Counterintuitive Spring 2024

Relying on the unreliable.  As our understanding of memory improves, new techniques to enhance the accuracy of eyewitnesses are making it possible to rely on eyewitness testimony.  However, studies conducted by trained psychologist  over the years, provide useful information indicating that the human memory isn’t always reliable.

Lying to children not only makes them result in the feeling of being taken advantage of, it makes them become untrustworthy. A psychological study had been put to test nursery children’s self-control and their trust over a forty year period and it started by the presence of a marshmallow.

Humans rely heavily on their cognitive ability to interpret, store, and retain memories. However, studies conducted by trained psychologists over the years, provides useful information indicating that human memory isn’t always reliable. There are many ways in which are brains distort memories before being cognitively stored.

Most people believe happiness is the greatest thing they can achieve in life, the truth is without meaning a persons happiness can only go so far. The thought of living a shallow life without meaning forever can be extremely unsatisfying. Happiness without meaning is a selfish way to live, only putting oneself first and never having any true sense of what things are worth. Can one really be happy without purpose?

It is common belief that a person lives until they die, but in Belgium, they are giving people the right to die when they no longer want to live. Death is usually looked at like a sad, painful stop to a beautiful life, but to those who suffer from terminal illness, death can be a beautiful end to a sad, painful life.

Apple devices are not the most technologically advanced nor robust in its market. Apple sells its products more like fashion gadgets than electronic devices. Ask yourself if the iPhone can do anything that Samsung or HTC isn’t capable of, what made Apple users buy an iPhone the HIGH PRICE? While many will be thinking about mediocre reasons, I can say that using Apple products doesn’t have an imperial advantage over those competitors, yes I am an iPhone user myself.

Heroin addicts in Vancouver have many viable options to defeat their addiction, although this new option has many people turning their heads. Giving the addicts what they crave to help defeat their addiction, heroin. Clean heroin is given to them while under supervision helping eliminate most dangers having to to with heroine addiction, in turn keeping the addicts off the streets.  With this now supervised addiction money is inadvertantly saved due to less street crimes and less hospital trips from overdose.

A child can show several  traits while growing up but some resemble how the child will act when he or she is older. In the marshmallow test a child’s will power and self-control are tested  when  a marshmallow is given to a  child whom is told to wait for a second treat. The children who were able to wait were not only healthier when older, but also had higher grades and were able to hold down more jobs. Those who ate the marshmellow without waiting were shown to be more addictive and less healthy.

The pursuit of happiness is not a source of happiness, but it can be a source of unhappiness.  The pursuit of happiness has caused people to acquire an unhealthy obsession with their own well being.  This obsession with well being causes people to feel unfulfilled with their own lives.  Leading a meaningful life is the only way to truly achieve happiness.