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Fake Pub Studies Drinking Habits

Posted by Soulskill on from the top-shelf-research dept.

sciencehabit writes "In a pub on the campus of London South Bank University, you may think you're drinking an ice cold brew, but don't be too sure. A fake pub with barstools, beer pumps, and all the trappings of a real one was built on the university for psychologists to better understand how and why we drink. Hidden cameras and a cheerful staff — who are undercover psychology students — help analyze behavior when customers, or test subjects, pay a visit."

118 comments

  1. So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Centurix · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Basically, a pub.

    --
    Task Mangler
    1. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by wvmarle · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Also, psychologists will frown upon any research where the subjects do not know they are part of a research project.

      Note, the subjects do not need to know (and shouldn't know) the actual research being done, just that they're part of a research project. Usually they're told that the researchers are testing one thing, while it's something entirely different that's really being tested.

    2. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by gstoddart · · Score: 5, Interesting

      Also, psychologists will frown upon any research where the subjects do not know they are part of a research project.

      I'm guessing it depends on the nature of the interaction.

      Some guys sitting in a pub knocking back a few can be a talkative bunch, and if you're not inducing them to do anything and serving responsibly ... then it's like Jane Goodall watching monkeys, isn't it?

      Because I bet a good bar tender can tell you more about people than your average psychologist. ;-)

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      Lost at C:>. Found at C.
    3. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by jxander · · Score: 4, Insightful

      "The difference between screwing around and science is writing it down" -Adam Savage

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      This signature is false.
    4. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by ArbitraryName · · Score: 5, Informative

      Also, psychologists will frown upon any research where the subjects do not know they are part of a research project.

      RTFA. The "pub" is in a room on the fourth floor of a university building. No one is being tricked into thinking they're in a real pub. It's just a set to help people relax and act more naturally. Every experiment performed must be approved by the university ethics committee and no one will be given enough alcohol to put them over the legal driving limit.

    5. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Centurix · · Score: 3, Funny

      Designing software on the back of a coaster is Science! More drinks!

      --
      Task Mangler
    6. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by JanneM · · Score: 3, Informative

      Note, the subjects do not need to know (and shouldn't know) the actual research being done, just that they're part of a research project. Usually they're told that the researchers are testing one thing, while it's something entirely different that's really being tested.

      That generally needs specific approval, though, and normally always requirs that the subject gets briefed about the real intention of the research afterwards. Also, I'm not at all certain that serving alcohol does not constitute medicating the subjects; that would mean a still tougher IRB review and approval process.

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    7. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Jmc23 · · Score: 5, Insightful

      sigh, you article readers take all the fun out of the stupid comments!

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    8. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by mjwx · · Score: 4, Funny

      Also, psychologists will frown upon any research where the subjects do not know they are part of a research project.

      Note, the subjects do not need to know (and shouldn't know) the actual research being done, just that they're part of a research project. Usually they're told that the researchers are testing one thing, while it's something entirely different that's really being tested.

      WANTED:

      Subjects for experiment who cant tell the difference between market research and an organ harvesting operation.

      Healthy type-o adults only.

      --
      Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
    9. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by mysidia · · Score: 5, Informative

      no one will be given enough alcohol to put them over the legal driving limit.

      Real pubs aren't supposed to give anyone enough alcohol to get them drunk, either.

    10. Re: So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Badblackdog · · Score: 1

      I am waiting for the fake hashish bar.

    11. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Mashdar · · Score: 2

      I bet this started as a joke about grant proposals. I, for one, move to open a similar lab here.

    12. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Informative

      ArbitraryName didn't say "enough alcohol to get them drunk", they said "enough alcohol to put them over the legal limit". For most people, the legal limit is well below the level of "drunk".

    13. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Darinbob · · Score: 0

      Incorrect. Software gets written on a computer, instead it is the documentation that gets written on the back of a coaster.

    14. Re: So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      I am waiting for the fake hashish bar.

      I, however, am waiting for the real one.

    15. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by complete+loony · · Score: 1

      Sometimes what is being tested is revealed, at least in a vague sense, but how it's being tested is a secret. So they put you through some kind of fake test, but prime you with something else and measure if that changes your behaviour.

      --
      09F91102 no, 455FE104 nope, F190A1E8 uh-uh, 7A5F8A09 that's not it, C87294CE no. Ah! 452F6E403CDF10714E41DFAA257D313F.
    16. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      > Real pubs aren't supposed to give anyone enough alcohol to get them drunk, either.

      Liquor licensed establishments are expected to not serve you when you are visibly intoxicated. They have no overt obligation to do the math or test to see if you are legally drunk.

    17. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by the_Bionic_lemming · · Score: 2

      And no big screen for sports events because the nitwit in charge doesn't like sports?

      So not a real pub, but a pub where the guy in charge thinks it should be like will actually test pub goers?

      And this is science?

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    18. Re: So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And I, however, have been visiting the coffeeshop on the corner of my street for over ten years!

    19. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by JWSmythe · · Score: 2

          I don't know what fine drinking establishments you've been to. The ones I've been to only cut you off when you can't pay, puke on the floor, or start a fight.

          For some of us, there are few visible signs of our intoxication. I'd probably love that real-fake pub. "Nope, not drunk yet, keep trying."

      --
      Serious? Seriousness is well above my pay grade.
    20. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Do you live in Saudi Arabia? What kind of pubs are these where you can't get drunk?

    21. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Another,+completely · · Score: 1

      Also, psychologists will frown upon any research where the subjects do not know they are part of a research project.

      I'm guessing it depends on the nature of the interaction.

      Anyone can listen to nearby conversations and form opinions, but that's not the same as conducting a study. If someone associated with a university tries to publish results from a study without signed permission from all participants, the university ethics board will not just frown. Tenure might save you, but students and assistant professors are in trouble. This is taken very seriously.

    22. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by cyborg_zx · · Score: 1

      And no big screen for sports events because the nitwit in charge doesn't like sports?

      I do not know what makes you think this is "not a real pub" when landlords will happily make such a decision if they so choose and they have the choice.

      I for one am more than happy to drink in pubs that don't have Sky Sports. You do not sound like someone who has much experience of proper pubs.

    23. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by DrXym · · Score: 1

      This sounds like the suckiest pub in the world.

    24. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      This is britain, the place where there are more cameras than people, police have a record of every car journey you've made going back several years now, and most of the population is oblivious to the governments plan to sell all your health records to drug companies and insurers next month (don't worry, it'll be 'anonymised' wink wink haha). If these 'students' receive anything for conducting this mickey mouse 'scientific research' it will probably be a government grant and a job at the ministry of domestic surveillance.

    25. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by gutnor · · Score: 1

      Well that means basically one beer per person and that's it. Not quite sure what they will get out of it but that's would be quite different experience than regular pub going in London ( a lot of people drink one or two beers, but there are generally a few that either were already there, or leave later. A synchronized, everybody enter, drink his beer and leave is weird )

      Also, that is central London, nobody drives to the pub. You take public transport like everybody, especially in the center. As long as they don't let you get drunk, they should not care about the driving limit.

    26. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Shh. We've been secretly studying him for years inside a carefully controlled artificial environment. Keep it down.

    27. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I want to read the part of the report about bangin the barmaid in the walk-in when things are slow on a Wednesday afternoon.
      Is there the major reason to frequent pubs listed as picking up tipsy girls w/daddy issues for overnite gratification?
      These are the English, so they may miss the main point whilst looking too closely for sobby drunks with emotional problems.

    28. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Bloke+down+the+pub · · Score: 1

      GP wrote "designing software", which is a kind of documentation, and not the same as actual coding.

      Can you read?

      --
      It's true I tell you, feller at work's next door neighbour read it in the paper.
    29. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by AmiMoJo · · Score: 1

      Being drunk and being over the legal driving limit are two vastly different levels of blood alcohol content for most people.

      --
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      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
    30. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by MBGMorden · · Score: 1

      For some of us, there are few visible signs of our intoxication.

      Yep - its weird that alcohol affects people in such difference ways. My brother tends to be an angry drunk. I can't count how many fights I've had to pull him out of when we're out. I know plenty of people who get funny and jokey when drunk.

      I personally tend to be a very quiet drunk. My friends find that amazing (since most people you get them drunk to "see their wild side" - I get drunk and just get reclusive). Its weird but though I'm impaired, my reaction is to acknowledge that and get very self-conscious about *appearing* to be drunk, so I try not to say or do much.

      --
      "People who think they know everything are very annoying to those of us who do."-Mark Twain
    31. Re: So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Isn't the legal drinking and driving limit there something ridiculously low, like nearly zero tolerance? One drink is likely too much for most people.

    32. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Bloke+down+the+pub · · Score: 2

      London South Bank University? I think that used to be the East Walford Arthur Fowler 6th Form College, so the Goodall comparison is more accurate than you might think.

      --
      It's true I tell you, feller at work's next door neighbour read it in the paper.
    33. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yeah, the whiny moronic psychologist types that get nothing done.

      Real science is done without peoples consent or knowledge. (in regards to psychology)
      It is like how stuff like Big Brother is NOT Reality TV, more Unreality TV. In what universe would you be stuck with a bunch of random people? Unless you worked in subs or space, you'd basically never come across that situation.

      Hell, Advertising is subliminal as it is. People always like to think they aren't affected by advertising, but they ARE, PERIOD. There is no ifs or buts about it, everything you see SHAPEs your experience of the world from a huge blatantly obvious billboard all the way down to some random ant walking between your feet when sitting on a bench at any random park.
      Even if you choose to "not consent" to it, it will still affect you anyway. Even if it takes a lifetime for the results to show. *

      If you were trying to study genuine interactions between people in pubs, you wouldn't be able to do that by telling everyone that.
      Everyone would be self-conscious out the ass, they'd very specifically WANT to get hammered just to not feel so damn awkward, why the hell do you think people GO to bars in the first place? Either to feel less awkward around friends so they can have fun, or get smashed and end up in another country, or bang some dude or chick. 3 main reasons right there. I could tell you that without the experiment! And I don't even go to pubs! (regularly)

      * does not count for being hit by asteroids or universal explosions.

    34. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by danlip · · Score: 1

      Half the time alcohol makes me sleepy and more introverted, and the other half the time it makes me energized and extroverted. I wish I could control the effects better. It has a lot to do with who I am with, the size of the group, and what we are doing, and how rested I feel before starting.

      I'm also a light weight. One drink gets me buzzed and two gets me blasted (if consumed quickly).

    35. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by nospam007 · · Score: 1

      "Basically, a pub."

      No, it's more like FaceBook ( creepy spying) but with beer-nuts.

    36. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      In fact, in a university setting it's usually the psychology students who are the actual subjects of the study being done while being given a cover story about the experiment to make them think they're part of the control. I'm not sure how effective that would be in this case, but, for example, the real intent may have been to observe how food service employees react to stress-inducing patrons.

    37. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      A hypothesis written on the back of a coaster is still a hypothesis.

    38. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      3/4 British housewives can't tell the difference between Whizzo Butter and a dead crab!

    39. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by QRDeNameland · · Score: 2

      The ones I've been to only cut you off when you can't pay, puke on the floor, or start a fight.

      I'm envisioning a bartender saying: "Sorry sir, but you must either pay, puke on the floor, or start a fight...or else we can no longer serve you."

      --
      Momentarily, the need for the construction of new light will no longer exist.
    40. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by gl4ss · · Score: 1

      we used to call those things "club rooms" or "guild rooms" in university.

      basically, a place to sit on a sofa and alcohol available.

      otoh, everyone who wanted was given enough alcohol to put them over the legal driving limit.... if they're stopping at one pint then they're failing to conduct the test really. I mean, they could just paint all the pubs pink on the inside and people would still come provided the pub still served alcohol.

      --
      world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
    41. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by JWSmythe · · Score: 1

      Oh, I know the type. Actually, I've seen pretty much all the types.

      I've been pretty lucky with the angry drunks. Usually I can talk them down, dodge their punches, or block. In the event I'm hit ... well ... hopefully I have enough drinks in me to not care. I can take a hit sober or drunk. I just get upset about it if I'm sober.

      At one bar, I worked for the owner in another business, and I worked with the bartender at the other business, so all my drinks were free (per the owner). That night I was order a shot of rum, and a double rum and coke chaser. The bartender was amazed. I just kept drinking and talking to people all night. The next day she told me, the rum and coke was eventually just rum with a splash of coke for coloring. She wanted to see how much it would take to get me drunk, but I appeared perfectly sober the whole night. The only difference is that I flirted with her more after quite a few drinks. I told her it was about 4 rounds in I felt it.

      But no, I wasn't good to drive. I have the same human metabolism everyone else has. If I had to do a breathalyzer, it would have probably caught on fire. Even though I can look perfectly sober, and act perfectly sober, and my coordination doesn't suffer, that doesn't mean I should drive.

      It's a lot cheaper for me to be the designated driver. :) I don't even drink very often any more. It just costs too much. I can find more interesting things to spend money on.

      --
      Serious? Seriousness is well above my pay grade.
    42. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by JWSmythe · · Score: 1

      hahahah.. and eewww..

      --
      Serious? Seriousness is well above my pay grade.
    43. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by danbuter · · Score: 1

      Extremely relevant 2gag: http://www.twogag.com/archives...

    44. Re: So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It isn't ridiculously low. It is 80mg alcohol per 100ml of blood. One drink can put you over if it is a strong one, but a normal pint of beer should be okay.

    45. Re:So a fake pub with drinks and a place to sit by mcgrew · · Score: 1

      no one will be given enough alcohol to put them over the legal driving limit

      Then it hardly mimics a real bar. I visit bars frequently (where do you think I get my colorful characters in my fiction from?) and at any time of day, even in the morning there are drunks. By four o'clock often half the people there are well over the legal limit.

      And real bars don't just have college kids, they have all ages, from 21 to 101. They don't just have college kids and grads, they have illiterates who read at a first grade level and dropped out in the eighth grade.

      I'd like to see the actual study, from what I see here the research will never give any meaningful results. You might as well have fifteen year olds drinking Pepsi and the study wouldn't be any worse.

      --
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  2. Fake-y Bubbles by smittyoneeach · · Score: 4, Funny

    Fake-y Bubbles
    In your glass
    Make ya wanna
    Scrape your [sorry, couldn't think of a rhyme]
    Burma Shave

    --
    Get thee glass eyes, and, like a scurvy politician, seem to see things thou dost not.--King Lear
    1. Re:Fake-y Bubbles by buswolley · · Score: 0, Offtopic

      A Soylent Troll is better than a /.-ing Human.

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  3. Startling conclusion by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It is because of the alcohol.

  4. B.A.R. Lab by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    The University of Washington in Seattle has (or had) one of these, called the B.A.R. Lab (Behavorial Alcohol Research). Seems like a trend. Get a bar built in your school and call it research! HA!

    1. Re:B.A.R. Lab by TWX · · Score: 1

      Does tend to make one wonder about the use of the facility off-hours, doesn't it?

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
    2. Re:B.A.R. Lab by Yoda222 · · Score: 1

      I don't understand the need for excuses. In Belgium if we want to drink/sell beers on the campus, we just do it.

    3. Re:B.A.R. Lab by xaxa · · Score: 1

      I don't understand the need for excuses. In Belgium if we want to drink/sell beers on the campus, we just do it.

      Obviously, the excuse is only needed in the US.

      Like all (or almost all?) universities, London South Bank University already has a proper pub within the student union. It might have one not run by the student union, but that's probably less likely, since there will be hundreds of normal pubs within a few minutes walk.

  5. So by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Basically students build a pub on the university grounds. Did they get a licence for it or were they trading illegally?

    1. Re:So by cheater512 · · Score: 1

      My uni had a pub on it's grounds. I assumed it was fairly normal.

    2. Re:So by ArbitraryName · · Score: 1

      Basically students build a pub on the university grounds. Did they get a licence for it or were they trading illegally?

      Did you read the article or are you commenting ignorantly? Hint: The article specifically answers that.

    3. Re:So by Matheus · · Score: 1

      Ditto. Run by the university too. So far as I know there were no psych experiments going on but then again Madison has a fairly active psych department so who knows ;-)

      As for this study... why people drink? All for their own reasons... but mostly because they can.

      I could write a fairly in depth thesis on the subject just based on my past 20 years of spending ~5 nights a week in a bar (the last 2 of which without alcohol) but I don't feel I would be contributing anything new to the subject (and neither will these people)

    4. Re:So by kyrsjo · · Score: 1

      It's a fairly normal thing. My university (University of Oslo, 27'000 students and 7'000 staff, so fairly big) has (at least on the main campus) 3 student ran pubs (all fully legal) + 1 pubs and one restaurant serving beer ran by the university's food services + unknown number of student societies, of which many have a stash of alcohol and a box to put money in if you take a beer from this stash.

      Other universities I've been to in Norway are have similar arrangements. The cafeterias at CERN serve beer and wine until ~midnight (and during lunch, which is very french...). Stanford uni has a pub on its grounds.

    5. Re:So by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Didn't they teach you how to spell "its"?

  6. oblig by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    some drink to remember, some drink to forget.
    in that order.

    1. Re:oblig by Scarletdown · · Score: 1

      some drink to remember, some drink to forget.
      in that order.

      Oh, captain! Please bring me my wine.

      (Okay, probably not the reference that was being made, but that is what came to mind.)

      --
      This space unintentionally left blank.
  7. Psychology students as waiters by SpankiMonki · · Score: 5, Funny

    Great! Now the students will have some training for the jobs they'll end up in anyway after graduating with a psych degree.

    1. Re:Psychology students as waiters by Jmc23 · · Score: 1, Funny

      um, that's too good of a job for someone with a psych degree.

      --
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    2. Re:Psychology students as waiters by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Came to say this ...... too slow

    3. Re:Psychology students as waiters by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Its probably the best job training they're going to get. And considering they're fake drinks, that's saying something.

    4. Re:Psychology students as waiters by cascadingstylesheet · · Score: 1

      Great! Now the students will have some training for the jobs they'll end up in anyway after graduating with a psych degree.

      Simply awesome. My hat is off to you, sir.

    5. Re:Psychology students as waiters by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      And yes, my favorite graduated with a psych degree.
      She makes surprisingly good money.

    6. Re:Psychology students as waiters by freakmn · · Score: 1

      And yes, my favorite graduated with a psych degree. She makes surprisingly good money.

      So, you're saying the tips are good?

      --
      warning: This post is likely to contain gobs of dripping sarcasm. Consume at your own risk.
  8. The Placebo Pub by rts008 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    It is a very good thing they are not charging for the drinks, I can't imagine the horror show resulting when the pub patrons find out they are buying watered down drinks.

    Even after I RTFA, I still am not sure how they are concealing the info that there is little to no alcohol in the free drinks. I know if I was presented a free pub, I would wonder what the catch was, thus altering my behavior and skewing the data.

    Maybe just my own suspicious and skeptical nature is the cause for my questioning this.
    Or I missed that part of TFA. :-)

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    1. Re:The Placebo Pub by complete+loony · · Score: 1

      Supposedly they are wiping ethanol onto the glass, so you can still smell it. But I'm not certain that would fool everyone.

      --
      09F91102 no, 455FE104 nope, F190A1E8 uh-uh, 7A5F8A09 that's not it, C87294CE no. Ah! 452F6E403CDF10714E41DFAA257D313F.
    2. Re:The Placebo Pub by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I know if I was presented a free pub, I would wonder what the catch was

      Betcha there is a nick-o-lok on the toilet...and a security camera at the back of the building.

  9. Well... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I find this creepy and unethical.

    1. Re:Well... by manu0601 · · Score: 1

      Indeed! Handing a placebo instead of real alcohol!

    2. Re:Well... by TWX · · Score: 2

      We used to have problems with first-year psych students coming to Rocky Horror Picture Show to do some kind of paper or something. They were easy to spot, always showing up in September or October, generally completely oblivious to what goes on. We'd usually hold virgin auctions those nights, auctioning them (as RHPS virgins) to regulars to mess with 'em the whole night.

      So "creepy and unethical" can go both ways (given the RHPS reference, pun-intended)

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
  10. a fake pub with fake patrons by eljasbo · · Score: 1

    a 'pub' where they rub ethanol around the glass to convince the patron there is a real drink they are served.. where you may or may not get any alcohol in the drink you ordered... where patrons are metered to make sure they dont drink over their legal driving limit... a place the customers dont even know they may be part of an experiment, and on top of that they wont even play the soccer game on the tv. Sounds like a violation of alcohol ordinances and pub regulations to me. I really am glad i dont go there. we always sought out the places with the most potent drinks when we were bar hopping.

  11. We call this Pervy Spying IRL by WillAffleckUW · · Score: 1, Funny

    That said, how much is a pint of hard cider?

    Without IRB consent forms signed by people who are fully informed, this is an ethical violation and a violation of research study protocols.

    But, hey, let's just throw some drones and post the vids of their "behavioural studies" onto the Internet, shall we?

    Who cares if it violates the Magna Carta?

    --
    -- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
    1. Re:We call this Pervy Spying IRL by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Could they get their consent afterwards to use the data? Of course, those objecting to it may skew the data. Furthermore, what if it's a person who is only willing to be a research participant only for pay?

  12. No, it's obviously fake. by Any+Web+Loco · · Score: 2, Funny

    The clue was "cheerful staff" :-/

  13. What temperature? by ebno-10db · · Score: 2, Informative

    London South Bank University, you may think you're drinking an ice cold brew

    The British don't drink their beer ice cold.

    1. Re:What temperature? by quenda · · Score: 4, Informative

      The British don't drink their beer ice cold.

      Not that old myth! What you and I call beer, the British call lager, and drink it chilled like everyone else.
      But there is an extra option: if you go to a real English pub, and order a traditional ale, it is served at cellar temperature.
      These days, lager is much more popular.

    2. Re:What temperature? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Some of us don't consider lagers beer either. Gimme a good dunkelweizen or amber any day over that over hopped piss.

    3. Re:What temperature? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Lager is beer, and you can get some damn fine ones from Germany & Belgium.

      The "Super Chilled Ice Cold" mass produced piss that is called "lager" due to the fact it has the misfortune to share ingredients with real lager is just an accident of the marketing department.

    4. Re:What temperature? by andrewbaldwin · · Score: 1

      It's because British beer [ie bitter, stout, ale] has some flavour.

      Drinking liquids ice cold reduces your sense of taste so you don't realise it's just yellow water.

    5. Re:What temperature? by jellomizer · · Score: 1

      Drink what you like. It is still beer just different types.
      Some people like a more subtle taste others like a stronger taste.

      --
      If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    6. Re:What temperature? by Gryle · · Score: 1

      Now now now, that just won't do. This is Slashdot after all. If we're not putting our elitism on full show, what are we here for?

      --
      Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity, and I'm not entirely sure about the universe - Einstein
  14. custom made (in our own image) monkey tricks by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    still sharing their bananas then failing to shoot each other? add some ethanol.. that should take care of that?

  15. Cyborg Waiter! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    This 3D printed drink seems a bit weak! Have you checked your alcohol cartridge with your cyborg cell phone?

  16. Fake fights? by PopeRatzo · · Score: 1

    I wonder if they studied the fake fights that occurred when the subjects moved from fake beer to fake whiskey?

    --
    You are welcome on my lawn.
  17. FRONTLINE V FACEBOOK by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Frontline : Generation Like (First Aired: February 18, 2014)

    The relationship between teens as product and the companies that target them.

  18. Ice Cold Brew? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Real students don't drink gnats pee (lager) unless it is the genuine German Variety. Certainly not that so called Aussie crap called Fosters.

    If they drink beer then it is cellar temperature Bitter such as 6X, London Pride, Broadside and my own favorite Harvey's Best.

  19. Yes - pub on campus... UC school by NotQuiteReal · · Score: 1

    I remember going to the pub on a University of California school...

    They even served a combo called the "Irishman's lunch" - a Quart of beer and Potato Skins. I am sure that is no longer "PC", and I am not even sure if the UC system has gone "dry" or not, but, back in the day it was the best thing, even above "toastada Tuesday".

    --
    This issue is a bit more complicated than you think.
  20. UK stil has false advertisement laws by Khyber · · Score: 1

    And one thing they get on right away is alcohol.

    Get ready for heavy fines, it's within the gov't right to do this.

    --
    Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
    1. Re:UK stil has false advertisement laws by TWX · · Score: 1

      If they're not charging for drinks, and if they don't advertise that this public house serves alcohol, then they're probably off the hook on false advertising.

      --
      Do not look into laser with remaining eye.
  21. Dangerous! by quenda · · Score: 1

    Yeah, yeah, but your psychologists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could that they didn't stop to think if they should.

    What if it starts breeding? Have they learned nothing from the Fake Irish Pub plague that has ravaged the world?

  22. OJT by m3ntos · · Score: 1

    It's great that those students are getting on the job training in real world skills.

  23. better fridge choices now as well by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And they can get their beer fridges from someone other than Lucas Electric.

  24. I you pay with fake cash as I don't to pay for fak by Joe_Dragon · · Score: 0

    I you pay with fake cash as I don't to pay for fake beer.

  25. Psych students as barmen/barmaids by loufoque · · Score: 1

    What's the difference with normal batmen/barmaids, which are usually already psych students in the first place?

  26. WTF mate? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Can someone translate this into AMERICAN English please?

    1. Re:WTF mate? by xous · · Score: 1

      "The Nik-O-Lok Company is a company founded in 1910 with headquarters in Indianapolis, Indiana, that manufactures and leases door locks for pay toilets, along with other types of equipment for public bathrooms. Locks are designed that can be operated by manufacturer-supplied tokens or by coins (quarters) as well as tokens."

      I'm guessing the security camera is so you can't piss in the alley.

  27. The difference is right in the summary by OrangeTide · · Score: 1

    "...and a cheerful staff"

    --
    “Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
    1. Re:The difference is right in the summary by loufoque · · Score: 1

      If the staff of your local pub isn't cheerful, then it's probably one of the worst pubs in the UK.

    2. Re:The difference is right in the summary by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      or it's not in the UK. I've met some really angry and bitter people working in US bars.

  28. uhmm.. by SuperDre · · Score: 0

    if there isn't a notice of the public being studied, then it's a gross violation of privacy laws..

  29. We need more of these experiments by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Now, repeat with a whore house. How do the psychology students look?

  30. In 2014? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    In 2014 they are questioning this again?

    WTF are they studying on university?

  31. Business as usual by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So, another psychology study where the experimenters are active participants! Those psychologists never learn...

  32. @wvmarle - Re:So a fake pub with drinks by nukenerd · · Score: 1

    psychologists will frown upon any research where the subjects do not know they are part of a research project..

    Why? I'd have thought the opposite in cases like this, because if the subjects were aware they could modify thier behaviour.

    Actually, there are loads of psychological research done on unaware subjects. Just a random example : an architect watching how people negotiate a busy hotel lobby, so he can design better hotel lobbies in future.

    1. Re:@wvmarle - Re:So a fake pub with drinks by wvmarle · · Score: 1

      You don't have to tell what you're testing. E.g. "we have a new restaurant and are looking for people to try out our new food - it's free, eat as much as you like," while the real question is "does the size of our plates change how much people are eating?". The people know they're test subjects, but think they're testing the food quality while in reality they're testing whether they'll eat more when they get bigger plates, and whether it matters how far their seat is from the buffet table.

  33. We drink to... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    GET LAID... Or because we HOPE we're going to get laid. That's it. Sex.

  34. So ... by Rambo+Tribble · · Score: 1

    ... this sparks the question: Do the rats know you created the maze, and just go for the cheese to fool you?

  35. The cocktail waitress by plopez · · Score: 1

    Required reading when I was taking Sociology as an undergrad:
    http://www.amazon.ca/The-Cockt...

    Not to be confused with the crime novel.

    --
    putting the 'B' in LGBTQ+
  36. I didn't see any post related to this thought ... by MondoGordo · · Score: 1

    How ironic! A bartender who is actually a psychologist ... what're the odds ?

  37. The headline is fun to parse. by Standfast · · Score: 1

    Many headlines these days are poorly written, with word forms that can be hard to parse before you read the associated article.

    Ok, I'll give it a shot. "Fake Pub Studies Drinking Habits"

    What is the news here?

    Fake studies about pubs are drinking all these habits.
    The fake pub is studying how people drink habits.
    I order you to fake some pub studies that drink habits.
    This is about the drinking habits of fake pub studies.

    And so on.

    Add your own parsing, and for each one you add, enjoy another habitual fake drink in the studying pub.

  38. Thought by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I bet this place never has any good drink specials.