July 30, 2009

Quote of the day – monkeys

Posted in Misc at 20:09 by Graham King

In response to monkeys stealing his coffee beans, an Indian farmer observes: If you start shooting monkeys, you’ll spend the rest of your life shooting monkeys.

via Bruce Eckel

July 20, 2009

On cellphone use in cars

Posted in Behaviour, Society at 18:11 by Graham King

A very interesting article in the New-York Times on the research behind the risks of being distracted by a cellphone whilst driving:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/19/technology/19distracted.html

Here’s some excerpts:

in a survey of 1,506 people last year by Nationwide Mutual Insurance, 81 percent of cellphone owners acknowledged that they talk on phones while driving, and 98 percent considered themselves safe drivers. But 45 percent said they had been hit or nearly hit by a driver talking on a phone.

That’s the Lake Wobegon effect, the tendency for overestimate their capabilities in relation to others.

Read the rest of this entry »