Illusion of Transparency

Possible activity for first-time online students inspired by PsyBlog's post on the Illusion of Transparency.

First have student try to tap our a rhythmic melody to a commonly known tune as he suggests. Let's see how many figure it out. Then have them craft a sentence or two asking an instructor a clarifying question of some kind. What's missing from the communication? Are there any areas to be improved? Any areas that might give rise to concern?

Technology Whiners

I spend a fair amount of time looking at software, thinking about applications, clicking on buttons, stumbling through menus, guessing what the designers had in mind, making errors, learning from those mistakes, and otherwise using technology. Maybe a little more than some, but certainly less than others. I'm no uber-geek, but I probably qualify as a regular geek. I like (and know the difference between) Star Wars and Star Trek, but I would not likely wear a costume or buy a phaser.

I also spend a good amount of time helping others cope with technology, and so I am privileged to assist those in need. On the other hand, I also enjoy the company of inaccurate blamers ("I know I loaded an .exe file last year and it worked fine."), superstitious shoulder-shruggers ("You have the magic touch." or "This software just does not like me.") and general technology whiners ("It just doesn't work for me."). And I really do enjoy them (most of the time) -- people are fascinating bundles of experiences and interpretations of these experiences.

Another time-intensive endeavor for me is jumping around the Internet, opening new tabs when articles catch my interest. Eventually, I become overwhelmed at the number of open tabs and feel the need to review and close some. In the process of closing a few this morning, these two wound up next to each other:

Whine, Whine, Whine: Four Simple Steps for Dealing with Complainers. Psychology Today. June 3, 2012.
32 Innovations That Will Change Your Tomorrow. The New York Times Magazine. June 1, 2012.

Some random thoughts follow:

• Naturally, there will be no shortage of tech to complain about in the future
• Complainers do not necessarily want solutions
• Time-limited compassion is not necessarily an oxymoron
• #30/32 Would give rise to complaints from my tomatoes and peppers

Language and Psychology Meet

One more reason to study a second language. You might make better decisions, or at least be less susceptible to decision bias. Although this might also give one more reason to not learn that second language too well - as I would expect the biases might return with more proficiency and experiences. Just a hunch.

The Foreign-Language EffectThinking in a Foreign Tongue Reduces Decision Biases

http://pss.sagepub.com/content/early/2012/04/18/0956797611432178

Excuses Excuses

A nice post on psyblog about dangerous excuses.

Self-Handicapping: Why Making Excuses Hurts You

My next question is how to gently point this out to those making the excuses?