Rich Get Richer, Success Breeds Success – Empirical Studies
https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/111/19/6934.full.pdf Why are certain people so successful? Why do some of our peers do well, and some do worse? In this article, the idea that early initial success subsequently causes more success (success breeds success) is analyzed in field experiments. The authors ultimately come to the conclusion that successes bestowed on arbitrarily selected individuals produced […]
Facebook and Political Advertising
In an article by the Wall Street Journal, it was revealed that one Facebook employee, James Barnes, played an instrumental role in helping Trump win the 2016 elections through the use of targeted advertising. It was reported that Barnes would spend 12 hour days in the Trump headquarters, toying with different advertising methods, such as […]
Is Being “Hangry” a Real Emotion?
Is being “hangry” a real, scientifically proven emotion? According to the research of Jennifer K. MacCormack from the University of North Carolina, “found that people describe themselves, when hungry, as more annoyed than usual and less in control of their emotions.” However, through carefully conducted experiments, she debunked the myth of being “hangry” as an […]
Information Cascades and Mass Movements
https://www.economist.com/democracy-in-america/2011/10/26/information-cascades An information cascade is essentially a phenomenon in which a series of people make the same decision sequentially by following the behavior of the people before them. This has the potential to result in a population-wide outcome. The Economist introduces the concept of an information cascade through several examples such as: stock prices, protests, […]