Page 2 - Decision Making Problem Solving News Today

Credit: University of Cambridge A short online game designed to fight conspiracies about COVID-19 boosts peoples confidence in detecting misinformation by increasing their ability to perceive its "manipulativeness" compared to genuine news, according to a study. Go Viral!, developed by the University of Cambridges Social Decision-Making Lab in partnership with the UK Cabinet Office and media agency DROG, was launched last autumn as part of the UK governments efforts to tackle coronavirus fal...

Quick: Pick your three favorite fast-food restaurants. If youre like many people, McDonalds, Wendys, and Burger King may come to mind--even if you much prefer In-N-Out or Chick-fil-A. A new study from UC Berkeleys Haas School of Business and UC San Franciscos Department of Neurology found that when it comes to making choices, we surprisingly often forget about the things we like best and are swayed by what we remember. The paper, publishing this week in the journal Proceedings of the Nationa...

 E-Mail CATONSVILLE, MD, May 4, 2021 - Paid video streaming services on your television, smart phone or other devices are increasingly replacing traditional video entertainment platforms of cable, satellite and broadcast TV. The growth of these services, known in the industry as over-the-top (OTT) media services, may be accompanied by a rise in pirated content, particularly where access to those services may be restricted, a group of researchers has found. The researchers studied the effects o...

 E-Mail COLUMBUS, Ohio - If you really want to understand literature, dont start with the words on a page - start with how it affects your brain. Thats the message from Angus Fletcher, an English professor with degrees in both literature and neuroscience, who outlines in a new book a different way to read and think about stories, from classic literature to pulp fiction to movies and TV shows. Literature wasnt invented just as entertainment or a way to deliver messages to readers, said Fletcher...

 E-Mail The decision to donate to a charity is often driven by emotion rather than by calculated assessments based on how to make the biggest impact. In a review article published on April 29 in the journal Trends in Cognitive Sciences, researchers look at what they call "the psychology of (in)effective altruism" and how people can be encouraged to direct their charitable contributions in ways that allow them to get more bang for the buck--and help them to have a larger influence. "In the pas...

Credit: Oxford Brookes University How primates get from A to B gives vital information about their cognitive evolution, say researchers in a new study looking at the travel paths of animals in the wild. Using data from 164 wild primate populations, the global survey examines the mental abilities that primates, including ourselves, use to know where and when to travel in the most efficient way. A birds eye view Co-author Miguel de Guinea, expert in Evolutionary Anthropology at Oxford Brookes Uni...

 E-Mail New research is shining light on the importance of farmers markets ability to mitigate potential disruptions to distribution networks in the face of system shocks like the COVID-19 pandemic. In a recent study, the researchers found the markets regional characteristics play a key role in the decision to move all or parts of their operations online -- and how that decision can help or hinder its surrounding community. "By building online communities through their social media and website...

 E-Mail Douglas Wilbur 14, a visiting Ph.D. scholar in the Department of Communication at UTSA, has published a study that shows how researchers can craft message campaigns to protect individuals from adopting extremist views. According to his research, when people are explicitly told that they are free to accept or reject propagandistic claims, the likelihood of choosing a moderate view increases. This was a result of a survey of attitudes that tested counter-propaganda strategies, which stre...

 E-Mail Older adults are more willing to make an effort to help others than younger adults, according to new research from the University of Birmingham. The study, led by researchers in the Universitys School of Psychology, is the first to show how effortful prosocial behaviour - intended to benefit others - changes as people get older. In particular, it focused on peoples willingness to exert physical effort, rather than to give money or time, since attitudes to both these are known to change...

 E-Mail BOSTON - Researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) have used a couples-based framework to describe the experiences of individuals diagnosed with young-onset dementia (YOD) and their partners. In a study published in JAMA Network Open, the team conducted in-depth interviews to understand how couples navigate challenges related to YOD. This framework has been used to successfully develop patient-caregiver treatments for other severe medical conditions, including stroke, brea...