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Lin-Sanity: What’s Behind the Phenom?
Discovery News: Apart from his proven skills, Jeremy Lin, the remarkable young point guard for the New York Knicks, is benefiting from a combination of psychological factors that have conspired to help him obtain dizzying success on the court. Since he came off the bench earlier this month, Lin has scored 136 points in his first five games with the Knicks, more than anybody since the NBA and ABA merged back in 1976. He’s also helped his struggling team put together a seven-game winning streak that has the whole city talking about the Knicks in the playoffs.
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Even Babies Can Recognize What’s Fair
TIME: When your preschooler declares, “That’s not fair!” after her brother receives an imperceptibly larger piece of cake, she’s not just being selfish. Kids have a keen sense of fairness, a characteristic that research increasingly shows is an innate part of human morality. Indeed, the latest study, published in Psychological Science, finds that even babies are disturbed by displays of injustice — and even when it doesn’t apply to them. “We found that 19- and 21-month-old infants have a general expectation of fairness, and they can apply it appropriately to different situations,” said study co-author Stephanie Sloane, a graduate student at the University of Illinois, in a statement.
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‘Phantom’ mobile phone vibrations: why we get them
The Sydney Morning Herald: Bzzt, bzzt. You check the supposed vibration in your pocket, yet no one has called or sent you an SMS. Known commonly as a phantom vibration, this sensation has been felt by many and left them baffled. But according to scientists, mobile users aren't necessarily imagining things and the vibrations may not be "phantom" after all. Some people believe there is a compulsive element to feeling the sensation, or believe that it occurs simply when there is friction in their pockets or they bump or brush up against something.
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Why People Believe Misinformation, Even After It’s Corrected
ABC News: Have you seen the photo of the dog that's as big as a horse? How about the deer on top of a telephone pole? And do you know about the Hollywood actor who needed emergency medical help because of a gerbil that went where no gerbil had gone before? That's all a bunch of bunk, or course. But we've heard those stories, or seen those photos, so many times that they have become a part of our world, even if they are totally false. These days we are bombarded with information, much of it incorrect, and long after the political campaigns are over a lot of it will still be buried in the part of our brain where we store our memories.
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Why Amazon Prime is the wave of retail’s future
msnbc: Anybody who knows me knows that I am a proud member of the Amazon Prime Cult. I only clean my house with products I can order through Amazon.com's Prime service. In December, I chose holiday gifts for my family based on what I could order through Prime. I scoff at brick-and-mortar prices when I do make my way out into the world. And, dear Fools, I say this with as little bias as possible: You will one day join me. Convenience is king, and if history is any indicator of consumer shopping habits, Prime is the future. In 1888, Richard Sears released the first Sears, Roebuck and Co. mailer to sell watches and jewelry.
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La romance virtuelle, ça marche !
Slate France: Une bénédiction pour les coeurs solitaires… Alors qu’il est de bon ton de penser que les rencontres en ligne ne sont que des attrape-nigauds, une étude américaine montre que ce mode de mise en relation a dépassé toutes les autres, hormis la bonne vieille rencontre par l’intermédiaire d’amis. La publication destinée à la revue Psychological Science et rendue publique le 6 février 2012 constate que “chaque année, des millions de personnes à la recherche de relations utilisent ces sites [de rencontre en ligne], souvent en payant des sommes substantielles pour cela”.
