Braingle

Today's Daily Brain Teaser (Nov 07, 2009)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:00:01 GMT

The Old Monk and the Staircase

Construction of a stronger and more massive bell tower for the monastery to replace the one destroyed during the last civil strife with a neighboring lord was well underway when the old Monk visited the site. The Abbot showed the Monk the drawings and model for the three-bell tower. The Monk was impressed until he stood where the bell chamber would be and saw the spiral staircase in this medieval bell tower running the wrong direction (counterclockwise).

"The staircase direction must be changed," said the Old Monk. The Abbot looked at the staircase and agreed. Why?

Check Braingle.com for the answer.

Today's Daily Trivia Quiz (Nov 07, 2009)

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:00:01 GMT

"Gone With the Wind" - the Book
"Gone With the Wind", the great southern classic of years gone by, was written by Margaret Mitchell.

Take the Quiz at Braingle.com

Vocabulary : Word of the Day : Risible

Sat, 07 Nov 2009 00:00:01 GMT

ris-i-ble

adjective :: Exciting laughter; worthy to be laughed at; amusing.

"Before long, I began to read aloud with my father, chanting the strange and wondrous rivers -- Shenandoah, Rappahannock, Chickahominy -- and wrapping my tongue around the risible names of rebel generals: Braxton Bragg, Jubal Early, John Sappington Marmaduke, William "Extra Billy" Smith, Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard." --Tony Horwitz

Creativity : Left vs Right Brain Thinking

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:01 GMT

As we know, the two hemispheres of the brain think in different ways. The left brain tends to be logical and analytical, while the right brain tends to be more creative and spontaneous. When you are using one side of your brain more than the other, this is called left or right brained thinking. Both types of thinking are valuable, so one should try to develop their skills in both.

Unfortunately, left brained thinking is the type that is most valued by our society and taught in our schools. Almost all of the major subjects taught in school (math, science, history, etc) depend predominately on left brained thinking. Rarely do teachers encourage their students to think creatively and explore alternate solutions, and rarely are right brained studies (art, design, music, etc) encouraged.

This over emphasis becomes even more problematic as students move into the professional world. In order to get support for a new project or idea, it must be clearly defined and understood (left brained thinking) by the people who are going to be paying for it. It's very difficult to get funding for a project if the goals are not clearly understood. As a result, creative ideas don't happen as frequently as they could if right brained thinking was more valued.

It's no coincidence that the really creative ideas that occur from time to time are usually self-funded by the inventor working out of their garage. These are the people who understand the true value of thinking creatively.

Memory : Only 10% of Your Brain

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:01 GMT

It is a myth that humans only use a fraction of their brains. Even though scientists are still trying to unravel the mysteries of the human mind, every part of the brain is known to have a function. From an evolutionary point of view, larger brains would not have developed if there had not been an advantage to do so.

The origins of this myth are unknown, but it might have originated from a researcher named Karl Spencer Lashley who lived about a hundred years ago. He removed parts of the brains of rats and showed that they could still perform certain tests. The problem with these results are that the rats were only tested on tasks that required the parts of the brain that had not been removed. If the rats had been given other tests, they would have certainly failed.