At Home: Show Me the Money

The cynics say that our financial transactions amount to nothing more than just paper changing hands. But it won’t be that way for long?literally.

As The Globe and Mail reports, the Bank of Canada is set to introduce synthetic plastic polymer banknotes, with the first set ($100 bills) rolling out this fall.

Although people frequently use credit or debit cards to make purchases, Canada is by no means ?a cashless society.? In fact, ?half of all financial transactions still involve cash,? which means that a paper money makeover is long overdue.

The new, hardier banknotes ?will not tear? and will include heightened security measures to reduce the chance of counterfeit activity. Moreover, they are more earth-friendly, as they will be recyclable (unlike paper banknotes, which are destroyed once removed from circulation).

The new $20 bills should be in circulation by late 2012, and bank officials hope to ?have 70 or 80 per cent of the older notes out of circulation within 18 months of issuing the new ones.?

But if You’re attached to your paper money, don’t worry: ?older-style bills that aren’t too worn out will be accepted indefinitely.?

Around the World: Stop Whining!

For pure nerve-grating noise, there are few sounds that can top the whining of a child (or adult). But It’s worse than mere annoyance. Not only is whining cringe-inducing, it can also hurt the hearer’s productivity and concentration?and cause multiple errors.

As MSNBC.com reports, whining can be more distracting than the sound of a ?high-pitched table saw.?

The study, helmed by psychology professors, discovered that ?people made more mistakes per math problems completed when listening to . . . whines than any . . . other speech patterns or noises.? Moreover, those who heard whining also completed ?fewer? math problems than those who were immersed in quiet.

In fact, as study co-author Rosemarie Sokol Chang, a psychology professor at SUNY New Paltz, told reporters, ?You’re basically doing less work and doing it worse when You’re listening to the whines.?

The findings were the same for both men and women, and, surprisingly, it ?didn’t matter whether someone was a parent or not.?