Distracted genius

TOO many distractions? Good. Our no-attention-span society is constantly beset by interruptions from mobile phones, e-mails, newscasts and all the head-noise of modern life, but, oddly, this may make us far better at problem-solving, says new research in the journal Psychological Science.

Tests on 130 volunteers have shown that being distracted while trying to concentrate on solving a tough problem may leave you much more able to solve it a little later.

A team of psychologists, led by Northwestern University, says that their tests show that creative problem-solving requires a two-stage process of unconscious thought. And it works better if you get a break between the stages.

Their experiments involved asking volunteers to perform a series of tricky word-association tests. Half the group was told to stop work on the tests halfway through and to try some other tests instead. When they returned to the first tests, their performance was much better.

Professor Adam Galinsky, who led the study, says this two-step unconscious system explains a phenomenon that many of us have noticed - if you give up on a problem, somehow it sorts itself out in your head a little later.

It also helps to explain Archimedes' “Eureka” moment in the bath. An earlier study by Dutch investigators, in the journal Science, reports the unconscious mind can be much better at solving problems if we turn down our conscious thoughts by relaxing in the tub, taking a walk or meditating.

The report in Science suggests that creatively based companies might well profit from encouraging their staff to build some slack into their days, rather than staying glued to their desks.

Given the current economic climate, though, workers may well do better by staying glued to their desks and trying to juggle as many distracting tasks as they possibly can.

Foul Play

RUGBY types and others who play contact sports should beware the emergence of a virulent form of “scrum pox”, caution Japanese doctors.

Scrum pox is caused by a form of herpes virus spread by physical contact. Until now it has cleared up quite easily after drug treatment. But doctors at the National Institute of Diseases in Tokyo who studied an outbreak among 39 sumo wrestlers, say a dangerous strain of herpes, called BgKL, is taking over from the common BgOL strain.

They write in the Journal of General Virology that the BgKL strain causes more severe swelling and blisters, spreads faster and is more likely to return after lying dormant.

Milking it

HUMAN breast milk may hold the keys to preventing a range of diseases in adults and babies, reports the journal, Chemical & Engineering News.

Although we've depended on our own milk for millennia, we know “embarrassingly little” about it, says the report. Now scientists working around the world are discovering how it contains components that can nourish humans without creating unhealthy fat.

Also of interest are human lactosomes, tiny milk globules that seem specially built to deliver optimum nutrition, and sugars called oligosaccharides which are believed to promote the growth of healthy gut flora and protect against bacterial infections. Proteins in human milk may even kill off cholera, the scientists believe.

Bleeding magic

AN EMERGENCY ultrasound machine being developed to stop blood loss in wounded troops on the battleground may soon also help to cut the death toll in civilian life.

Siemens this week won an American contract to develop its Deep Bleeder Acoustic Coagulation cuff. It uses ultrasound to find the internal wounds, then focuses high-energy waves on the damaged tissue, to speed up coagulation and halt bleeding.

It may sound like science fiction, but the engineers plan to make the first prototype in 18 months. They add that the technology could soon have civilian uses for ambulance and casualty unit work, too.

Bright idea

THIS idea really will make our minds light up: German scientists have used viruses to “ferry” flourescent proteins into nerve cells in the brain that then glow yellow when the individual nerves fire up.

It actually makes thought processes visible, say doctors at the Max Planck Institute in Heidelberg. They report in Nature Methods that the system enables scientists to spend months watching which neurons are communicating with each other and under what conditions. It may enable doctors to identify the early stages of dysfunction in brain disorders such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, they add.

Danger! Men at work

WHAT caused the global bust? Harvard University researchers blame testosterone. They write in Evolution and Human Behavior how tests on 98 men show that the higher a chap's testosterone, the more likely he is to take a risky financial gamble. Other studies show that repeated fiscal losses drop a man's male hormone levels. That might promise calmer markets, but still further research shows that depressed traders on Prozac are most likely of all to make daft investments. Watch out.

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