A fast, fun, and insightful TED Talk about happiness and productivity from Shawn Achor. Instantly one of my favourites. Shawn Achor: The happy secret to better work | Video on TED.com.
Tag Archives: Psychology
Ways Modern Men Are Trained to Hate Women
Cracked has become something far different than its historical goofy publication on the web. This article is not something I expected to be reading on their site, but I’m glad it was written and I’m gladder it was published. Guys, read up! And now you see the problem. From birth were taught that were owed […]
No Titanic Panic
This is an interesting article about, essentially, herd mentality and social mores. Well worth a read. As the Titanic was sinking and women and children climbed into lifeboats, the cellist and violinist from the ship's band stood and played. They died when the ship went down. Men stood on the deck and smoked cigars. They […]
TEDTalk: Great Talks
I’ve long been an admirer of Steve Jobs, not least because he was the best presenter I’ve ever watched. His addresses were so effective the term “Stevenote” was coined in recognition. This TEDTalk by Nancy Duarte is useful for anyone who needs to get their ideas across, and hopes to do it with the same […]
TED Talk: How Babies Think
This TED Talk could stand to be a little shorter, but it does have two delightful moments: The first is watching a four year old testing out hypotheses. The second – and I’m spoiling the ending here – is Alison Gopnik’s summation that, “being a baby is a bit like being in love, in Paris, […]
Body Tricks
http://melissadesa.wordpress.com/2011/03/08/body-tricks/ Some of these are really nifty. As one who constantly wakes up with dead limbs (and a terror that I’ve lost their use forever) I have to try this one for sure: 15. Wake the dead! If your hand falls asleep while you’re driving or sitting in an odd position, rock your head from […]
Backmasking – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backmasking In the late 1970s, during the rise of the Christian right in the United States, fundamentalist Christian groups began to claim that backmasked messages could bypass the conscious mind and reach the subconscious, where they would be unknowingly accepted by the listener… During the same year, thirty North Carolina teenagers, led by their pastor, […]
Train engineers traumatized by fatal collisions
http://www.pantagraph.com/news/article_7d365660-88dc-11de-9d63-001cc4c03286.html This is a side of train travel that I’ve (thankfully) never had to contemplate before: Engineers having to deal with frequent instances of suicide and accidental deaths caused by their trains.
The Fun Theory
http://thefuntheory.com/ Using wit, whimsy and industrial design to effect (small) positive changes. Love this.
Uncanny valley – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uncanny_Valley The uncanny valley hypothesis holds that when robots and other facsimiles of humans look and act almost like actual humans, it causes a response of revulsion among human observers. Thus explaining why Pixar’s cartoon heroes are always endearing, and those from The Polar Express are unbearable to watch.