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Cognitive
So, How Much is My Case Worth?
March 25, 2013
You knew it was coming. You are sitting in a client meeting, explaining the procedure and the underlying issues of the case,...
March 25, 2013
You knew it was coming. You are sitting in a client meeting, explaining the procedure and the underlying issues of the case,...
Trust Your Gut? Not So Fast
March 24, 2013
Trust your instinct, we’re urged; it’s never wrong. Nice platitude. It makes us feel safe. But gut instinct is based...
March 24, 2013
Trust your instinct, we’re urged; it’s never wrong. Nice platitude. It makes us feel safe. But gut instinct is based...
Sidetracked: Why Can’t We Stick to the Plan?
March 22, 2013
"The best-laid schemes of mice and men go often awry." - Robert Burns, 1785 An entrepreneur starts a company with plans to go public, but ultimately accepts a low-ball acquisition offer from a competitor. A newlywed husband plans to spend 10 minutes in Whole Foods picking up the ingredients for a romantic dinner, but ends up spending an hour comparison shopping for organic dog food and craft beer. A college student resolves to spend every Wednesday evening studying in the library, only to spend...
March 22, 2013
"The best-laid schemes of mice and men go often awry." - Robert Burns, 1785 An entrepreneur starts a company with plans to go public, but ultimately accepts a low-ball acquisition offer from a competitor. A newlywed husband plans to spend 10 minutes in Whole Foods picking up the ingredients for a romantic dinner, but ends up spending an hour comparison shopping for organic dog food and craft beer. A college student resolves to spend every Wednesday evening studying in the library, only to spend...
Curiosity, Information Gaps, and the Utility of Knowledge
March 21, 2013
We propose an integrated theoretical framework that captures the diverse motives driving the preference to obtain or avoid information. Beyond the conventional desire for information as an input to decision making, people are driven by curiosity, which is a desire for knowledge for its own sake, even in the absence of material benefits, and people are additionally motivated to seek out information about issues they like thinking about and avoid information about issues they do not like thinking about...
March 21, 2013
We propose an integrated theoretical framework that captures the diverse motives driving the preference to obtain or avoid information. Beyond the conventional desire for information as an input to decision making, people are driven by curiosity, which is a desire for knowledge for its own sake, even in the absence of material benefits, and people are additionally motivated to seek out information about issues they like thinking about and avoid information about issues they do not like thinking about...
Working memory training does not live up to the hype
March 15, 2013
According to CogMed, one of the larger providers of computerised working memory training, the benefits of such training is "comprehensive" and includes "being able to stay focused, resist distractions, plan activities, complete tasks, and follow and contribute to complex discussions." Similar claims are made by other providers such as Jungle Memory and Cognifit, which is endorsed by neuroscientist Susan Greenfield. Working memory describes our ability to hold relevant information in mind for use in mental...
March 15, 2013
According to CogMed, one of the larger providers of computerised working memory training, the benefits of such training is "comprehensive" and includes "being able to stay focused, resist distractions, plan activities, complete tasks, and follow and contribute to complex discussions." Similar claims are made by other providers such as Jungle Memory and Cognifit, which is endorsed by neuroscientist Susan Greenfield. Working memory describes our ability to hold relevant information in mind for use in mental...
Deciding Whether the Best Lawyers Have Excellent “Slow Brains” Takes Something Other than a Slow Brain
March 12, 2013
Bill and I have been having this friendly debate for a number of years now. I believe the insights of Tversky and Kahneman are fully deserving of every accolade they receive, but they don't answer all the questions. Personally, I think describing a lawyer as a having an excellent Kahnemanian "Slow Brain" is like describing a baseball pitcher as having a 102 mph fastball - it's a necessary but not sufficient ingredient of excellence (you need control as well as velocity). As I've argued at length,...
March 12, 2013
Bill and I have been having this friendly debate for a number of years now. I believe the insights of Tversky and Kahneman are fully deserving of every accolade they receive, but they don't answer all the questions. Personally, I think describing a lawyer as a having an excellent Kahnemanian "Slow Brain" is like describing a baseball pitcher as having a 102 mph fastball - it's a necessary but not sufficient ingredient of excellence (you need control as well as velocity). As I've argued at length,...
The Next Frontier Is Inside Your Brain
March 12, 2013
The Obama administration is planning a multiyear research effort to produce an “activity map” that would show in unprecedented...
March 12, 2013
The Obama administration is planning a multiyear research effort to produce an “activity map” that would show in unprecedented...
Review of Picture It Settled® Software for Negotiation
February 26, 2013
As a lawyer, a district judge and now as a mediator for many years now, I have always sought out useful technology tools to make the process work better. I have seen parties use static Excel spreadsheets and midpoint analysis to try to project settlement numbers, but the negotiation process is much more sophisticated than that. At SMU Law School in Dallas, I teach a survey course on alternative dispute resolution (“ADR”). The course includes segments on negotiation, mediation and arbitration....
February 26, 2013
As a lawyer, a district judge and now as a mediator for many years now, I have always sought out useful technology tools to make the process work better. I have seen parties use static Excel spreadsheets and midpoint analysis to try to project settlement numbers, but the negotiation process is much more sophisticated than that. At SMU Law School in Dallas, I teach a survey course on alternative dispute resolution (“ADR”). The course includes segments on negotiation, mediation and arbitration....
Forbes: She Negotiates: The Number One Super Secret to Getting What You Want in 2013
January 1, 2013
Forbes: She Negotiates: The Number One Super Secret to Getting What You Want in 2013 http://goo.gl/SW4wi
January 1, 2013
Forbes: She Negotiates: The Number One Super Secret to Getting What You Want in 2013 http://goo.gl/SW4wi
ABA Journal: Not Playing Games: Firm Takes Decision-Making Theory into Transactions
December 23, 2012
ABA Journal: Not Playing Games: Firm Takes Decision-Making Theory into Transactions http://goo.gl/9r1bE
December 23, 2012
ABA Journal: Not Playing Games: Firm Takes Decision-Making Theory into Transactions http://goo.gl/9r1bE
