Monthly Archives: July 2012

The equation of the Dark Knight

Posted on July 31, 2012 by

I think you will agree this is a nice equation. ((x/7)2 Sqrt[Abs[Abs[x] – 3]/(Abs[x] – 3)] + (y/3)2 Sqrt[Abs[y + (3 Sqrt[33])/7]/(y + (3 Sqrt[33])/7)] – 1)(Abs[x/2] – ((3 Sqrt[33] – 7)/112) x2 – 3 + Sqrt[1 - (Abs[Abs[x] – … Continue reading →

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The obesity and diabetes belts in the United States illustrated

Posted on July 29, 2012 by

I don’t know if the USA is a good country to be unhealthy in. I suppose it depends on where you are exactly and on your income. But it is certainly a good country to study ill-health as they have … Continue reading →

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Geldof was wrong, you do like Mondays

Posted on July 27, 2012 by

Here is something to cheer you up for the weekend: you will, on average, be in a better mood at the weekend. This is according to an examination of a large representative US sample. Interestingly, they don’t find any difference … Continue reading →

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To Work or Not to Work? Child Development and Maternal Labor Supply

Posted on July 20, 2012 by

Child development is (obviously, I hope) an important topic and economists have got very interested in it recently, Jim Heckman‘s work being a good example. Here in UCD, a team lead by my colleague Orla Doyle are doing exciting work … Continue reading →

Posted in Brain/Psychology | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The economic cost of obesity in Ireland revisited

Posted on July 19, 2012 by

In an earlier post, I had some thoughts about the economic costs of obesity in Ireland. A lot of different numbers get bandied around. This is partly as there are ways of estimating such costs but also there are different … Continue reading →

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Should we have (more) bonus points for mathematics? Some skeptical thoughts

Posted on July 12, 2012 by

We hear a lot about the “maths crisis” in Ireland. Much of it is generated by our relatively low scores in the PISA tests (about which I have tried to sound a caution) but also the results in the Leaving … Continue reading →

Posted in Education | Tagged , , , | 6 Comments

Threatening a guy’s sexuality causes him to take more risky, short sighted decisions

Posted on July 12, 2012 by

I am comfortable with my sexuality (naturally) and hence untroubled by any perceived threats to my masculinity. There is nothing wrong with pink shirts, okay? That’s my story anyway. But how might guys react when they feel some threats to … Continue reading →

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Why do people pay for useless advice?

Posted on July 9, 2012 by

There are plenty of charlatans out there offering advice, usually in exchange for money. That’s why astrologers, fortune tellers, “mediums” and assorted mystics make a nice living. When I see these people in action my liberal instincts desert me and … Continue reading →

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How bullies have moved from the playground to the web

Posted on July 5, 2012 by

In May I posted some evidence on the extent of bullying experienced by school children in Ireland drawing on data from the Growing Up In Ireland study. As I noted electronic bullying (i.e via phone or internet) was comparatively rare … Continue reading →

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