Canny Minds Blog » 30-50 http://www.cannyminds.com/blog Brain stimulating articles and news Mon, 10 Jan 2011 13:44:33 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Never a cross word http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2010/03/11/never-a-cross-word/ http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2010/03/11/never-a-cross-word/#comments Thu, 11 Mar 2010 14:29:13 +0000 Jenny http://cannyminds.com/blog/?p=1341 Doing crosswords or sudoku puzzles can help couples to make up more quickly after arguments, according to new research.
Psychologists from Harvard University said that stimulating mental activity can stop people from harbouring a grudge following  a domestic row.
They discovered that emotions were better controlled by people who had more activity in the part of the brain (the lateral prefrontal cortex ) which is associated with puzzle solving.

Daily Telegraph March 11 2010

Photo Courtesy of Jessie Whittle

]]> http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2010/03/11/never-a-cross-word/feed/ 3 The Story of Maths http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/12/14/the-story-of-maths/ http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/12/14/the-story-of-maths/#comments Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:56:34 +0000 Jenny http://cannyminds.com/blog/?p=1209 This month’s Viewing Group choice is a little different! Rather than a block buster or feature film, we have chosen something very canny: The Story of Maths. An incredibly popular Open University DVD that would be a great stocking-filler for Dad or Grandad!!

The films in this ambitious BBC Open University series offer clear, accessible explanations of important mathematical ideas but are also packed with engaging anecdotes, fascinating biographical details, and pivotal episodes in the lives of the great mathematicians.

Engaging, enlightening and entertaining, the series gives viewers new and often surprising insights into the central importance of mathematics, establishing this discipline to be one of humanity’s greatest cultural achievements.

Presented by Marcus Du Sautoy and shot in various locations around the world.

]]> http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/12/14/the-story-of-maths/feed/ 0 James May’s Amazing Brain Trainer http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/12/02/james-mays-amazing-brain-trainer/ http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/12/02/james-mays-amazing-brain-trainer/#comments Wed, 02 Dec 2009 12:15:14 +0000 Jenny http://cannyminds.com/blog/?p=1195 This month’s Viewing Group choice is a little different! Rather than a block buster or feature film, we have chosen something very canny: James May’s Amazing Brain Trainer. This fantastic interactive DVD would be a perfect Christmas present for all the family.

This is what James May has to say about it!:

“This DVD has been designed for you and your family to enjoy. But not only to enjoy. The whole point of this programme – the real reason I’m here…is to make you cleverer.

The theory is really very simple, the more you train your brain the fitter it will become. Think of me as a kind of training instructor, for your noggin.

The good news about this type of work out is that I don’t have to don spandex shorts and a toweling head band. Test your memory, numeracy and literacy skills, as well as logic, spatial awareness and other impressive brain type sounding things!”

This DVD also includes a fully verified nationally calibrated IQ test.

Let us know what you think by commenting below.

To buy James May’s Amazing Brain Trainer click here.

]]> http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/12/02/james-mays-amazing-brain-trainer/feed/ 104 Inside the rational mind of Van Gogh http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/10/08/inside-the-rational-mind-of-van-gogh/ http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/10/08/inside-the-rational-mind-of-van-gogh/#comments Thu, 08 Oct 2009 15:13:03 +0000 Jenny http://cannyminds.com/blog/?p=1062 He has long been regarded as an unbalanced genius whose brilliance could not be separated from his mental illness.

However, personal correspondence published for the first time today shows that picture of Vincent van Gogh “is rubbish”, according to experts.

The letters, which go on display in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, demonstrate a disciplined and rational method behind his greatest creations.

“They show he knew what he was doing and that he was so far ahead of his time – that’s why they thought him mad,” said Hans Luijten, a curator. “What emerges here is somebody deliberately planning a campaign in his art.”

More than 100 van Gogh letters are at the heart of the exhibition, surrounded by some of his most celebrated paintings, including the cloud of crows above a wheat field painted at Auvers sur Oise just days before the artist shot himself.

Leo Jansen, one of the exhibition’s organisers, said:

“Every move was thought through – every brush stroke planned. The idea that he was a madman slashing the canvas with paint in a frenzy is rubbish and these letters show this.”

By Florence Waters, The Daily Telegraph.

Photo courtesy of wallyg

]]> http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/10/08/inside-the-rational-mind-of-van-gogh/feed/ 2 The Other Hand http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/10/07/the-other-hand/ http://www.cannyminds.com/blog/2009/10/07/the-other-hand/#comments Wed, 07 Oct 2009 13:08:26 +0000 Jenny http://cannyminds.com/blog/?p=1035 We don’t want to tell you what happens in this book. It is a truly special story and we don’t want to spoil it. Nevertheless, you need to know enough to buy it so we will just say this: This is the story of two women.

Their lives collide one fateful day, and one of them has to make a terrible choice. Two years later, they meet again — the story starts there…Once you have read it, you’ll want to tell your friends about it. When you do, please don’t tell them what happens either.

The magic is in how it unfolds. ‘Totally believable.’ — Daily Express

‘It would be hard not to romp through it.’ — Financial Times

‘Impresses as a feat of literary engineering…the plot exerts a fearsome grip.’ — Telegraph

Let us know what you thought. Comment below.

If you would like to buy The Other Hand, click here.

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