1 00:00:01,160 --> 00:00:03,920 Speaker 1: Welcome to House to Works Now. I'm your host, Lauren Vogelbaum, 2 00:00:03,920 --> 00:00:10,479 Speaker 1: a researcher and writer. Here at House to Works. Every week, 3 00:00:10,520 --> 00:00:12,600 Speaker 1: I'm bringing you three stories from our team about the 4 00:00:12,600 --> 00:00:15,800 Speaker 1: weird and wondrous advances we've seen in science, technology, and 5 00:00:15,920 --> 00:00:19,920 Speaker 1: culture this week. Research suggests that stair climbing is at 6 00:00:20,000 --> 00:00:22,360 Speaker 1: least as effective at boosting your energy as a cup 7 00:00:22,400 --> 00:00:26,079 Speaker 1: of tea or coffee, and unrelated, a study into the 8 00:00:26,079 --> 00:00:29,960 Speaker 1: interpersonal politics of the Supreme Court shows that female justices 9 00:00:29,960 --> 00:00:33,360 Speaker 1: are interrupted three times as often as their male cohorts. 10 00:00:34,040 --> 00:00:37,400 Speaker 1: But First, Senior editor Katherine Whitbourne and our freelance writer 11 00:00:37,479 --> 00:00:40,040 Speaker 1: Melanie read ZEKEI McManus, which is one of my favorite 12 00:00:40,120 --> 00:00:42,400 Speaker 1: names to say, have our port for us about how 13 00:00:42,440 --> 00:00:45,880 Speaker 1: today's teens are doing compared with prior generations. It came 14 00:00:45,880 --> 00:00:49,040 Speaker 1: to our attention via a compatriot podcast, The Stuff of Life. 15 00:00:49,400 --> 00:00:56,200 Speaker 1: Here's the story. Smoking rates, lower, drinking rates, lower pre 16 00:00:56,280 --> 00:00:59,880 Speaker 1: martal sex and fistfight rates, lor and lore. The teenager 17 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:02,360 Speaker 1: years used to be fraught with peril, but not anymore. 18 00:01:02,760 --> 00:01:06,080 Speaker 1: Results of the U. S Government's latest Youth Risk Behavior 19 00:01:06,160 --> 00:01:10,200 Speaker 1: Surveillance System survey taken in twenty fifteen shows teams are 20 00:01:10,240 --> 00:01:13,800 Speaker 1: dialing back on unsafe behaviors. Consider some of these stats. 21 00:01:14,080 --> 00:01:16,800 Speaker 1: In nineteen ninety one, the first year the survey was taken, 22 00:01:17,080 --> 00:01:20,640 Speaker 1: twenty seven percent of teens smoked. By twenty fifteen that 23 00:01:20,720 --> 00:01:24,080 Speaker 1: figure was around eleven percent, a sixty one percent decline. 24 00:01:24,680 --> 00:01:27,600 Speaker 1: In nineteen ninety one, eighty two percent of teams had 25 00:01:27,600 --> 00:01:31,080 Speaker 1: tried booze. That dropped to sixty three percent by twenty fifteen, 26 00:01:31,480 --> 00:01:34,120 Speaker 1: and in nineteen nine one, fifty four percent of teams 27 00:01:34,120 --> 00:01:36,760 Speaker 1: had already had six while in twenty fifteen the figure 28 00:01:36,840 --> 00:01:39,520 Speaker 1: was just forty one percent. Of course, it's not like 29 00:01:39,560 --> 00:01:42,840 Speaker 1: today's teams are perfect. Obesity rates are much higher than 30 00:01:42,880 --> 00:01:47,040 Speaker 1: twenty six years ago, and correspondingly, today's teens eat fewer vegetables. 31 00:01:47,360 --> 00:01:50,040 Speaker 1: The percentage of teams who have tried marijuana was thirty 32 00:01:50,120 --> 00:01:53,360 Speaker 1: nine percent in twenty fifteen compared to thirty one percent 33 00:01:53,400 --> 00:01:56,960 Speaker 1: in ninetee. And while smoking rates are down, twenty four 34 00:01:57,000 --> 00:01:59,760 Speaker 1: percent of teams are getting tobacco through e cigarettes or 35 00:01:59,760 --> 00:02:02,600 Speaker 1: hook us. But one of the most concerning new risky 36 00:02:02,600 --> 00:02:08,320 Speaker 1: behaviors is texting while driving, something not possible in surveys 37 00:02:08,360 --> 00:02:11,440 Speaker 1: showed of teens who had driven a vehicle during the 38 00:02:11,440 --> 00:02:15,560 Speaker 1: past thirty days, had texted or emailed while driving. To 39 00:02:15,680 --> 00:02:18,359 Speaker 1: dig into this topic further, download the Stuff of Life 40 00:02:18,440 --> 00:02:21,320 Speaker 1: podcast teen Dream, which takes a look at why we 41 00:02:21,360 --> 00:02:24,280 Speaker 1: tend to finally remember our teenage years and forget about 42 00:02:24,320 --> 00:02:27,720 Speaker 1: all of the confusion, anxiety, and ants they often paused. 43 00:02:32,680 --> 00:02:36,080 Speaker 1: Next up, staff editor Christopher Hassiotus and our freelancer Shelley 44 00:02:36,200 --> 00:02:39,040 Speaker 1: Danzy dive into the results of a study into exercise 45 00:02:39,240 --> 00:02:42,320 Speaker 1: versus caffeinated beverages for waking you up, though for the 46 00:02:42,360 --> 00:02:44,320 Speaker 1: generalized record, you can take my life, but you can 47 00:02:44,360 --> 00:02:52,239 Speaker 1: never take my coffee. Tired at the office, worn out 48 00:02:52,240 --> 00:02:55,799 Speaker 1: at work bypassed the long latte lines and the vending machine, 49 00:02:55,800 --> 00:02:59,560 Speaker 1: satas and head for the nearest stairwell. Researchers at the 50 00:02:59,600 --> 00:03:02,600 Speaker 1: University of Georgia's College of Education found that when you 51 00:03:02,639 --> 00:03:06,200 Speaker 1: pace yourself, walking up and downstairs for ten minutes gives 52 00:03:06,200 --> 00:03:09,399 Speaker 1: you a better energy boost than consuming fifty milligrams of caffeine, 53 00:03:09,760 --> 00:03:12,240 Speaker 1: which is the average amount of caffeine found in coffee, tea, 54 00:03:12,400 --> 00:03:16,919 Speaker 1: and sodas. The study, published in the journal Physiology and Behavior, 55 00:03:17,200 --> 00:03:21,120 Speaker 1: followed eighteen physically active college women aged eighteen to twenty three, 56 00:03:21,200 --> 00:03:24,919 Speaker 1: who are identified as consuming so called non extreme amounts 57 00:03:24,919 --> 00:03:27,679 Speaker 1: of caffeine, so from forty milligrams all the way to 58 00:03:27,720 --> 00:03:30,320 Speaker 1: four hundred milligrams per day. The US Food and Drug 59 00:03:30,360 --> 00:03:33,919 Speaker 1: Administration equates four hundred milligrams of caffeine to about four 60 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:36,840 Speaker 1: or five cups of java. But don't let that milligram 61 00:03:36,960 --> 00:03:40,000 Speaker 1: high give you jitters. The FDA says that it's usually 62 00:03:40,040 --> 00:03:43,520 Speaker 1: not associated with negative effects. In addition to their modest 63 00:03:43,560 --> 00:03:47,320 Speaker 1: caffeine habit, the participants in the study all experienced chronic 64 00:03:47,400 --> 00:03:50,560 Speaker 1: insufficient sleep patterns are fewer than forty five hours of 65 00:03:50,560 --> 00:03:53,760 Speaker 1: snoozing each week. The researchers sought to compare and exercise 66 00:03:53,800 --> 00:03:56,800 Speaker 1: easily accessible to desk sitters, who typically have less time 67 00:03:56,840 --> 00:03:59,520 Speaker 1: for activity, but not enough time for a full exercise 68 00:03:59,600 --> 00:04:02,200 Speaker 1: routine requiring the whole change in the sweat clothes, shower, 69 00:04:02,480 --> 00:04:05,200 Speaker 1: and change back into work attire thing. On some days, 70 00:04:05,280 --> 00:04:08,560 Speaker 1: the participants swallowed a fifty milligram caffeine capsule or a 71 00:04:08,600 --> 00:04:11,720 Speaker 1: flower placebo. On the other days, they walked up and 72 00:04:11,720 --> 00:04:14,720 Speaker 1: downstairs at a moderate pace for ten minutes, covering about 73 00:04:14,720 --> 00:04:17,400 Speaker 1: thirty floors. To be sure there was a distinction between 74 00:04:17,400 --> 00:04:20,640 Speaker 1: the effects of the caffeine and the exercise. The participants 75 00:04:20,680 --> 00:04:25,839 Speaker 1: took cognitive, verbal, and computer based tests measuring vigor, working memory, attention, 76 00:04:25,960 --> 00:04:29,760 Speaker 1: and reaction time. Stair walkers did have a slight energy boost, 77 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:32,599 Speaker 1: although there were no sizeable improvements in either attention or 78 00:04:32,640 --> 00:04:36,800 Speaker 1: memory due to the caffeine or exercise. The researchers acknowledged 79 00:04:36,839 --> 00:04:39,440 Speaker 1: that there's more research to be done, but it seems 80 00:04:39,480 --> 00:04:49,440 Speaker 1: that yep, taking the stairs can put pep in your step. Finally, 81 00:04:49,440 --> 00:04:51,760 Speaker 1: this week, Christian Sager, who you may have heard on 82 00:04:51,800 --> 00:04:54,120 Speaker 1: podcasts like Brain Stuff, Stuff to Blow Your Mind and 83 00:04:54,240 --> 00:04:57,600 Speaker 1: super Context, brings us a story that our freelancer Laurie L. 84 00:04:57,680 --> 00:05:01,120 Speaker 1: Dove wrote exploring research into the speech patterns and interpersonal 85 00:05:01,160 --> 00:05:05,159 Speaker 1: dynamics of Supreme Court justices. It found disparities along both 86 00:05:05,240 --> 00:05:10,880 Speaker 1: gender and ideological lines. A new study has found that 87 00:05:11,000 --> 00:05:16,160 Speaker 1: male justices interrupt their female counterparts three times more than 88 00:05:16,200 --> 00:05:20,120 Speaker 1: they interrupt other men on the bench. Tanya Jacoby, a 89 00:05:20,160 --> 00:05:25,039 Speaker 1: professor at Pritsker School of Law at Northwestern University in Chicago, 90 00:05:25,160 --> 00:05:29,520 Speaker 1: along with law student Dylan Schweers, examined a twelve year 91 00:05:29,640 --> 00:05:34,640 Speaker 1: period for the effects of gender ideology and seniority. Calculating 92 00:05:34,680 --> 00:05:38,919 Speaker 1: the number of times justices were interrupted, the results revealed 93 00:05:38,960 --> 00:05:41,599 Speaker 1: that out of seven thousand, two hundred and thirty nine 94 00:05:41,640 --> 00:05:44,919 Speaker 1: interruptions from two thousand and four to two thousand and fifteen, 95 00:05:45,360 --> 00:05:50,440 Speaker 1: female justices were subject to thirty two percent of disruptions. 96 00:05:50,480 --> 00:05:55,799 Speaker 1: In contrast, the female justices only interrupted other justices four 97 00:05:55,920 --> 00:05:59,440 Speaker 1: percent of the time. Even some of the male attorneys 98 00:05:59,480 --> 00:06:03,960 Speaker 1: appearing before the Supreme Court talked over female justices as 99 00:06:03,960 --> 00:06:07,680 Speaker 1: they were speaking, a move that's expressly forbidden in the 100 00:06:07,680 --> 00:06:12,680 Speaker 1: Court's conduct guide. This study also found ideological disparity, citing 101 00:06:12,680 --> 00:06:17,320 Speaker 1: evidence that conservatives interrupt liberals at significantly higher rates, and 102 00:06:17,720 --> 00:06:20,680 Speaker 1: seniority played a minor role when it came to jumping 103 00:06:20,720 --> 00:06:24,159 Speaker 1: into a conversation, according to the studies authors, as the 104 00:06:24,240 --> 00:06:27,400 Speaker 1: three women currently serving on the Court are also liberal. 105 00:06:27,680 --> 00:06:31,880 Speaker 1: The researchers addressed this overlap by analyzing different court makeups 106 00:06:31,920 --> 00:06:36,080 Speaker 1: over time by also incorporating the year's nineteen nine and 107 00:06:36,120 --> 00:06:39,200 Speaker 1: two thousand two into their research, in which the gender 108 00:06:39,279 --> 00:06:44,599 Speaker 1: count differed. Quote. If female justices are consistently interrupted more 109 00:06:44,640 --> 00:06:47,600 Speaker 1: than their male counterparts in this context, it would show 110 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:51,720 Speaker 1: that gender dynamics are so powerful to persist even in 111 00:06:51,760 --> 00:06:54,960 Speaker 1: the face of high levels of power achieved by women, 112 00:06:55,279 --> 00:06:59,840 Speaker 1: says Jacoby. The study also revealed details about the relationships 113 00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:04,480 Speaker 1: between justices and how they may see one another. Relatively 114 00:07:04,560 --> 00:07:08,400 Speaker 1: liberal Justice Stephen Bryer seemed to particularly irk the now 115 00:07:08,520 --> 00:07:14,000 Speaker 1: deceased Justin Antonin Scalia, a prominent conservative. The authors wrote, 116 00:07:14,240 --> 00:07:17,760 Speaker 1: Scalia interrupted Brier at such an extraordinary rate as to 117 00:07:17,920 --> 00:07:23,000 Speaker 1: dwarf all other interruptions. In fact, Justice Scalia interrupted Justice 118 00:07:23,000 --> 00:07:26,920 Speaker 1: Brier nearly seven times as frequently as he did Justice 119 00:07:27,040 --> 00:07:30,720 Speaker 1: Ruth Bader Ginsburg, another liberal, for instance. And by the way, 120 00:07:30,760 --> 00:07:33,560 Speaker 1: around here we referred to her as the notorious RBG. 121 00:07:34,240 --> 00:07:37,880 Speaker 1: These inequities are something researchers have been studying since at 122 00:07:37,960 --> 00:07:42,200 Speaker 1: least nineteen seventy five, when two sociologists at the University 123 00:07:42,240 --> 00:07:47,240 Speaker 1: of California of Santa Barbara secretly recorded two person conversations 124 00:07:47,440 --> 00:07:51,280 Speaker 1: in public places. Although the study was small, just thirty 125 00:07:51,320 --> 00:07:55,600 Speaker 1: one exchanges, it revealed that in mixed gender conversations, men 126 00:07:55,640 --> 00:07:59,760 Speaker 1: were responsible for forty seven of the forty eight interruptions 127 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:04,360 Speaker 1: in those conversations. Larger studies have replicated the findings, including 128 00:08:04,440 --> 00:08:09,240 Speaker 1: a fourteen project at George Washington University, which found that 129 00:08:09,360 --> 00:08:13,640 Speaker 1: men interrupted women thirty three percent more during a three 130 00:08:13,720 --> 00:08:16,840 Speaker 1: minute discussion than when they were talking with other men. 131 00:08:17,520 --> 00:08:20,960 Speaker 1: One suggested solution to all this interrupting is to drop 132 00:08:21,080 --> 00:08:25,000 Speaker 1: gendered speech patterns. Women are more likely to jump into 133 00:08:25,080 --> 00:08:29,160 Speaker 1: discussions with starter phrases like may I ask or other 134 00:08:29,200 --> 00:08:33,200 Speaker 1: connecting phrases. The female Supreme Court Justices who have become 135 00:08:33,280 --> 00:08:37,600 Speaker 1: most successful in being heard, have adapted speech patterns similar 136 00:08:37,800 --> 00:08:41,520 Speaker 1: to their male counterparts. Jacoby wrote, three of the four 137 00:08:41,640 --> 00:08:44,960 Speaker 1: women who have served on the Court show clear downward 138 00:08:45,000 --> 00:08:49,160 Speaker 1: trends in their use of polite phrasing. Very few of 139 00:08:49,200 --> 00:08:53,600 Speaker 1: the men show similar patterns. The female justices keep talking 140 00:08:53,760 --> 00:08:57,000 Speaker 1: despite being interrupted, and when they are the ones jumping 141 00:08:57,040 --> 00:09:00,200 Speaker 1: into a conversation, they delve right into the point they 142 00:09:00,200 --> 00:09:04,200 Speaker 1: are making. Researchers say it helps to use words that 143 00:09:04,280 --> 00:09:09,480 Speaker 1: display conviction, such as no instead of believe, and speak 144 00:09:09,520 --> 00:09:13,559 Speaker 1: in shorter sentences that are more difficult to interrupt. Perhaps 145 00:09:13,800 --> 00:09:17,760 Speaker 1: the most effective strategy of all, simply ask the interrupter 146 00:09:18,040 --> 00:09:24,680 Speaker 1: to wait until you are done. That's our show for 147 00:09:24,720 --> 00:09:27,240 Speaker 1: this week. Thank you so much for tuning in. Further 148 00:09:27,280 --> 00:09:30,120 Speaker 1: thanks to our audio tech Tristan McNeil, our audio producer 149 00:09:30,160 --> 00:09:34,520 Speaker 1: Dylan Fagan, and our editorial Liaison's Christopher Hasiotis and Alison Loudermilk. 150 00:09:34,720 --> 00:09:37,280 Speaker 1: Subscribe to now now for more of the latest science news, 151 00:09:37,320 --> 00:09:38,880 Speaker 1: and send us links to anything you'd like to hear 152 00:09:38,920 --> 00:09:42,240 Speaker 1: us cover. Plus. Do you attend a local Renaissance festival? 153 00:09:42,400 --> 00:09:44,040 Speaker 1: What do you dig about it? You can send us 154 00:09:44,040 --> 00:09:46,800 Speaker 1: an email at now podcast at how stuff works dot com, 155 00:09:46,840 --> 00:09:49,480 Speaker 1: and of course, for lots more stories like these, head 156 00:09:49,480 --> 00:09:52,199 Speaker 1: on over to our home planet, now dot how stuff 157 00:09:52,200 --> 00:10:02,360 Speaker 1: works dot com.