In Brief: From TV to Tea

Nightlife

Could Mozart have composed "A Little Night Music" in his sleep?
A study done at the University of Florence's Sleep Lab found that 28 percent of musical dreams reported by musicians contain compositions unfamiliar to the dreamers. Frequency of musical dreams was related to the age at which musicians started practicing but not to current practice habits.

Keeping Ideas Fresh

Mixed feelings about work? Good. people who are ambivalent about their jobs tend to be more creative. The brain interprets these mixed emotions as a sign of being in an unusual surrounding, and responds by employing creative thinking skills. Jump-start the process by creating an atypical working environment.

Against The Grain

A study shows that eating bread, pasta, and rice greatly boosts your chances of getting renal cell carcinoma, the most common type of kidney cancer. The researchers also found that poultry, vegetables, and processed meat have the opposite effect.

Txtng Gr8 4U

In a British study of 11-year-olds, those who texted more scored better on tests of reading, writing, and even spelling. The researchers argued that the use of abbreviations could even be a fun way to teach kids language skills. LOL!

79%

79 percent of Americans believe people of other faiths can go to heaven.

Putting Tea to the Test

The relaxing effect of black tea is now backed by scientific evidence. A double-blind placebo-controlled study from University College London shows that people who drink a few cups of black tea daily experience a drop to normal levels of the stress hormone cortisol sooner after stressful situations. So drink up and put your feet up.

Don't Touch That Dial

A University of Michigan study of TV watchers age 9 to 77 showed that reading a show description advising viewer discretion instead of simply indicating the content makes people want to watch it more. Viewers of all ages agree: Programs with explicit warning labels make for must-see TV.

No Thanks

Allergic to fruitcake? According to a study in Psychology & Marketing, the most hurtful response to a bad gift—worse than regifting it, not using it, or trashing it (verbally or literally)—is to not say thanks, even if the smile is obviously fake.

Lend A Hand, Smartypants

People with bigger brains have bigger hearts, too. A study in the Journal of Research in Personality shows that altruism may be a sign of general intelligence. Each subject decided how to allocate points between himself and a mystery person he'd never meet. People who scored higher on intelligence tests preferred altruistic options, choosing to, say, take 500 points and give 550 rather than take 550 and give 300. "From an economic point of view, you would expect that a 'smart' rational person is an egoistic person," says lead author Kobe Millet. But the researchers argue that altruism—beyond mere cooperation—is a signal to others of underlying mental fitness because smarter people are in a better position to recoup the costs of generosity. If you've got it, flaunt it.