Eye tracking studies on news sites -- interesting findings

It was very enlightening to read the eyetracking study on http://poynterextra.org/eyetrack2004/main.htm. This study tracked the eye movements of 46 people over one hour, as they viewed "mock" news sites. Although it’s no surprise that the visitors of a web page initially focus on the upper left portion of a web page, that top navigation performs best, and that larger photos are viewed more often, there are a few things I read which surprised me:

• Text trumps photographs when it comes to both order viewed and eye fixation
• Smaller font encourages users to read more
• Blurbs below headlines are often ignored, especially if headlines are on a separate line, bolded and/or underlined
• People tend to read content lower on the page only if there is something particularly attention-grabbing, i.e. a familiar name, something controversial, or something that appeals to the senses
• Right-hand navigation doesn’t compromise usability
• Paragraphs containing 1-2 sentences have a considerably higher readership than longer paragraphs
• Banner ads at the top and right of a page receive only modest views
• Users often click on photos, even if they are not “clickable”

There are many practical real-world applications from this study. These applications are not limited to news sites, and can pertain to virtually any site. Of course, retail sites have some marked differences, like using fewer “blurbs” and less text content. However, retail sites still use headlines, product descriptions, images, site navigation, and content “below the fold.”
It’s amazing how all these “little things” can make such an impact on usability and retention.