Top 10 Common Faults In Human Thought Humans The human mind is a wonderful thing. Cognition, the act or process of thinking, enables us to process vast amounts of information quickly. For example, every time your eyes are open, you brain is constantly being bombarded with stimuli. You may be consciously thinking about one specific thing, but you brain is processing thousands of subconscious ideas. Unfortunately, our cognition is not perfect, and there are certain judgment errors that we are prone to making, known in the field of psychology as cognitive biases. The Gambler’s fallacy is the tendency to think that future probabilities are altered by past events, when in reality, they are not. Reactivity is the tendency of people to act or appear differently when they know that they are being observed. Pareidolia is when random images or sounds are perceived as significant. Interesting Fact: the Rorschach Inkblot test was developed to use pareidolia to tap into people’s mental states. Self-fulfilling Prophecy
The 50 Books Everyone Needs to Read, 1963-2013 The thing about reading is this: it takes a long time. There are innumerable books in the world, and many more good ones than can be read by any mortal in a lifetime. It’s hard to choose — especially if you’re a slow reader. So, to go along with the list of the best albums from 1963-2013, here you will find a single must-read book from each of the last 50 years. 1963 — The Bell Jar, Sylvia Plath Sylvia Plath’s only novel manages to be both elegant and filled with raw, seething emotion – no small feat, and not the least of the reasons the reading world is still obsessed with her. Also recommended: Where the Wild Things Are, Maurice Sendak; The Group, Mary McCarthy; V., Thomas Pynchon; Cat’s Cradle, Kurt Vonnegut; The Feminine Mystique, Betty Friedan
& New York Times 50 Most Challenging Words (defined and used) -... The New York Times recently published a list of 50 fancy words that most frequently stump their readership. They are able to measure this data thanks to a nifty in-page lookup mechanism, which you can try here. Try double-clicking the word “epicenter”. Since the NYT didn’t include definitions of these words, I decided to post a job to MediaPiston to produce an article defining and using each word in the list. Voila! Just a few hours later, here it is. The New York Times 50 Fancy Words (defined and used) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50.
Asia-Pacific | Ageing 'threatens China economy&# China's position as the world's major supplier of low-cost labour could be eroded by an ageing population, the authorities have warned. There are six workers for each retiree in China, but that could narrow to two-to-one between 2030 and 2050, the National Committee on Ageing says. Officials say the economy will suffer as there will be fewer people working and more older people to support. China's low-cost labour has provided the base for its economic growth. Improved living standards and strict family planning laws have contributed to the demographic change. "We might encounter the heaviest burden especially after 2030, when the demographic dividend is set to end," Yan Qingchun, deputy director of the office of the ageing committee, told China Daily. "With fewer people of working age and more pressure in supporting the elderly, the economy will suffer if productivity sees no major progress," he added. 'Not prepared' That would mean two workers to support every retiree.
NetBanker Stumblers Who Like Most Amazing Miniature Food Artworks by Shay Aaron Shay Aaron is a brilliant artist from Israel who makes the most astonishing miniature food jewelry. These foodstuffs look so beautiful that we would desire to eat them. Actually, there’s a whole market out there for miniature food. Comments comments Ten games that make you think about life At the start of this year, we decided to come up with a list of Flash casual games with a philosophical bent. To be honest, we struggled. After days of research, we could only find a handful of games that had the thought-provoking depth we were looking for. Our list (which you can view by clicking here) was therefore only five games long. Fast forward to now, and it is remarkable how much difference a few months can make. In a wonderful twist, it seems it is the Flash gaming space - until now known more for the throwaway nature of its games rather than depth - that is leading the way in this exciting new area of gaming, as we hope the following games prove. One you have finished playing these games, check out our follow-up lists: Ten More Games That Make You Think About Life and Another 20 Games That Make You Think About Life. 1Immortall The game starts with you crash landing on a planet. 2Loved 3I Can Hold My Breath Forever 4The Company of Myself 5Coma 6Loondon 7I Wish I Were the Moon
Nearly 1 in 4 people worldwide is Muslim, report says The Über-Connected Organization: A Mandate for 2010 - The Conver by Jeanne C Meister and Karie Willyerd | 8:54 AM November 11, 2009 Think about your organization and ask yourself these two questions: Are external social media sites restricted or blocked while at work?Is the use of social media in the workplace inhibited or frowned upon? If you answered yes, then your organization is one of the majority of firms with over 100 employees that have yet to embrace the use of social media in the workplace for the average worker. In a study conducted by Robert Half Technology entitled “Whistle But Don’t Tweet At Work,” many organizations are struggling with how to integrate social media into the workplace. However, there are a growing number of firms such as IBM, Toshiba, and Cerner Corporation that are becoming über-connected workplaces. Recent research provides evidence that there are business benefits to becoming an über-connected organization: Access to social media improves productivity. What business benefits are you trying to solve?
Maxistentialism “Werewolf is a simple game for a large group of people (seven or more.) It requires no equipment besides some bits of paper; you can play it just sitting in a circle. I’d call it a party game, except that it’s a game of accusations, lying, bluffing, second-guessing, assassination, and mob hysteria.” – Andrew Plotkin, creator of Werewolf Werewolf is based on the game Mafia, which was created in 1986 by Dimitry Davidoff, a psychology student in the USSR. Most reports credit Dimitry Davidoff with creating Mafia in 1986 as a teaching tool. Mafia become Werewolf after author Andrew Plotkin became fascinated with it at the 1997 National Puzzlers’ League convention. It’s the quintessential game that makes use of hidden information that is gradually revealed. The rules are simple. The game cycles between day and night. Werewolf works best with seven to twenty players and one moderator. You’ll want to make some cards to assign players their roles. For most games, you’ll want your deck to have:
mental_floss Blog & The Quick 10: 10 Things You Probably Didn't... With Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince coming out in the U.S. later this week, it's time to out myself as a Slytherin Supporter. Maybe you already knew that. Nothing against Gryffindors - I'm no Voldemort or anything - but I always tend to like the villains a little more than the do-gooders. To celebrate Harry and Co.' 1. It has a sour tone to it, doesn't it? 3. 4. 5. 7. 8. 9. There's obviously a ridiculous amount of Harry Potter trivia out there, and since Harry Potter fever is about to sweep the world again, we might as well share it.