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Why Do Giraffes Have Long Necks?
The Huffington Post: Anyone who has seen this majestic creature in the wild, nibbling away at the top of an acacia tree, has to marvel at the wonder of evolution. The giraffe's long neck is a perfect adaptation to the animal's natural habitat. Clearly the giraffe evolved this uncommon and helpful trait in order to reach those nourishing leaves. That's how natural selection works. If you're a 6-year-old. As appealing as this explanation is, it shows a complete misunderstanding of the concept of adaptation by natural selection, a key concept in the theory of evolution. What's wrong with the 6-year-old's idea is not its focus on the neck's function.
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Science: U.S. presidents are becoming more narcissistic over time
The Washington Post: Presidents of the United States are gradually becoming more narcissistic, and that might not necessarily be a bad thing. That isn't meant as an endorsement of the unethical behavior associated with some kinds of narcissism in a new analysis of data on presidential personalities. Unethical behavior should never be condoned. Ever! Well, okay. Maybe sometimes. But only sometimes. In the right circumstances. If you are concerned with good executive leadership in general, say, you might be willing to forgive the occasional lapse.
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Beware the Long-Winded Leader
The most overbearing talkers in the office can be bad for business. Whether it’s in the conference room or by the water cooler, they display an incessant need to dominate every meeting and every conversation. And if they’re in positions of authority, they can douse any ideas from others. But loquacious folks who aren’t in leadership roles don’t get away with controlling the dialogue, new research shows. Their colleagues simply don’t allow them to hijack a meeting or override anyone else’s input. And that leads to better sharing of information and ideas. The research is based on experimental studies led by psychological scientist Leigh Plunkett Tost of the University of Michigan.
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Overeating Due to Stress?
Scientific American: Stress can make some people (me included) lose our appetite. Other folks find comfort in food. But such behaviors may actually even out in the long term. Because researchers find that people who change eating patterns when stressed out may actually make up for those not-so-healthy impulses during easier times. So finds a study in the journal Psychological Science. Volunteers for the study self-identified as either “munchers” or “skippers”. Each person had to interact with another person via video chat, with the intention of meeting them later.
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The Surprising Science Of Workplace Training
The Brilliant Blog: The problem with workplace training is that it seems so simple: Show employees what to do, have them practice it a few times, and you’re done. But “training is not as intuitive as it may seem,” notes Eduardo Salas, a professor of psychology at the University of Central Florida. “There is a science of training that shows that there is a right way and a wrong way to design, deliver, and implement a training program.” Salas is the lead author of “The Science of Training and Development in Organizations: What Matters in Practice,” a report published recently in the journal Psychological Science in the Public Interest.
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Actually, Do Let Them See You Sweat: The Science Behind Why Sweating Before Negotiating Is Good
Fast Company: “If you're sweating and your heart rate is up, it's seen as a sign something is going wrong, that you're too nervous, off balance, flustered,” M.I.T. associate professor Jared Curhan tells the New York Times. “Whereas we're showing that something could be very right.” The "very right" is this: As published in the journal Psychological Science, Curhan and his co-authors found that physical activity can make you better in negotiations, but only if you feel confident beforehand. If you're anxious, the activity will only make matters worse--which reveals something interesting about the way we relate to our phsyical and emotional states. Read the whole story: Fast Company
