Category: Interesting Facts

honesty a sinking social trait

behavioural science / Interesting Facts / psychology / Social Science

 by 

Honesty, a sinking social trait

We come across reports of deception and corruption almost every day that it doesn’t affect or surprise us anymore. The news varies from the trivial accounts of towels being stolen from hotel rooms to profound large-scale financial scandals.   How as a society, or as a country, we came to be tainted by this much widespread dishonesty? How we see ourselves  We consider ourselves to be honest, honourable people—rational thinkers with a built-in moral compass and the capacity of understanding of what’s right and wrong. The illusion of one’s morality  Do you think that the dishonesty we witness in our society...

conquering fear

behavioural science / Interesting Facts / Social Science

 by 

Stress, stress and more stress

Stress that saves, Stress that harms, And the stress that we love. Varied kinds of stresses surround us ! Day to day stresses  When people mention the term stress, they invariably imply chronic stress, the silent killer of modern, fast-paced life that wreaks havoc on your health. In this post, let’s see how stress evolved, and know about a third kind of stress that people seem to enjoy. Dichotomy of stress The acute stress response is an adaptive mechanism designed to tide over any dangerous situations, which is, in fact, beneficial, a real-life saviour. Chronic stress, an outcome of modern,...

The roles friends play in your life

behavioural science / Interesting Facts

 by 

Are friendships limited? An insight into Dunbar’s number

Who is a friend? Why do we have them, do we need them? Why, the concept of Dunbar’s number, limits the number of meaningful relationships to 150. Roles people play Friends and peers play an essential role in the overall development, including the emotional wellbeing of individuals. As a child  Children acquire social skills and imbibe the prevailing culture from friends and peers. They discover the basics of sharing, cultural values, linguistic nuances, understanding others’ pain, how to sympathise as well as develop compassion and empathy by observing others. Play while you play  Play, a social interaction that is universal...

ten thousand hours rule for mastery

behavioural science / Interesting Facts

 by 

The quest towards mastery, do you believe in 10,000 hours rule

Achieving mastery in any domain is a journey through time, the time you are willing to put in work for years on end. As the poet reflected As the poet Robert Frost echoed in his poem Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, much before the scientists came up with their hypothesis , that the journey towards accomplishment is protracted. But I have promises to keep  And miles to go before I sleep 10,000 hours rule  How to become an expert or achieve mastery in any domain? The short answer is, if you are prepared to spend 10,000 hours practising...

Learning, a journey into the unknown

behavioural science / Interesting Facts / Social Science

 by 

Acquiring knowledge – a journey into the unknown

Acquiring knowledge is a never-ending mission and a journey into the unknown. Mentioning the word unknown in the recent time brings us to a news briefing that made the known and unknown well-known. A glimpse into Rumsfeld’s news briefing  The world listened with a mixed feeling of wonderment and ridicule to the statement from the then US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld, at the department news briefing back in 2012. The major appeal of his speech was the tongue-twisting phrases of expressions which later gained popularity as prudent messages. A bit of background The explanation, by the then Secretary of...

are you a hedgehog or a fox

Interesting Facts / Social Science

 by 

Are you a hedgehog or a fox ?

What would you prefer to be, a hedgehog or a fox? Enter the world of political, economic or any different business arena, where the leadership qualities of the kingpins are metaphorically characterised as, either a hedgehog or a fox. Modern jungle  What are the defining features of hedgehog and fox in the current world? Who is your best bet? Are there any clear winners here? The concept date back to  The Hedgehog and the fox concept  is credited to a parable by the Greek poet, Archilochus, who wrote, a few centuries ago that, A fox knows many things, but a...

Roseto Effect

Interesting Facts / Social Science

 by 

Roseto effect, Is social connections best for a healthy heart

Modern life favours egocentric individualist society, where one makes decisions considering their preferences, needs and rights. A collectivist society, on the other hand, perpetuates a set of values in which the well-being of the community as a whole is given priority over individual preferences. Roseto effect is an observation based on such collectivist experience. Roseto during the ’50s Roseto is a town in Eastern Pennsylvania, a settlement area of the immigrants from Southern Italy. Rosetans created a collectivist community by transplanting the peasant culture of Italy to Pennsylvania. An epidemic of heart disease  During 1940-1950, America was witnessing a growing...

Pandora's Box, are you optimistic about hope

Interesting Facts / Mythology

 by 

Pandora’s box, are you optimistic about hope?

The name Pandora’s box itself exudes antiquity, as well as an enigma. People often use it figuratively to refer to something bizarre or messy. As you probably know, this box is some kind of unexpected struggle, but how hope got imprisoned in it? The literal meaning of Pandora’s Box In modern times Pandora’s box means “Any source of significant and unexpected troubles.” or “A gift which seems valuable but which in reality is a curse”.Opening Pandora’s Box means, opening a can of worms. The mythology behind Pandora’s Box In one of the classic Greek mythology, Zeus, the king of Gods,...

Nuclear Detonation

Interesting Facts / Philosophy

 by 

What prompted Robert Oppenheimer to quote Gita

Robert Oppenheimer was the principal architect of the world’s first nuclear weapon and headed the Manhattan Project during the second world war. As he watched the first atomic explosion, he was moved to quote from Gita. Bhagavad Gita-” the song of the lord.” Bhagavad Gita, a small section of Hindu Epic, Mahabharata presents a tussle between two contrary moral positions-Krishna’s emphasis on doing one’s duty on one side and Arjuna’s focus on avoiding bad consequences.  This debate occurs on the eve of the great war, and the doubt about the righteousness of what they are doing is bothering Arjuna, the...