Top research stories of the week: June 22 edition
This week's top research explores the media impact of fakes news versus fact-checking outlets, how touch between two empathetic partners can result in a pain-killing effect and the mysterious world of tiny microbes living inside your showerhead.
Fake news outlets have more media impact than fact-checking outlets
Between 2014 and 2016, fake news websites outpaced fact-checking websites, both in terms of the number of articles produced each month and their influence on the broader media agenda, according to a new study co-authored by a researcher in the College of Media, Communication and Information (CMCI).
A lover's touch eases pain as heartbeats, breathing sync
New research shows when an empathetic partner holds the hand of a lover in pain, the couple's heart rates sync and the pain subsides. The study is the latest in a growing body of research on “interpersonal synchronization,” the phenomenon in which individuals begin to physiologically mirror the people they’re with.
What lives inside your showerhead?
Don't panic, but there is a largely unknown world of tiny creatures living inside your showerhead. Due to its unique environmental conditions, your bathroom showerhead is an ideal breeding ground for a dynamic community of specialized bacterial species. CIRES researchers are uncovering new information about the mysterious microbial world.