Storytelling and science: how fiction results in more behavior change than non-fiction

Why fiction is good for you – Boston.com.

New studies show that in fact a steady diet including some fiction is good for us and results in more effective behavior change and learning than non-fiction. This is because of cognitive “shields” we put up when reading non-fiction. Also fiction acts as a social glue to hold cultures together according to anthropologists. And it in general makes us more empathetic and thoughtful.

Kurt Vonnegut: an anthropologist and futurist

Kurt Vonnegut speaking at Case Western Reserve...
Kurt Vonnegut speaking at Case Western Reserve University (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Kurt Vonnegut.

He was forced to study biochemistry in college, then attempted to obtain his MA in anthropology however his thesis was rejected as too far out. later when he published books, U Chicago gave him the MA, citing his anthropological style of writing! The world is poorer without him.

Narrative Science: Using computational linguistics to automate storytelling

P Computer-science
P Computer-science (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The new startup Narrative Science is slowly replacing many of the stories you read every day by using computational linguistic algorithms to summarize data from online sources on subjects from finance to sports. It is also scaring the pants off of journalists everywhere.

Narrative Science

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Snopes.com: Urban Legends Reference Pages

www.snopes.com
www.snopes.com (Photo credit: biggraham)

snopes.com: Urban Legends Reference Pages.

Best email spoof detector in rule the web.  Before you forward that so-called “true” story that landed in your inbox this morning to everyone in your address book, you better check Snopes.