tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-109591712012-01-24T03:19:53.421-08:00Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.comBlogger5661100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-7982003560114714882012-01-24T03:19:00.001-08:002012-01-24T03:19:53.433-08:00

In substance use disorders (SUD), alexithymia rates of up to 67% have been reported, but evaluations of therapy in alexithymic SUD patients are scarce. Group cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) was relatively successful in high-scoring alexithymic SUD patients, but alexithymia was associated with a lower attrition rate and with a larger Addiction Severity Index (ASI) alcohol composite score at

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-49940367038421760152012-01-24T03:18:00.001-08:002012-01-24T03:18:14.447-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-11294477604458808542012-01-24T02:55:00.001-08:002012-01-24T02:56:22.642-08:00

http://www.psypost.org/2012/01/the-price-of-your-soul-how-the-brain-decides-whether-to-sell-out-9333 '“As culture changes, it affects our brains, and as our brains change, that affects our culture. You can’t separate the two,” Berns says. “We now have the means to start understanding this relationship, and that’s putting the relatively new field of cultural neuroscience onto the global stage.”

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-2151886098497463982012-01-23T05:10:00.001-08:002012-01-23T05:10:52.319-08:00

'Gerard Manley Hopkins invented the word “inscape” to denote intrin­sic form, the pattern of essential characteristics both in single objects and (what is more interesting) in objects in a state of relation to each other, and the word “instress” to denote the experiencing of the perception of inscape, the apperception of inscape.' Denise Levertov

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-34594515123405641402012-01-23T02:44:00.001-08:002012-01-23T02:44:59.896-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-35295992785444680382012-01-20T03:24:00.001-08:002012-01-20T03:24:48.892-08:00

Harvard scientists have developed the fullest picture yet of how neurons in the brain interact to reinforce behaviors ranging from learning to drug use, a finding that might open the door to possible breakthroughs in the treatment of addiction. The finding is the result of a year-long effort by a team of researchers led by associate professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology Naoshige Uchida to

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-75544132960236393782012-01-14T02:50:00.001-08:002012-01-14T02:50:28.546-08:00

Via zenhabits ‘Everything is practice.’ ~Pele Post written by Leo Babauta. When we learn a martial art, or ballet, or gymnastics, or soccer … we consciously practice movements in a deliberate way, repeatedly. By conscious, repeated practice, we become good at those movements. Our entire lives are like this, but we’re often less conscious of the practice. Each day, we repeat movements, thought

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-6382830379159969532011-06-25T08:51:00.001-07:002011-06-25T08:51:51.509-07:00

Good news and bad for a popular willpower-enhancing strategy Via PBS Research In rich countries, temptation is never far and many of us struggle to achieve our long-term aims of moderation, dedication and fidelity. An increasingly popular strategy for regaining control is to form so-called implementation intentions. Rather than having the vague goal to eat less or exercise more, you spell out

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-77434201541588683062011-06-22T01:51:00.000-07:002011-06-22T01:51:07.096-07:00

via derek bownds "Inside Jokes Using Humor to Reverse-Engineer the Mind," by Matthew M. Hurley, Daniel C. Dennett, and Reginald B. Adams Jr. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA. (I just downloaded it to my Kindle.) The reviewer lays out their core theory: The key to the authors' success is that they locate humor within recent cognitive science and evolutionary theory. To aid survival, our brains

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-81273163919536951922011-06-06T02:14:00.001-07:002011-06-06T02:14:47.464-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-12469432234390155992011-05-24T05:50:00.001-07:002011-05-24T05:50:12.655-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-62240224915555371862011-05-24T05:49:00.001-07:002011-05-24T06:29:33.107-07:00

Muldoon interview One of the risks is that one allows the poem to begin, as it were, too soon. The point at which the poem should really begin is often where, in some other intellection, it might have ended. I never, for example, save my “big” ideas for down the road. I start with the big idea and see how much further I can go. One of the reasons why the sonnet has been such an enduring form

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-63535401576416604472011-05-22T09:56:00.000-07:002011-05-22T09:57:28.794-07:00

When people have power, they act the part. Powerful people smile less, interrupt others, and speak in a louder voice. When people do not respect the basic rules of social behavior, they lead others to believe that they have power, according to a study in the current Social Psychological and Personality Science (published by SAGE).People with power have a very different experience of the world

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-27936562417795472772011-05-18T02:21:00.000-07:002011-05-18T02:22:21.400-07:00

Numberplay: The Danger of Praise from NYTBy GARY ANTONICK“You’re really smart!”We hear that kind of praise all the time. But it’s devastating.Joshua Zucker is the director of the Julia Robinson Mathematics Festival. I had asked him about the role of praise in teaching. He continued:I have no problem with praising effort. It’s praising intelligence by itself that’s the problem. That kind of praise

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-88194596096735480632011-05-18T01:53:00.001-07:002011-05-18T01:53:57.008-07:00

Jared Piazzaa, , , Jesse M. Beringb and Gordon Ingramca School of Psychology, University of Kent, Keynes College, Canterbury, Kent CT2 7NP, UKb Institute of Cognition and Culture, Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast BT7 1NN, Northern Ireland, UKc Interactions Lab, School of Management, University of Bath, Bath BA2 7AY, UKReceived 13 August 2010; revised 2 February 2011. Available online 5 March

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-29956696129835086762011-05-18T01:50:00.001-07:002011-05-18T01:50:35.555-07:00

From Derek BowndsDan Sperber - Cultural AttractorsIn 1967, Richard Dawkins introduced the idea of a meme: a unit of cultural transmission capable of replicating itself and of undergoing Darwinian selection...I want to suggest that the concept of a meme should be, if not replaced, at least supplemented with that of a cultural attractor....bits of culture — memes if you want to dilute the notion

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-40692245648970201672011-05-09T06:28:00.000-07:002011-05-09T06:29:16.079-07:00

Amazing observations on the annual fire walking ritual in the Spanish village of San Pedro Manrique. Researchers were stymied in their efforts to measure physiological parameters such as blood pressure, cortisol levels, or pain tolerance in individuals as they were walking across a bed of hot coals, but were able to put heart rate monitors on both fire-walkers and spectators. It was a small study

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-54756421201395232972011-04-27T03:00:00.001-07:002011-04-27T03:00:40.876-07:00

Politics can be a touchy topic, especially when it comes to neuroscience. Researchers who've dared to tackle questions about how people's political leanings might be reflected in the brain have often earned scoffs and scoldings from their colleagues. A provocative new study is likely to be no exception. It claims to find features of brain anatomy that differ between people who identify themselves

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-85284728029432783602011-04-27T02:53:00.001-07:002011-04-27T02:53:42.455-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-75064295129790499622011-04-26T05:10:00.000-07:002011-04-26T05:12:49.041-07:00

Valerio Magrelli Gjertrud Schnackenberg The Throne of Labdacus, Two Tales of Clumsy Michael Donaghy’s Collected Poems, Kay Ryan Anne CarsonCharles Wright’s Sestets Mark Doty’s Theories and Apparitions Paul FarleyAlice Oswald’s Weeds and Wild Flowers, John Glenday

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-91574914058619911532011-04-26T05:08:00.001-07:002011-04-26T05:08:34.811-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-36959821138612215922011-04-23T04:26:00.000-07:002011-04-23T04:31:46.063-07:00

Front BurnerGraven with Diamonds Nicky ShulmanWhen in Rome Matthew SturgisOut of Our Heads Alva NoeBeing No one, Going NowhereThe Hidden Reality Brian GreeneIncognito, The hidden life of the Bran David EaglemanIn Rotation:

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-4112095213503231352011-04-23T04:12:00.000-07:002011-04-23T04:18:21.030-07:00

bstractThis review treats individual differences in anxiety and coping from several perspectives. It starts with the argument that structural considerations (often linked to trait concepts) and processing considerations (often linked to situational demands and actual behavior) are not fundamentally in opposition, but that global and uncontextualized trait concepts (e.g., trait anxiety) require

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-69453496698351441332011-04-22T02:11:00.000-07:002011-04-22T02:12:48.334-07:00

From BBCA patient's belief that a drug will not work can become a self fulfilling prophecy, according to researchers.They showed the benefits of painkillers could be boosted or completely wiped out by manipulating expectations.The study, published in Science Translational Medicine, also identifies the regions of the brain which are affected.Experts said this could have important consequences for

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-27279982005283936252011-04-22T02:09:00.000-07:002011-04-22T02:10:08.023-07:00

The positive effects of mindfulness meditation on pain and working memory may result from an improved ability to regulate a crucial brain wave called the alpha rhythm. This rhythm is thought to “turn down the volume” on distracting information, which suggests that a key value of meditation may be helping the brain deal with an often-overstimulating world. Researchers from Massachusetts General

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-11638301182638768692011-04-21T04:16:00.000-07:002011-04-21T04:18:13.032-07:00

If a friend or relative won $100 and then offered you a few dollars, would you accept this windfall? The logical answer would seem to be, sure, why not? “But human decision making does not always appear rational,” said Read Montague, professor of physics at Virginia Tech and director of the Human Neuroimaging Laboratory at the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute.According to research

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-37974921155262824662011-04-21T04:13:00.000-07:002011-04-21T04:14:08.364-07:00

Wed Apr 20, 2011 20:47 from RSS 2.0 by University of LeicesterA team of neuroscientists at the University of Leicester, UK, in collaboration with researchers from Poland and Japan, has announced a breakthrough in the understanding of the ‘brain chemistry’ that triggers our response to highly stressful and traumatic events.The discovery of a critical and previously unknown pathway in the brain

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-57720707176665615292011-04-17T02:06:00.000-07:002011-04-17T02:12:33.627-07:00

such as embarrasment, shame, pride, humiliation, need for praise, leadership, jealousy, in out group pride (nationalism), public anger, sense of injustice, etc all are likely to primarily belong or have their birth within those parts of the brain system that evolved while humanities culture was harem like as structured round an alfa male with reproductive rights (today, the vestige is in kingship

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-55471394863985481772011-04-17T01:58:00.000-07:002011-04-17T02:06:01.209-07:00

Simon Baron CohenGuardian review by Dorothy Rowe 16 04 11Developmental psychologists have shown that what interests newborn babies most is faces. [they] form a bond with a mothering figure. Out of this bond comes the skill of empathy. However, when babies have no opportunity to form this bond they do not develop the skill of empathy... My sister... had been very unlucky to be born to a mother

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-86513131282392776832011-04-13T03:20:00.001-07:002011-04-13T03:20:34.431-07:00

Via Austin Kleon

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-27613000122555233812011-04-13T02:18:00.001-07:002011-04-13T02:18:29.069-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-42524082975970811792011-04-12T02:51:00.000-07:002011-04-12T02:56:52.024-07:00

From New Scientist'Imagine if there were a major highway into the brain that could be safely accessed from elsewhere in the body. That's what vagus nerve stimulation is tapping into.The vagus nerve is a bundle of neurons connecting the brain to many of the major organs, with nerves running both from the organ to the brain and vice versa. It does a multitude of jobs, including helping to control

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-83217861970442604782011-04-09T03:46:00.001-07:002011-04-09T03:46:35.835-07:00

via kurzweilApril 8, 2011 Differences in political orientation are tied to differences in the structures of our brains, University College London researchers have found.Individuals who call themselves liberal tend to have a larger anterior cingulate cortex, while those who call themselves conservative have a larger amygdala, the researchers say. This is consistent with reports showing a greater

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-57571126561082259852011-04-09T03:43:00.000-07:002011-04-09T03:44:43.356-07:00

Demystifying meditation — brain imaging illustrates how meditation reduces painApril 6, 2011 by EditorResearchers at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center have shown that meditation produces a 40 percent reduction in pain intensity and a 57 percent reduction in pain unpleasantness.Fifteen healthy volunteers (who had never meditated) attended four 20-minute classes to learn a meditation technique

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-68981988744484665252011-03-02T02:02:00.000-08:002011-03-02T02:03:16.203-08:00

Why Do I stay up so late at nigtht

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-10345983652899076882011-02-04T07:48:00.001-08:002011-02-04T07:48:23.769-08:00

from edge: Nexus causality, moral warfare and misattribution arbitrage.We could become far more intelligent than we are by adding to our stock of concepts, and by forcing ourselves to use them even when we don't like what they are telling us. This will be nearly always, because they generally tell us that our self-evidently superior selves and ingroups are error-besotted. We all start from

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-79476869932774116542011-02-04T02:19:00.000-08:002011-02-04T02:20:44.990-08:00

Helen FisherResearch Professor, Department of Anthropology, Rutgers University; Author, Why We LoveTemperament Dimensions"I am large, I contain multitudes" wrote Walt Whitman. I have never met two people who were alike. I am an identical twin, and even we are not alike. Every individual has a distinct personality, a different cluster of thoughts and feelings that color all their actions. But

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-86443375591307831882011-02-04T02:15:00.001-08:002011-02-04T02:15:41.147-08:00

From Edge.orgANDY CLARKPhilosopher and Cognitive Scientist, University of Edinburgh. Author: Supersizing the Mind: Embodiment, Action, and Cognitive ExtensionPredictive CodingThe idea that the brain is basically an engine of prediction is one that will, I believe, turn out to be very valuable not just within its current home (computational cognitive neuroscience) but across the board: for the

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-5223509980396866462011-01-10T03:42:00.000-08:002011-01-10T03:43:04.947-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-12666544907670562972011-01-10T01:45:00.000-08:002011-01-10T01:46:07.155-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-355198324640884662011-01-07T11:13:00.001-08:002011-01-07T11:13:36.034-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-82857688743012964252010-10-19T04:29:00.000-07:002010-10-19T04:30:19.142-07:00

Serotonin regulates our moral judgementsBy mdbownds@wisc.edu (Deric Bownds) on moralityCrockett et al. have done some fascinating experiments demonstrating that increased serotonin makes individuals less likely to endorse moral scenarios that result in the infliction of personal harm to others. They examine the effects of a single high dose of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI)

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-40911726455486353232010-10-06T03:01:00.000-07:002010-10-06T03:09:00.545-07:00

How to form a habitThis has nothing to do with nuns' clothing. Habits are those behaviours that have become automatic, triggered by a cue in the environment rather than by conscious will. Health psychologists are interested for obvious reasons - they want to assist people in breaking unhealthy habits, while helping them adopt healthy ones. Remarkably, although there are plenty of habit-formation

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-48969385971558430072010-10-06T02:58:00.000-07:002010-10-06T02:59:58.993-07:00

Very interesting interview of the american anthropologist Michael Tomasello (Max-Planck-Institut for Evolutionary Anthropology, Department of Developmental and Comparative Psychology, Leibzig, Germany), recorded in October 2008 on the German public channel 3Sat. This is the full version of the interview, which covers a broad range of topics from the notions of (shared) intentionality and its

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-28046093698927359912010-09-02T01:51:00.000-07:002010-09-02T01:52:37.230-07:00

By mdbownds@wisc.edu (Deric Bownds) on attention/perceptionDuBois et al. make observations on an accentuation bias. They explore:...how people’s place in a power hierarchy alters their representations of valued objects. The authors hypothesized that powerlessness produces an accentuation bias by altering the physical representation of monetary objects in a manner consistent with the size-to-value

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-3775975735178196522010-07-23T06:52:00.000-07:002010-07-23T06:53:22.600-07:00

Acetaminophen (tylenol) reduces physical and social pain.derek bowdsDeWall et al. show that an anti-pain medication that acts on the brain's pain pathways, reduces both physical and social pain:Pain, whether caused by physical injury or social rejection, is an inevitable part of life. These two types of pain—physical and social—may rely on some of the same behavioral and neural mechanisms that

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-28082886196787334682010-07-20T07:04:00.000-07:002010-07-20T07:05:06.583-07:00

Posted on: July 19, 2010 11:49 AM, by Jonah LehrerI've got a new article in the latest Wired on the science of stress, as seen through the prism of Robert Sapolsky. The article isn't online yet (read it on the iPad!), but here are the opening paragraphs:Baboons are nasty, brutish and short. They have a long muzzle and sharp fangs designed to inflict deadly injury. Their bodies are covered in

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-6490170710023501532010-07-20T05:54:00.000-07:002010-07-20T05:55:08.463-07:00

tumor suppression by enriched environmentBy mdbownds@wisc.edu (Deric Bownds)An amazing article by Cao et al. brings home the intimate attachment between mental well-being and health - in mice (and by implication, for us too). An enriched environment promotes formation of a nerve growth factor which in turn inhibits tumor growth through a series of biochemical steps, shown in the summary graphic

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-5067089224137183922010-07-18T02:26:00.000-07:002010-07-18T02:27:25.635-07:00

Exercise reduces anxiety and depressionJuly 14, 2010 via bpsExercise can ameliorate anxiety and depression-like behaviors induced by an adverse early-life environment by altering the chemistry of the hippocampus, the part of the brain that regulates stress responses, researchers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) have found.In the study, rats were divided into groups and either

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-71491077978408775262010-07-11T02:04:00.000-07:002010-07-11T02:05:57.622-07:00

via derek bowndsQuoidbach et al. test ...what Gilbert has termed the experience-stretching hypothesis, that experiencing the best things in life — such as surfing Oahu’s famous North Shore or dining at Manhattan’s four-star restaurant Daniel — may actually mitigate the delight one experiences in response to the more mundane joys of life, such as sunny days, cold beers, and chocolate bars.Their

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-90947115720958541322010-06-30T00:52:00.000-07:002010-06-30T00:53:01.244-07:00

from frontal cortex ever since Pac Man, video games have obeyed a few basic principles: A player sits down in front of a screen and presses a few buttons with his or her thumbs. Perhaps there's a joystick involved, or maybe the index finger has to do some work, too. But the body is essentially still. The only moving parts are the eyes and the fingers.The Wii changed everything. Unlike every other

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-45572423028945955812010-06-23T03:15:00.000-07:002010-06-23T03:16:07.503-07:00

By mdbownds@wisc.edu (Deric Bownds) on social cognitionThree recent papers are a reflection of the recent outpouring of work on oxytocin (a peptide hormone containing the 9 amino acids shown in the figure), which (from Miller's review):...promotes social bonding in a wide range of animals, including humans. Sold on the Internet in a formulation called "Liquid Trust," the peptide hormone is

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-30854598343777167422010-06-03T09:46:00.000-07:002010-06-03T09:47:02.388-07:00

By Tyler Cowen on Education Marginal RevolutionA study recently published in the journal Research in Social Stratification and Mobility found that just having books around the house (the more, the better) is correlated with how many years of schooling a child will complete. The study (authored by M.D.R. Evans, Jonathan Kelley, Joanna Sikorac and Donald J. Treimand) looked at samples from 27

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-32984433580821050402010-06-03T00:55:00.001-07:002010-06-03T00:56:06.992-07:00

from DiscoverWe're defined in part by where we are, the places we go and what we do there. We adorn our homes with paraphernalia caught in the net of life - the photos, the books and pictures. But what happens when you're homeless? How do you define your space and identity when your home is a public place? To find out, Darrin Hodgetts and colleagues have conducted an unusual 'ethnographic' case

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From Discover MagJeff Tollaksen may well believe he was destined to be here at this point in time. We’re on a boat in the Atlantic, and it’s not a pleasant trip. The torrential rain obscures the otherwise majestic backdrop of the volcanic Azorean islands, and the choppy waters are causing the boat to lurch. The rough sea has little effect on Tollaksen, barely bringing color to his Nordic

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Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-2652401239562710992010-05-11T01:18:00.000-07:002010-05-11T01:19:32.428-07:00

Via BPS Research DigestWhy it's time for the media to help our politicians believe they can succeedA psychology study fresh off the presses shows the importance of positive expectations for the successful resolution of awkward negotiations. The results couldn't be more timely as our senior politicians negotiate over terms for a new coalition British government - the first since the 1970s. The

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planetary nebula

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-19842800642686357522010-05-03T01:21:00.000-07:002010-05-03T01:22:46.450-07:00

Embodyment: a two-minute powerful pose raises your testosterone levelsBy mdbownds@wisc.edu (Deric Bownds) on embodied cognitionHere is the abstract: Humans and other animals express power through open, expansive postures, and powerlessness through closed, constrictive postures. But can these postures actually cause power? As predicted, results revealed that posing in high-power (vs. low-power)

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-11547296717286652002010-04-21T11:28:00.001-07:002010-04-21T11:28:50.407-07:00

the inner life of cells

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from BPSA short while ago there was a shocking advert on British TV that used slow motion to illustrate the bloody, crunching effects of a car crash. The driver had been drinking. Using these kind of scare tactics for anti drink-driving and other health issues makes intuitive sense. The campaigners want to grab your attention and demonstrate the seriousness of the consequences if their message is

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-46899896336541470672010-03-30T03:37:00.001-07:002010-03-30T03:37:33.399-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-53610136750269413942010-03-30T03:36:00.001-07:002010-03-30T03:36:31.614-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-86199384509383822432010-03-30T03:24:00.000-07:002010-03-30T03:25:53.175-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-81702757679336288902010-03-24T00:29:00.000-07:002010-03-24T00:31:02.236-07:00

Why We DreamPosted on: March 22, 2010 11:23 AM, by Jonah LehrerOver the weekend, I had a little essay in the Times on some new research on why dream at night.When I can't sleep, I think about what I'm missing. I glance over at my wife and watch her eyelids flutter. I listen to the steady rhythm of her breath. I wonder if she's dreaming and, if so, what story she's telling to herself to pass the

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Thirty years on - the babies judged negatively by their mothersBy DigestIf a mother has a negative perception of her baby when it's just one month old, there's a strong possibility that same baby will have attachment problems as an adult, thirty or forty years later. That's the claim of a longitudinal study that recommends screening new mothers to see if they have a negative perception of their

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Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-47928968928628667392010-03-10T04:09:00.000-08:002010-03-10T04:10:04.420-08:00

via frontal cortexIn recent years, it's become clear that much of our individual behavior depends on the dynamics of our social network. It doesn't matter if we're talking about obesity or happiness: they all flow through other people, like a virus or a meme. Last year, I profiled James Fowler and Nicholas Christakis in Wired, who have conducted several fascinating studies that demonstrate the

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This is from England:The headmaster of the school where children are forced to listen to classical music as a punishment for bad behaviour said infractions of school rules have dropped by about 60 per cent since he began the special detentions."What he's saying in effect is children don't like classical music and we will exploit this fact by using it as a punishment against them," O'Neill said in

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-39540706870753479182010-02-22T09:31:00.001-08:002010-02-22T09:31:45.650-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-33733564572900392912010-02-22T04:43:00.000-08:002010-02-22T04:44:24.041-08:00

Happiness and spending quotesThe following is a collection of quotes which are randomly shown to Merry Miser'susers when they go to a store. The quotes are collected from (Schumaker 2007) andother sources. \Happiness is a way station between too little and too much." | ChanningPollock \We travel through life searching for the beautiful, but unless we carry it withus as we go, we will never nd

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Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-83185091737484287012010-02-08T04:05:00.000-08:002010-02-08T04:06:39.721-08:00

How framing affects our thought processesBy BPS research DigestA take-away restaurant near my house offers customers free home delivery or a ten per cent discount if you pick up. It sounds much better than saying you get no discount for picking up and suffer a ten per cent fee for delivery – this is the power of ‘framing’. Now David Hardisty and colleagues have dug a little deeper into framing,

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-84875090935107227382010-02-05T09:42:00.000-08:002010-02-05T09:43:30.542-08:00

How do we resist impulsive desires? Apparently our anteroventral prefrontal cortex tells our nucleus accumbens and ventral tegmental areas (involved in reward and pleasure) to chill out. From Diekhof and Gruber:Human decisions are guided by "desire" or "reason," which control actions oriented toward either proximal or long-term goals. Here we used functional magnetic resonance imaging to

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Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-48714589309158568272010-02-02T04:03:00.001-08:002010-02-02T04:03:50.748-08:00

‘The two principal religious errors seem to me beautifully refuted in the Sonnets. The first is to think of truth as being in the possession of an inscrutable third party, whose knowledge and intentions can only be divined. However, we are all the thinking that matter is doing in this part of the universe. If the universe has an eye, it sees only through the eyes on this Earth and elsewhere; if a

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-47247654186068863732010-01-29T12:01:00.000-08:002010-01-29T12:02:02.228-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-69742207210235397062010-01-28T02:48:00.001-08:002010-01-28T02:48:52.947-08:00

Via Frontal CortexSelf-Control and Peer GroupsFor the most part, self-control is seen as an individual trait, a measure of personal discipline. If you lack self-control, then it's your own fault, a character flaw built into the brain.However, according to a new study by Michelle vanDellen, a psychologist at the University of Georgia, self-control contains a large social component; the ability to

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via frontal cortexThe Economist reviews an interesting new study that investigates the immorality of power:In their first study, Dr Lammers and Dr Galinsky asked 61 university students to write about a moment in their past when they were in a position of high or low power. Previous research has established that this is an effective way to "prime" people into feeling as if they are currently in

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-55928911405396829822010-01-25T08:08:00.000-08:002010-01-25T08:10:00.010-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-74611357700042881102010-01-25T08:03:00.000-08:002010-01-25T08:04:16.492-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-48095605346205809662010-01-25T05:20:00.000-08:002010-01-25T05:20:58.014-08:00

The Main Point: Frank O'Hara reads "Having a Coke With You"

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-25594471024378057452010-01-22T01:59:00.000-08:002010-01-22T02:00:56.685-08:00

Once we think we have sufficient data for a decision, our brains constrain the accumulation of addition information. de Lange et al. actually view this process using magnetoencephalography (MEG, which records the weak magnetic signals generated by brain activity)via derek bownds

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-15655190455909599972010-01-20T04:41:00.000-08:002010-01-20T04:42:14.656-08:00

Reaction to King Logs appears fairly muted

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-16186287908357129912010-01-20T04:29:00.001-08:002010-01-20T04:29:32.577-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-89934927098833045192010-01-20T03:55:00.000-08:002010-01-20T03:56:00.699-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-58776189149311833772010-01-20T03:48:00.000-08:002010-01-20T03:49:11.653-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-61437145219741722942010-01-20T03:46:00.000-08:002010-01-20T03:47:19.993-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-76949733619190704332010-01-18T09:41:00.000-08:002010-01-18T09:42:28.803-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-58894946623636830182009-12-08T10:16:00.000-08:002009-12-08T10:18:54.260-08:00

Toxo is a parasite that appears to change mammalian behaviour. It gets into cat gut and is dangerous for human fetuses. Turns out Toxo can make both rodents and humans reckless: toxo infected rodents no longer fear cats, while there is some evidence that corpses from motorbike accidents often contain Toxo.

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Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-81953946736149328602007-11-09T01:18:00.000-08:002007-11-09T01:19:43.889-08:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-47906847155196402862007-07-05T13:20:00.000-07:002007-07-05T13:22:08.023-07:00

Those who had higher levels of testosterone and related hormones had a personality profile that researchers described as ''dominant with some aggressive behavior.'' ''The picture we get is of a man who attempts to influence and control other people, who expresses his opinions forcefully and his anger freely, and who dominates social interactions,'' said John B. McKinlay, a psychologist at the New

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Fundamentally, it is important to understand that wisdom is grounded in reality in two ways. To connect with reality and develop wisdom, we need to learn to be aware. Aware of ourselves and aware of those around us. We can learn from other people's success and we can learn from their mistakes. From early on, we have all been told that we should learn from other people's mistakes. Yet we see

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-56781805997484719772007-05-13T02:35:00.000-07:002007-05-13T02:36:57.293-07:00

As an ancient concept and esteemed human value, wisdom has historically been studied in the realms ofphilosophy and religion. The idea has been around at least since the Sumerians first etched bits of practicaladvice — “We are doomed to die; let us spend” — on clay tablets more than 5,000 years ago. But as a trait thatmight be captured by quantitative measures, it has been more like the woolly

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-54159748196307899132007-04-19T10:59:00.000-07:002007-04-19T11:00:18.301-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-70915263380543019132007-04-16T13:17:00.000-07:002007-04-16T13:18:24.196-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-68134641986813024822007-04-13T01:52:00.000-07:002007-04-13T01:55:01.916-07:00

Researchers led by the psychologist Dacher Keltner took groups of three ordinary volunteers and randomly putone of them in charge. Each trio had a half-hour to work through a boring social survey. Then a researcher camein and left a plateful of precisely five cookies. Care to guess which volunteer typically grabbed an extra cookie?The volunteer who had randomly been assigned the power role was

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-20585079426028922872007-04-10T10:38:00.000-07:002007-04-10T10:39:18.686-07:00

Edwardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11286118359440904954noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10959171.post-89439291824847425622007-04-10T03:54:00.000-07:002007-04-10T03:57:32.839-07:00

Evolutionary scientists argue that human cooperation is the product of a long history of competition among rival groups. There are various reasons to believe that this logic applies particularly to men. In three experiments, using a step-level public-goods task, we found that men contributed more to their group if their group was competing with other groups than if there was no intergroup

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