Free Republic

Then why did Barack Obama get so many things so wrong? That’s the question that inescapably arises in response to the claim by NBC correspondent Chris Jansing on today’s Morning Joe that Obama’s decision-making style is “very professorial, thoughtful, in-depth.” Jansing said that Obama and Trump “could not be more different in the way they approach problem solving,” describing Obama admin concerns about Trump’s supposed “shoot-from-the-hip” style. Mike Barnicle weighed in to wonder whether Trump would be up to the task of comforting the nation after tragedies such as the Newtown, Connecticut school shootings. View the video here.

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Both children and the elderly have slower response times when they have to make quick decisions in some settings. But recent research suggests that much of that slower response is a conscious choice to emphasize accuracy over speed. In fact, healthy older people can be trained to respond faster in some decision-making tasks without hurting their accuracy – meaning their cognitive skills in this area aren’t so different from younger adults. “Many people think that it is just natural for older people’s brains to slow down as they age, but we’re finding that isn’t always true,” said...

Radiation Cleanup Confounds Japan By YUMIKO ONO /snip In the crucial early days after the tsunami knocked out power to cooling systems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant, the government and plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. argued over who was in charge of containing the escalating disaster. Officials delayed the evacuation of residents in hot spots, despite information that radiation levels were high. They didn't distribute iodine pills to protect against thyroid cancer, despite calls from some experts to do so. They insisted that meat and vegetables produced around the nuclear facilities were safe, although they didn't adequately test...

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C... Smoking marijuana affects peoples’ impulsivity, attention, memory, cognition and decision-making abilities. That’s been scientifically proven. Recent research from Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center draws on the findings of previously published studies to further understanding about how marijuana affects the brains of chronic users, with specific focus on how the drug affects the decision-making process. These findings are important because they demonstrate a potential, negative side effect of chronic marijuana use. “Understanding how marijuana influences the perception of what is ‘negative’ may help explain continued marijuana use and aid in the development of effective strategies for treatment therapies,” said...

Fishing in the stream of consciousness, researchers now can detect our intentions and predict our choices before we are aware of them ourselves. The brain, they have found, appears to make up its mind 10 seconds before we become conscious of a decision -- an eternity at the speed of thought.Their findings challenge conventional notions of choice. "We think our decisions are conscious," said neuroscientist John-Dylan Haynes at the Bernstein Center for Computational Neuroscience in Berlin, who is pioneering this research. "But these data show that consciousness is just the tip of the iceberg. This doesn't rule out free...

“There is a strong inverse association between intelligence test scores and suicide,” Finn Rasmussen, an associate professor at the institute, said in the report published in the British Medical Journal. Rasmussen and his team called for more detailed studies to investigate the possible underlying reasons for suicide.

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) - Democratic candidate John Kerry accused President Bush on Tuesday of hiding bad decisions and raised the specter of bad news still to be revealed. Bush invited Democrats to cross over to his campaign as it began its final week, arguing that their party was no longer led by men of strength and resolve. Kerry said a stream of bad news coming out of Iraq showed the Bush administration glossing over the reality of the situation there. "Mr. President, what else are you being silent about? What else are you keeping from the American people?" Kerry...

January 22, 2004 OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR Nation of Second Guesses By BARRY SCHWARTZ PHILADELPHIA — In his State of the Union address on Tuesday, President Bush elaborated on a theme that is near to his heart: the virtues of personal choice. "Younger workers should have the opportunity to build a nest egg by saving part of their Social Security taxes in a personal retirement account," the president said. "We should make the Social Security system a source of ownership for the American people." Mr. Bush also made clear that "any attempt to limit the choices of our seniors, or to take...