Clipmarks | murieleileen's clips

Why We do Dumb or Irrational Things: 10 Brilliant Social Psychology Studies

Sun, 18 Nov 2007 00:54:44 GMT

clipped by: Newfman
clipper's remarks: Descriptions of all 10 experiments at the site

"I have been primarily interested in how and why ordinary people do unusual things, things that seem alien to their natures. Why do good people sometimes act evil? Why do smart people sometimes do dumb or irrational things?" --Philip Zimbardo

Like eminent social psychologist Professor Philip Zimbardo, I'm also obsessed with why we do dumb or irrational things. The answer quite often is because of other people - something social psychologists have comprehensively shown.

Over the past few months I've been describing 10 of the most influential social psychology studies. Each one tells a unique, insightful story relevant to all our lives, every day.

1. The Halo Effect: When Your Own Mind is a Mystery

2. How and Why We Lie to Ourselves: Cognitive Dissonance

3. War, Peace and the Role of Power in Sherif's Robbers Cave Experiment

4. Our Dark Hearts: The Stanford Prison Experiment

5. Just Following Orders? Stanley Milgram's Obedience Experiment

Tags: psychology

Sleeping With The Cat

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 08:49:11 GMT

clipped by: thisnamecantbetaken
clipper's remarks: I can SO relate to this video. *LOL* I have 5 cats, of which I am sure at least two have ADHD. What would 8 straight hours of sleep feel like? I have NO idea.

Clip Source: www.liveleak.com

Sleeping With The Cat.

Cute little kitty :)

[Video]

Computers Should Scan Palms, Eyes, Chertoff Suggests

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 13:30:49 GMT

clipped by: thisnamecantbetaken
clipper's remarks: George Orwell must be spinning in his grave.

Clip Source: blogs.cqpolitics.com

Computers Should Scan Palms, Eyes, Chertoff Suggests

In the near future computers should make users scan their palms and retinas before letting them in, Homeland Security Department chief Michael Chertoff suggested Wednesday.

Passwords and Social Security numbers are already antiquated, so easily stolen or cracked that they're virtually useless as security measures, Chertoff said during a roundtable discussion with bloggers in downtown Washington, D.C.

Internet users need a "paradigm shift" in the way they think about personal and corporate security, said Chertoff, who as a Justice Department lawyer in 2001 helped design the bundle of counterterrorism measures that became known as the Patriot Act.

"It's another initiative we've talked about," he said.

"I'm suggesting we paradigm-shift," he said.

If you -- bear with me for a second --

Even When You Sleep, Your Brain Is Awake

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 13:05:15 GMT

clipped by: wildcat

Clip Source: www.scientificblogging.com

Sleep in man is divided in two main phases : non-REM sleep, which occupies most of our early sleep night, and REM sleep, during which our dreams prevail. Non-REM sleep is usually considered as a compensatory ‘resting’ state for the brain, following the intense waking brain activity. Indeed, previous brain imaging studies showed that the brain was less active during periods of non-REM sleep as compared to periods of wakefulness.

Although not rejecting this concept, researchers from the Cyclotron Research Centre of the University of Liège in Belgium and from the Department of Neurology of Liege University Hospital demonstrate that, even during its deepest stages (also called ‘slow-wave-sleep’), non-REM sleep should not be viewed as a stage of constant and continuous brain activity decrease, but is also characterized by transient and recurrent activity increases in specific brain areas.

Tags: neuroscience, sleep

Street lamps powered by discarded batteries light the neighborhood for cheap

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 22:40:09 GMT

clipped by: Silkweaver
clipper's remarks: Really cool idea

Clip Source: dvice.com

That battery you're throwing away may not have enough energy left to power your gadgetry, but it does have enough juice to light up a low-energy LED. That's the driving idea behind South Korean designer Sung Woo Park's conceptual Energy Seed, a stylish street lamp powered entirely by discarded batteries.

Drop a battery into one of the Energy Seed's disposal holes and it'll fall down into a tube. Several batteries can be stacked one on top of the other, daisy-chaining drained batteries into a long-lasting power supply for an LED lamp that will give pedestrians a bit of light on the sidewalk. It's a great way to re-appropriate trash that we'd otherwise consider useless.

Tags: clean energy, recycling

CAN Obama legally run for President?

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 15:43:49 GMT

clipped by: jcolier
clipper's remarks: Interesting case against Barack Obama.

Clip Source: www.facebook.com

[Video]

NOTE: We only had 36 hours to produce this video, so it doesn't have the usual Illuminati polish. However, it reveals the single greatest threat to Obama's campaign. In "October Surprise", Molotov Mitchell interviews the plaintiff in a stunning federal case against Barack Obama. ...

Ralph Nader on His Run for President

Sat, 11 Oct 2008 16:23:41 GMT

clipped by: renerodz

Clip Source: www.npr.org

To Nader supporters, the bailout package is a perilously expensive invoice for taxpayers to rescue the very people who were reckless and greedy. Ralph Nader, independent candidate for president, speaks about his latest presidential campaign.

Tags: politics, election2008, bailout, nader

Does "beautiful" mean "least distinctive"?

Fri, 10 Oct 2008 23:55:52 GMT

clipped by: Lexica

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

IS the woman pictured on the right more attractive than the woman on the left? Do her wider-set eyes, the longer distance between her hairline and the bridge of the nose, and the rounder shape of her face make her more beautiful?

The photograph on the right was doctored by the “beautification engine” of a new computer program that uses a mathematical formula to alter the original form into a theoretically more attractive version, while maintaining what programmers call an “unmistakable similarity” to the original.

He also said he had heard from plastic surgeons interested in the software. That did not surprise those who have studied the history of beauty.

“We have always had a huge industry to make people look better,” Dr. Etcoff said. “Everyone wants to look better. And we keep taking it further and further to all these images that have been doctored. There is a whole generation of girls growing up who think it’s normal not to look the way they really look.”

Tags: beauty, culture, alienation, photos, mediated-experience

The Saddest Sad Songs Of All Time!

Wed, 08 Oct 2008 10:13:49 GMT

clipped by: thisnamecantbetaken
clipper's remarks: I picked a few of my favourites. See the list and lyrics at the site. I couldn't get through life without music as a backdrop. Where would we be without it? If you need a rest from politics, just copy/paste a title and go youtubing. Even sad songs can make you happy.

I heard this song when I was a little girl and my Dad told me it was about a dog (that probably drowned) and I bawled my eyes out! I still do!

Anyway, remember. Jumping off cliffs not allowed! .

Clip Song (Not sad, even!)

Clip Source: www.popculturemadness.com

The Saddest Sad Songs Of All Time!

The odd thing about sad songs is that they can be happy songs as well. That song that meant everything good with the old girlfriend can make you cry with the opening notes today.

Sometimes that sad song can indicate an upcoming hope, or desire to to climb out of that sad situation. I've always believed that without the sad stuff, we'd never appreciate the good stuff.

Everything ever created by man has been made so by some driven need he didn't have.
Or, to impress a girl.

Sad songs are the stuff that fuel our dreams to become reality.

Alone Again, Naturally - Gilbert O Sullivan

Clip Source: www.popculturemadness.com

What a sad song. Although we don't recommend it, it is the perfect song to listen to before jumping off a cliff or waiting for the train to reach the end of the track that you're sitting on.

Clip Source: www.popculturemadness.com

Send In the Clowns - Judy Collins

I'm Not In Love - 10cc

Two Beds and a Coffee Machine - Savage Garden

You'll Think Of Me - Keith Urban

This Used to be my Playground - Madonna

Naomi Wolf: Americans Are Facing A Coup

Tue, 07 Oct 2008 17:44:21 GMT

clipped by: thisnamecantbetaken

Clip Source: www.prisonplanet.com

Naomi Wolf: Americans are facing a coup, as of this morning it’s happened

Interview with Naomi Wolf author of “Give Me Liberty: A Handbook for American Revolutionaries” given October 4, 2008 on Mind Over Matters, KEXP 90.3 FM Seattle.

[Video]

37 Responses to “Naomi Wolf: Americans are facing a coup, as of this morning it’s happened”

America as a whole has become way too tolerent of our government’s constitutional neglect and abuse. Most of us are comfortable with someone else, anyone other than ourselves guarding our nation’s lliberty and freedom, the foundation of this free republic which our constitution demands.

the eyes of the world will be on the USA.

Choose yous leaders

very carefully.

you got to get it right first time cos there will be no second chances.

Print What You Like - a cool tool

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 15:18:21 GMT

clipped by: Mohir
clipper's remarks: This can be a real help to those of us who print a lot from the web.

Clip Source: www.printwhatyoulike.com

Ever print a webpage only to find your printout is full of ads, empty space and other junk you don't want? PrintWhatYouLike is a free webpage editor that gives you control of how webpages look when printed.

Format any webpage for printing in seconds - no more pasting into Word

Save money and the environment by reducing your paper and ink usage

Make printed web pages more readable by removing ads, widgets and other distractions

Fix broken pages that don't print correctly

Tags: web, internet, internet tools, utilities

From silly to satanic, I give you squirrels...

Tue, 07 Oct 2008 04:33:27 GMT

clipped by: pcmkrfn

Clip Source: www.humoric.net

The brain parasite that influences human culture

Mon, 06 Oct 2008 11:04:07 GMT

clipped by: JohnWaterman
clipper's remarks: Spread by cats

Clip Source: scienceblogs.com

We like to think that we are masters of our own fates. The thought that others might be instead controlling our actions makes us uneasy. We rail against nanny states, we react badly to media hype and we are appalled at the idea of brainwashing. But words and images are not the only things that can affect our brains and thoughts. Other animals - parasites - can do this too. According to research by Kevin Lafferty from the University of California, Santa Barbara, a common brain parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, could be influencing human culture across the globe.

spread by cats

in another animal, it travels to the brain and changes the host's behaviour to maximise its chances of ending up in a cat

For rodents, this means being eaten

infected individuals are less fearful of cats

Humans

tend to show long-term personality changes that are small but statistically significant

higher level of neuroticism

To establish the true direction of causality

need to find out how the parasite manipulates the mind

Funny Investment tips for 2008

Sun, 05 Oct 2008 09:03:00 GMT

clipped by: murieleileen
clipper's remarks: 5. FedEx is expected to join its competitor, UPS, and become:
FedUP.

Clip Source: www.broadwayworld.com

I got this email and thought I'd share for those who want to take advantage of the current fiscal crisis:

Investment tips for 2008

With all the turmoil in the market today and the collapse of
Lehman Bros and Acquisition of Merrill Lynch by Bank of America this
might be some good advice. For all of you with any money left, be aware
of the next expected mergers so that you can get in on the ground floor

and make some BIG bucks.

Watch for these consolidations in later this year:

1.) Hale Business Systems, Mary Kay Cosmetics, Fuller Brush, and
W R. Grace Co. Will merge and become:

Hale, Mary, Fuller, Grace.

2.) Polygram Records, Warner Bros., and Zesta Crackers join
forces and become:

Poly, Warner Cracker.

3.) 3M will merge with Goodyear and become:

MMMGood.

4. Zippo Manufacturing, Audi Motors, Dofasco, and Dakota Mining
will merge and become:

ZipAudiDoDa .

5. FedEx is expected to join its competitor, UPS, and become:

FedUP.

6. Fairchild Electronics

7. Grey Poupon and Docker Pants

8. K

9. Vict

Tags: 208, investment tips, business, consolidations, funny, humor

Second-hand smoke can hook non-smokers: study

Sun, 05 Oct 2008 09:16:20 GMT

clipped by: murieleileen

Clip Source: www.ctv.ca

A new study shows that in some instances, second-hand smoke can cause addiction to nicotine.

A Canadian study indicates some people who've never smoked in their lives can become addicted to nicotine.

The report, a collaborative effort between five Canadian universities and the Institut national de santé publique du Québec, found that exposure to secondhand smoke can make a small number people addicted.

Mathieu Belanger of the Universite de Moncton is the lead author of the report.

"We were surprised to find about five percent reported symptoms of nicotine dependence even though they'd never smoked in their lives," Belanger said.

The children had all been exposed to cigarette smoke at home or elsewhere and Belanger hopes the findings will cut down on this number.

Steve Vasseur owns a Saint John, N.B. tobacco shop. He told CTV Atlantic that common sense dictates that no one should smoke indoors when children are around.

Tags: addictions, second hand smoke, children