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Logging In to the Brain’s Social Network
NPR Science Friday: Does the pain we feel from rejection and loss have the same effect as physical pain? How does our brain respond to social interactions? In his new book Social: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Connect, social neuroscientist Matthew Lieberman describes the biology behind how our brains engage with the social world. Read the whole story: NPR Science Friday
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Looks Can Be Convincing: To Get Promoted, Just Appear Competent
Fast Company: In a perfect--or at least more rational world--the most qualified people would rise fastest. But new research suggests that just appearing to be competent is as important to getting ahead. How so? Think about why brainstorming has a loudmouth problem: The person with the best ideas isn't the one who gets heard most. Rather, it's the most assertive person--unless you find a way to correct it. Since business is done by people, and people aren't always totally rational, some irrational things happen. Like deferring to the most confident person in the room and allowing a power dynamic to develop from there. ... That is according to the work of Gavin Kilduff and Adam Galinsky.
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Teach Kids to Daydream
The Atlantic: Today’s children are exhausted, and not just because one in three kids is not getting sufficient sleep. Sleep deprivation in kids (who require at least nine hours a night, depending on age) has been found to significantly decrease academic achievement, lower standardized achievement and intelligence test scores, stunt physical growth, encourage drug and alcohol use, heighten moodiness and irritability, exacerbate symptoms of ADD, and dramatically increase the likelihood of car accidents among teens.
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Emotional Profiling
Paul Ekman studies facial expressions and the way they can signal deception and reflect a person’s true underlying emotion. Ekman’s research was the first to show that some types of facial expressions (such as fear, disgust, and anger) are universal among all cultures; and along with Wallace V. Friesen he developed the widely used Facial Action Coding System – a taxonomy of every facial expression. His research on identifying deception and hidden demeanor is used by law enforcement and national security organizations to help identify security threats.
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Drug Ad Side Effects List Helps Sell Product
Scientific American: Medications come with long lists of potential side effects. Now a study finds that the litany of unpleasant consequences does not deter prospective purchasers. In fact, those warnings might actually increase drug sales. For the study, subjects were shown two different versions of ads for three different products: cigarettes, artificial sweeteners and medications. ... The study is in the journal Psychological Science. [Yael Steinhart, Ziv Carmon and Yaacov Trope, Warnings of Adverse Side Effects Can Backfire Over Time] Read the whole story: Scientific American
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Language-Gap Study Bolsters a Push for Pre-K
The New York Times: Nearly two decades ago, a landmark study found that by age 3, the children of wealthier professionals have heard words millions more times than those of less educated parents, giving them a distinct advantage in school and suggesting the need for increased investment in prekindergarten programs. Now a follow-up study has found a language gap as early as 18 months, heightening the policy debate.
