Word: behaviorism
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...here too, Spain's regulators have encouraged sensible behavior. For years, banks have been required to put aside cash to cover expected future losses, not actual ones. The Bank of Spain "thought that in the good times it makes sense to build a cushion for the bad times," says Ramirez. So while Spain enters a downturn "a significant portion of the potential deterioration [for banks] will be covered by these provisions." There are no guarantees, of course, for Santander or anyone else, in today's parlous international environment. But for now, at least, Spain offers a lesson in prudence through...
...Vienna daily Die Presse argued against a simplistic reading of the result. "To conclude that close to 30% of all Austrians have suddenly ideologically moved to the right is certainly a false assumption," writes. "The reasons for the comet-like rise of the right lies, rather, in the behavior of the long-established people's parties. And this indeed poses a threat for the freedom of opinion and ideas in Austria...
...when democracy produces results you don't like? There's no good answer, but there are many ways to grasp at one. Palin could have said that elections are only one component of democracy; that bringing extremist groups into the political process helps to moderate their behavior; that extremists tend to lose support once in power, because they don't know how to govern. She could even have said, "Those are the breaks - we don't get to choose...
...loosening sexual inhibitions. But researchers have raised the possibility that rapid changes in dopamine-rich areas of the brain may be an additional factor in making teens vulnerable to the stimulating and addictive effects of drugs and alcohol. Dopamine, the brain chemical involved in motivation and in reinforcing behavior, is particularly abundant and active in the teen years...
Most parents, of course, know this instinctively. Still, it's useful to learn that teenage behavior is not just a matter of willful pigheadedness or determination to drive you crazy - though these, too, can be factors. "There's a debate over how much conscious control kids have," says Giedd, who has four "teenagers in training" of his own. "You can tell them to shape up or ship out, but making mistakes is part of how the brain optimally grows." It might be more useful to help them make up for what their brain still lacks by providing structure, organizing their...