4 mins read

The Latest on The Mommy Wars

Why do moms need data to convince ourselves that there are myriad good (and bad) ways to raise children? After all, parenting is a quintessentially unique and personal undertaking. Every adult, even identical twin sisters, approaches motherhood differently. What I found in talking to hundreds of moms for my 2006 book Mommy Wars is that as…

4 mins read

Why Our Daughters Need To Play More Video Games

Girls today are steering away from math, science and computers in record numbers.According to the U.S. Department of Education, the percentage of women graduates in computer science is at a 39-year low. In 2012, women in the U.S. earned only 19% of all math and computer science degrees (compared to 37% 20 years ago) and made up less than 25% of the workers in engineering and computer-related fields. Fewer than 10 percent …

3 mins read

Brain Synapses of Children with Autism

Children with autism have too many “junction boxes” in their brains, a studyhas found. The surplus synapses – places where neurons connect and communicate – are due to a lack of “pruning” that normally occurs early in life. In mice with autistic traits, scientists were able to restore synaptic pruning and reduce symptoms with a drug used to suppress the immune systems of transplant patients. The drug, rapamycin, has side effects that make it unsuitable as …