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Then and Now; -stories about how things have changed
Topic Started: Mar 25 2007, 12:47 AM (493 Views)
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Rock Star From Mars

More men taking wives' last names
  • ....The California Legislature is set to consider a bill this month that would allow men to change their surnames upon marriage as seamlessly as women now can. Only seven states now allow a man who wishes to alter his name after his wedding to do so without going through the laborious, frequently expensive legal process set out by the courts for any name change. Women don't have to do so.
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Rock Star From Mars

Someone forwarded this to me today:
HIGH SCHOOL -- 1958 vs. 2008

Scenario 1:

Jack goes quail hunting before school and then pulls into the school parking lot with his shotgun in his truck's gun rack.

1958 - Vice Principal comes over, looks at Jack's shotgun, goes to his car and gets his shotgun to show Jack.

2008 - School goes into lock down, FBI called, Jack hauled off to jail and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselors called in for traumatized students and teachers.

Scenario 2:

Johnny and Mark get into a fist fight after school.

1958 - Crowd gathers. Mark wins. Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up buddies.

2008 - Police called and SWAT team arrives -- they arrest both Johnny and Mark. They are both charged them with assault and both expelled even though Johnny started it.

Scenario 3:

Jeffrey will not be still in class, he disrupts other students.

1958 - Jeffrey sent to the Principal's office and given a good paddling by the Principal. He then returns to class, sits still and does not disrupt class again.

2008 - Jeffrey is given huge doses of Ritalin. He becomes a zombie. He is then tested for ADD. The school gets extra money from the state because Jeffrey has a disability.

Scenario 4:

Billy breaks a window in his neighbor's car and his Dad gives him a whipping with his belt.

1958 - Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to college and becomes a successful businessman.

2008 - Billy's dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy is removed to foster care and joins a gang. The state psychologist is told by Billy's sister that she remembers being abused herself and their dad goes to prison. Billy's mom has an affair wi th the psychologist.

Scenario 5:

Mark gets a headache and takes some aspirin to school.

1958 - Mark shares his aspirin with the Principal out on the smoking dock.

2008 - The police are called and Mark is expelled from school for drug violations. His car is then searched for drugs and weapons.

Scenario 6:

Pedro fails high school English.

1958 - Pedro goes to summer school, passes English and goes to college.

2008 - Pedro's cause is taken up by state. Newspaper articles appear nationally explaining that teaching English as a requirement for graduation is racist.

ACLU files class action lawsuit against the state school system and Pedro's English teacher.

English is then banned from core curriculum. Pedro is given his diploma anyway but ends up mowing lawns for a living because he cannot speak English.

Scenario 7:

Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from the Fourth of July, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle and blows up a red ant bed.

1958 - Ants die.

2008- ATF, Homeland Security and the FBI are all called. Johnny is charged with domestic terrorism. The FBI investigates his parents -- and all siblings are removed from their home and all computers are confiscated. Johnny's dad is placed on a terror watch list and is never allowed to fly again.

Scenario 8:

Johnny falls while running during recess and scrapes his knee. He is found crying by his teacher, Mary. Mary hugs him to comfort him.

1958 - In a short time, Johnny feels better and goes on playing.

2008 - Mary is accused of being a sexual predator and loses her job. She faces 3 years in State Prison. Johnny undergoes 5 years of therapy.
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anshirk
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[ *  *  *  *  *  * ]
Two distinct scenarios of two different eras :good:

I think 1958 was much better back then.
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Time Warp Wives: Meet the women who really do live in the past
  • The credit crunch, a knife crime epidemic - no wonder so many of us are sick of the 21st century. Most of us just grumble, but some women have taken radical action to escape what they see as the soulless grind of modern life. Meet the 'Time Warp Wives', who believe that life, especially marriage, was far more straightforward in the Thirties, Forties and Fifties.
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Melissa
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Um... ok. There's really no such thing as a "halcyon" period in history. The 30s, 40s and 50s had their share of problems too: the Great Depression, World War II, and so on. Parts of the world have always been f***ed up since the beginning of time. Retreating into a fictional Partridge Family version of an earlier time, and shying away from the imperfectness of reality, doesn't change that. It just makes you delusional from hiding away in a fantasy world.

I like Victorian Era clothing and furniture. But I haven't for one minute bought into the idea that it was an ideal time period. Um, hello, does Jack the Ripper ring any bells? And the fact that men were legally permitted to deal corporal punishment towards their wives as well as their children? Yeah, thanks but no thanks. I'll cop the look, but I'm perfectly happy sticking to my modern value system.
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Mihoshi Marie
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[ *  *  *  *  *  * ]
I fail to see how going back to the '30s, '40s or '50s will help someone escape the grind of modern life. Back then, they had many of hte problems we face today.

As noted by Knight, it's okay to go for the fashion, and maybe some of hte better values from back then. But there's a lot of good things about our modern times as well, thanks to technology.

I miss the '80s all teh time, and sometimes wish I could have been a teen back then, but then I remember that there was no World Wide Web back then - at least, not publicly available like now. I can't live without the Internet (WWW, FTP, email, etc). It's sad but true.

I just thought of something - kids born in this millennium aren't going to know what life is like without computers. I know that back when I was a kid, plenty of people had PCs, but not to the extent of today. When I was my little brother's age (he's seven) my family definitely didn't have a computer. Now we have four working computers in our house (one broken laptop; and three out of those four belong to me).

These people really shouldn't live in the past...it's just silly.
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Rock Star From Mars

I do think what they're doing is a little strange, but I kinda understand it.

I too find today's news depressing, so I sometimes avoid the news and instead watch SpongeBob SquarePants cartoons. They just chose a different outlet.

:hmm: That one lady in the article didn't know who the current prime minister of her nation was.

I at least know that Obama was just elected. I kinda wish I didn't :laugh:
(Maybe ignorance is bliss.)

Knight Muzic
 
The 30s, 40s and 50s had their share of problems too: the Great Depression, World War II, and so on.
True, but there have been some changes over the years, and not always for the better, IMO.

See for example this thread: School 1958 Vs. 2008

Deviancy and raunchiness wasn't on display in public then as much as it is now - what goes for sex in entertainment in prime time TV shows today was considered soft porn just 15 - 20 years ago.

I think there was more a sense of shared values, patriotism and what all decades ago.

Clark Gable and those types used to appear in movies during war time that praised American values and rooted for American victory; these days, Hollywood churns out trash portraying all our military as baby-raping bastards.

People pretty much used to have to have talent to make it in the entertainment industry - it helped if you could actually sing, dance, act. Then along came Madonna, and you know the rest.

Mihoshi Marie
 
I miss the '80s all teh time, and sometimes wish I could have been a teen back then,
I was a teen during that decade. It was absolutely saturated with Man-donna. That was one of the few draw backs. Well that and the rise of rap. :laugh:

Mihoshi Marie
 
I just thought of something - kids born in this millennium aren't going to know what life is like without computers.
Oh gosh, we had this discussion in the casual chit chat forum several months ago.

We had stuff when I was a kid that folks don't use now, such as rotary dial phones.

33 and 45 record albums.

Oooh, it killed me on the Bill O'Reilly show a few nights ago when he did an Elvis pop culture quiz, and the lady taking the quiz didn't know what the phrase "B-side" meant, and O'Reilly had to explain it to her!!

CDs (compact discs) did not come out until later in the 1980s, and now folks aren't even using those anymore but are relying on mp3s.

We didn't have the internet when I was growing up, and people didn't really start getting PCs until mid or late 1980s, but they were junk. They were all DOS, and the printers? Anything you printed was made up of little dots - obvious dots, I'm not talking high resolution jpgs here.

No cell phones.

I think a can of Coke from a vending machine was still 25 cents, so was a phone call in a pay phone. I'm not sure if those prices have gone up.

I remember the VHS vs. Betamax war. Now people use DVDs.
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Melissa
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Nov 12 2008, 08:05 PM
Deviancy and raunchiness wasn't on display in public then as much as it is now - what goes for sex in entertainment in prime time TV shows today was considered soft porn just 15 - 20 years ago.

That may be so for the 30s and onward -- but that was the backlash result of the Roaring Twenties, which were all about raunch. Also, the silent films and music of the era didn't have rating standards, so some stuff was pretty risque for the time. It's just been hidden nowadays under a polished revisionist veneer.

Quote:
 
Clark Gable and those types used to appear in movies during war time that praised American values and rooted for American victory; these days, Hollywood churns out trash portraying all our military as baby-raping bastards.

Saving Private Ryan. Jarhead. So no, recent movies don't necessarily portray our military as evil. Some do, some don't. It's like anything else -- take the good with the bad.

Quote:
 
We had stuff when I was a kid that folks don't use now, such as rotary dial phones.

I know how to use those.

Quote:
 
33 and 45 record albums.

I collect 45s. Mostly featuring various DJs' dance mixes of different songs. Though they're not a common format now, the DJs still use 'em in the clubs and "tear up the turntables".

Quote:
 
Oooh, it killed me on the Bill O'Reilly show a few nights ago when he did an Elvis pop culture quiz, and the lady taking the quiz didn't know what the phrase "B-side" meant, and O'Reilly had to explain it to her!!

*raises hand* I know.

Quote:
 
CDs (compact discs) did not come out until later in the 1980s, and now folks aren't even using those anymore but are relying on mp3s.

I like having a physical collection of music as well as digital, which is why I collect vinyl and compact discs. Yep, I'm an unabashed music nerd. No surprise, eh?

Quote:
 
We didn't have the internet when I was growing up, and people didn't really start getting PCs until mid or late 1980s, but they were junk. They were all DOS, and the printers? Anything you printed was made up of little dots - obvious dots, I'm not talking high resolution jpgs here.

I remember those. I used to play on them all the time as a kid.

Quote:
 
I think a can of Coke from a vending machine was still 25 cents, so was a phone call in a pay phone. I'm not sure if those prices have gone up.

I remember $0.25 phone calls too. I also remember when a gallon of milk was $1 (now it's, what, $3.50?).
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Quote:
 
That may be so for the 30s and onward -- but that was the backlash result of the Roaring Twenties, which were all about raunch. Also, the silent films and music of the era didn't have rating standards, so some stuff was pretty risque for the time. It's just been hidden nowadays under a polished revisionist veneer.
There were also pornography photos back in the 19th century (snaps of naked ladies just standing before the camera or lying down), but I still maintain that our culture has gotten much trashier over time (porn has gone from mild photos of naked ladies just standing there to people sticking things in other people's orifices, having sex with animals, etc).

Sin has always existed, ever since Adam and Eve took a bite of the forbidden fruit. You have Noah and the Ark, Sodom & Gomorrah, and all that.

But as for American culture in particular, things have gotten worse.

Our first president, George Washington, did not tolerate filthy language in his midst.

One guy was about to crack a dirty joke in his company, and prefaced his remark to Washington and all the men in the room by saying, "Because there are no ladies in the room..."

And Washington cut him off by saying, "But there are gentlemen present."

I think our nation was more conservative and started really going downhill around the 1960s, what with the unabashed drug experimentation and so on.

I'm sure you've heard before that teachers from the 1950s cited stuff such as 'gum chewing' to be the biggest student problem they had, while teachers of recent times list stuff such as "students shooting people" at the top of 2000+ lists.

I read an interview in the 1990s with prison inmates.

The older guys said they were afraid of the new, younger guys coming in.

One (who was in his 50s or 60s) said,
"Back in my day, when I mugged someone, as long as they gave me their wallet, I wouldn't hurt them, and never meant to; the gun was just for 'scare effect.'
But the young guys today will shoot you and kill you even if you cooperate with them and hand over your wallet. They'll kill you for any reason. Even I'm scared of them."

It's not just the immoral activities that seem to have become more numerous and disgusting, but the attitudes concerning them have become lax.

People are now embracing homosexuality as normal, and out- of- wedlock births no longer carry any sort of stigma at all; I don't see either one of those as good developments.

Divorce was once pretty much unheard of, you just didn't do it.

Now divorce rates are sky-high. People figure if the marriage hits a rough patch, it's okay to just leave the other person, rather than tough it out and work on the relationship.

"Fornication" is considered an old fashioned word and concept, and has been for a few decades now. Alcoholism went from being a personal failure/weakness to being classified as a "disease" that people just can't help.

A study came out that I pasted into a thread into the MBC forum about how STDs have risen among American teen aged girls.

Things have definitely not gotten better over time in the USA.

I saw Jarhead on cable a couple of years ago. I don't remember everything that happened in the movie. From what I do recall...

While I wouldn't necessarily classify it as being anti-military, I don't believe it's accurate to classify that as pro-military or patriotic, especially not in the sense as the films I was referring to, the films from the 1930s and 1940s.

I'm not even sure about Saving Private Ryan.

With Saving Private Ryan, the film/director seemed more concerned with telling a great yarn that happened to center on the lives of some guys in WW2 than it was in rooting for America. It seemed to celebrate individual sacrifice rather than American ideals.

Most entertainment these days is definitely liberal, anti-American, and anti-military. (Interestingly, those sorts of anti-military movies bomb at the box office. See this thread, or maybe this one.)

Any recent "pro" military/USA movies you mention are going to be out-numbered by the anti-USA/anti-military variety.

Most directors, actors, and screen writers these days are liberals. Most of those Hollywood Liberals by definition consider "patriotism" to consist of criticism of America.

They don't love America the way I do.

They consider "flag waving" to be a habit of backward, red neck, Republican simpletons, and is something one is supposed to find embarrassing.

So they don't tend to make movies extolling American principles, or what is right with America.

Further, I don't believe 'old' Hollywood would've released anti-military movies while America was at war (the military movies released during WW2 were in support of the United States and/or depicted our servicemen as being admirable), while contemporary film makers have released anti-military movies taking place in present day Iraq / Afghanistan while our troops are still stationed in those areas.

It's one thing to wait decades to release a movie critical of our military in, say, Iraq after the fact, but to release that crap right after 9/11 or right after entry into (or in the middle of) our stay in Iraq/Afghanistan is giving aid and comfort to the enemy. (And they have made several such movies in the past few years, and, IIRC, there have also been made-for-cable movies of the same sort.)

Mel Gibson had to finance a positive movie about Jesus (The Passion of the Christ) because Hollywood just will not make that kind of movie any more.

Compare that to the 1950s and even the '60s
(there were still some standards in entertainment in the '60s, even if people on college campuses were chucking morals out the window),
when the studios were making movies that were respectful of Christians and Christianity (e.g., Ben Hur, The Greatest Story Ever Told, The Ten Commandments, etc.)

These days, one is more apt to find movies that attempt to distort, undermine, question, or criticize Christianity, such as The Da Vinci Code or The Last Temptation of Christ.

Sure, Mae West was doing things considered raunchy for her day...

But her racy double entendres, which were shown on the movie screen back then, are tame compared to what Madonna does in music videos shown at 3:00 pm. these days on television.

And that kinda is my point. Our culture has gotten trashier over time, not more demure or dignified.
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Melissa
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My point was that unfavourable behaviours eventually endure backlash against them. As trashy as our culture is now, there will come a time once again when modesty becomes more common. Everything happens in cycles.

Ancient Rome became as trashy as our modern culture, in their own way. They had pornographic murals on the walls of what we'd consider the living rooms. Right where children could walk by and see them. And Rome eventually fell.

Modesty will be the "in" thing again when enough people get angry at having sex shoved in their faces.
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I don't know how accurate this information is; someone forwarded me this in an e-mail:
  • THE YEAR 1908

    This will boggle your mind, I know it did mine!

    The year is 1908.
    One hundred years ago.
    What a difference a century makes!
    Here are some statistics for the Year 1908 :
    ************ ********* ********* ******
    The average life expectancy was 47 years.

    Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.

    Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.

    There were only 8,000 cars and only 144 miles

    Of paved roads.

    The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.

    The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower!

    The average wage in 1908 was 22 cents per hour.

    The average worker made between $200 and $400 per year .

    A competent accountant could expect to earn $2000 per year,
    A dentist $2,500 per year, a veterinarian between $1,500 and $4,000 per year, and a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.

    More than 95 percent of all births took place at HOME .

    Ninety percent of all doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION!

    Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which

    Were condemned in the press AND the government as 'substandard. '

    Sugar cost four cents a pound.

    Eggs were fourteen cents a dozen.

    Coffee was fifteen cents a pound.

    Most women only washed their hair once a month, and used

    Borax or egg yolks for shampoo.

    Canada passed a law that prohibited poor people from Entering into their country for any reason.

    Five leading causes of death were:

    1. Pneumonia and influenza
    2. Tuberculosis
    3. Diarrhea
    4. Heart disease
    5. Stroke

    The American flag had 45 stars.

    The population of Las Vegas , Nevada, was only 30!!!!

    Crossword puzzles, canned beer, and ice tea Hadn't been invented yet.

    There was no Mother's Day or Father's Day.

    Two out of every 10 adults couldn't read or write.

    Only 6 percent of all Americans had graduated from high school.

    Marijuana, heroin, and morphine were all available over the counter at the local corner drugstores. Back then pharmacists said, 'Heroin clears the complexion, gives buoyancy to the mind,regulates the stomach and bowels, and is, in fact, a perfect guardian of health'

    Eighteen percent of households had at least

    One full-time servant or domestic help.

    There were about 230 reported murders in the ENTIRE ! U.S.A. !

    Now I forwarded this from someone else without typing

    It myself, and sent it to you and others all over Canada & U.S.A

    Possibly the world, in a matter of seconds!

    Try to imagine what it may be like in another 100 years.

    IT STAGGERS THE MIND
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From a British site (but for some pictorial examples, they use photos of Americans, such as Marilyn Monroe):

How women's bodies have been transformed in the past 60 years... with huge implications for our health
  • What's happened to our bodies? We're two inches taller, half a stone heavier - and have gone up three shoe sizes. It's a world away from the slender physique of the 1950s Hollywood bombshells. But what has it meant for our health?

    Sixty years ago the average British woman's figure was fairly trim: at a petite 5ft 2in, the scales rarely tipped 9st 10lb. Even her feet - size 31/2 - were small, and she fitted neatly into a size 12 dress.

    As for her vital statistics - 37-27-39 - she was the classic hour-glass, not far off Hollywood standards (America's most famous pin-up girl Betty Grable measured a curvy but slender 36-24-35).

    Fast forward to 2009, and we have ballooned. Not only are we taller, we're also heavier and less curvaceous, according to the UK National Sizing Survey.

    When compared with statistics from 1951, the last (and only other) time a national survey of women's figures was conducted, the difference is shocking.

    We may be pleased to be taller (the average woman is now 5ft 4in), but our feet have splayed out to a size 6 and we're half a stone heavier. Meanwhile, our hour-glass has rolled into a barrel-like 38-34-40, and many would struggle to get into a size 14.

    'We found that hips were an inch-and-a-half bigger, as were busts; then when we got to the waists and found sixanda-half inches difference, it was: "Wow - everyone, man and woman, has a belly now",' explains Philip Treleaven, professor of computing, from University College, London, who led the research.

    But our vital statistics don't just carry implications for how we look - they are crucial to our health.

    Here we reveal how the changing British figure has affected women's wellbeing, in good ways and bad...

    HEIGHT

    THEN: 5ft 2in; NOW: 5ft 4in

    So why are we getting taller? It's partly down to nutrition - a better and more plentiful diet, explains Bernard Harris, professor of the history of social policy at Southampton University.

    But, more surprisingly, our increased height reflects the lessening demands of the environment. Now, with warmer homes, better medicine and improved sanitation, our energy - significantly in childhood - can be devoted to growth.

    'For example, before widespread central heating we expended more energy just on keeping warm,' says Professor Harris.

    There is also the cleanliness of our environment to consider. Antibiotics did not become commonplace until the mid-Fifties.

    'In unsanitary conditions, you'll suffer diarrhoea more frequently and therefore retain fewer nutrients in the body. If you suffer repeated infections, you use up energy fighting them off, while you may also feel less like eating.'

    Interestingly, the increase in height seems to be specifically due to longer legs; a study of Japanese children and adults between 1957 and 1977 showed that while the trunk length stayed roughly the same, the legs grew longer.

    DOES IT MATTER? Getting taller is probably a good thing in terms of our longevity, believes Professor Harris: 'Broadly speaking, people who are shorter are more likely to die early.'

    WEIGHT AND WAIST

    THEN: 9st 10lb; 27in; NOW: 10st 3lb; 34in

    Although dieticians estimate we eat roughly the same number of calories as we did 60 years ago - wartime rationing allowed about 3,000 calories a day for men and women - we eat very differently and consume more fat, most of it saturated.

    In the Forties, Britons derived 32 per cent of their calories from fat - not far off the 33 per cent recommended; today a whopping 40 per cent of our diet is fat.

    And at nearly 500g a week, we eat twice as much sugar as we used to. We also consume more processed and junk food.

    One of the problems is that these often rely on corn syrup as a flavouring and cheap preservative. And, as nutritionist Katherine Zeratsky explains, when we metabolise this form of sugar, it doesn't trigger the production of hormones that help regulate appetite and fat storage.

    We're also drinking more alcohol, which is highly calorific.

    By comparison, women in 1949 were slimmer because their diet centred on vegetables and complex carbohydrates, which are digested slowly, keep blood sugar levels stable and are filling. This meant they could eat more carbohydrates than we do today - without putting on weight.

    According to the Medical Research Council, families consumed 55 per cent of calories as carbohydrates - the figure today is down to 45 per cent (we now eat about half the potatoes and a third of the bread typically consumed in the Forties).

    It's not just a case of what was being eaten: post-war women also expended many more calories through housework and having to walk or cycle everywhere. It's been estimated that Fifties woman burned more than 1,000 calories a day doing her everyday activities (such as housework) compared with 556 today.

    As Ken Fox, professor of exercise and health science at the University of Bristol, points out, we started to become more sedentary in the Fifties.

    'It was in this period that active lifestyles began to decline and car ownership started to increase,' he says. 'We were sold the message that labour-saving was the way to go. Also, there were more attractive sedentary activities - especially when TV came along.'

    No surprise, then, that women today are heavier.

    Diet and lack of exercise also explain our expanding waistlines. Between 1993 and 2007, the number of women in the UK with waists of more than 35in rose from 26 per cent to 42 per cent. The problem is the visceral fat that forms around the organs, many of which are found in the abdomen.

    Although visceral fat is linked to genetic factors, a diet high in saturated fat, and not exercising, are also risk factors.

    DOES IT MATTER? Being heavier than previous generations is not necessarily a problem if our bodies are in proportion. The fact that women are now taller means that today the average woman's Body Mass Index (BMI), which is linked to her risk of heart disease and other conditions, is in fact slightly lower than Fifties woman.

    And both are in the 'healthy' range (today's average BMI is 24.7, compared with 24.9 of 60 years ago).

    As Professor Harris explains: 'Studies have shown that anyone with a BMI of over 25 or below 20 has a higher mortality rate, so being somewhere in between - the optimal weight - ensures a better survival chance.'

    But although the average woman is only marginally larger than her Fifties counterpart, there are more women who are underweight, which can be linked to conditions such as heart disease, and also many more who are overweight or obese, which is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer.

    Since 1950, cancer deaths have risen from 17 per cent to 25 per cent of all deaths. And while treatment has improved survival in many cases, incidence is still rising.

    Obesity can also damage joints and make recovery from any illness more difficult for the body.

    The other issue, whatever their weight, is women's larger waistlines compared with 60 years ago. A large waistline can almost double your risk of dying prematurely even if your BMI is within the 'normal' range, according to a study published last year in the New England Journal of Medicine.

    This found the risk was around double for women with a larger waist (more than 39.4in) compared with those with a smaller waist (less than 25.6in).

    A big waist is deemed more hazardous for health than just being overweight, because the fat cells carried around the stomach pump out

    chemicals that can damage the insulin system, raise blood pressure and increase cholesterol levels.

    According to Diabetes UK, if a woman's waist measures 31.5in or more she is at increased risk of having undiagnosed type II diabetes. There were 200,000 cases of diabetes in 1940; by 2010 the number affected could reach 3 million.

    Heart disease kills one in six women (about 94,000) each year. But it is a complicated picture, says senior cardiac nurse Ellen Mason, of the British Heart Foundation. 'While the number affected is higher than in the Fifties, there are fewer deaths from heart disease, largely due to better diagnosis and treatment, but also the decline in smoking.' In 1948, 41 per cent of women smoked, now it is 20 per cent.

    BREASTS

    THEN: 37B NOW: 38C (plus)

    Our larger bosoms are due in part to the general rise in obesity. Professor Michael Baum, an expert in breast cancer and professor emeritus of surgery at University College hospital London, explains: 'Fat is laid down on breasts as much as thighs or bottoms, and we are experiencing an obesity epidemic, so the increase in women's measurements isn't that surprising.'

    But other factors may be at play: nutritionist Marilyn Glenville, who specialises in women's health and hormonal problems, says women in her clinic have gone up a cup size after being put on hormone replacement therapy (HRT) during the menopause.

    This, she believes, is because the breast tissue is encouraged to grow by the 'injection' of unusually high levels of oestrogen into the body.

    'There is a tendency for the Pill to stimulate breast growth,' says Professor Pierre-Marc Cilles Bouloux, a consultant endocrinologist and physician at The London Clinic.

    'However, modern versions of the Pill contain far less oestrogen than their older counterparts, so it is not fair to attribute this shift in its entirety to the Pill.'

    DOES IT MATTER? Bigger breasts alone don't necessarily mean an increased risk of breast cancer, although obesity is a recognised risk factor in the disease. In the past 25 years, the incidence of breast cancer has risen by 50 per cent. But bigger breasts are linked to backache and similar problems and, increasingly, larger-breasted women end up undergoing reduction surgery for medical reasons.

    HIPS

    THEN: 39in NOW: 40in

    Our hips have not increased as much as our waists. This is because oestrogen levels determine where fat is stored; if a woman's hormone levels are unbalanced she ends up storing more fat around the waist and less around the hips where we should.

    Although it's not clear why women's oestrogen levels might be disrupted, it's possible that the Pill and HRT, as well as stress and diet, may play a role.

    DOES IT MATTER? Wide hips have been traditionally seen as attractive to men because they denote fertility. More recently, a study from the Institute of Preventative Medicine in Copenhagen showed a hip measurement of 40in or more protects against heart conditions, because hip fat contains a protein called adiponectin, which has an antiinflammatory effect.

    FEET

    THEN: Size 31/2 NOW: Size 6

    Heavier bodies need a broader base to stand on, explains Lorraine Jones from the Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists: 'When you gain weight, there is more pressure exerted through the feet by the increased weight, so when you walk, move or stand, the soft tissue like ligaments and joints have to work harder to maintain your foot's structure and keep you mobile. The heavier you are, the more the foot spreads out.'

    Women's feet can change a whole size in their lifetime with weight gain.

    Jones says: 'When you gain weight, fat is also deposited on the feet. If you ask the slimmer of the year about their shoe size, it will be smaller than at their heaviest.'

    DOES IT MATTER? 'It's definitely a bad thing if the reason is weight related because it can lead to increased pressure exerted through the foot and lower limbs and back, causing additional wear and tear on joints and soft tissues such as ligaments,' says Jones.

    'Poor mobility is a result of obesity. Weight gain also increases your chance of diabetes, which has a huge impact on foot heath, as it can result in loss of feeling (neuropathy), diabetic ulcers, vascular problems, and even the possibility of amputation.'

    But, otherwise, having big feet is merely an aesthetic problem - just ask socialite Paris Hilton, who recently bemoaned her size 9s.

    LIFE EXPECTANCY

    THEN: 70.9 years NOW: 81.5 years

    Improvements in hygiene, medicine and nutrition are all responsible for our increasing life spans. Mass vaccination programmes began in the Fifties, leading to dramatic falls in rates of contagion and death. Cases of tuberculosis, previously a leading cause of death, fell from 50,000 cases in 1950 to 8,679 in 2008.

    With the launch of the NHS in 1948, access to health care improved, and surgical techniques were breaking new ground. In 1954, for example, the first successful kidney transplant was carried out using the kidney of the patient's twin. The first hip replacement was carried out in Fifties.

    DOES IT MATTER? New challenges will arise for women's health thanks to our longevity - we live longer than men by an average four years. Women spend about a third of their lives postmenopause now and many will have to live with chronic conditions such as osteoporosis.

    While this has implications for the women themselves, it also adds to the burden on the NHS. For instance, on the basis of current trends the National Osteoporosis Society estimates hip fracture rates could rise from 46,000 in 1985 to 117,000 in 2016.
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Today's College Students More Likely to Lack Empathy

College Kids Demonstrate Less Empathy Than Previous Generations

Today's college kids lack empathy
  • College students today are less likely to "get" the emotions of others than their counterparts 20 and 30 years ago, a new review study suggests.

    Specifically, today's students scored 40 percent lower on a measure of empathy than their elders did.

    The findings are based on a review of 72 studies of 14,000 American college students overall conducted between 1979 and 2009.

    "We found the biggest drop in empathy after the year 2000," said Sara Konrath, a researcher at the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research.

    The study was presented this week at the annual meeting of the Association for Psychological Science in Boston.

    Is "generation me" all about me?

    Compared with college students of the late 1970s, current students are less likely to agree with statements such as "I sometimes try to understand my friends better by imagining how things look from their perspective," and "I often have tender, concerned feelings for people less fortunate than me."

    "Many people see the current group of college students — sometimes called 'Generation Me ' — as one of the most self-centered, narcissistic, competitive, confident and individualistic in recent history," said Konrath, who is also affiliated with the University of Rochester Department of Psychiatry.

    Konrath's colleague graduate student Edward O'Brien added, "It's not surprising that this growing emphasis on the self is accompanied by a corresponding devaluation of others.”

    Other recent studies have shown mixed results on the character of today's youth . For instance, one study of more than 450,000 high-school seniors born at different time periods showed today’s youth are no more self-centered than their parents were at their age.

    The role of media
    Even so, Konrath and O'Brien suggest several reasons for the lower empathy they found, including the ever-increasing exposure to media in the current generation.

    "Compared to 30 years ago, the average American now is exposed to three times as much nonwork-related information," Konrath said. "In terms of media content, this generation of college students grew up with video games , and a growing body of research, including work done by my colleagues at Michigan, is establishing that exposure to violent media numbs people to the pain of others."

    The rise in social media could also play a role.

    "The ease of having 'friends' online might make people more likely to just tune out when they don't feel like responding to others' problems, a behavior that could carry over offline," O'Brien said.

    In fact, past research has suggested college students are addicted to social media .

    Other possible causes include a society today that’s hypercompetitive and focused on success, as well as the fast-paced nature of today, in which people are less likely than in time periods past to slow down to really listen to others, O'Brien added.

    "College students today may be so busy worrying about themselves and their own issues that they don't have time to spend empathizing with others, or at least perceive such time to be limited," O'Brien said.

    You can find out your empathy score and how it compares with today’s college students by taking the empathy quiz.
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A Best Friend? You Must Be Kidding

Excerpts:
  • “Parents sometimes say Johnny needs that one special friend,” she continued. “We say he doesn’t need a best friend.”

    That attitude is a blunt manifestation of a mind-set that has led adults to become ever more involved in children’s social lives in recent years. The days when children roamed the neighborhood and played with whomever they wanted to until the streetlights came on disappeared long ago, replaced by the scheduled play date.

    While in the past a social slight in backyard games rarely came to teachers’ attention the next day, today an upsetting text message from one middle school student to another is often forwarded to school administrators, who frequently feel compelled to intervene in the relationship.

    (Ms. Laycob was speaking in an interview after spending much of the previous day dealing with a “really awful” text message one girl had sent another.)

    Indeed, much of the effort to encourage children to be friends with everyone is meant to head off bullying and other extreme consequences of social exclusion.

    For many child-rearing experts, the ideal situation might well be that of Matthew and Margaret Guest, 12-year-old twins in suburban Atlanta, who almost always socialize in a pack. One typical Friday afternoon, about 10 boys and girls filled the Guest family backyard. Kids were jumping on the trampoline, shooting baskets and playing manhunt, a variation on hide-and-seek.

    Neither Margaret nor Matthew has ever had a best friend. “I just really don’t have one person I like more than others,” Margaret said. “Most people have lots of friends.” Matthew said he considers 12 boys to be his good friends and says he sees most of them “pretty much every weekend.”

    ....“I don’t think it’s particularly healthy for a child to rely on one friend,” said Jay Jacobs, the camp’s director. “If something goes awry, it can be devastating. It also limits a child’s ability to explore other options in the world.”

    But such an attitude worries some psychologists who fear that children will be denied the strong emotional support and security that comes with intimate friendships.

    “Do we want to encourage kids to have all sorts of superficial relationships? Is that how we really want to rear our children?” asked Brett Laursen, a psychology professor at Florida Atlantic University whose specialty is peer relationships. “Imagine the implication for romantic relationships. We want children to get good at leading close relationships, not superficial ones.”
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Slide show:
Swimsuits through the ages
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A downside to high teen self-esteem?

Excerpts:
  • By John Keilman

    Today's youths have been praised so much that some flail at their first taste of criticism or failure, experts say

    Twenge's conclusion is not universally accepted — other researchers have found no significant changes in self-esteem from previous generations — but it rings true in many schools and homes. And it has some adults asking themselves hard questions.

    "It's this entitlement that is driving many of us crazy. It's like, where did we go wrong?" said Rita Berger, a West Chicago mother of a teenage son and daughter. "We're kind of the root problem. In our attempt to give (this generation) everything, they have not learned to work or appreciate things."

    The self-esteem movement grew out of the work of therapists like Nathaniel Branden, who in the late 1960s wrote that internal negativity could lead to lack of achievement. Change what people think of themselves, he contended, and you can change their destiny.

    ....Brittany Gentile, a psychology graduate student at the University of Georgia, found that between 1988 and 2006, the average junior high student's score on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale (a questionnaire that asks whether respondents agree with such statements as "On the whole, I am satisfied with myself") jumped nearly four points on a 40-point scale. The average score for a high school student went up almost two points during a similar span.

    She said that while some of the increase could be due to the self-esteem movement, the rise could also reflect changes in the classroom.

    Gentile cited a recent study that found twice as many high school seniors in 2006 reported earning an A average as seniors in 1976. At the same time, fewer students said they did 15 or more hours of homework each week — meaning teens are getting better grades with less work.

    ....John Reynolds, a sociologist at Florida State University, said that kind of adjustment appears to be common. Four years ago, he co-wrote a paper showing that high school seniors have increasingly overestimated their chances of earning a bachelor's degree or working in a professional job. He figured that would lead many unprepared students to drop out of college in a funk of despair.

    But when he went back to examine the fallout, he was surprised at what he found. Students who thought they would earn a degree but failed were no more apt to suffer depression than those who succeeded.

    That could indicate that their self-esteem is as bulletproof as ever. Or it could mean that getting taken down a few notches doesn't hurt as badly as some might fear.

    "How long can you hold on to unrealistic self-esteem? It wouldn't last very far into your 20s," Reynolds said. "The sociological evidence says there are more important things to worry about."
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Studies like this one were released back when I was a high school student (so this is one case where stuff hasn't changed with the passage of time):

School day starts too early for sleepy students (and teachers), researchers say
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