Psychologyspeaking topic
We see a face in a cloud, a startled expression in a wall socket, a figure in the dark. Why does the brain insist on finding faces even in random blotches? Why is seeing a face that isn't there less risky than missing one that is?
— pareidolia, the face detection bias
practice with this topic
Set the timer (5-30 min), take 20 seconds of prep if you like, start talking. Jot your thoughts onto the sticky-note board.
similar topics
- Only the person who has faith in himself is able to be faithful to others.
- According to Csikszentmihalyi, self-consciousness dissolves in moments of flow, we forget ourselves. What does it mean that the thought of 'me' switches off in our happiest moments?
- Standing somewhere high, the thought 'what if I jumped' flashes through you, even though you don't want to jump. It isn't a death wish; some researchers read it as the survival instinct working overtime. Why does a brain trying to protect you whisper the most terrifying idea it has?
- Are things in the world actively getting worse, or is that just what getting older feels like?
- People in their thirties often talk about the price they paid for being lazy in their twenties. Which habits actually compound over a decade?