Protecting and Empowering Children in an Online World
One of CyberSafe Ireland’s most popular sessions, this talk is aimed at parents of children from 8-13 years old which offers a general overview to raise awareness of the main factors to consider around social media, gaming and the online world.
The aim is not to scare parents, but rather to make them aware of what children are doing online and offer practical advice and resources to help participants deepen their knowledge.
Areas of focus are Popular Apps & Protecting Privacy, Areas of Risk, Digital Wellbeing & Critical Thinking and Useful Resources.
A valid email address is required as Zoom links to the event will be emailed to the supplied address by the facilitator. Only one ticket is required per device.
It takes place online on Thursday 8 October from 19:00-20:00 and is being facilitated by Lucan Library.
For more information, visit here.
Early immune responses may be why younger people get less sick from COVID-19
A new study suggests that the immune systems of people younger than 24 deal the coronavirus a strong first punch. Those early immune defences, which set off alarm bells for the body to go on the attack no matter what the invader, may be weaker in older adults.
Having more muted frontline defences could allow an infection with the virus that causes COVID-19 to get a foothold, researchers reported on September 21 in Science Translational Medicine.
The results add to evidence that boosting early immune responses to the virus with a vaccine or drugs like interferons — which are based on proteins the body produces to stimulate immune cells — could help protect people.
“It’s not that [adults] can’t make a neutralising antibody response,” virologist Betsy Herold, who conducted the research, told Science News. “Maybe they make too much of [a late immune response] or a dysregulated one.”
Studies suggest thinking of yourself as a separate person can reduce anxiety
Sometimes called the ‘Batman Effect’, research suggests thinking about yourself as a separate person can have major benefits for your confidence and determination.
Even small shifts in perspective can help people to gain control of their emotions and master anxiety.
This can be done by creating psychological distance between ourselves and our emotional responses to a situation, for example by referring to ourselves in the third person – “Joe feels” instead of “I feel”.
This can be taken a stage further by imagining ourselves as a different entity. This isn’t as strange as it seems – “What would Jesus do,” is an example of just such a process.
In one study, children were asked to reflect on how doing certain tasks made them feel. One group were to put the question, “how do I feel” – the other group asked, “how does Batman feel”.
Children inhabiting their alter egos spent 23% more time on their tasks than those thinking about their behaviour in the first person.
