Slashdot Mirror
Pain of Rejection Scientifically Proven
Earl the Girl writes "As Ian Sample of the guardian writes 'The pain of rejection is more than mere metaphor. A team of scientists have found that to the brain, a social snub is just like stubbing a toe.' Good to know the scientific tradition of reducing metaphors to mere similies is alive & well."
"Sticks and stones can break my bones..."
i guess i'll be getting lots of dates now, unless these girls want to have charges brought up against them for assult. =)
Gyrate Dot Org - "Where high-tech meets low-life"
A team of scientists have found that to the brain, a social snub is just like stubbing a toe.'
And they're absolutely right. I should know.
I've been feeling the pain of rejection a lot lately.
I got laid off.
Soon after I told my girlfriend about it, she dumped me.
Then one of my closest friends moved out of the country.
I'm camped out all alone in my cramped apartment, drinking cheap malt liquor and eating chips and salsa.
My only social outlet these days is -- on Slashdot. I don't think I have to explain the horror, the dark and lonely abyss, of that.
And imagine the anguish when I even get snubbed on Slashdot!
Only one thing makes me feel better, only one thing makes me feel like I have anything to offer, that I have any worth at all: seeing my Slashdot posts get modded up.
Please, save me from more pain heaped on pain, and consider being a brief ray of happiness in the dismal, stygian darkness of my pathetic, shameful, pain-filled life, and mod this post up!
(+1 Funny is my fav!)
Opinions on the Twiddler2 hand-held keyboard?
Daaaaamn. I'm surprised I still have toes then.
You will cause pain to the poster, you insensitive clod!
Ever dream you could fly? Get up from the Flight Sim. I Fly
That said, "analogy" isn't quite there either.
So I guess that old expression, "I left with my ass in a sling" isn't so far from the truth afterall... :)
It's doubly worse, though, when you are amongst your fellow rejectees, on a place like Slashdot, and you are flamed and ostracized. When the rejectees reject you, you are left with nothing but redundant dejection.
Scientists have known for some time that when a person is physically hurt, a part of the brain called the anterior cingulate flickers into action.
I wonder if that thingy does anything peculiar in people suffering from depression? Like maybe it 'flickers' constantly? Curious...
No, the poster is pretty close.
:)
[Prior to this research] talking about the "pain of a broken heart" is a metaphor. Your heart's not really "broken" and you don't experience physical pain. So speaking of the "pain of a broken heart" is using a metaphor; metaphors state something directly (without the use of the words like, as, etc) and don't generally make literal sense.
[After this research] the pain of rejection can now be considered analagous to physical pain. So that "slap in the face" is almost literally accurate.
To be more clear:
Metaphor: "When she broke up with me, it broke my heart."
Simile: "When she broke up with me, it felt like {my heart broke, she slapped me in the face, etc}.
It now is accurate to compare emotional pain with physical pain (if you believe the research), so rather then using a metaphor, you can use a simile.
Or you can just be pedantic.
sorry dude
Logic, macros, and more
As someone who had a four year relationship end earlier this week, I can personally attest to the similarities to physical pain. A very timely peice for me... hrmph.
US Democracy:The best person for the job (among These pre-selected choices...)
Every time I get modded down it hurts a little inside.
I've hit Karma 50 and gotten a Score:5, Troll... I win!
Metaphor: "When she broke up with me she stabbed me in the heart"
Simile: "When she broke up with me it was like she stabbed me in the heart"
So, in fact, if anything a simile is less literal a statement, as you are explicitly stating that it's not so, merely a comparison.
And though I was indeed being pedantic, I am only pedantic when someone deserves it, such as when they make a mistake using an unnecessarily bombastic phrase. Actually, I most often correct people when they use the words "whom" and "whomever" incorrectly. Never the other way round, for reasons that should hopefully be clear.
that slashdot didn't reject this article! It might have been most painful to the submitter! ;)
You're right, I wouldn't steal a car. But if it were possible, I sure as hell would download one!
So does that mean that 'conventional' pain killers should ease emotional pain as well?
Although, a recent Wired article says that "Morphine kills the perception of pain by limiting sensory input to the brain", so perhaps the current conventional drugs stop the pain from the rest of the body reaching the brain, as opposed to pain already internal to the brain.
For example, a crying child can activate a woman's anterior cingulate.
For another example, forced rectal distension causes activity in the anterior cingulate for women but not for men. ("barostat-controlled rectal distension" basically means Inflating a balloon in your ass.)
Is there a direct line from women's rectums to the anterior cingulate or does the activity represent some higher affect? And why women and not men? Then again, the story wouldn't be too compelling if its title was:
I can almost see it now... Some drunk, slobbering fool suing the party he asked out.
There's so little difference between politics and jihad lately...
WTF??
Obviously there are some moderators who just don't understand the subtlety of humour.
Poor pmz, feeling all rejected and hurt, and now the moderators go and make him a troll, hurting him even more.
It's okay pmz, people still love you,
somewhere,
maybe...
InfoSec that matters, when it counts.
A team of scientists have found that to the brain, a social snub is just like stubbing a toe.'
The pain of rejection... the agony of da feet...
"Your superior intellect is no match for our puny weapons!"
OK, I don't see how this is new. The pain of rejection is not real physical pain. All the article says is that it involves similar regions of the brain. The fact that it is related to physical pain has been proven by authors, otherwise they wouldn't use it. Granted, they affect the same region of the brain, but they're still distinctly different signals to the brain. Oh, yeah, and the quote at the bottom of the page is very appropriate: "If you suspect a man, don't employ him."
I have no reason. In fact I'm really bad with grammar, but I felt the need to tell everyone else they are wrong :)
Would you also possibly have a high tolerance for "social" pain?
Could this be a future extension of this study to find whether or not people who push themselves physically to the limits of human performance also appear to be the people who are the very least concerned with what others think about them?
Most "great" athletes say they are competing against only one person -- themselves.
In addition, could this relate at a low level to people with high tolerance for pain coming across as somewhat "anti-social" because they have little or no reaction to the "social pain" others may feel deeply when rejected or ignored?
+++OK ATH
Obviously there are some moderators who just don't understand the subtlety of humour.
I'm not so sure. I found it amuzing (well, painfully amuzing) that someone stuck it to me with a genuine "-1 Troll" moderation.
So, how do we mod up a troll mod as funny? I think we need a moeration system for the moderations. It'll be great, I'm sure of it...well, until someone uses the second-level of moderation for humor...of course, we can just keep adding more levels of moderation!
Healthcare article at Kuro5hin
http://www.dailybruin.ucla.edu/news/articles.as
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