Realistic Models With Everyday Objects
“This may look like an Antarctic scene, but it is a model called Sugarland, made by artist Matthew Albanese out of 20 pounds of sugar, jelly and corn syrup. The crystals were grown in his studio over the course of two months.”
See more at The Telegraph
Cable News: We Pick What We Want To Hear
“Cable news is not good for the soul. People make fun of Jersey Shore, but at least those randy kids don’t reinforce our deep-seated political biases. A new paper by Shawn Powers of USC and Mohammed el-Nawawy of Queens University of Charlotte looked at the effect of international cable news on the ideology of its viewers. Not surprisingly, they found that people were only interested in “news” that didn’t contradict what they already believed:
‘Powers and el-Nawawy show that global media consumers tuned in to international news media that they thought would further substantiate their opinions about U.S. policies and culture, and provide them with information on the international issues that they deemed most important. The study found a strong relationship between the participants’ attitudes toward U.S. policy and culture and their choice of broadcaster. Those who were dependent on BBC World and especially CNNI were overall more supportive of U.S. foreign policy.’”
Read more at Frontal Cortex
Disappearing sea plant.
How very bizarre.
Thinking About Time Makes You Sway
“Although we can’t technically travel through time (yet), when we think of the past or the future we engage in a sort of mental time travel. This uniquely human ability to psychologically travel through time arguably sets us apart from other species.
Researchers have recently looked at how mental time travel is represented in the sensorimotor systems that regulate human movement. It turns out our perceptions of space and time are tightly coupled.
University of Aberdeen psychological scientists Lynden Miles, Louise Nind and Neil Macrae conducted a study to measure this in the lab. They fitted participants with a motion sensor while they imagined either future or past events. The researchers found that thinking about past or future events can literally move us: Engaging in mental time travel (a.k.a. chronesthesia) resulted in physical movements corresponding to the metaphorical direction of time. Those who thought of the past swayed backward while those who thought of the future moved forward.”
Read more at Science Daily (Thanks SonOfSam)
New York Woman Rips Picasso Painting
“A significant Pablo Picasso painting was damaged after a woman attending art class lost her balance, fell into “The Actor” and tore it, The Metropolitan Museum of Art said.
The unusually large canvas, measuring 77.25 by 45.38 inches (196 by 115 centimeters), sustained a vertical tear of about six inches (15 centimeters) in the lower right-hand corner in the accident on Friday.
The museum, located on the eastern edge of New York’s Central Park, did not elaborate on why the woman fell.”
Read more at Yahoo News (Thanks SonOfSam)
Ambidextrous Children ‘More Likely To Be Hyperactive’
“Children who write with both hands are more likely to struggle in school and have hyperactivity disorder symptoms, research suggests.
A study by scientists from Imperial College London found ambidextrous children were twice as likely to struggle as their classmates. They were also more likely to have difficulties with language.
Experts told Paediatrics journal the differences might be down to the brain’s wiring. But they said much more work was needed to explore this.”
Read more at the BBC (Thanks Fosca)
Scientology Boarding Mixup Grounds Medical Mission To Haiti
“A plane chartered Saturday by members of the Church of Scientology was supposed to bring a group of volunteers to Haiti via JFK Airport. Yet, due to a chaotic boarding process, about 70 doctors, nurses and translators were left behind.
“I think they’re doing a good thing. But it wasn’t done right today and people have died in Haiti because of it,” said volunteer Jake Bevilacqua.
“They need to help us get these pain medications and equipment and antibiotics to the people who are dying, literally,” said volunteer Doreen Evans.
Doctors and nurses from as far away as Brazil arrived at JFK Saturday morning with thousands of dollars worth of medicine and medical equipment. They say they were confirmed on the Church of Scientology flight, but during the boarding process they say the passenger manifest was misplaced.”
Read more at NY1 (thanks, Bart)
Mind Reading, Brain Fingerprinting And The Law
“What if a jury could decide a man’s guilt through mind reading? What if reading a defendant’s memory could betray their guilt? And what constitutes ‘intent’ to commit murder? These are just some of the issues debated and reviewed in the inaugural issue of WIREs Cognitive Science, the latest interdisciplinary project from Wiley-Blackwell, which for registered institutions will be free for the first two years.
In the article “Neurolaw,” in the inaugural issue of WIREs Cognitive Science, co-authors Walter Sinnott-Armstrong and Annabelle Belcher assess the potential for the latest cognitive science research to revolutionize the legal system.
Neurolaw, also known as legal neuroscience, builds upon the research of cognitive, psychological, and social neuroscience by considering the implications for these disciplines within a legal framework. ”
Read more at Science Daily (thanks, ReliegiousMarie)
Seven Psychological Principles Of Scams
“Good hustlers are excellent intuitive psychologists. Just like magicians they understand enough about how the mind works to exploit its vulnerabilities. Our fascination with hustlers is insatiable and, despite being criminals, they are frequently portrayed by Hollywood in a flattering light, in films like The Sting, Catch Me If You Can and the Ocean’s Eleven trilogy.
Of course the reality is nowhere near as romantic, especially if you’ve fallen for one of the cons. Frank Stajano, a security expert at Cambridge University, has been working with Paul Wilson, a scam artist and author of BBC TV’s The Real Hustle to identify the 7 major psychological principles used in short cons to part people from their cash (Stajano & Wilson, 2009).”
Read more at Psyblog
Leonardo Da Vinci’s Remains To Be Exhumed
“Scientists and historians from Italy’s National Committee for Cultural Heritage have sought permission to open the artist’s tomb at Amboise Castle in the Loire valley.
While the identity of the Mona Lisa has been debated for centuries, some scholars have suggested that da Vinci may have painted himself as a woman in the masterpiece due to his love of riddles.
Experts believe that if they find the Renaissance painter’s skull, they can recreate his face and compare it to the Mona Lisa.”
Read more at The Telegraph
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