When you see headlines and stories like the following, you start thinking: a) where the heck are these guys getting their funding from, and b) I sure hope it isn’t coming out of my hard-earned tax dollars. Of course, we all know that c) it probably is. So, what mysteries of the universe are these hard-working researchers trying to unlock?

Item: From the University of Massachusetts Amherst: This study finds married women do about one less hour of housework per week for every $7,500 they earn as full-time workers outside the home, regardless of the husband’s income. Duh, ya think?

Item: From the University of Washington Business School in Seattle: This study finds that having a sense of moral superiority can lead to unethical acts. Brilliant.

Item: From the University of Missouri-Columbia: Excessive non-activity can lead to greater health risks. Well blow me over with a feather!

And here’s my favorite:

Item: From Duke University: Extreme optimists tend to splurge. Well of course they do – if your an optimist you never stop to thinking that no matter what happens things will work out in the end. Unbelievable.

Item: From The Great White Shank: Studies that end up showing the obvious and the inane are a waste of time.