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1500 questions
178
votes
6 answers
How is it that taking a break from a problem sometimes allows you to figure out the answer?
As a computer programmer, I have noticed an interesting phenomenon: If I am stuck on a particular problem in my work, often if I stop thinking about the problem and do something else, the answer will suddenly come to me.
Is there a name for this…
Josh
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99
votes
6 answers
Why do humans have sex in private?
Human couples usually have sex in private, hidden not only from predators, but also - other humans. It is unlike behavior of most species, including our relatives: bonobos, chimpanzees and gorillas.
Is private sex mostly a biological or cultural…
Piotr Migdal
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72
votes
3 answers
Does writing something down help memorize it?
This is a question inspired by this recent question on the Chinese Language & Usage website.
Someone asked why they needed to learn how to write Chinese characters, since today we mostly use computers or text messages to do so. Several users replied…
laurent
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72
votes
4 answers
What makes people easily subscribe to pseudoscientific theories?
There are many theories/disciplines that have been categorized as pseudoscience in the scientific community.
The list includes many things that are regularly even quoted in media like graphology, astrology, psychoanalysis, personality types,…
Bharadwaj Srigiriraju
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63
votes
2 answers
Is leg jiggling a focus aid?
This is slightly left-field, but I am interested in the Cognitive Science implications of this question: Many people, myself included, are "leg jigglers", meaning we often sit jiggling or bouncing a leg - usually to the irritation of those around…
Schroedingers Cat
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61
votes
1 answer
By learning to read and write upside down, what did I do to myself?
If you've ever read Encyclopedia Brown books, you'll be familiar with the backwards writing in the back of the book that explains the solution to the case.
When I was in my mid-late teens (I don't remember the age exactly) I decided to teach myself…
Wayne Werner
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60
votes
5 answers
Does evidence support Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs?
Maslow's Heirarchy of Needs (shown below) is a popular concept and is often taught in basic psychology courses, and often less objectively taught in Business and Marketing courses.
A common problem with Maslow's Hierarchy is the difficulty of…
Ben Brocka
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58
votes
3 answers
If babies were isolated, would they develop their own language?
Let’s say that two or more babies/infants from the age of 0 were put in an environment without the affection of adults to teach them how to speak. Would the babies after 13 or so years develop their own language?
Let's assume that someone or…
John
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58
votes
3 answers
Can critical thinking be taught?
Critical thinking is central to the scientific method and believed to be essential to a successful democracy. Recently, the 2012 Texas Republican platform voiced the party's opposition to the teaching of critical thinking skills in public schools.…
Artem Kaznatcheev
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53
votes
4 answers
What are current neuronal explanations and models of 'consciousness'?
I would like to understand more about consciousness from a neuroscientific perspective. I have a limited understanding of it in the philosophical/psychological sense through lectures.
Although it is hard to define, here is a definition from Christof…
Vielle
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53
votes
3 answers
Is Golden Ratio's association with perceived beauty a myth?
Many people advocate using the Golden Ratio in design (e.g. logo design).
Is the Golden Ratio's purported aesthetic appeal supported by scientific evidence?
user13107
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50
votes
1 answer
Does caffeine improve performance for habituated consumers?
I've seen a fair few studies over the while that suggest caffeine increases arousal in the short term and that for some tasks, this will also increase performance (there's a few citations here).
However, as with most drugs, habituation leads to…
Jeromy Anglim
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46
votes
5 answers
Why would the brain flip the images perceived by your eyes?
The following is a common scientific statement, which you don't have to google long for to find:
The eye views images upside-down in the manner of a camera lens, but
our brains reinterpret this input to allow us to see things the
correct way…
Steven Jeuris
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45
votes
8 answers
What is the current "accepted" science behind dream interpretation?
I'm doing some casual reading about dream interpretation (meaning I'm reading the wikipedia entry) and the article mentions that there are several ways of thinking about dreams from a psychological standpoint:
In modern times, various schools of…
Rahul
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44
votes
4 answers
Is the Myer Briggs Type indicator (MBTI) a reasonable scientific theory?
Background:
MBTI stands for Myers-Briggs Type Indicator. It's a theory that suggests that people can be divided into 16 types, based on the way they percieve and analyse information (whether they make decisions based on logic or their feel, rely…
Vasily Sochinsky
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