This week we discuss some of the research surrounding SES and its effect on development and society at large. Fully lubricated by Tomatin Whisky. Music by: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Cambo/~/Coffee_1919 What is your class? https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/special/2013/newsspec_5093/index.stm http://www.savageeffect.net...
This week we drink German hairspray and chat about the phenomenon of revenge. Where? What? How? Refences can be found here: https://abstracts.substack.com/ ** 'Coffee' by Cambo freemusicarchive.org/music/Cambo/~/Coffee_1919
It's time to get yourself off social media. Here's why. ** 'Coffee' by Cambo https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Cambo/~/Coffee_1919
"What do you get when you cross a mentally ill loner with a society that abandons him and treats him like trash?" In this episode we take a look at the latest incarnation of the Joker, from psychopathology to political impact. In a harrowing character study we watch Arthur Fleck slip under the surface of society and the Joker re-emerge. Todd Phillips, the director, says the character is based on Freudian theory, so we ask who is the id and who is the ego? We also get into pathological laughter, ...
This week, we boldly go where no-one has gone before... Wait, hang on. This week, we go back to a long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away to discuss the psychology and mythology of Star Wars. Is the dark side really all that bad? Have the Sith any genuine grievances? Does fear really lead to anger, hate, and suffering? Over a smashing Canadian Gin, Matt and Andy discuss archetypes, spirituality, and genocide in this exciting new instalment to the Abstracts universe. *** Coffee by Cambo https://...
In part two, we turn the lens on the USA. From injecting immortal cancer cells into unsuspecting patients, to forcing gonorrheal pus into the eyes of the mentally ill; the USA has a dark history of abuse. We round off the two-parter by moving from the biological to the psychological, investigating MK Ultra, a declassified military project trying to weaponise mind control. We continue the journey over a bottle of Lone Wolf cloudy lemon gin in episode 8 of Abstracts. *** Coffee by 'Cambo' https://...
This time we follow on from episode 6, looking at the psychology of Christmas. We find out just how robust our beliefs in Santa Claus really are with the Candy Witch experiments, whether there is a neural basis for Christmas spirit, and what all these decorations are doing to our collective identities. We put our Scroogeconomist hats on and find out just how much value is destroyed by gift giving (and the psychologists in us ask if ‘value’ is even the point). Most importantly of all, we find out...
In this episode we take a look at the history of Christmas. We explore the various ingredients that make up our present-day festivities. Despite our belief that a modern winter holiday is uniquely abundant and materialistic, people have been complaining about it since 4 AD! While some traditions have stayed the same, some have changed a little... Why did Saint Nicholas have a horned monster (Krampus) whip the naughty children? What does carol singing have to do with the Pagans? Why is the tomb o...
In part one, we take a dark journey through bioethical history, starting with the Russians, Nazis, and Japanese during WWII. We look at everything from attempts to crossbreed chimpanzees and humans, to the Japanese plague-bombs that were dropped on Chinese citizens by Unit 731. From sewn-together Mengele twins to innocent victims being dragged out into the nearest field and cut open for analysis, this episode is not for the faint of heart. Along the way we will consider how institutions enable e...
In this episode we take a look at faces, the centre of our visual social world. From super-recognisers helping the police to track down criminals, to people with ‘face-blindness’ who are unable to recognise their own families, we explore the tricky landscape of face perception. We take a look at the evolutionary origins, critical developmental periods, and the specialised neural pathways that make us face experts. Along the way we find out how to “melt” or distort somebody’s face through brain s...
In this episode we get seasonal and discuss possession and exorcism. We take a whistle-stop tour through the history of the devil's work, looking at real exorcisms from the 16th century. We explore whether exorcists were the forerunners of the scientific method. Finally, we take a look at the medical model of possession, from brain inflammation to possession disorder. Along the way we ask the important questions: What do comedians and the devil have in common? Why did Matthew find a priest in hi...
In this episode we discuss the psychology of Brexit and ponder the question, “Why can’t we communicate?”. We talk about what Locke from Lost has got to do with Brexit, what evolution has to say about our behaviour, and why one side (literally) sees the forest while the other sees the trees. Can we learn anything about politics from personality traits and the psychology of group behaviour? We get into it over a bottle of gin in another episode of Abstracts. *** For all references used in the epis...
In this episode we discuss the phenomenon of competitive gaming, otherwise known as eSports. With $3 million tournament prizes, viewing figures in excess of the Super Bowl, and the recent news that eSports will become an Olympics-sanctioned event in Tokyo next year, this is a truly modern industry that cannot be stopped. However, can we really consider gaming a sport? What happens to those that don't make it to the big leagues? What is it doing to the brains of the young people who are budding t...
