The Friend zone: An In/inite Place Where Nothing Good Happens: A Comprehensive Study of Friend zoning Across Varying Genders and Sexual Orientations

“Friend zone” is a popular culture term used to describe a friendship where one member in a friend dyad desires a romantic or sexual relationship and the other member does not. Sexual Script Theory (Simon & Gagnon, 2003) and Sexual Strategies Theory (Buss & Schmidt, 1993) suggest that individuals will typically view the friend zone as a Qield dominated by female-to-male interactions, given sexual scripts on women as gatekeepers and men as being more active in initiating relationships. It may be expected then that men and women and individuals who are not exclusively heterosexual may then follow different scripts for making and negotiating friend zone choices. There is very little data available concerning instances of the use of the term friend zone in same-sex friendship interactions. Individuals are typically expected to have relationships that conform to the heteronormative script, so most people are resistant to the thought of being attracted to others of the same sex (Lamb, 2004). Because of this, many “best friendships” between those of the same sex have been used as protection against claims of same-sex attraction/relationships (Lamb, 2004). Given the lack of research on same-sex friend zoning, as well as the restrictive nature of heteronormative scripts, the current study explores the practice of friend zoning within same-sex friendships.https://orb.binghamton.edu/research_days_posters/1003/thumbnail.jp

Persistent cannabis dependence and alcohol dependence represent comparable risks for midlife economic and social problems::A longitudinal cohort study

With the increasing legalization of cannabis, understanding the consequences of cannabis use is particularly timely. We examined the association between cannabis use and dependence, prospectively assessed between ages 18–38, and economic and social problems at age 38. We studied participants in the Dunedin Longitudinal Study, a cohort (n=1,037) followed from birth to age 38. Study members with regular cannabis use and persistent dependence experienced downward socioeconomic mobility, more financial difficulties, workplace problems, and relationship conflict in early midlife. Cannabis dependence was not linked to traffic-related convictions. Associations were not explained by socioeconomic adversity, childhood psychopathology, achievement orientation, or family structure; cannabis-related criminal convictions; early onset of cannabis dependence; or comorbid substance dependence. Cannabis dependence was associated with more financial difficulties than alcohol dependence; no difference was found in risks for other economic or social problems. Cannabis dependence is not associated with fewer harmful economic and social problems than alcohol dependence

Colour scales with climate in North American ratsnakes: a test of the thermal melanism hypothesis using community science images

Animal colour is a complex trait shaped by multiple selection pressures that can vary across geography. The thermal melanism hypothesis predicts that darker coloration is beneficial to animals in colder regions because it allows for more rapid solar absorption. Here, we use community science images of three closely related species of North American ratsnakes (genus Pantherophis) to examine if climate predicts colour variation across range-wide scales. We predicted that darker individuals are found in colder regions and higher elevations, in accordance with the thermal melanism hypothesis. Using an unprecedented dataset of over 8000 images, we found strong support for temperature as a key predictor of darker colour, supporting thermal melanism. We also found that elevation and precipitation are predictive of colour, but the direction and magnitude of these effects were more variable across species. Our study is the first to quantify colour variation in Pantherophis ratsnakes, highlighting the value of community science images for studying range-wide colour variation

Maturational timing, physical self-perceptions and physical activity in UK adolescent females: Investigation of a mediated effects model

Background: Advanced (early) biological maturation may be a risk factor for inactivity among adolescent girls. The aim of the present paper was to test the mediational effects of body attractiveness and physical self-worth on the relationship between biological maturity and accelerometer assessed moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) in a large multi-ethnic sample of girls from the Midlands area in the UK (11-14 years). Methods: Biological maturity (predicting age at peak height velocity (APHV)); self-perceptions of body attractiveness, physical self-worth, and minutes spent in MVPA were assessed in 1062 females aged 11 to 14 years. Results: Structural equation modeling using maximum likelihood estimation and boot- strapping procedures supported the hypothesized model. Later maturation predicted higher perceptions of body attractiveness (β=.25, p<.001) which, in turn, predicted higher perceptions of physical self-worth (β=.91, p<.001) and, significantly higher MVPA (β=.22, p<.001). Examination of the bootstrap-generated bias-corrected confidence intervals suggested that perceptions of body attractiveness and physical self-worth partially mediated a positive association between predicted APHV and MVPA (β=.05, p Conclusions: Greater biological maturity (i.e. early maturity) in adolescent girls is associated with less involvement in MVPA and appears to be partly explained by lower perceptions of body attractiveness and physical self-worth. Physical activity interventions should consider girls perceptions of their pubertal related physiological changes during adolescence, particularly among early maturing girls. </p

Battery Earth: using the subsurface at Boulby underground laboratory to investigate energy storage technologies

Renewable energy provides a low-carbon alternative to power generation in the UK. However, the resultant supply varies on daily, weekly and seasonal cycles, such that for green energies to be fully exploited new grid-scale energy storage systems must be implemented. Two pilot facilities in Germany and the United States have demonstrated the potential of the Earth as a battery to store compressed air, using off-peak surplus energy. Natural accumulations of salt (halite deposits) in the UK represent a large and untapped natural storage reservoir for compressed air with the ability to provide instantaneous green energy to meet peak demand. To realise the potential of this emerging technology, a detailed knowledge of the relationship between mechanics, chemistry and geological properties is required to optimise cavern design, storage potential and economic feasibility. The variable stresses imposed on the rock matrix by gas storage, combined with the cyclic nature of cavern pressurisation are barriers to deployment that need to be addressed to enable large-scale adoption of schemes. Well-designed field experiments are a lynchpin for advancing research in this area, especially when supported by state-of-the-art characterisation and modelling techniques. The research facility at STFC’s Boulby Underground Laboratory presents the ideal location to tackle these fundamental issues to optimise “Battery Earth”

A novel allosteric modulator of the cannabinoid CB1 receptor ameliorates hyperdopaminergia endophenotypes in rodent models

Funding and disclosure The authors declare the following financial and biomedical conflict of interests: Ruth A. Ross, Catharine A. Mielnik, Amy J. Ramsey, Iain R. Greig, Laurent A. Trembleau, Mostafa H. Abdelrahman are co-inventors on a patent application related to ABM300 and structural analogs. Kim S. Sugamori, David B. Finlay, Hayley H.A. Thorpe, Matthieu Schapira, Nirunthan Sivananthan, Chun Kit Li, Vincent M. Lam, Sean Harrington, W. McIntyre Burnham, Jibran Y. Khokhar, Ali Salahpour, Michelle Glass reported no biomedical financial interests or potential conflicts of interest. W. McIntyre Burnham received Δ9- (THC) as a gift from MedReleaf. The authors would like to gratefully acknowledge Wendy Horsfall for mouse colony maintenance. The work was funded by grants to RAR from CIHR (PPP-125784, PP2-139101), CIHR funding to AJR (MOP119298) and CIHR funding to AS (PJT-15619).Peer reviewedPostprintPublisher PD