Life News (Popular Culture)

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The first rule of Fight Club, according to Dr. Olivia Burgess, is that we are driven by our own personal utopian ideas, regardless if they end up creating dystopia.

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Dr. Frank Lee, of Drexel University's nationally ranked video game design program, contends that the popularity of video game sequels such as recently released "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3" and "Battlefield 3" has caused a creativity crisis in the video gaming industry.

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Think you’ve seen that holiday commercial before? That’s because you have – maybe even as long ago as the 1980s. In a move to touch the nostalgic hearts of consumers this holiday season, businesses like Toys R Us are recycling the old in order to captivate younger audiences and remind their parents of times past.

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Boston University and 90.9 WBUR, Boston’s NPR News Station, have announced that NPR correspondent David Greene is the winner of the 2011 Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Now in its tenth year, the prize is named for the late NPR senior news analyst and veteran Washington journalist Daniel Schorr, who passed away in 2010.

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If you’re speeding to Grandma’s house this Thanksgiving, there may be ways to avoid the Great American traffic crawl. Whether it is weather affecting airline schedules, or climbing all aboard Amtrak, or finding Interstate corridors clogged with SUVs, Americans are forced to endure the annual nightmare of holiday travel. Cornell faculty offer insight and solutions.

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Significant areas of the country have experienced heavy rains this year, leaving government officials to grapple with the problem of how to safely handle excess stormwater. Water quality expert Jean Smolen, Ph.D., associate professor of chemistry and director of Saint Joseph’s University’s environmental science program, says that homeowners should consider adopting current stormwater management techniques to help with the problem.

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Legendary rockers Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend of the Who will announce the launch of the UCLA Daltrey/Townshend Teen & Young Adult Cancer Program on Nov. 4, which will serve teens and young adult cancer patients at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center.

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November 11, 2011 might hold special significance for some, since the date can also be written 11/11/11. When the calendar and its numbers align, a Wake Forest University professor says some people try to ascribe some sort of mystical significance.

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Shop to build skills, entertain, stimulate imagination and teach teamwork. Includes sidebar on games that's build problem-solving skills.

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Women are settling for less and learning to live with it, according to Patricia Leavy, a sociologist, novelist and scholar of women’s issues and popular culture at Stonehill College in Easton, Mass.

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This week, Ruth Madoff publicly admitted in an exclusive interview on 60 Minutes that she and husband Bernard attempted suicide after his Ponzi scheme was revealed. The Real Housewives of New Jersey’s Melissa Gorga sported a fat suit in Times Square on Entertainment Tonight in an attempt at tolerance for overweight Americans. Dancing with the Stars’ Maksim Chmerkovskiy mouthed off to judge Len Goodman on live TV and later expressed “no regrets," building anticipation for next week’s episode. Meanwhile, local affiliates nationwide are promoting the heck out of hidden dangers and hidden cameras.

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Sauce products fly from shelves as product developers, professional chefs and home cooks use them to create regional and ethnic recipes that cater to various dietary needs.

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A content analysis of local TV news finds agreements between stations mean less original content and possible monopoly violations. The report was filed with FCC; its author,a professor at the University of Delaware, says the FCC needs to consider these agreements' effects. The FCC is set to make decisions in 2011 about media ownership, during its quadrennial review. However, none of the studies the FCC commissioned for the review examine these agreements.

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Front-of-package nutrition labels already exist on many foods in the U.S., but an Institute of Medicine (IOM) panel recently recommended standardizing and simplifying this information through a rating system modeled after the Energy Star program. "You shouldn't have to be a nutrition scientist to make healthy food choices for your family," says Matthew Kreuter, PhD, member of the IOM panel and director of the Health Communications Research Laboratory at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.

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Experts in various aspects of the macabre include several University at Buffalo faculty members who specialize in what in many cultures find horrible and terrifying.

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They move slowly, with a blank stare, shuffling into your home. Before you download the Center for Disease Control’s zombie preparedness guide, relax. They’re not there to eat your brains. They’re just your college students, home for fall break and desperate to recuperate after their midterm exams.

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While the impact of the NBA lockout is projected to vary by market, Texas is likely to feel a greater impact because there are three teams in the state.

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Professor crunches numbers for the Cardinals vs. Rangers matchup.

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Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and other legislators are calling for baseball players to stop using chewing tobacco on the field and in front of their fans. “This is an important public health issue,” says Douglas Luke, PhD, director of the Center for Tobacco Policy Research at the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis. “Not only is smokeless tobacco use hazardous, but young people who use smokeless tobacco are more likely to also start smoking cigarettes." Luke notes that smokeless tobacco use is a growing problem, particularly for the youngest baseball fans.

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Are vampires or zombies the hottest monsters this year? When did vampires get to be so sexy, anyway? And why do we spend so much money dressing up like them?

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Halloween is fun for a lot of people, but for some young children it can be terrifying. Wichita State school psychologist trainer Susan Unruh offers some tips for making Halloween a fun experience.

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A University of Cincinnati pop-culture expert says that some of the creativity around costumes this Halloween will involve recycling last year’s costume into something new.

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The 2008 vice presidential race became a battle between Sarah Palin and Tina Fey rather than then-Senator Joe Biden.

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Pop-up toaster hamburgers, microwaveable cans, sauces and spreads that turn everyday sandwiches into gourmet restaurant-style meals are currently just some of the trends that are sweeping the food marketing arena. As the global economy continues to falter, more and more people are eating in and are craving restaurant-style food they can make themselves at home and tailor to their own tastes.

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Teens bully each other through text messages, Facebook and videos because they don’t see the immediate consequences, says Brandie Oliver, Butler University faculty in school counseling.

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Scary masks, ghostly décor and haunted houses are enough to spook many adults this time of year, so imagine how frightening Halloween can be for children. To avoid unnecessary shrieks of terror, try to experience Halloween through the eyes of your child, suggests Deborah Best, a child psychology expert and professor of psychology at Wake Forest University (www.wfu.edu).

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Rem Koolhaas, Pritzker Prize-winner and co-founder of noted architectural firm OMA, will present a lecture at Bailey Hall, Cornell University campus, on Thursday, Oct. 20, 2011 at 5 p.m. The OMA-designed Milstein Hall is the first new building for Cornell’s architecture students in 100 years.

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Cornell University's Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art officially opens its 16,000 square-foot new wing that realizes the original museum plan for famed architect I. M. Pei. To celebrate, the museum will hold a grand opening on Oct. 15.

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Fruit has always been an important component of a healthy diet – from ubiquitous blueberries and strawberries to seasonal varieties like peaches and cranberries. Recently, less-familiar fruit, such as dragon berries and prickly pear, are finding their way into smoothies, coconut water beverages and frozen fruit bars. These flavors, when blended with classic fruits, can further expand the variety of choices for consumers and may even help increase the consumption of food that meets nutritional needs.

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A growing number of American diners and home cooks are embracing the exotic ethnic cuisines of the Eastern world, so much so that Asian cuisine is now second only to Italian when it comes to shopping for ethnic foods in supermarkets.

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Sauce products fly from shelves as product developers, professional chefs and home cooks use them to create regional and ethnic recipes that cater to various dietary needs.

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The season of turkey, snow and mistletoe also is the season of flight delays, overcrowded airports and flight cancellations. Dean Headley, co-author of the national Airline Quality Rating from Wichita State University, says travelers on U.S. airlines have reason to be concerned this holiday travel season.

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Actor Kevin Sorbo is best known for his television portrayal of Hercules, a muscle-bound hero who battles the forces of evil. But almost no one knew he was also waging a secret battle – on and off the set – after an aneurysm and a series of strokes left him partially blind and with nearly debilitating dizziness, nausea and weakness when he was only 38 years old. For the first time, Sorbo is sharing his story and recovery in the latest issue of Neurology Now®, the American Academy of Neurology’s award-winning magazine for neurology patients and caregivers as well as in his new book, True Strength: My Journey from Hercules to Mere Mortal and How Nearly Dying Saved My Life (October 2011, De Capo Press).

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Statistical analysis used to debunk the old adage “Pitching is 75% of the game.”

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With Mount Holyoke College President Lynn Pasquerella as its host, WAMC Radio's Academic Minute recently marked its first anniversary while reaching ever-expanding audiences here and abroad.

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Some of the nation’s top chefs will be turning out to help New York City College of Technology (City Tech) raise money for its hospitality management scholarship program. They will create their signature dishes.

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“Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” the best-selling novel of the 19th century, has had an enduring impact on film and popular culture. In a year when we observe the 200th anniversary of author Harriet Beecher Stowe’s birth, a UC researcher is presenting on the novel’s impact, interpretation and reinterpretation on the silver screen.

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Losing Isn’t Everything; Losing Is the Only Thing. Ithaca College authority on sports ethics talks about situations in professional sports where coming in last puts your ahead.

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Baylor survey explores link between religion and mental health, religion’s role in work and differing views of liberals and conservatives about life’s meaning.

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Residents of the small Texas city of Jasper banded together in 1998 to fight their racist image following the dragging death of James Byrd Jr. Baylor researchers conducted a study for more than a decade to see how the city has struggled since being unfairly stereotyped.

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Candidates' communication in presidential primary debates can appeal to the party faithful and swing an election, but can complicate voters understanding of party's political beliefs.

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The iPod remixed the music industry when it was introduced by Apple Inc. ten years ago. Along with the iPod came iTunes, a program that transformed the way music was sold, played and produced. The music device also led to mobile marketing as we know it today.

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An Iowa State University communications professor who worked on President Obama's Broadband Technologies Opportunities Program also knows how users can better protect their privacy online.

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As a Sept. 21 execution date looms for a man convicted for his role in chaining and dragging a black man to his death, attention again will be focused on the small East Texas town of Jasper, vilified worldwide as racist after the murder in 1998.

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The U.S. is safer from terrorism in the decade after 9/11, but localized threats from jihadists operating within the United States are higher than before the tragic events, says Dr. Bradley Thayer, a professor of political science at Baylor University. Thayer has served as a consultant to the RAND Corporation and has briefed the Pentagon's Office of Net Assessment, as well as other components of the Department of Defense.

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As the 10th anniversary of 9/11 approaches, University at Buffalo faculty experts are available to discuss the Sept. 11 attacks and their aftermath.

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Key differences in how Muslims were perceived before 9/11 in the United States and Western Europe played a key role in how much — or how little — attitudes of Muslims have changed there since 9/11, says John R. Bowen, a professor at Washington University in St. Louis.

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The pressure for peak performance and an on-call-24/7 mentality in the professional world continue to increase. How can today’s college students prepare for the expectations of tomorrow’s workforce without burning out before earning their bachelors’ degrees? Counselors and career advisors have teamed up to develop the following tips to help students deal with job-related stress before their admirable work ethic becomes an unhealthy work obsession.

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Here are tips on how to use social media during natural disasters.

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Cornell University has assembled 13 researchers and professionals who can discuss a variety of issues related to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks – from a lead architect’s perspective on redesigning the World Trade Center to a researcher working with the Department of Defense to study how social media might uncover future attack plans.