The working mother who cannot be at home to cuddle a distraught child can relax – her voice on the phone soothes as much as a hug, a study suggests.
Mother’s phone call ‘can be as soothing as a hug’
BBC News Online
Author: jplucas
Motherâ??s voice ‘as comforting as a hug’
The Telegraph (UK)
The familiar sound produces an increase in the hormone oxytocin in girls which is linked to emotional bonding while simultaneously quelling the hormones brought on by stress.
Mother’s phone call as comforting as a hug, says oxytocin study
Guardian (UK)
Children know that mumâ??s got the words when life seems to be getting too much.
Observations: A phone call from Mom reduces stress as well as a hug (Scientific American)
Scientific American
A hug from Mom can help soothe a stressed child, but new research shows that just hearing her voice can initiate the same biochemical responsesâ??even if the mother is speaking over the phone.
Mom’s voice can ease stress even if she’s not there
USA Today
Grateful children have long recognized the healing power of a motherâ??s love.
The Really Good News About Stress (Health.com)
A report due yesterday, 100 ladybug-shaped cupcakes to make for the school bake sale (tomorrow morning!), and your mother-in-law arriving for the weekend… Feeling stressed yet?
Police Beat for May 11 (The Annapolis Capital)
Two computer equipment thefts at Loews Annapolis Hotel were reported on Friday evening. The University of Wisconsin-Madison had two laptops, worth a total of $1,150, stolen from a boardroom sometime between Tuesday and Friday. The room was locked every night, university officials told police.
Memorial Union Will Be Open Despite Construction
WISC-TV 3
Memorial Union on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus will be open all summer with a full schedule of events despite nearby construction, officials announced on Tuesday. UW-Madison said Memorial Union will continue to offer live music, films, sailing, canoeing, brats, beverages and Babcock ice cream.
A call to mom relieves stress (The Independent)
A new study to be published on May 12 in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B has found a motherâ??s voice can quell her young daughterâ??s stress with a quick phone call. Three researchers at University of Wisconsin Madison stressed out a group of tween girls aged 7-12 in front of strangers and divided them into three groups where different treatments were applied. One groupâ??s mothers were present to calm them down, another spoke to their mothers on the phone and the last group watched an emotion-neutral 75-minute video.
Former Badger football player pleads guilty
WKOW-TV 27
Former Badger football player Erasmus James plead guilty to one count of substantial battery-intend bodily harm in court Tuesday.A misdemeanor charge of disorderly conduct was dismissed.
Rejected by Marquette, Noncontroversial at Seattle
Chronicle of Higher Education
When Marquette University announced last week that it was rescinding the offer of a deanâ??s job it had made to Jodi Oâ??Brien, a sociologist at Seattle University, the move thrust the Wisconsin institution and Ms. Oâ??Brien into the national spotlight.
UW suspends scientist over unauthorized experiment
Associated Press
The University of Wisconsin-Madison has revoked a veteran scientistâ??s research privileges for five years and paid a $40,000 fine for allowing unauthorized experiments involving a dangerous bacteria.
U. of I. prepares to OK 9.5% tuition hike for incoming freshmen (Chicago Tribune)
The University of Illinois board is expected to name the schoolâ??s next president by next week, Trustee Pamela Strobel said Monday. U of I expects to recommend an increase of 9.5 percent for new freshmen, bringing the cost to $10,385 a year. The price remains fixed for four years for that class.
UW Ultimate Frisbee Teams Qualify For Nationals
WISC-TV 3
Both the menâ??s and womenâ??s ultimate frisbee teams will compete in the national championship tournament at the end of May and theyâ??ll be doing it on their home turf.
Forbes recognizes UW Research Park (The Business Journal of Milwaukee)
Milwaukee Business Journal
Forbes Magazine has named the University Research Park & MGE Innovation Center at the University of Wisconsinâ??Madison as one of the top 10 technology innovation and development parks thatâ??s changing the world.
What’s my poison? Pulitzer-prize winning journalist, author, professor Deborah Blum (ScienceBlogs.com)
This is going to be a quick welcome to Deborah Blum (@deborahblum) who has just moved her blog, Speakeasy Science, to ScienceBlogs.
The Faith Divide: Free speech vs. fundamentalist Islam?
Washington Post
A few days back, small groups of college students at Northwestern, Illinois and Wisconsin – angry that Comedy Central had been intimidated into censoring a South Park episode depicting the Prophet Muhammad – chalked their quads with stick figures and labeled these drawings â??Prophet Muhammadâ??.
In Depth: 10 Technology Incubators That Are Changing The World
Forbes
Honored: University Research Park & MGE Innovation Center at the University of Wisconsin: Started in 1984, this park hosts more than 110 companies that employ 3,500 people. Graduates include Madisons Exact Sciences, which is developing a non-invasive DNA test for detecting colon cancer. Exact Sciences trades on the Nasdaq and boasts a recent $160 million market cap.
Number of legislators retiring on the high side
WKOW-TV 27
Quoted: Dennis Dresang, a UW-Madison Professor Emeritus of Political Science and Public Affairs, says, “Turnover so far, and we might have more announce they wont run again, is on the high side.”
DNA project finally clears name of wrongly imprisoned man
Wisconsin State Journal
The stateâ??s effort to collect thousands of missing DNA profiles has paid off for a Milwaukee man who had been released â?? but not officially cleared â?? in a 1984 rape and murder. Another suspect was recently identified through DNA testing and has confessed to the crime for which Robert Lee Stinson spent 23 years in prison, Byron Lichstein, an attorney with the Wisconsin Innocence Project who represents Stinson, said Monday.
Panel OKs plan to burn biomass at campus plant
Wisconsin State Journal
If a rezoning amendment approved Monday night by the Plan Commission moves forward, UW-Madisonâ??s Charter Street Heating Plant will be renovated and expanded to burn biomass and natural gas instead of coal. The $250 million project will transform the plant that has been burning coal since the 1860s, said Alan Fish, UWâ??s associate vice chancellor for facilities. The project includes demolishing part of the facility on the south side of the UW-Madison campus and building a biomass fuel handling and storage facility there.
Property Trax: Credit crunch headlines housing conference
Wisconsin State Journal
An annual housing-market conference at UW-Madison on June 4 will explore the current state of credit availability for development and building, one of the toughest remaining challenges during a slow and uncertain national economic recovery.
Ask the weather guys: What causes strong winds?
Wisconsin State Journal
The wind is simply air in motion, flowing from high atmospheric pressures to low pressures. Moving anything requires a force. The recent strong winds weâ??ve been having are due to a strong pressure gradient force. A pressure gradient is a measure of how much pressure changes over distance. So, when large pressure changes exist over a small distance, the pressure gradient force is large. Strong winds almost always result from large pressure gradients.
On Campus: UW-Madison chooses new admissions director
Wisconsin State Journal
UW-Madison has chosen a new director of undergraduate admissions, the university announced Friday. Adele C. Brumfield, currently the associate admissions director at the University of Chicago, will lead the office that holds in its hands the fates of thousands of hopeful UW-Madison students.
State tourism spending fell by $1 billion in 2009
Wisconsin State Journal
There wasnâ??t as much fun in Wisconsin last year and â?? no surprise â?? the killjoy was the economy. Figures released Sunday by the state Department of Tourism show vacation, convention and other visitor spending was $12.1 billion in 2009, down by more than $1 billion, or 7.8 percent compared to 2008. â??The downturn we experienced was not as severe as seen in other areas,â? said Deb Archer, president and chief executive officer of the Greater Madison Convention & Visitors Bureau. â??We continue to attract visitors to our community through key drivers, such as the UW-Madison and convention, event and meeting attendance at our great facilities.â?
Gail F. Bailey: Appreciates declaration of meningitis month
Wisconsin State Journal
I would give my state Sen. Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, and Gov. Jim Doyle an “A” for helping me raise awareness of meningococcal disease in Wisconsin. Fitzgerald and Doyle were very responsive when I asked for help in declaring March as Meningitis Awareness Month in our state, after the death of UW-Madison student Neha Suri in February from meningococcal disease. This disease also claimed the life of my 20-year-old son when he was a UW-Madison student.
Will work for money: College grads find job market is tough
Wisconsin State Journal
Armed with a new political science degree from UW-Madison, an ability to speak Czech and Polish, and an abundance of confidence, Jerrie Ceplina felt like she could take on almost any job. The one she found paid $8.50 per hour at a Madison tanning salon.”I applied everywhere,” said Ceplina, who graduated a year ago. “I was sending out like nine resumes a day. … I just took the first thing because I was like, â??I have to do something for my own sanity.â??â??” Like Ceplina, those graduating this month may need to reconcile lofty career goals with the realities of the job market. Although hiring of recent grads is expected to pick up by about 5 percent this spring, unemployment is still high. In Wisconsin, it was nearly 9 percent in March when seasonally adjusted.
Curiosities: Why do rechargeable batteries lose their storage capacity over time?
Wisconsin State Journal
In rechargeable lithium-ion batteries – the most common type, used in things like laptop computers and cell phones – one of the two electrodes is graphite, a form of pure carbon consisting of sheets of carbon atoms. Lithium ions are forced between the carbon sheets when the battery is charged and come back out again when the battery is discharged, explains Robert Hamers, a Wisconsin Distinguished Professor and chair of the UW-Madison chemistry department.
Just Ask Us: Is that observatory still used?
Madison.com
The Pine Bluff Observatory was built in 1958 as a research facility for the UW-Madison astronomy department to replace the Washburn Observatory, said Terry Devitt, head of science communications for the university.
Spencer Black to retire from state Assembly
Wisconsin State Journal
A progressive Madison institution is leaving the state Assembly.Democratic Rep. Spencer Black, who was first elected in 1984, told the Wisconsin State Journal on Sunday he will not seek re-election. Before serving in the Legislature, Black was a graduate student at UW-Madison, where he received masterâ??s degrees in urban and regional planning and public policy and administration.
On Campus: Molly Jahn to return to role as UW dean
Wisconsin State Journal
Molly Jahn will return as dean of the UW-Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences on June 1 after a seven month stint with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C., according to university officials.
DNA project finally clears name of wrongly imprisoned man
Wisconsin State Journal
The stateâ??s effort to collect thousands of missing DNA profiles has paid off for a Milwaukee man who had been released â?? but not officially cleared â?? in a 1984 rape and murder. The perpetrator was recently identified and has confessed to the crime for which Robert Lee Stinson spent 23 years in prison, said Byron Lichstein, an attorney with the Wisconsin Innocence Project who represents Stinson.
On Campus: Regents approve $4.75 million for University Research Park II
Wisconsin State Journal
The UW Board of Regents on Thursday approved Phase I of University Research Park II at an estimated cost of $4.75 million. Phase I includes a 125-acre portion west of Junction Road between Valley View Road and Mineral Point Road.
Wisconsin senate leader intervenes in son’s cause
Madison.com
Intervening in a matter of intense interest to his son, Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker has asked legislative auditors to review whether student government at University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point has been given enough power. After receiving Deckerâ??s request by telephone, the Legislative Audit Bureau has started an inquiry into whether the school has complied with state law and UW policy on student control and oversight of fee budgets. Deckerâ??s son Jeffrey Decker, a former student senator, has spent years accusing UW-Stevens Point employees of reducing the role of students in deciding how their fees are spent.
UW-Parkside may end teacher education department
Madison.com
The University of Wisconsin-Parkside is considering suspending admission to the schoolâ??s teacher certification program and dissolving the teacher education department.
Experts say travel health insurance can be crucial
Madison.com
Plane tickets, check. Passport, check. Medical evacuation insurance? Itâ??s probably not something most people think about when packing for a vacation. But Louise Robbins says sheâ??d probably be bankrupt without it. The University of Wisconsin library educator and her husband, Robby, were in southwest China last summer when Robby slipped and fell backward on a hotel walkway made of the regionâ??s famed red marble.
Cycling: Marian University sweeps time trials, snags omnium crown
Madison.com
The UW cycling team finishes 10th overall in the USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships.
Obituary for June D. Krueger
June D. Krueger, age 67, of Madison, a former Merrill resident, died Friday, May 7, 2010. June worked for the University of Wisconsin-Madison in administrative data processing.
The Pill Turns 50 (HealthDay News)
Quoted: Dr. John Preston Parry, assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, added: â??No medication has come close to the birth control pill in terms of social, political and medical impact. In terms of career opportunities [for women], itâ??s had more of an impact than anything else. The proportion of women pursuing medical careers has gone from about 10 percent to close to 50 percent.â?
UW Offers Tour Of Newest Construction Project
WISC-TV 3
Itâ??s a building that promises to bring bio-tech research to the forefront. The University of Wisconsin unveiled the first floor of its new Wisconsin Institute for Discovery on Thursday.
Interning When All They Ask You To Do Is File
Forbes
Quoted: Students have a golden opportunity to discuss their goals at the end of an interview, says Greg Iaccarino, career and internship adviser at the University of Wisconsin. Thatâ??s when most interviewers solicit questions.
UW Students Protest Arizona Immigration Law
WISC-TV 3
About 30 University of Wisconsin-Madison students held a rally Friday to protest Arizonaâ??s new immigration law. The students gathered at the bottom of Bascom Hill and held a rally in the rain.
Top Collegiate Cyclists Competing In Madison
WISC-TV 3
The USA Cycling Collegiate Road National Championships are be held in Madison this weekend for the first time since 2004. Nearly 500 athletes from about 100 colleges and universities are competing in 18 events beginning Friday. The events are hosted by the University of Wisconsin.
Parkside: Dissolve Teacher Ed (Kenosha News)
Chancellor Deborah Ford announced her intent Friday to close admission to the long-troubled University of Wisconsin-Parkside teacher licensure program and dissolve the Teacher Education Department.
Experts say travel health insurance can be crucial (AP)
Plane tickets, check. Passport, check. Medical evacuation insurance? Itâ??s probably not something most people think about when packing for a vacation.
But Louise Robbins says sheâ??d probably be bankrupt without it. The University of Wisconsin library educator and her husband, Robby, were in southwest China last summer when Robby slipped and fell backward on a hotel walkway made of the regionâ??s famed red marble.
E-Mails Show Anger Over Wis. Gov’s College Program (AP)
Some parents accused Gov. Jim Doyle of disappointing their children and shortchanging the middle class after he announced his signature college aid program would favor families with incomes of less than $80,000, e-mail messages show.
Minnesota sweetens biotech lure
Star Tribune
Quoted: Still, one university official likened the competition between the two states as sibling rivalry. “We love and respect each other, but weâ??re in constant competition,” said Charles B. Hoslet, managing director of the University of Wisconsin-Madisonâ??s office of corporate relations.
A Rich New Poverty Measure
New York Times
Quoted: Itâ??s hard to find anyone more passionate about these inconsistencies than Professor Timothy Smeeding, current director of the Institute for Research on Poverty at the University of Wisconsin. He wrote his doctoral dissertation in 1975 on the importance of developing measures of post-benefit, post-tax income to better inform public policy.
Payday lending blossoms in Janesville
Janesville Gazette
Quoted: J. Michael Collins, faculty director of the Center for Financial Security and a professor at UW-Madison, said heâ??s not convinced the legislation will mean much.
Walworth County residents sound off on controversial Arizona immigration bill
Janesville Gazette
UW-Madison professor Jill Harrison teaches community and environmental sociology and specializes in immigration, border politics and social justice in environmental politics.
Campus atheist group draws pictures of Muhammad everywhere
Isthmus
Thereâ??s been a lot of talk in the media recently about South Parkâ??s second attempt to broadcast an image of the Muslim prophet Muhammad. Comedy Central apparently received death threats from a fringe Islamic group and refused to show the image, which the network did in another instance.
UW students rally against AZ immigration law
WKOW-TV 27
Dozens of students at the UW protested on Bascom Hill Friday against Arizonaâ??s new immigration law. The state amended the law to prohibit racial profiling, but UW students say that is not enough.
Mental Health Counseling Up At UW
WISC-TV 3
College life is all fun and games, right, particularly at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, regularly voted as one of the top â??party schoolsâ? in America? Donâ??t believe it, particularly during finals week.
Judge who struck down Day of Prayer in spotlight
USA Today
Crabb, who graduated from the University of Wisconsin law school in 1962, served in the 1970s as a federal magistrate.
(Also has photo of Ted Crabb.)
Property Trax: New real estate blog begins
Wisconsin State Journal
Some of the expertise on the blog will come from our own backyard, including local agents, area buyers and sellers, the South Central Wisconsin MLS and research from the esteemed James A. Graaskamp Center for Real Estate at UW-Madison.
On Campus: Scholarship created in memory of student
Wisconsin State Journal
UW-Madison is establishing The Neha Suri Scholarship Fund in memory of Neha Suri, a 22-year-old journalism and political science major who died in February from bacterial meningitis.
Doug Moe: A Madison sculptor’s dramatic four-year effort to complete a work
Wisconsin State Journal
Early Saturday morning, only hours after Francis had at last completed the sculpture, and just a few days before it was to be installed in the lobby of Restaurant Magnus on East Wilson Street, Francis suffered heart failure and wound up in the Madison Veterans Hospital. It was from a fourth-floor bed there, Wednesday morning, that Francis was monitoring â?? by cell phone â?? the installation process. His good friend John Wiley â?? the former UW-Madison chancellor and a talented sculptor himself â?? was standing outside in front of Magnus, pacing like an expectant father. Wiley would oversee the installation in Francisâ??s absence.
Allen Ruff: Foreign policy and heroin use linked
Wisconsin State Journal
As direct witness to the tragedy of heroin addiction among our young, I found the opening of your series on the killer drug lacking in its explanation of significant reasons for its increased local presence. Noted UW-Madison historian Alfred McCoy and others have shown that increased domestic flows of heroin have long been related to this nationâ??s foreign policy and military ventures.
Rail to stop near Madison’s Monona Terrace
Madison.com
A high-speed rail line connecting Wisconsinâ??s two largest cities will make its Madison stop near the Capitol at Monona Terrace, Gov. Jim Doyle announced Thursday. The convention center stop was chosen over three other Madison locations: the airport, the Kohl Center on the University of Wisconsin campus and a site just east of downtown.
UW men’s basketball: Thanksgiving tourney booked at Disney World
Madison.com
The Badgers will play in the Old Spice Classic over Thanksgiving weekend at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando, Fla., the school announced Thursday in a statement.