Signs He's Your Work Spouse

LA County employee Rebecca Wells, 51, found dead at desk

(NEWSER) - A Los Angeles County employee lay dead and slumped over her desk in an office cubicle for what could have been as long as a day before anybody noticed, police say. Rebecca Wells, a 51-year-old auditor who had recently become a grandmother, was found by a security guard Saturday afternoon, KTLA reports. She had last been seen alive at 9am Friday morning, say detectives, who suspect she died from a stroke or heart attack. (Click here for another depressing work-related story .) More»

Research finds that focus shifts as women age

(NEWSER) - As women age, they tend to replace their husbands—with their daughters. A new study finds that when women hit their 40s, their closest confidant shifts from their spouse to a woman about 25 years younger—presumably a daughter. Researchers analyzed almost 2 billion cell phone calls and 489 million texts to come to their conclusions, identifying the first and second "best friends" of each participant based on who he or she called and texted most often, the Los Angeles Times reports. During early adulthood, No. 1 for both men and women tended to be a same-aged member of the opposite sex, most likely a significant other. More»

You have no way of knowing what their marriage is like: Frank Bruni

(NEWSER) - Ann Romney has been out on the campaign trail recently, attempting to deflate any flip-flopper accusations directed her husband's way. "You want constancy? They’ve been married since the Mesozoic era," quips Frank Bruni of the New York Times . But he’s not impressed. The candidate’s spouse, he writes is a "tired political fiction," a ritual repeated every campaign. Handlers predictably trot out the spouse (aka "human Downy") to serve as a delightful foil, to round out a candidate, to alter the news coverage. More»

If you want to please your co-workers, stop complaining

(NEWSER) - LinkedIn asked more than 17,000 professionals around the globe to name their biggest workplace pet peeve—and, surprisingly, the top spot went to something a bit more serious than leaving your smelly food in the office fridge. The top five:

1. Those who don’t take ownership of their actions.
2. Co-workers who complain too much.

...and other surprising social network stats

(NEWSER) - Facebook friends aren’t real buddies, right? Wrong, according to a new study. People who use the social network multiple times a day have an average of “9% more close, core ties in their overall social network compared with other internet users,” the Pew study says. And yes, they have actually met almost all their Facebook friends: Only 7% of their friend list consists of people they’ve never spoken to in real life, Mashable reports. More»