Category Archives: Neuroscience and Psychology

Stanford experiment shows that virtual superpowers encourage real-world empathy

  Some might think that giving people the illusion of greater than normal power would make them more egotistical and self-serving, but this Stanford study shows that what people become is more empathetic. This is in line with the idea … Continue reading

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Zombie consciousness

Wish I had time to go to this talk: Thursday Jan 17th, 5 pm: Workshop on Zombies and Consciousness Steven Schlozman, Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School “Is it OK to shoot that Zombie if it isn’t Consciously Human? Is it OK to shoot … Continue reading

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Children’s behavior and bribes

In an op-ed piece in the New York Times, Bruce Feiler explores the widespread phenomenon of bribes (rewards) to get kids to do what they should, and the equally widespread belief that using such “extrinsic rewards” will actually undermine kids’ … Continue reading

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Can Computers Be Funny?

WHAT do you get when you cross a fragrance with an actor?Answer: a smell Gibson.   This is the kind of thing that passes for humor from a computer. It’s the kind of joke that would be a knee slapper … Continue reading

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We only see changes in ourselves in retrospect

From the New York  Times, an article on how we see how different we were in the past, but we don’t expect ourselves to change much in the future. “Middle-aged people — like me — often look back on our … Continue reading

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Seth’s Blog: The attention paradox

Seth Godin on the often antithetical demands of messaging in the information age. Smart advertisers, though, are realizing that they have to make content that people decide is worth watching. Some have very good indeed at making media that’s so … Continue reading

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5 Big Discoveries About Personal Effectiveness in 2012

From Psychology Today’s website, an article listing 5 things you can do to be more effective. • We don’t know ourselves as well as we think, so when we are not doing well at something, get feedback from others. • … Continue reading

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Why the obsession with apocalypse? The future is bright.

On this New Year’s Day, it is fitting to ask: Why are so many people obsessed with apocalypses? Why do so many people not only believe ridiculous things like the Mayan Apocalypse, but seem to want to believe them? On … Continue reading

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Running and the evolution of man (Part 2)

I distinctly remember watching Survivor: Africa in 2001 and realizing how vulnerable early man must have felt. The Survivor contestants were sleeping in a traditional african Kraal, which was simply a circular fence of thorny acacia bushes. At night, lions … Continue reading

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Running and the evolution of man (part 1)

Exercise builds the brain. Yet more strong theorizing summarized in this NY Times column: Anyone whose resolve to exercise in 2013 is a bit shaky might want to consider an emerging scientific view of human evolution. It suggests that we … Continue reading

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