News

News update: December 2006 - January 2007:

Violent Video Games

It has been found that 20 minutes of children playing violent video games can desensitise players to real-life brutality. Latest research from Indiana University’s School of Medicine involved 44 adolescents playing either a violent or non-violent video game for 30 minutes before brains were scanned. Those who had played the violent game showed less activity in the parts of their brains involved in inhibition, concentration and self-control. Nottingham Trent University found that 1 in 9 children who spend hours playing on-line games display the same signs of addiction as drug users and gamblers.

Pink Is The Colour

The new deterrent to stop gangs of youths gathering in menacing groups on the streets is to use pink street lighting. This colour makes their clothing look a horrible colour and exaggerates acne on their faces. This together with previous strategies of playing classical music and the use of high pitched fluctuating sound that only the young can hear are some ways to disband these groups.

Left Is Right

Left handed people think quicker and tend to be better at sport according to research at the Australian National University. They found that connections between the left and right sides of the brain are faster in left handed people. This makes them better at processing multiple stimuli (e.g. driving in heavy traffic or playing fast reaction computer games).

Teen Abortions Increasing

The number of under 18’s ending unwanted pregnancies has gone up by more than 7% since 1991. In 2003, 19.4 girls per 1000 aged 15-17 were having abortions compared with 18 per 1000 between 1994-1998. The report published in the Lancet Medical Journal showed abortions were more common in wealthy areas. Britain’s teen pregnancy rate is the highest in Europe.

Drug Abuse

The European Monitoring Centre on Drugs and Addiction has just reported that 5% of 15-24 year olds admitted having tried cocaine in the last year. It’s use has quadrupled amongst the under-25’s in the last 12 years. Over 25% of 15-24 year olds also admitted trying the drug in the last year. The UK has the second worst record on Ecstasy use among young people. Falling street prices of drugs has been highlighted as a main factor for these increases. Over 55 000 Britons died from drug related problems in the 19 years up to 2004.

Click here for previous news updates

Click here for latest news update