I’ll be honest here, I’m not a very timely person. I do most of my work hours before its due. Much like these blogs I wait until last minute. Everybody always says to manage your time wisely, to plan ahead and to get work done. But, what about the benefits or procrastinating? Theres got to be something. And there is.

According to this article, our hate for procrastination wasn’t always so, in fact in ancient times, Egyptians and Romans believed procrastinators to be useful and wise. Unfortunately, times have changed.

Our opposition towards procrastination stems far back into history, dating back to Jonathan Edward’s “Procrastination, or The Sin and Folly of Depending on Future Time” which basically condemns you to hell if you procrastinate. Anti-procrastination became an industry at one point, as people boasted their ways to stop procrastination.

What is procrastination?

According to the dictionary, procrastination is the act of habit of putting off or delaying especially something requiring immediate attention.

Dr. Joseph Ferrari is a lead researcher at DePau University in Chicago, and has published numerous articles related to procrastination. According to his research, approximately 20 percent of men and women in the U.S. are chronic procrastinators. This number is higher than that of people with clinical depression of phobias. According to the study, procrastination rates seemed to be higher in the northwest. According to his research, Dr. Ferrari believes that are links to ADHD, OCD and other personality challenges linked to procrastination, if you do it often and in various areas of your life. Most of us only procrastinate as a tendency of laziness, but for chronic procrastinators, it is a maladaptive lifestyle, Ferrari says.

Technology and procrastination

Much of todays technology is designed for us to not procrastinate however we still manage to do so. The snooze button, which many of us a guilty of hitting numerous times before starting our day, was actually designed to allow us more time, however it seems to have had the opposite effect. Dr. Ferrari suggests using technology as a tool, not as a delay.

According to this article, technology is playing a significant role in our cognitive control. Cognitive control is our ability to focus on accomplishing a test, in the context of competing demands. Todays technology often challenges our cognitive control system to its core, buzzing for our attention throughout the day.

Positives of Procrastination

Procrastination is not always a bad thing.

According to this article John Perry, a philosopher at Stanford who published a book on procrastination referred to this idea as “Structured procrastination”, or positive procrastination. He realized that procrastinators seldom do absolutely nothing. Here are some ways, according to this article that people procrastinate that can actually help their overall productivity.

Some types of procrastinating can actually boost positive emotions and feelings of relaxation, spark ideas and strengthen relationships, such as contacting an old colleague or friend. These can actually increase productivity later on, leaving you feeling more motivated to do things.

Also, by procrastinating, you can actually get quite a bit done. For example, this article suggests that when you put off numerous little tasks, you’re more likely to do them when they form into one big task. It seems much more appealing to get six different things at once than do each individual thing in different sittings. (much like these blogs, but that’s another debate.)

Also, procrastinators often do things that, as stated before, spark their interests, increasing their positive emotions. This can lead to greater quality of work later on; simply reading or watching a ted talk about something that inspires you can give you motivation. And of course, my favorite of all the procrastination options- napping. Napping allow you to rest your brain, so when you wake up, you fell more refreshed and ready to tackle the day.

So how can we stop procrastination?

In The Art of Procrastination Perry says the best way to stop procrastination is do do more. If you add more things to your list, things that aren’t too important, you can look past them or procrastinate those things and do more important tasks. This is what Perry considers structured procrastination.

“Structured procrastination means shaping the structure of the tasks one has to do in a way that exploits this fact. The list of tasks one has in mind will be ordered by importance. Tasks that seem most urgent and important are on top. But there are also worthwhile tasks to perform lower down on the list. Doing these tasks becomes a way of not doing the things higher up on the list. With this sort of appropriate task structure, the procrastinator becomes a useful citizen. Indeed, the procrastinator can even acquire, as I have, a reputation for getting a lot done.” (Perry, Art of Procrastination.)

Also, Psychological Science suggested that “precommitment” or setting personal deadlines resonated with people and did in improve their ability to complete a task.

This Tedtalk further explains the idea of why exactly we procrastinate.

Conclusion

Many of subconsciously procrastinate. I believe this kind of research is important because it leads us to understand just how our brain works and how technology may have an impact on our lives. Of course, technology is not the only thing to blame in terms of procrastination. I believe this research would benefit from studying other types of personality challenges have risen and grown throughout the years that may play a role in this procrastination problem. It is important to distinguish between laziness and simply putting off a task to do another. I do not believe this research would suffer from any problems such as the Texas sharpshooter or file drawer problems, as both sides– the benefits and disadvantages of procrastination are reflected in this research. I do believe I have learned a lot from my studies and this research has led me to understand just why I procrastinate. Hopefully in the future, I will be able to stop myself from meaningless, chronic procrastination and limit myself to ‘productive procrastination.”

As I was reading through the blogs, I came across a post that discussed the disadvantages to cramming for tests. This got me wondering, as I have always found I’ve done just fine by cramming for tests. What is it that makes me different from others that my brain would actually prefer cramming? What is it that I do differently? My conclusion: I translate.

Almost every time I study, I translate the English to Spanish. I’m not totally bilingual, nor does my family speak Spanish, I just realized in middle school that I was much better in Spanish than all my other classes. I realized that translating the words somehow allowed me to memorize them quicker than if I was just memorizing regular English vocabulary words. So, in order to increase my knowledge of Spanish and retain more information when studying in English, I began translating everything, back and forth. Now, it has almost come as second nature. But what are the other added benefits to having a ‘bilingual brain?’ According to this study, how the brain organizes languages has not totally been concluded, however technological advances show that bilingual people, whom rapidly toggle back and forth between two languages show more activity in the right hemisphere in the brain that monolingual speaker, which could help attention and control.

In the past, researchers had thought that exposing children to multiple languages too early on might delay their language schools, however this has recently been shown to be completely false. New research shows that bilingual children are able to learn words quicker than monolingual, nor do they show any “language confusion.”

Photo source

“Scientists are learning that speaking more than one language may have cognitive benefits that extend from childhood into old age” (BrainFActs.org)

According to new research, the brain develops some advantages over those who are monolingual. This study suggests that those we are fluent in two languages, particularly since early childhood, both enhances their ability to concentrate as well as protect against dementia and other age-related cognitive declines.

The article suggests that children also have advantages when it comes to school. Bilingual students are able to focus on a task and tune out distractions. They also have an enhanced ability to concentrate, which is a sign of a healthy memory. The researchers suggest that managing two languages allows the brain to sharpen, to retain and focus information while ignoring the irrelevant information. This may explain why I find it easier to study and focus in comparison to others.

This article refers to bilingual people as “brain bodybuilders. Researcher Ellen Bialystok, a psychologist at York University in Toronto, agreed with the idea that bilingual people are more efficient at higher-level brain functions, according to the article. This is because bilingual people are constantly switching between languages, which allows them to choose with to use and which to ignore. According to the study, the brain of monolingual people had to work much harder during tasks than bilingual people.

The study also shows that bilingual adults have denser gray brain matter, or the brain tissue packed with information-processing nerve cells and fibers.) This was especially found in the left hemisphere of the brain, where most of the language and communication skills are controlled. This was the strongest in people who were immersed in two languages before the age of five, and were proficient at their second language.

Research also suggests that bilingualism may delay the onset of age-related dementia, such as Alzheimer’s disease. Scientists don’t particularly know why, but they theorize that speaking two languages may increase blood flow and oxygen to the brain, and keep nerve connections healthy.

This Tedtalk further explains the advantages of being bilingual.

I learned a lot from this specific study, and I am glad I now have a better understanding of how my brain particularly functions. I’ve always found it easier to concentrate when I translate things back and forth, and this study explained why. I don’t think this study could have suffered from anything such as the Texas sharpshooter or file drawer problem, since this is relatively new research and many studies came to the same conclusion about brain activity. I am pleased with the results with this study, I believe that they did a good job concluding the information. I would like to see the brain measured during more complex tasks, other than focusing on a single word. I think it would be beneficial to study the effects of cramming on a bilingual brain, since the bilingual brain is said to be able to focus and concentrate on relevant information compared to that of a monolingual.

When I was growing up, I always wanted to be a mermaid. I grew up living on a beach, and spent most of my time in the water—specifically under water, always testing how long I could hold my breath. I thought one day I would just be swept away to live with the mermaids like Aquamarine. As I grew older, I realized my dream would never quite become a reality… but maybe it will?

Recent research has possibly discovered a way for humans to potentially breathe underwater, according to this article.

The researchers at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Canada have found that since mankind came to be, human DNA has absorbed hundreds of viruses. The study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United states of America.  They compared this to salamanders, as algae often becomes stuck in embryos, growing with them and not leaving their DNA, literally making them part algae. The researchers suggest that this process could be applied to humans, merging our DNA with that of algae so we too could breathe underwater and salamanders do. This idea isn’t too far fetched, since we are both vertebrate.

Researcher Dr. Ryan Kerney said “Algae inside the egg capsules provide oxygen to the embryo and the algae gets waste from the embryo which is rich in the nitrogen the plant needs,” according to the article. Kerney also said the researchers found algae DNA in the reproductive organs of adult salamanders, so it is possible that this gene is inherited.

Of course, this new discovery could have a major impact on our future. According to scientists, it could potentially mean that bioengineers could use algae as a source of oxygen for organisms, including humans. This study is the first that suggests the partnership of a plant and vertebrate, but the biological impacts and effects are still unknown.

I feel this study is very interesting, but posses many unanswered questions. It is highly unlikely this could suffer from the Texas sharpshooter problem, or the file drawer since this is brand new research that is only testing one idea, however it is very uncertain as to what the long-term effects may be. The scientists have no actually done any mutations yet, as far as the public is aware. This could lead to a whole new branch of science, manipulating DNA to allow for inhumane effects, such as breathing underwater. It would be important to take into consideration the future of this, also if this is ethical or not. What benefits come from adding the DNA of algae to our human DNA? If this is ethical, is it ethical to swap the DNA of fish and give ourselves gills? All these questions have yet to be answered, however I feel this is a whole new world of science that will open doors to future advancements in our society. For now, my biggest question is… will we be able to swim underwater like in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire?

Not too long ago in class, we discussed the Monty Hall problem. Even as it was explained multiple times, I simply just couldn’t get it. Why in the world would it make a difference if our chances went from 1/3 to 1/2 if either way we didn’t know what was behind the door we chose? Honestly, it didn’t bother me that much. As was stated multiple times in class, scientists are often wrong, and I rarely understand what happens in science anyway so this wasn’t anything new. I’d never be introduced to this problem in the real world, anyway. This was, until I was scrolling on Facebook and saw this video…

I watched it again, and again and again, until finally it just clicked. Our intuition is lousy. Humans are naturally wrong most of the time, if given a second chance, take it. I’m hoping to provide a bit more of an explanation, since now I find it intriguing.

The Monty Hall problem arose from a game show, hosted by Monty Hall called “Lets Make A Deal”. Here, the contestants were faces with the dilemma of the “three door problem.” This argument began in 1991 and its debate still continues today.

Essentially, the Monty hall problem is a statistics puzzle, not necessarily science. In the beginning, your odds are 50/50, but after eliminating another door, your odds turn to 1/3 and 2/3. This concept is still hard for me to understand, so I prefer the example the video gave: If you have 50 doors and you choose 1, but the host eliminates 48 others, the chances you picked the right door are 1/50, but the chances that the single door you didn’t choose is the right door is 48/50.

Still confusing? Try playing the game. Try adjusting the number of doors as well, maybe to 10, 20, or 50 to truly understand why this problem works. This website provides substantial information about the problem as well– You may want to continue reading the explanation posed, but I will do my best to explain furthermore.

So why is it we have such a hard time accepting this idea? The biggest flaw with this is our basic human misconception, that is, assuming that “two choices means 50/50”. We cannot seem to get past this idea. Two choices are only equal when you know nothing about the other. In the Monty Hall case, you know nothing about your first pick, but when you are given a second choice, you know all your other options are eliminated, filtered out. Basically, the more you know, the better you will be at making the correct decision. Of course, this idea is not perfect, its just a general statistic.

This chapter went into great depth about the problem, describing how our standard vision blocks intuition, the flaw that comes along with this paradox is humans basic intuition, and that we are stubborn and cannot accept the idea of Monty’s filtering into account, refusing to accept that the chances are after others are eliminated.

For some reason, this idea still leaves me with lingering doubt and slight uncertainty. I supposed I am just not satisfied enough with the results and explanation provided, and maybe I am just another stubborn human who refuses to fully accept the concept, but there must be others. I would like to see data stating how many people understand this concept, how many don’t understand it at all, and how many are like me and understand the statistics behind it but are just too stubborn to accept the reality of this problem. I would like more research done behind the psychology of the Monty Hall problem, and if there is a certain section of our brain that deals with this type of statistic.

Maybe this just means I should never go on a game show.

I turned 18 just a few weeks before I left for college. I didn’t do anything too exciting as I entered “adulthood”, but I did put two holes in my body. The piercing artist laughed as my friend and I talked about how our parents would kill us if they found out we had gotten these studs in the cartilage of our ears. For weeks after I hid my piercings beneath my hair. My mom didn’t notice until three days before I left for school, she didn’t mind too much, just request I don’t do it again. But I was an adult now! I figured what better time to get another piercing than right before I left my parents for three months? So the day before I left for school, I got two more holes in my body. It was always an adrenaline rush, partly because there was a needle going through my body, and partly because I knew I was defying my parents. When my mom saw these newest piercings, she wasn’t too happy. She thought I was going to end up in jail just because I had two more holes in my body… but is she right? Am I truly more likely to be rebellious just because I have more piercings now, or is that just an outdated theory?

In 1999, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry released a statement, saying that tattooing and excessive piercing’ were among the list of ‘possible forms of self-injury’, amongst cutting, picking, burning and head-banging. Today, this may seem alarming, seeing as approximately 45 million Americans have at least one small tattoo and 72% of women have some type of piercing, and 46.2% of women ages 16-24 have a piercing somewhere than their earlobe.

Originally, tattoos were most common among men. In the 1940s, military members had tattoos of patriotic symbols and designs. Tattoos later decreased, however they could often be seen in close-knit group, or gangs. Tattoos began symbolizing a “punk” status, often uniting members of a motorcycle gang, or depicting time spent in jail.

Body piercing can be dated back to 2500 BC, but were usually confined to the soft earlobe, nose or mouth. Its origins were often affiliated with religious beliefs, ceremonies or rites. However, women and men alike have taken into this idea of body art, expanding their distribution of piercings throughout the entirety of the body.

Anne E. Laumann MBChB, and Amy J. Derick, MD. recorded a study where they obtained information regarding tattoo and piercing frequency in adults 18-50 In the U.S. According to the study, 24% of the respondents reported having at least one tattoo, with about 12% saying they had more than one, and 21% said they had considered getting a tattoo at one point in their lives. Younger respondents were more likely to have multiple tattoos, according to the study.

The study also reported that tattooed respondents were less likely to have religious affiliation, that those who were not tattooed. The study also reported that the prevalence of tattoos was higher among those of lower education compared to those with higher educational status, as shown by this table. Next, the study looked at jail time spent. According to the results of the 500 respondents, 76% of those with more than one tattoo had spent 3 or more days in jail.

As far as body piercings, 35% reported having body piercings, while only 14% had a piercing other than the soft ear lobe. According to the study, the prevalence of piercings did not vary by education status or income, unlike those with tattoos. However, the relevance of religious affiliation was similar to that of tattooed persons.

“Body piercing varies little by education states. However, as with tattooing body piercing occurs more among those who partake in risky activities such as heavy drinking, drug taking and action that lead to increased incarceration.” Laumann and Derick claim, (pg. 7).

The question still remains, why?

I feel this question may never full be answered. People have been changing and altering their bodies for thousands of years and for thousands of different reasoning’s. Even though you may not be able to see it, things such a Botox are also physical modifications that effect appearances, just as tattoos. There is no stereotype in which tattoos, piercings and body mutations are confined to, therefore the psychology behind it may never be answered.

In this article, the author briefly explains the psychological motivation for tattoos, piercings and body modifications. These motivations include individuality, to enhance attractiveness & sexuality, for love of the art, create personal narrative, show an affiliation or commitment, and many more. These are all the same reasons women or men wear make-up, work out, dress nicer, etc. They do it for their own individual preference. There is no one reasoning behind a tattoo or piercing, for each person and their art is different. There is no need to shame a person for their tattoos, piercings, or body mutation.

While I find the science behind this very interesting, I would like to know more about the differences in body mutation popularity, geographically wise. I think I am right to assume that there are some countries that have a much smaller presence of piercings and tattoos and comparison to others. Furthermore, I believe that cities are probably more likely to be home to people with multiple piercings and tattoos, simply because of the new urban culture that has arose in the past two decades. Unfortunately, I could not find and science backing up my assumptions. (Not like science is always right anyway, but it would be nice if someone conducted a study). Also, the study that I reviewed could have been flawed because they only called home telephones of people in the U.S. People are more likely to be active on their cell phones, while those using home phones are generally likely to be of the older generation, perhaps stay at home moms, or someone of the like, which may have slightly distorted the information. If you wanted to get a full view of what the statistics behind tattoos and body mutations are, it would be beneficial to survey people at least 2,000 people from across the country, of various age groups, economic groups, educational and ethnic backgrounds.

Enjoy some of the coolest “body mutations” i’ve come across during my research

This guy actually got his face mutated to look like a cat, whiskers and all. Individuality! 

June 24^th, 2075.

Imagine you walk into a store, but instead of “Build-a-Bear”, its “Build-a-Baby”.

Cute, right? You get to build your own little baby doll, adorable! It’ll be the perfect little doll you always dreamed of, with curly brown hair, light blue eyes and freckles. Maybe you can actually have a conversation with it, maybe it has real tears… maybe a… real heart?

That’s the questions of the century. Could parents actually choose to genetically modify their baby? The idea is slowly becoming a reality, known as a designer baby.

A designer baby is known as a baby whose genetic makeup has been artificially selected, according to this website.

Today, the science is limited to allowing parents and doctors to screen embryos and genetic disorders and select health embryos, according to Bionet. This science, though sometimes controversial, could reduce the chance that a child is born with a genetic disorder. According to the article, the only two legal processes of advanced reproduction are choosing the sperm to fertilize an egg which in turn determines the sex and genes of the baby, and Pre-Implantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD), which screens embryos for genetic diseases.

However, the future fear is that scientists and doctors will be able to genetically modify the embryo to decide certain “desirable trains or cosmetic characteristics,” in essence a designer baby. Scientists, specifically Dr. Steinberg have recently made rapid advancements in the knowledge of our human genome, as well as the ability to modify and change genes.

Scientists are also developing a method known as Germ Line Therapy, which is though to be able to cure diseases such as Cystic Fibrosis but replacing the certain sects of DNA. Currently, it is illegal to do on humans.

This topic is very common and very controversial. Personally, I believe that this new science goes against the ethics of science, as we’ve commonly discussed in class.

Being able to test the health of a child is a wonderful technological advancement. Being able to prepare parents for the possibility of an underdeveloped or special needs child before they arrive is also great. What is not great is the possibility that a parents could choose the specific traits of their child, including intelligence and athletic abilities. Not only is this unethical, it also poses many questions, such as the limits to this science and where and when this should be allowed. According to an article posted on Livescience, this technology is not too far in the future.

A company known as 23andme and recently awarded a patent to test the ability to choose hair color, athletic aptitude, according to the article (read more about the company here.) This does not change the fact that a child’s personal identity is not dependent on their physical traits. A child could be cloned as a supermodel, and their individual characteristic leads them to be a technician instead.

There are endless pros and cons to this touchy subject. Some pros include: reduced risk of genetic disease, mental conditions, etc., increased life span, prevent future generations from inheriting harmful genes/diseased. The cons include: termination of embryos, a genetic “gap” in society due to lack of diversity, damage gene pool, disregard baby’s choice, loss of individuality.

I am pleased with this research; however, would like these studies to further elaborate on the future regulations that could be posed on this developing science. It is undeniable that our world is ever-changing and that science will continue to pose questions of ethics and morals, but this topic is one that could potentially impact the entire world. I would like to know what the government is doing to work with scientists to develop this new technology, and how the government plans to regulate it. Also, it would be important to note which countries allow for genetic screening, and which are simply opposed to the idea all together. Also, could the future and safety of our children be at risk?

For now, I’m going to continue my life knowing I am 50% my mother, 50% my father and 0% science, even if that means I’m 5’2” with a medium build, frizzy hair and oily skin.

Hey all! My names Lauren Zelasko… I’m a freshman from Buffalo, New York (or really really far outside Philly) I’m a journalism major and I love photographing and anything that has to do with adventures.

I’m taking this course because although I love nature and find the world super interesting, I am in now way wired to be a scientist. This seemed like a very cool approach to science and after talking with my advisor about my hate for anything that involves both math and science alike, I decided upon this class. I’m hoping that this will be just enough to keep my interest and not make me want to scream.

While we’re talking about my love for traveling and nature, heres a picture of me scuba diving at the great barrier reef…

Also, I love to dance so heres a cool video I love.