Studies
Raleigh, NC Is the Best City to Live — Did Your City Make the Top 20?
The 377,487 residents of Raleigh, the state capital of North Carolina, have something to cheer about as their city has been rated the number one city to live in the nation by Businessweek.com’s first-ever ranking of America’s Best Cities.
Pot Smokers Are Less Likely to Be Obese Than Non-Smokers
People who smoke pot once a week are about 25 percent less likely to be obese than non-smokers.
According to a study by French researchers, marijuana smokers have a 16 percent rate of obeseity, whereas those who don’t partake enjoy a rate of obesity between 22 and 25 percent.
Americans Are the Coolest People on the Planet, Says the Rest of the World
A survey of 30,000 people in 15 nations by the social networking site Badoo.com has found that America ranks as the world’s “coolest nationality.”
Other countries singled out for their hip nature were Brazil (second coolest overall) and Spain (coolest in Europe.) Belgium edged out Poland for least coolest nationality status.
Five Guys Is America’s Favorite Fast Food Restaurant
According to a new survey, Five Guys is the number one quick service restaurant in the land.
Insomnia Costs America $62 Billion in Productivity
Insomnia isn’t just a bad deal for those who suffer through it.
It’s also a bad deal for the nation’s economy.
Which States Have the Highest Marriage and Divorce Rates?
The 2009 Census reveals that while couples in western and southern states marry more often, they also divorce at a higher rate than those in other areas of the US.
Andrew Cherlin, a professor of sociology and public policy at Johns Hopkins University, said, “Surprisingly, the south and west, which we think of as more socially conservative, have higher rates of divorce than does the supposedly liberal east. The reason is that young adults in the south and west tend to have less education and marry earlier, both of which lead to a higher risk of divorce.”
Report Out Of England Claims 1 in 5 Women Talk To Their Dog More Than Their Husband Or Boyfriend
I lived in England for a year and can attest that dogs are not just man’s best friend over there. I think the same can be said of our dog-loving community here in the Gallatin Valley (can’t wait for Woofstock this weekend!). So, do you think this report rings true here as well?
Nice Guys Get Paid Less, Do Worse in Salary Negotiations
If you’re a man with a pleasant personality, you’re probably not going to get paid as a much as a man with a less agreeable personality.
Researchers from University of Notre Dame’s Mendoza College of Business were able to determine, using information gleamed from three large scale longitudinal studies, that men who who have agreeable personality types — meaning they test high for warmth, kindness and cooperation — make 18 percent less per year than men with disagreeable personality types.
Can Wasting Time Online Improve Employee Productivity?
In a study that anyone who works in an office will heartily embrace, researchers found that spending small parts of the day wasting time on the Internet makes workers more productive because it acts to mentally refresh them.
“Browsing the Internet serves an important restorative function,” concludes the report from the National University of Singapore.
Study Finds Decreased Social Media Use Among Many Younger People
A study by technology research firm Gartner, which recently surveyed 6,295 people between the ages of 13 and 74, reveals almost a quarter of 18- to 29-year-olds use social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter less than when they first signed up for the services, with many saying the services simply aren’t that much fun anymore.
“The trend shows some social media fatigue among early adopters,” says Brian Blau, research director at Gartner. “And the fact that 31 percent of younger consumers indicated that they were getting bored with their social network is a situation that social media providers should monitor, as they will need to innovate and diversify to keep consumer attention.”
Good Looking People Are More Selfish — Study
Attractive people are less likely to cooperate with others, and more likely to focus on their own interest, according to a new study
Spanish researchers had volunteers participate in “Prisoner’s Dilemma“-type games and found that those with the most symmetrical facial features generally took the selfish option, whereas less symmetrically-faced folks tended to cooperate for the greater good.
