Posts Tagged ‘decision making’
Risky Brains: Brain Structure Promotes Smoking, Drinking, Sex
Our survival requires balancing risk against reward, but some people take risks with abandon whereas others cower. Why? Consider elite rock climber, Emily Harrington, who became the first woman to free climb the extremely dangerous route Golden Gate, on El Capitan in a day, triumphing only a year after she suffered a near-fatal fall on the same route. According to…
Read MoreLate Filing Taxes? Blame Your Brain
“I’ll do it tomorrow.” Right, but tomorrow never comes. There are many studies on the psychology of procrastination, but brain imaging is giving researchers neurological insight into procrastinators’ brains by revealing differences in brain structure in people who habitually put off doing things until the last minute. Don’t expect the IRS to cut you any slack if your…
Read MoreTrump’s Victory and the Neuroscience of Rage
To understand this election you must understand the brain’s threat detection mechanism Pollsters, politicians, much of the press and public are dismayed by Donald Trump’s surprising victory in the presidential election, but not neuroscientists. The bewilderment arises from an attempt to comprehend the election result rationally, but rage, not reason, is what drove people to…
Read MoreBelief
A study published in the journal Science today (April 27, 2012) provides new understanding of the different cognitive strategies the mind uses in forming religious beliefs.
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