Brain and Behavior*

Our assignment was to play four interactive games on the Brain and Behavior. I went to the website and was trying to figure out the games when i realized that some of them made sense.. and some of them didn't.

The first game I played was called Prisoners Dilemma. You had to either compete or cooperate with "Serendip" to win the game. I competed the whole time figuring that it was probably the way that would get me to win.. And i was right. At the end of the game it said I won the most coins but it said that I was followed playing with an "Inconceivably foul fate" the whole time. So i guess what I learned from this game was that competition is good, but you have to even it out with a little cooperation once in awhile.

The second game I played was called the Free Will Problem. In this game there were yellow arrows going towards the left and green arrows going towards the right. The point the game was trying to get across is that it is your free will that decides whether you see the green arrows or the yellow arrows.

The third game I played was called The Game Of Life. I didn't really understand it a whole lot.. You had a big square full of circles and you had to pick which ones you wanted. It's supposed to represent that at different points in life people are in different places and form different patterns.

The fourth game I played was called was called Transformation and in it you got to pick which different pathways you wanted to go on and in every spot there was something deeper that you could look at. I think this game is supposed to convey that you have to look closer at things because they are not always what they seem to be.

These things can be applied to everyday life because they all give different morals that you are supposed to "get" out of them. They can possibly help you notice or see things you never paid attention to before. This could also change the way you see things because if you come to a realization then you might want to change how you behave to pay closer attention to things and also to have closer/better relationships with other people.

One thing I learned is that there are systems working in your body, but along with that there are also systems inside of them working too. Everything is interconnected and helps everything else work together.

Another interesting thing that I learned is that there are different chemicals in your body and these chemicals can be affected by drugs which gives you the "high" feeling. It increases the senses you already have to make them stand out more. This is also what causes addiction because if you use drugs enough, the natural chemicals in your body are lost and when you are cut off from your own body and your drugs you feel a craving or need for it to be replaced.

One last interesting thing I learned is that it's actually your brain that "falls in love" not your heart. I found this kind of weird because every little kid knows that when you love someone.. It's with all of your heart. But once I read this chapter it actually made a lot of sense to me. I figured out that the heart is basically just a symbol for whatever we feel in our heads. This is just like how we use a flag as a symbol of freedom for our nation.

This affects the way I process information just like learning new things should. It makes you think about how you thought something works compared to how it actually works. It makes you focus your attention on things that have been lost, forgotten, or unknown to us. The brain turns out to be a very complicated system, unlike my assumptions. But you know what they say about assuming things.. :)

The man with two brains was interesting because it's amazing to see how far our medical field is advanced to be able to separate a man's brain and still allow him to function as a normal human being. I thought it was really cool and it gives the future of medicine and information a lot of hope.

How long to form a habit. *Summary

This article talks about how long it really takes to form a "habit". The result was that the average time it takes to get in the habit of something is about 66 days. But this also all depends on what you are trying to do...

For example drinking 3 glasses of water each day is an easier habit to form that going for a 30 min run every day. Drinking water is easier for most people because it requires less dedication and less work. Not to say that all people are lazy.. But some are. Most people would rather do something more that is easier than have to fit in something that takes more work.

There was a study that says that an average habit is formed in 21 days. An example of this was if someone had their leg amputated the average time for them "accept" this was about 21 days. Any other habit usually takes more time.. Such as something that you actually have control of. So if you plan on starting something new and sticking to it, you don't neccesarily have to do it everyday, although that would probably help your likeliness to stick to it. Get ready to do it for at least the next two months!

Current Events

Last week was probably one of the most stressful weeks i've had in a long time. It started out okay.. being homecoming week everyone was a little more excited than usual. Every year for homecoming we have what is called a "Court Game" to get the couples put together. This year it was my friend Sara and my job to figure out what the game should be and to get it all organized. When i accepted this task in the summer I thought it sounded like a lot of fun.. Was i ever wrong. It turned out to be stressful and extremely hectic.

For our game we decided to have baby pictures of all of the girls with the boy's heads photoshopped in. This would mean that the boys would have to try and figure out who their date for the dance was. It became stressful when i had all of my regular classes w/ homework to keep track of + cross country practice every night, and also staying after practice to decorate the windows, then going home and having to do my chores. It was really hard to get all of the pictures and questions back on time because I couldn't get ahold of all of the girls.

Along with getting everything ready for homecoming and making sure that it ran smoothly.. I also had to worry about my boyfriend being upset with me because I barely had any time to talk to him. He got upset that "he was the only one trying" and that I wasn't making any effort to talk to him. What he didn't understand was that I had all this stuff at school to take care of along with stuff going on with my family (which is a whole different story completely).

So without any hesitation I am glad to say that homecoming week is OVER!! I have never been so excited for the end. I realize now, going into my junior year in HS, that things slowly start becoming more responsibilities than fun. Having to basically plan the whole dance made me realize how much work goes into even the littlest things. It really gives you a new perspective on things.

Chapter One

I think that research is important because without it, our society would never move forward. Think about all of the things we take for granted such as electricity or our cars. Without research these things would never have been invented. In psych research is important because it helps us learn new things about the "mind" and about ourselves as well. Experiments can also help when someone is trying to figure out whether one thing works better than another or whether product A works better on a certain age group and their reactions to it.

The most recent example I can think of for research relating to my life would have to be the "Social Norms" survey I filled out today in homeroom. It asked different questions about drugs and alcohol relating to yourself and your peers. This form of research allows the school and possibly the community to get a better look at what kids are ACTUALLY doing compared to what everyone THINKS were doing. It also helps get a look at who kids are more likely to believe when it comes to talking about serious issues.

One thing I learned from Ch. 1 is that infants who are breast fed are more likely to have a higher IQ when they are older than infants who haven't been breast fed. This is said to happen because of the different nutrients of a mothers milk can contribute to brain developement. I think this is interesting because I know I was never breast fed and I wonder if it had a negative affect on me?

Another thing i learned is that psychologists in many ways are just like regular scientists. They use the scientific procedure to test their hypothesises and they take detailed information down about whatever they are testing. They use this information to then figure anything from certain behavior types to whether or not caffeine affects athletes. It's very interesting.

One other important thing that I learned is taking very detailed notes and observations in Pysch is very important. If you mess up a detail when diagnosing someone it could have very negative affects for them.

Prologue

When I think of Psychology I think of a one-on-one game of 20 questions. It's usually narrowed down to one person listening while another one talks. This "listener" then takes the information and figures out what is "wrong" in your head and how to fix it. Problems in your life at present are then blamed on things that happen in your past. But is this right? My opinion of what psychology is and the actual definition are both the same and different all wrapped into one.

Psychology is actually the study of EVERYTHING around us. It can alter from what's in our heads to the way we sit in our classes. It's absolutely everywhere. So psychology is not just a person diving into the deepest parts of another person's mind it's the study of why we do anything we do.

Psychology affects your life A LOT whether you want to admit it or not. For me I would have to say I try to use it to my advantage. I use psychology on my parents a lot... Usually whenever i want to go out and do something. This only works if they are in a good mood or I catch them at the right time. For example if my parents just had a huge fight and I ask to go to a friends or hang out with my boyfriend, the answer is most likely going to be a big NO! But if I ask right after a good day at work or a night out.. The answer usually swings more in the "yes" direction. This may sound like a sneaky tactic, but it's actually just common sense.

One thing I learned from this chapter is that Psychology is both the study of a behavior and mental process. Behavior explains things such as why you smile when you're happy and why you cry when you're sad. Mental could be described more as a dream or a certain perspective you took on something another person said to you.

Another thing I learned is that there are so many different way things can be qualified such as Neuroscience, Evolutionary, Behavior genetics, Psychodynamic, Behavioral, Cognitive, and Social-cultural. These are all different ways or reasons that certain behaviors happen.

These things are important to know because it proves that people really are all unique. Everyone's behavior could be classified into a different category but we could be more alike than you think. I also think it is really interesting that your dreams can have a real-life meaning in your life.

Sit Up Straight! Be Confident! *Summary.

I read this article today and I thought it was pretty interesting. It's weird to think that the way you sit can affect the way you learn and the way you use the things you learn. It also talked about how sitting up straight can help you have more confidence in yourself because you actually believe the things you are learning. By sitting up straight your bodily position can feed back to your mind and therefor help you learn. So if your getting a bad grade in one of your classes try sitting up straight to test this experiment out for yourself!

All About Me

Hey!

My name is Michelle Grondin and I am from Edgar High School. I am 16 years old.

I think a lot of different things have shaped my life to make me who I am today. One main thing would have to be my family, or more specifically my mom. Although she has not always been right here next to me, she was always in the backround supporting whatever I wanted to do. She raised my siblings and I all by herself and never once complained. She took on any challenge that life gave her and for that became a strong person. By having her as a role model throughout my childhood it made me want to become a strong independent person in my future. My mom now lives in Missouri and I barely get to see her, but every night she sends me a text saying good night honey I love you! reminding me that she is still here for me even though she's 800 miles away.

I think Psychology is important because it helps people better understand each other. Not just to be able to talk to someone better, but also to be able to connect with them. It lets you have relationships with people on new levels that might be new to both people.

Psychology in its basic form is the study of our minds. It breaks through the barriers of all the walls people put up to hide their true feelings. It is the study of every action and why that action is important and what it means. I can't wait to learn more about Psychology so I can start connecting with people better also.