January 31, 2007
Category: In other news
As a lefty, how did I miss this one when it came out? Left-handers "think faster". Why can't people tickle themselves? Can a robot park New Yorkers' cars? It's an open question, especially since the cars aren't very good at...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 4:50 PM • 3 Comments
Category: News
When our dentist told us Jim and Nora needed braces, we just took them straight to the orthodontist and signed them up for treatments -- we didn't even think twice about it. On the other hand, their treatments haven't been...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 7:49 AM • 12 Comments
January 30, 2007
Category: In other news
Publishers spending big bucks to try to stop the open-access publishing movement. Yes, these tactics are slimy, but are they not also a sign that open access is a real threat to commercial publishing? Speaking of free science reporting, check...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 4:42 PM • 3 Comments
Category: News
How much money do you really need? Nearly everyone, regardless of their wealth, responds with an amount higher than what they currently have. Many financial planners suggest that Americans need to save at least $2 million by retirement in order...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 9:00 AM • 5 Comments
January 29, 2007
Category: In other news
Are you smart or stupid? Take the test! Not scientific, but amusing nonetheless. Another "interesting" application of IQ (Warning: photos of swastikas). Data is rather old here, but I'd be surprised if these correlations don't still hold up. Fish may...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 5:17 PM • 4 Comments
Category: Perception • Research • Video Games / Technology
Nearly all video games that offer a first-person perspective -- where the view on-screen simulates what a real person would see as she navigates through the virtual environment -- also include a virtual map to help in navigation. Even my...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 3:04 PM • 2 Comments
Category: News
Suppose you're a granting agency, and you have $1 million to spend to help foster research in your area of interest. Would you be better off giving ten grants for $100,000 each, in hopes that one or more of the...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 9:01 AM • 13 Comments
January 28, 2007
Category: Podcasts
Here's the Cognitive Daily weekly podcast for January 28. Topics: Brains can tell the difference between metaphor and irony Want to drive safely? Talking to passengers may be okay, but talking on the phone isn't Don't forget that you can...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 8:09 PM • 3 Comments
January 26, 2007
Category: Casual Fridays
Last week's Casual Fridays study was inspired partially by reports we see in the mainstream media so often, proclaiming that Americans are ignorant about the rest of the world. If the rest of the world really is better than Americans...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 3:54 PM • 20 Comments
Category: General / Site news
As you may have noticed, we've been experimenting with a new posting format at CogDaily. Previously, we posted a "news" post every morning that included brief analysis of one news item followed by a set of "in other news" links...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 9:12 AM • 8 Comments
January 25, 2007
Category: In other news
Senses in the news: This seems too good to be true: But apparently it is true. See this paper and this blog post. If you're lucky enough to have eyes, here's a good analysis of how all your visual inputs...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 5:51 PM • 7 Comments
Category: Film • News
I'm currently reading Hugo Münsterberg's fascinating 1916 book, The Photoplay (I'm reading a paper copy, but the link takes you to the complete online text). It's one of the earliest serious works on film, which was unfortunately not well received...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 2:07 PM • 0 Comments
Category: News
At the ScienceBlogging conference last weekend, speaker Hunt Willard brought up an interesting dilemma, discussed by ScienceBlogger Suzanne Franks (aka Zuska): At some point, Willard said, cloning will be so straightforward we'll be able to clone a Neanderthal. He asked,...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 8:47 AM • 3 Comments
January 24, 2007
Category: In other news
However you spin it, handedness changes with aging. How Sapir-Whorf may still have life (via Mind Hacks). But see this analysis of the same data set. How labels help us learn. How computers help writers. How you can get a...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 5:11 PM • 0 Comments
Category: Attention • Movement and exercise • Research • Video Games / Technology
This is the first study I've seen demonstrating that talking to passengers is any different from talking on a cell phone
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Posted by Dave Munger at 1:45 PM • 5 Comments
Category: News
The New York Times has an article filled with some interesting anecdotes about the prevalence of magical thinking. Everyone, it seems, even college grads hoping to be admitted into graduate school, has a few superstitions. Let's face it: magic is...
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Posted by Dave Munger at 7:56 AM • 3 Comments