The lack of obvious visible manifestations of ovulation in human females, compared with the prominent sexual swellings of many primates, has led to the idea that human ovulation is concealed. While human ovulation is clearly not advertised to the same extent as in some other species, we show here that both men and women judge photographs of women's faces that were taken in the fertile window of the menstrual cycle as more attractive than photographs taken during the luteal phase. This indicates the existence of visible cues to ovulation in the human face, and is consistent with similar cyclical changes observed for preferences of female body odour. This heightened allure could be an adaptive mechanism for raising a female's relative value in the mating market at the time in the cycle when the probability of conception is at its highest.

Between 20% and 60% of the population of most countries are infected with the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii. Subjects with clinically asymptomatic life-long latent toxoplasmosis differ from those who are Toxoplasma free in several behavioural parameters. Case-control studies cannot decide whether these differences already existed before infection or whether they were induced by the presence of Toxoplasma in the brain of infected hosts. Here we searched for such morphological differences between Toxoplasma-infected and Toxoplasma-free subjects that could be induced by the parasite (body weight, body height, body mass index, waist-hip ratio), or could rather correlate with their natural resistance to parasitic infection (fluctuating asymmetry, 2D : 4D ratio). We found Toxoplasma-infected men to be taller and Toxoplasma-infected men and women to have lower 2D : 4D ratios previously reported to be associated with higher pre-natal testosterone levels. The 2D : 4D ratio negatively correlated with the level of specific anti-Toxoplasma antibodies in Toxoplasma-free subjects. These results suggest that some of the observed differences between infected and non-infected subjects may have existed before infection and could be caused by the lower natural resistance to Toxoplasma infection in subjects with higher pre-natal testosterone levels.

The ratio between second and fourth finger (2D:4D) is sexually dimorphic; it is lower in men than in women. Studies using broad personality domains yielded correlations of 2D:4D with neuroticism, extraversion or agreeableness, but the obtained results have been inconsistent. We correlated 2D:4D of 184 women and 101 men with their scores in Cattell's 16 Personality Factor (16PF) Questionnaire. We found women with a higher (more ‘feminine’) right hand 2D:4D to score lower in emotional stability and social boldness and higher in privateness. Mediator analysis showed emotional stability to be probably primarily correlated with 2D:4D and to act as a mediator between 2D:4D and social boldness. Privateness appears to be mediated by an even more complex path. We discuss the usefulness of primary‐level personality questionnaires and mediator analyses in the investigation of psycho‐morphological associations. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Klíčová slova: rizikové chování starší školní věk návykové látky České Budějovice s O c i á l n í v ě d y a z d R a v í

No abstract

Jihočeská univerzita v Českých Budějovicích, Zdravotně sociální fakulta, katedra sociální práce a sociální politiky SummaryIn the society, in which demographic aging of the population is encountered, the number of senior citizen also increases, who can face problems of the maltreatment. The authors were interested in mapping this topical problem in the current Czech society with the use of information sources as well as with implementing the research of the degree of information of the senior citizens themselves about the maltreatment. The following selected results of the research demonstrate the experience and information concerning the maltreatment in South-Bohemian senior citizen. SouhrnVe společnosti, kde dochází k demografickému stárnutí populace, narůstá i počet seniorů, kteří se mohou setkat s problematikou špatného zacházení. Autorský kolektiv se zabýval zmapováním tohoto aktuálního tématu v současné české společnosti jak využitím informačních zdrojů, tak realizací výzkumu informovanosti samotných seniorů o špatném zacházení. Následující vybrané výsledky výzkumu demonstrují zkušenosti a informovanost o špatném zacházení u jihočeských seniorů.Klíčová slova: starý občan -fyzické týrání -psychické týrání -materiální zneužívání -zanedbávání Současný stav zvolené problematiky Násilí páchané na starších občanech 1 , resp. seniorech představuje v současné české společnosti relativně nově diskutovaný element. Fakt špatného zacházení se staršími členy společnosti nový není, ovšem donedávna představoval společenské tabu. K násilnému chování totiž (podobně jako u násilí páchaném na ženách, dětech) dochází nejčastěji v domácím prostředí, odehrává se za "zavřenými dveřmi". Vyskytuje se ve všech sociálních prostředích, skupinách i vrstvách bez ohledu na původ, vzdělání či věk. K vysoké sociální toleranci vůči němu negativně přispívá i neznalost problému ze strany postiženého jedince i okolí, neschopnost bránit se, podobně jako nízká citlivost k diskriminačnímu chování vůči starší generaci ("Strárnutí po česku", 2004).Narůstající společenský zájem o otázky kvality života starší a staré populace jistě souvisí s progresivním zvyšováním délky lidského života. V současné době se věku přesahujícího 65 let dožívá 15 -20 % evropské populace s prognózou nárůstu během příštích padesáti let na 25 -30 % obyvatelstva (Malý, 2002). Podle Topinkové

We assessed somatotype of volunteer firefighters. The assessment of the somatotype in 36 males aged of 25-38 years compared with the data from 1985 showed significantly lower values of mesomorphy (worse musculoskeletal status) in our file. The statistically significant correlation of the duration of physical activity and the mesomorphy value was confirmed.

Between 20% and 60% of the population of most countries are infected with the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii. Subjects with clinically asymptomatic life‐long latent toxoplasmosis differ from those who are Toxoplasma free in several behavioral parameters. Case–control studies cannot decide whether these differences already existed before infection or whether they were induced by the presence of Toxoplasma in the brain of infected hosts. Here, we searched for such morphological differences between Toxoxoplasma‐infected and Toxoplasma‐free subjects that could be induced by the parasite (body weight, body height, body mass index, waist–hip ratio), or could rather correlate with their natural resistance to parasitic infection (fluctuating asymmetry, 2D : 4D ratio). We found Toxoplasma‐infected men to be taller and Toxoplasma‐infected men and women to have lower 2D : 4D ratios previously reported to be associated with higher prenatal testosterone levels. The 2D : 4D ratio negatively correlated with the level of specific anti‐Toxoplasma antibodies in Toxoplasma‐free subjects. These results suggest that some of the observed differences between infected and noninfected subjects may have existed before infection and could be caused by the lower natural resistance to Toxoplasma infection in subjects with higher prenatal testosterone levels.