Canada in brief: Jan. 12, 2011

Good music stimulates as much as sex: study

MONTREAL (CUP) — Researchers from McGill University have discovered that music can trigger the brain’s pleasure centres in the same way as food, sex and drugs, like cocaine.

According to a study published in the journal Nature Neuroscience on Jan. 9, music can release the neurotransmitter dopamine, a chemical in the brain that is associated with pleasure and reward.

The list of music used in the study is quite diverse. While it has a significant amount of classical music, DJ Tiesto as well as post-rock bands like Explosions in the Sky and Godspeed You! Black Emperor were used.

­–Jacob Serebrin, CUP Quebec Bureau Chief

Tears a turn-off, says study

VICTORIA (CUP) — Dry those eyes, ladies — it turns out crying does nothing to attract the opposite sex.

According to a new study performed by Israel’s Weizmann Institute of Science, tears of sadness may temporarily lower a man’s testosterone level by sending a chemical signal when the man gets close enough to sniff them, even though there’s no discernible odor. Researchers also found that emotional tears are chemically different from the reflex tears that form from an irritated eye.

The study could not conclude if male-to-male tears had the same effect, since researchers found it difficult to find to male volunteers.
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–Danielle Pope, CUP Western Bureau Chief