news 2011

How dogs make sense of size University of Sussex psychologists have demonstrated an ability in domestic dogs to match acoustic and visual cues - a cognitive ability once thought to be found in primates only -when assessing size in other dogs. Researchers Dr Anna Taylor, Dr David Reby and Karen McComb filmed the reactions of 40 different volunteer pet dogs when presented with two other dogs (a stuffed Jack Russell and a stuffed German shepherd dog) of different size and a variety of manipulated growl recordings.

Women who experience depression and anxiety after a miscarriage can continue to experience these symptoms even if they subsequently go on to have a healthy child. The findings, based on the Children of the 90s study (ALSPAC) at the University of Bristol and published online today [Thursday 3 March] by the British Journal of Psychiatry , show no evidence that mental health problems associated with miscarriage or stillbirth end with the birth of a healthy baby.

Children learning to count at earlier age Researchers at the University of Sheffield have shown that children begin to learn to count at an earlier age than previously thought. Professor Michael Siegal, from the University´s Department of Psychology, worked with colleagues at the University of Queensland and Kyoto University to study how young children responded to videos of counting.

PA 04/11 Brain scans of children with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) have shown for the first time why people affected by the condition sometimes have difficulty in concentrating. The study, by experts at The University of Nottingham, may explain why parents often say that their child can maintain concentration when they are doing something that interests them, but struggles with boring tasks.