Deric Bownds

LATEST ARTICLES ( 2628 )

• Who Blames the Victim?

  Niemi and Young ask What determines whether someone feels sympathy or scorn for the victim of a crime? Is it a function of political affiliation? Of gender? Of... Read more

  Posted on 15 July 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Social Support, Stress, and the Aging Brain

  Sherman et al. find that the volume of the amygdala in older adults (a center for stress responses) is positively correlated with stress and negatively... Read more

  Posted on 14 July 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Is Donald Trump's Frontostriatal Connectivity Weakened?

  Chester et al. find an interesting correlation between grandiose narcissism and the strength of connections between brain areas that process self-relevant... Read more

  Posted on 13 July 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• The Secrets to a Long and Happy Life.

  Going through my queue of references that might become mindblog posts I come across this piece by O'Connor, describing findings from the Harvard Study of Adult... Read more

  Posted on 07 July 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Why We Become More Cautious with Age.

  Rutledge et al. find that the decrease in risk-taking that occurs on aging may be related to dopamine-modulated changes in Pavlovian approach behavior, and not ... Read more

  Posted on 06 July 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• A Simple Model for Why Moderate Beliefs Rarely Prevail.

  I attend the weekly chaos and complexity seminar at the University of Wisconsin when I am in Madison WI during the summer. I want to pass on the paper by... Read more

  Posted on 05 July 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• How Exercise Enhances Brain Renewal and Growth.

  Several studies by now have shown that exercises enhances the production of BDNF (Brain Derived Trophic Factor), which leads to the creation of new nerve cells... Read more

  Posted on 01 July 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Cognitive Fatigue Increases Impulsivity.

  Sort of makes sense.. Blain et al. show that if you use your lateral prefrontal cortex (LPFC) for control process required for an extended intense workday, its... Read more

  Posted on 30 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Training Our Brains Without Our Awareness.

  There is growing interest in the use of neurofeedback (NF) as a tool to study and treat various clinical conditions. The uses of NF are diverse, ranging across ... Read more

  Posted on 28 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Much Ado About Grit.

  Grit seems to have replaced resilience as the psychological virtue du jour, and like resilience (see Sehgal's piece " on "The profound emptiness of... Read more

  Posted on 27 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Think Less, Think Better.

  In an NYTimes piece, Moshe Bar translates the psycho-speak (which caused me to completely miss the point of the work) of an article describing research done wit... Read more

  Posted on 23 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Confronting the Prejudiced Brain

  I want to pass on a clip from an essay published on the greater good science center's website. The article is worth reading in its entirety, and you should... Read more

  Posted on 21 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Predicting Whether You Are Going to Vote.

  An interesting nugget from Rogers et al., who find that callers to potential voters are more likely to correctly predict whether the person called will vote tha... Read more

  Posted on 20 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Yes, There Have Been Aliens.

  This post falls under the "random curious stuff" category in MindBlog's description line. Adam Frank gives an interesting account of work he has published with... Read more

  Posted on 17 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Our (Bare) Shelves, Our Selves

  As is the case with many people moving through their 70's, I am having to downsize my surroundings. An 1861 stone schoolhouse converted to a residence that has... Read more

  Posted on 15 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Why Do We Feel Awe?

  I want to point to an article by Dacher Keltner on the functions of awe that appeared on the Slate website, along with others sponsored by the John Templeton... Read more

  Posted on 06 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Is Humanity Getting Better?

  I want to pass on a few clips from a stimulating essay by Leif Wenar, who suggests "The real trick to understanding our world is to see it with both eyes at... Read more

  Posted on 03 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Telephone Metadata Does Reveal Personal Details.

  Susan Landau reviews work of Mayer et al. that shows President Obama's statement: When it comes to telephone calls, nobody is listening to your telephone... Read more

  Posted on 02 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• A Science of Consciousness Carnival in Tucson.

  I started teaching my Biology of Mind course at the University of Wisconsin in the early 1990's, and was inspired and stimulated by attending the first of the... Read more

  Posted on 01 June 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE

• Exercise and Intermittent Fasting Improve Brain Plasticity and Health

  

  I have had numerous requests for a PDF of the article referenced in a Dec. 29, 2014 post - on how exercise and fasting stimulate brain plasticity and... Read more

  Posted on 30 May 2016 PSYCHOLOGY, SCIENCE