Experts such as pianists, athletes, and surgeons acquire their skills through extensive practice. However, the neurophysiological and psychological mechanisms that underlie the problem of making mistakes due to psychological stress remain unexplored in the context of pressured situations such as in piano competitions or the Olympics. Training for preventing such mistakes also remain unexplored, in...
Author: sp (sp )
Mental Health: Consuming Traditional Media Has Little Impact on Well-Being
Consuming traditional forms of media – including books, music and television – has little effect on short-term adult well-being, according to a new study published in Scientific Reports. It is often assumed that engaging with traditional types of media improves well-being, while using newer types of media, such as social media, worsens well-being. However, evidence of...
What’s the Difference Between Sugar, Other Natural Sweeteners and Artificial Sweeteners? a Food Chemist Explains Sweet Science
A quick walk down the drink aisle of any corner store reveals the incredible ingenuity of food scientists in search of sweet flavors. In some drinks you’ll find sugar. A diet soda might have an artificial or natural low-calorie sweetener. And found in nearly everything else is high fructose corn syrup, the king of U.S....
Does Checking Your Credit Score Help or Hurt?
Key Takeaways: Consumer finance website users with decreasing credit scores are less likely to want to view their credit reports again. Exposure to negative information about consumers’ credit scores may contribute to further decreasing of their credit scores. Avoidance of information on negative credit scores may actually help in some cases. January is filled with...
Re-Enrolling and Completing a Bachelor’s Degree Has Positive Effect on Annual Income
Returning to college to earn a bachelor’s degree leads to both an immediate increase in annual income after graduation and an increase in annual income growth each year after graduation, according to a Kansas State University economics researcher. Amanda Gaulke, assistant professor of economics in the College of Arts and Sciences, found that students who...
Bringing the Arts to STEM Fields: Creative Exercise Helps First-Year College Students Explore Majors
As interest in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) continues to grow, a chapter in a new book presents information on how to bring the arts to STEM fields. The chapter outlines a creative exercise that used picture books to help first-year college students explore their ideas, beliefs, and humanistic impulses regarding...
Regret Can Be All-Consuming – a Neurobehavioral Scientist Explains How People Can Overcome It
A friend of mine – we will call him “Jay” – was working for IBM in New York City in the early ‘90s. He was a computer programmer and made a good salary. Occasionally, competitors and startups approached Jay to join their companies. He had an offer from an interesting but small organization in Seattle,...
Sidney Poitier – Hollywood’s First Black Leading Man Reflected the Civil Rights Movement on Screen
In the summer of 1967, Martin Luther King Jr. introduced the keynote speaker for the 10th-anniversary convention banquet of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Their guest, he said, was his “soul brother.” “He has carved for himself an imperishable niche in the annals of our nation’s history,” King told the audience of 2,000 delegates. “I...
After Afghanistan, U.S. Military Presence Abroad Faces Domestic and Foreign Opposition in 2022
In August 2021, the U.S. military withdrew from Afghanistan after fighting a war there for nearly 20 years. In addition to Afghanistan, the U.S. has reduced its military presence in several other conflict zones in recent years. It has lowered troop levels in Iraq from 170,000 in 2007 to 2,500 in 2021, and in Syria...
How Cybercriminals Turn Paper Checks Stolen from Mailboxes into Bitcoin
While cybercrime gets a lot of attention from law enforcement and the media these days, I’ve been documenting a less high-tech threat emerging in recent months: a surge in stolen checks. Criminals are increasingly targeting U.S. Postal Service and personal mailboxes to pilfer filled-out checks and sell them over the internet using social media platforms....