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Tim Duncan’s Other Career as an Academic Psychologist
The Wall Street Journal: Mark Leary was a social psychologist at Wake Forest in 1995 when he was invited to write a book chapter about a topic he says he didn’t know much about: egotism. He rounded up some undergraduates to help with the research. This wasn’t as easy as it would be now. It wasn’t yet possible to read academic papers online, and his assistants had to visit obscure corners of Wake Forest’s library to dig through arcane journals.
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What NASA Could Teach Tesla about Autopilot’s Limits
Scientific American: Tesla Motors says the Autopilot system for its Model S sedan “relieves drivers of the most tedious and potentially dangerous aspects of road travel.” The second part of that promise was put in doubt by the fatal crash of a Model S earlier this year, when its Autopilot system failed to recognize a tractor-trailer turning in front of the vehicle. Tesla says the driver, Joshua Brown, also failed to notice the trailer in time to prevent a collision. The result? In Tesla’s own words, “the brake was not applied”—and the car plowed under the trailer at full speed, killing Brown. ...
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Stop over-posting your vacation photos
The Boston Globe: You’re doing it all wrong. The cliché photo of your feet near a pool or on the beach? Wrong. Constant check-ins and photo updates on Facebook when you’re out of town for vacation? Wrong. The irksome picture of the pre-departure cocktail at the airport? Also wrong. The urge to prioritize your face over the surrounding scenery in your shared photos? That’s very, very wrong. ... Once you’re home and thoughtfully curating your pictures, the real work begins. Start by weeding out photos that are blatant visual brags. A study in Psychological Science found that while you think your vacation was amazing, no one wants to hear about it.
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Is Donald Trump a textbook narcissist?
The Washington Post: On Monday, "Breaking Bad" actor Bryan Cranston called Donald Trump a “supreme narcissist.” On Tuesday, Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank referred to Trump’s convention appearances as "the triumph of narcissism." And by Wednesday, Tony Schwartz, ghostwriter of Trump’s bestselling book, “The Art of the Deal,” had made sure he’d told everyone from Jane Mayer at the New Yorker to TV’s Bill Maher that Trump’s narcissistic self-absorption had made him a “sociopath.” ... Ultimately, he said, regarding highly successful people, narcissism works — until it doesn’t.
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How Rude Co-Workers Can Mess Up Your Marriage
Having to work with rude or disrespectful colleagues can take a toll on an employees’ family life, according to new research. An international team of psychological scientists led by Sandy Lim of the University of Singapore hypothesized that employees who deal with high levels of incivility at work are more likely to take out their negative mood on their spouses once they get home. “Workplace incivility is a subtle form of interpersonal mistreatment,” Lim and colleagues explain.
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What Is a Constant Cycle of Violent News Doing to Us?
The New York Times: It has been a rough year. By now, our violence is down to a pattern, and there is a choreography to our reactions. A killer seeks out a nightclub, a church, an airport, a courthouse, a protest. Someone is shot on video, sometimes by the police, and marchers fill the streets. An attack is carried out in France, America, Turkey, Bangladesh, Lebanon, Tunisia, Nigeria, and then claimed and celebrated by a radical terror group. Our phones vibrate with news alerts. The talking heads fill air over cable news captions that shout “breaking news” in red. Rumors and misinformation abound. The comments erupt on Twitter, Facebook and news sites.
