From The Dept. Of Redundancy Dept.

(... Thanks Stuart Scott for that title)

Stumbled upon a really interesting site recently: Science Blog. The site reports on various scientific studies being done - topics and their outcomes.

Fascinating piece of information on smoking (you'll thank us later): turns out that parents influence their children when it comes to smoking. The more communication against smoking, the less likely a child is to start the habit. Conversely, if the parents smoke, the child is more likely smoke.

And, in a related story, the more exposure you have to the sun, the more likely you are to be hot . . .

Seriously, how much money was spent on this research? Maybe it's important at times to study something we assume to be true, just to be sure . . . But, this one seems all too obvious. What we might want to know instead is what those "guidelines" are that parents should set for their kids (is it "Don't ever smoke" or "Don't smoke in gym class"?). What campaigns have been effective and what ads contribute to youth smoking? What strategies are being given to kids to fight peer pressure?

Thankfully, Science Blog offers a lot more on its site. Parents shouldn't need to be told that their voice matters . . . But, if it helps to remind one parent, we can forgive the study. ;)