[Sigia-l] Sigia-l Digest, Vol 64, Issue 9

[Kevin Bishop]

Hi Eric,

Thanks for your quick and considerate reply.

While I still have many questions concerning your survey and project
I'll save them for later b/c I fully respect your need to "hold'm
close", and I don't want to impact your project in any way that may be
irrelevant and/or potentially damaging.

Looking forward with enthusiasm to hearing the results and your conclusions!

-kevin

Kevin W Bishop
kevinwbishop at gmail.com


On Wed, Jan 13, 2010 at 1:15 PM, Eric Reiss <er at fatdux.com> wrote:
> Hi Kevin,
>
> Actually, brain chemistry, like physical anatomy *is* pretty much the same
> from person to person. And reactions are pretty much the same, too - even
> across cultures. That's why most babies laugh when they're happy and cry
> when they are frightened. These responses tend to change with age due to
> cultural norms or overexposure to certain types of stimuli. But still, if
> you examine the mechanisms of reward chemicals in the limbic system, etc.
> some interesting thoughts come to mind (well they gave me an idea...).
> There's a ton of research out there. Start with Wikipedia for a good
> layman's explanation.
>
> The problems related to depression aren't so much the treatment as
> determining the cause of the depression. Not surprisingly, specific
> treatment depends on what has been diagnosed. For example, depression caused
> by reduced exposure to sunlight is generally not treated in the same manner
> as depression caused by emotional stress, such as grief. Or there may be
> other triggers, such as those related to postpartum depression.
>
> Many forms of depression can be solved via psychotherapy and cognitive
> therapy rather than medication - but all treatments ultimately affect brain
> chemistry.
>
> Side-effects of medications are also problematical. As yet, no one has yet
> figured out how to accurately measure serotonin levels in the brain. But
> most research suggests that chemical imbalance is a central factor.
>
> But I digress...
>
> I won't pretend to be a physician, but I have a reasonable understanding of
> the basic science involved here. I'm merely exploring a link between a
> well-known scenario in the design world that seems to equate with documented
> chemical response mechanisms in the brain. Wouldn't it be interesting to
> learn that our goofy clients aren't really so goofy, but that they're merely
> responding in a natural way to a given stimulus?
>
> I am purposely holding my cards close to my chest because there's still a
> survey in the works. There are limits to how far I dare skew certain things.
>
> But thanks for asking :)
>
> Cheers,
> Eric
>
> -----------------------
> Eric Reiss
> CEO
> The FatDUX Group
> Copenhagen, Denmark
> http://www.fatdux.com
> office: (+45) 39 29 67 77
> mobile: (+45) 20 12 88 44
> skype: ericreiss
> twitter: @elreiss
>
> FatDUX is an official sponsor of the
> Usability Professionals' Association
> http://www.upassoc.org
>
> -----------------------
>
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