JAY-Z is back and better than ever

The rules of the game

Have you ever wonder why sometimes people that belong to a minority group seem to just confirm the prejudice against then when they are submitted to some test to measure the thing we think they are bad at? One of the reasons that some studies have come up to explain the low performance might be the stereotype threat. These studies show that once you place someone in category that is expected to perform badly in a situation; it will negatively influence the final result. What happens is that the worry to deny that stereotype end up just making you spend more time worring about then fighting it.

The first experiment to prove that theory was conducted in 1995 at Stanford with Caucasians and African Americans. The experience was to apply a GRE - Graduate Record Examination - in two mixed groups; the first one was told that their intelligence was being measured and second one was told nothing of that sort. The Caucasians performed almost equally in both group, however the African Americans had a significant lower result in the group that was told that their intelligence was being measured.

Beside this breakthrough experiment several other have shown the effect of the stereotype threat in minorities groups (Steele & Aronson, 1995), women (Spencer et al. 1999), girls (Ambady, Shin, Kim, & Pittinsky, 2000), and students from low social-economic background (Croizet & Claire, 1998). But how does it work?

A study conducted at the University of Padonova in Italy (http://dpss.psy.unipd.it/ita/download/Maass/Cadinu_et_al_pdf1.pdf) found that the most important effect of the stereotype threat was the thought intrusion. That little voice that stay on your mind saying that you “suck” at it. This voice starts to consume your cognitive power affecting in a strong manner your performance at the test/activity you are taking.

Hear I post a documentary called blue eyed that show it happening in a workshop experiment. The documentary is very harsh but it shows a reality we choose to ignore.

Part 1


Part 2


Part 3



Part 4



Part 5



Part 6



Part 7



Part 8



Part 9


Part 10


Part 11



Part 12

The Capitan´s Log #2

Cool website that teach you how to play an instrument

http://www.showmehowtoplay.com/


An Homage to Led Zeppelin




Promiscuous Acustic

The Capitan´s Log #1

This are a few things I have seen in the Web that you might like.

SeeTo is a website that allow you and your friends to watch a video or any multimedia file at the same time.

http://www.seetoo.com/


Snooth social shooping website that allow people to have an enhanced experience while buying wine

http://www.snooth.com/

FoodTube will help people like me that doesn´t know how to cook, but would like to eat a proper food.

http://foodtube.net/

eToro website that make easier to buy and sell foreing exchange.

http://www.etoro.com/

Finally some good videos that I saw.


Coheed and Cambria - The Suffering




Snoop Dog - Video of the year

Marco Gomes' New Podcast

Check it out!

Everthing is going to be alright

They are artist-slash-entrepreneur

Radiohead newest album ‘In Rainbow’ seems to be the last stroke at the dying music industry. The band made available the download of its album for any amount that their fans were willing to pay. The strategy paid off and the release, just in the first day, made an astonishing amount of $6 MM (1.2 million downloads at an average price of $5). All the money went straight to the band’s pocket. Even though these numbers are not official several other bands and artists have shown some interest to release themselves from the major labels – e.g. Paul McCartney, Madona, Oasis, Jamiroquai and Nine Inch Nails – and start to sell its records directly to its audience. Bands and solo artists are abandoning their former employee spirit and are embracing a rising entrepreneurial desire that is about to change the industry forever.

Download it (but don't forget to pay what you think is worth)

The duo Aaron Yonda and Matt Sloan is another example of artists that are getting control over their destiny. Last year they started to record a series of short-film called Chad Vader - a parody with the dreadful character Darth Vader - to a local cable network, 101 Channels, but their show was canceled in its first episode. They didn’t let it get on their way and continued to produce the show and distributed it on the YouTube. The Show became a major hit with almost 19 MM views, which made YouTube invites then to participate in the new professional partnership program – i.e. part of the revenue gained with ads will be shared with the video producers – and they are planning to release the series’ DVD sometime soon.

These are examples how internet has provide the medium to people to explore not only all their potential as artists, but as entrepreneurs as well. The opportunity are enormous all it takes is the desire to make it better, to make it different, to make it unique; and of course a computer.