June 2009

Not long ago we learned that daydreaming is the key to creativity, and now I've got even better news: napping makes you smarter! Or, according to Richard Restak's new book, Think Smart: A Neuroscientist's Prescription for Improving Your…

Did you ever get a meal at a restaurant that you didn't like, but have them wrap up the leftovers anyway? Even though the food's flavor is unlikely to improve with age, there may be an explanation for the seemingly irrational behavior.…

Years ago, I recall a devout Christian describing her experience in the Holy Land, where she touched the stone on which the body of Jesus reputedly had been placed. She described getting dizzy and weak in the knees from the contact. I don't…

The game of golf is more mental than most sports. Incredible size, strength, and speed aren't required, although obviously considerable athletic skill is needed to succeed. What's also necessary is the ability to control fine, precise…

In Audio Branding, I wrote about subtle uses of music to influence our behavior. Most of the uses of music for branding or sales enhancement are so subtle that listeners may not be consciously aware the music is even playing - it's…

Robert Burton of Salon wrote an interesting piece that discusses both the field of prescription drug marketing and how fMRI brain scans have been used to show that pain is "real." Fibromyalgia is a condition in which patients seem to…

Is it better to know your stuff, or act like you do? If you are in the business of convincing other people, whether as a consultant, salesperson, team member, or almost any other position that requires others to believe you, it pays to be…

Vision is vision, right? Maybe not. New research at the University of Toronto shows that what we see is actually affected by our mood:

From both physicians and fitness gurus, the mantra for effective weight loss is the same: diet and exercise. And we've all had friends who gushed about starting a modest walking program, for example, and saw themselves drop unwanted…

Since it was announced that GM was selling the HUMMER brand to Chinese firm Tengzhong, I've followed the commentary on Twitter (I'm @rogerdooley) with interest. There were a few surprises. One was that there are a lot of mindless HUMMER…