A new study by the University of Vienna shows that particularly long periods of parental leave around the birth of a child are associated with a higher risk of unhealthy behaviour – specifically smoking – in the long term. The research team around Sonja Spitzer analysed the effects of maternity and parental leave on the smoking behaviour of mothers in 14 European countries. The study was recently published in the renowned Journal of Health Economics and is based on a collaboration with the Hertie School Berlin and the TU Vienna.

A new Australian study is shining a spotlight on the healing power of horses, revealing that equine-assisted therapy could help address the growing mental health crisis among children.

Latinas in California’s Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz and Ventura counties earn only 47-50 cents for every dollar earned by a non-Hispanic white man, according to a new study.

The analysis, led by UCLA, UC Santa Cruz and Cal State Channel Islands researchers, looked at data from the United States Census Bureau’s 2023 American Community Survey (ACS) and thousands of surveys collected by the researchers primarily focused on Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz and Ventura workers aged 18 to 34. The findings were revealed in a series of new, comprehensive research reports highlighting educational access, wage gaps, scheduling and gender inequalities for workers.

Do dishes made of algae or insects have a chance of finding a place on our tables as alternative protein food (APF) choices? Why are some consumers open to this change, while others remain cautious? An international group of researchers, including scientists from SWPS University, analysed hundreds of studies to investigate this issue.

A team of researchers at NYU’s Center for Social Media and Politics (CSMaP) studied the behavior of WhatsApp users during the 2022 presidential election in Brazil. They found that deactivating access to multimedia content (video and images) on the platform reduced the recall of false rumors that circulated widely online during the pre-election weeks, suggesting that the spread of disinformation could be stymied by avoiding social media content. However, the team’s experiments also showed that deactivating multimedia content reduced recall of true news headlines—but at a considerably lower rate compared to the reduction in misinformation exposure. 

New research reveals that ochre, long thought to be used mainly for symbolic purposes, also played a practical role in stone toolmaking during the Middle Stone Age. The discovery began when researcher Elizabeth Velliky observed unusual wear patterns on a piece of ochre in the SapienCE lab in Cape Town. This initial find led to the identification of multiple ochre pieces showing signs of deliberate shaping and use in precision techniques like pressure flaking and percussion—methods associated with crafting Still Bay points.

The standardized forms of these ochre tools suggest they were personal instruments used by skilled toolmakers, potentially reflecting individual identity or social status. This study underscores ochre’s integral role in early human technological systems and hints at its contribution to the development of personal or group identity."We now have evidence that ochre was not only a medium for symbolic expression but also a key material in specialized tool production, reflecting a level of technological sophistication previously associated with much later periods”, says Christopher Henshilwood, archaeologist and director of Centre for Early Sapiens Behaviour (SapienCE).

Almost half of all Australian Rules Football (AFL) umpires have experienced verbal abuse such as ridiculing, humiliation or aggressive remarks, threats or gestures, at least every couple of games, according to new research by the University of South Australia.