http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/04/20/brain-damage/

That, at least, is the gloomy conclusion of several recent studies. For example, one long-term study of more than 6,500 people in northern California found that those who were fat around the middle at age 40 were more likely to succumb to dementia in their 70s. A long-term study in Sweden found that, compared to thinner people, those who were overweight in their 40s experienced a more rapid, and more pronounced, decline in brain function over the next several decades.

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/How-Our-Brains-Make-Memories.html?c=y&page=1

For those of us who cherish our memories and like to think they are an accurate record of our history, the idea that memory is fundamentally malleable is more than a little disturbing. Not all researchers believe Nader has proved that the process of remembering itself can alter memories. But if he is right, it may not be an entirely bad thing. It might even be possible to put the phenomenon to good use to reduce the suffering of people with post-traumatic stress disorder, who are plagued by recurring memories of events they wish they could put behind them.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/28/magazine/28depression-t.html?pagewanted=all

“Depressed affect made people think better.” The challenge, of course, is persuading people to accept their misery, to embrace the tonic of despair. To say that depression has a purpose or that sadness makes us smarter says nothing about its awfulness. A fever, after all, might have benefits, but we still take pills to make it go away. This is the paradox of evolution: even if our pain is useful, the urge to escape from the pain remains the most powerful instinct of all.

I recently saw Avatar in 3-D. Cool florescent forests. Worth seeing if you also want to see an allegory for some contemporary and historical atrocities.

Putting social conscience aside, this movie also got me thinking about another important topic, the psychology and neuroscience of potential Avatar technology. Did I say potential? A few years ago now, a Wired article summed up the emerging data from experiments simulating virtual experiences. See http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/12/vr-goggles-and/ for a discussion of these (2/12/08).

These findings suggest that morning people really are more proactive. What’s not clear is why – whether it’s because they really do have an inherent energy and drive or if instead it’s simply easier for morning people to be proactive in a world that is generally tailored towards rising early, rather than working late.

“What this study tells us is that in general the public commitment principle produces results, especially if the commitment is long-term. But, in the mix of people who make the commitment, those who genuinely fear social disapproval—not a personality trait usually given very high marks–will likely succeed the most. Those who couldn’t care less what others think are, ironically, more likely to come up short.”