Category Archives: Neuroscience

The Causation-Correlation Conflation

Not equal signThe question of cause  has haunted science and philosophy from their earliest days, in part because humans are wired for pattern-matching and confirmation bias. For all our supposed rationality, we confuse coincidence with correlation and correlation with causality.

Consequently, scientists must carefully design and control their experiments to remove bias, circular reasoning, self-fulfilling prophecies and hidden variables. They must respect the requirements and limitations of their methods, draw from representative samples and not overstate their results. Sometimes, however, that’s easier said than done. Read on to hear about…

10 Correlations that are Not Causations

Tracking 2013’s Tastiest Tech

Detail of Google Glass
Photo by Antonio Zugaldia

Looking back on the tech trends, triumphs and tribulation of 2013, a few patterns emerge: Private projects took off even while privacy took a beating; robots and AI servants made great strides while their drone cousins stalked us with cameras and weapons; reality was simultaneously augmented and scrutinized, while 3-D-printing and private-sector space races seemingly brought the whole world into the realm of DIY.

2013’s Biggest Tech Moments

Questioning the Decline of Human Intelligence

Photo by Dan Kassem.

Science still struggles to define, measure or understand intelligence, let alone definitively nail down its genetic components. Yet one Stanford geneticist argues that civilization was a bad move, and that human intelligence has gradually ratcheted down  since leaving its hunter-gatherer days behind.

Is the Peter Principle killing our intellect, or is Crabtree’s model another unripe hypothesis that received too much media attention? Read on to find out.

Did human intelligence peak thousands of years ago?

The scandalous sneeze

Fred Ott's Sneeze (film by William K.L. Dickson)
Fred Ott’s Sneeze

The 1894 kinetoscope of Fred Ott sneezing after inhaling a pinch of snuff, taken by Thomas Edison’s laboratory, was one of the first human acts ever committed to film. If you believe the internet rumors concerning the relationship between sneezing and sex, it might also have been the first movie orgasm.

No wonder nasal snuff was so popular for hundreds of years – and small wonder, too, that Pope Urban VIII threatened to excommunicate Catholics who took snuff in church….

Is Sneezing Really Like an Orgasm?

Facial expressions: Feel the burn

Smile
Photo by Zitona

We’ve all received the emails, posts and tweets from well-meaning friends: “It takes fewer muscles to smile than to frown. Why tire yourself?” But is it true? Has anyone actually tallied up the facial forces involved?  If so, did they account for the full range of smiles we express when amused, contented, excited, proud, satisfied or relieved? And is it true that the very act of smiling can make us happy?

Does it Take More Muscles to Frown than Smile?