Rutgers researchers have peeked inside the brain during one of the body’s most private sensations – orgasm.
Psychology professor Barry Komisaruk and colleagues captured the crescendo of brain activity in a series of functional magnetic resonance imaging snapshots taken over seven minutes. They then transformed the images into a colorful animation – the brighter the color, the more activated the brain is.
“We’re looking at the sequence of brain regions that get recruited at increasing intensity leading up to orgasm,” said Komisaruk. “It’s such a compelling behavioral and sensory phenomenon with so many implications and so little understanding.”
The brain belongs to Nan Wise – a 54-year-old sex therapist turned Rutgers PhD student.
“When I first started grad school in ’80s, we didn’t have these methods,” said Wise, who went back to school four years ago. “Now we can study how the brain is recruiting these regions to create the big bang of orgasm.”
When Wise reaches orgasm, almost every area of her brain is activated.
“Secondary to an epileptic seizure, there’s no bigger brain networking event,” said Wise. “It’s a fantastic opportunity to examine the connectivity of the brain.”
By understanding the events in the brain that lead to orgasm, Wise and Komisaruk hope to find clues about what might be going wrong in the 25 percent of women who rarely or never have one.
“Where does the blockage occur?” said Komisaruk. “To understand how to get around that could be tremendously useful.”
But Wise, who is both a scientist and a sexual woman, appreciates the intricacies of intimacy.
“I think the caveat is understanding that sexuality is very complex,” said Wise, describing the physical, psychological and emotional components of orgasm. “Theoretically, it’s going be helpful to know how things work. And perhaps at some point we might be able to see where something’s breaking down.”
Understanding orgasm could also have implications for treating pain.
“A lot of the same regions involved in pleasure are involved in pain, and we haven’t been able to suss out how those systems work yet,” said Wise.
The study of sexuality continues to be controversial, according to Justin Garcia, an evolutionary biologist at the Kinsey Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction.
“But we need to keep researching love and sex,” said Garcia. “They’re the most consistent human experiences on this planet.”
Garcia says studying sex in the lab (or a noisy MRI machine) doesn’t take away the magic in the bedroom.
“It’s kind of like knowing all the ingredients in a wonderful dessert,” he said.
By normalizing sexuality as a valid thing to study, Wise hopes people become more willing to discuss it.
“We need to get over discomfort of talking about sex,” she said. “It’s good for us!”
Wise said the video of her brain during orgasm draws its share of giggles.
“I think it’s OK to chuckle,” said Garcia. “First it makes you laugh, and then it makes you think really hard.”
2012年2月10日星期五
10 Year Old Joyrider Wreaks Havoc, But Cops Like Him
A 10-year-old boy sneaked into a Florida impound lot, stole a pickup truck, led police on a brief chase, and knocked down a utility pole, which then set a house on fire.
The arresting officer said the pint-sized joy rider was “one of the nicest” kids he ever arrested.
“Maybe he had a need for speed,” said Eatonville Police spokesman Sgt. Eric McIntyre.
The incident happened around 3 p.m. Wednesday when police received a call about a child who appeared to be stealing a truck, McIntyre said. The boy, who has not been identified by police, somehow climbed the lot’s 10-foot chain link fence and hopped in one of the cars.
Eatonville police arrived on foot, assuming the 10 year old wasn’t capable of driving. To their surprise, the boy mowed down the fence and “drove away into an adjacent field,” McIntyre said. “Then he entered into the roadway,” where he was motoring along at 40 mph.
“It was almost like a movie, I couldn’t believe it,” David Brock, an eyewitness, told ABC News affiliate WFTV. ”You have nothing else to do but to jump into a car and wreak havoc? I mean, wow!”
The boy’s joyride came to an end two blocks later, McIntyre said, when he crashed into a utility pole, knocking a power line onto a home, causing it to catch on fire.
“I believe it was an electrical-type fire on the outside of the house,” McIntyre said, adding that nothing on the inside of the home was damaged.
The truck, however, sustained an estimated $4,000 in damages according to the Eatonville Public Works facility that owned it.
Police don’t know how the boy found the keys. But they did find out how he learned to drive.
“Word on the street — and word from grandma — is she taught him how to drive,” said McIntyre. “She taught him how to drive tractors in the farm and drive around in the field that she owns.”
The boy lives with his mother in the tiny town of Eatonville, and his grandmother lives in Georgia, McIntrye said.
After the boy wrecked the pickup truck, he tried to run away on foot, but the chief of police arrested and cuffed him about a block and a half later.
The state attorney’s office has 30 days to file charges which could include burglary of a vehicle, grand theft in the third degree and resisting an officer.
“With a juvenile there is a very broad array of decisions that can be made,” said Danielle Tavernier, a spokesperson for the Orange and Osceola County State Attorney’s Office, who expects to receive the paperwork on this case soon. “They take a lot of things into consideration — criminal history, age, family, if they have parents to go home to.”
At his age, McIntyre said, “you can’t really lock him up.” It’s more likely he’ll be asked to participate in “a diversion program to teach right and wrong … just to keep him good and straight for six months to a year.”
Despite the boy’s expensive scrape, police said he was far more polite than most kids who get in trouble.
“This young man was very, very extremely cooperative,” said McIntyre. “He had no attitude and he was very pleasant. I can only tell you that was one of the nicest children I’ve ever come in contact with that has ever committed any kind of act like that.”
The arresting officer said the pint-sized joy rider was “one of the nicest” kids he ever arrested.
“Maybe he had a need for speed,” said Eatonville Police spokesman Sgt. Eric McIntyre.
The incident happened around 3 p.m. Wednesday when police received a call about a child who appeared to be stealing a truck, McIntyre said. The boy, who has not been identified by police, somehow climbed the lot’s 10-foot chain link fence and hopped in one of the cars.
Eatonville police arrived on foot, assuming the 10 year old wasn’t capable of driving. To their surprise, the boy mowed down the fence and “drove away into an adjacent field,” McIntyre said. “Then he entered into the roadway,” where he was motoring along at 40 mph.
“It was almost like a movie, I couldn’t believe it,” David Brock, an eyewitness, told ABC News affiliate WFTV. ”You have nothing else to do but to jump into a car and wreak havoc? I mean, wow!”
The boy’s joyride came to an end two blocks later, McIntyre said, when he crashed into a utility pole, knocking a power line onto a home, causing it to catch on fire.
“I believe it was an electrical-type fire on the outside of the house,” McIntyre said, adding that nothing on the inside of the home was damaged.
The truck, however, sustained an estimated $4,000 in damages according to the Eatonville Public Works facility that owned it.
Police don’t know how the boy found the keys. But they did find out how he learned to drive.
“Word on the street — and word from grandma — is she taught him how to drive,” said McIntyre. “She taught him how to drive tractors in the farm and drive around in the field that she owns.”
The boy lives with his mother in the tiny town of Eatonville, and his grandmother lives in Georgia, McIntrye said.
After the boy wrecked the pickup truck, he tried to run away on foot, but the chief of police arrested and cuffed him about a block and a half later.
The state attorney’s office has 30 days to file charges which could include burglary of a vehicle, grand theft in the third degree and resisting an officer.
“With a juvenile there is a very broad array of decisions that can be made,” said Danielle Tavernier, a spokesperson for the Orange and Osceola County State Attorney’s Office, who expects to receive the paperwork on this case soon. “They take a lot of things into consideration — criminal history, age, family, if they have parents to go home to.”
At his age, McIntyre said, “you can’t really lock him up.” It’s more likely he’ll be asked to participate in “a diversion program to teach right and wrong … just to keep him good and straight for six months to a year.”
Despite the boy’s expensive scrape, police said he was far more polite than most kids who get in trouble.
“This young man was very, very extremely cooperative,” said McIntyre. “He had no attitude and he was very pleasant. I can only tell you that was one of the nicest children I’ve ever come in contact with that has ever committed any kind of act like that.”
Breast Cancer: FDA Revokes Avastin Approval
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced it will revoke the approval of Avastin for breast cancer, citing a lack of evidence that the benefits outweigh the risks.
Avastin was approved for metastatic breast cancer in February 2008 under the agency's accelerated approval program, which offers patients early access to promising drugs while confirmatory clinical trials are carried out.
"Unfortunately the additional studies failed to confirm Avastin's initial promise," FDA Commissioner Dr. Margaret Hamburg said today.
The additional studies, carried out by Avastin maker Genentech, found only a small effect on tumor growth and no evidence that patients lived longer than they would taking standard chemotherapy. Because the drug can cause severe high blood pressure, bleeding, heart failure and perforations in the nose, stomach and intestines, an FDA advisory panel in June recommended revoking its approval.
The recommendation triggered an outcry from breast cancer patients who say Avastin slowed their disease.
"I want every available weapon in my arsenal as I fight this devastating disease," Priscilla Howard, a metastic breast cancer patient who had been taking Avastin for more than two years ,urged the panel.
But without a reliable indicator of which women with breast cancer might benefit, Hamburg said she was unable to leave it on the market for that use.
"I feel deeply for these women who are seeking therapies that may work for them," she said, adding that she was speaking as a doctor and a woman. "Sometimes despite the hopes of investigators, patients, industry and even the FDA itself, the results of rigorous testing can be disappointing."
The drug will remain on the market for treatment of other cancers, which means breast cancer patients can use it off-label.
"If an individual patient sits down with their physician and goes over the risks and benefits and wants to continue, that is a decision that they can make," said Hamburg.
However, the FDA decision could free up insurers to deny coverage of the drug, which can cost up to $100,000 a year. In June, a spokesman for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid said Medicare would continue to cover Avastin for breast cancer treatment even if the FDA withdrew its approval.
A spokeswoman for Genentech said the decision was disappointing, but insisted the company would continue working to optimize Avastin and identify breast cancer patients most likely to benefit.
"Despite today's action, we will start a new Phase III study of Avastin in combination with paclitaxel in previously untreated metastatic breast cancer and will evaluate a potential biomarker that may help identify which people might derive a more substantial benefit from Avastin," a company spokeswoman said in a statement today. (Paclitaxel is also a chemotherapy drug.)
Hamburg welcomed Genentech's effort and said she looks forward to working with them on Avastin.
The FDA has approved 39 drugs through the accelerated approval program. When asked how many accelerated approvals had been revoked, Hamburg said she was unsure.
Avastin was approved for metastatic breast cancer in February 2008 under the agency's accelerated approval program, which offers patients early access to promising drugs while confirmatory clinical trials are carried out.
"Unfortunately the additional studies failed to confirm Avastin's initial promise," FDA Commissioner Dr. Margaret Hamburg said today.
The additional studies, carried out by Avastin maker Genentech, found only a small effect on tumor growth and no evidence that patients lived longer than they would taking standard chemotherapy. Because the drug can cause severe high blood pressure, bleeding, heart failure and perforations in the nose, stomach and intestines, an FDA advisory panel in June recommended revoking its approval.
The recommendation triggered an outcry from breast cancer patients who say Avastin slowed their disease.
"I want every available weapon in my arsenal as I fight this devastating disease," Priscilla Howard, a metastic breast cancer patient who had been taking Avastin for more than two years ,urged the panel.
But without a reliable indicator of which women with breast cancer might benefit, Hamburg said she was unable to leave it on the market for that use.
"I feel deeply for these women who are seeking therapies that may work for them," she said, adding that she was speaking as a doctor and a woman. "Sometimes despite the hopes of investigators, patients, industry and even the FDA itself, the results of rigorous testing can be disappointing."
The drug will remain on the market for treatment of other cancers, which means breast cancer patients can use it off-label.
"If an individual patient sits down with their physician and goes over the risks and benefits and wants to continue, that is a decision that they can make," said Hamburg.
However, the FDA decision could free up insurers to deny coverage of the drug, which can cost up to $100,000 a year. In June, a spokesman for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid said Medicare would continue to cover Avastin for breast cancer treatment even if the FDA withdrew its approval.
A spokeswoman for Genentech said the decision was disappointing, but insisted the company would continue working to optimize Avastin and identify breast cancer patients most likely to benefit.
"Despite today's action, we will start a new Phase III study of Avastin in combination with paclitaxel in previously untreated metastatic breast cancer and will evaluate a potential biomarker that may help identify which people might derive a more substantial benefit from Avastin," a company spokeswoman said in a statement today. (Paclitaxel is also a chemotherapy drug.)
Hamburg welcomed Genentech's effort and said she looks forward to working with them on Avastin.
The FDA has approved 39 drugs through the accelerated approval program. When asked how many accelerated approvals had been revoked, Hamburg said she was unsure.
Is the 'Real Donald Trump' Real?
Donald Trump owns hotels, hosts a TV show, and occasionally almost runs for president. But today he has taken multi-tasking to a whole new level. While sitting in the audience of “Live with Regis and Kelly,” for the heartfelt final show in the long career of Regis Philbin, Trump sent a tweet from his account “@RealDonaldTrump.” Or at least there was a tweet sent from his account.
As with many of his tweets these days it was political in nature, about the healthcare debate: “Regardless of the USC’s ruling, ObamaCare can only be defeated politically. It must be legislatively repealed or America will go bankrupt.”
The tweet was sent at 9:57am, at the very moment when Philbin, an old and dear friend of Trump, was speaking on camera with his final thoughts on his career, and the show he was leaving behind. Trump was seated in the audience along with celebrities John McEnroe, Alan Alda, Tony Danza, and ABC’s very own Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric, Robin Roberts and Sam Champion. During the show, the camera fell on Trump several times, but it wasn’t on him at the moment this tweet was sent.
It’s unclear whether he snuck out of the Regis farewell to tweet about health care, was tweeting from the audience while Regis was saying goodbye, or maybe the @RealDonaldTrump isn’t quite as real as advertised.
Many celebrities have others tweet for them. Trump aides reached for comment did not know the timing or genesis of this tweet.
As with many of his tweets these days it was political in nature, about the healthcare debate: “Regardless of the USC’s ruling, ObamaCare can only be defeated politically. It must be legislatively repealed or America will go bankrupt.”
The tweet was sent at 9:57am, at the very moment when Philbin, an old and dear friend of Trump, was speaking on camera with his final thoughts on his career, and the show he was leaving behind. Trump was seated in the audience along with celebrities John McEnroe, Alan Alda, Tony Danza, and ABC’s very own Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric, Robin Roberts and Sam Champion. During the show, the camera fell on Trump several times, but it wasn’t on him at the moment this tweet was sent.
It’s unclear whether he snuck out of the Regis farewell to tweet about health care, was tweeting from the audience while Regis was saying goodbye, or maybe the @RealDonaldTrump isn’t quite as real as advertised.
Many celebrities have others tweet for them. Trump aides reached for comment did not know the timing or genesis of this tweet.
Is the “Real Donald Trump” Real?
Donald Trump owns hotels, hosts a TV show, and occasionally almost runs for president. But today he has taken multi-tasking to a whole new level. While sitting in the audience of “Live with Regis and Kelly,” for the heartfelt final show in the long career of Regis Philbin, Trump sent a tweet from his account “@RealDonaldTrump.” Or at least there was a tweet sent from his account.
As with many of his tweets these days it was political in nature, about the healthcare debate: “Regardless of the USC’s ruling, ObamaCare can only be defeated politically. It must be legislatively repealed or America will go bankrupt.”
The tweet was sent at 9:57am, at the very moment when Philbin, an old and dear friend of Trump, was speaking on camera with his final thoughts on his career, and the show he was leaving behind. Trump was seated in the audience along with celebrities John McEnroe, Alan Alda, Tony Danza, and ABC’s very own Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric, Robin Roberts and Sam Champion. During the show, the camera fell on Trump several times, but it wasn’t on him at the moment this tweet was sent.
It’s unclear whether he snuck out of the Regis farewell to tweet about health care, was tweeting from the audience while Regis was saying goodbye, or maybe the @RealDonaldTrump isn’t quite as real as advertised.
Many celebrities have others tweet for them. Trump aides reached for comment did not know the timing or genesis of this tweet.
As with many of his tweets these days it was political in nature, about the healthcare debate: “Regardless of the USC’s ruling, ObamaCare can only be defeated politically. It must be legislatively repealed or America will go bankrupt.”
The tweet was sent at 9:57am, at the very moment when Philbin, an old and dear friend of Trump, was speaking on camera with his final thoughts on his career, and the show he was leaving behind. Trump was seated in the audience along with celebrities John McEnroe, Alan Alda, Tony Danza, and ABC’s very own Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric, Robin Roberts and Sam Champion. During the show, the camera fell on Trump several times, but it wasn’t on him at the moment this tweet was sent.
It’s unclear whether he snuck out of the Regis farewell to tweet about health care, was tweeting from the audience while Regis was saying goodbye, or maybe the @RealDonaldTrump isn’t quite as real as advertised.
Many celebrities have others tweet for them. Trump aides reached for comment did not know the timing or genesis of this tweet.
Video: Little Girl's Adorably Evil Laugh
You’ll never believe the maniacal laugh that comes out of this adorable, one-and-a-half year old.
The little girl, Olivia, pushes her toy car off the edge of the table, and when it crashes to the floor, she lets out an evil laugh that rivals the evilest of movie villains. She then looks down at the car that’s plummeted by her hands, clenches her fists and smiles up at the camera in delight.
Her father, Thomas Ekström, a photographer from Oslo, Norway, said he saw his lovable villain do something wicked the day before and decided to catch her in the act. Since he posted the video to YouTube on Wednesday it has over 600,000 views.
“I didn’t expect this kind of reaction,” he wrote on his YouTube page. “I will pass on your greetings to my daughter, though I expect this is all part of her plan…”
Watch the video below. First the toy car, then the world!
The little girl, Olivia, pushes her toy car off the edge of the table, and when it crashes to the floor, she lets out an evil laugh that rivals the evilest of movie villains. She then looks down at the car that’s plummeted by her hands, clenches her fists and smiles up at the camera in delight.
Her father, Thomas Ekström, a photographer from Oslo, Norway, said he saw his lovable villain do something wicked the day before and decided to catch her in the act. Since he posted the video to YouTube on Wednesday it has over 600,000 views.
“I didn’t expect this kind of reaction,” he wrote on his YouTube page. “I will pass on your greetings to my daughter, though I expect this is all part of her plan…”
Watch the video below. First the toy car, then the world!
2012年2月3日星期五
Review: "Big Miracle" Has Heart
In 1988, three California gray whales found themselves trapped in the ice off the northernmost point of the United States, some 300 miles above the Arctic Circle. As word quickly spread, the whales garnered the attention of everyone from Greenpeace to the Russian Navy. "Big Miracle" is their story.
And it's an amazing story. The script, by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler, stays mostly true to the events, with regards to the whales, as they actually unfolded. But packed in around this incredible drama are a number of subplots that do little more than distract from the story.
The film stars John Krasinski as a TV news reporter stranded in Point Barrow, Alaska, stuck doing stories about how much the locals love guacamole. But one day, while videotaping snowmobile tricks, he catches sight of a flume of water shooting up from an opening in the ice. Before you know it, the story is running on the Anchorage affiliate and then gets picked up by Tom Brokaw's national news broadcast on NBC (of course, this being a Universal film).
Soon reporters and well-intentioned nuts from around the globe are descending on Point Barrow, and the Reagan administration and a oil driller (Ted Danson) are joining the rescue effort in a cynical attempt to burnish their respective images with environmentalist. After days of desperately trying to cut a path to freedom for the ice, it becomes apparent that the whales' only hope for survival is a Russian ice cutter patrolling a nearby area.
Drew Barrymore stars as Rachel, a Greenpeace activist who just happens to be Adam's ex-girlfriend. Rachel is a tree-hugger right out of the GOP's central casting: unkempt, self-righteous, pushy, rude, ideological, totally lacking in nuance—in short, totally unpleasant. Is it any wonder Adam dumped her? Why wouldn't he be make googly eyes at LA-based reporter Jill Jerard (Kristen Bell), with whom he gets drunk and commiserates about the state of her career?
And director Ken Kwapis fails to mine the story for any real tension, which is a shame, because there's plenty available. Among the factions involved in the whole kerfuffle, you've got whale-eating Inuit, Greenpeace, Big Oil, the U.S. military, Ronald Reagan and the Commies—how is this not a white-knuckle ride? Because Hollywood thinks folks are more interested in Adam's romance with Rachel, or Jill's frustrations with her job prospects.
"Big Miracle" isn’t nearly the film it could've been, but beneath all the Hollywood dreck is an inspiring story about a group of people who managed to get over themselves long enough to do some good.
And it's an amazing story. The script, by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler, stays mostly true to the events, with regards to the whales, as they actually unfolded. But packed in around this incredible drama are a number of subplots that do little more than distract from the story.
The film stars John Krasinski as a TV news reporter stranded in Point Barrow, Alaska, stuck doing stories about how much the locals love guacamole. But one day, while videotaping snowmobile tricks, he catches sight of a flume of water shooting up from an opening in the ice. Before you know it, the story is running on the Anchorage affiliate and then gets picked up by Tom Brokaw's national news broadcast on NBC (of course, this being a Universal film).
Soon reporters and well-intentioned nuts from around the globe are descending on Point Barrow, and the Reagan administration and a oil driller (Ted Danson) are joining the rescue effort in a cynical attempt to burnish their respective images with environmentalist. After days of desperately trying to cut a path to freedom for the ice, it becomes apparent that the whales' only hope for survival is a Russian ice cutter patrolling a nearby area.
Drew Barrymore stars as Rachel, a Greenpeace activist who just happens to be Adam's ex-girlfriend. Rachel is a tree-hugger right out of the GOP's central casting: unkempt, self-righteous, pushy, rude, ideological, totally lacking in nuance—in short, totally unpleasant. Is it any wonder Adam dumped her? Why wouldn't he be make googly eyes at LA-based reporter Jill Jerard (Kristen Bell), with whom he gets drunk and commiserates about the state of her career?
And director Ken Kwapis fails to mine the story for any real tension, which is a shame, because there's plenty available. Among the factions involved in the whole kerfuffle, you've got whale-eating Inuit, Greenpeace, Big Oil, the U.S. military, Ronald Reagan and the Commies—how is this not a white-knuckle ride? Because Hollywood thinks folks are more interested in Adam's romance with Rachel, or Jill's frustrations with her job prospects.
"Big Miracle" isn’t nearly the film it could've been, but beneath all the Hollywood dreck is an inspiring story about a group of people who managed to get over themselves long enough to do some good.
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