Facts you probably didn't know about Facebook in Lithuania How to Be Prepared When Worry Attacks Ever notice how aggravated you get when you go to check out at the grocery store, and... there's a line? And what about how even more aggravated you feel when you realize that you're standing in the line, especially after you've done the exhaustive -- customers x coupons x cashier energy -- calculation of which line is most likely to move fastest? No matter how insignificant the activity is that you have to do next, you are incensed (and frustrated by your poor calculation skills) that you've had to waste even a moment of your time unnecessarily. And yet. Look what happens, two minutes later when in the parking lot of the very same grocery store, your iPhone buzzes with a message from a frustrated client. Whoa there. No, none of these disasters are actually happening, though the knot in your stomach and the throbbing in your head suggest otherwise. Oh, and not to keep score, but do we complain about the time we're clocking in when we're worrying? We do.
Try It: Hemispheric Specialization The left and right hemispheres of the brain have specialized functions for most people. The left hemisphere is a language center while the right hemisphere processes spatial information. These differences are most obvious in those rare individuals whose corpus callosum was surgically severed to help control a severe form of epilepsy. But are these differences apparent in the behavior of individuals with an intact corpus callosum? You will need a cooperative volunteer for this demonstration. Is Chicago north of Washington, D.C.? (for the curious, the answers are: 1.
Cream Blog - commentary on the art and science of media What Underlies Physician Compassion? Every day I work with physicians. I interview them, write with them and edit for them. I’m a freelancer; consequently, in order to make a living, I’m constantly taking on new clients—new physicians. I enjoy my job. It keeps me in touch with medicine, and I meet interesting people all the time. Sometimes my work also helps me better understand my clients and their motivations to practice medicine. One day I started thinking about physician empathy and compassion. And then I remembered Terror Management Theory. I realize that Terror Management Theory has been used to explain nearly every human behavior, and I almost feel guilty chalking up physician compassion—a sanctimonious bond between a health care provider and a patient—in terms of theory. In a nutshell, Terror Management Theory states that when people are reminded of their own mortality (death), they are more likely to act in accordance with their cultural worldview or cultural point-of-view and perspective.
Where is The Mind?: Science gets puzzled and almost admits a non-local mentalscape. This will be the last "home-produced" blog entry for a while [save the short "Everyday Spirituality" which will follow it as a sign-off] . West Virginia beckons tomorrow morning and off I will go to whatever that entails. As I said in one of the commentary responses the other day, I hope that reading two journal runs "cover-to-cover" will bring up a few thoughts worth sharing. The first of these articles [both from the New Scientist] was "Where in the World is the Mind?" That brings in the second serendipitous article. It reminded me then, also, of a moment when I was able to spend a [too short] time with David Bohm, the famous theoretical physicist. I am happy to be [in body] a holographic projection of force dimensions--not from the "edge" of the universe but its core reality.
Dansu Dansu The One Social Skill that Can Change Your Life Everyone would like to be able to remember the names of people we meet, especially people we meet in new social situations. Some of these situations are purely for enjoyment, and others have higher stakes. You’re being interviewed for a new job, for example, and as soon as you’re introduced to your potential supervisor, the name has flown completely out of your consciousness. Unfortunately, you’ll lose the job prospect as quickly as you’ve lost that name. We know it’s bad to forget names of new people, but looking at the flip side, we also know how much it means when we are able to call people by name the next time we see them. Some people seem to be born with this ability to associate a face and a name. Interestingly, our ability to distinguish faces is much better than our ability to name those faces. Before getting to those 6 foolproof name memory tips, let’s see what we can learn from a few recent studies.
How Do You Get Sexual Orientation and Gender in Humans? : Greg Laden's Blog Humans appear to have a reasonable amount of diversity in their sexual orientations, in what is often referred to as “gender” and in adult behavior generally. When convenient, people will point to “genes” as the “cause” of any particular subset of th is diversity (or all of it). When convenient, people will point to “culture” as the “cause” of … whatever. The “real” story is more complicated, less clear, and very interesting. And, starting now, I promise to stop using so many “scare” quotes. Prior to birth there are a number of factors than can influence things like gender or sexuality in a human. Then there is the stuff that happens after birth. And so it goes throughout development; At numerous stages along the way, a human is affected by hormones, bathed in gendered behavior, and eventually, starts to observe her or his own environment and act accordingly. There are many factors that would determine a person’s gender over a lifetime. And I could go on. Self-Help Books)
How Rihanna Used a Groupon Strategy on Facebook to Launch Her Album Even if you're Rihanna, you can't just drop an album these days and rely on your fame to propel it up the charts. Just as A-list Hollywood actors are compelled to go on talk shows to promote their new movies, top-tier singers have to make the rounds when a new album comes out. However, when it came time to promote Talk That Talk last fall, Rihanna was on tour. "It was a timing issue," says Jules Ferree, senior director of digital for Island Def Jam, the label behind the release. "It definitely happens in other instances. It's not uncommon, but it's not ideal." Years ago, you'd be out of luck if that happened, but in the social media age, Universal was able to find a Rihanna substitute of sorts. Doing so harnessed the singer's huge social media following. Universal's solution was UNLOCKED, a Facebook app that tapped an idea pioneered by Groupon — the "tipping point strategy." The idea of creating a timeline of events to keep fans engaged over a period of time isn't new. Did it work?