Academia has celebrated, over the years, the Mirror Test (and, unrelated but equally colorful, the Marshmallow Test). Now comes Turkish Test-Mirror Testing, which virtually enhances confidence, to some degree, that students taking tests virtually are genuinely being tested on their own merits and so will be justifiably able to be passed onward by the university […]
Tag: test
Spell-Checking: Randomized Controlled Trial of Pagan Spells
Randomized controlled trials of pagan spells are rarely reported in the medical literature. Here is a new addition to the world’s collection: “Testing the Pagan Prescription: Using a Randomized Controlled Trial to Investigate Pagan Spell-Casting as a Form of Noncontact Healing,” Charmaine Sonnex, Chris A. Roe, and Elizabeth C. Roxburgh, The Journal of Alternative and […]
The ‘Stroop Effect’ as Applied to Trombonists [new study]
A new variant of the psychologists’ stock-in-trade ‘Stroop test’ has been discovered – applicable only to trombonists. Background: The ‘Stroop Effect’ (a cognitive interference where a delay in the reaction time of a task occurs due to a mismatch in stimuli) is named after John Ridley Stroop who wrote the first academic paper (in English*) about […]
Do Test-Takers Pay Attention to Rock Lyrics? [research study]
“Effects of Aggressive and Nonaggressive Rock Songs on Projective and Structured Tests,” C.E. Wanamaker and M. Reznikoff, Journal of Psychology, vol. 123, no. 6, November 1989, pp. 561-570. The authors, at Fordham University, Bronx, NY, conclude that: “The findings are congruent with other investigators’ reports that subjects do not pay attention to rock lyrics. ” […]
Towards standard measurement scales for crispy, crackly and crunchy foods
Those involved in the field of ‘Texture Studies’ (with regard to food) often find a need to measure and categorize crispness, crackliness and crunchiness of various foodstuffs (* see example below). For such measurements to be meaningful, however, the methods and terms need to be accurately defined first. In 2008 considerable steps towards definitions of […]
Robotic butt-in-seat testing
Ford produced this deadpan, precisely accented video narrated by engineer Svenja Fröhlich, about testing the repeated interaction of car seats and human butts. The official Ford announcement says: “A robot has been created to move like a human behind – and perfectly simulate how drivers and passengers get in and out of their car seats. Engineers used […]
The ‘Champagne Toast Position’ test – a new diagnostic method for shoulder pain
The photo above depicts the newly developed ‘Champagne Toast Position’ test for examining the electromyographic activity of the supraspinatus muscle. A research team from the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, US, developed the test as a more effective alternative to Jobe’s test (a.k.a. the Empty Can Test) . . . The […]
“Free personality tests are more reliable and efficient than the paid variety”
BPS Research Digest reports: Free personality tests are more reliable and efficient than the paid variety In most areas of life, we expect the free versions of products to be sub-standard compared with the “premium” paid-for versions. After all, why would anyone pay for something if the free equivalent were better? However, a new study […]
Tips for persons applying for a job with Indian Railways
The RDSO — the Indian Railways’ Research Development and Standards Organization — offers tips for persons who will be taking their job application tests. These tips, offered by RDSO’s Psycho Technical Directorate, include two that may be obvious to some applicants: If you wear glasses or a hearing aid, be sure to take them with […]
A Quick Peanut Butter Test for Alzheimer’s Disease
Peanut butter again tempts researchers who seek medical insight: “A brief olfactory test for Alzheimer’s disease,” Jennifer J. Stamps, Linda M. Bartoshuk, Kenneth M. Heilman, Journal of the Neurological Sciences, vol. 333, 2013, pp. 19–24. (Thanks to investigator Holly Brothers for bringing this to our attention.) The authors, at the University of Florida, explain: “Methods. […]