The Latest Biology News And Medical NewsBiology News 2Health News 2Biology News 3Health News 3
HOME >> BIOLOGY >> NEWS
Trees, Grass Foster Children's Play And Encourage Adults To Supervise

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Trees and grass do more than make a person feel closer to nature. In the midst of a public housing complex in inner-city Chicago, such greenery supports children's play, particularly creative forms of play, and encourages the presence of adult supervision.

The findings -- published in the January-February issue of Environment and Behavior -- have implications for urban policymakers and for the general health and well-being of children growing up amid the poverty of America's concrete jungles, say University of Illinois researchers.

In 64 outdoor spaces of Chicago's Ida B. Wells housing development, almost twice as many children (ages 3-12) played in areas with trees and grass than in barren spaces. Creative forms of play occurred considerably less frequently in non- or low-vegetation areas.

"I think from a policy standpoint, the findings about more play are exciting, because play in general has important implications in children's development," said Frances E. Kuo, co-director of the U. of I. Human-Environment Research Laboratory.

Specially trained observers also watched for the presence of adults, finding that the children's access to either partial or full adult supervision was doubled in areas with vegetation. Observations were done during after-school hours and on Saturdays.

The sites, differing only in the amounts of vegetation, are about equal in size within the complex of 100 one- to four-story apartment buildings. On average, 16 families share a single courtyard. Of the 5,700 residents in the complex -- one of the 10 poorest neighborhoods in the nation -- 97 percent are African American and 44 percent are children under age 14. Unemployment is 93 percent.

"I think the public often has a sense that the conditions of the inner city are at least partially due to the behaviors of individuals who live there," Kuo said. "It's important to remember how many children are growing up in these c
'"/>

Contact: Jim Barlow
b-james3@uiuc.edu
217-333-5802
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
6-Feb-1998


Page: 1 2

Related biology news :

1. Urban Restorer Sees Trash Trees, Beetles As Signs Of Hope
2. Another global warming surprise: Grasslands may become wetter as temperatures rise
3. Drinking Water from Forests and Grasslands: A Synthesis of the Scientific Literature
4. Grasslands, deserts, mountains and fire
5. Keep Off The Grass And Take Off Your Shoes!
6. Grassland Birds Are Not Nesting In Non-Native Grasses
7. Mowing, Grazing Of Tall-Grass Prairie Increases
8. Bison Grazing Increases Biodiversity In Grasslands
9. Keep Off The Grass - Reduce Air Pollution
10. Fostering Diversity in the Sciences Symposium
11. NSFs Highest Honor For New Faculty Fosters Integration Of Research And Education

Post Your Comments:
*Name:
*Comment:
*Email:
TAG: Trees Grass Foster Children Play And Encourage Adults Supervise

(Date:11/24/2009)...09) -- The Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) ann...ining population of Siberian tigers has likely dec...hing and habitat loss. , WCS says th...t needs to be done to protect remaining population... report was released by the Siberian Tiger Monitor...
(Date:11/23/2009)...idence that the "synergistic" effect of early-life...n and indoor endotoxin causes more harm to develop..., Environmental health scientists at the Univers...own that children exposed to both high levels of t...ng early life are six times more likely to experie...
(Date:11/23/2009)...nts gathered this week for the seventh annual Nati... This year,s topic, "Synthetic Biology," brought t...hers to explore the engineering, scientific, and s...thetic biology. , Bonnie L. Bassler, professor o...is year,s conference chair, challenged the attende...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):Report shows dramatic decline in Siberian tigers 2Exposure to both traffic, indoor pollutants puts some kids at higher risk for asthma later 2Synthetic biology offers new opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration 2A birds eye view of art 9072 1A birds eye view of art 9072 2Discovery may provide new treatments for alcohol dependence 9070 1Discovery may provide new treatments for alcohol dependence 9070 2OJ worse for teeth than whitening says Eastman Institute researchers 9068 1OJ worse for teeth than whitening says Eastman Institute researchers 9068 2
(Date:11/24/2009)...PRNewswire-FirstCall/--ArenaPharmaceuticals,Inc.(N...uledtopresentatthePiperJaffray21stAnnualHealthCare...:30a.m.PacificTime)attheNewYorkPalaceHotelinNewYor...Officer,isscheduledtoprovideanoverviewofthecompany...ms. ,, Aliveaudiowebcastofthepresentationwillbe...
(Date:11/24/2009)...wire-FirstCall/--CellTherapeutics,Inc.(CTI)(Nasdaq...perJaffrayHealthCareConference.Theconferencewillbe..., CTIwillpresentonTuesday,December1at11:00a.m.East...spresentationwillbeavailableat www.celltherapeutic.... , ,PiperJaffrayHealthCareConference,NewYorkPala...
(Date:11/23/2009)...ov.23/PRNewswire-FirstCall/--PDLBioPharma,Inc.(PDL...shedNovember27,2009astheex-dividenddateforits$200m...esecuritizationtransactioncompletedonNovember2,200...holdersofrecordontherecorddate,December1,2009.NASD...t$1.67pershareofcommonstockforpurposesoftheex-divi...
(Date:11/23/2009)...ewswire/-InimexPharmaceuticals,Inc.announcedtodayt...tandCEO. ,, Abramsbringsmorethan25yearsofdrugdi...ventorofthenuclearmedicineimagingagent,Cardiolite,...wasManager,BiomedicalResearchWorldwide.In1996,Abra...esidentandCEOfrom1996to2006.AnorMEDdiscoveredandde...
Breaking Biology Technology:Arena Pharmaceuticals to Present at the Piper Jaffray 21st Annual Health Care Conference 2PDL BioPharma Announces Ex-Dividend Date of November 27 for Special Dividend 2Inimex Announces Appointment of New CEO 2
Other News:
...ely impact research funding," BioMed Central decla...ng rebuttal of arguments that have been submitted ...e of Commons Select Committee inquiry into scienti...Myths http://www.biomedcentral.com/openaccess/inqu...
...The Hospital for Sick Children (Sick Kids), the Ce...e University of Toronto (U of T) have identified a...or the neurodevelopmental condition Rett syndrome....olecular test that will aid not only in the diagno...
...University's fast-growing stem cell research progr...the hunt for human disease therapies, now has a pl...n Stem Cell Center, the first of its kind in the N...alternative to organ transplantation for pancreati...
...e taking regenerative medicine to a new dimension ...someday help reconnect severed nerve endings. .......ing and applied chemistry at the Institute for Bio...devised a new method that helps guide cell migrati...
BioMed Central explodes Open Access myths 2Researchers identify a new form of disease gene associated with Rett syndrome 2Oregon Stem Cell Center result of OHSU research strides 2Oregon Stem Cell Center result of OHSU research strides 3Oregon Stem Cell Center result of OHSU research strides 4Oregon Stem Cell Center result of OHSU research strides 5
... can reverse the effect of a genetic variant linke...rrent issue of the journal Biological Psychiatry.....ies, those with the short form of the serotonin tr...ntly reduced risk for depression, found the UCLA t...
...tional assumptions have held that contact lenses a...lems. Now, an Oregon Health & Science University C...several recent studies, has found that belief may ...f ophthalmology in the OHSU School of Medicine, re...
...tute of Medicine today announced the names of 65 n... 1,501. In addition, the Institute honored five i...ship, bringing the total members in that category ...tatus, the total IOM membership is now 1,651.... "...
...e professor Stephen Kellert, the Tweedy Ordway Pro...estry & Environmental Studies, has won the North A...ard for "Outstanding Contributions to Research."..... outstanding theoretical and scientific contributi...
Early family experience can reverse the effects of genes, UCLA psychologists report 2Early family experience can reverse the effects of genes, UCLA psychologists report 3OHSU eye doctor says laser surgery safer than contacts 2Institute of Medicine elects 65 new members, 5 foreign associates 2Institute of Medicine elects 65 new members, 5 foreign associates 3Institute of Medicine elects 65 new members, 5 foreign associates 4Institute of Medicine elects 65 new members, 5 foreign associates 5Institute of Medicine elects 65 new members, 5 foreign associates 6Institute of Medicine elects 65 new members, 5 foreign associates 7Institute of Medicine elects 65 new members, 5 foreign associates 8Yale environment school professor to receive research award 2