Health Issue: First Born Child

First-born likely to be rockstar

London: Many parents may not buy this story, but a new study in Britain says that the order in which children are born can determine their later career paths.

       According to the study, a first-born child is more likely to become a rockstar, while middle children stand the highest chance of becoming a PM and the youngest child is most likely to become an actor.

        Resarchers have based their findings on an analysis of 100 well-known figures, including 20 rockstars, the last 20 British PMs. and the last 20 winners of best leading actor and best leading actress BAFTA awards.

       They found three-quarters of rockstars are either the eldest or only children, with examples of first-borns including Mick Jagger, John Lennon and Paul McCartney. By contrast the youngest child is twice as likely as older brothers or sisters to become an actor.

        The youngest in a family are often risk-takers, attention seekiers and hard workers with a good sense of humour. Middle children meanwhile have 67% higher chance of becoming PM than any of thier siblings.

        David Cameron, Gordon Brown and Tony Blair are all middle children, the study found.

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Health Issue: Soulmates can smell partners' fear

Soulmates can smell partners' fear

New York: Couples who are close can actually detect each other's feelings of fear, happiness and sexual arousal, claim a study.

         "Familiarity with a partner enhances detection of emotional cues in that person's smell," Rice University psychologist Denise Chen told Science News. Chen and her team looked at 20 heterosexual couples who had been living together for between one and seven years. As volunteers viewed videos meant to induce feelings of happiness, fear and sexual arousal, underarm pads collected their seat.

        Then the participants smelled odors from four jars that held the sweat from their partner or a stanger of the opposite sex, and tried to name one smell that came from a person who was experiencing a particular feeling.

         One jar held sweat that was collected during a video meant to induce particular emotions. The other jars contained perspiration that had been collected during a neutral video.

        Nearly two-thirds of the time, participants could pick up the specific emotions from their partner's body odor,and couples who had lived together the longest were best at homing in on each other's emotional odors. the accuracy rate dropped to 50% for opposite sex strangers.

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News: Catch Online paedophiles

'Anti-grooming' software will

catch online paedophiles

London: Scientists have developed "anti-grooming" software, which can detect whether kids may be chatting with an adult posing as a child or a teenager on the internet.

         The program, which has been developed by Lancaster University, uses language analysis technique to detect fraudsters. The key is that people of a particular age group have a particular vocabulary. Computer experts believe it could be a significant breakthrough in helping to catch paedophiles.

        Researchers believe the software could eventually be used to pick up on "stylistic footprints"  used by paedophiles, which would help police track them as they move around the internet.

       In a study, when the software was installed on some computers, it correctly worked out whether it was an adult or a child using a chat room in 47 cases out of 50 - including when an adult was pretending to be a child.

       "Paedophiles often pose as children online and our research indicates that children don't find it easy to spot an adult pretending to be a child," the Independent quoted professor Awais Rashid, from Lancaster University's computing department, as saying.

        "We hope to develop a system which can pick up on quirks of language particular to a certain age group. These language patterns can help us expose adults who seek to groom children online.

        "The software looks at a range of things, for example, the structure of sentences, the language which is being used and also things which indicate deception."

        It is hoped that an early working version of the software could be available by next summer.

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Health Issue: Beware! Smoker's

Beware! Smoker's

Kiss can be deadly

Melbourne: Red alert: When your smoking father comes close to give you a hug or a kiss, push him away and run in the opposite direction.

         According to Professor Robert Booy, director of research at the National Centre for Immunisation and Research at Sydney's The Children's Hospital at West mead, smokers are prime candidates for carrying the potentially deadly meningococcus bacteria in the back of their throats.

        Smokers generally carry more germs like meningococcus, and hence family cuddles and kisses can pass on dangerous germs, even if they only smoke out side.
         Booy claims the bug can be passed to children through "normal family cuddles and kisses" , and one in 10 children who go on to develop the rare meningococcal disease will die from it, reports the Daily Telegraph.
        Booy pointed to recent University of Sydney research, which showed almost 92% of New South Wales residents aged over 16 report they live in a house that is smoke-free.
        He said this showed how many parents who smoked-went outside to indulge their habit and this would reduce a child's risk of passive smoking related middle ear infection and asthma, or even Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.
       The Symptoms of meningococcal disease may include sudden onset of fever, severe headache, drowsiness, sore legs or sore joints, nausea and womiting, a dislike of bright light, a stiff neck and a rash of red-purple spots.
 

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