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Come On, I Thought I Knew That!
The New York Times: Trick question: Is it easier to remember a new fact if it appears in normal type, like this, or in big, bold letters, like this? The answer is neither. Font size has no effect on memory, even though most people assume that bigger is better. But font style does. New research finds that people retain significantly more material — whether science, history or language — when they study it in a font that is not only unfamiliar but also hard to read. Read the whole story: The New York Times
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How politicians clean up
The Globe and Mail: Researchers at Cornell University have found that a subtle psychological manipulation can have statistically significant political effects,” The Boston Globe says. “Simply being in the presence of a hand sanitizer or a small sign about using hand wipes was enough to make people more conservative morally, socially and fiscally. So liberals should be nervous any time they see cleanliness paraphernalia in polling stations.” The study appears in the journal Psychological Science. Read the whole story: The Globe and Mail
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Our beliefs shape our learning: Study
MSN: If something is easy to learn, then it will be just as easy to remember - nearly everyone uses this simple rule to assess his or her own learning. But holding different belief about the nature of intelligence too can influence our learning, psychological scientists say. It has long been known that these beliefs have important bearing on people's motivation to learn, the journal Psychological Science reports. The so-called 'entity theorists' hold that each person possesses a fixed level of intelligence, which cannot be improved, says study co-author David B. Miele, of Columbia University. Meanwhile, 'incremental theorists' believe that intelligence is malleable.
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Neuroscience in the Courtroom
Scientific American: By a strange coincidence, I was called to jury duty for my very first time shortly after I started as director of a new MacArthur Foundation project exploring the issues that neuroscience raises for the criminal justice system. Eighty of us showed up for selection in a case that involved a young woman charged with driving under the influence, but most of my fellow citizens were excused for various reasons, primarily their own DUI experiences. Finally, I was called to the judge. “Tell me what you do,” he said. “I am a neuroscientist,” I answered, “and I have actually done work relevant to what goes on in a courtroom.
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The Psychology of Cheating
The New York Times: To some it was a fitting end to a pointless witch hunt. On Wednesday, after weeks of graphic testimony about steroid use, a jury in San Francisco cleared the former baseball slugger Barry Bonds of all charges but one, obstruction of justice. And even that might not hold up. But for those who feel most strongly about cheating, the verdict was more like a kick in the stomach. Flouting the rules is, for them, not only morally wrong but a lasting offense to good citizens everywhere: If guilty, offenders should pay, whether they’re rich or poor, malingerers or masters of the universe — like the financial figures central to the economic collapse of 2008.
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Alcohol-Energy Drink Combo Riskier Than Booze Alone, Study Says
Bloomberg Businessweek: Combining the caffeine jolt of energy drinks with the intoxicating effects of alcohol is riskier than drinking alcohol alone, a new study suggests. Adding to growing research on the effects of trendy cocktails such as vodka and the energy drink Red Bull, scientists from Northern Kentucky University split 56 college students between the ages of 21 and 33 into four groups. The students received either an alcoholic beverage, an energy drink, a mixed drink with both ingredients, or a placebo. All drinks were made to look and taste like alcoholic energy drinks, so participants did not know which they were consuming.
