For some kids, genes ruling behavior

After years of ignoring those children [environmentally resistant outliers], a few scientists now realize that they are telling us something that promises to revolutionize our understanding of child development. In an echo of "personalized medicine" (matching drugs to people's DNA), scientists are finding that how parents treat their children is filtered through the prism of DNA. Parents may intuit that, as they notice that what worked with one child is failing abysmally with another, but now science is pinpointing exactly what combinations of nature and nurture spell gridlock. It is finally dawning on experts that "individual genetic differences are the 800-pound gorilla of child development," says Jack Shonkoff, director of the Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. "The promise of genomics is that you will be able to tailor experiences as we tailor drugs."

Me and my girls -- a junkie's recovery story

How David Carr found some salvation through his girls. Interesting reflections on self-narrative.

Kids make parents less happy

In Daniel Gilbert's 2006 book "Stumbling on Happiness," the Harvard professor of psychology looks at several studies and concludes that marital satisfaction decreases dramatically after the birth of the first child—and increases only when the last child has left home. He also ascertains that parents are happier grocery shopping and even sleeping than spending time with their kids.

Harsh discipline makes aggressive children worse

Crucially, unlike aggressive parenting, the greater use of calmer reasoning techniques for disciplining children was not associated with a subsequent increase in the children's aggression (although it didn't reduce aggression either).

Parents fight over which gang toddler should join

The argument got out of control.

His girlfriend told police that they had been arguing about the upbringing of their son and which gang he should belong to. The teen mother, who is black, is a member of the Crips. Manzanares is Hispanic and belongs to the Westside Ballers gang, the woman said.

Postcards from Yo Momma -- correspondences from Mother

From 20 June 2008:

Offspring - I am cancelling the reservation to Arun’s restaurant. People are losing everything to the flooding in Iowa; people are losing their homes from bank foresclosures (USA Today highlighted a family who took out a home equity loan for $100,000 - their house is now worth $60,000); the price of oil is making travel via car or air prohibitive yada yada yada and I am going to have my hard working princess daughters spend $100 each for a fancy dinner - food we consume, digest then poo? I would rather spend money supporting the local restaurants. Mama

Selling to children

"Advertising at its best is making people feel that without their product, you’re a loser," explained Nancy Shalek, president of the Shalek Agency. "Kids are very sensitive to that. If you tell them to buy something, they are resistant. But if you tell them that they’ll be a dork if they don’t, you’ve got their attention."

Table of cost of raising a kid

Numbers from '90-'92 for pre-college, up to 18 years old. A single parent making more than $39k ended up spending $250 260.

Rich kid syndrome

“The funny thing is,” he adds, reflecting on it, “if you’re sitting around with the members at Tiger, four or five of them will always say, ‘The most important thing I ever learned in my life is, when I fell down, I could get up.’ And that’s one of the things you’re taking away from these kids. We don’t let them fall down.”

Future of marriage

After considering its history.
Response supporting keeping marriage and childrearing together here.

Outsourced wombs -- finding surrogate mothers in India

But our rules of decency seem to differ when the women in question are living in abject poverty, half a world away. Then, selling one’s body for money is not degrading but empowering. And the transaction is not outsourcing of the basest nature – not modern-day wet-nursing taken to the nth degree – but a good deal for everyone concerned.

The small community of the genetically rare

Too readily lumped into autism, technology is teasing out those with deletions or duplications in their DNA.

Few of these mutations were inherited in the traditional sense, and the affected children are typically the only family member with the disorder. So, many parents are searching out strangers struck by the same genetic lightning bolt... Sometimes what they find is unsettling. But in the emerging communities of the genetically rare, more often it is sustaining.

The alternative for a child working in a factory?

Economic realities:

Oxfam once reported on a situation in Bangladesh where international outrage forced factories to lay off 30,000 child workers. Many of those kids starved to death; many became prostitutes. A 1995 Unicef study described how an international boycott of carpets made in Nepal using child labour led to between 5,000 and 7,000 Nepali girls turning to prostitution because a better option was now denied to them.

The secret to raising smarter kids

How do we transmit a growth mind-set to our children? One way is by telling stories about achievements that result from hard work. For instance, talking about math geniuses who were more or less born that way puts students in a fixed mind-set, but descriptions of great mathematicians who fell in love with math and developed amazing skills engenders a growth mind-set, our studies have shown. People also communicate mind-sets through praise. Although many, if not most, parents believe that they should build up a child by telling him or her how brilliant and talented he or she is, our research suggests that this is misguided.

Yawcam -- motion-detecting on feature on webcam

A simpler alternative to webcam software out there. Can ftp, email or straight hard drive save footage. Free, Windows.

Pedophiles have less brain white matter

On average, they're also shorter with lower IQ, and have increased frequency of lefthandedness.

Pedophiles' secret code on the Web

FBI intelligence bulletin on symbols and logos to indicate sexual preference.

Level of oxytocin in pregnant women predicts mother-child bond

Oxytocin seems to be preparing mothers to engage in bonding behaviors. The findings also show that oxytocin is related to the mental, as well as the behavioral, aspect of bonding.

Mother love not required

... while I long for the idea of a mother -- a mentor, a role model, a learned woman who serves as my career and life guide, a best friend, a blanket that offers comfort -- my mother was none of these things, and I have developed my own familial construct: a life inhabited by strong, supportive, loving people who couldn't imagine their lives without me in it (and vice versa).

Family would seem to have something to do with real bonding rather than mere genetics. Take this story about two mothers who had their babies swapped at birth, but are unwilling to switch back ten months later upon discovering the mistake.

Barbie's Fashion Fever Shopping Boutique

You daughter can pretend to go shopping with a credit card with no limit. The video at the site seems to imply that a swipe activates audio declaring the price of the item in some congratulatory manner.
And some imaginary Barbie sets here, like Trailer Trash Barbie.