“medicine is, in part, an elaborate adult version of “kiss the boo-boo.” — Kevin Simler Adult Copy Share Image
“In fact, there’s likely more insight to be gleaned where others aren’t looking—it just won’t seem as relevant to the current conversation.42” — Kevin Simler Insight Copy Share Image
“do well to turn Matthew 7:1 on its head: “Judge freely, and accept that you too will be judged.” — Kevin Simler Judged Copy Share Image
“80 percent of people chose to award a scholarship to a member of their favored political party, even when another applicant had… — Kevin Simler Favoritism Copy Share Image
“Thus we use laughter to gauge and calibrate social boundaries—both behavioral boundaries (norms) and group membership boundaries (who deserves how much of… — Kevin Simler Comedy Copy Share Image
“workers worldwide typically resist regimentation, unless the local worker culture and upbringing are unusually modern.31 This complaint was voiced in England at… — Kevin Simler Industrial revolution Copy Share Image
“Instead, by creating associations that exist out in the broader culture—not just in our own heads, but in the heads of third… — Kevin Simler Associations Copy Share Image
“In summary, our minds are built to sabotage information in order to come out ahead in social games. When big parts of… — Kevin Simler Motives Copy Share Image
“But notice all the conspicuous effort in this story. If Charles’s physicians had simply prescribed soup and bed rest, everyone might have… — Kevin Simler Doctor Copy Share Image
“This is the magic of nonverbal communication. It allows us to pursue illicit agendas, even ones that require coordinating with other people,… — Kevin Simler Body language Copy Share Image
“So it’s a mixed bag. Schools help prepare us for the modern workplace and perhaps for society at large. But in order… — Kevin Simler Education Copy Share Image
“When we donate to a good cause, it “says” to our associates, “Look, I’m willing to spend my resources for the benefit… — Kevin Simler Generosity Copy Share Image
“Even infants seem to use laughter intentionally, to communicate their emotional state to their interaction partners. Provine describes the “duet” that takes… — Kevin Simler Comedy Copy Share Image
“Now, your skill as a speaker can manifest itself in a variety of ways. You might simply have encyclopedic knowledge about many… — Kevin Simler Sharp eyes Copy Share Image
“Laughter may not be nearly as expressive as language, but it has two properties that make it ideal for navigating sensitive topics.… — Kevin Simler Comedy Copy Share Image
“In fact, one of the best predictors of dominance is the ratio of “eye contact while speaking” to “eye contact while listening.”… — Kevin Simler Dominance Copy Share Image
“The waste is important. It’s only by doing something that serves no concrete survival function that artists are able to advertise their… — Kevin Simler Art Copy Share Image
“In the broadest sense, there are at least two ways to use the danger of norms for comedic effect. The first is… — Kevin Simler Comedy Copy Share Image
“It is a wonderful quirk of our species that the incentives of social life don’t reward strictly ruthless behavior. Leaders who are… — Kevin Simler Ethical Copy Share Image
“Another activity that isn’t celebrated as charity is what Robin has called “marginal charity.”65 Here the idea is to nudge our personal… — Kevin Simler Generosity Copy Share Image
“In light of all this, we’re now equipped to think about the relationship between laughter and humor. In any given comedic situation,… — Kevin Simler Art form Copy Share Image
“Note, however, that a community’s supply of social rewards is limited, so we’re often competing to show more loyalty than others—to engage… — Kevin Simler Arms race Copy Share Image
“The takeaway from all these observations is that our species seems, somehow, to derive more benefit from speaking than from listening.” — Kevin Simler Listening Copy Share Image
“Reasoning is a social process,47 and we typically have to convince disinterested third parties before there’s any chance our opponents will accept… — Kevin Simler Convince Copy Share Image
“When Provine studied 1,200 episodes of laughter overheard in public settings, his biggest surprise was finding that speakers laugh more than listeners—about… — Kevin Simler Comedy Copy Share Image
“As Bertrand Russell is often reported to have said, “The mark of a civilized man is the capacity to read a column… — Kevin Simler Russell Copy Share Image
“Advertisers must spend more per person to advertise on popular TV shows relative to less popular shows, and those selling social products… — Kevin Simler Super bowl Copy Share Image
“Thus, to the extent that education is driven by signaling rather than learning, it’s more of a competition than a cooperative activity… — Kevin Simler Better together Copy Share Image
“The reluctance of unschooled workers to follow orders has taken many forms. For example, workers won’t show up for work reliably on… — Kevin Simler Time Copy Share Image
“when articles previously published in a journal were resubmitted soon afterward with new obscure names and institutions, only 10 percent of them… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“learn—because it’s not the knowledge itself that’s as important as showing that you have the generic ability to learn and complete schoolwork.… — Kevin Simler Education Copy Share Image
“A 22-year-old woman who spends six months backpacking across Asia sends a powerful message about her curiosity, open-mindedness, and even courage. Similar… — Kevin Simler Backpacking Copy Share Image
“All of this suggests that we reconsider our huge subsidies and encouragements of school. Yes, there are benefits to credentialing and sorting… — Kevin Simler Education Copy Share Image
“For example, when articles previously published in a journal were resubmitted soon afterward with new obscure names and institutions, only 10 percent… — Kevin Simler Copy Share Image
“The particular strangeness of Mormon beliefs, for example, testifies to the exceptional strength of the Mormon moral community. To maintain such stigmatizing… — Kevin Simler Faith Copy Share Image
“works. Individual students can expect their incomes to rise roughly 8 to 12 percent for each additional year of school they complete.… — Kevin Simler Education Copy Share Image
“But if lifestyle ads work by the third-person effect, then there will be some products for which it makes good business sense… — Kevin Simler Advertising Copy Share Image
“You can recite random facts from the encyclopedia until you’re blue in the face, but that does little to advertise your generic… — Kevin Simler Communication Copy Share Image
“Laughter, then, shows us the boundaries that language is too shy to make explicit. In this way, humor can be extremely useful… — Kevin Simler Comedy Copy Share Image
“Thus discernment, artistic or otherwise, is a critical skill, and yet it can be something we take for granted, in part because… — Kevin Simler Art Copy Share Image
