I've been waiting for several months for the arrival of some stuff. Initially, its production time didn't make me curious about its delivery time because its quality is more important than its speed. Since the announcement of its imminent delivery, my waiting is becoming an experience in itself. Source: my 2025 blog Waiting, waiting, waiting ........ I think, feel...
Psychology
Trump’s game of chicken
“The White House claimed victory in a showdown with Colombia over accepting flights of deported migrants from the U.S. on Sunday, hours after President Donald Trump threatened steep tariffs on imports and other sanctions on the longtime U.S. partner.” (AP, 27 January 2025). Trump’s psychological game is also known as game of chicken. Its essence is simple: who will...
Brainwave
Mid December 2024, the journal Neuron published a study entitled The unbearable slowness of being: Why do we live at 10 bits/s? I became aware through the NYT: The Speed of Human Thought Lags Far Behind Your Internet Connection, Study Finds. “It’s a bit of a counterweight to the endless hyperbole about how incredibly complex and powerful the human brain is,” said...
The psychology of secrets
Introduction LO: I noticed this 2024 British Psychological Society (BPS) article because I was curious about secrets, including the how, what, when, where, who and why of secrets. Actually, the introductory BPS statement feels weird: “In fact, you probably have about 13, five of which you've never told anybody else.” In my view, I have no secrets. Perhaps, my...
Why do we enjoy Schadenfreude?
On May 9, the Dutch entry for the 2023 Eurovision Song Contest did not make the finals. Before, there was lots of gloating. Several languages have sayings, like Schadenfreude (German), “The misfortune of others tastes like honey” (Japan), joie maligne (French), or geen beter vermaak dan leedvermaak (Dutch). So, why do we experience pleasure at the misfortune of...
If you can’t win the game, change the rules
I suppose my blog title is an ancient saying but I can't find any evidence. There is, however, a related quote by "Peter Diamandis, Founder of X Prize Foundation & Cofounder of Singularity University: If you can't win, change the rules. If you can't change the rules, ignore them." The rule in any competition (eg, business, sports) is to win. Wiki:...
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