A wonderful argument for and against scenarios ....

"The future is not a result of choices among alternative paths
offered by the present, but a place that is created -- created
first in the mind and will, created next in activity. The future
is not some place we are going to, but one we are creating. The
paths are not to be found, but made, and the activity of making
them, changes both the maker and the destination."

- John Schaar

2:05:23 PM    comment []  trackback []

New research reveals how personality is reflected through your music collection.

"If you really want to get to know someone, try rummaging through their CD collection. An study has proved that when it comes to judging a person's character, their favourite music is one of the most valuable clues.  Almost anything about a man or a woman - from their looks, intelligence and fitness, to politics, wealth and even conversational ability - can be gleaned from the tunes they enjoy most.....In the study, psychologists from the University of Texas questioned 3500 people about their individual musical preferences and then matched them with their personality traits ..... The researchers, who also found that people listened to music more often than almost any other activity, including reading, watching TV and viewing films, put the volunteers through personality tests designed to tease out as much about them as possible. They then asked the men and women about the music they liked the most. A total of 140 pieces of music were used, divided into 14 different genres, with 10 songs in each."

Here are some of the music 'personas' that emerged in the study :

Bob Dylan

Blowin' in the Wind: Inventive, solid, open to new experiences, consider themselves to be intelligent, good conversationalists, but not too clever at maths or analytical stuff. Politically liberal, but not very sporty. Unlikely to be depressed.

Beethoven

Ode to Joy: Active imagination, values aesthetic experiences, inventive, tolerant of others, consider themselves to be intelligent, and reject conservative ideals. Least likely to say something without thinking first.

Rolling Stones

Brown Sugar: Agreeable, open to new experiences, athletic, intelligent, with good verbal skills, and tend to be dominant in interpersonal relationships.

REM

It's the End of the World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine): Not neurotic, curious about different things. Enjoy taking risks, physically active and intelligent. May be prone to depression.

Jennifer Lopez

I'm Real: Conventional, upbeat, cheerful, socially outgoing, reliable, enjoy helping others, and see themselves as physically attractive.

Barry White

Can't Get Enough of Your Love, Babe: A tendency to be talkative and full of energy. They are also forgiving, and have a strong dislike of conservatism.

Harold Melvin and The Bluenotes

If You Don't Know Me By Now: Extrovert, agreeable, also flirtatious with a tendency to express their feelings straight away. Liberal and athletic, and on the whole think of themselves as pretty attractive.

Madonna

Material Girl - cheerful, outgoing and reliable. They will probably consider themselves physically attractive as well.

This study makes an assumption : "If musical preferences are partially determined by personality, self-views and cognitive abilities, then knowing what kind of music a person likes could serve as a clue to his personality and views of himself."

In my experience researching youth for MTV, i'd say that this is true in a few cases - for the most part, we find music preferences are based on what's in, what's cool, what the 'group' raps with.  Perhaps as one grows older, there's a more personal relationship one develops with music which maybe reflected in a music collection, and this assumption may then hold stronger.

Look into your collection and figure out for yourself what personality type your music reflects !

3:41:28 AM    comment []  trackback []