Super Volatile

Krzysztof Szafranek's link blog

Hi, I'm Krzysztof and I make websites.
When I'm not making websites, I read these.
Jan 23 / 12:45am

David Hornik: Nice guys finish first. Eventually. (Wired UK)

As tempting as it is to use this study as an excuse to become the bad boy of business, I'm convinced the professors have come to the wrong conclusion. Nice guys don't finish last. It just takes a while for the true value of positive, collaborative leadership to shine through.
more on wired.co.uk

If science tells us uncomfortable truth, then... well, too bad for science!

Filed under: leadership   psychology  
Jan 1 / 12:40pm

What the science of human nature can teach us

Erica was impressed by him: women everywhere tend to prefer men who have symmetrical features and are slightly older, taller, and stronger than they are. But she was more guarded and slower to trust than Harold was. That’s in part because, while Pleistocene men could pick their mates on the basis of fertility cues discernible at a glance, Pleistocene women faced a more vexing problem. Human babies require years to become self-sufficient, and a single woman in that environment could not gather enough calories to provide for a family. She was compelled to choose a man not only for insemination but for continued support. That’s why men leap into bed more quickly than women.

2 millions years of human evolution, all the culture and philosophy – and now I'm being told that it was all in vain? God damn you, New Yorker!

Filed under: happiness   psychology   relationships  
Dec 16 / 3:34pm

Age and happiness: The U-bend of life

“Being an old maid”, says one of the characters in a story by Edna Ferber, an (unmarried) American novelist, was “like death by drowning—a really delightful sensation when you ceased struggling.”

Excellent article on the amusing statistics of happiness.

Filed under: happiness   psychology  
Nov 28 / 12:12am

The Science of Sarcasm? Yeah, Right

That extra work may make our brains sharper, according to another study. College students in Israel listened to complaints to a cellphone company’s customer service line. The students were better able to solve problems creatively when the complaints were sarcastic as opposed to just plain angry. Sarcasm “appears to stimulate complex thinking and to attenuate the otherwise negative effects of anger,” according to the study authors.

<Obligatory sarcastic comment goes here.>

Filed under: psychology   useless science trivia  
Apr 13 / 1:32am

What you should look for in a marriage partner

Ladies, want a husband who is actively involved with his kids' lives? Find a guy with higher socioeconomic status. Plus it'll make your kids smarter. (Money never hurts, does it?):

... established the experts, after years of expensive research. I'm impressed by the findings.

Filed under: psychology  
Mar 28 / 11:34pm

Yes, rich kids already won the career game. Here’s why.

By contrast, as it’s known that the rich kid has no need to work, he is appreciated for doing so. He is assumed (unlike the middle-class striver) to have a strong work ethic just because he shows up sober to work every day. He doesn’t have to go over the top to establish that he has a decent work ethic; that he is working at a level of reliability taken for granted from his middle-class counterparts is taken to prove his work ethic and stamina.

The article sounds very much like an excuse, though it's still an interesting read.

Filed under: psychology   work  
Mar 20 / 8:38pm

The Tyranny of the Extroverts

Society rewards extroverts. They get the job, the money, the girl (or boy), and the front page. Fortune 500 companies are run by 499 extroverts, plus Bill Gates.

Introvert's rage, introvert style: plain text rant on obscure blog.

Filed under: psychology   sociology  
Feb 21 / 9:26pm

At St. Paul 'wet house,' liquor can be their life -- and death

Hagerman has been drinking for 39 years. He drinks despite decades of lectures, prayers and punishment. He drinks despite two years of homelessness, six DWI convictions, six treatments for alcoholism and 13 months in jail.

What's ahead for Hagerman? The 54-year-old can see only one thing in his future — more drinking.

That's why he feels lucky to live in a hospice for alcoholics — St. Anthony Residence in St. Paul. There, 60 men can — and often do — drink until they die.

A report from a hospice for alcoholics, where drinking is allowed.

Filed under: alcoholism   health   psychology  
Jan 31 / 10:45pm

The Reason The Rich & Famous Commit Suicide

We believe that special something might be around the corner, might be able to change everything.

But the rich and famous don't have that luxury. They already have the worldly success that so many of us think will make us happy. And they've discovered that it doesn't.

At that point, there are only two conclusions they can draw.

Comments about “Misanthropic Randroids” underneath the article is what it makes it interesting.

Filed under: psychology  
Jan 2 / 1:52pm

The (Real) Hot Girl Effect and Networking

I was introduced to the ”Hot Girl Effect” by a girl I dated once. This girl is an absolute knockout, and very smart too. One time she took me to this random event, and people that I might have wanted to speak with were actively networking me. Once she started talking about Ruby on Rails, they were eating out of my hand. That one event yielded relationships that are still in my repertoire today, and the amount of effort I expended was effectively nil.

My mind was blown, but when you think about it it makes perfect sense. No matter how successful a man might be, no matter how much wealth he accumulates, power over women is the great equaliser and this eludes many men of great wealth, power, and influence. I saw this truth play out in their eyes “This woman is beautiful… HOLY SHIT SHE IS TALKING ABOUT RUBY ON RAILS. OH MY GOD, THIS IS SUCH A NOVELTY TO ME! WHO IS THIS GUY?! WHAT’S HIS SECRET?!”

Some psychological mechanisms look so ethically wrong, yet – and that's the most terrifying thing about them – they actually work.

Filed under: networking   psychology