It turns out we like things when we have the opportunity to pine for them in anticipation and also to think about them fondly as a memory. ‘Liking’ something happens on a continuum of past, present and future according to the fascinating book about tastes, You May Also Like by Tom Vanderbilt. Even as youContinue reading “Comforting thought: Liking something is all about anticipation and memory”
Tag Archives: You May Also Like by Tom Vanderbilt
Comforting Thought: Humans are hardwired to be attracted to imperfection
Humans instinctively understand the organic imperfections of the human face, however we experience a ‘visual shock’ when we see severe disfigurement. Taken from the fascinating book ‘You May Also Like’ by Tom Vanderbilt. There is one brain response that never falters – severe disfigurement. And so Bacon’s ‘Visual Shock’ as he calls it seems toContinue reading “Comforting Thought: Humans are hardwired to be attracted to imperfection”
Comforting thought: Museums are ways of seeing
According to the fascinating book about preferences and tastes, ‘You May Also Like’ by Tom Vanderbilt, museums help us see the odd and remarkable in everyday objects. They also give us cues about the boundaries of art. “The fact that art is not something we see everyday is what makes it extraordinary. This is whyContinue reading “Comforting thought: Museums are ways of seeing”
Interesting Thought: We like things according to a U-shaped curve
One leading theory by Daniel Berlyne is that our liking of things such as music follows an inverted U shaped graph, based on the factor of complexity. We prefer and like things less the more simple or complex they are. The sweet spot for most people is somewhere in the middle. You May Also LikeContinue reading “Interesting Thought: We like things according to a U-shaped curve”
Comforting Thought: Memory is a radio station that only plays the songs you want to hear
Music and the nostalgia of our youth “Why do we all (not just the Woodstock generation) seem to insist that the music of our youth was better? Because everyone has this experience, it cannot be objectively true. One study found that in the same way that we tend to remember positive life events more stronglyContinue reading “Comforting Thought: Memory is a radio station that only plays the songs you want to hear”
Comforting Thought: We remember what we like/we like what we remember
Memory functions in curious and fascinating ways according to the fascinating guide to why we like things called ‘You May Also Like’ by Tom Vanderbilt. One of the simplest and most innocent forms of bias is memory itself. In various types of competitions, people who performed later seemed to do better. You might think, asContinue reading “Comforting Thought: We remember what we like/we like what we remember”
Book Review: You May Also Like by Tom Vanderbilt
Publisher: Knopf Genre: Non-Fiction, Psychology, Consumerism, Marketing Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 If you’re like me, you are an endlessly curious person who enjoys reading and learning about many things, and you like and enjoy a great many different things…if so, then here is a classic book for you! ‘You May Also Like’ endeavours to answer some fascinatingContinue reading “Book Review: You May Also Like by Tom Vanderbilt”
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