brain-train Newsletter - March 2007
Flirt a little…
10 Funny Flirting Facts - Laura Schaefer
So you’ve mastered the eye-contact game and can beckon a cute prospect with a few coy glances… but do you really know all there is to know about the fine art of come-hither? Just to make sure you’re up to speed, we culled some very surprising info that you can use to your advantage. Read on for some juicy titbits that may up your cute quotient in no time.
1. Flirting is good for you. Studies show that people who flirt have higher white blood-cell counts, which boost their immunity and keep them healthy.
2. Think it ends at a little eye batting? Hardly, all told, scientists say there are 52 “flirting signals” used by humans. Of these, the hair flip is the most common.
3. In some places, flirting is illegal. In Little Rock in the US an antiquated law is still on the books warning that engaging in playful banter may result in a 30-day jail term. In New York City, another outdated law mandates that men may be fined $25 for gazing lasciviously at a female; a second conviction stipulates the offender wear a pair of blinders whenever he goes out for a walk. Luckily in the UK there are no such laws
4. Why wait for Happy Hour? Lots of people get their flirt on during their morning commute. A full 62 percent of drivers have flirted with someone in a different vehicle while on the go, and 31 percent of those flirtations, it turns out, resulted in a date.
5. Flirting need not occur face to face. According to Pew Research, 40 percent of people who look for love online say they can easily flirt with someone via email or IM.
6. In the Victorian era, fans were the ultimate playful prop that could communicate all sorts of messages. A fan placed near the heart meant, You have won my love. A half-opened fan pressed to the lips suggested, You may kiss me. Hiding the eyes behind an open fan meant, I love you, while opening and closing the fan several times warned, You are cruel. Given how much a fan could come in handy, it’s a shame they ever invented air conditioning.
7. These days, mobile phones do the flirting. In one survey, half of all mobile phone users have texted suggestive messages to keep things interesting while away from their amour.
8. Watch out, you can overdo it. According to the Social Issues Research Centre, the most common mistake people make when flirting is maintaining too much eye contact.
9. Sometimes, flirty gestures aren’t what they seem. Research has shown that men tend to routinely mistake friendly behaviour for flirting.
10. Flirting is universal. A woman living in London and one in rural Cambodia may not have much in common, but when it comes to attracting a little attention, they both employ the very same move: smiling, arching their eyebrows, then averting their gaze and giggling. Animals flirt, too: Birds, reptiles, and even fish have their own way of strutting their stuff. Moral of the story: If the simple sea bass can act cute to enhance a romantic agenda, you can, too, so give it a go!
Laugh a little…
Chronic stress can profoundly depress the immune system … exposure to a one-hour humorous video reduced secretion of stress hormones like epinephrine and cortisol and enhanced the anti-viral and antibacterial capabilities of the body's immune system.
It's been said that laughter is the best medicine. But here's a new study showing that even looking forward to a good laugh -- simply by renting a funny video or checking out the TV comedy listings -- can be good for your health.
In the first study of its kind, researchers found that sheer anticipation of watching a funny video triggered significant mood changes, reducing levels of stress-related hormones and boosting disease-fighting immunity.
It's the "biology of hope" at work, says lead author Lee Berk, MD, assistant professor of family medicine at the University of California Irvine College of Medicine. His findings were presented at the recent Society for Neuroscience meeting.
"We believe this 'biology of hope' underlies recovery from many chronic disorders," Berk says in a press release. "Treatments that take advantage of this hope may go a long way to stimulating immune responses and hasten recovery."
Berk and his colleagues have spent years focusing on the effect that moods have on the immune system and disease. They have established the role played by laughter in the body's ability to effectively fend off viruses and bacteria and help fight chronic diseases like cancer and heart disease.
Chronic stress can profoundly depress the immune system, says Berk. He has found in previous studies that exposure to a one-hour humorous video reduced secretion of stress hormones like epinephrine and cortisol and enhanced the anti-viral and antibacterial capabilities of the body's immune system. However, this is the first study showing that anticipating an event can also trigger stress-relieving changes.
In his study, Berk enrolled 10 men -- all around 27-years old -- and measured them for signs of stress. He also told them they would be watching a funny video in about three days. He found that in each of the men, their negative moods progressively lifted before they saw the video.
Two days before the video, mood ratings for depression dropped 51%, confusion 36%, anger 19%, fatigue 15%, and tension 9%. These ratings became increasingly dramatic immediately after watching the video; depression and anger dropped by 98%, fatigue by 87%, confusion by 75%, and tension by 61%. Each man also had more vigor -- an increase of 12% before the video and 37% afterward.
"While vigor actually shows signs of more energy and better resistance to disease, the other mood categories are known to increase stress hormone levels and reduce the effectiveness of the immune system," Berk says. "Positive anticipation of humour starts the ball rolling in a sense, in which moods begin to change in ways that help the body fight illness. We believe this shows that even anticipation can be used to help patients recover from a wide range of disorders."
The use of NLP and Time Line Therapy in treating Depression
http://www.scribd.com/doc/15858/Article-NlpDepression-Tad-James