How to learn from the habits of superheroes, why neurosurgeons are not smarter than others ... The most curious studies of the year

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How much did James Bond drink a day? Why is Rudolph's reindeer nose red? How long does a box of chocolates last in a hospital ward? These are existential questions that we have all asked ourselves at some time (or not) to which some of the studies collected in previous Christmas special issues of the

have answered

. The prestigious British scientific journal has made it a tradition to make us laugh around this time with a selection of research articles that, as crazy and absurd as they may seem, have gone through the

and are real scientific documents.

This year, the one that takes the cake when it comes to originality is titled

. Its author, Ruth E. Hubbard, Professor of Geriatric Medicine at the University of Queensland (Australia), points out that, even for the protagonists of

films , regular physical activity and strong social bonds are important for

.

To reach such a conclusion, Hubbard and his team reviewed 24 films from the Marvel factory, from

(2008) to

(2021). Assuming that superheroes age, except for

-whose origin dates back millennia-, those responsible for the study analyzed how most of them exercise frequently (fights against supervillains burn more fat than a Zumba class) and present a

, both associated with a lower risk of dementia.

They also valued the optimistic attitude of the majority and, with few exceptions, their

, crucial elements for a longer and healthier life. As for their risk factors, there isn't such good news: repeated exposure to loud noises, air pollution, and multiple head injuries from their pitched battles with baddies put superheroes at

, too. of physical injuries that can cause disability. Can you imagine the

in a wheelchair? Neither do I.

The authors even allow themselves to recommend where they should direct their efforts, beyond keeping humanity safe,

' ass ,

or developing technology to facilitate space travel.

and company should, according to them, pay more attention to other causes, such as providing quality health and social care to the growing number of the aging population.

"This would allow people across the multiverse, including superheroes, to experience a high quality of life in old age," they conclude with some derision.

Smarter?

Christmas issue

. Another of the outstanding studies is the one that tries to explain why neurosurgeons and aeronautical engineers are not smarter than ordinary mortals. The study focuses on checking whether two very common expressions in English, "it's not rocket science" (not aerospace engineering) and "it's not brain surgery" (not neurosurgery), which are used to indicate that something is very simple or easy, they are justified. Here the fun is the method: an intelligence test with which they compared the skills of cognition, memory, attention and emotion processing capacity among

257 participants with different professions and origins .

The conclusion of the

is that neurosurgeons showed better semantic problem solving skills, while aerospace engineers excelled in mental manipulation and attention skills.

Even so, in general terms, the results indicate that

than those who are dedicated to nursing, plumbing or, ahem, journalism.

Suicides and hip hop

The last of the featured studies has a very current dimension and a more serious tone, as it explores how a hip hop song reduced the number of suicides in the United States. The subject in question is

, from rapper

, who used the phone number of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to title a

that also featured Alessia Cara and Khalid. Thomas Niederkrotenthaler, a mental health expert at the Vienna Medical University, assessed

American before and after the song's release, the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards and the 2018 Grammys (where it was awarded). According to the results, there was a 6.9% increase in calls, while suicides fell by 5.5% in the same period.

"Logic's song probably represents the broadest and most sustained suicide prevention message directly connected to a story of hope and recovery anywhere to date and is therefore a serendipitous event for research," it can be read. in the study.

This goes to show, Niederkrotenthaler stresses, that

, particularly for groups that are difficult to reach with traditional messages, such as adolescents.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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