MedWorm provides a medical RSS filtering service. Over 6000 RSS medical sources are combined and output via different filters. This feed contains the latest medical blog items that have been tagged with 'distribution'. Sat, 03 Sep 2011 02:09:07 +0100 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5181919&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F09%2F01%2Fthe-situation-of-the-inequality-getting-inequalitier%2F From PBSNewsHour: Financial gains over the last decade in the United States have been mostly made at the “tippy-top” of the economic food chain as more people fall out of the middle class. The top 20 percent of Americans now holds 84 percent of U.S. wealth, as Paul Solman found out as part of a Making Sen$e series on economic inequality. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5181919 Thu, 01 Sep 2011 18:34:21 +0100 5181919 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5139895&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F08%2F16%2Fthe-cause-of-rioting-thats-easy-rioters%2F British Prime Minister David Cameron attributed the recent riots in his to “the slow-motion moral collapse that has taken place in parts of our country these past few generations.”   The message may seem vaguely situationist at first blush, as Cameron emphasizes the problem of a “broken society.” But what he really seems to care about are the bad “choices” made by selfish, irresponsible individuals. Cameron’s comments resemble remarks he’s made in the past.  In 2008, according to one account, he declared that “people who are fat, poor or addicted to drugs could only have themselves to blame.” It’s a one-size-fits-all ideology:  If you have problems, look in the mirror! To be fair, Cameron does acknowledge one situational... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5139895 Tue, 16 Aug 2011 18:42:14 +0100 5139895 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5107616&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F08%2F09%2Fthe-situation-of-antitrust-law%2F Maurice E. Stucke recently posted his thoughtful paper, “Reconsidering Antitrust’s Goals” on SSRN.  Here’s the abstract. * * * Antitrust policy today is an anomaly. On the one hand, antitrust is thriving internationally. On the other hand, antitrust’s influence has diminished domestically. Over the past thirty years, there have been fewer antitrust investigations and private actions. Today the Supreme Court complains about antitrust suits, and places greater faith in the antitrust function being subsumed in a regulatory framework. So what happened to the antitrust movement in the United States? Two import factors contributed to antitrust policy’s domestic decline. The first is salience, especially the salience of the U.S. antitrust goals. In the past thirty yea... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5107616 Tue, 09 Aug 2011 05:54:43 +0100 5107616 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5077784&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F07%2F29%2Fthe-scalability-of-cities%2F From TedTalks: Physicist Geoffrey West has found that simple, mathematical laws govern the properties of cities — that wealth, crime rate, walking speed and many other aspects of a city can be deduced from a single number: the city’s population. In this mind-bending talk from TEDGlobal he shows how it works and how similar laws hold for organisms and corporations. Related Situationist posts: The Unequal Situation of Seperation Some Situational Sources of Longer Life Nicholas Christakis on the Situation of Epidemics The Stressful Situation of Disease Inequality and the Unequal Situation of Mental and Physical Health The Situation of Handguns on Urban Streets-Abstract “Innovative Policy: Zoning for Health,” “The Situation of Social Networks,” and “Social Netw... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5077784 Fri, 29 Jul 2011 04:01:06 +0100 5077784 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5050741&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F07%2F22%2Fthe-situation-of-fairness%2F Carlos Alós-Ferrer, Anja Achtziger, and Alexander Wagner, recently posted their paper “Social Preferences and Self-Control” on SSRN. We study the interaction of different motives and decision processes in determining behavior in the ultimatum game. We rely on an experimental manipulation called ego depletion which consumes self-control resources, thereby enhancing the influence of default reactions or, in psychological terms, automatic processes. We find that proposers make lower offers under ego depletion, i.e. self-centered monetary concerns are the default mode and not other-regarding considerations (fairness towards others). Responders are more likely to reject low offers under ego depletion, i.e. the affect-influenced reaction to reject unfair offers (reaction to unfairne... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5050741 Fri, 22 Jul 2011 04:01:22 +0100 5050741 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5036290&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F07%2F16%2Fnicholas-christakis-on-the-situation-of-epidemics%2F From TED Talks: After mapping humans’ intricate social networks, Nicholas Christakis and colleague James Fowler began investigating how this information could better our lives. Now, he reveals his hot-off-the-press findings: These networks can be used to detect epidemics earlier than ever, from the spread of innovative ideas to risky behaviors to viruses (like H1N1). Related Situationist posts: “The Situation of Social Networks,” “The Social Situation of Breaking Up,” “Social Networks,” “Common Cause: Combating the Epidemics of Obesity and Evil,” and “Situational Obesity, or, Friends Don’t Let Friends Eat and Veg.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5036290 Sat, 16 Jul 2011 04:01:57 +0100 5036290 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=5028488&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F07%2F09%2Fdavid-brooks-the-situationist%2F From New York Times: Over the past 50 years, we’ve seen a number of gigantic policies produce disappointing results — policies to reduce poverty, homelessness, dropout rates, single-parenting and drug addiction. Many of these policies failed because they were based on an overly simplistic view of human nature. They assumed that people responded in straightforward ways to incentives. Often, they assumed that money could cure behavior problems. Fortunately, today we are in the middle of a golden age of behavioral research. Thousands of researchers are studying the way actual behavior differs from the way we assume people behave. They are coming up with more accurate theories of who we are, and scores of real-world applications. * * * Yet in the middle of this golden age of behavioral res... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=5028488 Sat, 09 Jul 2011 04:10:40 +0100 5028488 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4975960&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F06%2F26%2Fsusan-fiskes-new-book%2F Discussion about (In)Equality,” “The Interior Situational Reaction to Inequality,” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4975960 Mon, 27 Jun 2011 02:36:47 +0100 4975960 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4968593&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F06%2F24%2Funequal-juries%2F Wendy Parker posted her article, “Juries, Race, and Gender: A Story of Today’s Inequality” (Wake Forest Law Review, Vol. 46, pp. 209-240, 2011), on SSRN.  Here’s the abstracst. The Civil Rights Act of 1991 was supposed to be a victory for employment discrimination plaintiffs – a dramatic expansion of their rights. Twenty years later, however, we are told that the news for employment discrimination plaintiffs has gone “from bad to worse.” This essay, a reflection on the twenty-year history of the 1991 Act, explores how just how bad it is. In doing so, this essay discovers some optimistic news (but not much): Plaintiffs today are more likely to win at trial than before the 1991 Act. This is likely because of the 1991 Act’s expanded right to a jury trial. Yet,... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4968593 Fri, 24 Jun 2011 04:01:35 +0100 4968593 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4921529&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F06%2F10%2Fperceptions-of-income-distribution-and-preferences-for-redistribution%2F This study examines how individuals form these perceptions and posits that systematic biases arise from the extrapolation of information extracted from reference groups. A tailored household survey provides original evidence on the significant biases in individuals’ evaluations of their own relative position in the distribution. Furthermore, the data supports the hypothesis that the selection process into the reference groups is the source of those biases. Finally, this study also assesses the practical relevance of these biases by examining their impact on attitudes towards redistributive policies. An experimental design incorporated into the survey provides consistent information on the own ranking within the income distribution to a randomly selected group of respondents. Confronting ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4921529 Fri, 10 Jun 2011 04:10:49 +0100 4921529 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4872475&cid=t_105622_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2FQv7sASpsCEI%2F Hired someone new and exciting? Promoted a rising star? Finally solved that hard-to-fill spot? Share the news with us and we’ll share with it others. That’s right. Send us your announcements and we’ll find a home for them. Don’t be shy. Everyone wants to know who is coming and going, especially with all the layoffs. Despite the downsizing, there is movement. Here are some of the latest changes. Recognize anyone? And here is our regular feature. Send us a photo and we will spotlight a different person each week. This time around, we note that Pfizer named Craig Lipset as head of clinical innovation. Most recently , he was venture partner in Pfizer Venture Investments, which oversees a $50 million budget for private investments in diagnostics and health technology. Before that, he wa... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4872475 Fri, 27 May 2011 12:09:20 +0100 4872475 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4852954&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F05%2F22%2Fideology-and-grading%2F From Inside Higher Ed: Republican professors and Democratic professors presumably produce different outcomes when they enter the ballot box, but what about when they record grades? A forthcoming study finds that there may be notable differences. Democratic professors appear to be “more egalitarian” than their Republican counterparts when it comes to grading, meaning that more of the Democratic grades are in the middle. Republicans are more likely than Democrats to award very high grades and very low grades. While the study documents those differences, the work will not satisfy political partisans hoping to demonstrate that Republicans are trying to encourage Darwinian competition with grading or that Democrats are Lake Wobegon graders afraid to suggest anyone did poorly. That&#... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4852954 Sun, 22 May 2011 15:12:59 +0100 4852954 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4813379&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F05%2F11%2Fholder-on-the-situation-of-violence%2F In 2010, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder announced the launch of the “Defending Childhood” initiative to help prevent children’s and young people’s exposure to violence, mitigate its effects and put an end to cycles of violence that undermine the public’s health. During this webcast, he described his vision for this initiative and its progress so far. Related Situationist posts: 25 Mil­lion Years of Us vs. Them “Michael McCullough on the Situation of Revenge and Forgiveness,” The Power of Suggestion The Situation of Psychopaths The Situation of Hate Crimes Obesity and Bullying The Cruelty of Children Examining the Bullying Situation The Situation of Bullying The Situation of Gang Rape The Situation of Hazing, Torture, Gender, and Tears “New Study ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4813379 Wed, 11 May 2011 04:01:51 +0100 4813379 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4797772&cid=t_105622_87_f&fid=39187&url=http%3A%2F%2Fgetbetterhealth.com%2Fwhy-we-women-cant-win-liposuction-and-fat-redistribution%2F2011.05.07 Here’s the tweet I posted Sunday evening: I’ve told pts this for years now>>> Liposuction Study Finds That Lost Fat Returns – http://nyti.ms/kheltN The New York Times article reports on a liposuction study published in the April issue of the journal Obesity (full reference below).   The NY Times article uses this photo as graphic illustration and a quote from a plastic surgeon who says he is surprised. Dr. Felmont Eaves III, a plastic surgeon in Charlotte, N.C., and president of the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, said the study was “very well done,” and the results were surprising. He said he would mention it to his patients in the context of other information on liposuction. I have told my patients for years to consider the fat cells in their... Better Health blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4797772 Sat, 07 May 2011 22:00:00 +0100 4797772 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4753768&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F04%2F26%2Frichard-hackman-on-what-makes-for-a-great-team%2F Harvard University professor Richard Hackman spoke in March at Harvard Law School.Professor Hackman has studied the secrets of effective teams ranging from airplane cockpit crews to musical ensembles. In his talk, sponsored by the Student Association for Law and Mind Sciences, Professor Hackman summarized the conditions that increase the likelihood of creating teamwork “magic.” For a brief introduction to Professor Hackman’s recent research on teamwork, check out this Harvard Business Review article on “sand dune teams.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4753768 Tue, 26 Apr 2011 20:28:46 +0100 4753768 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4744842&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F04%2F24%2Fthe-situation-of-altruism-2%2F From UCtelevision: Christopher Boehm, Steve Frank, and Christophe Boesch explore the biological basis of the evolution of cooperation, how and why societies organize to suppress the “free-rider” and how the ecology of societies influence the evolution of cooperation and altruism Series: “CARTA – Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4744842 Sun, 24 Apr 2011 04:01:09 +0100 4744842 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4696698&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F04%2F10%2Fthe-disorderly-situation-of-stereotyping%2F From Los Angeles Times: Picture yourself in a well-kept room — pictures neatly hung on walls, books organized on a shelf, floors clear of junk. Now sit yourself in a room with crooked pictures, scattered books and dirty laundry on the floor. Feeling any different? In the second room, you might be more apt to keep your distance from a person of another race, believe that Muslims are aggressive or think that gay people are creative, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Science. The idea, said researchers from Tilburg University in the Netherlands, is that people in messy environments tend to compensate for that disorder by categorizing people in their minds according to well-known stereotypes. Testing the relationship between disorder and discrimination in real-life situa... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4696698 Sun, 10 Apr 2011 04:01:36 +0100 4696698 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4684442&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F04%2F06%2Fmarjorie-kelly-speaks-at-harvard-law%2F Marjorie Kelly, Senior Associate at the Tellus Institute, speaks today at Harvard Law School.  The event is sponsored by SICKLE (Jon Hanson’s Corporate Law Class), Title: “What Comes Next? The demise of shareholder primacy and the seeds of new corporate design.” When: Wednesday, April 6, 12:15-1:15 PM Where: Langdell South Here’s a bio of Marjorie Kelly: Marjorie Kelly is a modern revolutionary who wants to democratize economics. She argues that our current economic system is an aristocracy run by corporations that pay shareholders as much as possible and employees as little as possible—while ignoring the public good. CEOs aren’t all bad guys, Kelly says, they’re just operating in a system that forces them to put profits above everything else. That’s what s... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4684442 Wed, 06 Apr 2011 04:01:00 +0100 4684442 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4653386&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F03%2F29%2Fsalms-lecture-tonight%2F Jon Hanson Evening Lecture and Reception On Tuesday, March 29th, Professor Jon Hanson will give a lecture entitled “Law, Psychology, and Inequality” at 6PM in Harvard Law School’s Austin East.  A reception with free food and drink will follow! (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4653386 Tue, 29 Mar 2011 07:00:27 +0100 4653386 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4631522&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F03%2F25%2Fpsychology-of-inequality%2F Elaine McCardle wrote a terrific review of last month’s Fifth Annual PLMS Conference.  Her article is the spotlight piece on the Harvard Law School website and includes several excellent videos, photos, and links.  Here’s the story. * * * While equality is a fundamental principle of American law and the bedrock of the national psyche, inequality has actually increased in the past four decades in the distribution of wealth, power, opportunity, even health. Yet the topic of inequality has received relatively little attention from legal theorists, and, for the most part, it is ignored in the basic law school curriculum. A conference last month at HLS, “The Psychology of Inequality,” presented by the Project on Law & Mind Sciences (PLMS), stepped into that vacuum, bringi... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4631522 Fri, 25 Mar 2011 04:01:28 +0100 4631522 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4622301&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F03%2F22%2Fgender-quotas-on-company-boards%2F When: Wed, March 23, 12:00pm – 1:30pm Where: Langdell South (map) Sponsor: The Harvard Women’s Law Association in cooperation with Prof. Hanson’s Corporations class. Description: Women on Board? A discussion on gender stereotyping in business and the pros & cons of gender quotas on company boards March 23, 12pm-1.20pm Langdell South. Speakers: Prof. Amy Cuddy (Harv Business School) and Prof. Darren Rosenblum (Pace Law School) Question: A mere 15% of board members of companies are women, the European average is 11.7%, in China it is approx. 7% and in Japan it is even lower. What are the reasons for this disparity and what are measures against it? Some countries, notably Norway, have taken the step to mandate gender quotas for boards of companies. Other countries are debating simi... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4622301 Tue, 22 Mar 2011 04:01:26 +0100 4622301 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4605882&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F03%2F18%2Fbelonging%2F From Eureka Alert: Along with the excitement and anticipation that come with heading off to college, freshmen often find questions of belonging lurking in the background: Am I going to make friends? Are people going to respect me? Will I fit in? Those concerns are trickier for black students and others who are often stereotyped or outnumbered on college campuses. They have good reason to wonder whether they will belong – worries that can result in lower grades and a sense of alienation. But when black freshmen participated in an hour-long exercise designed by Stanford psychologists to show that everyone – no matter what their race or ethnicity – has a tough time adjusting to college right away, their grades went up and the minority achievement gap shrank by 52 percent. And years late... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4605882 Fri, 18 Mar 2011 05:34:54 +0100 4605882 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4527777&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F28%2Ffelix-warneken-at-harvard-law-school%2F Today, the HLS Student Association for Law and Mind Sciences (SALMS) is hosting a talk, “The Roots of Altruism – Evidence from Children and Chimpanzees,” by Harvard University professor Felix Warneken in Pound 100 from 12:00 – 1:00. In addition to teaching psychology at Harvard, Professor Warneken studies the roots of altruism by conducting experiments with chimps and infants.  Free burritos will be provided! For more information, e-mail salms@law.harvard.edu. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4527777 Mon, 28 Feb 2011 04:01:23 +0100 4527777 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4527778&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F27%2Fjohn-palfreys-post-conference-reflections%2F The brilliant John Palfrey posted some of his reflections about Saturday’s PLMS conference on his blog.  Here are some excerpts. * * * Today, Prof. Jon Hanson is hosting the Fifth Conference on Law and Mind Sciences at Harvard Law School.  The idea, dating back to 2007, has been to “introduce to scholars and students of law and legal theory intriguing, relevant research from social psychology, social cognition, public health, and related disciplines and to stimulate a productive, interdisciplinary exchange between scholars across these fields.”  It’s a rare and fun opportunity to hear from a broad range of mind scientists about their work and how it might intersect with ours in the field of law. For instance, Dr. Laura Kubzansky (Harvard School of Public Health) discussed th... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4527778 Mon, 28 Feb 2011 01:29:23 +0100 4527778 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4527779&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F27%2Fsalms-liveblogs-plms-conference%2F Read James Wang’s excellent notes from yesterday’s terrific conference here. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4527779 Sun, 27 Feb 2011 23:40:44 +0100 4527779 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4522155&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F25%2Fharvard-law-record-on-tomorrows-plms-conference%2F From the Harvard Law Record: Legal scholars have long been borrowing from economists to explain legal rules and doctrine. Examining the law through the lens of social psychological research is a more novel approach, one which will be front and center at the fifth annual Conference on Law and Mind Sciences at Harvard Law School. On Feb. 26 in Austin North, academics and students will discuss the latest research on the psychological causes and consequences of social inequality and its application to law and policy. The conference, entitled “The Psychology of Inequality,” is an all-day event sponsored by the Project on Law and Mind Sciences (PLMS) and will feature four panels comprised of mostly mind scientists and several legal scholars. “The larger ambition of the conferen... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4522155 Fri, 25 Feb 2011 04:01:31 +0100 4522155 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4512440&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F23%2Fplms-conference-agenda%2F Discussion – Presenters and Faculty Conferees o    Bob Bordone o    Stella Elias o    John Palfrey o    Lucie White o    Andrew Woods 5:55 – 6:00: Closing Remarks (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4512440 Wed, 23 Feb 2011 04:08:37 +0100 4512440 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4498294&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F19%2F1-week-from-today%2F Learn more here. Register here. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4498294 Sun, 20 Feb 2011 00:01:47 +0100 4498294 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4470453&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F12%2F2-weeks-from-today%2F Learn more here.  Register here. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4470453 Sun, 13 Feb 2011 01:02:51 +0100 4470453 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4460011&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F10%2Fharvard-womens-law-association-conference%2F Panels Health & Equality There is a burgeoning awareness that access to health care is an equality issue.  With inadequate resources to access basic health services, women around the globe are impaired from functioning at the highest level.  At the same time, health disparities perpetuate other disparities, leaving women who lack these resources behind their counterparts elsewhere.  Women’s reproductive health needs make this question all the more stark.  Our panel brings together leading experts in legal and nonlegal fields, who have a holistic perspective on health that grounds legal answers in community-based approaches. Equality & Economics Economic inequality influences people’s choices and shapes their worldviews.  As such, it is necessary to continually interrogate ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4460011 Thu, 10 Feb 2011 04:01:49 +0100 4460011 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4433143&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F02%2F04%2Fthe-costs-of-unemployment%2F It’s week four of my Law and Mind Sciences Seminar, which means students are reading articles about hedonic adaptation. In reviewing the assigned papers, I was reminded (in a footnote!) of an interesting study by Richard E. Lucas, Andrew Clark, Yannis Georgellis, and Ed Diener from several years ago on how becoming unemployed can alter the set point for life satisfaction.  As the authors explain in the abstract: According to set-point theories of subjective well-being, people react to events but then return to baseline levels of happiness and satisfaction over time. We tested this idea by examining reaction and adaptation to unemployment in a 15-year longitudinal study of more than 24,000 individuals living in Germany.  In accordance with set-point theories, individuals reacted str... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4433143 Fri, 04 Feb 2011 04:01:50 +0100 4433143 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4342737&cid=t_105622_139_f&fid=38879&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FVirologyBlog%2F%7E3%2FuLm1tCudeRQ%2F (MOI) is a frequently used term in virology which refers to the number of virions that are added per cell during infection. If one million virions are added to one million cells, the MOI is one. If ten million virions are added, the MOI is ten. Add 100,000 virions, and the MOI is 0.1. The concept is straightforward. But here is the tricky part. If you infect cells at a MOI of one, does that mean that each cell in the cutlure receives one virion? The answer is no. Here is another way to look at this problem: imagine a room containing 100 buckets. If you threw 100 tennis balls into that room – all at the same time – would each bucket get one ball? Most likely not. How many tennis balls end up in each bucket, or the number of virions that each cell receives at different MOI, is d... virology blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4342737 Thu, 13 Jan 2011 14:57:25 +0100 4342737 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4326935&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fvideos.videopress.com%2FJ7baZBzO%2F2011_01_07_upstream_trailer_v3_hd.mp4 Upstream website recently published the above sample of interviews that makes clear how situational or environmental factors are contributing to disease and inequality (Upstream blog here). Some related Situationist videos: “The Toxic Situation of Cosmetics,” “Our Carcinogenic Situation,” “Juliet Schor, ‘Colossal Failure: The Output Bias of Market Economies’,” “The Need for a Situationist Morality.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4326935 Sun, 09 Jan 2011 04:01:50 +0100 4326935 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4324817&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F08%2F200-countries-200-years-4-minutes%2F I’m getting excited about the Fifth Law and Mind Sciences Conference: “The Psychology of Inequality” that will be held at Harvard Law School on February 26, 2011. It promises to be a great event.  (As a reminder, you can register for the conference here.) To whet your appetite, check out this amazing animated graph constructed by Dr. Hans Rosling tracking changes in global health over the last 200 years by country.  It’s well worth the four-minute watch! * * * * * * For a sample of related Situationist posts, see “The Situation of Healthy Aging,” “Inequality and the Unequal Situation of Mental and Physical Health,” “The Stressful Situation of Disease,” and “The Interior Situation of Intergenerational Poverty.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4324817 Sat, 08 Jan 2011 04:01:42 +0100 4324817 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4314062&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F05%2Fthe-unequal-situation-of-seperation%2F From Rice News (by Mike Williams): However much people choose to live in a segregated society, the trend is a losing proposition for all. That was the takeaway message delivered by Rice’s Michael Emerson in a presentation to the Houston Association of Hispanic Media Professionals (HAHMP) last week. Members came to campus to hear him discuss select results from the Houston Area Survey, particularly as they relate to housing preferences among blacks, whites and Hispanics. Emerson, the Allyn and Gladys Cline Professor of Sociology and co-director of the university’s new Institute for Urban Research (IUR), gave a brief summary of segregation in Houston based on the 2000 Census that showed distinct separation between black and white neighborhoods, with Hispanics somewhat more integr... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4314062 Wed, 05 Jan 2011 04:49:32 +0100 4314062 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4304932&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F03%2Fthe-gendered-situation-of-recommendation-letters%2F From Rice University: A recommendation letter could be the chute in a woman’s career ladder, according to ongoing research at Rice University. The comprehensive study shows that qualities mentioned in recommendation letters for women differ sharply from those for men, and those differences may be costing women jobs and promotions in academia and medicine. Funded by the National Science Foundation, Rice University professors Michelle Hebl and Randi Martin and graduate student Juan Madera, now an assistant professor at the University of Houston, reviewed 624 letters of recommendation for 194 applicants for eight junior faculty positions at a U.S. university. They found that letter writers conformed to traditional gender schemas when describing candidates. Female candidates were descri... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4304932 Mon, 03 Jan 2011 04:01:35 +0100 4304932 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4302165&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2011%2F01%2F01%2Fthe-situation-of-healthy-aging%2F An informative, scholarly collection of presentations about recent research on the situation of healthy aging. For a sample of related Situationist posts, see “Inequality and the Unequal Situation of Mental and Physical Health,” “The Situation of Racial Health Disparities,” “The Stressful Situation of Disease,” “The Situation of Depression,” “The Stressful Situation of Religious Zealotry,” “The Situational Consequences of Poverty on Brain,” “The Interior Situation of Intergenerational Poverty,” “The Situation of Mental Illness,” “The Disturbing Mental Health Situation of Returning Soldiers,” “The Toll of Discrimination on Black Women,” “The Physical Pains of Discrimination,” “The Depressing Effects of Ra... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4302165 Sat, 01 Jan 2011 04:01:52 +0100 4302165 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4281351&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F12%2F22%2Fregister-now-for-the-2011-conference%2F The Fifth Law and Mind Sciences Conference: “The Psychology of Inequality” At this year’s conference, leading social scientists and legal scholars will present and discuss their research regarding the  psychological causes and consequences of social inequality. The conference will be held on February 26, 2011 at Harvard Law School.  To register for the conference, click on the image above or here for the online registration. For more information about the conference, click here. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4281351 Wed, 22 Dec 2010 18:16:19 +0100 4281351 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4275394&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F12%2F21%2Fblood-race%2F From the Harvard Gazette: The centuries-old “one-drop rule” assigning minority status to mixed-race individuals appears to live on in our modern-day perception and categorization of people like Barack Obama, Tiger Woods, and Halle Berry. So say Harvard University psychologists, who’ve found that we still tend to see biracials not as equal members of both parent groups, but as belonging more to their minority parent group. The research appears in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology. “Many commentators have argued that the election of Barack Obama, and the increasing number of mixed-race people more broadly, will lead to a fundamental change in American race relations,” says lead author Arnold K. Ho, a Ph.D. student in psychology at Harvard. “Our work challenges the ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4275394 Tue, 21 Dec 2010 13:36:58 +0100 4275394 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4258927&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F12%2F15%2Fthe-inherited-situation-of-racial-inequality%2F Discussion about (In)Equality,” “The Interior Situational Reaction to Inequality,” “The Situation of Mortgage Defaults,” “The Situation of the Mortgage Crisis,” and “The Interior Situation of Intergenerational Poverty.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4258927 Wed, 15 Dec 2010 04:01:14 +0100 4258927 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4245601&cid=t_105622_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2FZ1OgNCUw80U%2F Jeff Kinder, the freshly departed Pfizer ceo, may have been criticized for failing to buy smaller companies, but a recent tally shows Pfizer has, so far, this year been the biggest industry dealmaker, at least when it comes to individual products, according to Life Science Analytics. Pfizer struck 51 deals as October, inching past Sanofi-Aventis at 50 and Novartis at 49. Roche struck 46, Glaxo has done 44 and Bayer inked 31 deals. Rounding out the list was Teva at 30, AstraZeneca with 25, Abbott at 20 and Lilly with 18. So what kind of deals? There were acquisitions; co-development deals; collaborations; co-marketing, co-promotion and commercialization; distribution and cross-distribution; cross licensing; development; licensing; manufacturing; supply agreements and sub-licensing. The sho... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4245601 Thu, 09 Dec 2010 14:24:29 +0100 4245601 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4164490&cid=t_105622_83_f&fid=34856&url=http%3A%2F%2Finsidesurgery.com%2F2010%2F11%2Fage-distribution-adrenal-carcinoma%2F Although usually thought of as a condition presenting in the 5th and 6th decade of life, adrenal carcinoma actually has a bimodal age distribution, wtih the incidence increasing in the first decade and then again between 40 and 50 years of age. In children it can present with hypertension, pubic hair, and genital enlargement or in girls virilization. The optimal treatment is always surgery. (Source: Inside Surgery) Inside Surgery blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4164490 Sun, 14 Nov 2010 07:41:44 +0100 4164490 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4164558&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F11%2F14%2Fthe-situation-of-the-2008-economic-crisis%2F Charles Furgeson has produced a powerful documentary, “Inside Job,” about the deep capture of financial (de)regulation.  Here’s the trailer. * * * * * * For a sample of related Situationist posts, see “The Deeply Captured Situation of the Economic Crisis,” “Our Stake in Corporate Behavior,” “Larry Lessig’s Situationism,” “The Situation of Policy Research and Policy Outcomes,” “Industry-Funded Research,” “De-Capturing the FDA,” “The Situation of Talk Radio,” “Deep Capture – Part X,” and “The company ‘had no control or influence over the research’.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4164558 Sun, 14 Nov 2010 04:01:20 +0100 4164558 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4162958&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F11%2F12%2Fthe-legal-policy-situation-of-continued-inequality%2F Judge Michael Wolff posted his article “Stories of Civil Rights Progress and the Persistence of Inequality and Unequal Opportunity 1970-2010” (forthcoming in William Mitchell Law Review) on  SSRN.  Here is the abstract. * * * In this article, Missouri Supreme Court Judge Michael A. Wolff, who also is distinguished visiting professor at St. Louis University School of Law, outlines the judicial and legislative victories and failures of civil rights advocates over the last forty years at both the federal and state level. He details the reform efforts through personal anecdotes of many of his own cases that he pursued as a legal services lawyer and has seen as a judge. Judge Wolff’s stories focus on the rights that legal services programs fought for and obtained and the battles... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4162958 Fri, 12 Nov 2010 04:01:01 +0100 4162958 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4151894&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F11%2F09%2Finterview-with-professor-eric-knowles%2F From The Project on Law & Mind Sciences at Harvard Law School (PLMS): Here is an illuminating interview of Situationist Contributor Erid Knowles by Harvard Law student Anna Lamut. The interview, titled “On Moral Judgment and Normative Questions” lasts just over 72 minutes. It was conducted as part of the Law and Mind Science Seminar at Harvard taught by Situationist Contributor Jon Hanson. Eric Knowles  is an assistant professor of Psychology & Social Behavior, Ph.D. University of California, Berkeley. The following blurb from his website describes his research: “When does inequality seem like inequity? Broadly speaking, my research examines how people perceive and react to the fact that some groups in society have more than others. I am especially interested in how di... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4151894 Tue, 09 Nov 2010 04:01:56 +0100 4151894 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4139294&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F11%2F06%2Fthe-political-situation-of-the-economic-inequality%2F In Winner-Take-All Politics: How Washington Made the Rich Richer – And Turned Its Back on the Middle Class, Jacob S. Hacker of Yale and Paul Pierson of Berkeley argue that America’s money-addicted and change-resistant political system is at the heart of the enormous and rapidly growing income inequality that they say is undermining America’s economic and political stability. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4139294 Sat, 06 Nov 2010 04:05:05 +0100 4139294 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4133852&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F11%2F04%2Fsusan-fiske-discusses-her-work-on-different-types-of-prejudices%2F Situationist Contributor Susan Fiske discusses her research on stereotypes and prejudice and the systematic principles that influence how groups are treated in society. * * * * * * For a sample of related Situationist posts, see “The Situation of Objectification,” “Women’s Situational Bind,” “Hey Dove! Talk to YOUR parent!,” and “You Shouldn’t Stereotype Stereotypes.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4133852 Thu, 04 Nov 2010 04:01:18 +0100 4133852 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4121925&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F10%2F30%2Ffifth-annual-conference-save-the-date%2F The Fifth  Conference on Law and Mind Sciences, tentatively titled “The Psychology of Inequality,” is now being planned for Febuary 26, 2011 at Harvard Law School.  More details will be announced soon. You can learn more about our previous conferences here. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4121925 Sun, 31 Oct 2010 01:25:08 +0100 4121925 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4105774&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F10%2F26%2Fthe-stressful-situation-of-disease%2F In this study, researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham recruited 148 African and European-America children about eight years of age. Children were seen up to five times during a period of nine years. At each study visit, cortisol was measured in the children’s blood samples. Unemployment, poverty, female-headed households with children and vacant houses were used to determine neighborhood environments. Researchers adjusted for differences, including age, weight, gender and other personal factors. Overall, children who lived in disadvantaged neighborhoods had lower levels of cortisol. When the researchers looked closer at the role of race on the results, they found that the association between neighborhood and decreased cortisol was greatest in African-American children... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4105774 Tue, 26 Oct 2010 04:01:20 +0100 4105774 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4074163&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F10%2F14%2Fjim-sidanius-terror-intergroup-violence-and-the-law-%25e2%2580%259d%2F In his fascinating presentation at Harvard Law School on September 12, 2010, Professor Sidanius discussed ways in which the legal system has been, and continues to be, used as a means to effectuate intergroup violence, particularly through the criminal justice system.  Here is a video of that that talk [Duration: 54:10]. Professor Sidanius, a Harvard University professor in the departments of Psychology and African and African American Studies, focuses his research on the political psychology of gender, group conflict, and institutional discrimination, as well as the evolutionary psychology of intergroup prejudice. He runs the Sidanius Lab in Intergroup Relations, which conducts research regarding intergroup relations, social inequality, hierarchy, stereotyping, ideology, and prejudice.... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4074163 Thu, 14 Oct 2010 05:21:42 +0100 4074163 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4045151&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F10%2F08%2Frobert-reich-on-the-unequal-situation-of-the-great-recession%2F Discussion about (In)Equality,” “The Interior Situational Reaction to Inequality,” “The Situation of Money and Happiness,” “Nicole Stephens on ‘Choice, Social Class, and Agency’,” “The Situation of Mortgage Defaults,” “Barbara Ehrenreich – a Situationist,” “Warren on the Situation of Credit,” “The Situation of the Mortgage Crisis,” and “Financial Squeeze: Bad Choices or Bad Situations?.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4045151 Fri, 08 Oct 2010 04:01:14 +0100 4045151 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4040620&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F10%2F07%2Fthe-embodied-situation-of-power%2F From LiveScience: * * * When suiting up with that “power tie,” you may also want to strike a pose — a power pose, that is. New research indicates that holding a pose that opens up a person’s body and takes up space will alter hormone levels and make the person feel more powerful and more willing to take risks. “These poses actually make you more powerful,” said study researcher Amy C.J. Cuddy, a social psychologist at the Harvard Business School. The opposite also proved true: Constrictive postures lowered a person’s sense of power and willingness to take risks. Cuddy teaches the results of the study to her students. . . . * * * In the study, researchers randomly assigned 42 participants, 26 of them women, to assume and hold a pair of either low- or high-power poses. The hig... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4040620 Thu, 07 Oct 2010 04:01:42 +0100 4040620 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4025659&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F10%2F02%2Feven-monkeys-know-when-theyre-being-treated-unfairly%2F Discussion about (In)Equality,”“Inequality and the Unequal Situation of Mental and Physical Health, “The Situational Effects of (In)Equality,” “The Situational Consequences of Poverty on Brains,” “The Interior Situation of Intergenerational Poverty,” “Rich Brains, Poor Brains?,” “The Toll of Discrimination on Black Women,” “Miscalculating Welfare - Abstract” “Cheering for the Underdog,” “The Physical Pains of Discrimination,” and “The Cognitive Costs of Interracial Interactions.” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4025659 Sat, 02 Oct 2010 04:01:33 +0100 4025659 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4013271&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F09%2F29%2Fthe-situation-of-depression%2F From Gallup (09/28/10): Residents of Gulf Coast-facing counties experienced a decline in their overall emotional health, as measured by the Gallup-Healthways Emotional Health Index, in the 15 weeks after the onset of the BP oil spill. Those living in inland counties in the same Gulf of Mexico states showed no such drops in emotional health in the oil spill’s aftermath. * * * From The Associated Press: A Gallup survey released Tuesday of almost 2,600 coastal residents showed that depression cases are up more than 25 percent since an explosion killed 11 people and unleashed a three-month gusher of crude into the Gulf in April that ruined many livelihoods. The conclusions were consistent with trends seen in smaller studies and witnessed by mental health workers. People just aren&#8217... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4013271 Wed, 29 Sep 2010 04:01:40 +0100 4013271 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=4001715&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F09%2F26%2Fthe-captured-situation-of-justice%2F Michael S. Kang and Joanna Shepherd recently posted the important paper “The Partisan Price of Justice: An Empirical Analysis of Campaign Contributions and Judicial Decisions” on  SSRN.  Here’s the abstract. * * * Do campaign contributions affect judicial decisions by elected judges in favor of their contributors’ interests? Although the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Caperton v. A.T. Massey Coal Co. relies on this intuition for its logic, it has been until now largely a proposition that has gone empirically untested. No longer. Using a dataset of every state supreme court case in all fifty states over a four-year period, we find that elected judges are more likely to decide in favor of business interests as the amount of campaign contributions that they have r... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=4001715 Sun, 26 Sep 2010 04:01:32 +0100 4001715 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3983437&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F09%2F20%2Fthe-social-situation-of-contagious-outbreaks%2F This study may be unique in demonstrating that social position affects one’s risk of acquiring disease. Consequently, epidemiologists and social scientists are modeling networks to evaluate novel disease surveillance and infection control strategies.” * * * Fowler and Christakis are coauthors of the book, Connected: The Surprising Power of Our Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives, as well as the article on which this post is based: “Social Network Sensors for Early Detection of Contagious Outbreaks” (PLoS ONE, online publication Sep 15, 20100). For a sample of related Situationist posts, see “The Situation of Social Networks,” “The Social Situation of Breaking Up,” “Social Networks,” “Common Cause: Combating the Epidemics of Obesity and Evil,�... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3983437 Mon, 20 Sep 2010 06:08:14 +0100 3983437 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3959972&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F09%2F12%2Fjim-sidanius-returns-to-harvard-law-school%2F On Monday, September 12th, the HLS Student Association for Law and Mind Sciences (SALMS) is hosting a talk by Professor Jim Sidanius entitled “Under Color of Authority: Terror, Intergroup Violence, and the Law.” Professor Sidanius, a Harvard University professor in the departments of Psychology and African and African American Studies, focuses his research on the political psychology of gender, group conflict, and institutional discrimination, as well as the evolutionary psychology of intergroup prejudice.  He runs the Sidanius Lab in Intergroup Relations, which conducts research regarding intergroup relations, social inequality, hierarchy, stereotyping, ideology, and prejudice. Professor Sidanius will be speaking about ways in which the legal system has been, and continues to... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3959972 Sun, 12 Sep 2010 04:01:06 +0100 3959972 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3938391&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F09%2F07%2Fthe-situation-of-property-ownership%2F Patricia Kanngiesser, Nathalia Gjersoe, and Bruce M. Hood recently published a fascinating paper, titled “The Effect of Creative Labor on Property-Ownership Transfer by Preschool Children and Adults,” in the August 16, 2010 issue of Psychological Science.  Here’s the abstract. * * * Recognizing property ownership is of critical importance in social interactions, but little is known about how and when this attribute emerges. We investigated whether preschool children and adults believe that ownership of one person’s property is transferred to a second person following the second person’s investment of creative labor in that property. In our study, an experimenter and a participant borrowed modeling-clay objects from each other to mold int... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3938391 Tue, 07 Sep 2010 04:01:43 +0100 3938391 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3813207&cid=t_105622_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2FFz0WG-kXkNc%2F Welcome back, everyone. We hope your weekend was relaxing and you had time to do something special. Now, though, the routine returns and this means gearing up for those meetings and deadlines. Please join us then as we brew the mandatory cup of stimulation to get started. And of course, there is the news of the world to rummage through. Good luck, today, and stay in touch… Watson May Bid For Sigma Pharmaceuticals (The Age) A Growing Use Of Direct To Pharmacy Distribution (PharmTech) Pills Under Way To Treat Non-Food Allergies (Los Angeles Times) Sanofi May Have To Raise Price For Genzyme (Bloomberg News) Isis Pharma To Release Data On Cholsterol Drug Trials (Reuters) Novo, Lilly And Novartis May Bid For Ascendis (Bloomberg News) (Source: Pharmalot) Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3813207 Mon, 02 Aug 2010 11:36:05 +0100 3813207 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3790765&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F07%2F27%2Fthe-shirley-sherrod-situation-and-the-situation-of-race%2F Situationist friend Charles Ogletree and Johanna Wald had a terrific editorial this Sunday, titled “After Shirley Sherrod, We all Need To Slow Down and Listen,” in which, among other things, they discuss the relevance of research by Situationist Contributors Mahzarin Banaji and Jerry Kang.  Here are some excerpts. * * * President Obama has called and chatted with Shirley Sherrod. Tom Vilsack and Ben Jealous have issued heartfelt apologies. There is talk of a “Chardonnay summit” in the Rose Garden. The subtext to all this? Let’s wrap up this incident quickly so we can all go on our vacations guilt-free, secure in the knowledge that our “post-racial society” remains intact. Once again, in the midst of the cacophony, calls abound for a national &#82... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3790765 Tue, 27 Jul 2010 04:01:07 +0100 3790765 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3718472&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F07%2F02%2Fa-discussion-about-inequality%2F The following (51 minute) video contains a worthwhile discussion from Agenda about how much inequality is too much. * * * Participants Include: Richard Wilkinson is co-author of The Spirit Level and Professor Emeritus at the University of Nottingham Medical School and honorary professor at University College London. He has played a formative role in international research and his work has been published in 10 languages. He studied economic history at the London School of Economics before training in epidemiology. William Watson is the Chair of the Economic Department at McGill University. Lane Kenworthy is a sociologist at the University of Arizona where he studies the causes and consequences of poverty, inequality, mobility, employment, economic growth, and social policy in the United St... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3718472 Fri, 02 Jul 2010 04:01:23 +0100 3718472 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3710623&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F06%2F29%2Fthe-situational-effects-of-inequality%2F Here is an intriguing (40-minute) interview with Richard Wilkinson co-author of the book The Spirit Level: Why Greater Equality Makes Societies Stronger and co-founder of The Equality Trust. * * * * * * For a sample of related Stiuationist posts, see “The Situational Consequences of Poverty on Brains,” For a sample of related Situationist posts, see “Inequality and the Unequal Situation of Mental and Physical Health,” “The Interior Situation of Intergenerational Poverty,” “Rich Brains, Poor Brains?,” “Jeffrey Sachs on the Situation of Global Poverty,” “The Situation of Financial Risk-Taking,” “The Situation of Standardized Test Scores,” “The Toll of Discrimination on Black Women,” “The Physical Pains of Discrimination,” “The D... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3710623 Tue, 29 Jun 2010 18:16:48 +0100 3710623 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3690907&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F06%2F23%2Fmoney-and-the-situation-of-happiness%2F The exceptional mind science writer and blogger Wray Herbert has a post on Huffington Post summarizing recent research studying the effects of money on happiness.  Here is an excerpt. * * * Psychologist Jordi Quoidbach of the University of Liege, Belgium, and his colleagues wondered if wealth, because it promises abundant pleasure, might actually weaken the internal sense of scarcity that makes small pleasures possible. They decided to test this idea in the lab. They recruited a large group of university employees, ranging from deans to janitors. The idea was to get a range of incomes and financial comfort, which they did: Some of the volunteers had socked away 75,000 euros or more, while others had a mere 1,000 euros in savings. They gave all of these volunteers a test that uses vignette... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3690907 Wed, 23 Jun 2010 16:12:35 +0100 3690907 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3644846&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F06%2F09%2Fthe-situational-consequences-of-poverty-on-brains%2F Anne McIlroy wrote a piece for the Toronto Globe and Mail describing research by Dr. James Swain, who is using brain imaging techniques to study the effects of poverty on the brain.  Here are some excerpts. * * * Over the past four decades, researchers have established how poverty shapes lives, that low socioeconomic status is associated with poor academic performance, poor mental and physical health and other negative outcomes. Swain is part of a new generation of neuroscientists investigating how poverty shapes the brain. The University of Michigan researcher will use imaging technologies to compare the structure and function of brains of young adults from families with low socioeconomic status to those who are middle-class. * * * He and other neuroscientists are building on preliminary... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3644846 Wed, 09 Jun 2010 04:01:41 +0100 3644846 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3633516&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F06%2F06%2Fthe-palliative-function-of-ideology%2F Jaime Napier is an Assistant Professors of Psychology at Yale University. Her primary research interest is the effects of societal injustice, including how members of advantaged and disadvantaged groups diverge in their perceptions and explanations of injustice; how political and religious ideologies may ameliorate the outrage associated with perceived injustice; and the consequences of accepting or rationalizing injustice on individual subjective well-being and self-esteem. At the third annual conference on Law and Mind Sciences, which took place in March of 2009, Napier’s fascinating presentation was titled “The Palliative Function of Ideology.” Here’s the abstract: In this research, we drew on system-justification theory and the notion that conservative ideology ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3633516 Sun, 06 Jun 2010 04:01:59 +0100 3633516 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3599504&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F05%2F26%2Fracial-prejudice-in-real-estate-markets%2F Here is another segment from John Quinones excellent ABC 20/20 series titled “What Would You Do?” — a series that, in essence, conducts situationist experiments through hidden-camera scenarios. This episode asks, “what would you do if you attended a real estate open house where only certain people were welcome?” (and includes analysis from social psychologist John Dovidio). * * * * * * It has been over 50 years since the Black, middle-class Myers family moved into all-White Levittown.  You can watch the landmark (32-minute) documentary depicting reactions to the Myers moving into Levittown below. * * * * * * Finally, here is a 1991 ABC Primetime story on the “nature of today’s prejudices.” The documentary follows “two men (equal in ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3599504 Wed, 26 May 2010 15:49:12 +0100 3599504 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3585686&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F05%2F21%2Finequality-and-the-unequal-situation-of-mental-and-physical-health%2F Press release from University of Michigan: * * * When people are under chronic stress, they tend to smoke, drink, use drugs and overeat to help cope with stress. These behaviors trigger a biological cascade that helps prevent depression, but they also contribute to a host of physical problems that eventually contribute to early death. That is the claim of University of Michigan social scientist James S. Jackson and colleagues in an article published in the May 2010 issue of the American Journal of Public Health. The theory helps explain a long-time epidemiological puzzle: why African Americans have worse physical health than whites but better psychiatric health. “People engage in bad habits for functional reasons, not because of weak character or ignorance,” says Jackson, direc... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3585686 Fri, 21 May 2010 04:01:42 +0100 3585686 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3569918&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F05%2F17%2Fthe-situation-of-sexism%2F Shankar Vedantam, author of the outstanding book, “The Hidden Brain,” excerpted a brief section of that book for TheAge.com. Here are some excerpts from that excerpt. * * * . . . . The existence of unconscious sexism can be scientifically proved in laboratory experiments. . . . Bias is much harder to demonstrate scientifically in real life, which may be why large numbers of people do not believe that sexism and other forms of prejudice still exist. Many people think we live in a “post-racial” and “post-sexist” world where egalitarian notions are the norm. Indeed, if you go by what people report, we do live in a bias-free world, because most people report feeling no prejudice whatsoever. What would be remarkably instructive in real life would be if women ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3569918 Mon, 17 May 2010 15:22:24 +0100 3569918 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3494366&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F04%2F22%2Fthe-state-of-shareholder-power-in-the-situation-of-citizens-united%2F Who is speaking when a corporation talks? Can a corporation represent all of its shareholders and workers in political speech? How will corporations decide who to represent?  In “Corporate Governance Redux in the Light of Citizens United,” Robert A.G. Monks will detail  the history of corporate personhood and how this case relates to corporate governance. * * * Come hear Mr. Monks, shareholder activist, author, corporate governance advisor, and HLS alum, for a lunch-time discussion of the state of shareholder power after Citizens United (04/22/10).  The talk will be held in Austin West at Harvard Law School (12pm-1pm).  Lunch will be provided. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3494366 Thu, 22 Apr 2010 04:01:22 +0100 3494366 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3429245&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F04%2F01%2Fmissing-the-situation-leads-to-optimism-among-powerful%2F From the University of Kent: * * * Power leads to greater errors in forecasts, according to new research led by social psychologist Dr Mario Weick at the University of Kent. The research, to be published by the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, shows that when people feel powerful they become more optimistic and less accurate in predicting the completion time of forthcoming tasks. The research examined for the first time the planning behaviour of powerful people and found that power drastically reduced the accuracy of forecasts with error rates soaring up to 70%. Dr Weick, a Research Fellow at the University’s School of Psychology, explained: ‘Time is a crucial factor in people’s everyday lives. Whether they are teachers, policy makers or engineers, people routin... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3429245 Thu, 01 Apr 2010 05:15:13 +0100 3429245 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3403944&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F03%2F25%2Fflow-and-the-situation-of-water%2F From Wikipedia: Flow: For Love of Water is a 2008 documentary film by Irena Salina. The film concentrates on the big business of privatization of water infrastructure which prioritizes profits over the availability of clean water for people and the environment. Major businesses depicted in the film are Nestle, The Coca-Cola Company, Suez, and the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The first video below is the trailer.  You can watch the movie in 9 (roughly 10-minute) sections after the jump. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * To review a sample of related Situationist posts, see “Global Climate Change and The Situation of Denial,” (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3403944 Thu, 25 Mar 2010 04:01:38 +0100 3403944 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3386923&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F03%2F21%2Fthe-neuro-situation-of-moral-and-economic-decisions%2F From ThirteenWNET: To Steven Quartz & Colin Camerer the brain is a huge number-cruncher, assigning a numeric value to everything from a loaf of bread to our most deeply held moral “values.” In that sense, moral decisions are also economic ones. Using a brain scanner (fMRI), they want to catch the brain in the act—to see what it’s doing at exactly the moment a tough moral decision gets made. Their research is pioneering a new branch of neuroscience — neuroeconomics. * * * * * * To review a sample of related Situationist posts, see “The Legal Brain,” “Read My Brain – From Science Friday,” “The Situation of Neuroeconomics and Situationist Economics,” and “The Interior Situational Reaction to Inequality.” (Source: The... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3386923 Sun, 21 Mar 2010 04:01:46 +0100 3386923 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3378561&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F03%2F18%2Fhanson-kysar-to-deliver-the-2010-monsanto-lecture%2F Situationist Contributor Jon Hanson and Yale Law Professor Doug Kysar are co-delivering the 2010 Monsanto Lecture on Tort Law and Jurisprudence tomorrow at Valparaiso University School of Law.  Their lecture is titled “Abnormally Dangerous: Inequality Dissonance and the Making of Tort Law.”  Here’s the abstract. * * * At the conceptual heart of tort law rests a choice between negligence and strict liability as the default standard of care for unintentional wrongs. The prevailing American view holds that strict liability should be reserved for rare cases in which an activity poses significant hazards even after a defendant has taken all reasonable care. The types of explanations for that preference have shifted over time from a classical liberal rationale to an economic... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3378561 Thu, 18 Mar 2010 04:01:06 +0100 3378561 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3370494&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F03%2F16%2Ftort-laws-distributional-injustice%2F Anita Bernstein, posted her recent review essay, titled “Distributive Justice Through Tort (And Why Sociolegal Scholars Should Care)” (forthcoming 35 Law of Social Inquiry) on  SSRN.  Here’s the abstract. * * * Drawing on two books central to an emerging sociolegal literature about tort-Fault Lines: Tort Law as Cultural Practice, a collection of chapters edited by David M. Engel and Michael McCann, and Torts, Egalitarianism and Distributive Justice, a monograph by Tsachi Keren-Paz–this essay argues that tort law in the United States redistributes wealth in ways that ought to trouble sociolegal scholars and enlist their reformist energy. Read together, the two volumes offer considerable description and critique of a distributive injustice, and lead to important proposa... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3370494 Tue, 16 Mar 2010 04:04:11 +0100 3370494 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3331367&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F03%2F04%2Fthe-situation-of-looting%2F Stephen Mulvey for BBC News had an illuminating article earlier this article, asking “Why Do People Loot?“  Here are some excerpts. * * * Chile could be mistaken for being in the throes of a political uprising rather than the aftermath of a natural disaster. “We understand your urgent suffering, but we also know that these are criminal acts that will not be tolerated,” President Michelle Bachelet said on Tuesday, condemning the “pillage and criminality”. * * * Social psychologists accept both that looting is criminal behaviour, and that it is natural when the forces of law and order disappear. They distinguish different types of looting, including: Looting of goods needed for survival Opportunistic theft of good such as TV sets Collective action, cond... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3331367 Thu, 04 Mar 2010 13:37:35 +0100 3331367 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3306913&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F02%2F25%2Fthe-interior-situational-reaction-to-inequality%2F In this study, we’re starting to get an idea of where this inequality aversion comes from,” he says. “It’s not just the application of a social rule or convention; there’s really something about the basic processing of rewards in the brain that reflects these considerations.” The brain processes “rewards”—things like food, money, and even pleasant music, which create positive responses in the body—in areas such as the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) and ventral striatum. In a series of experiments, former Caltech postdoctoral scholar Elizabeth Tricomi (now an assistant professor of psychology at Rutgers University)—along with O’Doherty, Camerer, and Antonio Rangel, associate professor of economics at Caltech—watched how t... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3306913 Thu, 25 Feb 2010 06:21:34 +0100 3306913 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3290858&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F02%2F20%2Fclarence-darrow-on-the-situation-of-crime-and-criminals-2%2F “Crime and Criminals: Address to the Prisoners in the Chicago Jail” (1902) Preface This address is a stenographic report of a talk made to the prisoners in the Chicago jail. Some of my good friends have insisted that while my theories are true, I should not have given them to the inmates of a jail. Realizing the force of the suggestion that the truth should not be spoken to all people, I have caused these remarks to be printed on rather good paper and in a somewhat expensive form. In this way the truth does not become cheap and vulgar, and is only placed before those whose intelligence and affluence will prevent their being influenced by it. —Clarence Darrow Crime and Criminals If I looked at jails and crimes and prisoners in the way the ordinary person does, I should not spe... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3290858 Sat, 20 Feb 2010 14:43:14 +0100 3290858 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3259248&cid=t_105622_150_f&fid=38374&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FePharmaSummit%2F%7E3%2FyiPlPSMzW7k%2Fepharma-summit-2010-long-tail-of.html (Source: ePharma Summit) ePharma Summit blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3259248 Wed, 10 Feb 2010 14:29:00 +0100 3259248 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3235913&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F02%2F02%2Fthe-constructed-situation-of-race%2F Christian Sundquist’s interesting article,  “The Meaning of Race in the DNA Era: Science, History and the Law” (27 Temple Journal of Science, Technology & Environmental Law 231-265 (2008)) is now available on SSRN. Here’s the abstract. * * * The meaning of “race” has changed dramatically over time. Early theories of race assigned social, intellectual, moral and physical values to perceived physical differences among groups of people. The perception that race should be defined in terms of genetic and biologic difference fueled the “race science” of the Eighteenth and Nineteenth centuries, during which time geneticists, physiognomists, eugenicists, anthropologists and others purported to find scientific justification for denying equal treatment to non-whi... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3235913 Tue, 02 Feb 2010 17:28:50 +0100 3235913 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3185436&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F01%2F19%2Fmartha-fineman-on-the-situation-of-gender-and-equality%2F Martha Fineman recently posted on  SSRN her fasinating chapter, titled “Evolving Images of Gender and Equality: A Feminist Journey” examining the changing conceptions of gender and equality and the unjustified privileging of autonomy over equality in American culture. * * * This chapter, which will be included in Transcending the Boundaries of Law, M.A. Fineman, Ed (Routledge 2010) brings a historical and analytic gaze on the concept of equality in the US legal system. Beginning with the establishment of Portia Law School for women and court decisions like Muller v. Oregon, I discuss the tension between seeking equality as sameness of treatment and seeking positive improvements in the lives of women. While women have officially attained legal equality with men, in terms of be... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3185436 Tue, 19 Jan 2010 06:09:25 +0100 3185436 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3178836&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2010%2F01%2F16%2Flaw-and-economics-primer%2F Situationist Contributor Jon Hanson, Kathleen Hanson, and Melissa Hart, have recently posted their outstanding introduction to law and economics (to be published in Dennis Patterson’s forthcoming volume, “Compantion to Philosophy of Law and Legal Theory) on SSRN.  The chapter includes a brief discussion of the emergence of economic behavioralism and situationism, and it is now available to download for free here.  Here’s the abstract. * * * This chapter provides an introduction to the history, uses, methods, strengths, and limits of law and economics. It begins by examining the role of positive and normative approaches to law and economics. To examine the positivist thesis – that the law does in fact tend toward efficiency – the chapter discussed and analyze... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3178836 Sat, 16 Jan 2010 04:01:52 +0100 3178836 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3115155&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F12%2F23%2Fjuliet-schor-%25e2%2580%259ccolossal-failure-the-output-bias-of-market-economies%25e2%2580%259d%2F With the disappointing Copenhagen Climate Summit just behind us and with the most consumption-heavy holiday before us, there is no better time to hear Juliet’s Schor’s analysis of, and insights regarding, how we are living and what we might do differently. Juliet Schor is Professor of Sociology at Boston College. Before joining Boston College, she taught at Harvard University for 17 years, in the Department of Economics and the Committee on Degrees in Women’s Studies. Schor’s latest book is Born to Buy: The Commercialized Child and the New Consumer Culture (2004). Born to Buy is both an account of marketing to children from inside the agencies and firms and an assessment of how these activities are affecting children. Schor is author of the national best-seller, T... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3115155 Wed, 23 Dec 2009 05:44:30 +0100 3115155 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3008171&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F11%2F19%2Faaron-kay-%25e2%2580%259cthe-psychological-power-of-the-status-quo%25e2%2580%259d%2F Situationist Contributor Aaron Kay is an Assistant Professor of Social Psychology at the University of Waterloo in Canada. Professor Kay’s research has focused on the integration of implicit social-cognitive processes with the study of broad social issues. In his primary line of work, he investigates the myriad ways by which people cope with, adapt to, and rationalize social inequalities. At the moment, this research program addresses questions such as: (1) How do people rationalize and justify their good fortune and bad fortune, others’ good fortune and bad fortune, and the social systems that dictate these outcomes? (2) What are the psychological tools employed in aiding people to cope with the internal conflict produced from participating in social systems that are, in many obje... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3008171 Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:20:31 +0100 3008171 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3003845&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F11%2F18%2Fthe-situation-of-mortgage-defaults%2F This article suggests that most homeowners choose not to strategically default as a result of two emotional forces: 1) the desire to avoid the shame and guilt of foreclosure; and 2) exaggerated anxiety over foreclosure’s perceived consequences. Moreover, these emotional constraints are actively cultivated by the government and other social control agents in order to encourage homeowners to follow social and moral norms related to the honoring of financial obligations – and to ignore market and legal norms under which strategic default might be both viable and the wisest financial decision. Norms governing homeowner behavior stand in sharp contrast to norms governing lenders, who seek to maximize profits or minimize losses irrespective of concerns of morality or social responsibilit... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3003845 Wed, 18 Nov 2009 04:01:17 +0100 3003845 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=3016928&cid=t_105622_139_f&fid=38879&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeedproxy.google.com%2F%7Er%2FVirologyBlog%2F%7E3%2FexJNtCCiQew%2F Why is the incidence of infection with 2009 H1N1 influenza highest among 5-24 year olds, and lowest in those over 65 years of age? Were the oldsters previously infected with a related influenza virus, or is there another explanation? The sera of individuals born in the early part of the 20th century have antibodies that block infection with the 2009 H1N1 virus.  We also know that antibodies that prevent infection with recently circulating seasonal H1N1 viruses do not react with pandemic H1N1 strains. These findings may partly explain the lower incidence of influenza this year in individuals greater than 65 years of age (illustrated). But other factors might also be responsible for safeguarding the older population. Infection of guinea pigs with a 2007 seasonal H1N1 virus confers some prot... virology blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=3016928 Mon, 02 Nov 2009 22:30:57 +0100 3016928 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2894577&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F10%2F15%2Fthe-categorical-situation-of-money%2F At the Third Annual Law and Mind Sciences Conference at Harvard Law School, titled “The Free Market Mindset: History, Psychology, and Consequences,” (March 7, 2009) Christine Desan’s presentation was titled “Legal Categories of Thought.”  Desan is a  Professor of Law at Harvard Law School, where she has taught since 1992. Her areas of interest include American constitutional history, legal and political thought, civil procedure, and statutory interpretation. In her presentation, Professor Desan describess the rich variety of ways that the law categorizes different kinds of liquidity — including coin, banknotes, bonds, dollars, and securities, and explores some of the ways that legal doctrine has disciplined our thought, including our assumptions about ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2894577 Thu, 15 Oct 2009 04:01:28 +0100 2894577 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2828272&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F09%2F24%2Fthe-situational-consequences-of-uncertainty%2F This spring, Situationist friend, Dan Gilbert published another illuminating and entertaining op-ed, titled “What We Don’t Know Makes Us Nervous,” (New York Times, May 21, 2009).  Here’s an excerpt. * * * Seventy-six years ago, Franklin Delano Roosevelt took to the inaugural dais and reminded a nation that its recent troubles “concern, thank God, only material things.” In the midst of the Depression, he urged Americans to remember that “happiness lies not in the mere possession of money” and to recognize “the falsity of material wealth as the standard of success.” “The only thing we have to fear,” he claimed, “is fear itself.” As it turned out, Americans had a great deal more to fear than that, and their innocent belief that money buys happiness ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2828272 Thu, 24 Sep 2009 04:01:51 +0100 2828272 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2809721&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F09%2F19%2Fthe-legal-situation-of-the-underclass%2F David Ray Papke, has posted his recent paper, “Law, Legal Institutions, and the Criminalization of the Underclass” on SSRN.  Here’s the abstract. * * * The contemporary underclass is defined not by race but rather by its weak or nonexistent ties to the labor market. Members of the underclass are more likely to be labeled as criminals than are any other members of society. The process is not a tightly coordinated conspiracy, but in various ways police, prosecutors, and jailers routinely deem members of the underclass to be nefarious lawbreakers. While in many cases underclass men and women have committed acts that justify this perception, the criminal justice system as a whole is too eager and too hasty to attach the criminal label to members of the underclass. What’s ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2809721 Sat, 19 Sep 2009 04:01:29 +0100 2809721 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2685233&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F08%2F10%2Fthe-situation-of-merit%2F The op-ed excerpted below, “America’s Best Colleges: Merit by the Numbers,” by Harvard Law School Professor Lani Guinier and Columbia Law Professor Susan Sturm, appeared in the August 5, 2009, edition of Forbes. It eloquently examines the role played and not played by universities in educating young people to promote the system-justifying illusion of merit. * * * In its recent commencement issue, an Ivy League college newspaper displayed a snapshot of the Class of 2009 “by the numbers.” Although the students had by then been at the college for four years, all of the relevant “numbers” were based on a profile of the class at the time of enrollment. Prominently featured were the 157 children of alumni; the 9.7% of applicants who were admitted; and, last but no... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2685233 Mon, 10 Aug 2009 04:01:46 +0100 2685233 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2641335&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F07%2F27%2Fthe-post-obama-situation-of-racism-abstract%2F Ian Haney-Lopez, has recently posted his thoughtful paper, “Post-Racial Racism: Crime Control and Racial Stratification in the Age of Obama” on SSRN.  Here is the abstract. * * * What does the 2008 election of Barack Obama to the United States presidency portend for race in America? This Essay uses the tremendous racial disparities in the American crime control system to assess race and racism as key features of contemporary society. The Essay begins by considering a compelling thesis that racialized mass incarceration stems from backlash to the civil rights movement. If true, this raises the possibility that Obama’s election, potentially marking the end of backlash politics, also represents a likely turning point in the war on crime. The Essay then reconsiders mass impriso... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2641335 Mon, 27 Jul 2009 04:01:38 +0100 2641335 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2615377&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F07%2F19%2Fbloggingheads-tv-percontations-system-justification-theory%2F * * * To read a selection of related Situationist posts, see “John Jost’s “System Justification and the Law” – Video,” “Independence Day: Celebrating Courage to Challenge the Situation,” “Thanksgiving as “System Justification”?” and “Patriots Lose: Justice Restored!“  To review the full collection of Situationist posts related to system justification, click here. (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2615377 Sun, 19 Jul 2009 04:01:26 +0100 2615377 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2606023&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F07%2F16%2Ffirefighters-and-the-situation-of-merit%2F The following excerpted op-ed, “Trial by Firefighters,” co-written by Harvard Law Professor Lani Guinier and Columbia Law Professor Susan Sturm, was published in the July 11, 2009, edition of The New York Times. They are also the co-authors of “Who’s Qualified: A New Democracy Forum on the Future of Affirmative Action” (Beacon Press, 2001). * * * STANDING on the steps of the federal courthouse in New Haven, the lawyer Karen Torre reveled in her clients’ victory in a recent case before the Supreme Court. She anointed her clients — the white firefighters who scored well on a promotion test — “a symbol” for millions of Americans who are “tired of seeing individual achievement and merit take a back seat to race and ethnicity.” But the Supreme Court’s 5-to-4 decision ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2606023 Thu, 16 Jul 2009 04:01:55 +0100 2606023 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2570576&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F07%2F02%2Fbill-moyers-journal-watch-listen-pbs%2F From Bill Moyers’ Journal:  “Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich sits down with Bill Moyers to talk about the influence of lobbyists on policy, the economy, and the ongoing debate over health care.”  See the interview on the video below.  From the interview, here is a bit of what Reich had to say about trends in wealth distribution. * * * “The fact of the matter is that, as late as 1980, the top 1 percent by income in the United States had about nine percent of total national income. But since then, you’ve had increasing concentration of income and wealth to the point that by 2007 the top 1 percent was taking home 21 percent of total national income. Now, when they’re taking home that much, the middle class doesn’t have enough purchasing power to keep the econo... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2570576 Thu, 02 Jul 2009 15:36:29 +0100 2570576 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2556159&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F06%2F30%2Fthe-situation-of-displinary-welfare-programs-abstract%2F We present experimental evidence based on hypothetical vignettes that case managers are more likely to recommend sanctions for Latina and black clients – but not white clients – when discrediting markers are present. We triangulate these findings with analyses of state administrative data. Our results for Latinas are mixed, but we find consistent evidence that the probability of a sanction rises significantly when a discrediting marker (i.e., a prior sanction for noncompliance) is attached to a black rather than a white welfare client. Overall, our study clarifies how racial minorities, especially African Americans, are more likely to be punished for deviant behavior in the new world of disciplinary welfare provision. * * * To download the paper for free, click here.  To read ... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2556159 Tue, 30 Jun 2009 04:01:05 +0100 2556159 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2473533&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F06%2F12%2Fthe-situation-of-human-trafficking-abstract%2F This article suggests that a central reason for the limited success in preventing human trafficking is the dominant conception of the problem, which forms the basis for law developed to combat human trafficking. Specifically, the author argues that “otherness” is a root cause of both inaction and the selective nature of responses to the abusive practice of human trafficking. Othering operates across multiple dimensions, including race, gender, ethnicity, class, caste, culture, and geography, to reinforce a conception of a virtuous “Self” and a devalued “Other.” This article exposes how this Self/Other dichotomy shapes the phenomenon of human trafficking, driving demand for trafficked persons, influencing perceptions of the problem, and constraining legal... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2473533 Fri, 12 Jun 2009 04:01:54 +0100 2473533 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2416961&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F05%2F18%2Fthe-distributional-situation-of-obesity%2F William Underhill had a nice summary of recent research on one of the situational causes of obesity: inequality.  Here are some excerpts. * * * What makes Americans so fat? Don’t blame the doughnuts. That extra heft could be symptomatic of a malaise prevalent in all the world’s least equal societies. According to “The Spirit Level,” a new book by British academics Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett, a slew of social woes—from drug abuse to obesity and mental illness—can be tied directly to the width of a nation’s income gap. The evidence for the link is compelling. Obesity is six times more common in America, where the wealth gap is among the highest in the developed world, than in Japan at the opposite end of the inequality scale. And teenage birthrates... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2416961 Mon, 18 May 2009 04:01:43 +0100 2416961 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2313403&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F04%2F05%2Fthe-interior-situation-of-intergenerational-poverty%2F From The Economist, here are some excerpts of a summary of research exploring the interior situation of how poverty is passed from one generation to the next. * * * That the children of the poor underachieve in later life, and thus remain poor themselves, is one of the enduring problems of society. . . . But nobody has truly understood what causes it. Until, perhaps, now. The crucial breakthrough was made three years ago, when Martha Farah of the University of Pennsylvania showed that the working memories of children who have been raised in poverty have smaller capacities than those of middle-class children. Working memory is the ability to hold bits of information in the brain for current use—the digits of a phone number, for example. It is crucial for comprehending languages, for read... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2313403 Sun, 05 Apr 2009 04:01:23 +0100 2313403 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2168137&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F02%2F07%2Fmonkey-fairness%2F From Youtube: A pair of capuchin monkeys show very compelling signs of cooperation and a sense of fairness, by working together to solve a problem using tools, and then sharing the reward. They also show signs of understanding fairness: when unequal rewards are given to one monkey and not another, the monkey receiving the lesser treat would rather go hungry than accept anything less than an equal reward. From the BBC documentary “Capuchins: The Monkey Puzzle”, narrated by the ever brilliant Sir David Attenborough. * * * * * * For some related posts, see “Miscalculating Welfare - Abstract” and “Cheering for the Underdog.”        (Source: The Situationist) The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2168137 Sat, 07 Feb 2009 04:01:30 +0100 2168137 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=2093046&cid=t_105622_109_f&fid=36089&url=http%3A%2F%2Fthesituationist.wordpress.com%2F2009%2F01%2F10%2Fa-neural-perspective-on-efficiency-versus-equity-abstract%2F Ming Hsu, Cédric Anen, and Steven R. Quartz, recently published a report titled “The Right and the Good: Distributive Justice and Neural Encoding of Equity and Efficiency” (in 320 Science 1092 - 1095 (2008)).  Here’s the abstract. * * * Distributive justice concerns how individuals and societies distribute benefits and burdens in a just or moral manner. We combined distribution choices with functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the central problem of distributive justice: the trade-off between equity and efficiency. We found that the putamen responds to efficiency, whereas the insula encodes inequity, and the caudate/septal subgenual region encodes a unified measure of efficiency and inequity (utility). Notably, individual differences in inequity aversion... The Situationist blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=2093046 Sat, 10 Jan 2009 04:01:42 +0100 2093046 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=1664633&cid=t_105622_150_f&fid=35777&url=http%3A%2F%2Ffeeds.feedburner.com%2F%7Er%2FPharmalot%2F%7E3%2F349497288%2F An appeals court has upheld a decision preventing the FDA from implementing a law that would force distributors to keep a record of everyone who has handled a drug. A three-judge panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit released an order last week in a case filed by the FDA against RxUSA Wholesale, which argued the FDA unfairly attempted to enforce the law governing distribution. At issue is the Prescription Drug Marketing Act, which requires each person engaged in distributing prescription drugs must provide a statement “identifying each prior sale, purchase, or trade of such drug.” However, as the court noted, a 2006 amendment does not specifically state whether identification must extend back to the drugmaker, or must only extend to the last authorized distributor... Pharmalot blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=1664633 Tue, 29 Jul 2008 14:39:52 +0100 1664633 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=918051&cid=t_105622_135_f&fid=35272&url=http%3A%2F%2Fslimconomy.blogspot.com%2F2007%2F10%2Freal-otc-game-for-rapid-hiv-test-makers.html The real game will rely on distribution - but what kind of distribution?The impending PR game over rapid HIV tests going OTC is looming, as we know. I've outlined in previous posts the players. Leading the pack is OraSure with OraQuick Advance, in terms perception at least, followed by Inverness with Clearview (certainly not in terms of perception) and possibly MedMira and perhaps BioLytical if they can get approvals in time to join the pack.As much as the public relations battle is critical in terms of public perception, the real game is played in the distribution channel. OraSure has done exceedingly well in the perception game. They've had CNN coverage and had the former Secretary of Health, Tommy Thompson help them launch OraQuick. They were first to market and enjoyed a strong relatio... Slimconomy blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=918051 Mon, 01 Oct 2007 22:53:00 +0100 918051 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=808628&cid=t_105622_87_f&fid=34867&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thediabetesblog.com%2F2007%2F08%2F19%2Fupper-trunk-fat-this-is-not-about-elephants%2F This study, linking upper trunk fat to insulin resistance, was conducted by researchers based at the San Francisco VA Medical Center. The connection was actually established in the course of a study of fat redistribution and metabolic change in HIV-infected patients. Both HIV-positive patients on antiretroviral therapy and non-HIV-infected control participants were involved in the study.A surprise finding was this fact that upper trunk fat contributes to insulin resistance just as much as does visceral fat. Also of note: this occurs regardless of whether or not the other type of fat is present. The researchers also note that all study participants were equally at risk. Says lead researcher Dr. Carl Grunfeld, "Strikingly, there was very little difference between HIV-infected people and cont... The Diabetes Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=808628 Sun, 19 Aug 2007 04:00:00 +0100 808628 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=511402&cid=t_105622_113_f&fid=34933&url=http%3A%2F%2Fpalmdoc.net%2F%3Fp%3D1234 SkinDx is available for 15% off through April 8th. SkinDx is a comprehensive guide to essential information for the detection, treatment, and management of common dermatologic conditions. Designed with an intelligent database system, SkinDx allows users to query a comprehensive list of dermatologic conditions by morphology, shape, symptoms, distribution, color, arrangement, and systemic symptoms so you will never be without the answer. (Source: The Palmdoc Chronicles) The Palmdoc Chronicles blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=511402 Fri, 30 Mar 2007 06:58:45 +0100 511402 http://www.medworm.com/index.php?rid=489978&cid=t_105622_87_f&fid=34865&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.thecancerblog.com%2F2007%2F03%2F21%2Fprostate-cancer-survivor-debuts-film-about-his-disease%2F Filed under: Prostate Cancer, Daily news, Movies, Cancer SurvivorsOne man. One cancer diagnosis. One feature-length film. About how 17,000 men gain membership every month in a group this one man calls, The Men's Club.The man is Rocky Galgano. He is 58 years old. He is a retired police officer. And he happens to be a member of the very club he features in his film -- a club full of men living with prostate cancer.Galgano created his documentary as a companion to all the densely-written books and resources he found filled to the brim with medical jargon about a disease that will strike 218,890 and kill 27,050 men this year alone.Men are reluctant to talk about prostate cancer or get tested for the disease, says Galgano. And yet this form of cancer can be cured if caught early. So Galgano ste... The Cancer Blog blogs http://www.medworm.com/rss/comments.php?id=489978 Wed, 21 Mar 2007 04:00:00 +0100 489978