October 4, 2002

Cool Checkershadow Illusion http://www-bcs.mit.edu/people/adelson/checkershadow_illusion.html Like all of us, I've seen a lot of these demonstration illusions in my life. This one really wowed me though. It makes me wonder how often in our normal daily lives we are actually being victim to one optical illusion or another. I think I'll keep my eye open for them and see what I discover. Have you come across an illusion in real life lately? 5:15:05 PM    comment []

The Self-Medication Hypothesis of Drug Abuse http://self-med-hypothesis.tripod.com/ The main idea of the self-medication hypothesis of drug abuse is that drugs are abused because they provide relief from the distress of underlying psychiatric conditions and problems. These include depression, schizophrenia, hyperactivity, mania, or even self-esteem issues to name a few.  Critics of the hypothesis  contend that the comorbid problems may actually be caused by the drug abuse itself, not the other way around. This site offers a good review of the hypothesis detailing evidence and opinions for and against it, and links to related material on the web. Personally, I feel unconvinced by either side of the issue, and think that soon there will be a new popular model of drug abuse that covers -all- of the evidence well. If you think about yourself, if you've abused alcohol or other drugs, or know someone who has, do you think they were doing it for relief from their problems, or do you think there was probably something deeper or more "chemical" going on?   3:43:21 PM    comment []

Neuroscience and Advertising http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2002/09/30/ad_brain/index.html This is a good Salon article about what really goes on in the brain when one sees good advertising. It talks about the brain structures that affect our responses to advertisements (and life in general!) including the dorsal striatum, nucleus accumbens, and amygdala. By considering the operation of the brain, better explanations of what makes an advertisement effective are possible. Read it and get a little more insight into what makes you tick. 10:44:59 AM    comment []