Archive of January 2008
2008.01.29
Science Rocks
This semester, I'll be doing two of my own research projects (one with a group) and I will also be working on another project with a professor. These upcoming weeks, I'll be blogging about them and my progress. At the end of the term, I might be able to post the findings which could be exciting (if I receive proper permissions). I've been busy coordinating with my professor these past few days, and spring term just started. Woo!
Of course, none of that really qualifies as an excuse for my blogging absence. For that, I can only plea pre-term need to game and release as much energy as I could before starting academic work. On the plus side, with the term on the go and my four psychology classes, I'll have plenty to blog about as I tend to get really excited about what I'm doing. It is a good test of my own knowledge.
In other news...
I've been following the 2007 TU24 news on the badastronomy blog with much amusement and dismay. Some people had claimed that the asteroid would effect the Earth somehow and create massive storms... Phil has the entire story. Essentially, the asteroid passed us and nothing happened. Now those same people are claiming that the effects just have yet to come. Well, if the effects are coming, they're sure taking a really long time! If the asteroid had posed a threat to us, the event would have happened already. The asteroid is moving gloriously away from us, and nothing will happen. For all of the scientific aspects of why the asteroid poses absolutely no threat, I strongly recommend reading Phil's posts. I do love the fact that science triumphed. (This is a triumph...)
However, I wonder how/why it is that people latch onto doomsday scenarios and stick to them, even in the face of point-blank evidence. Perhaps that's a question I should research for my thesis.
2008.01.15
What makes you tick?
I know I said that my first post would be about schizophrenia (which is a topic I really do find fascinating, and I have plans to work on it for my doctorate/career research). I have that post mostly written and plan on publishing it soon. That said, I have let myself become distracted to my initial idea of a first post because of something I heard on the MAX (local light rail transit system).
While on my way to work, I heard some people debating or discussing psychology. I don't think any of them were actually in a psychology degree program for a couple of reasons. The biggest reason was that one of the guys said, "All psychologists do is diagnose people." None of the others disagreed.
Wrong! Psychiatrists diagnose people, sure. But not all psychologists are psychiatrists. I technically wouldn't call it diagnosing. And if I become a psychiatrist, I won't use that term as it implies that there is something wrong with the client, and that there is a right way to be. I do not think that is true.
There are obviously some things that can be wrong with the brain, and so need attention. Schizophrenia, for one thing. Especially in severe cases. However, it's not wrong to be schizophrenic.
Technicalities aside, there are a multitude of careers in psychology--much like any other degree. Teaching, human resources, research, AI development... the list goes on. I know I want to go into research involving humans in the field of personality.
The point is that we, as psychologists, do not just go around diagnosing people. Are we intrigued by people? Of course. You kind of have to be. :) You've got to want to understand other people. Perhaps that makes us seem to "judge" / "diagnose" others. I, at least, simply find humans to be fascinating and complex, full of mystery--and I find myself wondering what makes each individual person tick.