MIT researchers have identified the brain circuit required for observational learning, reports Xinhua. According to the study, the area involved in evaluating social information is more active when witnessing an experience and “relays information about the experience” to the region important for processing emotions.
A study led by research scientist Nick Obradovich found that people’s behavior on social media may be influenced by weather conditions. “Positive posts increased as the temperature rose,” reports Robert Preidt in US News & World Report, but “precipitation, humidity levels of 80 percent or higher, and high amounts of cloud cover were associated with a greater number of negative posts.”
Steven Poole of The Wall Street Journal reviews The Biological Mind, a new book from Prof. Alan Jasanoff, which suggests that “a brain-centric view of who we are neglects the physiological, environmental and political determinants of our behavior.” Jasanoff “presents a lucid primer on current brain science that takes the form of a passionate warning about its limitations,” says Poole.
Cogito, a Media Lab spinout, is used by MetLife to “detect signs of distress and other emotions in a customer’s voice,” writes Tom Simonite for Wired. The program helps customer service representatives more consistently use an appropriate tone when handling often sensitive customer calls.
A study led by graduate student Hilary Richardson provides evidence that by age 3, children “have begun developing brain networks used to understand the beliefs and feelings of others,” writes Laney Ruckstuhl for The Boston Globe. “Richardson said researchers previously believed the networks used in theory of mind reasoning were not developed until at least age 4,” explains Ruckstuhl.
Prof. Alex Pentland speaks with Nikolai Kuznetsov of Forbes about Endor, the predictive analytics company he cofounded with Research Affiliate Yaniv Altshuler. “Endor aspires to give average investors and traders an easier time finding equal footing all while lending the investment industry more legitimacy,” said Pentland.
Research by Associate Prof. Jared Curhan in Sloan found that back-to-back negotiations can be challenging, particularly if a person has recently been successful. “Hubristic pride may give you a false sense of confidence, and you may underestimate your next counterpart,” Curhan tells Aisha Al-Muslim at The Wall Street Journal. “That may make you not prepare adequately for the next negotiation.”
A study by MIT scientists has identified the neurons that fire at the beginning and end of activities, which is important for initiating a routine. “This task-bracketing appears to be important for initiating a routine and then notifying the brain once it is complete,” Prof. Ann Graybiel told Xinhua.
In an article for the Financial Times about the best economics books of 2017, Martin Wolf highlights new works by Prof. Andrew Lo and Prof. Peter Temin. Wolf writes that in Temin’s “important and provocative book, [he] argues that the US is becoming a nation of rich and poor, with ever fewer households in the middle.”
A new study by MIT researchers shows how stress can lead people to make risky decisions, reports Kristin Hugo for Newsweek. “The study lends insights into how neurological disorders affect people. It could be the stress of dealing with inabilities to function properly and staving off cravings, compounded with the chemical effects on the brain, that are influencing people’s uninhibited behavior.”
Writing for HuffPost, Prof. Georgia Perakis explains that it is possible to detect customer trends without using data gathered via social media. By using data like store locations, customer demographics, and timing of purchases, “we can still understand the influence of certain individuals and groups,” Perakis explains.
Bloomberg Businessweek reporter Arianne Cohen spotlights Prof. Andrew Lo’s research examining adaptive markets. Cohen explains that, “Lo’s hypothesis says people act in their own self-interest but frequently make mistakes, figure out where they’ve erred, and change their behaviors. The broader system also adapts.”
A new study by MIT researchers shows that children as young as 15 months can learn tenacity from watching their parents, reports Dennis Thompson for U.S. News & World Report. Graduate student Julia Leonard explains that the study shows, "infants are watching your behavior intently and actually learning from what you do."
Scientific American reporter Yasemin Saplakoglu writes that MIT researchers have found that watching an adult struggle and then succeed can inspire infants to try harder at their own task. Saplakoglu explains that the study shows, “babies can also infer values—such as when it is worth it to keep trying—from adults’ behaviors.”
AP reporter Malcom Ritter writes that children as young as 15 months old can be inspired to try harder at a task when they see adults struggle before succeeding. Prof. Laura Schulz explained that the findings show young children, “can learn the value of effort from just a couple of examples.”