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PhD: so what does it reallystand for?If PhD students are the working class ofacademic research and paid accordingly what needs to change?

Recently, during some particularlythorough literatureresearch, I stumbledon a list of alternative interpretations ofthe acronymPhD. Most were funny:protein has degraded, parents havedoubts. But one froze my face in abittersweet grimace: paid half of what Ideserve.When I was still a rookie PhD student, Iread with outrage an Economist articleentitledthe disposable academic, whichargued that doing a PhD is mostlyneedless. Lately, I've come to think ofthe PhD as more of a heavily spicymeal. It doesn't matter how much youenjoy the process, once you're done,you still have half of the pain ahead.The years of academic slog to workyour way up to a full tenure slot(professorship? ha dream on!) are notmuch different from the work of a PhDin terms of relentless benchwork

(pipetting hand disease) and unceasingliterature research (pound head ondesk), served on a fixed menu withprofessional uncertainty (please hire:desperate). All of which result in, if notprofessorship, then potential heavydrinking.

PhD students and postdocs are theworking class of academic researchand paid accordingly. Althoughpostgraduates are crucial to the

generation, discussion anddissemination of knowledge, 50% pay(i.e half of what they deserve) isstandard for PhDs in natural sciencesand not even guaranteed in the artsand humanities. It's depressing to thinkthat the overall salary of a PhDcandidate is less than the cost of muchlab equipment. Lab devices are meantto last years but, hell, what about thework of PhD students in a systemwhere knowledge is incremental?

There could be several reasons for thisdiscrepancy. Equipment and

consumables are costly and have asubstantial impact on future budgetsetting. The number of PhDs,meanwhile, is inflated and internationalcompetition is fierce. PhD candidatesare earning a degree, which shouldn'tcome for free, and demands motivationand not a little self-denial includingfinancially.

PhD candidates are at their infancy inscience and being trained to dosomething different from their educationto date lessons in theory combinedwith practical labwork as they moveinto more independent, innovativeresearch. And contributing to theadvancement of knowledge requires acertain naive idealism, right? But doesthis mean it's okay to exploit highlyeducated individuals (probably heavilyin debt)? No.The possible solutions are simple. Themost obvious is: raise the salary of PhDstudents. A remedy for the resultingscarcity of resources would be stricterselection so that only the bestcandidates started a PhD. Realisticallythough, this is never going to happen.

It's not because policymakers aregreedy but because it would mean areduction of PhDs and thus a slowdownof science.

A second option wouldn't hinderresearch, and might even enhance it:cut the salary of professors by half. Ifthere are solid reasons for PhDs beingpaid half of what they deserve, then thesame hold good for professors. Theytoo are doing something different from

their previous jobs. After tenure, naturalscientists move out of the lab and intoan office from where they supervise theresearch of their team members. Theknowledge acquired before (boththeoretical and practical) still counts,but the job looks quite different.

Political and managerial skills areequally essential, and nurtured for thesake of tenure, not science. Top-tierstaff write proposals, manage funds

and coordinate subaltern research unitsand are sometimes scarcely involvedwith the generation, presentation and

http://www.theguardian.com/education/researchhttp://www.theguardian.com/education/researchhttp://www.theguardian.com/education/researchhttp://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/phdhttp://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/phdhttp://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/phdhttp://www.economist.com/node/17723223http://www.economist.com/node/17723223http://www.economist.com/node/17723223http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57468913/12-reasons-not-to-get-a-phd/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57468913/12-reasons-not-to-get-a-phd/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57468913/12-reasons-not-to-get-a-phd/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57468913/12-reasons-not-to-get-a-phd/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57468913/12-reasons-not-to-get-a-phd/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505145_162-57468913/12-reasons-not-to-get-a-phd/http://www.economist.com/node/17723223http://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/phdhttp://www.theguardian.com/education/research

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discussion of results which is the corepurpose of science. Some departmentchairs merely take note ofadvancements generated from theinstitutes they preside over, but co-author papers nonetheless.

Wages of these academicadministrators, then, don't deserve to siteven at 50%. And however grim thismay sound to today's professors andthose postdocs close to a permanentrole, the benefits might appeal to futureprofessors much more. Reduction insalaries for tenured staff will create newprofessorial appointments and reducethe imbalance between the number oftemporary researchers and professors,while smaller research units will favourbetter supervision of PhD candidatesand reduce fixed costs.

Today's professors probably alreadyearn too little, after so many years ofbeing underpaid. As one reader wrotein response to that Economist article:"The PhD student is someone whoforgoes current income in order to forgofuture income." But if some of thesurplus resulting from a slash inprofessorial salaries flowed down toPhDs and postdocs, then entry levelprofessors would be put in a betterfinancial position.

In this light, cuts to science funding (likethose we have seen recently in the US)could be an opportunity. Will they slowdown scientific advancement? Most

probably, yes. But here is a chance forthe elite to rethink the way science isdone and stop placing merit only on thelevels of grant money they gain, thepapers they publish, and the prestigethey acquire, but instead taking a closerlook at the predicament of those whoprop this community up.

Advocates of competition see it as apositive outcome of the currentshortage of funding and resources. Butto defend job insecurity as the mainincentive to scientific advancement isoffensive. Science would benefit morefrom a harmonious coexistence of itsmembers than by favouring ruthlesscompetition.

Jorge Cham, creator of the wittilydepressingPhD Comicsseries,revealed that a major motivation for hissketches was to give solace to fellowPhDs struggling as he did through theirpostgraduate years. He interprets theacronym as piled higher and deeper.You might think of the paper bulk onyour desk, but I believe he hadsomething else in mind.PhD actually stands forphilosophiaedoctor, or doctor of philosophy. As wesay in my native Italian: prendila confilosofia (take it easy, take it as itcomes). And waiting for a change in thecurrent system, or for a global PhDmanifesto to emerge, one cannot take itany other way.

http://www.phdcomics.com/http://www.phdcomics.com/http://www.phdcomics.com/http://www.phdcomics.com/

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Brazil's ninja reportersspread stories from thestreetsBand of volunteer citizen journalists aresetting the news agenda with their 'no-cuts,no censorship' approach

Camped out on the concrete in Rio deJaneiro's swanky Leblon district, theMdia Ninja have been watching andwaiting for almost two months.

Journalists rather than assassins, theyare armed with smartphones, cameras

and gas masks the tools of a fast-growing trade in street protest news.

In Leblon, they have recorded and live-streamed almost every chant, song andtussle with police in the ongoingdemonstration outside the home ofSrgio Cabral, the Rio state governorandtarget of anti-corruptioncampaigners.Elsewhere, they have been in the thickof the action in the long-running

occupation of the city council, atmarches to the TV Globo headquartersand on the frontlines of the protests thaterupted acrossBrazilin June.Though the demonstrations haveshrunk and splintered, Mdia Ninja, ajournalists' collective, continues to growin popularity and influence as itprovides a channel for populardiscontent with politics and the media.

Largely unheard of until a few months

ago, the group claims 2,000collaborators in 100 cities, anditsFacebook pagehas drawn 183,000likes.Using social networks as a platform, ithas broken news on police infiltratorsand wrongful arrests forcing themainstream media into sheepish follow-ups.

The work is gritty, sometimes justtedious waiting and often discomfiting.

There is the risk of teargas duringclashes and, even in Rio, it can be coldwhen the winter wind blows in from the

Atlantic. But the live street reportingand "no-cuts, no censorship" approachhas a devoted following.

"We believe we are making a counter-narrative to show what does not appearin the mainstream media," said RafaelVilela, a photographer, who gets nocredit on his published pictures. "It'sjournalism based on collaboration."

Mdia Ninja has its origins in theForado Eixo, a group of collectives thatorganised music festivals and othercultural events. This largely studentmovement, which started in the cities of

Rio Branco, Cuiab and Londrina in2005, has spread to more than 200areas and encompasses an alternativeuniversity, a political party and financialsystem.The movement launched Mdia Ninja ninja is an acronym for "independentnarratives, journalism and action" inPortuguese this year as thecommunications arm of the movement.Its initial role was to promote gigs andrun live broadcasts of concerts and

conferences, but it quickly found anextra mission covering events in thefavelas and small protests that nobodyelse reported.

When one of those demonstrations arally against increased bus fares made headlines in June so did the workof the ninjas, who were among the firstto collect, curate and broadcast imagesof police violence against theprotesters. Much of the reportage was

filmed on and broadcast live frommobile phones. Other material wasgathered from images posted online orsent to the group.

As the protests grew to more than amillion people in 52 cities during theConfederation Cup football tournament,the ninjas saw a surge in support.

Anonymous Rio, which is among theorganisers of the demonstrations, look

to their work. The Bar Association iscollaborating with them on issues of

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/10/rio-governor-sergio-cabral-helicopterhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/10/rio-governor-sergio-cabral-helicopterhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/10/rio-governor-sergio-cabral-helicopterhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/10/rio-governor-sergio-cabral-helicopterhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/brazilhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/brazilhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/brazilhttps://www.facebook.com/midiaNINJAhttps://www.facebook.com/midiaNINJAhttps://www.facebook.com/midiaNINJAhttp://foradoeixo.org.br/http://foradoeixo.org.br/http://foradoeixo.org.br/http://foradoeixo.org.br/https://www.facebook.com/anonymousriohttps://www.facebook.com/anonymousriohttps://www.facebook.com/anonymousriohttp://foradoeixo.org.br/http://foradoeixo.org.br/https://www.facebook.com/midiaNINJAhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/brazilhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/10/rio-governor-sergio-cabral-helicopterhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/jul/10/rio-governor-sergio-cabral-helicopter

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media freedom and police brutality. Inseveral cases, they have also led thenews agenda.Last month, Mdia Ninja sparked publicindignation with images that suggesteda police infiltrator might have thrown amolotov cocktail that set off a violentcounter-reaction. The police deny thisclaim, but the coverage later pickedup by Globo TV and others pushedthe issue of provocateurs high up thenews agenda, served as evidence forthe defence of a wrongly arresteddemonstrator and highlighted the gulfbetween street-level citizen journalistsand big news organisations that oftenover-rely on police briefings for

information.

Mainstream media organisations, suchas Globo and newspaper Folha, haveacknowledged Mdia Ninja'stransformative effect.

"Folha was left in the dust," saidSuzana Singer, the newspaper'sombudsman in an evaluation of thework done by the collective and citizenjournalists. "It's not enough to coverprotests the old-fashioned way,counting only on what your ownreporters see, the police version, andimages on the big broadcasters It'snecessary to take into account thesenew sources of information."Even Globo, Brazil's media colossus,has started to run ninja footage andfollow stories that started with ninjacoverage.

"It's not our objective to make contentfor Globo, but it's a good sign that theyuse it. This really is a turning point forthe Brazilian media," said Vilela. "Itshows that they can't get as close aswe are, though it must be hard for themto use our images, to see boys withcellphones doing better than them."

The growing influence comes with risks.Many in the group feel they have beensingled out by police to try to stop themcontradicting the official version ofevents.

"We have already taken rubber bullets,tear gas, stones, fragments ofgrenades. We've been sprayed with firehoses and pepper spray and beenverbally threatened. In the wholecountry, eight reporters have beendetained and, in some cases, sufferedphysical aggression," said FilipePeanha, another ninja who wasdetained while filming during a protest.

A longer-term challenge is how to

maintain the financial integrity of agroup that wants to become a morepowerful force for social change butdoes not want to compromise its non-commercial values.

Mdia Ninja relies heavily on volunteers,though it is trying to build a system fordonations to be channelled to reportersfor air fares, accommodation,equipment and living expenses.

Some supporters have offeredaccommodation in their homes. Thereis a communal wardrobe. One backerrecently paid for Vilela to fly to Egyptand cover the demonstrations in Cairo.Hundreds of people have emailed thegroup and asked to become ninjas.

But the question of how to secure fundsremains controversial inside the group.Bruno Torturra, one of the main co-ordinators, said he had given up trying

to raise money via crowd-fundingbecause of the likely backlash frommembers. But there are certainly noplans to cash in through advertising.

"We are making journalism as cheap aspossible so that it can be more honest,"said Vilela.

http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/ombudsman/2013/07/1318854-the-pope-p2-and-the-ninjas.shtmlhttp://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/ombudsman/2013/07/1318854-the-pope-p2-and-the-ninjas.shtmlhttp://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/ombudsman/2013/07/1318854-the-pope-p2-and-the-ninjas.shtmlhttp://www1.folha.uol.com.br/internacional/en/ombudsman/2013/07/1318854-the-pope-p2-and-the-ninjas.shtml

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Bad driving: what arewe thinking?New laws to curb dangerous drivinghighlight the fascinating psychology of

the road

Last week the UK governmentannounced acrackdown on unsafedriving. From now on, those of usspotted tailgating or lane hoggingwill face on-the-spot fines of 100and three penalty points. Asroadsafetyminister Stephen Hammondsaid: "Careless driving puts innocentpeople's lives at risk. That is why we

have made it easier for the police totackle problem drivers."This initiative draws attention to afascinating branch of sciencecalledtraffic psychology, whichstudies the human andenvironmental factors that influenceour driving behaviour. Decades ofresearch intrafficpsychologysuggests that poordriving is shaped by far more than

carelessness or a subset of"problem drivers". Even the mostskilled road users are subject to lossof social awareness, intuitive biases,contradictory beliefs, and limits incognitive capacity.Here are 10 of the most interestingpsychological biases and errors weface when behind the wheel.

1. We fail to realise when we'rebeing aggressive or we don't care

We've all had the experience of avehicle looming in our rear viewandhanging on the bumper. Many ofus will also have tailgated, blockedor otherwise bullied other people inways we wouldn't dream of doing ina face-to-face situation, such asstanding in a queue.Research

showsthat younger drivers whoscore higher on personality

measures ofsensation-seekingandimpulsiveness are more likely tobehave aggressively behind thewheel. What's also interesting is thatthese drivers show less sensitivity to

punishment, which means thatsimple punitive measures areunlikely to deter the most antisocialroad users.

2. We believe we're safer than wereally are

Once we've learned how to drive itsoon becomes an automatic task.Over time we learn how to predict

the actions of other drivers, whichcan lead tothe illusion that wecontrol them. One area wherepeople seem especially prone toerror is in the judgement of relativespeed: we tend tooverestimate howmuch time can be saved by drivingfaster while also underestimatingminimal safe braking distance. Thecomputations needed to make thesejudgements arehighly complexanddon't come naturally to us.

3. We forget that other drivers arepeople too

When someone accidentally walksinto us on the street or theirshopping trolley bumps into ours,the usual reaction is to apologiseand move on. But when driving,

near misses are often met withinstant anger and in the mostextreme cases,road rage. Researchshows that drivers morereadilydehumanise other driversand pedestriansin ways theywouldn't when interacting in person.This loss of inhibition is similar to theway some of us behave inonlineenvironments.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/16/on-the-spot-fines-drivers-in-forcehttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/16/on-the-spot-fines-drivers-in-forcehttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/16/on-the-spot-fines-drivers-in-forcehttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/16/on-the-spot-fines-drivers-in-forcehttp://www.theguardian.com/world/road-safetyhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/road-safetyhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/road-safetyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic_psychologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic_psychologyhttp://www.theguardian.com/science/psychologyhttp://www.theguardian.com/science/psychologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tailgatinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tailgatinghttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001457511000169http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001457511000169http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001457511000169http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001457511000169http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9316713http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9316713http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9316713http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusion_of_controlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusion_of_controlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusion_of_controlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusion_of_controlhttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1471/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1471/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1471/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1471/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1471/abstracthttp://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/@motor/documents/digitalasset/dg_188029.pdfhttp://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/@motor/documents/digitalasset/dg_188029.pdfhttp://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/@motor/documents/digitalasset/dg_188029.pdfhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_ragehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_ragehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_ragehttp://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?collection=journals&handle=hein.journals/policejl70&div=45&id=&page=http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?collection=journals&handle=hein.journals/policejl70&div=45&id=&page=http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?collection=journals&handle=hein.journals/policejl70&div=45&id=&page=http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?collection=journals&handle=hein.journals/policejl70&div=45&id=&page=http://www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2013/aug/12/psychology-trolling-online-abusehttp://www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2013/aug/12/psychology-trolling-online-abusehttp://www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2013/aug/12/psychology-trolling-online-abusehttp://www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2013/aug/12/psychology-trolling-online-abusehttp://www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2013/aug/12/psychology-trolling-online-abusehttp://www.theguardian.com/science/head-quarters/2013/aug/12/psychology-trolling-online-abusehttp://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?collection=journals&handle=hein.journals/policejl70&div=45&id=&page=http://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?collection=journals&handle=hein.journals/policejl70&div=45&id=&page=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Road_ragehttp://www.direct.gov.uk/prod_consum_dg/groups/dg_digitalassets/@dg/@en/@motor/documents/digitalasset/dg_188029.pdfhttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1471/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1471/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1471/abstracthttp://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/acp.1471/abstracthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusion_of_controlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Illusion_of_controlhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9316713http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001457511000169http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0001457511000169http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tailgatinghttp://www.theguardian.com/science/psychologyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Traffic_psychologyhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/road-safetyhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/road-safetyhttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/16/on-the-spot-fines-drivers-in-forcehttp://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/16/on-the-spot-fines-drivers-in-force

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4. yet we behave moreaggressively to those of 'lowerstatus'

One interesting paradox is that even

though we're prone to dehumanisingother drivers, we still act accordingto social status.Decades ofresearchshows that prolongedhonking, tailgating, and otheraggressive behaviours are morelikely if the aggressor believestheyare the more important driver.What's particularly interesting is thatthese judgements can be basedsimply on the vehicles involved, with

no knowledge of the person behindthe wheel: larger cars generallyoutrank smaller cars and newer carstrump older ones. Drivers of moreexpensive cars are also more likelytobehave aggressively towardpedestrians.

5. We believe we can seeeverything happening around us

Our senses receive far moreinformation than we can process atonce, which makesbrain systems ofattentioncrucial for focusingresources on the most importantevents. Most of the time we fail toappreciate the enormous amount ofinformation we miss, and this canadd to afalse sense of security onthe road. If you don't believe how

fallible your attention is, try thesesimple tests devised bypsychologistDanSimons,hereandhere. The resultswill shock you.

6. yet we also think other driverscan't see us

This one is for all the nose pickersand earwax excavators. It isn't really

an issue of safety (or is it?), but you

know who you are and unfortunatelyso do we.

7. We attribute near misses to a lackof ability in other drivers

In general, we fail to account forsituational reasons as to why otherdrivers might get in our way or seemto act dangerously. Psychologistscall this thefundamental attributionerror we tend to attribute themistakes of others to theirpersonality or ability ("what anidiot!", "what a terrible driver!"), whileexcusing our own errors as

situational ("that bit of road isdangerous", "I had to drive that fastor I would have been late").

8. while at the same timeoverestimating our own skills

If you think you're a highly skilleddriver, the chances are you're not.About80-90% of drivers believethey have above-average ability,and the more skilled we believe weare at something, the less likely it isto be true. This tendency for us tobe blind to our own incompetence iscalled theDunning-Kruger effect. Ofcourse, the upside is that if youbelieve you're a terrible driver,you're probably not as bad as youthink.

9. We drive more recklessly whenwe're going solo

We generally drive less carefullyand more aggressivelywhen we'realonethan when we havepassengers. It isn't clear why this is,or whether we're conscious of thischange in our behaviour.

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178902001180http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178902001180http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178902001180http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178902001180http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847800000231http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847800000231http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847800000231http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847800000231http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/12/the-rich-drive-differently-a-study-suggests/http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/12/the-rich-drive-differently-a-study-suggests/http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/12/the-rich-drive-differently-a-study-suggests/http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/12/the-rich-drive-differently-a-study-suggests/http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attentionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attentionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attentionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attentionhttp://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/failures_of_visual_attention.pdfhttp://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/failures_of_visual_attention.pdfhttp://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/failures_of_visual_attention.pdfhttp://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/failures_of_visual_attention.pdfhttps://twitter.com/profsimonshttps://twitter.com/profsimonshttps://twitter.com/profsimonshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG698U2Mvohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG698U2Mvohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG698U2Mvohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nL5ulsWMYchttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nL5ulsWMYchttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nL5ulsWMYchttp://www.pressreleasepoint.com/crazy-canadian-law-make-picking-your-nose-while-driving-illegalhttp://www.pressreleasepoint.com/crazy-canadian-law-make-picking-your-nose-while-driving-illegalhttp://www.pressreleasepoint.com/crazy-canadian-law-make-picking-your-nose-while-driving-illegalhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_attribution_errorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_attribution_errorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_attribution_errorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_attribution_errorhttp://suite101.com/article/the-fundamental-attribution-error-slow-drivers-are-all-idiots-a393134http://suite101.com/article/the-fundamental-attribution-error-slow-drivers-are-all-idiots-a393134http://suite101.com/article/the-fundamental-attribution-error-slow-drivers-are-all-idiots-a393134http://suite101.com/article/the-fundamental-attribution-error-slow-drivers-are-all-idiots-a393134http://www.helium.com/items/2315324-psychology-the-dunning-kruger-effect-in-actionhttp://www.helium.com/items/2315324-psychology-the-dunning-kruger-effect-in-actionhttp://www.helium.com/items/2315324-psychology-the-dunning-kruger-effect-in-actionhttp://www.helium.com/items/2315324-psychology-the-dunning-kruger-effect-in-actionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effecthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effecthttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effecthttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15003588http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15003588http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15003588http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15003588http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15003588http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15003588http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effecthttp://www.helium.com/items/2315324-psychology-the-dunning-kruger-effect-in-actionhttp://www.helium.com/items/2315324-psychology-the-dunning-kruger-effect-in-actionhttp://suite101.com/article/the-fundamental-attribution-error-slow-drivers-are-all-idiots-a393134http://suite101.com/article/the-fundamental-attribution-error-slow-drivers-are-all-idiots-a393134http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_attribution_errorhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fundamental_attribution_errorhttp://www.pressreleasepoint.com/crazy-canadian-law-make-picking-your-nose-while-driving-illegalhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1nL5ulsWMYchttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJG698U2Mvohttps://twitter.com/profsimonshttps://twitter.com/profsimonshttp://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/failures_of_visual_attention.pdfhttp://www.distraction.gov/download/research-pdf/failures_of_visual_attention.pdfhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attentionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attentionhttp://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/12/the-rich-drive-differently-a-study-suggests/http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/08/12/the-rich-drive-differently-a-study-suggests/http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847800000231http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847800000231http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178902001180http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178902001180

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10. We believe hands-free carphones are safe.

In the UK it is illegal to use a hand-held mobile phone while driving,

whereas hands-free alternatives areallowed. This is a great example ofthe law lagging behind science:evidence shows that using a hands-free car phone isno less dangerousthan talking on a hand-held mobilephone. What makes these phoneconversations unsafe isn't so muchthe act of holding the phone asbeing distracted by theconversation. The lack of body

language makes such conversationsespecially demanding, requiring us

to commit more cognitive resourcesand further distracting us from theroad.Driving is one of the mostcomplicated behavioural tasks we

accomplish in our lives. The fact thatit seems so mundane and thatthere are relatively few accidents is a testament to the elegance ofhighway engineering, the genius oftraffic signalling, and thesophistication of the human brain.Still, next time you're behind thewheel and feel annoyed, frustratedor have an itchy nose, ask yourself:are you falling prey to any of the

above?

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19433208http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19433208http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19433208http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19433208http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19433208http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19433208http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19433208http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19433208