我想見到你　就要飛
　不論地球上哪一角　我一天就到
　用飛的原因不外乎　時間太少
　你想擁有我每一秒　你今天就要

The New York Times

California Wants to Serve a Warning With Fries 
Americans may have plenty of reasons to fear French fries. While they are one of the country's favorite foods, they are soaked with trans fats, loaded with sodium and full of simple carbs, the bad kind. And, it turns out, they are also full of a chemical called acrylamide, which is known to cause cancer in laboratory rats and mice. That discovery a few years ago has raised questions about the safety of fries, as well as potato chips, which are also packed with acrylamide.It ultimately led to a showdown this summer over whether such foods should bear health warning labels and whether companies should be required to reduce acrylamide levels in their food.The battle pits the activist attorney general of California against the food industry and the Food and Drug Administration. What happens over the next few months could have a huge bearing on the eating habits of Americans, and may make a dent in the bottom lines of restaurants and food companies. French fries are the No. 1 consumed food in restaurants, according to the NPD Group, a research firm. California's attorney general, Bill Lockyer, filed suit in August against McDonald's; Burger King; Frito-Lay, owned by PepsiCo; and six other food companies, saying that they should be forced to put labels on all fries and potato chips sold in California. The proposed warning might say something to this effect: "This product contains a chemical known to the state of California to cause cancer." 

Which of These Foods Will Stop Cancer? (Not So Fast) 
The New York Times
Published: September 27, 2005
Leslie Michelson does not have prostate cancer, but as chief executive officer of the Prostate Cancer Foundation he knows all too well how bad the disease is. So Mr. Michelson, 54, changed his diet.

The New York Times

A Sports Drink for Children Is Jangling Some Nerves
September 25, 2005 
The company's marketing materials describe the drink as a way to kick-start the morning for children as young as 4. The company Web site, adorned with a picture of an elementary school wrestler and a gymnast, says its drink can help a child "develop fully as a high-performance athlete" and fill nutritional gaps "in a sport that is physically and mentally demanding."

ScienceDaily

Yerkes Researchers Discover Basis For Determining Handedness In Chimpanzees
ATLANTA -- Hand preference and language go hand-in-hand, or do they? According to researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center of Emory University, handedness is not associated with the language area of the brain, as has been the accepted scientific thought throughout history. Rather, handedness is associated with the KNOB, the area of the brain known for controlling hand movements in primates and, now, for determining handedness in chimpanzees. The researchers report their groundbreaking findings in the December 6 issue of Behavioral Neuroscience.
 
According to Bill Hopkins, PhD, research associate in the Division of Psychobiology at the Yerkes Research Center and the study's lead investigator, "The dominant scientific view has linked hand preference in humans with the area of the brain that controls language. After observing hand preference in chimpanzees, which have no comparable language capabilities, we concluded there must be another reason for handedness. Because human and chimpanzee brain structures are so similar, we wanted to determine if human handedness evolved from an area of the brain other than the language area."

ScienceDailyMental Declines Can Be Reversed, Report Shows    2005-09-16

As we get beyond retirement age, most of us will not be as mentally sharp as we once were. But a researcher at the University of Alberta says most people have the ability to reverse the mental declines that come with aging.  "Can we reverse mental declines? Well, for most of us, the answer is yes, and I think that is definitely exciting and encouraging news," said Dr. Dennis Foth, a professor in the University of Alberta Faculty of Extension and the academic director of the U of A's Certificate in Adult and Continuing Education. Foth and his research colleague, Dr. Gordon Thompson of the University of Saskatchewan, also found in their literature review that mental declines related to aging are not universal (they affect some more than others), and they are not pervasive (the declines normally affect different parts of our cognitive capacities to varying degrees). Foth said mental declines are pathological for about 10 per cent of the general population over the age of 65, and not much can be done at this time to overcome the debilitating cognitive effects of diseases that affect the brain, such as Alzheimer's disease. But for the other 90 per cent of the population, cognitive decline need not be inevitable.