Fathers are happier when doing more housework, says study

Fathers are less stressed when sharing childcare and domestic chores, new research shows. This has to be something that most women around the world will be happy about. The fact that men are happy when they are home will also deal a blow to the feminist movement which has always asserted that men have little or no interest in staying at home, rearing children, and helping the woman with housework. Or maybe it’s a sign of the times and the fact that, finally, Feminists can claim their teachings have at last helped change the dynamics of home life to the benefit of the female.

“It will be music to the ears of working mothers everywhere: fathers are happier when they do more of the housework themselves, spend longer with their children and have working partners who are in the office just as long as they are, a major new study has found. The best way to de-stress a father is for his partner to share the weight of domestic burdens with him, rather than ironing his socks, making his breakfast and taking the lion's share of responsibility for the kids.”

Evidence was also found that social attitudes towards childcare are in a period of profound change: fewer fathers than mothers, for example, believe that it is a mother's job to look after children. "The problem is that although families are changing, this is – largely – being completely ignored by employers," added Gatrell.

As usual, companies are a huge step behind what society both wants and expects from its employers. Too often nowadays, employers have complete control over their workforce to the detriment of the family. Interestingly, this is less so in extended families or in countries where extended families thrive e.g. sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia.

Electric current to the brain 'boosts maths ability'

This all sounds a bit wacky to me. That you can stimulate some part of the brain and produce a particular response is something I talked about in an earlier blog, so I have no doubt about that but to say that it can improve a skill in a tangible way like say an improvement in math score is frankly a little hard to swallow.

"Applying a tiny electrical current to the brain could make you better at learning maths, according to Oxford University scientists. They found that targeting a part of the brain called the parietal lobe improved the ability of volunteers to solve numerical problems."

What's more interesting is that even six months later when tested again, the respondents still seemed to have retained some of the ability which is even more remarkable as it suggests that the effect is somewhat long lasting. However, the scientists have a word of caution - an academic caveat emptor:

"Dr Cohen Kadosh, who led the study, said: "We are not advising people to go around giving themselves electric shocks, but we are extremely excited by the potential of our findings and are now looking into the underlying brain changes."

Another scientist, Dr Christopher Chambers, from the School of Psychology at Cardiff University, said that the results were "intriguing", and offered the prospect not just of improving numerical skills, but having an impact on a wider range of conditions.

"The ability to tweak activity in parts of the brain, turning it slightly 'up' or 'down' at will, opens the door to treating a range of psychiatric and neurological problems, like compulsive gambling or visual impairments following stroke."

You have to agree that it's intriguing but equally, if there really exists a possibility to tweak parts of the brain to perform specific functions, in the wrong hands, like a Kim Jong-il or a Pol Pot, that could open up a Pandora's box of unmentionables to have to deal with as the Natzis discovered with their Eugenics programs in the early part of the last century!! It is also reminiscent of Frankenstein and the literature of the early to mid nineteenth century.