I was reading an article in USA Today the other day that was discussing Siri’s response to difficult human questions, and how to make the program better. It seems that Apple’s automated voice in a smart phone isn’t too good at responding to statements like “I’m going to kill myself” … Continue reading →
We all know narcissism exists in the world. But none of us like to think of ourselves as self centered or narcissistic. This is why something stuck me as I was watching the speech given by Brett Favre during the Thursday night football game on Thanksgiving between the Bears & … Continue reading →
Looking to date online? Here’s a helpful tip: choose a screen name that starts with the letter A through M and you’ll improve your chances, according to a study in Evidence Based Medicine. This is because most of the search algorithms used by these services sort profile results alphabetically, and … Continue reading →
“Magic is about meaning. If you look at the world as just dead, where everything is a meaningless motion of molocules, nothing has any value. But that’s not true, because every human being sees something important and gives it meaning. Human minds see significance and meaning in things. We make … Continue reading →
“The most creative, most successful people, fail all the time. I’m working with Pixar — Will (McCormack) and I are co-writing the script for Toy Story 4 — and there’s definitely an attitude there of ‘fail fast, fail often.’ Our team does that. We cycle through ideas. Great ones and … Continue reading →
” When Tom (Hayden) and I split up, I wanted to kill him. But a wise woman told me: ‘It will take 2 years, and you’ll be friends.’ I said, ‘no way.’ But then we became friends. And I was at Vadin’s bedside when he died. No matter how angry … Continue reading →
Technology creeps. When sociologists worry about how the digital age is changing us, it’s not so much that terminator robots are going to rise up against us. It’s that technologies are habit forming, and habits – especially the bad kind-are addictive. Like the frog that boils to death in a … Continue reading →
Too many people think of psychology as a quaint side point to their daily lives; an abstract science that has little bearing on how they live. In reality, it’s what guides life itself. As Carl Jung once pointed out, more people have died because of imagined beliefs and flaws in … Continue reading →
Studies have consistently shown that merely changing our facial expressions can change our mood. When forced to smile, people become happier, and when told to clench their teeth, they get angry. These results hold true even when participants are tricked into maintaining these facial expressions, such as when asked to … Continue reading →
I remember my mom telling me, “there’s always going to be someone who’s a better singer. There’s always going to be someone more fit. There’s always someone who’s going to be, in your mind, better than you — who you’re comparing yourself to. But you can’t do that, because you … Continue reading →