Political Scene

SCIENCE

Study finds why losing money is scary

People are afraid to lose money, and an unusual study released Monday explains why — the brain’s fear center controls the response to a gamble.

The study of two women with brain lesions that made them unafraid to lose on a gamble showed the amygdala, the brain’s fear center, activates at the very thought of losing money.

The finding, reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, offers insight into economic behavior and suggests that humans evolved to be cautious about the prospects of losing food or other valued possessions.

Benedetto De Martinoa of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena and colleagues were studying why people will turn down gambles that are likely to lead to gain.

“Laboratory and field evidence suggests that people often avoid risks with losses even when they might earn a substantially larger gain, a behavioral preference termed ‘loss aversion,’” they wrote.

NORTH CAROLINA

Officers to retrieve Edwards ‘sex tape’

RALEIGH | A North Carolina judge wants security officers to accompany a former John Edwards aide as he goes to retrieve what he describes as a sex tape of his former boss.

Superior Court Judge Abraham Penn Jones said in an order released Monday that the Orange County sheriff has appointed a security firm to help recover the video and other items. Former Edwards loyalist Andrew Young has said he has the original tape and copies stored in an Atlanta safe-deposit box. Judge Jones wants the security officer to accompany Mr. Young into the vault.

Judge Jones has declared Mr. Young was in contempt for not immediately turning over the tape. Mr. Edwards’ mistress, Rielle Hunter, has sued Mr. Young for invasion of privacy. Mr. Young says the tape shows Mr. Edwards in a sexual encounter with a woman he assumes to be Miss Hunter.

NEW YORK

Bill: Oust senators for misdemeanors

ALBANY | A day before the New York state Senate is expected to decide whether to expel a senator convicted of misdemeanor assault, Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada has proposed legislation to require the automatic expulsion of senators in such cases.

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