that claims the ability to predict a communities’ risk of heart disease
from the language most commonly used by that community on twitter.
Analysing 148 million tweets, the researchers from the University of
Pennsylvania and the University of Melbourne mapped the tweeters to
counties in the US for which they also had data about the incidence of
heart disease and other health and demographic data. The researchers
found that they got a higher correlation between the language used in
tweets from people in those counties and heart disease than the
correlation between heart disease and other indicators such as income
and education, smoking, chronic disease and racial background.
The language that signalled the increased likelihood of heart disease
was broken down into 3 different categories of hostility/aggression,
hate/interpersonal tension and boredom/fatigue. Words that were
frequently used within those categories included words such as “fuck”,
“hate”, “drama”, “bitches” in the hostility/hate categories through to
“tired” and “shower” in the boredom category.
People tweeting in areas that had a lower risk of heart disease on
the other hand tended to use words such as “conference”, “student”,
“holiday” and “faith”.
The mainstream press, encouraged by the researchers involved in the
study, have picked up on this study as another example of how “big data”
and social media can reveal a whole range of information about a
population’s health and well-being. One report
featured the graphic from the study that showed the actual incidence of
heart disease in a part of the US with that predicted by Twitter. Tweets and heart disease The interesting thing about the graphic is that if you actually
compare the specific areas in each of the two diagrams, they are not
particularly the same at all.
The graphic is a great example of how data visualisation can be used to mislead
the viewer. The two diagrams seem similar because they use the same
colours and have identical areas which have to be the same because no
data is available.
Pick any two identical blocks however and the chances are that they
won’t be the same colour. This is because the predictive power of the
twitter analysis is actually quite low. Granted, the analysis may be slightly
better than using a combination of other indicators such as income,
education, chronic disease and race, but that difference is in actual
fact minuscule.
So what is the general language on Twitter actually saying? Well, it
is likely that the language used in tweets may reflect the
socio-economic level of a particular area. But even this claim is making
a number of unsubstantiated assumptions. It is easy to suppose that
lower socioeconomic populations would tweet more frequently about things
they hate using swear words than people who are more likely to be
educated from higher socioeconomic backgrounds. Interestingly however,
the study claims to have “controlled” for socio-economic status, which
means that the researchers believed that the language used was not
simply a representation of this status. Unfortunately, no details are
given of how they did this and so it is not possible to say whether this
was actually a reasonable assumption.
The study is interesting in that it suggests that a specific
communities’ makeup can be identified by the language that they use on
social media. This in turn may be an indicator of other factors such as
the specific community’s health and well-being and the consequences of
that health and well-being.
However, as attractive as those suggestions may be, the study showed
weak correlations and gave very little underlying support for any
particular theory of “causation”. So as much as they could speculate,
the researchers could really not say why they saw these statistical
results. The paper actually highlights some of the fundamental problems
with so-called big data where large numbers distort statistics to point at imagined relationships.
What this study definitely does not say is that being angry on
twitter will lead to, or is anyway related to, heart disease, which has
been the unfortunate suggestion in the selling of the study in news
reports.
WHEN Tania Lacy wakes up in the morning, she puts on her make up comfortable in the knowledge that she doesn’t have to hide any more
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, comedian Lacy — who now lives in
Balwyn North with her husband and son — was one of TV’s most
recognisable faces.
But lurking underneath the stardom was a
mental illness which would not only cost her a career, but could very
well have cost her life.
Lacy was suffering from undiagnosed borderline personality disorder.
She knew what was happening, but had no control over it which led to
relationship breakdowns, caused her career to plummet and saw her spiral
into a world of heroin abuse.
But through a mini-documentary, which airs on SBS 2’s The Feed tonight, Lacy, now a writer, hopes to clear the air about the demons that plagued her career.
“I see myself as a recovering celebrity,” she said.
“In a way, this is sort of my coming out, but also I hope others see this in someway as an apology for the way I was.
“Also, I want to highlight that we still have a long way to go in
understanding mental illness. If I had something like diabetes, people
wouldn’t bat an eyelid, but mental illness is immeasurable and people
are afraid of it.”
Lacy said she felt incredibly lucky to live in a
country like Australia that offered up treatment to people living with
mental illness.
“While I understand I have a mental illness, I am also very privileged,” she said.
“I have a roof over my head, food on the tables and I can access treatment whenever I need it.
“I always feel so sorry for people who live in third world countries that don’t have access to what I have.”
The mini-documentary is directed by Leader journalist Nicole Precel.
My client, Ken, thought of his family as dysfunctional, until a therapist friend who knew him well said, “You grew up in a psychotic family.” The friend explained that the “reality testing” in the family of origin was “ off.” Ken’s disturbed, devil-may-care older brother was idealized asgiftedwhile he, a hard worker, was seen as having deficits. The brother received many of the family’s financial and emotional resources while he was expected to manage on his own. With ample time to himself, he studied hard and developed a variety of skills to pass the time. As an adult, he went far, while the brother, unfortunately, deteriorated. Ken’s rise could be due to intrinsic ability,gritor both. Sometimes benign neglect is a good thing for kids. Determined to not repeat the past, they develop a highly honed awareness and a strong work ethic.
Well-meaningparentsmay enable a troubled child and miss the boat on a talented one. Either way, if the family narrative does not capture the truth and members are mislabeled with negative qualities, lowself-esteemandidentityconfusion can ensue. Not being seen, understood or heard creates emotional distress. Ken suffered from headaches, depressions, and an “ongoing anxiety.” The bad feeling never went away. Home was not a peaceful place.
What is a psychotic family? A general definition ofpsychoticwould include not being in touch with reality. Classically, this can take the form of delusions or hallucinations—thinking that people are conspiring against you, hearing voices, seeing things. These are extreme symptoms and often the result of biological conditions such asschizophrenia, mania, or very severedepression.
But there can besofter signs of psychosisthat involve a different kind of poor reality testing. Distorted thought processes can stem from acculturation or indoctrination. In other words the “off”-ness can be environmentally induced. Dysfunctional families, cultures or communities such as colts can be ruled by an erroneous set of beliefs, promulgated by a powerful authority figure. Members drink the Kool-Aid. When one who thinks or sees otherwise or is mistreated speaks up, he or she may be met with dismissal, denial, criticism or punishment. It is “crazy-making” because the healthier person can be pegged as the pathological one.
Concerns may be met with, “No, he didn’t, you are exaggerating, you imagined it, she didn’t mean it, he said you did that to him, why are you making such a big deal, what is wrong with you, or go to your room for making such an accusation ” This pushback can conjure an overwhelming sense of helplessness, hopelessness, depression andanger.
A severely dysfunctional or “psychotic” family is “not in touch” with reality in the sense that they dismiss it. This is not a biological problem, but rather a choice based on character,personalitystructure, greed, fragile ego, sadism, etc. Healthier, truth-seeing members with fewer sadistic traits and greater individuation do best by leaving when they are able to do so. Sometimes the whole family system is disturbed and distorted. Therapeutic interventions might help but sometimes an exit is called for. This allows for a far better future with a family of one’s own, however defined or created.
"A dysfunctional family is afamilyin which conflict, misbehavior, and oftenchild neglectorabuseon the part of individual parents occur continually and regularly, leading other members to accommodate such actions. Children sometimes grow up in such families with theunderstandingthat such an arrangement isnormal. "(Wikipedia)
Little
cites the theory of extraversion by Hans Eysenck and research by
William Revelle of Northwestern University, explaining that introverts
and extraverts naturally differ when it comes to their alertness and
responsiveness to a given environment. A substance or scene that
overstimulates the central nervous system of an introvert (which doesn't
take much) might cause him or her to feel overwhelmed and exhausted,
rather than excited and engaged.
In her 2012 TED Talk
titled "The Power of Introverts," author Susan Cain reiterated this
point in her definition of introversion, explaining that the trait is
"different from being shy."
"Shyness is about fear of social
judgment," Cain said. "Introversion is more about how do you respond to
stimulation, including social stimulation. So extraverts really crave
large amounts of stimulation, whereas introverts feel at their most
alive and their most switched on and their most capable when they are in
quieter, more low-key environments."
Now it goes without saying
that most of our societal constructs cater to the former -- from open
office spaces to loud bars to the structure of our educational system --
despite the fact that anywhere from one-third to half of the population
has an introverted temperament.
While a person's introverted or
extraverted tendencies fall within a spectrum -- there is no such thing
as a pure introvert or pure extravert, according to famous Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung -- an introvert is most obvious and vulnerable when he or she is in an overstimulating environment.
Coffee jitters aside, here are 10 ways introverts physically interact with the world around them differently than extraverts.
They withdraw in crowds.
"We hit the 20th century and we entered a new culture that historians call the culture of personality,"
said Cain in her TED Talk. "We had evolved from an agricultural economy
to a world of big business, and so suddenly people are moving from
small towns to the cities, and instead of working alongside people
they've known all their lives, now they are having to prove themselves
in a crowd of strangers."
The resulting crowd, which is often
loud, noisy and congested, easily overstimulates introverts and drains
them of their physical energy. They end up feeling more physically
isolated than supported by their surroundings, and would rather be
anywhere but that sea of people.
Small talk stresses them out, while deeper conversations make them feel alive.
While most extraverts are energized by such interactions, introverts often feel intimidated, bored or exhausted
by them. It's not uncommon in large conversations for introverts to
take on the role of the quiet listener and then take time alone once
it's complete. As Sophia Dembling, the author of The Introvert's Way: Living A Quiet Life In A Noisy World,
explains in her book, it ultimately comes down to how a person receives
(or doesn't receive) energy from his or her surroundings. Instead,
introverts prefer deeper conversations, oftentimes about philosophical
ideas.
They succeed on stage -- just not in the chit-chat afterwards.
“At least half of people who speak for a living
are introverted in nature,” according to Jennifer B. Kahnweiler, Ph.D, a
certified speaking professional, executive coach and author of Quiet Influence: The Introvert’s Guide to Making a Difference. They simply play to their strengths, and prepare extensively. In fact, some of the most successful performers
are introverts. Remaining on a stage, removed from a massive audience,
proves far easier than the small talk-filled conversations that follow.
They get distracted easily, but rarely feel bored.
If
you're looking to destroy an introverted person's attention span, just
put them in a situation where they feel overstimulated. Due to increased
sensitivity to their surroundings, introverts struggle with feeling
distracted and sometimes overwhelmed in large crowds and open office
spaces.
However, when they are in peace and quiet, they have no
issue tending to a favorite hobby or delving into a new book for hours.
Having that time to take care of their inner selves helps them recharge while enjoying an activity they already enjoy.
They are naturally drawn to more creative, detail-oriented and solitary careers.
Introverts
naturally prefer spending time alone or in a small group, delving
deeply into one task at a time and taking their time when it comes to
making decisions and solving problems. Therefore, they fare better in
work environments that allow them to do all of these things. Certain
professions -- including writers,in-the-field natural scientists and behind-the-scenes tech workers -- can give introverts the intellectual stimulation they crave without the distracting environment they dislike.
When surrounded by people, they locate themselves close to an exit.
Introverts not only feel physically uncomfortable in crowded places, but also do their best to mediate that discomfort by
hanging as close to the periphery as possible. Whether it be by an
exit, at the back of a concert hall, or an aisle row on an airplane,
they avoid being surrounded by people on all sides, according to Dembling.
"We're likely to sit in places where we can get away when we're ready to -- easily," Dembling previously told HuffPost.
They think before they speak.
This
habit of introverts is often what earns them their reputations as
listeners. It is second nature to them to take their time before opening
their mouths, reflecting internally,
instead of thinking out loud (which is more common among extraverts).
They may seem more quiet and shy because of this behavior, but it just
means that when they do speak, the words they share have that much more
thought -- and sometimes power -- behind them.
They don't take on the mood of their environment like extraverts do.
A 2013 study
published in the journal Frontiers in Human Neuroscience found that
extraverts and introverts process experiences through the brain's
"reward" centers quite differently. While extraverts often sense a
feel-good rush of dopamine related to their surroundings, introverts
tend to not experience such a shift. In fact, people who are naturally
introverted do not process rewards from external factors as strongly as
extraverts do.
They physically can't stand talking on the phone.
Most introverts screen their phone calls -- even from their friends -- for several reasons. The intrusive ringing
forces them to abandon focus on a current project or thought and
reassign it to something unexpected. Plus, most phone conversations
require a certain level of small talk that introverts avoid. Instead,
introverts may let calls go to voicemail so they can return them when
they have the proper energy and attention to dedicate to the
conversation.
They literally shut down when it's time to be alone.
"Solitude matters, and for some people, it is the air that they breathe." - Susan Cain
Every introvert has a limit when it comes to stimulation. HuffPost blogger Kate Bartolotta
explains it well when she writes, "Think of each of us as having a cup
of energy available. For introverts, most social interactions take a
little out of that cup instead of filling it the way it does for
extroverts. Most of us like it. We're happy to give, and love to see
you. When the cup is empty though, we need some time to refuel."
Danger & Play is a free website and podcast. Gorilla Mindset
will cost $9.99 for the Kindle edition and the larger version will be
around $19.99. If you can’t afford ten to twenty bucks, you can still
read D&P for free and download every podcast – again, for free.
You can go to any public library and read books by Tony Robbins,
Dale Carnegie, Napoleon Hill, Jim Rohn. You can study the classics of
philosophy like the Art of War, the Hagakure, the Book of Five Rings,
etc.
The Dos and Don’ts of an Abundance Mindset
Do this to be more abundant.
Turn off all electronic devices. Five minutes is good. Five hours is better.
Recognize that someone will always have more.
Ask what game are you playing. How do you keep score – more money, more toys, more women?
Watch a reality TV show. Study the savages who “star” in those shows. Ask yourself if those people are happy.
Do not read magazines. They exist to sell you ads and false narratives about the world.
Do not hang out with people who are obsessed with social status.
People who are afraid of offending others are notorious social climbers. Vain and narcissistic people are also obsessed with status.
Do not watch television. Television exists to brainwash you.
Focus less on what you lack and more on what you possess.
"You might say that we have PhD's in planning and kindergarten educations in doing." -- Dr. Ryan Babineaux and Dr. John Krumboltz
Do you remember learning the alphabet?
Of course not, but I guarantee that you learned by practice, and that you failed many times before you succeeded.
As
we dive into the new year with renewed vigor, stop for a moment and
take stock of your habits. Are you failing enough? If all of your
efforts are resulting in home runs, you might need to play a bigger
game, a game based on your powerful identity.
In Art and Fear,
David Bayles and Ted Orland describe an interesting experiment
conducted by a ceramics teacher who was curious about the effect of
practice on skills. At the beginning of the semester, the teacher
divided his classroom into two groups. In the first group, students
were told that they could earn better grades by simply producing more
pots, regardless of the quality. If they produced 50 pots, they would
get an A, 40 would earn them a B, 30 a C, and so on. The second group
was told that their grades depended solely on the quality of the pots
they produced.
Predictably, the first group got right to it,
producing as many pots as possible, while the second group was more
careful and considerate of the best ways to make the best pots.
The teacher was surprised when he discovered that the students who
made the most pots, the students who were graded on quantity rather than
quality, also made the best pots.
You see, the practice of making pots naturally resulted in better
quality: the students in the first group became more familiar with the
intricacies of the kiln, and the ways in which various positions
affected the aesthetics of their pots.
You could say it this way: The students who failed the most, succeeded the most.
Although Thomas Edison is famous for inventing the light
bulb, he did no such thing. The light bulb was actually around for more
than 50 years before Edison perfected it. He just solved two seemingly
intractable problems: the expense and the fast burnout out of the first
incandescent bulbs.
Edison's approach was unique. He was not afraid to fail until he succeeded. The number of times he tried is legendary.
"I have not failed, not once. I've discovered ten thousand ways that don't work." -Thomas Edison
What
would be worth a thousand failures to you? What will you keep working
on, no matter how many times you must try to succeed? If you don't have
an answer, it's time to engage in some introspection. It's time to
find out who you are, and let your passions reveal themselves.
You
can't predict when your inspiration will happen. This is why it is so
important to make sure that you are aware of yourself and what you love.
This is why it matters so much that your organize your life around
your identity. When you do that, opportunities for inspiration will show
up. But if you are living someone else's idea of success, your natural
inborn powerful curiosity will be thwarted. You won't discover why you
are here. Nothing will be worth trying a thousand times.
And that, my friends is a tragedy.
In Failing Fast, Failing Often,
the authors describe the experience of a Tibetan Lama, who stated that
he found that the saddest thing about Americans is that they cheat
themselves out of the enjoyment of their lives. They don't follow their
passions. They often ignore their inner voice when they are drawn to
something.
What are you ignoring because you are afraid? If you
were born to write, pick up that pen and write badly. If you always
wanted to learn ballroom dancing, sign up for a class. If you have an
inkling about a project that might transform the culture of your
company, follow the example of the greats and instead of thinking about
it, try just a small part. Get feedback and try again. Don't be afraid
to fail your way to mastery.
When you plan this way, the results are predictable, because you're using real world feedback as guidance for what's next.
And don't wait for the mood to strike or the time to be right.
"Curiosity has an expiration date."-Dr. Ryan Babineaux and Dr. John Krumboltz
If
you procrastinate, your reasons for stopping, buried in the
inaccessible limbic portion of your brain, will rear up and stop you
from not only realizing your dreams, but becoming the from kind of
person who is excited about life.
If you know who you are, and
you are following your heart, your failures can teach how to succeed.
When you organize your life around your identity, and follow the inner
guidance that results from thoughtful introspection about yourself and
your life, you can trust that your actions will result in eventual
success.
It's a good idea to make an exploration of what doesn't work as important as the happy discovery of success.
"I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious." ― Albert Einstein
Make a New Years Resolution to become YOU.
If
you know who you are, you can explore the ways to get where you want to
go with the kind of self-confidence that is born from thoughtful,
continuous introspection, practice and feedback.
I know who I am.
I am clear about what I want. I will not give up until I get there.
Learning means I don't know, so I must fail until I succeed.
Learn
something new this year. Measure your progress by your failures as
well as your successes. That will allow for the glorious year meant for
all of us. This is the kind of courage that can change the world.
"To live a creative life we must first lose the fear of being wrong."
