Did you know that hearing is partly a visual sport?
This is especially true for understanding what people are saying. With speech perception, there’s a definite link between hearing and vision.
In some cases, what we see actually overrides what we hear.
You’d be surprised how easily our brains are fooled. It all comes down to something called the McGurk Effect.
Check out this video…You’ll be amazed!
Sources: Wikipedia | BBC Television
Written by Nicholas Klassen
“C’mon…everyone else is doing it…”
How many times did you hear that phrase in the schoolyard?
It starts at a young age and through our experiences even as adults, we’re generally taught to believe that:
Conformity = Reward
Nonconformity = Ridicule
Social pressure comes in waves and we naturally want to be accepted by the cool kids.
Our desire to belong, to be liked and feel included can often overrule anything that is going on in the logical part of our brain.
For example…
Does a teenager start smoking because he doesn’t know the health risks – or is the voice that’s telling him to conform speaking louder than the voice of better judgement?
We may think we have a mind of our own, but depending on the circumstance it can take a great deal of effort for us to step away from the masses.
Some psychological experiments have been done…
Here’s one of the most famous…
Such is the power of social pressure!
Sources: wikipedia
Do not read further until you have watched the video below.
Whether you think you’ve seen this video or not … this version is guaranteed to blow your mind
As you’ve realized from the video…
We often don’t “see” what we’re looking at, rather we usually only see what we know and what we’re looking for.
So busy counting passes, many people miss the gorilla walking across the screen on their first view. Being familiar with the experiment, I saw the gorilla, but was apparently blind to everything else – colour changes and missing players.
This is sometimes referred to as ‘perceptual blindness’ or ‘inattentional blindness’.
Missing things that are in “plain sight” may seem like a severe weakness…
However…
Hidden within this phenomenon lies a secret human power that very few people understand or leverage.
This ”hidden power” has been credited with changing many lives for the better; almost providing an ‘unfair advantage’ when used properly.
Want to discover your hidden power? . . . click here . . .
Resources: wikipedia | ca.news.yahoo.com | i-perception.perceptionweb.com
The effect of placebo pills has almost become common knowledge.
But what about placebo surgery?
Can “pretend surgery” eliminate symptoms?
Watching this video reinforces the fact that we have a lot to learn about the power of the mind…
Sources: dailymotion.com
It’s Valentine’s Day and there’s great news for happy couples…
Despite all the heart-shaped boxes of chocolate consumed over the life of a relationship, statistics show that happy couples live longer and just tend to be healthier.
Happily married couples are said to have fewer instances of cancer and heart failure.
Tag-Team Stress Fighters…
Among other reasons, part of it is the way they handle stress.
Happy couples can team-up against daily stressors, which so often cause health issues over the long haul.
By having an outlet or someone to talk with about the day’s challenges, it can take some of the deadly poison out of stress.
Do Singles Stand A Chance?
The singletons among us should not be discouraged.
Research is also finding that interaction between 2 people – be they partners, parent and child or just between close friends is also beneficial to mental and physical health.
When we interact with anyone who we feel a connection with, our body produces dopamine. This chemical generally makes us feel good and more specifically can reduce blood pressure, lower stress and increase our tolerance for pain.
We all need good relationships in our lives. It’s definitely more fun – but it’s also necessary!
“Man does not live by bread alone”.
Sources: bbc.co.uk
Your trainer tells you, “Drop and do as many push-ups as you can.”
You get to your 15th push-up and it becomes obvious to you and the trainer that 15 is as many as you can do.
But the question is…
Is 15 ALL that you can do?
The answer is no!
If you rest a little you can do 15 more.
Rest again and do 15 more.
Rest again and do 20 more.
20?? Wait a minute. How did that happen?
The magic is in the good habit – The repetition! Consistent repetition increases our capabilities both physically and mentally.
And the good news is, we usually don’t need to rest for a week in between.
Imagine the possibilities…
Imagine all the things we could accomplish in life if we took small, positive steps forward every day.
It is easy….But then again, what’s easy to do is also easy not to do.
We sometimes fail to see the bigger picture. The small activity seems too insignificant and so we tell ourselves – “I’ll rest for 6 days and just do 700 push-ups on Sunday”.
The best way to reach big goals is to slowly put one foot in front of the other.
“Yard by yard, life is hard..Inch by inch, life’s a cinch!” (unknown)
Written by Nicholas Klassen
You’ve heard the saying: “An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”
While apples have many health benefits, the saying may have more to do with the wisdom of good habits than it does with apples themselves.
Despite how healthy they are, I suspect eating 9 apples 10 days from now will not have the same benefit as eating 1 apple every day.
One of the reasons diets, exercise plans and most other new year’s resolutions die in the first or second month is that we start at a pace we aren’t willing or able to maintain.
Ever tried to lose weight?
You probably noticed that it was a lot more fun putting it on than taking it off.
It’s not something that happens overnight (despite what late night infomercials may lead you to believe).
If we look for quick fixes, we often set ourselves up for failure.
Running 10 miles on day 1, after being inactive for 365 will do more harm than good. It’s likely to hurt you physically and take that motivational wind out of your sails. It’s not sustainable and you won’t want do it again tomorrow.
Perhaps it isn’t as glamorous, but there is some wisdom in starting slow with the ability to finish.
In the next post:
The Forgotten Principle of Success.
With this 1 simple strategy we can achieve anything we want…
Why do some people bite their nails?
Is it stress? People who bottle-up everyday tension need a release valve – and for some it might be the frequent biting of their nails.
Another theory is that it is some kind of nutritional deficiency – in particular if the nails are bitten and swallowed.
It can be an unsightly habit and very hard to shake-off.
Why can’t they just stop?
Nail biting is an ‘unconscious’ activity – the person may not be aware they are doing it.
Nail-biters may also have a form of OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder).
Picture this…
Have you ever trimmed a shrub or bush in an attempt to make it even, only to find that your obsession with symmetry caused you to trim and trim until all you had left was an ugly miniature version?
Well, the same idea applies to some nail-biters. They continuously bite and pick their fingers for symmetry – thinking it makes the problem look a bit better, but ironically just making things worse in the end.
3 ideas for the biter:
1. Pay attention to “prime biting time” – Ex. Is it while watching TV, reading, driving, etc.?
2. Create a physical obstacle during those times – Ex. Wear a pair of gloves, sit on hands, etc.
3. Spend a lot of money on a manicure so biting becomes more painful (at least financially) than not biting.
Sources: The Odd Body (Dr. Stephen Juan), brainphysics.com
You may have heard about “phantom pain”… where people feel pain or itchiness in limbs they do not possess. (More on phantom pain…)
But if like most people these days you cling to your cell phone (what you might call “the 5th limb”) there’s a chance you’ve experienced what is called the “Phantom Ring”.
What’s a Phantom Ring?
The phantom ring is a phenomenon where people believe their cell phone is ringing when in fact it is not.
This is also cleverly referred to as ‘ringxiety’ and ‘fauxcellarm’.
The explanations for why this happens are not exactly concrete, but this auditory illusion usually occurs in the midst of other noise – like while taking a shower, watching TV or using a blow-dryer.
Often times the tones of these noises are similar to those of a mobile ringtones (usually between 1000-6000 hertz) – and our brain gets fooled into thinking it is hearing the phone.
In a society where we are obsessed with being connected, it is likely a case of hearing things (even falsely) that we’re anxiously listening for or waiting to hear.
Good Vibrations…
Possibly even more mysterious than the phantom ring is the phantom vibration – where people believe they are feeling their phone vibrate against their skin, even when it isn’t.
Sources: Wikipedia
How much do you write by hand in any given day or week?
Between typing and texting, most of us probably do less handwriting than ever.
“So what’s the problem?” you ask…
Well, for adults this may or may not be a big issue, but many studies are suggesting that handwriting is very important for the brain development of children – helping them with motor skills and generating and expressing ideas.
Researchers have found that the finger movements used to write by hand actually stimulate parts of the brain related to short-term memory, language and thought.
Is this really a concern?
I suppose as with most innovations, only time can tell if there would be any long-term effects…beyond unpractised, sloppy handwriting.
What we do know is that in the United States, children average only about 1 hour per week learning penmanship.
And it’s such an alarming issue in China that they actually created a word to describe it: “Tibiwangzi” – translated as “take pen, forget character”.
What Writers Think…
When creating their books, many famous authors still insist on hand-writing their first drafts. Some of these writers would suggest there are many creative & mental advantages for doing so (even as adults) that result in better quality work.
Sources: theweek.com
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