Chimps beat human in memory test

RESTATEMENT SUMMARY

People have under-estimated the intelligence of chimpanzees.
Photographic memory tests have shown that 5 year old chimps have a better memory than their mothers or university students.
This research was described as "ground-breaking". It has shown the effect of evolution on memory skills of humans.



You can find more about it here http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7124156.stm

The fear of Clowns

Coulrophobia is the fear of clowns.

The fear of clowns is quite confusing, as in most cases clowns are meant for amusement and entertainment. However many people find clowns disturbing rather than amusing.
You may become a victim of Coulrophobia because you are afraid of the heavy make-ups and the disguised identity of the person. The psychologists who have addressed this topic, usually say that this form of phobia probably develops out of some traumatic incident in childhood, that in some way is associated with a clown. Moreover, phobia may occur when seeing the evil representations of the clowns in mass media movies.

In fact the weird appearance of the clowns, swollen red noses and unnatural hair colors make these persons look so mysterious and treacherous.

Adults who are victims of Coulrophobia know that their fear is completely irrational and illogical, but they can’t escape the circumstance. Such people need special psychological or even medical treatment to overcome this fear.

About Meditation

Meditation

The physical act of meditation generally consists of sitting quietly, focusing on your breath, a word or phrase. However, a meditator may also be walking or standing (something new, YES? :) ) . It isn't unusual, but it can be done this way.

There are many traditions and ways to practice meditation, new meditators wonder if they are doing it correctly. According to Roger Thomson, Ph.D., a psychologist in private practice in Chicago and a Zen meditator, there is one way to know for sure: "If you're feeling better at the end, you are probably doing it right."

Maybe meditation isn't so mysterious. Neuroscientists have found that meditators shift their brain activity to different areas of the brain waves. This mental shift decreases the negative effects of stress, mild depression and anxiety. There is also less activity in the area of the brain where the fear is processed. In other words, they were calmer and happier than before. (Nice, isn’t it? :) )

However, in my opinion, meditation is a deeply religious action and nowadays it just becomes a fashion, but it’s not related to our (western) culture in any way. So, I believe, that people should know more about it before practicing, for it may have influence not only on our physical body, but on mental processes as well.

Influences

I am going to talk about the person, which has influenced my life the most. That is my sister Julia.

Julia is my sister and she is also my best friend. We grew up together, so we've known each other all our lifes. That may be the reason why she has so big influence on me.

She has some qualities that I like and some that i don't. However, I tend to act like she does, for she is older than me. Julia is a caring sister. She often asks me about my feelings, emotions and health. Everytime I'm not in the mood or have some problems, she helps me to cope with them. And I try to act like this when being with other people. Moreover, I do like Julia's generossity, because she often brings something cute or delicious to satisfy my heart. However, she tends to be stubborn ant times, refusing to admit, that she may be wrong about something. It's not a good quality of her character, but sometimes I tend to copy even wrong things. :}

What is more, I think that I grow a better person, when she teaches me, exchanges with me her personal experience. And I believe that she will have a great influence on me during all my life. All in all, Julia is very special to me, as she is always with me when I need her. I never get bored with her and ... SHE IS THE BEST SISTER IN THE WORLD. :)

Psychology of Colours

The psychology of colours is quite interesting. Some scientists say, that with the help of psychology of colours we may identify the character of a person. Moreover, there is a belief, that colours have a great influence on our mood, choices, actions and many other different things in our life.
I`d like to introduce some most acceptable for me descriptions of colours.

red: danger, passion, energy, warmth, adventure, optimism
pink: love
orange: stability, reassurance, warmth and is thought to aid digestion
green: nature and energy, calming and restful, balance (halfway between red and blue)
blue: calming and soothing, promotes intellectual thought, believed to keep hunger at bay; loyalty, serenity, authority, protection, contemplative, prevents nightmares
yellow: sunshine and energy, stimulates the intellect
lilac: spiritual matters - suggests the misty area between the sky and heaven, feminine
purple: creativity, fertility, joy, but also magic, evil, death and sex
brown: security, stability and very practical
black: death, eccentricity, drama. it's a on-colour that absorbs colour and reflects nothing back

Some people tend to think, that the colour and type of the car may say much about the owner of it. And if i`d like to have a small red black-dotted Volkswagen bug? :D does anybody have any ideas, what it could mean? ;)

Psychologists at Work

As we all know, the science of Psychology includes many subfields, each with wide range of specialities. And it is so important for everyone who studies psychology to choose the right field to work in.

As for me, I think that the most suitable is the subfield of the Developmental psychology.
Firstly, it is always useful to understand behavior of people of different ages. Moreover, I would like to deepen my knowledge in the psychology of children. That`s because I do like them and offcourse one day I will have my own children, so the practice and knowledge I gain will be useful. What is more, children are so attractive to watch, so I bet that I will never get bored when doing such kind of job.

In my opinion, people have to do the work they love, for if not, they may have no satisfaction, because it will always tire and one day they may even get fed up with it.

Why I Have Chosen Psychology to Study

It's quite hard to start writing, for it is my first blog in English, however i will try to do my best :)

Well, i have never dreamed about this the profession of psychologist, because i haven't thought about my future studies properly. It is just the matter of fact that I'm here. I have decided to study psychology only the day before i wrote it down in my list of the professions.
Despite the fact that this subject was not my desire i am quite happy that i have the opportunity to be here and study it.
Actually, many people think that psychology is only needed when treating mentally sick people, but they do not realize, that they themselves confront with it every day. Psychological knowledge is useful all the time when you communicate with someone, you have to solve some problems, decide something etc.
All things considered , I believe that all these years of studies will be useful for me, whether I will be a specialist in this science or not :)