Research

The largest study to examine the effect of depression on HIV treatment found that depression significantly worsens a patient's adherence to highly active antiretroviral therapy and clinical measures, but that effective antidepressant medication can reverse this outcome, according to a study by the Kaiser Permanente Division of Research and the Group Health Cooperative published in the current online issue of the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes.

The process of knowledge production involves a series of steps and is influenced by several factors which impact upon the end result of the research in various ways. When the topic of research is sexuality such conditions and influences become surrounded by a greater number of implications, some with far-reaching consequences. Not only is this due to the fact that sexuality is generally regarded as a sensitive topic, if not a taboo, that must not be mentioned in public, but it is also a topic that poses difficult questions that the researcher must resolve or the very success of the project may be in jeopardy. This article reflects on key epistemological conversations and debates on doing research on sexuality in Africa. The authors are both anthropologists who have conducted research in urban areas of Mozambique on young people's sexuality.

The highest-paid men working for the state of Iowa make significantly more money than the best-paid women, a Gazette analysis of state data has found.

The median salary of the 499 highest-paid male employees was nearly $235,600 in the fiscal year that ended June 30. That's well above the $140,900 median salary of the top 499 female state employees.

"Wow," was the reaction of Rachel Scott, executive director of the Iowa Commission on the Status of Women.

Furthermore, the gap has increased by 20 percent in the past four years. (See chart.) Of the 100 highest-paid employees, 86 are men.

The governor's office said that the administration is "committed to ensuring that all people are paid an equal salary for equal work."

It noted that Culver signed an executive order creating the Governor's Diversity Council to address issues of inequity in state government. The administration will give careful consideration to the council's recommendations to improve gender pay equity, the office said.

For women, it seems, sex is a big turn-off, reveals a brain scanning study. It shows that many areas of the brain switch off during the female orgasm - including those involved with emotion.

"At the moment of orgasm, women do not have any emotional feelings," says Gert Holstege of the University of Groningen in the Netherlands.

Sex research funding has been cut drastically due to pressure from conservative groups. Scientists who have yet to close their labs express concerns that with sponsorship from drug companies filling the gap, research projects might not be going after the most socially useful information.

When Alfred Kinsey's studies Sexual Behavior in the Human Male and Sexual Behavior in the Human Female were published more than half a century ago, their findings shattered any Victorian misconceptions of sex in the United States. According to the research-compiled from some 18,000 testimonials-37 percent of U.S. men (and 13 percent of women) had had at least one homosexual experience, while 62 percent of women (and 92 percent of men) masturbated. Premarital sex was common. Half of married men and a quarter of married women had cheated on their spouses.

This essay is based on issues relating to a study of sexuality among low-income college students in Mumbai. Low-income students were made the focus because: existing urban studies are on English speaking students in 'elite' colleges; sex education programmes had not really started in 'non-elite' colleges, and these students' behaviour could be affected by their lack of resources. Data were collected during 1996-1998, from four colleges catering to low income students in the city. Boys and girls in the eleventh standard in high school and in third year undergraduate college were interviewed. In the first phase, qualitative data were gathered using 10 focus group discussions and interviews with 87 students. This was used to design a survey which used a self-administered questionnaire. A total of 966 students participated in the survey.

The gender pay gap appears to be widening with men now earning 32% more than women, figures showed.

Age also remains a substantial factor in pay disparities, with the average 49-year-old paid nearly £10,000 more than the national average full-time wage of £27,376.

The Open Net Initiative's Information Warfare Monitor project has published a stunning report by "Hacktivist" Nart Villeneuve titled: "Breaching Trust: An analysis of surveillance and security practices on China's TOM-Skype platform."  It has been covered by both the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal

The ACS has released results from its ACS Women Members Survey, which revealed women in the ICT sector still feel undervalued, have fewer careers opportunities compared to men, and feel the need to achieve better work life balance.

Although 70 per cent of women believed they received equivalent pay to their male counterparts, the remainder felt this was not the case, and many more respondents felt they did not get the same recognition or promotion opportunities as their male colleagues.