GOSSIP IS STRONGER THAN TRUTH

October 16, 2007 -- LONDON - Gossip is more powerful than facts, a study showed yesterday, suggesting people believe what they hear through the grapevine even if they have evidence to the contrary.
In the study, researchers gave students playing a computer game money they could give to others in a series of rounds.
The students, meanwhile, also wrote notes about how others played the game that everyone could review.
Students tended to give less money to people described as "nasty misers" or "scrooges" and more to those depicted as "generous players" or "social players," says the research in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. ...