Imagine that 4 cards have been removed from a pack of 52 cards and placed face down in front of you. If you were to choose any two of the four, the chances of getting two red cards is 50%. What are the chances of picking a black pair?
As ever, please do NOT post your answers, but do say if you think you have solved the puzzle and how long it took. Solution on Monday.
I have produced an ebook containing 101 of the previous Friday Puzzles! It is called PUZZLED and is available for the Kindle (UK here and USA here) and on the iBookstore (UK here in the USA here). You can try 101 of the puzzles for free here.
It’s almost that time of the year again! Yes, it’s nearly New Year, and so the idea of making a resolution or two has probably crossed your mind. In 59 Seconds, I describe some of the research that I have carried out into how best to keep your resolution….here are my 10 top tips, and a little video….
1) Make only one resolution, your chances of success are greater when you channel energy into changing just one aspect of your behaviour.
2) Don’t wait until New Year’s Eve to think about your resolution and instead take some time out a few days before and reflect upon what you really want to achieve.
3) Avoid previous resolutions; deciding to re-visit a past resolution sets you up for frustration and disappointment.
4) Don’t run with the crowd and go with the usual resolutions. Instead think about what you really want out of life.
5) Break your goal into a series of steps, focusing on creating sub-goals that are concrete, measurable, and time-based.
6) Tell your friends and family about your goals, thus increasing the fear of failure and eliciting support.
7) Regularly remind yourself of the benefits associated with achieving your goals by creating a checklist of how life would be better once you obtain your aim.
8) Give yourself a small reward whenever you achieve a sub-goal, thus maintaining motivation and a sense of progress.
9) Make your plans and progress concrete by keeping a handwritten journal, completing a computer spreadsheet or covering a notice board with graphs or pictures.
10) Expect to revert to your old habits from time to time. Treat any failure as a temporary set-back rather than a reason to give up altogether.
So, are you going to make a resolution and, if so, what is it?
Merry Thingy. OK, here is the Friday Puzzle…..complete this series …..
March 4th 2011
April 1st 2011
July 3rd 2011
October 6th 2011
June 3rd 2011
December 1st 2011
February 6th 2011
September ? 2011
As ever, please do NOT post your answers, but do say if you think you have solved the puzzle and how long it took. Solution on Monday.
Oh, and if you are going to a Christmas party, here are 30 science stunts….
I have produced an ebook containing 101 of the previous Friday Puzzles! It is called PUZZLED and is available for the Kindle (UK here and USA here) and on the iBookstore (UK here in the USA here). You can try 101 of the puzzles for free here.
Dennis M and David B both brought this to my attention – is a fantastic clip of a great psychology experiment/practical joke that is well worth 2 minutes of your time…..
Some colleagues and I have just published a paper in the British Journal of Psychology on the duck-rabbit illusion (the paper was published with Caroline Watt, Ken Gilhooly and George Georgiou and the abstract is here). We basically found that the easier you find it to flip between the two interpretations of the image, the more creative you are. So, in honour of this great occasion, I give you not one, not two, but eleven duck-rabbit images….
If you are in the USA, then please have an early Xmas present on me. The kindle edition of my book, Did you spot the gorilla?, is free today! Click here.
The ever gorgeous Phil Plait sent me this lovely profile-apple illusion….
On Friday I posted this puzzle…. mathematicians often refer to the following list of numbers as an ‘Eban’ sequence – without looking up that term, can you figure out the next number in the sequence?
2, 4, 6, 30, 32, 34, 36, 40, 42, 44, 46, ??
If you have not tried to solve it, have a go now. For everyone else, the answer is after the break. (more…)
A simple one this week. Mathematicians often refer to the following list of numbers as an ‘Eban’ sequence – without looking up that term, can you figure out the next number in the sequence?
2, 4, 6, 30, 32, 34, 36, 40, 42, 44, 46, ??
As ever, please do NOT post your answers, but do say if you think you have solved the puzzle and how long it took. Solution on Monday.
I have produced an ebook containing 101 of the previous Friday Puzzles! It is called PUZZLED and is available for the Kindle (UK here and USA here) and on the iBookstore (UK here in the USA here). You can try 101 of the puzzles for free here.
Thanks for all the wonderful film suggestions yesterday – I will take a long look at them all and let you know what I decide. Meanwhile, both Marc K and Manuel W sent me this amazing video of static moving fish. Basically, the fish are static, but the table uses a moiré patternvto create the illusion of movement….
In a few weeks time I have to show some students a film, and then talk about some aspect of related psychology. The students will be around 17 years old, thinking about going to University, and I can show any film at all (including documentaries).
I want to show them something that has a chance of making a real psychological impact on them, and might even change their life.
So, my question is – what film should I show them? What films have changed your life and how? Any recommendations? Let the debate begin!
A fun but tricky one this week….
