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	<title>Shankar Vedantam</title>
	<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org</link>
	<description>The Hidden Brain</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Thu, 02 Sep 2010 20:06:21 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<title>Hidden Brain Puzzle # 26: Religiosity Linked to Better Outcomes for Patients with Schizophrenia</title>
		<description><![CDATA[http://bit.ly/a9VLA3
Religiosity appears to be linked to better outcomes for people who suffer from schizophrenia, a debilitating disorder that affects both the ability to think as well as the ability to form meaningful personal relationships.
New research by Carl I. Cohen, Carolina Jimenez and Sukriti Mittal and others compared the religiosity of people suffering from schizophrenia with [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/hidden-brain-puzzle-26-religiosity-linked-to-better-outcomes-for-patients-with-schizophrenia</link>
			</item>
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		<title>Hidden Brain Puzzle # 24: Negative-Emotions-Diminished-by-Difficult-Mental-Challenges</title>
		<description><![CDATA[bit.ly/bhimON
Have you ever noticed when you are sad or angry that doing something mentally difficult &#8212; solving a puzzle or remembering a poem &#8212; tends to make you temporarily &#8220;forget&#8221; to be sad or angry? The moment you finish the difficult and engrossing task, the negative emotion often comes right back.
New research suggests that this [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/hidden-brain-puzzle-24-negative-emotions-diminished-by-difficult-mental-challenges</link>
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		<title>Hidden Brain Puzzle # 21: Botox Shots Reduce Emotional Expression as Well as Emotions Themselves</title>
		<description><![CDATA[http://bit.ly/a1SvXX
People who use Botox for cosmetic reasons report that they are able to use their faces in less mobile ways. That&#8217;s not surprising, given that botox impairs the muscles that produce wrinkles in the forehead and other areas. One byproduct of smoother skin is that users are not able to register emotional expressions in the [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/hidden-brain-puzzle-21-botox-shots-reduce-emotional-expression-as-well-as-emotions-themselves</link>
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		<title>Hidden Brain Puzzle # 19: Gentle Reassurance Prompts People to Take Bigger Risks</title>
		<description><![CDATA[http://bit.ly/ctGnUE

One of the interesting dimensions of the hidden brain is the way in which seemingly unrelated experiences are brought together in the unconscious mind. People who are given a warm drink to hold, for example, might be more likely to experience an interpersonal interaction as being warm, even though the cup of coffee has nothing [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/hidden-brain-puzzle-19-gentle-reassurance-prompts-people-to-take-bigger-risks</link>
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		<title>Hidden Brain Puzzle # 18: Both Men and Women Lower Their Voices to Convey Romantic Interest</title>
		<description><![CDATA[http://bit.ly/dmLFFq
Both men and women change the pitch of their voices when they are trying to convey romantic interest, but the nature of those voice changes might surprise you. Psychologist Susan Hughes at Albright College recently asked a group of college students to leave voice mail messages via Skype to a fictitious person. The psychologist found [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/hidden-brain-puzzle-18-both-men-and-women-lower-their-voices-to-convey-romantic-interest</link>
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		<title>Hidden Brain Puzzle # 16: Family Status Affects Whether U.S. Men and Women Receive Prison Sentences</title>
		<description><![CDATA[http://bit.ly/acRLjZ
A host of extraneous factors have been known to affect the sentencing decisions of judges in the United States. New research shows that having children and being seen to be good providers for them benefits most defendants and earns them lighter prison sentences.
I recently posted this puzzle on The Hidden Brain&#8217;s Facebook fan page.
Which of [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/hidden-brain-puzzle-16-family-status-affects-whether-u-s-men-and-women-receive-prison-sentences</link>
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		<title>Hidden Brain Puzzle # 15: Food Cravings Can Be Countered by Visual Imagery</title>
		<description><![CDATA[http://bit.ly/cRBePK
A significant component of food craving involves mentally &#8220;seeing&#8221; the tempting food, and food cravings can be countered by distracting the mind with unrelated imagery, according to new research.
Let&#8217;s say you crave a cookie. The best way to fight the temptation is to
A) Think about the cardiovascular risks that come with obesity
B) Remind yourself about [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/hidden-brain-puzzle-15-food-cravings-can-be-countered-by-visual-imagery</link>
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		<title>Hidden Brain Puzzle # 14: Blinking Reflects a Wandering Mind</title>
		<description><![CDATA[http://bit.ly/bhg24r
When the person you are talking to blinks a lot, it probably means he or she has tuned you out, according to new research that links increased blinking with reduced attention.
So, if you are talking with a manager/colleague/spouse, the unconscious signal that best tells you that the person has tuned you out?
A) He/she blinks a [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/hidden-brain-puzzle-14-blinking-reflects-a-wandering-mind</link>
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		<title>Supreme Court Fight: The Unconscious Power of Frames</title>
		<description><![CDATA[http://bit.ly/cdKkAq
President Barack Obama&#8217;s nomination of Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court highlights the power of frames in politics. In recent years, conservative presidents have appointed conservative justices, whereas liberal presidents have appointed moderates.
Supreme Court Justice nominee Elena Kagan herself once noted the irony inherent in this process. In the University of Chicago Law Review, she [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/supreme-court-fight-the-unconscious-power-of-frames</link>
			</item>
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		<title>Elections: Who Are The Real Kingmakers? The Rules</title>
		<description><![CDATA[http://bit.ly/duCc9Z
The recent British elections highlight why the rules &#8212; not candidates, parties, issues or ideologies &#8212; are the real kingmakers in democracies. The graphic shows the percentage of votes and percentage of seats won by the three major British parties. Look at the disparities! If the Tories and Labour had stuffed ballot boxes so they [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://www.hiddenbrain.org/elections-who-are-the-real-kingmakers-the-rules</link>
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