REGRESSION TO THE MEAN

OR WHY D’BANJ HAS FAILED TO SING ANOTHER OLIVER TWIST Thanks to a routine cognitive overload from reading, I decided to look up notjustok.com today after a long stint. There, I found that d’banj released a new single (albeit, unofficial). I jumped into the track with gusto. And I liked it, probably...

A 'SMART' WAY TO THINK ABOUT STEREOTYPES

When you hear the word *stereotypes* for most people, a negative connotation ensue. It needn’t be so. They are useful heuristics that guide us through our decision making processus, only if used aptly. Here are some simple rules that resonate with me: ARE YOU STRESSED? THEN STICK WITH YOUR STEREOTYPE. In...

THE ILLUSION OF HAPPINESS

I am going to succinctly expatiate on 2 thesis: Un, Happiness is a salutary evolutionary gadget Deux, unfortunately, the very same gadget exemplifies an illusion (like chasing a ghost but believing it to be a ‘non-ghost’) Let me introduce you to my 2 friends – Gray and Dr. Jon – and their...

AMBIGUITY AVERSION

FreeImages.com/Abdulaziz Almansour YOUR LIZARD BRAIN, AND PICKING FROM THE SUCKER’S BOX. Let’s start with a thought experiment, quickly. Visualize two boxes. In box A there are 50 red balls and 50 black balls (100 in total). In Box B there are 100 balls, however, the % of red balls vs...

HOW TO BECOME AN EXPERT

FreeImages.com/abcdz2000 HARD IS GOOD, EASY IS BAD In my opinion, one of the most valid heuristics in life is: “hard is good, easy is bad” – great ‘entities’ are time honored; and becoming an expert is not an exception. Benjamin Bloom, (one of the pioneers of the psychology of expert...

FALLIBILITY OF YOUR RISK ASSESSMENT

FreeImages.com/thomas gray When it comes to risk assessment, it turns out that our rationality is often compromised – seriously. This formula (attributed to Peter Sandman): Risk = Hazard + Outrage will expose most (if not all) of our risk irrationality. Research prior the 80s (I think) found...

SMART OPTIMISM

FreeImages.com/Cara James Let’s consider this epigram “prepared for failure, ready for success” It could sound mundane but it’s an extremely powerful philosophy which most of us jettison while we plan. I will like to shorten the epigram as ‘Smart Optimism’ Going through life I have constantly...

ON JUDGEMENT: “IT TAKES TWO TO TANGO”

Kindly consider this: 2+2. I can bet what comes to your mind. Four right? Question: Did you think before the number [four] came to mind? No, I guess. Guess what?: that’s your unconscious in action and Nobel prize winner Daniel Kahnemen refer to this as the system 1 (fast thinking). However, if...

CHARLES DARWIN’S CAREER CHOICE, AND HOW TO BUILD A THRIVING STATE

FreeImages.com/dimitri_c The development of a state is contingent on the success and failure of the comprising individuals; and the most positive impact of such individual to the state is one that apparently delivers the best. So, what defines the best?... Born in 1809, Charles Darwin – dubbed...

MY MIT PhD APPLICATION, AND THE 3 IRREFUTABLE BIOLOGICAL LESSONS OF HISTORY.

First, life is competition. Here is Will and Ariel Durant in their 1968 book: Lessons of History “Competition is not only the life of trade, it is the trade of life – peaceful when food abounds, violent when the mouths outrun the food” I have met folks who have repudiated competition, at almost...

SOCIAL PHYSICS

In traditional physics, the flow of energy is followed my motion, in the same vein in social physics, the flow of ideas precedes behavioral changes. Would you consider yourself to be pretty independent? You probably make your own decisions based on your own personal, rational thoughts, right? Well, social...

ROAD TO GRADUATE SCHOOL IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: PART 2

This post is a continuation of the post:  Road to graduate school in US, part1  FINANCIAL AID AND SCHOLARSHIP One of the disparities between the US graduate school application and for countries like the UK stems from their financial aid methodology. The financial aid and scholarships in...

INCENTIVES AND DISINCENTIVES

Incentives and disincentives literally drives the world. Knowing how to manage the duo determines the success and the failure of any state or an individual. I will argue that this will be the only solitary reason that will most justify the ostensible backwardness in the African continent versus...

ROAD TO GRADUATE SCHOOL IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: PART 1

Below I highlight the basic information needed for admissions into graduate school in the United States: This first part covers planning, preparation of transcripts, and examinations, while the second part will cover scholarship and application information. PLANNING Application to graduate...