Friday, 9 October 2015
Wednesday, 7 October 2015
Mind Twisting Optical Illusions
The beautiful and mind-bending illusions in Canadian artist Robert Gonsalves’ paintings have a fun way of twisting your perception and causing you to question what in his paintings, if anything, is real.
Most of his stunning paintings have an unclear boundary between the multiple stories they tell, which forces the viewer to jump back and forth between them – like an optical illusion that changes every time you look at it.
Gonsalves’ interest in art began at an early age, which is why he became comfortable with painting such complex misdirections. He had experience with technique and perspective and architectural art by the age of 12. When he encountered Salvador Dali and Rene Magritte, they clearly left a lasting impact on his amazing paintings as well. Take a look!
See more here
Most of his stunning paintings have an unclear boundary between the multiple stories they tell, which forces the viewer to jump back and forth between them – like an optical illusion that changes every time you look at it.
Gonsalves’ interest in art began at an early age, which is why he became comfortable with painting such complex misdirections. He had experience with technique and perspective and architectural art by the age of 12. When he encountered Salvador Dali and Rene Magritte, they clearly left a lasting impact on his amazing paintings as well. Take a look!
See more here
Friday, 25 September 2015
10 Things Animals Teach Us About Being Human
1. Savor the moment.
Animals, by their very nature, live focused on the moment, while we, as humans, far too often are distracted by thoughts about the past and future—a fight with a friend last night, the performance review with our boss tomorrow, or our growing to do list for the coming week. By taking our cue from animals and noticing more of each present moment, we can find a chance to more fully appreciate what is happening right now in our lives.
2. Heed your instincts.
Alert and attentive to each of their senses, animals respond to cues about the world around them by trusting their instincts and acting on them. When we rationalize in our human minds what our instincts may tell us to take notice of—or ignore what our senses are conveying to us—we risk dismissing important signals about events, circumstances, and the people around us. As we attend to our senses and acknowledge our instincts, we open ourselves to new choices and opportunities.
3. Keep focused on what’s most important.
On those days when it seems everything has gone wrong and we come home exhausted and spent, our animal companions devotedly greet us with unfailing offers of love and affection. Even those times we may speak harshly toward them or ignore them completely as we walk in the door, they wait in the wings for the moment to come when we, at last, turn our attention to them. And in their patient devotion, they serve as reminders of how much we value connecting with others and sharing our hearts.
4. Don’t get bogged down on words.
As we communicate with family and friends, most often we think of relying on words. Yet we often neglect to consider the many other ways that we portray our inner world. The tone of our voice, our facial expressions, our posture, our movements, scents released by our skin to waft through the air communicate our thoughts, emotions, and intentions, often more reliably than the words we choose.
5. Take time to rest.
In the hurried pace of our daily routines, it’s all too easy to fill our days with a steady stream of activities—places to be, people to meet, tasks to accomplish before it’s too late. But, taking a cue from our dogs and cats, the lions at the zoo, a hawk perched in a tree overlooking the road that we glimpse from the car, we can take quiet moments to rest for a bit and give ourselves time to relax and reflect.
6. Remember to play.
In the midst of our day, when we feel the pressures from work or at home, a well-deserved break—even just a few moments—from the task at hand can lighten our load and help ease our concerns. From Labradors to Bengals and timber wolves to leopards, the creatures around us routinely play to invent, discover, and bring joy to their day.
7. Don’t take yourself so seriously.
Whether rolling in catnip or pouncing on strings, our cats jump to play fully absorbed in their game without worries about how they may appear to us or others watching them. Likewise our dogs while chasing a ball, sniffing at lampposts, or gnawing a bone relish their pastimes without concern for how they may look to passersby. Letting go of our inner critic and the judgments of others, we can more fully embrace those times we enjoy.
8. Let go of attachment to being right or wrong.
Evolution favors those creatures that focus on what matters most—finding food, remaining healthy, resting, breeding, and caring for young. When we defer to our sense of pride and self-importance, we risk losing the outcomes and results we want most. Letting go of our attachment to being right or wrong frees us to align ourselves with what we value most.
9. Practice forgiveness.
While animals, certainly, suffer grief, misfortune, and misery, they move past them with greater poise than we humans often do. The continuity of their lives takes precedence over reliving the past. When words and deeds come back to play in our minds, like the creatures around us, we can give as before with grace and equanimity.
10. Love unconditionally.
In the silent presence of the creatures around us—all alone on the sofa with our dog by our side or cat resting cozily curled in our lap—we sense their regard for our thoughts and feelings, and we respond in kind without reserve. If we choose, we can do so, as well, with each other
Tuesday, 22 September 2015
Psychology Blogs: The Ultimate List
(Take note number 18, in the presence of some really wonderful blogs :)
Introducing Psychology Blogs: The Ultimate List
1. Mind Hacks
In their own words: “Neuroscience and psychology tricks to find out what’s going on inside your brain.”
Mind Hacks also have a pretty cool wiki page to explore popular old posts.
2. Research Digest
“We want to demonstrate how fascinating and useful psychological science can be, while also casting a critical eye over the methods used.”
By the British Psychological Society, Research Digest posts about new research and helps to disseminate findings into useful advice.
3. PsyBlog
Launched in 2004, Psyblog is a hugely popular psychology blog.
Explaining recent scientific findings with a clarity that demonstrates how research can be useful in everyday life.
4. Sharp Brains
Tracking health and applications of brain science, Sharp Brains is an independent marketing research firm.
With great articles, online courses and brain teasers they are definitely worth a visit.
5. Psych Splash
Launched in 2006, Psych Splash is the Pinterest of the psychology blog world.
A personal project of Dr Gareth Furber, Psych Splash is designed to showcase psychology related websites.
6. Dr Deb – Psychological Perspectives
As well as writing thought provoking and informative blog post, Dr Deborah Serani also authors award winning books.
Dr Deb is a practicing psychoanalyst specialising in treating trauma and depression.
7. Science Daily
From one of the internets most popular science news websites.
This psychology blog is always up to date with great psychology related news and videos.
8. (e) Science News
A fully automated ‘artificial intelligence’ science news aggregator.
This Psychology and Sociology section aims to keep ahead of the latest popular research.
9. BrainBlogger
This well designed and award winning blog aims to review research that will impact peoples lives.
Founded in 2005 it is also affiliated with the Global Neuroscience Initiative Foundation (GNIF), an international neurological and mental health charity.
10. PsychCentral
Owned and operated by Dr. John Grohol, PsychCentral is one of the oldest and largest psychology websites.
Run by mental health professionals it offers reliable information as well as over 200 support groups.
11. Teaching High School Psychology
A bit of a change from the blogs listed so far, this blog is a resource for psychology teachers.
Although even if you aren’t a psychology teacher it has some great articles and resources.
12. The Situationist
Associated with The Project on Law and Mind Sciences at Harvard Law school.
The Situationist is a must read for those interested in social sciences and social psychology.
13. Psychology Today
Psychology today publishes a range of articles written by renowned psychologists, academics and psychiatrists.
First starting in 1967 in magazine form and still going strong.
14. Advances in the History of Psychology
“Advances in the History of Psychology is a news and notes aggregator pertaining to the history of the discipline.”
A great psychology blog for any wannabe psychology geek!
15. Medical News Today
Disseminating the latest psychology and psychiatry research from universities and journals from around the world.
As well as great articles, Medical News Today also has a great knowledge centre.
16. Workplace Psychology
A great blog dedicated exclusively to the area of workplace psychology.
Covering the world of work from a scholarly perspective. The references cited are from well-respected sources.
17. In The News
By Karen Franklin PHD, In The News covers forensic psychology, criminology and psychology law.
Featuring great articles, news and book reviews.
18. Connecting Hypnotherapy
Maintained by Gregory Mell, a qualified hypnotherapist this blog aims to explain hypnotherapy and other topics related to the mind.
Friday, 18 September 2015
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