I'm always eager to endorse a little 'infotainment'
Showing posts with label brain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label brain. Show all posts
Friday, February 11, 2011
Thursday, February 10, 2011
Brain Teaser
Gotta keep that brain sharp! Leave answers in the comments.
The International Enchantments Festival was held this year in Liverpool, England, and just about filled the town's finer hotels to capacity. Among the leading exhibitions were five new enchanted objects, each designed by a different person (including Prof. Kimil), each of which reputedly had a different capability. Unfortunately, each had a different type of breakdown during the demonstration of its skills. Can you discover, in order of exhibition, the names of the inventor and his or her charmed object, what each object could do, and a description of its breakdown?
1. The vase (which didn't explode) appeared sometime before the object that plays piano.
2. The object charmed to change a baby's diaper kept tipping over until the child's distraught parents called a stop to the show; this object isn't Prof. Lobiesk's creation.
3. Mr. Phantom's object (which is either the quill or the tripod) didn't appear third.
4. The object programmed to assemble Danish furniture (which didn't explode or run around in circles) appeared either first or fourth.
5. Prof. Black's object appeared sometime before the object that wouldn't move.
6. The frying pan and the object that plays piano are, in some order, the object that started to pour out smoke and the object that appeared second.
7. The tripod doesn't draw humorous caricatures.
8. The quill didn't appear just before the frying pan.
9. The object that wouldn't move wasn't programmed to assemble Danish furniture.
10. The frying pan appeared sometime before Prof. Mott's object.
11. The tripod appeared sometime after the object that prepares French cuisine.
12. Prof. Kimil's object appeared just before the boot.
The International Enchantments Festival was held this year in Liverpool, England, and just about filled the town's finer hotels to capacity. Among the leading exhibitions were five new enchanted objects, each designed by a different person (including Prof. Kimil), each of which reputedly had a different capability. Unfortunately, each had a different type of breakdown during the demonstration of its skills. Can you discover, in order of exhibition, the names of the inventor and his or her charmed object, what each object could do, and a description of its breakdown?
1. The vase (which didn't explode) appeared sometime before the object that plays piano.
2. The object charmed to change a baby's diaper kept tipping over until the child's distraught parents called a stop to the show; this object isn't Prof. Lobiesk's creation.
3. Mr. Phantom's object (which is either the quill or the tripod) didn't appear third.
4. The object programmed to assemble Danish furniture (which didn't explode or run around in circles) appeared either first or fourth.
5. Prof. Black's object appeared sometime before the object that wouldn't move.
6. The frying pan and the object that plays piano are, in some order, the object that started to pour out smoke and the object that appeared second.
7. The tripod doesn't draw humorous caricatures.
8. The quill didn't appear just before the frying pan.
9. The object that wouldn't move wasn't programmed to assemble Danish furniture.
10. The frying pan appeared sometime before Prof. Mott's object.
11. The tripod appeared sometime after the object that prepares French cuisine.
12. Prof. Kimil's object appeared just before the boot.
Suggested Reading
Brain Video of the Day!
Hopefully I'll be able to find a new brain video everyday...
Article of the day!
I will try to find at least one cognitive science article a day for your enjoyment.
http://med.stanford.edu/ism/2010/november/neuron-imaging.html
Enjoy!
http://med.stanford.edu/ism/2010/november/neuron-imaging.html
Enjoy!
What's that? What's it do?
This is the first in a series that will pick a single part of the brain and explain its function. As the first I will pick the most obvious one, THE CEREBRUM!
The cerebrum is not the brain itself, although the word comes from the latin "the brain" or "the understanding", but is the largest part of the brain. It has two cerebral hemispheres that are constituted of: cerebral cortices, basal nuclei, and the limbic system. Together, with your cerebellum, it coordinates and executes every conscious task you ever do.
It is easily one of the most important structures, not just in your brain, but in your body.
The cerebrum is not the brain itself, although the word comes from the latin "the brain" or "the understanding", but is the largest part of the brain. It has two cerebral hemispheres that are constituted of: cerebral cortices, basal nuclei, and the limbic system. Together, with your cerebellum, it coordinates and executes every conscious task you ever do.
It is easily one of the most important structures, not just in your brain, but in your body.
My mind went blank...
This is most definitely not an uncommon phrase. Many people talk about the wonders and awesomeness of the brain and its processes, but as you may well know, it also runs into a lot of problems. The way our brains are wired profoundly affects how we interact with the world, and any one who holds logic and objectivity in high esteem is going to want to know how to avoid falling victim to these:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases
This list shows how our way of thinking can be innately flawed, things such as the confirmation bias. Like when ever you are looking for a red car, and suddenly realized there are a lot of red cars? However, in actuality there were is probably an equal amount of every color car, but since you were specifically looking for that it stood out to you. Conversely, some of these biases aren't really a bad thing. Some of them are useful in everyday life. For instance, the endowment effect, where you expect to be paid more for something than you would be willing to pay for it, is a great bargaining mentality in which you try to maximize profit and minimize loss.
So even though the brain is an amazingly complex structure capable of doing extraordinary things, remember it is by no measure perfect, and simply by realizing that you can increase its capability!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cognitive_biases
This list shows how our way of thinking can be innately flawed, things such as the confirmation bias. Like when ever you are looking for a red car, and suddenly realized there are a lot of red cars? However, in actuality there were is probably an equal amount of every color car, but since you were specifically looking for that it stood out to you. Conversely, some of these biases aren't really a bad thing. Some of them are useful in everyday life. For instance, the endowment effect, where you expect to be paid more for something than you would be willing to pay for it, is a great bargaining mentality in which you try to maximize profit and minimize loss.
So even though the brain is an amazingly complex structure capable of doing extraordinary things, remember it is by no measure perfect, and simply by realizing that you can increase its capability!
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