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• Posted Scientific Principle: A lesson to live by to Psych 1001 Section 010 and 011 Fall 2011
  Psychology has been an excellent source of insight into the realm of the human brain. Above all, the information I found most useful and will always take with me was the first unit we covered. The section that stood out and that I put to use almost daily are the principles of scientific reasoning. As I evaluate situations in my daily life I put these principles to work to ensure I see the issue as it truly is and don't let the symptoms and claims cloud my reasoning. Extraordinary claims is the first rule I live by and that will stay with me. The reason that this sticks out in my mind is because too often I'm told stories and facts that seem rather far fetched. I no longer take these claims as fact with the scientific principles in use. Occam's razor also goes along with extraordinary claims because I now look for the most simple explanation over all the hype, unless there is the extraordinary evidence to support the claim. I am a now more rationally thinking person because I took this course. After I learned these principles to think scientifically, I make better decisions and give better advice as well....
• Posted the big five to Psych 1001 Section 010 and 011 Fall 2011
  There are many personality tests out there, but who's to say that these tests are an accurate measure of one's personality. The test that I would like to focus on is the Big Five inventory. Though this test seemed fairly accurate in its findings, does this test really consider enough factors? The factors that are tested in the Big Five are openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. These characteristics are important but not all powerful and the only ones that matter. These traits are not independent of each other, for example how open you are may be correlated to how extraverted you are. This causes the Big Five to not be a comprehensive analysis. Another aspect of this personality profile that is not cohesive is the admittance of other personality traits that are very important in determining the way that one reasons, thinks or acts. Important traits that need to also be considered are how masculine or feminine one is or motivation or religion, among many others. Another issue with this test is that it is a self-report test which lacks in reliability. One person may believe they are extremely outgoing or extraverted, but have a friend that is twenty times more so but they may still receive the same score. This is because people interpret questions in a different way because everyone has their own experiences and are bias to a degree....
• Posted the big five to Psych 1001 Section 010 and 011 Fall 2011
  There are many personality tests out there, but who's to say that these tests are an accurate measure of one's personality. The test that I would like to focus on is the Big Five inventory. Though this test seemed fairly accurate in its findings, does this test really consider enough factors? The factors that are tested in the Big Five are openness, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and neuroticism. These characteristics are important but not all powerful and the only ones that matter. These traits are not independent of each other, for example how open you are may be correlated to how extraverted you are. This causes the Big Five to not be a comprehensive analysis. Another aspect of this personality profile that is not cohesive is the admittance of other personality traits that are very important in determining the way that one reasons, thinks or acts. Important traits that need to also be considered are how masculine or feminine one is or motivation or religion, among many others. Another issue with this test is that it is a self-report test which lacks in reliability. One person may believe they are extremely outgoing or extraverted, but have a friend that is twenty times more so but they may still receive the same score. This is because people interpret questions in a different way because everyone has their own experiences and are bias to a degree....
• Posted Violence in the media to Psych 1001 Section 010 and 011 Fall 2011
  In discussion this week, we observed reactions from children watching Barney and Power Rangers. The reactions of the children would suggest that aggressive and violent media can effect one's aggression and violent behavior later in life. I believe this is an important concept to consider. In my opinion, playing violent video games and watching high pace, aggressive television shows does not impact the way that one will behave as they grow. According to both of the science daily news articles, there are studies showing that indulging in these activities do not correlate with aggressive behaviors and that there are many other factors that are necessary to consider when determining the way someone will act. In my personal experience, there is no impact on aggression, anger, or violence from violent media. Of the many friends and family that I have, we have all been exposed to violent video games, movies, and television from a very young age. In my family, TV, video game and movie ratings were ignored from the age of about four. My brother and I have never expressed any more aggression or violence than your average person, along with any of our friends or family members. The most aggressive people I know, were exposed to poor parenting, depressive and anxiety symptoms and poor living conditions. This is proof enough, along with the studies done by scientific journals that violent media is not the cause of aggressive behavior and that people need to stop blaming video games and tv shows and look at what the other more logical factors are. The simplest explanation is usually the most right and if you use a diamond decision making model you can also learn to evaluate this behavior for what it truly is. SOURCES: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080514213432.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101214112031.htm...
• Posted False Memory: A personal account to Psych 1001 Section 010 and 011 Fall 2011
  The concept of false memories is an interesting one. It is possible for sources outside of the person to influence the way that one perceives an event, even if said event never occurred. With the strong influences of those around you and those that are close to you, false memories are a reality, as we learned in discussion this week. Initially, I felt as if this concept was a hoax and could not be true, until the substantial evidence we reviewed and evaluated. The point that stood out most to me was the idea that if we are close friends or family with someone, we tend to take their word for things, especially if the effort of our family or friend is repeated by multiple members of this group. Personally, I have experienced this scenario. A few months ago, a girlfriend (Sally) and I took a trip to visit the University of Minnesota Duluth campus to visit with some friends. During the trip, Sally and I did not leave each other's side, so anything that either of us did, the other one knew about. A few weeks after returning from the trip, the rumor mill began to circulate in our hometown among friends, which I was unaware of. The rumor instigators, close friends of Sally, had told her that she had kissed a guy that she realistically had not, as I was present during the time the guy friend was with us. However, after hearing the same story from multiple parties within our social circle, Sally found herself creating a possible memory of the event. Once I was informed by Sally of the rumor, everything was set straight and she realized this memory was a created because of all the vivid stories she was told by our close friends. Luckily, Sally had me, a voice of reason, to stop her from totally believing the memory she created....
• Posted Instrumental Conditioning: Dog potty bell training to Psych 1001 Section 010 and 011 Fall 2011
  Thorndike's Instrumental Conditioning is what we learn from the relationships between behavior and consequences. An important aspect of this type of learning is that behavior can change due to the effects or consequences that the behavior has had on the individual. This is a very important aspect of psychology because it shows that we are able to adapt to situations and read patterns within our own lives and circumstances. I'm going to share with you my own experience with Instrumental conditioning and the law of effect. I have two miniature wiener dogs; dachshunds are notorious for not being able to be fully potty trained. After months upon months of accidents in the house, we decided to try out using a signal for our dogs to tell us when they wanted to go outside. The signal we used was a bell like those at front desks of office buildings. The dogs were showed the bell and initially they would not go near it unless I tapped the bell with their paw. After the bell made a ringing noise, I brought my dogs outside and if they went potty they got a treat. My family and I continued this training with a positive consequence of a treat and eventually the dogs started ringing the bell on their own when they had to go to the bathroom, as we continued to give them a treat afterward. It took months to train these dogs, but after some time had passed, they became independent in ringing the bell and they were also doing it on a regular basis. This example is a demonstration of how living things are able to adapt mentally and learn from their environments, especially when there is a consequence or effect attached to that action. Brief video of a random dog, same training: http://youtu.be/Fn5TtyDIRAM SOURCES: Gail Peterson Lecture Oct 5, 2011 (UMN-TC PSY 1001-F11) http://youtu.be/Fn5TtyDIRAM...
• Posted T minus 6 years and counting: the sun's explosion to Psych 1001 Section 010 and 011 Fall 2011
  In the Weekly World News, an entertainment tabloid, there was a claim made that stated that in less than six years the sun was going to blow up. The evidence stated was that there was a large explosion that had occurred on the surface of the sun that sent a massive plume of fire into space captured by satellite. The writers claim to have spoken to and gotten quotes on this information from a credible scientist. The scientist gave the writes at WWN the idea that the sun was over heating and would soon incinerate the earth and all of its inhabitants in less than six years. These statements made by WWN are not credible for a few reasons. Primarily, the scientist that the WWN writers spoke with has no affiliation with the credible scientific association that the article claims. Therefore, his testimony and comments regarding the explosion on the sun being a "sign" of the sun incinerating earth are not even ones to be considered. Also, the word "sign" does not meant that there is any evidentiary support or research done, but simply just his opinion. There could be other explanations and this violates the principle of extraordinary claims, along with my next point. Second, the WWN is an entertainment tabloid with no reliability. In fact, WWN produces many articles that are hoaxes and speculation based on minimal or no evidence, such as an article stating that there was a plan to blow up the moon to change the effect of global warming, which turned out to be a totally false article as well. Finally, this goes against Occam's razor because the thought of the fact the sun had an explosion will lead to the incineration of the earth is far-fetched. The simplest explanation is probably the best in this case, which is that there was a solar flare coupled with a buildup of physical gas causing a massive eruption. This however does not mean that there is a reason to worry that we will be blown to smithereens. VIDEO: WATCH SUN EXPLOSION-SUMMER 2011 The video is only 20 seconds long and pretty cool, take a look! http://youtu.be/Hyi4hjG6kDM Sources: http://youtu.be/Hyi4hjG6kDM http://io9.com/5810057/massive-eruption-on-the-sun-yesterday-means-a-solar-storm-zooming-by-earth-tomorrow http://www.snopes.com/science/sunboom.asp...