Unsolved Mystery: What Sandra Witelson Discovered

Dr. Diamond's work had received tremendous press coverage, only to be exposed as critically flawed in execution. In 1996, a University of Alabama researcher named Britt Anderson published another study on Einstein's brain with much less hullaballoo. Anderson had discovered that Einstein's frontal cortex was much thinner than normal, but that it was more densely packed with neurons [source: Hotz]. Anderson told Thomas Harvey that a researcher at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, had been studying whether a more tightly packed cortex might explain differences in men's and women's brains. While men's brains were bigger, women's brains had the neurons packed tightly together, which may mean they can communicate more quickly.

Harvey took the name of that researcher and sent her a one-line fax: "Would you be willing to collaborate with me on studying the brain of Albert Einstein?" [source: Hotz]. Dr. Sandra Witelson, the researcher at McMaster, answered back in the affirmative. What Witelson had going for her that other researchers did not was a large collection of brains with IQs, general health and psychiatric state accounted for. There would be no confusion about the control group, as there was with Diamond's work -- the 35 male brains used had an average IQ score of 116, slightly higher than normal (Witelson used 56 female brains for comparison as well). For decades, Witelson had been working with doctors and nurses to acquire brains for her research. She would be able to conduct the largest study of this kind.

Harvey went to Canada with the brain, and Witelson was allowed to select nearly a fifth of it for study -- more than any other researcher had been allowed before [source: Altman]. She selected pieces of the temporal and parietal lobes, and she also pored over the photographs Harvey had commissioned of the brain at the time of Einstein's death. She noticed that Einstein's Sylvian fissure was largely absent. The Sylvian fissure separates the parietal lobe into two distinct compartments, and without this dividing line, Einstein's parietal lobe was 15 percent wider than the average brain [source: Witelson et al.].

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No word on what impact Einstein's brain had on his hairstyle.

Significantly, the parietal lobe is responsible for skills such as mathematical ability, spatial reasoning and three-dimensional visualization. This seemed to fit in perfectly with how Einstein described his own thought process: "Words do not seem to play any roles," he once said. "[There are] more or less clear images" [source: Wilson]. The man who figured out the theory of relativity by imagining a ride on a light beam through space saw his ideas in pictures and then found the language to describe them [source: Lemonick].

Witelson hypothesizes that the lack of a Sylvian fissure may have allowed the brain cells to crowd in closer to one another, which in turn enabled them to communicate much faster than normal. This brain structure may also have had something to do with Einstein's delayed speech development, which raises questions about whether it's helpful to know this sort of information about yourself. If Einstein had known that his brain was different, maybe even flawed, would he have pursued academics?

At this point, scientists don't know enough about how the brain works to know if Witelson's work is accurate, though it's the going theory at the moment. For all visible purposes, Einstein's brain seems perfectly normal, if not a little damaged, with nothing that would immediately indicate any great genius. We may not know anything until there's another equivalent genius brain to study; perhaps Einstein can't be compared to average brains.

Harvey never gave up on his belief that the brain would reveal something special. Near the end of his life, after carting the brain around the country, he returned to the place from which he had taken it: Princeton Hospital. He gave the brain to the man who had his old pathology job; writer Michael Paterniti, who accompanied Harvey on one cross-country trip with the brain, hypothesized in the book "Driving With Mr. Albert" that Harvey picked someone who represented a sort of reincarnation of Harvey himself, something that the pathologist in question also acknowledges. "Well then, he's free now," the man told Paterniti of Harvey's choice, "and I'm shackled" [source: Paterniti]. If Einstein's brain ever truly reveals its secrets, Harvey won't be here to see it; he died in 2007 at the age of 94. Einstein and the mystery of his brain, however, live on.

Marian Diamond and Albert Einstein's Brain

As the story goes, when Albert Einstein was born, his mother was positively flabbergasted by her son's large and angular head [source: Hayden]. But when Einstein died, his brain was no larger than that of any other man his age. Thomas Harvey weighed it as part of the autopsy, and the organ clocked in at 2.7 pounds (1.22 kilograms) [source: Hotz]. Harvey had the brain photographed, and then the brain was sectioned into approximately 240 pieces and preserved in celloidin, a common technique in the preservation and study of brains [source: Montagne].

Harvey would go on to send small slivers of the brain to doctors and scientists around the world whose work he found intriguing. The hand-picked experts were to report their findings back to Harvey, and then the work would be published so that the world could know what went on inside the brain of a genius.

Harvey and the world were in for a long wait. Einstein's brain was of a normal size, and he appeared to have a normal number of average-size brain cells. Harvey persevered in his belief that someone would find something, and whenever a reporter tracked the man down, he would say that he was just a year or so away from publishing something. At one point, Harvey was discovered to be living in Kansas while the brain sat in a jar inside an old cider box behind a beer cooler.

Then, in 1985, Harvey finally had something to report. Dr. Marian Diamond, who worked at the University of California at Berkeley, was studying the brain plasticity of rats and had found that rats in more enriching environments had more robust brains. Specifically, the rats had more glial cells in relation to their neurons, and Diamond wanted to see if Einstein's brain would prove similar.

Lucien Aigner/Stringer/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Who needs socks when you might have more glial cells?

Glial cells cushion and provide nutrients to the much busier neurons, the brain cells that communicate with each other. In some ways, though, glial cells are like the housekeeping service for the neurons. As neurons communicate, they leave behind trash in the form of potassium ions. The potassium ions pile up outside the neurons, but that trash pile can only go so high before the neurons stop communicating, because there's just no more room for the potassium ion discharge. Glial cells clean up those potassium ions to allow the neurons to fire repeatedly. Glia also soak up other neurotransmitters that might clog the communication lines of the neurons [source: Fields].

When Diamond received her pieces of brain, she compared them against a sample group of 11 other brains. She reported that Einstein did indeed have a higher ratio of glia cells to neurons than other brains, and she hypothesized that the number of glial cells increased because of the high metabolic demand that Einstein put on his neurons [source: Burrell]. In other words, Einstein needed fantastic housekeepers because he made such a mess with all of his amazing thoughts.

­Unfortunately, other scientists thought Diamond's work was a mess as well. For one thing, glial cells continue to divide during a person's life. Though Einstein died at 76, Diamond compared his brain to a control group with an average age of 64, so it's only natural that Einstein might have had more glial cells than these younger men [source: Herskovits]. Additionally, Diamond's control group of brains came from patients at a VA Hospital; while she could say that they had died of non-neurological causes, not much else was known about these men, such as IQ score. Was Einstein being compared to dunces? Another scientist pointed out that Diamond had only provided ratios of one specific measure, while by her own account, there were 28 ways to measure these cells. Diamond admitted that she didn't report scores that didn't prove her point; the scientist claimed that if you measure enough things, you'll find something that can support or disprove any claim [source: Burrell].

How Albert Einstein's Brain Worked

Brain Image Gallery


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Albert Einstein, 13 months before his death. See more brain pictures.

­In his last years of life, Albert Einstein knew he was ill and refused operations that would save his life. He made his wishes clear: "I want to be cremated so people won't come to worship at my bones" [source: Paterniti]. Einstein died on April 18, 1955, at the age of 76 of a ruptured abdominal aortic aneurism, and he got his wish as far as his bones were concerned; his ashes were scattered in an undisclosed location. But Einstein's brain was a different matter.

During the autopsy, conducted at Princeton Hospital, a pathologist named Thomas Harvey removed Einstein's brain -- the brain that had given the world such revolutionary thoughts as E=mc², the theory of relativity, an understanding of the speed of light and the idea that led to the completion of the atomic bomb. Harvey held the brain that produced those thoughts in his hands. And then he took it.

Depending on whom you believe, Harvey either did a wonderful thing for science that day, or he's no better than a common grave robber. Einstein had participated in studies during his lifetime to ascertain what might have made his brain different, and at least one biographer claims that Einstein wished for his gray matter to be studied after death [source: Altman]. Others claim that the brain fell under the category of things Einstein wanted cremated, and there was further outrage when it was revealed that another person removed Einstein's eyeballs as a souvenir [source: Paterniti].

Next Up Brainiacs: Albert Einstein Quiz How Geniuses Work Curiosity Project: Relativity Quiz

I­n some ways, though, Einstein got his wish. No one could come to worship at the relic of his brain, simply because no one except Harvey knew where it was. After Harvey's removal of the brain made news, he secured the permission of one of Einstein's sons to study the brain, with the results to be published in reputable journals. Harvey felt it wouldn't take very long at all to figure out what made Einstein's brain different and special -- surely the brain of such a genius would reveal its secrets quickly. But no studies appeared in the years following Einstein's death, and then Harvey himself, who, again, was merely a pathologist and not a neuroscientist, disappeared with the brain.

More Brain Food: Glucose and Antioxidants

We mentioned on the last page that your brain needs glucose to function properly. The glucose supply should be steady, so that means no skipping meals. It also means you should avoid a cheap source of glucose, like a candy bar. Candy will give you a quick high and a plummeting low in terms of glucose levels, and if you've ever experienced a sugar crash, you know what that can do to your body. To provide a steady stream of glucose, you should look for food that slowly releases carbohydrates into the bloodstream, which include most fruits and vegetables, milk and breads with lots of grains. Foods such as candy and white bread just give you the sugar rush.

iStockphoto.com/Darren Fisher
Breakfast of champions: the slow-burning glucose of oatmeal with the antioxidant power of berries.

Glucose is essential for keeping the neurotransmitters in the brain at peak levels, but is there anything else you can eat besides oatmeal and salmon? Yogurt also aids the production of neurotransmitters thanks to its amino acids [source: Douglas et al.]. Choline, a nutrient found in eggs and soybeans, produces a neurotransmitter called acetylcholine; abnormally low levels of acetylcholine have been found in people with Alzheimer's disease, so you know you want to keep yours up [source: Aaronson]. Folic acid, essential for brain function, can be found in spinach and orange juice. And don't be afraid of spicing it up a bit; curcumin, a spice used in curries, may be one reason why India has such a low incidence of Alzheimer's [source: UCLA].

But don't go too crazy with all these brain foods. When you consume too many calories, you can undo the positive brain effects. In the process of converting glucose to energy, extra oxygen is created as unstable molecules called free radicals. Free radicals in turn cause oxidative stress by destroying brain cells they come in contact with. Not only does this oxidative stress force the brain's synapses to work harder, it's also a major factor in many diseases, which is why you so often hear about the benefits of antioxidants.

Fruits and vegetables are full of the antioxidants that can fight those free radicals. Load up on a salad of spinach, broccoli, carrots and onions, and don't forget to throw some berries on top. If you're more in the mood for a beverage, you can drink your antioxidants in the form of concord grape juice, which has the total antioxidant level of any fruit, vegetable or juice tested [source: Flora]. Green tea also provides antioxidants to the brain.

Keeping your brain running smoothly by means of fueling it with the right energy is just one step to increasing your smarts, though. Eating the right food will clear the pathways for knowledge to zoom around the brain, but you'll have to put it there. For some true food for thought, go to the next page and load up on more information about the brain.

Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Here Fishy, Fishy!

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Salmon is delicious and good for you.

To function at its very best, the brain needs fat and sugar. That may sound surprising, given how often we're warned away from those two substances. However, the brain is the only organ that draws nearly all its energy from glucose. It's also the body's second-highest deposit of fat, after fatty tissue itself (such as the butt and the gut) [source: Aaronson].

It's not just any fat and sugar that the brain is after, though. Trans fats and saturated fats, such as those found in fast food and junk food, can decrease cognitive ability [source: UCLA]. One study found that rodents who were given the equivalent of rat junk food couldn't navigate mazes or remember the solutions to problems they'd solved previously [source: Douglas et al.]. Those kinds of fats harden brain cells.

Your brain cells crave polyunsaturated fatty acids, which you may know by the names omega-6 and omega-3. We typically get enough omega-6 acids throughout the day thanks to their presence in soy and corn oils, but most people need to consume more omega-3 fatty acids. These acids appear to strengthen the brain's synapses, which provide the pathways for neural communication. Omega-3s also appear to help molecules on the synapses directly related to learning and memory. In an Australian study, children who drank a beverage with omega-3 fatty acids received higher scores on tests of verbal intelligence and memory compared to children who didn't have the drink; results were evident after just six months [source: UCLA].

Brain Foods For Babies The benefits of omega-3 fatty acids begin long before birth. A Harvard study found that when women ate fish during the second trimesters of their pregnancies, their infants did better on cognitive tests at just six months old [source: O'Connor]. Pregnant women, should, however, eat fish with low mercury levels. Additionally, breast milk is a wonderful source of good fatty acids. In 2008, researchers from McGill University found that breastfed children had higher IQs and better academic performance [source: McGill University]. Though babies are tiny, three-quarters of an infant's energy is directed toward the brain [source: Binns]. So drink up, babies!

­Omega-3 fatty acids are found in some nuts, such as walnuts and hazelnuts, flaxseed, kiwi and most importantly, fish. Researchers aren't sure why exactly fish are so helpful to brain cells, but there's plenty of evidence showing that it might be the ultimate brain food. In one study, elderly people who ate fish at least once a week slowed cognitive decline about 10 percent compared to those who didn't chow down on fish, and the fish-eaters also performed better on tests of memory and mental sharpness [sources: O'Connor, Bakalar]. In rodents, omega-3 deficiency has led to learning impairments, while the consequences of a deficiency in humans include brain disorders such as dyslexia and schizophrenia [source: UCLA]. One physiologist even speculated that fish consumption by early man is what spurred the human brain to get so big in the first place [source: Binns].

Can brain foods make you smarter?

Alternative Medicine Image Gallery


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Not pictured: oatmeal vats
See more alternative medicine pictures.

If you're a regular visitor to HowStuffWorks.com, you might enjoy a little behind-the-scenes gossip about how these articles get to your computer screen. Each day, a dedicated team of writers and editors combs through the finest research materials, learning all we can about our given topics so that we can provide you with the best information on the Web. But before we hit the books, we all head straight for the HowStuffWorks cafeteria. There, we load up at a complimentary buffet of salmon and fresh fruit. We walk through showers of blueberries while our personalized chef whips up omelets with antioxidant-rich ingredients. The finest oatmeal available sits in vats by the door, so we can stock up before we start our day of research and writing. The amazing HowStuffWorks cafeteria gives us the brain food we need to do our very best work.

Brain Stuff Brain Pictures Brain Quiz How Your Brain Works Heart Health Foods

Doesn't that sound wonderful? Too bad it doesn't exist (though if any higher-ups in the company are looking for a way to improve our workplace, a cafeteria would be a great addition). But while the HowStuffWorks cafeteria is imaginary, the cognitive effects of the foods described above are not. There are indeed foods that can make your brain run better, possibly resulting in increased intelligence, and in this article, we'll take a look at a few of them.

Everything that you eat affects your brain's performance. When you consume food, it's broken down into energy that's distributed throughout the body, and the brain receives a large portion of it. Despite just clocking in at 2 percent of a human's body weight, the brain requires about 20 percent of energy taken in to keep running [source: Aaronson].

That energy gets to the brain via blood vessel transport, which means that diets that are good for the heart are also good for the brain. A diet that keeps the heart pumping and the arteries clear, combined with exercise, will enable that vital life force to reach the brain. Maintaining a flow of nutrients to the brain will also stave off brain disorders such as depression and dementia. That means you can multitask when it come to mealtimes; diets low in cholesterol and high in fiber benefit many parts of the body.

But when the energy reaches the brain, what kind of foods can really kick-start our smarts and improve our intelligence? The answer may surprise you.

What's the problem with Microsoft Word?

2008 HowStuffWorks
In 2006 and 2007, major security flaws were discovered in Microsoft Word.

In the last two months of 2006 alone, at least four major security flaws involving Microsoft Word were revealed. All are "zero day" flaws, meaning Microsoft and security organizations became aware of them at the same time that destructive hackers became aware of them. In many "zero day" cases, it's the exploitation of the flaw that brings it to the attention of the software companies; in other cases, the software companies announce the flaw and hackers immediately take advantage of it before a patch can be released. The strange thing about these Word problems is that almost eight weeks after the flaws were exploited by attackers, Microsoft still hadn't released a patch to fix it.

The first in this string of security holes popped up in early December 2006. This flaw affects computers running Word 2000, 2002 and 2003; Word 2004 for Mac and Word 2004 version X for Mac; Word Viewer 2003; and Microsoft Works 2004, 2005 and 2006. An attacker hides a piece of code in a Word document and puts it on a Web site for download or sends it out as an e-mail attachment. When a user downloads or opens the document, the attacker can remotely control the user's computer and execute a wide array of codes under the user's own login. This flaw came to Microsoft's attention on December 5, 2006, when people started reporting attacks.

A second, previously unknown flaw started to draw attention just a week later, this one also allowing a remote attacker to take control of a user's PC. According to Microsoft, though, this flaw exploits a entirely different security hole -- one that opens when Word undergoes a specific error. Apparently, this attack doesn't require a user to download a malicious file; it only requires the Word program on the person's computer to experience this error, at which point an attacker can enter the system and run malicious code. It affects Word 2000, 2002 and 2003 and Word Viewer 2003.

2008 HowStuffWorks
Software flaws can cause a lot problems through malicious hacking.

Security experts have attributed these two security holes to memory-corruption flaws
in the Word programs. Days later, a third flaw was revealed. This one also allows for remote access and control of a user's machine and has been tied to a buffer-overflow problem in Word. It came to public attention when a software expert called "Disco Johnny" published a proof-of-concept code on the Web that showed how a malicious hacker could exploit it, essentially providing instructions for running an attack in addition to showing Microsoft it has yet another problem.

And about five weeks later, on January 25, a fourth security hole became the subject of a malicious attack that begins when a user opens a rigged Word file sent as an e-mail attachment and has similar results to the previous attacks: Remote access and control of an entire system if it's running Word 2000. If the computer is running Word 2003 or Word XP, it only crashes the computer, as opposed to opening it up to remote control.

These four issues were only the latest in a series of attacks exploiting previously undiscovered flaws in a wide array of Microsoft Office applications. In September 2006, hackers started exploiting another zero-day Word flaw, this one only affecting Word 2000. A user had to open an infected Word 2000 document using the Word 2000 program in order for the virus, MDropper.Q, to drop a piece of code in the user's PC. This allowed a remote attacker to take control of the infected PC.

Microsoft recommends installing multiple layers of security software and updating the versions vigilantly. Beyond that, we can only use the wariness we've become accustomed to when opening attachments or downloading files, with an extension into a traditionally safer area: Now, if it ends with .doc, don't touch it unless you know and trust the source.

How Fakebook Works

Some people are online social butterflies, deftly managing to interact with hundreds of Facebook friends on a daily basis. To them, there's no challenge in wading through a dozen event invites, wishing a happy birthday to the appropriate people, responding to Wall posts and making the next move in one of the thousands of games permeating the site.

For the rest of us, Facebook can sometimes seem a little overwhelming. If you've got a lot of Facebook friends, you may find it impossible to keep up with everything. And if your friends are the sensitive type, you may give off the impression that you don't care about them. There's nothing quite like finding out a friend is in a tizzy because you didn't respond to an invite on Facebook to go bowling.

Then there are the people who'd rather never get on Facebook at all. As our culture embraces social networking sites and services, people begin to feel the pressure to participate. That might not be a big deal to everyone but some people just aren't that comfortable sharing information with others. How do you balance being a contributing member of society with reluctance to join the online social world?

Learn More Facebook Quiz How Facebook Works Curiosity Project: 10 Cutting-edge Computer Accessories

The answer for people who have trouble maintaining a Facebook profile -- or those who wish to avoid it as much as possible -- may be Fakebook. It's a new Facebook application that responds to requests automatically and takes care of the everyday virtual housekeeping your profile needs to avoid drama. For people with a lot of Facebook friends, it takes the pressure out of responding to various invitations and status updates. For the shyer among us, Fakebook can provide the online interaction we're otherwise reluctant to do.

Worst Computer Virus 10: Melissa

In the spring of 1999, a man named David L. Smith created a computer virus based on a Microsoft Word macro. He built the virus so that it could spread through e-mail messages. Smith named the virus "Melissa," saying that he named it after an exotic dancer from Florida [source: CNN].
David L. Smith
Daniel Hulshizer/AFP/Getty Images
A courtroom photo of David L. Smith, the alleged creator of the Melissa virus.

Rather than shaking its moneymaker, the Melissa computer virus tempts recipients into opening a document with an e-mail message like "Here is that document you asked for, don't show it to anybody else." Once activated, the virus replicates itself and sends itself out to the top 50 people in the recipient's e-mail address book.

The virus spread rapidly after Smith unleashed it on the world. The United States federal government became very interested in Smith's work -- according to statements made by FBI officials to Congress, the Melissa virus "wreaked havoc on government and private sector networks" [source: FBI]. The increase in e-mail traffic forced some companies to discontinue e-mail programs until the virus was contained.

After a lengthy trial process, Smith lost his case and received a 20-month jail sentence. The court also fined Smith $5,000 and forbade him from accessing computer networks without court authorization [source: BBC]. Ultimately, the Melissa virus didn't cripple the Internet, but it was one of the first computer viruses to get the public's attention.

Flavors of Viruses

In this article, we'll look at several different kinds of computer viruses. Here's a quick guide to what we'll see:

The general term computer virus usually covers programs that modify how a computer works (including damaging the computer) and can self-replicate. A true computer virus requires a host program to run properly -- Melissa used a Word document.
A worm, on the other hand, doesn't require a host program. It's an application that can replicate itself and send itself through computer networks.
Trojan horses are programs that claim to do one thing but really do another. Some might damage a victim's hard drive. Others can create a backdoor, allowing a remote user to access the victim's computer system.

10 Worst Computer Viruses of All Time

Laptop Image Gallery

Computer virus
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There's nothing quite like finding out your computer has a serious virus. See more laptop pictures.

­­Computer viruses can be a nightmare. Some can wipe out the information on a hard drive, tie up traffic on a computer network for hours, turn an innocent machine into a zombie and replicate and send themselves to other computers. If you've never had a machine fall victim to a computer virus, you may wonder what the fuss is about. But the concern is understandable -- according to Consumer Reports, computer viruses helped contribute to $8.5 billion in consumer losses in 2008 [source: MarketWatch]. Computer viruses are just one kind of online threat, but they're arguably the best known of the bunch.

Computer viruses have been around for many years. In fact, in 1949, a scientist named John von Neumann theorized that a self-replicated program was possible [source: Krebs]. The computer industry wasn't even a decade old, and already someone had figured out how to throw a monkey wrench into the figurative gears. But it took a few decades before programmers known as hackers began to build computer viruses.

While some pranksters created virus-like programs for large computer systems, it was really the introduction of the personal computer that brought computer viruses to the public's attention. A doctoral student named Fred Cohen was the first to describe self-replicating programs designed to modify computers as viruses. The name has stuck ever since.

Old-school Viruses
Some of the earliest viruses to infect personal computers included the Apple Viruses, which attacked Apple II computers
and the Brain virus, which could infect PCs.

­In the good­ old days (i.e., the early 1980s), viruses depended on humans to do the hard work of spreading the virus to other computers. A hacker would save the virus to disks and then distribute the disks to other people. It wasn't until modems became common that virus transmission became a real problem. Today when we think of a computer virus, we usually imagine something that transmits itself via the Internet. It might infect computers through e-mail messages or corrupted Web links. Programs like these can spread much faster than the earliest computer viruses.

We're going to take a look at 10 of the worst computer viruses to cripple a computer system. Let's start with the Melissa virus.

WHAT IS LOVE ?

It is better to have loft and lost than to never have loft at all." — Groucho Marx

Falling in love is a magical experience that happens between two people. So why do people fall in love? Professor Arthur Aron from State University of New York at Stonybrook has been exploring the dynamics of what happens when two people are falling in love:

Q: What motivates people to seek out love?

A: Our primary motivation as human beings is to expand the self and to increase our abilities and our effectiveness. One of the ways we accomplish this is through our relationships with other people. We have learned in our research that it is important to feel that you have the ability to be an effective person, especially in our relationships.

Q: How does this theory of self-expansion explain the process of falling in love?

A: Usually, we fall in love with a person that we find attractive and appropriate for us, but also someone who demonstrates that they are attracted to us. This creates a situation where a great opportunity is open to us for self-expansion. The fact that they are attracted to us offers a significant opportunity — when we perceive this, we feel a surge of exhilaration!

Q: Does it always work this way?

A: No, an interesting exception to this occurs if we feel badly about ourselves. The process gets thrown off if we can't believe that another persons finds us attractive — like the Groucho Marx joke where we don't want to belong to a club that would have us for a member. We tend to miss out on opportunities for falling in love if we don't feel good about ourselves.

Q: What conditions are best for meeting someone and falling in love?

A: When you meet someone under conditions that are highly arousing — a political demonstration, turbulence on a plane, a stimulating performance — a time when the body is stirred up and excited, we tend to experience attraction at a heightened level. This effect is well documented but the explanations for it are very controversial. I tend to believe that we come to associate the arousal of the situation with this person and our own self-expansion.

Q: When do we fall in love?

A: Contrary to what most people think, the statistics show that most people fall in love with someone that they have known for a while. People only report falling in love quickly about 1/3 to 40 percent of the time. Of course, this varies from culture to culture. Falling in love happens differently between cultures but it does occur in most cultures.

Q: How does our appearance factor into the equation of falling in love?

A: This is interesting; we have found that if you are very unattractive, it can hurt you a lot in forming romantic relationships. However, being attractive doesn't help that much.

Q: How do you explain that?

A: We have found that two important characteristics, kindness and intelligence, are extremely important in the process of falling in love. And attractiveness is not connected to these things. These two attributes are things that people learn about someone from knowing them over time. Intelligence is important in all aspects of life, especially in love. But kindness is the strongest indicator for a successful long-term relationship.

1: Seek Treatment

If your nail biting is extreme -- meaning that you regularly bleed, have lost nails or have permanent damage due to your habit -- then it may be time to seek help. Onychophagia is actually part of a group of behaviors that fall under the diagnosis of obsessive-compulsive disorders (OCD). If you suspect that you may have OCD, consult a psychiatrist. He may suggest medication, therapy or a combination of both. Medications that may be prescribed include drugs that you've probably heard about, such as Paxil, Zoloft or Celexa.

Even if you don't have a diagnosis of OCD, you can still try one of several behavioral treatments to curb your nail biting. These may include:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy - These are sessions to explore your feelings and behaviors as well as seeking new ways of behaving. It may also include learning relaxation techniques.
• Habit reversal training - This is used specifically to treat repetitive behaviors. It involves learning how to identify when the behavior is coming on and replacing it with another behavior.
• Exposure and response prevention - This therapy includes slowly increasing exposure to what makes you anxious or worried, while avoiding your typical response (in this case, the nail biting).

Finally, some nail biters have found relief through hypnosis. Typically, you'll be taught the patient cues so your subconscious mind can make your conscious mind aware of the habit. You'll also learn how to eliminate the compulsion to bite and how to relax more in general.

2: Find Out Why You Bite

At first, you might think that there really isn't a "why" when it comes to nail biting. You just started doing it one day and kept on doing it until it became a habit. That might be true for some nail biters. However, for many of them, there are very specific reasons for it, such as boredom, stress, fear or anxiety.

Maybe the first time you bit your nails was also the first day of school or the first time you attended a sleepover at a friend's house. Biting your nails was something physical that you could do to relieve the stress, fear and worry that you were probably feeling.

If you can figure out the motivation for biting your nails, then you can find a more constructive way to deal with your feelings. Consider keeping a sort of nail biting journal. You don't even have to write much; just answer a few questions when you find yourself starting to bite. Where are you? What are you doing? How do you feel, both physically and mentally? If you keep up this journal, you'll be able to look back and see a pattern.

Now that you see why you're biting, find ways to deal with it. You won't always be able to remove the source of stress, so find something else to do. If you feel bored at work, go for a quick walk or get a drink of water. If flying makes you anxious, make sure you have lots of reading material and a laptop so you can watch movies (or go online). Talking to somebody about your feelings can also help.

Maybe you've tried all of the suggestions we've given so far and nothing has worked. Next up, it might be time to seek professional help.

: Distract Yourself.

©iStockphoto.com/vkbhat
Stress relief without the ragged results of nail biting.

Once you become aware of your nail biting habit, you could try directing that energy into a different action. For some people, that means keeping their hands busy so they don't have a chance to unconsciously put them up to their mouths. A stress ball -- basically a little rubber ball that you can squeeze in the palm of your hand -- might help. Whenever you find yourself starting to nibble a nail, take out the stress ball instead. It's not quite the same, but if you stick with it, the urge to bite your nails instead may disappear. You could also get some Silly Putty and knead it with your hands.

If you'd rather do something more productive with your hands, consider taking up a hobby that involves constant handwork like drawing, painting, sewing, knitting or crocheting. When you get really comfortable with one of the latter two, you can do them while watching TV, waiting in line or riding on a bus -- all times when you may be spacing out and unconsciously start nail biting.

4: Apply a Deterrent

If you visit the nail care aisle in the drugstore, you might have seen creams, oils or nail polishes specifically designed to stop nail biting. Since nail biting is an unconscious habit, the reasoning goes, you'll be startled into awareness when you taste the nasty solution on your fingers and stop what you're doing. Many of these products are also marketed to stop thumb sucking (yet another nervous habit, but one that rarely lasts into adulthood).

Ingredients for these products are typically hot, such as cayenne pepper extract, or bitter, such as denatonium saccharide. The latter is a nontoxic chemical compound often added to toxic products such as antifreeze to discourage children and animals from drinking it. Some people also try home deterrent solutions such as straight black pepper or bitters (an alcoholic beverage). However, these are more easily washed off, while commercial products are designed to last longer.

Some nail biters have successfully kicked the habit this way, while others get used to the taste or are too disgusted by it to keep it on their nails. Some people try other deterrents such as applying stickers or bandages to their fingers, or wearing a bracelet, as a reminder not to bite them. Dentists can also fit you for a mouth guard if your nail biting is seriously damaging your teeth.

PREVANTION OF NAIL BITING

5: Keep Your Nails Groomed

©iStockphoto.com/Brosa
Manicures aren't just for the ladies.

For some nail biters, it's about obsessively "fixing" problems with their nails. One solution is to keep your nails groomed. Manicure kits usually contain tools such as nail clippers, a file, small scissors and a cuticle pusher or orange stick. If you keep a kit with you, or even just carry a file, you can take care of broken nails or hangnails without biting them off.

Try giving yourself a manicure once a week. Start by clipping your nails if necessary, and then smooth the edges with the file working in one direction. Soak your nails for a few minutes in a bowl of warm water with olive oil or lotion added, and then gently push the cuticles back with a pusher or stick wrapped in cotton. Dry your hands and finish by rubbing on more lotion or a cuticle cream. You can use a buffer to make your nails shine.

If you can afford to get a professional manicure at least a few times a month (and they're for both men and women), spending the money may function as a deterrent. Polishing your nails with colored or clear polish can also help because you won't want to ruin your work. You could even consider getting fake nails or tips. This will give your real nails a chance to grow, and the added expense might be enough to make you leave your nails alone entirely.

TOP 5 WAYES TO PREVANT FROM NAIL BITING

Personal Hygiene Image Gallery


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Think of the bacteria! See more pictures of personal hygiene practices.

If you're a nail biter (or hair twirler or finger tapper), there's a good chance your habit started during childhood. About half of all adolescents bite their nails, but more than three-fourths of those will stop by age 35 [source: CRS Pediatric Advisor]. Nervous habits like these are unconscious behaviors that we repeat out of anxiety, stress or boredom. Nail biters have what doctors call onychophagia.

One problem with nail biting is that it's considered socially unacceptable; ragged, bitten nails aren't attractive, and neither is the act of biting your nails. Some people bite their nails so badly that their fingers bleed, or the nails are so stunted that there is almost no nail left. But it's not just about having pretty hands -- in addition to having a negative impact on your appearance, nail biting can also affect your health.

When you bite your nails, you transfer bacteria back and forth between your mouth and fingers (which isn't where you want germs!). If you bite your hangnails, infections can grow under the nail bed. Even worse, you can permanently damage your nails, your gums and your teeth.

IS NAIL BITING IS DANGEROUS ?

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Nail biting is the most common type of nervous habit. See more personal hygiene pictures.

Now that was a nail-biter! This phrase suggests a contest or outcome that had you nervously biting your nails, so right away, nail biting doesn't have such a good image. Sticking your fingers in your mouth to gnaw on your nails doesn't exactly project confidence. Plus, it means your nails look ragged, unprofessional and in serious need of a manicure.

If you bite your nails, you're not alone. In fact, it's the most common type of "nervous habit." Nail biting is most common in children ages 10 to 18 -- about 50 percent of children bite their nails at some point. Those tween and teen years can be tough, so a little nail biting is typically just a sign of stress [source: C.S. Mott's Children's Hospital]. Some people don't break the habit until their 20s, but by age 30, hardly anyone is still a nail biter [source: WebMD].

Learn More Top 5 Things Your Nails Say About Your Health Top 5 Ways to Prevent Nail Biting DiscoveryHealth.com: Get Younger-looking Hands

Nail biting isn't dangerous, and it's unlikely to result in long-term damage unless you bite the nail bed, or the U-shaped area at the base of the nail where growth begins [source: Gibson]. However, excessive nail biting can cause some short-term problems, including bleeding, bacterial infections and warts around the nail bed [source: C.S. Mott's Children's Hospital]. Bacteria and viruses can also be transferred from your mouth to your nails or from your hands to your mouth if nail biting isn't curtailed. However, if you frequently wash your hands in warm, soapy water, you'll kill a lot of germs and be less likely to experience any harmful effects from nail biting [source: Gibson].

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN KANGAROOS NAD WALLABIES

If you're like most people, when you think of kangaroos and wallabies, you think of Australia -- pouched animals with prominent hind legs, bouncing around the countryside like kids on pogo sticks. Or perhaps you flash to your favorite marsupial characters -- Rocko from "Rocko's Modern Life" or Kanga, friend to Christopher Robin and Winnie the Pooh. Or do you think of Captain Kangaroo?

Marsupial Image Gallery

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Kangaroos and wallabies differ in several ways.
See more pictures of marsupials.

Regardless of your associations, you've probably wondered what distinguishes one animal from the other. After all, they look so much alike. They're both marsupials, meaning mothers carry their young around in built-in pouches. And scientists have even grouped them into the same order, family and subfamily.

Lisa Larson/Time & Life Pictures/
Getty Images
Don't let the name fool you: Captain Kangaroo is in fact a human being.

So what's the difference? Is Rocko a wallaby or a kangaroo?

The most obvious difference between the wallaby and the kangaroo is size. As a rule, the kangaroo is generally much larger than the wallaby. The kangaroo has more height between its ankles and knees, which makes its legs seem out of proportion to its body. The kangaroo's legs are built for speed on open terrain. The wallaby's more compact legs are built for agility in forested areas. Although there are many different species of both wallabies and kangaroos that span a wide range of sizes, wallabies only tend to weigh between four pounds and 53 pounds (2 kg to 24 kg) and grow a mere 12 inches to 24 inches (30 cm to 104 cm) tall, not including their tails [source: "Wallaby"]. Kangaroos, on the other hand, can grow to heights of 8 feet (2.1 meters) and weigh as much as 200 pounds (91 kg) [source: Microsoft Encarta].

Another simple way to tell a wallaby and a kangaroo apart is by their coloring. A wallaby's coat is usually brighter with two to three different colors. For example, the unfortunately-named "red-necked" wallaby's grayish body is distinguished by reddish markings around its shoulders. The kangaroo's coat is usually less splashy and more uniform, with muted colors like brown or gray.

For a more scientific way to tell the two animals apart, you'll have to get these guys to open their mouths and say "Aaaah." On the next page, learn how a quick look at the kangaroo's and wallaby's teeth could help you identify them.

Mechanics of Headphone Earmuffs

Paving the Way Where would we be today without the innovative thinking behind the Sony Walkman? July 1, 1979 marked the birth of a new way of enjoying music when Sony introduced one of its most famous products. Although it was originally called the "Discman," this musical breakthrough soon became known as the Walkman. Before its production, cars and home stereos were your only options, so the Walkman made music portable for the first time. These days, iPods and other MP3 players have basically made the groundbreaking Walkman obsolete, but who knows if we would have stumbled upon this technology without the foundation Sony laid [source: Sony].

It shouldn't be too hard to imagine headphone earmuffs, after all, just imagine a pair of old-school style headphones -- the kind many club DJs sport. If you can't conjure an image, think of Oreo-sized pads covering two small speakers, attached by a thin, adjustable metal strip -- and it all fits on your head like a pair of earmuffs. Since earmuffs are shaped quite similarly, it's not that far fetched that the two items could be fused into one convenient gadget.

The mechanics involved are about as simple as you would expect. You start with a standard headphone set up. There are two ear cups, each containing a speaker, a headband, a wire connecting the two speaker ear cups and a universal plug that will fit into a variety of different technological accessories

The headphones are covered in a warm, soft fabric, as if they have their own winter jacket. Sometimes a thin layer of fabric is placed over the speakers, and other times the earmuffs just form a tube around the speakers to protect your ears from the cold. Like most of the earmuffs you've come across, they're usually collapsible and just like the headphones you've used, they're adjustable.

HOW A HEADPHONE WORKS

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Now you can stay warm and keep the tunes flowing by getting yourself a pair of headphone earmuffs. See more pictures of essential gadgets.

That four-mile jog is so much harder in the winter. The single digits on the thermometer are less than motivational. The one thing that usually helps pump you up, your MP3 player, is still carefully tucked in your room because the thought of those ear bud headphones that feel like ice against your ears is too much to handle on this cold morning. If only you didn't have to choose between your ear bud headphones and your earmuffs.

Well, you're in luck -- now you can stay warm and keep the tunes flowing by getting yourself a pair of headphone earmuffs.

As MP3 players and other portable music gadgets have become practically ubiquitous, it has become necessary to make them as usable as possible, no matter what the temperature is. So, the ever-expanding need for multipurpose gear has created a new branch in the headphone industry. Headphone earmuffs are exactly what you think they are -- headphones inside a pair of earmuffs.

With everyone from the big box chains to outdoor stores and fashion shops selling the product, you should be able to find a pair that fits your style and budget. They come in a variety of styles and colors and range in price from $10 for a basic pair up to around $200 for a top of the line model. Most of the time, you can expect the average earmuff headphone set to run about $30 [source: Perfect Present]. Try using the Internet in your search for the best deals and customer reviews.

DANGERS AND ACCIDENTS

GPS Dangers and Accidents

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You should always set and adjust your GPS when you're
pulled over.

­Remember that parental standby, "If your friends jumped off a cliff, would you?" As it turns out, this is good advice to heed when you use a GPS device: If your GPS tells you to drive off a cliff, would you?

Since GPS navigation systems are now common, a contributing link between the devices and accidents has been identified. While the reasons are varied, it often boils down to humans being human.

One of the most common human errors when it comes to using a GPS device is overconfidence in how smart that navigation system is or isn't. Why plan when your GPS will tell you where to go? Well, GPS devices are fallible; they're made so by satellite communication errors and outdated or inaccurate maps. Even when maps are current, some mapping and navigation information doesn't take into account road types. With this type of software error, the road that may look like the shortest distance between Point A and Point B might actually be an unpaved private drive. If your GPS device doesn't recognize it as such, it could add the road to your route.

Because of these factors, drivers find themselves driving on unsafe terrain and into other hazards, such as artificial lakes or train tracks. The more confident you are in what your GPS device tells you, the less likely you are to notice something's wrong. Accident risk increases when drivers take their GPS device's instructions too literally: Warnings of "when possible, make a legal U-turn" send some veering into oncoming traffic.

Driver inattention and distraction also increase accident risk. Many of us have seen such drivers on the road: those who are having their morning cup of coffee, talking on the phone and reading the paper all while behind the wheel of their car. Sure, it's hard to eliminate all distractions while driving -- who isn't guilty of tuning to a better song? In a study conducted by the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety (NETS), spilling hot coffee on yourself and dropping something on the floor are the two most common driver distractions. But the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that driver distraction plays a role in 25 to 30 percent of the roughly 1.2 million car crashes in the United States each year [source: Stutts]. The greater number of devices in your car, from cell phones to GPS navigators to onboard entertainment systems, the greater the distraction possibilities. NETS also found that when GPS users mute the device they increase their distraction level -- without the voice commands, drivers spent more time looking at the screen than the road [source: Smart Motorist].

It's no doubt that in most cases GPS navigation systems can get you to your destination unharmed, especially if you do a little groundwork before hitting the road. Prep the device before taking off to avoid the distraction of adjusting it while driving -- that includes not only setting your start and end destinations but also adjusting settings. And minimize distraction by pulling over or relying on a passenger to make changes during the trip.

Consult a map and pay attention to the surroundings and road signs -- GPS may be convenient but it can't replace common sense. If things don't look right, they probably aren't.

Do Car GPS Devices Cause Accidents

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GPS devices usually don't mention the bus in front of
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Maybe you've heard the stories. Accounts are stacking up of drivers performing illegal and dangerous actions only to blame the inevitable accident on their car GPS unit. The rural village of Wedmore, England, for example, has seen its share of truck drivers wedged between buildings because they blindly followed the route their GPS system planned out -- regardless of the fact that trucks are prohibited from the village because of their size. And in the United States, a man steered his car onto railroad tracks at the command of his GPS device to "turn right, now." Luckily, he was able to escape before an oncoming train slammed into his car.

GPS navigation systems are no longer strictly luxury accessories. Approximately 7 percent of 220 million cars in the United States have some type of GPS navigation system (factory installed or aftermarket, portable or built-in) and 13 percent of the 200 million cars on the roads in Europe use GPS devices [source: Automotive Business Review]. GPS has hit the mainstream.

More Car Gadgets Top 5 Car Gadgets Sirius Backseat TV Tiwi System

­GPS, which stands for Global Positioning System, is made up of a group of satellites. These satellites communicate with your GPS navigation device to pinpoint your location, give or take 164 to 328 feet (50 to 100 meters) [source: Corvallis Microtechnology, Inc.]. Your position is then overlaid with digital mapping and navigation information stored within your GPS receiver. Once your device knows your location, it's able to plan driving directions for you, suggest a route around traffic congestion, find a nearby gas station, hotel or the local Starbucks. What it won't do is drive your car for you. As GPS devices go mainstream, there are a growing number of accounts about the devices routing users into lakes, onto train tracks or the wrong way down a one-way street. GPS devices have caused an estimated 300,000 car accidents in the United Kingdom

Let's look more closely at the reasons why drivers with GPS devices are at an increased risk for accidents, whether it's because they're relying more on what their GPS device tells them and less on maps, or because they're ignoring common sense or their own eyes.

LOOK IT FRNDS AND TRY IT IT"S REALLY WORK

TRY IT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!