The placebo effect even works for sleep
New research suggests we perform better on cognitive tests if we’re told we had a good night’s sleep
http://www.salon.com/2014/02/09/the_placebo_effect_even_works_for_sleep_partner/
Regular reader(s) will know I am interested in the placebo effect, this article is another interesting one where they create a sham exam that ‘measures’ how much REM sleep you have had (as a supposed proxy for how good a night of sleep you had), then, after randomly telling the subject they either had a good or poor night’s sleep, they then administered a cognitive test. Those who were told they had a good night’s sleep did much better on the test than those who were told they had a poor sleep (independent of how the subject initially reported they felt they did). Man, the human mind is so damn mutable, sometimes it amazes me that we get anything done. Perhaps our geniuses are simply people who have so convinced themselves that they are smart that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Now, if they could just make this work so people could get away from taking drugs (say, for pain, depression, etc.)…
