Impulsive facebook use may cause brain imbalance
NEW YORK: Do you have the habit of constantly checking Facebook or other social media sites while driving, in a work meeting, or at other times? Beware, it could lead to a deficiency in the balance between two systems in the brain, researchers warn. The findings showed that when there is an imbalance between two cognitive-behavioural systems in the human brain, there is a higher rate of problematic use of social networking sites. In the study, researchers from the DePaul University in the US applied the dual system perspective — an established theory in cognitive psychology and neuroscience — which holds that humans have two different mechanisms in their brain that influence their decision-making. While System 1 is automatic and reactive, quickly triggered, often subconsciously, in reaction to stimulus such as a sight of or notifications from social media, System 2 is a reflective, reasoning system that moves more slowly, regulates cognitions and controls behaviours, according to Hamed QahriSaremi, assistant professor at DePaul University. The second system can help individuals control impulses and behaviours that are not in their best interest, he added. What the British mainstream media is reporting about the current land invasions in northern Kenya is not an accurate portrait of the situation. Some British commentators have been disloyal to a region that has offered them a comfortable lifestyle and luxurious holidays, by reporting sensational headlines suggesting the end of the white man in Africa. What is really happening is change.
The drought in the north of Kenya has politically instigated tribesmen and livestock heading south; the drought is giving an excuse to the political opposition to make promises of land that will bequeathed in exchange for votes cast in the August election. On a new and dramatic scale, opportunistic young herdsmen and their cattle, urged on by their tribal leaders, have started to look for sustenance on other people’s land. These young herdsmen are from warrior tribes and are, unfortunately, armed with weapons sourced from collapsing previous regimes in Sudan and Somalia, which makes fresh pastures easy to acquire. They are unwilling to negotiate, they kill those that stand in their way and they are threatening the status quo of land ownership for all of those living in the invaded areas, not just the large landowners but also the indigenous peoples who have curated the land in a sustainable manner.
Largely responsiblefor this predicament is Kenya’s expo-
The drought in the north of Kenya has politically instigated tribesmen and livestock heading south; the drought is giving an excuse to the political opposition to make promises of land that will bequeathed in exchange for votes cast in the August election.