# gst: rotating particles self-organise (also in a form of active soft matter)

<< Biological organisms and artificial active particles self-organize into swarms and patterns >>

AA << study a mixture of minimalistic clockwise and counter-clockwise rotating robots, called rotors >>

<< experiments show that rotors move collectively and exhibit super-diffusive interfacial motion and phase separate via spinodal decomposition. On long time scales, confinement favors symmetric demixing patterns >>

This << macroscopic system is a form of active soft matter >>

Christian Scholz, Michael Engel,  Thorsten Poschel. Rotating robots move collectively and self-organize.
Nature Communications. 2018; 9 (931). doi: 10.1038/s41467-018-03154-7. Apr 11, 2018.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-018-03154-7

University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. Physicists demonstrate demixing behavior of rotating particles. Apr 4, 2018.

https://m.phys.org/news/2018-04-physicists-demixing-behavior-rotating-particles.html

# psych: sometimes chickens remain optimistic despite exposure to stress

<< Chickens that grow up in an environment that they perceive as more diverse and manageable, retain an optimistic view of life and cope with stress better than individuals that grow up in more sterile surroundings >>

Linkoping University. Chickens remain optimistic in enriched environments despite exposure to stress. Apr 6, 2018.

https://m.phys.org/news/2018-04-chickens-optimistic-enriched-environments-exposure.html

Josefina Zidar, Irene Campderrich, et al.  Environmental complexity buffers against stress-induced negative judgement bias in female chickens.  Scientific Reports. 2018; 8 (5404). doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-23545-6
Mar 29, 2018.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-23545-6

# brain: a new learning theory; the role of weak synapses

AA << demonstrate a new type of abundant cooperative nonlinear dynamics where learning is attributed solely to the nodes, instead of the network links which their number is significantly larger >>

<< The network dynamics is now counterintuitively governed by the weak links, which previously were assumed to be insignificant >>

Shira Sardi, Roni Vardi, et al. Adaptive nodes enrich nonlinear cooperative learning beyond traditional adaptation by links. Scientific Reports. 2018; 8 (5100). doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-23471-7. March 23, 2018.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-23471-7

The brain learns completely differently than we’ve assumed, new learning theory says. New post-Hebb brain-learning model may lead to new brain treatments and breakthroughs in faster deep learning.  Mar 28, 2018.

http://www.kurzweilai.net/the-brain-learns-completely-differently-than-weve-assumed-new-learning-theory-says

# web: facebook (etc) data, a big correlated lump, harder to delete (then disappear)

<< Information on users' personalities or 'psychographics' was just a modest part of how the model targeted citizens. It was not a personality model strictly speaking, but rather one that boiled down demographics, social influences, personality and everything else into a big correlated lump >>. Matthew Hindman.

<< If Facebook is that hard to leave, just think about what will happen as virtual reality becomes more popular. The powerful algorithms that manipulate Facebook users are not nearly as effective as VR will be, with its full immersion >>

Jeff Inglis. Understanding Facebook's data crisis - 5 essential reads. The Conversation. Apr 5, 2018.

https://theconversation.com/understanding-facebooks-data-crisis-5-essential-reads-94066

https://m.phys.org/news/2018-04-facebook-crisis5-essential.html

also:

https://flashontrack.blogspot.it/search?q=facebook

# web: facebook: a synthetic perspective from the deep brain, by Mark

<< We've learned that Zuckerberg (Mark  Zuckerberg) once called the first Facebook users "dumb fucks" for handing over their private data >>

Jose Antonio Vargas. The Face of Facebook. Mark  Zuckerberg opens up. Sep 20, 2010.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2010/09/20/the-face-of-facebook

<< Part of the problem is that we are simply addicted to Facebook. Like cocaine addicts, alcoholics or smokers, we have a hard time giving it up >>

<< As Sean Parker, founding president of Facebook, admits, the narcotic-like, slot-machine effects were consciously designed into the platform right from the start. As Parker bravely confesses, they "understood this consciously," but they “did it anyway.” >>

Mike Sosteric. Why we should all cut the Facebook cord. Or should we?
Apr 3, 2018.

https://theconversation.com/why-we-should-all-cut-the-facebook-cord-or-should-we-93929

more:

Grainne Maedhbh Nic Lochlainn.  Facebook data harvesting: what you need to know. Apr 3, 2018.

https://theconversation.com/facebook-data-harvesting-what-you-need-to-know-93959

more:

Richard Stallman. Reasons not to use Facebook. Why you should not 'use' (i.e., be used by) Facebook.

https://www.stallman.org/facebook.html

also:

# web: Facebook, every mistake you can imagine, by Mark. Feb 8, 2018

https://flashontrack.blogspot.it/2018/02/web-facebook-every-mistake-you-can.html

# behav: more about homebodies vs natural explorers

<< Some species of roundworms are just one millimeter long. Their brains have only 302 neurons, compared to our own 86 billion, and lack any recognizable breathing system. They share only 35 percent of their DNA with human beings >>

<< But we have more in common with these creatures, known to scientists by their Latin name Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans), than one might think. Hidden in that 35 percent are clues to the origins of our behavior >> Andres Bendesky.

<< Like some humans, some C. elegans are homebodies [..] But other C. elegans are natural explorers >>

Columbia University. How genes shape behavior. Apr 4, 2018.

https://m.phys.org/news/2018-04-genes-behavior.html

Andres Bendesky, Makoto Tsunozaki, et al. Catecholamine receptor polymorphisms affect decision-making in C. elegans. Nature  472,  313–318 (21 April 2011) doi: 10.1038/nature09821

https://www.nature.com/articles/nature09821

# brain: actually there is chaos in the brain

<< Besides some empirical findings of chaos at different time scales, the focus is on theoretical modeling of change processes explaining and simulating chaotic dynamics. It will be illustrated how some common factors of psychotherapeutic change and psychological hypotheses on motivation, emotion regulation, and information processing of the client's functioning can be integrated into a comprehensive nonlinear model of human change processes >>

Schiepek GK, Viol K, et al. Psychotherapy Is Chaotic - (Not Only) in a Computational World. Front Psychol. 2017 Apr 24;8:379. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00379. eCollection 2017.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/28484401/

<< Cambridge-based researchers provide new evidence that the human brain lives "on the edge of chaos", at a critical transition point between randomness and order. The study provides experimental data on an idea previously fraught with theoretical speculation >>

Public Library of Science. The Human Brain Is On The Edge Of Chaos. Mar 23, 2009.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090319224532.htm  

Manfred G. Kitzbichler, Marie L. Smith, et al. Broadband Criticality of Human Brain Network Synchronization. PLoS Comput Biol 2009; 5 (3): e1000314. doi: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000314. Mar 20, 2009.

http://journals.plos.org/ploscompbiol/article?id=10.1371/journal.pcbi.1000314