Description: “Are we nearly there yet?” Even if you have not (yet) heard that question being asked (over and over and over) in a small voice from the backseat of your family car you have heard it used as a sort of social meme tossed out in social situations that are or seem to be… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Sensation-Perception
When Fat Cells Talk Does the Brain Listen?
Description: The standard introductory psychology account of how our systems maintains consistent levels of food intake used to involve a couple of components. The first involves close areas within the hypothalamus which seem to be implicated in appetite regulation. The most dramatic data involved rats who had one or the other of these areas surgically… Read more »
Sentience, Ethics, and Octopuses: Recent Thoughts
Description: What does sentient mean? Its dictionary definition typical says something like responsive to and conscious of sense impressions; aware; conscious. We (us humans) are sentient, though there was a time when we believe that infant humans were not (we DO think they ARE sentient now). A huge part of how we manage or are… Read more »
Psychology of Inventory Placement and Impulse Buying
Description: Two large grocery stores near my home have been undergoing renovation for the past few months (though it feels like it has been a year!). Way the long drawn out process? Well the renovations are large and complex but as I wandered around trying to find my “usual stuff” to buy I started to… Read more »
Risk-Taking While Sleeping
Description: Imagine that you were tasked, perhaps by a large insurance company you were working for, with coming up with a way of measuring individual risk -taking propensity. Some companies are doing a version of this already by rewarding drivers who do not have any accident claims with lower rates. Some companies are also looing… Read more »
Nocebo Effects and Vaccination Reactions: Important Data
Description: What does the science say? We have heard or used that question a LOT in these COVID days (years). It is a good question… an important question and one that is much better grounded than questions like; what do I think or what do I wish or what do I want to believe or… Read more »
This is Your Brain on Uncertainty!
Description: Are you feeling stressed and/or anxious these days? I would be surprised if you were not. Without dwelling on it and making yourself feel worse, what are the top three things that are making you feel stressed or anxious? We typically think of things or situations or circumstances when asked about what is causing… Read more »
When or How Might Mis-remembering be Good?
Description: Imagine you are chatting with one of your grandparents about a trip you took with them last summer and you are reminiscing about a stop you made at a bakery, and they are saying they still remember the taste of the peanut butter cookie they had while you were there. In thinking about that… Read more »
What is the Deal With Pumpkin Spice? Is there Research?
Description: It used to be that you could tell that Halloween was approaching because boxes of small candy bars would start appearing in n grocery stores (in late August). While this is still true, the other indicator of the pending arrival of Halloween is are the grand announcements of the return of pumpkin spiced everything,… Read more »
Know Yourself – Simple Right? HA!
Description: Lets’ start with a quick definition (we will not hold ourselves to it). Let’s say that our consciousness involves our mind’s awareness of, and internal model for keep track of, the outside world. Make sense? I bet that is pretty close to how you currently think about your consciousness, if you think about it… Read more »
Books for Success!
