PLAY AND CREATIVITY: DRAWASTICKMAN

Melanie Klein was a child psychoanalyst who showed the crucial importance of the play in the psychic growth of the child. Playing and its interpretation was also the basis of her therapeutic method.
The following animation allows us to experiment the joys of drawing as a child. At least that's what I felt. Have a try.
http://www.drawastickman.com/episode1

EARTHQUAKES OVER THE WORLD

Here is the link for a video map of all earthquakes that happened in 2011:
http://www.likecool.com/brand-Gear-Video.html

DEALING WITH ANGER

A interesting testimonial on taking issues personally and becoming easily angry, very angry.
We sometimes don't know how to deal with narcissistic issues and when you really should speak up - or not.
http://www.thefrisky.com/2012-03-12/girl-talk-im-going-back-to-therapy-to-deal-with-my-anger/?TrackID=ENC

Training the happiness muscles

Positive psychologist Miriam Akhtar says that around 40% of our happiness can be controlled by ourselves. The most important thing she has learnt during the years, is that happiness is like a muscle we can train. People who want to be happy have to focus on what they want (instead of what they don't want). Just like successful athletes: they focus on winning (instead of losing). When we focus on what we want, there is space to think about ways to reach those goals.

Miriams research has led to 12 practical steps to be more happy. Read more about this here

Invisible Children

In case you haven't seen this one yet: a much talked about documentary about Joseph Kony (especially on social media).
Opponents say this documantary is based on fake facts, while supporters prefer to focus on the intention this documentary has: to make Joseph Kony and his acts known, worldwide.

See also www.invisiblechildren.com

BALL OF SCRUNCHED-UP PAPER OR METEOR?

"Meteor", series of photos by Thomas Brown.

http://trendland.net/thomas-browns-meteors-series/?utm_source=Trendland+List&utm_campaign=0cf8b2985a-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email

A tribute to introverts

Susan Cain gives an interesting tribute to introverts on www.ted.com.
Click on the title of this post to see it!

What do you think?

SATURN II

Saturn seen by spacecraft Cassini in the XXI century. To the upper right its largest moon Titan.
(photo: NASA)

SATURN I

Saturn the god of harvest and agriculture, as depicted by Goya. He is said to devour his own sons lest they might take his place.

The holiday-effect

A few weeks per year we are living life as it is meant to be and we change into the person we would like to be. Being outside, having good and nice conversations with our loved ones, experiencing new things, etc. When we are on holidays, we are healthier, happier and more relaxed. We experience calmness as we have no obligations. We are feeling more free and autonomous. Our self-esteem is getting a boost.
It's interesting to think about which activities make us happy on holidays: could we integrate parts of them in our daily lives?

FREEZING THE EGGS

More and more young women with careers are opting for freezing their eggs as a way of assuring fertility when the right time comes - either because of their careers or because they haven't found the right guy yet.
In this video Leigh Gallager, a Fortune's editor, discusses her option.
http://bigthink.com/think-tank/fertility?utm_source=Big+Think+Weekly+Newsletter+Subscribers&utm_campaign=eb957bfb15-Fertility_Revolution_3_2_2012&utm_medium=email

DIVING IN TONGA

A wonderful video : diving in Tonga.
It made me remember my days of scubadiving.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/mcbHKAWIk3I

PANIC ROOM

Urban artist Tilt designed this room for a hotel in Marseille, France. It's called "panic room" and it conveys indeed a powerful sentiment of anxiety".
I wouldn't fancy sleeping there but it's interesting how spaces and colors can influence your mood.
The issue maybe that the room is cut in half in a threatening way (for me at east). What you think?
(seen in
http://www.likecool.com/Panic_Room--Projects--Gear.html)

Hidden

I found this movie quite interesting, it shows what kind of hidden burdens fellow human beings can carry with them, and what people do to survive in life. In this case: a woman pretending to be a man.

LIGHT AND DARKNESS

Astonishing photos by Chris Fraser
http://trendland.net/chris-frasers-light-installations/?utm_source=Trendland+List&utm_campaign=dc57ad5eca-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email

THE WONDERFUL HOUSE IN THE SNOW

In Portugal there is very little snow. But our imaginary is also made of stories of fairys, Snow White, forests in the winter.
Dutch arquitects have conceived this marvelous house, part of which lies inside the mould.
Have a look at dezeen.com site for other photos. Notice the car in the wall used as bookshelf.
http://www.dezeen.com/2012/02/29/dutch-mountain-by-denieuwegeneratie/

COSMONAUTS

These are Russian cosmonauts at work in the space. And it was 50 years ago that John Glenn made his first orbital flight.

(via NASA http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_2181.html)

FROM WASHINGTON DC TO QUEEN OF A VILLAGE IN GHANA

This lady who lived and worked in the States as an American citizen was all of a sudden made Queen (as a matter of fact King) of a village in Ghana.
What will she be doing with that?
You can ask her questions through the link below:

http://bigthink.com/ideas/42625?utm_source=Big+Think+Weekly+Newsletter+Subscribers&utm_campaign=aa5377920c-The_Electronic_Brain_Your_Mind_012&utm_medium=email

Where darkness meets light

Wow...this must be a beautiful exhibition! A good reason to go to Istanbul!
Read more by clicking on the title of this post!

The purple bracelet

Have you heard about 'the complaint free world'? This project is running for some years already, but today I had to think about it again. Instead of a purple bracelet, you can use any other easy to switch object as well of course!

OUT OF THE BOX

This is what they call thinking out of the box. You might like it or not but one has to agree on the originality!
http://www.bloglovin.com/m/8169/399729223/a/0/aHR0cCUzQSUyRiUyRmZlZWRzLmFwYXJ0bWVudHRoZXJhcHkuY29tJTJGJTdFciUyRmFwYXJ0bWVudHRoZXJhcHklMkZtYWluJTJGJTdFMyUyRjNnS3V2UjgtZHh3JTJGc3BhY2Utc2F2aW5nLW1hZ2ljLWhpZGUteW91ci1kaW5pbmctdGFibGUtb24tdGhlLXdhbGwtMTY2MjAz

DISORGANIZATION AND THE BRAIN

An interesting approach to understanding chaos and disorganization some of us often experience.
The article was published in:
http://bigthink.com/ideas/42522?utm_source=Big+Think+Weekly+Newsletter+Subscribers&utm_campaign=61b97feed0-Newsletter2_17_2012&utm_medium=email

ARCHITECTURE

I'm always amazed at the indifference some people show towards architecture. After all it concerns our daily lives, isn'it?
I upsets me being surrounded by ugly buildings. We're lucky that Lisbon, despite its flaws, has this beautiful light that seems to cover some of them.
Dezeen is a most amazing site for those who wish to be informed about arquitecture (buildings and decoration of interiors).
Have a look at a modern gallery in China:

http://www.dezeen.com/2012/02/06/vanke-triple-v-gallery-by-ministry-of-design/

ARCHITECTURE

I'm always amazed at the indifference some people show towards architecture. After all it concerns our daily lives, isn'it?
I upsets me being surrounded by ugly buildings. We're lucky that Lisbon, despite its flaws, has this beautiful light that seems to cover some of them.
Dezeen is a most amazing site for those who wish to be informed about arquitecture (buildings and decoration of interiors).
Have a look at a modern gallery in China:

http://www.dezeen.com/2012/02/06/vanke-triple-v-gallery-by-ministry-of-design/

Empathy and our genes

Researchers of the Berkeley University of California found that we only need 20 seconds to see whether a stranger is genetically inclined to being empathic.
In this research, people who were rated highest for empathy turned out to possess a particular variation of the oxytocin (the 'cuddle hormone') receptor gene.


Read (and see!) more at the Berkeley University website:

SELFLESSNESS NOT SELFISHNESS

Seth Godin has such interesting posts. Have a look at this one:

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2012/02/the-sad-irony-of-selfishness.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+typepad%2Fsethsmainblog+%28Seth%27s+Blog%29

A POEM BY FERNANDO PESSOA

Here is a poem by one of Fernando Pessoa' s heteronyms, Ricardo Caeiro, translated by Richard Zenith and seen in poetryinternational.com

The gods grant nothing more than life

The gods grant nothing more than life, So let us reject whatever lifts us             To unbreathable heights,             Eternal but flowerless. All that we need to accept is science, And as long as the blood in our veins still pulses             And love does not shrivel,             Let us go on Like panes of glass: transparent to light, Pattered by the sad rain trickling down,             Warmed by the sun,             And reflecting a little.

CHILDREN

I'm not a child expert but I sure enjoyed reading this article by an American mother whose daughters were born in France.
The importance of empathy is certainly something to consider. Are we teaching it (by example) to our children?

http://ideas.time.com/2012/02/10/why-american-kids-are-brats/?iid=op-article-latest

Fernando Pessoa

Today the exhibition about Fernando Pessoa will start at Gulbenkian!!

http://www.gulbenkian.pt/section30artId1546langId1.html

A funny and at the same time informative read...

The 'Hector-novels' of French psychiatrist Francois Lelord are so entertaining and informative! These books are about the character Hector, a young psychiatrist, who travels the world to search for answers on the question: what makes people happy? They are written in such an easy, funny way that it's hard to stop reading!

WORK AS PLAY?

This playful space is part of the headquarters of Lego in Danemark. You can see more at the link below.
One whishes one could work there, isn'it?
On second thoughts, it's quite curious how the work spaces have evolved lately. In the beginning of the 20th century offices had dark wooden decoration, black marble on the floor. What happened in between?
Could it be that we are becoming so infantilized as a society that bosses think we're happier with toys around?
Food for thought.

http://www.dezeen.com/2012/01/31/lego-pmd-by-rosan-bosch-and-rune-fjord/
(via Dezeen)

Positive Psychology

Martin Seligman, founder of the Center for Positive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, found that the following circumstances attribute to happiness:

1. to live in a prosperous, democratic country
2. to have an extensive social network
3. to be married
4. to be religious
5. to avoid negative emotions

However, the circumstances of earning more money, living in a sunny country, staying healthy and following the best possible education, proved not to have any effect on our level of happiness on the long term, even though most of us believe so...

CONFERENCE IN ENGLISH AT FUNDAÇÃO CHAMALIMAUD

There was a conference on creativity (in English) at Fundação Champalimaud (in the photo) last Monday.
I was amazed to see there was a crowd of young people filling the place.
Although I got there ten minutes before the time I couldn't get in. But I was pleased to see that there was such an interest.
If you want to be informed about the cultural activities of the Fundação go to the site (www.fchampalimaud.org) and subscribe the newsletter. On top of it, the place is amazing and beautifully located on the mouth of the river. I hear they're doing a lot of research on cancer and already providing treatments.

BEACHES

I'm joining Esther and Louise in the love for the sea.
This is a photo I took on a beach in the Azores. Thus the basaltic sand.

NOEMIE GOUDAL

Les amants (Jetée), 2009

For other works of this amazing "creatice" see www.noemiegoudal.com

(via becauseimaddicted.blogspot.com)

Happiness!

Belgian writer and journalist Leo Bormans made an international project about happiness.
In his book, 'The World Book of Happiness', 100 professional researchers in Positive Psychology share their evidence-based knowledge.

European Council President Herman van Rompuy has recently sent this book to all world leaders!

Read more about this inspiring book at:
http://77.241.93.48/webroot/theworldbookofhappiness_EN/blog/wordpress/

Relax...

In psychology, we sometimes use tools like relaxation exercises, breathing exercises etc. When I work with relaxation techniques, I often use someone's 'favorite scene of nature'. Then we can imaginary explore that place with all our senses...
My favorite scene of nature is the beach! What is yours?

Does the size of our social network correlate with brain growth?

It seems so, although more research still has to be done using human subjects.

A research group from the University of Oxford used macaques to study this. They placed them in groups of different sizes during one year.
After this period, parts of the brains (important for recognition of faces, as well as facial and emotional expressions) had increased in the monkeys that had been living in bigger groups. These functions seem to be needed harder to be able to be successful in a bigger social context.

Read more at:

http://www.sciencemag.org/content/334/6056/697.abstract

DID WE FREEZE IN THE 90s?

Do read a most interesting article in Vanity Fair's January issue. The author Kurt Andersen elaborates about the way the appearance world seems to have not changed since the nineties. Except in science and technology of course we've not seen great changes. You wouldn't distinguish a photo from the nineties from a contemporary one if it were not for a mobile someone carries.
Amazing reading. One wonders...

http://www.vanityfair.com/style/2012/01/prisoners-of-style-201201

Where to park our bikes? (part 2)

...and a bike-parking place in Amsterdam

Where to park our bikes? (part 1)

I couldn't withhold you these pictures: a bike-parking place in Lisbon...

We don't only HEAR with our ears....

Hmmm, this is interesting: not only our eyes are sensitive to light, but our ears as well!
They can even help us beat a jetlag!

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/the-human-brain-is-sensitive-to-light-breakthrough-findings-from-valkee-and-the-university-of-oulu-127506878.html

LET THE BIKES RIDE!

Riding a bycicle seems to be getting into the habits of the Lisboetas and those who live in Linha. At last!
It isn'it yet Amsterdam or Copenhagen or Bologna but we trust those in the townhall can see a little further than their noses. Get someone to go to one of those cities and just copy! Above all don't try to be too smart! It can be done with will and good sense.
In the meantime I leave here a photo I took in Boston a few years ago: the lonely bycicle in the snow.

The effect of listening to our MP3 in public transport

A little bit more in addition to one of the last posts about public transport: it seems like we can bear the vicinity of strangers more easily when listening to happy music through headphones. Positive music makes the borders of our personal space smaller!
Read more about this research, done by psychologists from the University of London, at:

http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0026083

WRITING ON THE NET AND COPYRIGHTS

For anyone who writes on the net, I would advise reading this post by Seth Godin

http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2012/01/simple-thoughts-about-fair-use.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+typepad%2Fsethsmainblog+%28Seth%27s+Blog%29

City and Street Views

I love the pictures of German artist Michael Wolf!
http://photomichaelwolf.com/intro/index.html

His new pics of subway-travellers in Tokyo make me think....
How do we prefer to move around? Which options do we have? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each option? Anyone of us makes different choices.
Walking? Bicycle? Car? Subway? ....?

Dog Phobia: a cognitive behavioral perspective

Most specific phobias (like dog phobia) arise in childhood. Modeling (seeing frightened parents for example) could be one of the causes, as well as conditioning experiences (for example, seeing a person being bitten by a dog) and receiving negative information (stories of friends/family, films, books).

When fear is interfering with daily life it's good to find help. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a well-known and efficient therapy to tackle fear and anxiety. It consists of 2 parts: cognitive therapy and behavioral therapy. This is because in CBT, cognitions as well as behavior are thought to play a crucial role in the way we feel (for example: scared).

Our behavior can change our thoughts and feelings. Besides that, our thoughts can change our feelings and behavior.

People who are afraid of something, tend to avoid the situation or object they fear. In the short term, avoidance helps because you will feel less afraid. But in the long term, this behavior creates persistence or even an increase of the anxiety. Behavioral therapy focuses on changing behavior to overcome fear. Step by step, under professional guidance, you will start exposing yourself to the things you fear. This allows you slowly adapt to situations that you find difficult.

Cognitive therapy is all about the way of thinking. Your thoughts will be examined during treatment. You will learn to think differently about your fear. New, helping thoughts will be created that will help you overcome your fears. For example, people with anxiety disorders often think that the risk of danger is very great. The question is whether this is true? Are these thoughts realistic? What would be a more helpful, realistic thought?

Dog phobia

Our reader Anna asked for an elaboration on dog phobias. From a psychoanaltycal point of view dog phobia as other phobias is a way of expressing anxiety. The person may think along these lines (sub-consciously): if I manage to avoid dogs I won't be so anxious.
And you know what? It sometimes works.
Mind you, the phobia can be manageable up to a certain point. When it upsets your life (eg not visiting a friend because of his dog) it's time to do something about it. Cognitive therapy is quite used in these cases. I'll ask our new collaborator and cognitive therapist Esther Schuller to write about it.
Welcome Esther!

HAPPY NEW YEAR

It's interesting how our minds work and how we like to atribute meanings to calendar and dates. What happened between yesterday and today? Nothing or maybe a lot, it depends on the individual.
Although the international and national situations are worrying, let's face 2012 as the French philosopher Giles Deleuze wrote: "to be ethical is to live up to the circumstances".
Exits 1, enters 2: Happy New Year

HOW NICE A HOME

What a beautiful and not expensive decoration! Sometimes it takes more emotional investment than money. Which is to say: creativity.

Seen in the blog my ideal home
http://www.bloglovin.com/m/1844326/347426062/a/0/aHR0cCUzQSUyRiUyRm15aWRlYWxob21lLnR1bWJsci5jb20lMkZwb3N0JTJGMTQwNTk3MTM4ODQ=