Word: songfulness
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...Star Wars Kid (2002); Homestar Runner (which I saw in 2003-04); and Tom Cruise's Scientology video (2008). When a friend refused to stop singing "Peanut Butter Jelly Time," I didn't speak to her for three days because whenever I did she would sing it, and the song would get stuck in my head. But that was in 2002, and I haven't seen the video since. That is, until now. (See the 50 best websites...
...what psychologists couldn't determine for sure is why we're so drawn to brevity. Is it nothing more than laziness - why master Salvatore when Sal will do? - or is something else involved? To study that, University of Michigan psychologists Norbert Schwarz and Hyunjin Song devised a test. (Read "Are Direct-to-Consumer Drug Ads Doomed...
...Schwarz and Song then repeated the study with a new group of students and a new group of words. This time, the subjects were told that the invented names belonged not to food additives but to amusement-park rides - something for which an element of danger is often part of the appeal. The results were similar: a ride with a name like the Chunta was perceived to be a less dangerous choice than one named the Vaiveahtoishi. But the Vaiveahtoishi was also described as likely to be more exciting. The lesson for marketers is obvious. (Read "Getting Closer...
...Insurance companies and food manufacturers may value safety, and easy-to-process names would appeal to their consumers more," says Song. "Adventure-travel packages and risky sports such as bungee jumping might want to use harder names." When a product like the Scirocco folds, it might have been done in not just by the nonintuitive pronunciation of the name (shi-rock-o), but also by its definiton: a hot desert wind. That's a double-dose of danger that could simply be too much for safety-conscious consumers. (See TIME's special report on the environment...
...someone in India, living in Mumbai, it rang false." Those who liked the film, however, say they hope the Academy's accolades will help mainstream good Indian cinema. "By recognizing Indian talent, I hope people in the west will realize there's more to Indian cinema than just song and dance," says Priya Khanna, a general manager with Pepsico, "I hope good Indian cinema will be able to break the Bollywood stereotype and reach audiences within India and abroad...