Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Got a tough problem to solve? Try daydreaming

Contrary to the notion that daydreaming is a sign of laziness, letting the mind wander can actually let the parts of the brain associated with problem-solving become active, a new study finds.

Kalina Christoff of the University of British Columbia in Canada and her colleagues placed study participants inside an fMRI scanner, where they performed the simple routine task of pushing a button when numbers appear on a screen. The researchers tracked subjects' attentiveness moment-to-moment through brain scans, subjective reports from subjects and by tracking their performance on the task.

Until now, scientists had thought that the brain's "default network," which is linked to easy, routine mental activity, was the only part of the brain that remains active when the mind wanders. But in the study subjects, the brain's "executive network" - associated with high-level, complex problem-solving - also lit up.

The less subjects were aware that their mind was wandering, the more both networks were activated.

"This study shows our brains are very active when we daydream - much more active than when we focus on routine tasks," Christoff said.

The findings, detailed in the May 11 issue of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggest that daydreaming is an important cognitive state where we may unconsciously turn our attention from immediate tasks to sort through important problems in our lives.

"When you daydream, you may not be achieving your immediate goal - say reading a book or paying attention in class - but your mind may be taking that time to address more important questions in your life, such as advancing your career or personal relationships," Christoff said.

That's particularly good news, because daydreaming can occupy as much as one third of our waking lives, previous studies have found.

The Beatles Video Clips

The Beatles Video Clips

http://www.beatlestube.net/video-cache.php?

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Zombielike get Real?

Kemarin, ketika saat makan siang dan saya sedang siap memanaskan makanan buat makan siang di microwave, mata tertuju ke selembar kertas yang tertempel pada salah satu pintu lemari dapur di dekat dapur. Tertulis disitu, "Beware of Zombie Virus" berupa peringatan akan berjangkitnya virus zombie. Gejala-gejalanya, seperti yang tertulis, adalah kehausan yang sangat, nafsu ingin memakan daging manusia dan lain-lainnya yang mengerikan, persis sama seperti dalam film-film horror. Paling bawah terpampang logo "CDC" (Central for Disease Control and Preventive , department Kesehatannya Amerika Serikat). Ketika itu saya baru percaya ini cuma joke saja. Ini tentu hasil pegawai iseng, mungkin karena kesal dengan selebaran resmi dari perusahaan menghimbau para karyawan agar berhati-hati dengan munculnya virus Babi (H1N1 strain virus).

Wuih, sempat deg-degan membacanya.

Hari ini ketika membuka Yahoo News, saya menemukan berita yang agak mirip, tapi kali ini ternyata nyata! Peneliti di universitas di Texas melakukan penelitian tentang semut api yang menjadi zombie akibat serangan sejenis lalat yang juga berasal dari daerah itu (Texas). Lalat-lalat ini "membom" komunitas semut-semut tersebut dengan bertelur di sarang-sarang mereka. Telur-telur lalat ini ketika menetas menjadi cacing-cacing kecil yang masuk ke dalam otak semut dan memakannya. Semut-semut tersebut menjadi gila, berlari-lari seperti gila. Setelah sekitar satu bulan dan otak semut tersebut habis dimakan oleh ulat-ulat kecil ini, kepala semut tersebut terlepas dari badannya dan mati.

Bayangkan kalau itu terjadi pada manusia. Semoga saja tidak ada ilmuwan iseng yang melakukan rekayasa DNA pada lalat tersebut yang dapat membuat ulat-ulat tersebut menyerang manusia. Mengerikan!

Berita selengkapnya: http://news.yahoo.com/s/mcclatchy/20090512/sc_mcclatchy/3231765;_ylt=AudvLsg0Oi25cTF86PoxAbGs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTJoczNodjg1BGFzc2V0A21jY2xhdGNoeS8yMDA5MDUxMi8zMjMxNzY1BGNwb3MDMTAEcG9zAzE3BHNlYwN5bl90b3Bfc3RvcnkEc2xrA3BhcmFzaXRpY2ZsaQ--