For The Union-Tribune Driven to distraction, and then off the road Once, when automobile dashboards were festooned with knobs and dials, it was relatively easy and safe to “feel” your way to the right control without taking your eyes off the road. Dashboard touch screens have changed that — an d it’s not a pretty picture. In a study using vehicle simulators, participant “drivers” were tasked with navigating streets while interacting with a touch screen and completing memory tests that mimic the mental effort demanded by traffic conditions and other distractions. Researchers found that when people multitasked, their driving and touch screen use both suffered. Cars drifted more in the lane when people used touch screens and speed and accuracy of screen use declined when driving. Everything got worse when a memory task was added. Increasing the size of the target areas on touch screens did not improve performance. “If people struggle with accuracy on a screen, usually you want to make bigger buttons,” said study author Xiyuan Alan Shen at the University of Washington. “But in this case, since people move their hand to the screen before touching, the thing that takes time is the visual search.” The researchers suggested that future in-car touch screen systems might use simple sensors in the car, such as eye tracking or touch sensors on the steering wheel, to monitor drivers’ attention and cognitive load. Based on these readings, the car’s system might adjust the touch screen’s interface to make important controls more prominent and safer to access.   (Adobe Stock) Body of knowledge A full bladder is roughly the size of a softball.   (Adobe Stock) Mania of the week Sophomania — a delusion of having superior intelligence or being exceptionally wise. Sopho derives from the Greek word for wisdom, mania from the Greek word for madness. Asked about his wisdom, Socrates once said, “I know that I do not know,” a wise answer.   (Adobe Stock) Never say diet The Major League Eating speed-eating record for Japanese noodles is 10.5 pounds in 8 minutes, held by Tim “Eater” Janus, a feat to ramen-ber.   Best medicine “Doctor, I think I’m suffering from memory loss.” “Have you ever had it before?”   Observation “Ordinarily he was insane, but he had lucid moments when he was merely stupid.” — German poet and literary critic Heinrich Heine (1797-1856)   (Adobe Stock) Doc talk Cubital fossa — the crease of the elbow   Medical history This week in 1878, the French scientist Charles-Emmaneul Sédillot corresponded with Émile Littré concerning certain micro-organisms and a suitable word to name them. Littré replied in a letter, suggesting the word “microbe” rather than “microbia,” even though it was coined from two Greek words that together would mean “short-lived” rather than “small life.” The word stuck.   (Adobe Stock) Ig Nobel apprised The Ig Nobel Prizes celebrate achievements that make people laugh, then think. A look at real science that’s hard to take seriously, and even harder to ignore. In 1998, the Ig Nobel Prize in biology went to Peter Fong of Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania for contributing to the happiness of clams by giving them Prozac. It probably helped bring them out of their shell.   (Adobe Stock) Self-exam Q: What is the medical term for generally not feeling well? a) asthenia b) malaise c) indisposition d) S#! A: b) malaise, which is the most common and accurate term for a vague sense of not feeling right, often preceding specific symptoms. Asthenia refers to a lack of energy or physical weakness. Indisposition is a fancy way of saying “unwell.” And S#! is self-explanatory.   Curtain call In 1975, Japanese kabuki actor Bandō Mitsugorō VIII visited a restaurant in Kyoto with friends. He ordered four portions of puffer fish liver, or fugu, prized for its flavor but potentially lethal unless prepared in meticulous fashion. Mitsugorō VIII consumed one liver without obvious ill effect. Then he ate the remaining livers and over the next eight hours, experienced gradual and eventually fatal problems with breathing. In 1984, serving fugu was banned in Japanese restaurants. LaFee is vice president of communications for the Sanford Burnham Prebys research institute. ...read more read less