Virginity on the Rise

We found that headline to be intriguing, as if more virgins are being manufactured daily. Of course, the reference is to the number of people choosing to remain chaste into their late 20s. And the study mentioned here says that more people are choosing to wait longer.

Although, later in the story, we find that for the TV show "Virgin Diaries," a person can be a reclaimed virgin and still count. "Reclaimed" as in a person used to be sexually active, but now is not. Hmmm.

We couldn't find the exact research the story is based on by searching the National Center for Health Statistics website. But we uncovered the results of the Vital and Health Statistics report for 2010. If you like lots of numbers, this is for you. And it shows how people aren't as depressed as all those commercials for anti-depressants would have you believe.

This is your brain on Facebook

This study purports that the more friends you have on Facebook, the more developed the social bits of your brain are.

It says that brain areas for social skills are larger in "college students with sprawling social networks than in Facebook users with fewer friends." The authors caution that they're not making any sweeping cause and effect statement here. So basically the more friends you have, the more you'll have on Facebook. Duh.

The full study report is available online.

Vitamins may be bad for you

This "observational study" says maybe we shouldn't be taking all those vitamins. Since even junk food has added nutritional supplements (?!?!), those daily pills may not be of any use.

And could even be harmful.

Although, Vitamin D is still recommended for several age groups. And you should take it with the most high-fat meal you eat daily.

Sponge Bob dissed again

After being accused of being gay by a Christian group, cartoon character Sponge Bob Square Pants is now being blamed for making kids act up. This study seems to prove that 9 minutes of the Bob can make 4-year-olds go wild. Or at least unable to remain on task.

The show's owners say the Bob is meant for older kids.

The study's authors say they don't know how long the negative effect lasts on kids OR if it's bad for older kids. The network's Dora the Explorer IS aimed at the younger set; many adults complain that show is too slow.

Click here for tips on how much TV kids should watch.

Gimme that old time religion

Although the authors don't know why, going to church makes you fat. This study says that attendance at just one church event per week increases your chance of obesity by nearly half.

A variety of factors were cited, such as the notion that since so many things are off-limits to church-goers-- drinking, dancing -- that church potluck is the highlight of their lives. Mmmmm, casseroles, brownies, cheese dip.

On the other hand, those that worship at the altar of Ganja are surprisingly slim. This study says that participants that smoke pot were around 15% obese overall while the non-smokers in the study weighed in at about 25%.

Nobody is saying smoking pot makes you lose weight. But this study also referenced the fat church-goers study, saying that religious folk probably aren't getting high and since they tend toward tubbiness, they skew the results. As self-proclaimed pot-smokin' hippie Todd Snider sings, "I can't help sleep in the pews. That's what I do."

Won't we do it for the children??

Today, it was revealed that Americans are woefully careless about their children's safety at school. This study by a consulting firm showed that Americans are more interested in GPS monitoring of their pets than of their children.

A vice president at the consulting firm supposes that technology is ahead of what people are willing to think about. Further the opt-in, online nature of the study produced results that may not be representative of the population as a whole.

Maybe YOU'D like to do a survey. Here, you can do it for free.

More drinking rules

Once again, moderation is the key. This study says you need to drink only a certain amount per day and only a certain number of days per week. How can a person keep track of that, you might wonder.

Thanks to the guvmint, you can download a handy Alcohol Tracker card to keep in your wallet and fill in as need be.

And on this analyzer card, you can even keep track of what happened. As if you'd want to.