Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Brain Regions Responsible for Optimism Located

Posted by samzenpus on from the I-can-do-this dept.

TaeKwonDood writes "The brain region responsible for believing you can seduce Giselle Bundchen or make a YouTube clone for bobble-head doll movies successful has been located. Surprisingly, it is not in a bottle of Jager, it's in the rostral anterior cingulate and amygdala."

48 of 229 comments (clear)

  1. excellent... by Macrosoft0 · · Score: 5, Funny

    now i must suppress those regions so i dont get too optimistic and do something stupid, like "first post" on an article, or something.

    --
    stuff
  2. Aha by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    So thats why I have been sad after my wife shot me in the head!

    1. Re:Aha by Edgyboy · · Score: 5, Funny

      No, no, you got it all wrong. You feeling sad only means that she destroyed the part that makes you happy. If you have a strange but persistent feeling that your brain is going to grow back, your rostral anterior cingulate and amygdala are a-okay!

      --
      Magazine 13 - We like to think its funny... sort of
  3. What is the use by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    What is the use of all these discoveries. The world is going to end soon due to global warming.

    1. Re:What is the use by moderatorrater · · Score: 4, Funny

      I don't know, the evidence isn't conclusive, and there are at least 5 scientists at Exxon-Mobile who think it's bull.

  4. so... by andreyvul · · Score: 3, Interesting

    pessimists are brain damaged?

    --
    proud caffeine whore
    1. Re:so... by Trouvist · · Score: 5, Funny

      There's a better way of looking at it... optimism is the defect.

      As a pessimist, I personally am happier than every optimist I know. Here's why I'm always happy:
      1) If I expect the worst, and someone excellent happens, then awesome!
      And now the good part:
      2) If i expect the worst, and it actually does happen, then at least I was right!

      it is totally opposite for optimists, if someone goes wrong then not only are the wrong, but they are also unhappy, my way you always win

    2. Re:so... by h2_plus_O · · Score: 2, Interesting

      No, they're just resolving two conflicting urges in a predictable, normal way.
      Pessimism is the way we attempt to protect ourselves from disappointment. ...tho if you think about it, the only context in which you'd need to protect yourself from disappointment is if there were some underlying hope in the first place.

      There's no such thing as dark, just absence of light. Perhaps pessimism is just what we call suppressed hope.

      --
      If there's one thing I won't stand for, it's intolerance.
    3. Re:so... by fferreres · · Score: 2, Insightful

      If you are really pessimistic, you will fear it being an illusion, you may believe "this's is not it", etc. You are not really optimistic I venture to say, but agnostic. If not then, I do tend to see it that way. No matter the outcome, it's great for me. I don't have time to add bad thoughts to a reality that...mh...is. Instead of disliking the outcome, you start to figure things out as great lessons, and you learn to not matter much about the outcome, because the process (attitude?) always takes you where you want to go. Optimism per se helps in a different context. If you don't think an outcome is possible, it will probably not happen. But if you are to worried about an outcome, it may well not happen. Optimism as hope is not great, optimism as attitude does. This is MHO.

      --
      unfinished: (adj.)
    4. Re:so... by coopaq · · Score: 2, Funny

      "1) If I expect the worst, and someone excellent happens, then awesome!"

      Someone excellent? Wait no more. I happen to happen everyday and it just so happens I happen to be someone excellent.

  5. That's nice. by theskipper · · Score: 4, Funny

    Too bad we'll never be able to do anything with this discovery.

    Sigh.

    1. Re:That's nice. by MillionthMonkey · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Too bad we'll never be able to do anything with this discovery.

      What are you talking about? Now we know exactly where to gamma-knife the terrorists!

    2. Re:That's nice. by n+dot+l · · Score: 4, Funny

      Too bad we'll never be able to do anything with this discovery. Pfft. I've already got a plan:
      Step 1: Grab Helmet God.
      Step 2: Upgrade it to stimulate the optimism center of the brain as well.
      Step 3: ???
      Step 4: Profit!!!
    3. Re:That's nice. by Joe+the+Lesser · · Score: 4, Funny

      I've got a good feeling about it!

      --
      "I only speak the truth"
      Karma: null(Mostly affected by an unassigned variable)
    4. Re:That's nice. by fortunada · · Score: 5, Funny
      Don't you mean:

      Step 4: Prophet!

    5. Re:That's nice. by CrazedWalrus · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Have you ever met anyone with clinical depression? They have a hard time getting motivated, they always feel down, and can't focus -- among a ton of other issues. This sounds like it might be a big help.

      I wouldn't go so far as to call it a cure, but look: 1) Optimism can be a great motivator and 2) It might get people with depression to look at the world in a better light 3) it's easier to focus on something you care about or think will improve your lot in life.

      So yes, I'd say there's a good chance that it would do all three, if not by curing the disease, then by helping to cover the symptoms.

      I'm not qualified in any way to say this stuff, but it is what it is, for what it's worth, from an armchair psychologist.

    6. Re:That's nice. by Hal_Porter · · Score: 3, Informative

      Actually the brain centers for religious experiences are known too, so we could 'fix' them with a gamma knife.

      http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/horizon/2003/godonbrain.shtml

      Muahahaha

      --
      echo -e 'global _start\n _start:\n mov eax, 2\n int 80h\n jmp _start' > a.asm; nasm a.asm -f elf; ld a.o -o a;
    7. Re:That's nice. by badarabdad · · Score: 2, Interesting
      if transcranial magnetic stimulation improves in accuracy and resolution, as it likely will over the next decade, we may be looking at a drug-free (read:side-effect free) way to treat depression by targeting these areas. hell, even implanted stimulating electrodes may help.

      I'm not sure how well this method is examining "optimism" as much as it is expected rewards or punishments. optimism is someone's ability to look on the bright side of life and who can view the bad things more positively. that is not what they are doing here.

  6. Are you Deluded?! by imstanny · · Score: 5, Funny

    The brain region responsible for believing you can seduce Giselle Bundchen or make a YouTube clone for bobble-head doll movies successful has been located. Firstly, there's a difference between optimism and delusion. Secondly... forget it, Giselle is here for a booty call.
  7. optimism? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    So I guess this is the brain region that makes some people think their article summaries going to end up perceived as clever or funny.

  8. Optimism != delusion by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Optimistic people may try things because they think there will be a good outcome. Often, it's a self-fulfilling prophesy. It's hard to be optimistic if you are delusional and always try to do things that just-aren't-on. An optimistic person is more likely to be satisfied with an adequately attractive mate than to try seducing a movie star. Optimism is about lowering your expectations enough that they are often exceeded. Then you think the world is a wonderful place because you got a better deal than you bargained for.

    1. Re:Optimism != delusion by blahplusplus · · Score: 2, Interesting

      "Optimistic people may try things because they think there will be a good outcome."

      I think we need both, I think they are survival tools that seperate good opportunities from bad ones, and being open since the opportunities and risks we can't know for sure, so we have a mechanism that tries its best to sort the two.

  9. A book about pessimism by RobinH · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I was accused of being too pessimistic, so I went and read a little about the subject. The most interesting thing I found was a book by Julie Norem called "The Positive Power of Negative Thinking".

    She puts forward a case that optimism/pessimism is a result of how your personality reacts to stress. Optimists tend to ignore the things that could go wrong, so they don't get stressed in the first place, and are therefore happier people. When bad things do go wrong, optimists tend to relate it to external causes. On the other hand, pessimists are pessimists because they have a tendency to be anxious. They immediately foresee the risks of each situation (due to their personality, not a conscious decision) and therefore they map out alternatives to each bad outcome until they've relieved their stress by feeling confident that, no matter what happens, they have a plan for every eventuality. When things still go wrong, pessimists tend to ask themselves what they could have done differently to avoid the bad outcome (internalizing it).

    When an optimist and a pessimist face a situation together, the pessimist causes stress in the optimist by pointing out what could go wrong. The optimist causes stress in the pessimist by refusing to make contingency plans.

    Once I realized all this, I was able to continue making contingency plans to keep my own stress under control, but I am now more careful about voicing my internal thought process around people who I know are optimists.

    --
    "I have never let my schooling interfere with my education." - Mark Twain
    1. Re:A book about pessimism by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

      In a team situation, the optimist always has someone to blame when the project fails.
      After all, contingency plans are the job of the pessimist.

    2. Re:A book about pessimism by Soko · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Once I realized all this, I was able to continue making contingency plans to keep my own stress under control, but I am now more careful about voicing my internal thought process around people who I know are optimists.

      Hm. A pessimist has contingency plans for dealing with an optimist. Makes sense.

      Soko

      --
      "Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm." - Anonymous
    3. Re:A book about pessimism by aethera · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Strange, I must be one of those exceptions that prove the rule. I am a definitely a contingency planner, in things as small as what route I take to work each morning to having a packed a ready Go bag that has everything myself and my family would need to survive in case of, well just about anything survivable; food, maps, hand tools, cash, etc. But I'm not a pessimist. When I analyze a situation I also think about probabilities, and lets face it, the really bad stuff that can happen is pretty uncommon. My reputation at work is always staying cool *and cheerful* under crisis. I often joke with some of my junior coworkers that when they've been around as long as I have, they'll have seen enough really really bad shit happen that the bar will be set to high to get worked up about your more garden variety chaos.

    4. Re:A book about pessimism by not-quite-rite · · Score: 3, Interesting

      It doesn't sound like you are an exception at all.

      Just because you are cheerful to people doesn't make you an optimist!

      I would say that you are comfortable in your pessimism, and are just getting better at contingency planning(well except for the denial of being a pessimist :P )

      That's not to say that complex human behaviours can be broken cleanly into a binary state of pessimism/optimism - it's maybe more of a sliding scale. It's just a pity we don't have more words to describe where people sit on that scale....

      Signing off as a cheerful pessimist myself(who finds it offensive when people have dumb ideas that will fail, and I am called "negative" for pointing it out, and then being right!)

    5. Re:A book about pessimism by dbcad7 · · Score: 2, Insightful
      What the heck makes you think an optimist doesn't also have, or won't make, contingency plans ?

      That you generally have an outlook that things will work out, doesn't automatically make you single minded. A true optimist sees little point in expending energy on worrying.. this energy is better used at finding what will produce a positive result.. Also, an optimist would not be affected by a pessimists stress, but rather they would be annoyed at the wasted energy.

      Things go wrong (and right) for both optimists and pessimists regardless of how much it was worried over... and both optimism and pessimism can be self fulfilling.

      --
      waiting for ad.doubleclick.net
    6. Re:A book about pessimism by ScrewMaster · · Score: 4, Insightful

      You're confusing "pessimist" with "doomsayer". The terms are not equivalent. A pessimist is someone who acknowledges the existence of that bastard Murphy and his friends: in other words, a fatalistic acceptance of reality. True optimists may be more fun to be around when everything is going well, but as they willfully remain blissfully unaware of what is, they are risky companions indeed (everyone driving an SUV at 80 MPH on the highway with a cell phone plastered to his or her ear is an optimist.)

      Granted, pessimists who continually voice their concerns get a negative rep, no argument. However, most pessimists I know (including myself) have justifiable confidence in an eventual positive outcome because of that pessimism. We've made plans, tried to account for all the possible negative (trust me, pessimism is hard work!) and if we fail it's because we missed something, not because we didn't believe anything could go wrong. NASA, for example, is populated by pessimists ... believe me, you don't want an optimist designing your spacecraft: you'll burn to a crisp at liftoff. Conversely, true optimists rarely make any effort to ensure their goals are achieved, and simply have faith that everything will work out in the end. Sometimes they are right (sometimes pigs fly), but usually they're completely blindsided when everything that can go wrong does, because they refused to acknowledge the possibility.

      On the other hand, optimists do make better leaders, this is true. After all, people are rarely inspired by pessimists. However, the most successful optimistic leaders learn early on to depend upon their more pessimistic advisors, or they don't last long.

      In any event, optimists are among the most irritating people I know. I mean, sometimes you just want to take them by the lapels and shake some awareness into them. But you can't: ignorance is curable but optimism is forever.

      --
      The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
    7. Re:A book about pessimism by dunkelfalke · · Score: 2, Insightful

      actually an optimist has only disappointments in his life.
      compare that to a pessemist who has only happy surprises.

      --
      "It's such a fine line between stupid and clever" -- David St. Hubbins, Spinal Tap
  10. Damn by MSTCrow5429 · · Score: 3, Funny

    Mine's missing.

    --
    Slashdot: Playing Favorites Since 1997
  11. so what does this mean? by wcb4 · · Score: 2, Funny

    so are we now able to remove this completely useless section of the brain then. I've always though that optimistic people had something wrong with them and now that this diseases portion of the brain has been islolated it can hopefully be removed allowing those previously affli ted by optimi
    to lead more productive lives.

    --
    I reject your reality ... and substitute my own.
  12. Artificial optimism? by Camael · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Perhaps the day is coming close when we will be able to artifically induce optimism in ourselves by tickling the right brain cells.

    Feeling nervous before an interview? *zap*
    Footballer lacks confidence before a game? *zap*
    Going out for your first date? *zap*
    Meeting her parents? *zap*

    This is a guaranteed major money spinner, and I won't be surprised if it becomes addictive as well.

    1. Re:Artificial optimism? by SeaFox · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Felix Felicis

  13. Mods clicking at random by Harmonious+Botch · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Optimism is about lowering your expectations enough that they are often exceeded. WTF is wrong with you mods today?? P spouts bullshit like the above quote and gets modded insightful, but 1st post doesn't get modded funny.
  14. Depression? by Siridar · · Score: 2, Interesting

    This is just a pure stab in the dark here, but could a drug stimulating this region be used to help depression? One of the symptoms seems to be a feeling of despair and inability - turning this feeling around by (chemically) convincing folks that they /can/ pull themselves out of the hole they're in might work.

    1. Re:Depression? by Siridar · · Score: 2, Insightful

      So...what you're saying is, if you're depressed, you're not likely to attempt to kill yourself because you wouldn't succeed? I don't think that's the case. If you've got a optimistic frame of mind, I think suicide would be pretty far down the list...rather than thinking "there's no way out of this, death is my only option" it'd be more like "I can pull myself out of this, all I really need to do is try". Chemically-assisted affirmations, if you will...

  15. Interesting question raised by the summary by Weaselmancer · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Surprisingly, it is not in a bottle of Jager, it's in the rostral anterior cingulate and amygdala.

    So, what exactly is it in the bottle of Jager that makes your rostral anterior cingulate and amygdala think you can get a date with Gisele?

    Put another way, getting drunk can make you optimistic - it would be interesting to study the effects of alcohol on that region of the brain. If that portion of the brain could be stimulated in some other way it could lead to a powerful new series of drugs to battle depression. Or improve combat effectiveness. Or maybe even get you that date with Gisele.

    --
    Weaselmancer
    rediculous.
    1. Re:Interesting question raised by the summary by greg_barton · · Score: 2, Funny

      Or maybe even get you that date with Gisele.

      Or get you really excited about political candidate X when you go to their speech.
  16. I'm optimistic that you WON'T mod me down by Tablizer · · Score: 2, Informative

    ...despite calling you a lilly-livered nerd-faced card-carrying SCO-fan-club hippo-ass face with a check-sum-faulting 286 for a brain.

    --
    Table-ized A.I.
  17. Amygdala? by jcr · · Score: 4, Funny

    Wasn't she the hot chick in that star wars movie?

    -jcr

    --
    The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  18. Assumptions by SourGrapes · · Score: 2, Insightful

    The article seems to assume that optimists (people whose rostral anterior cingulate and amygdala are highly active) are the norm, or at least the ideal, and that pessimists (where those regions are less active) have something "going wrong." I wonder if that's actually the case. Optimism may FEEL better (obviously depression is pretty rotten), and it's apparently beneficial to the optimists (or so studies have indicated), but does it more accurately describe reality? Lots of people say that they're not pessimists, but realists, and that realism is simply inherently depressing. So are all the benefits of optimism emotional, or are there benefits to pessimism as well, in the sense that the pessimist models reality more realistically? If that's the case (and I guess it might not be), which wins out?

    1. Re:Assumptions by Rui+del-Negro · · Score: 3, Funny

      Optimists believe we live in the best possible world. Pessimists fear that might be true.

  19. Region of the brain that does X by noidentity · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I'm usually cranky about claims to have found the part of the brain that does X, since this pre-supposes that X is done in a particular part. In a computer, some things like long-term data storage are localizable. Other things like getting the size of a file aren't performed in any particular part. If you believed that getting the size of a file was done in some particular part, you might find out where activity occurs (changes of states) when you ask for the size of a file, and then erroneously conclude that the hard disk is what gets the size of a file, when the real behavior is a combination of the hard disk, CPU, RAM, bus, and operating system. Again, it's the assumption that every behavior or ability you can label is the result of some area of the brain whose only function is that behavior or ability.

  20. pfft by sh3l1 · · Score: 4, Funny

    pfft... they will never be able to find the pessimistic part of the brain.

    --
    Help Me! I'm trapped in the tubes! Oh noes! Here comes a internet!
  21. Tags work well by tsa · · Score: 4, Funny

    I think the tag feature that /. has works very well. If I had heard about this article being on /., I certainly would use the search criteria "science, overactiverostralanteriorcingulateandamygdala, datewithgisele, datewithgiselebundchen, giselebundchen". I wouldn't know how to find this particular article in any other way.

    --

    -- Cheers!

    1. Re:Tags work well by caluml · · Score: 2, Insightful

      It does sort of work. For instance, when I want to find an article about Vista, I know to search for defectivebydesign. It's just a pseudo-code to confuse outsiders.

      --
      Get your own free personal location tracker
  22. 2008 WILL be the year of Desktop Linux! by drseuk · · Score: 2, Funny

    Sorry, I can't stop it, my brain's just wired to think like that.