1/26/10 -- The Slacker Brain

I remember when I was in college how I gained so much weight because of all the stress I was under. I also remember a few slackers who never seemed to gain any weight yet their grades suffered. I guess it's a trade off, I read this article this morning that made a lot of sense.

Here is a snippet:

It turns out, Jonah explains, that the part of our brain that is most reasonable, rational and do-the-right-thing is easily toppled by the pull of raw sensual appetite, the lure of sweet. Knowing something is the right thing to do takes work — brain work — and our brains aren't always up to that. The experiment, after all, tells us brains can't even hold more than seven numbers at a time. Add five extra digits, and good sense tiptoes out of your head, and in comes the cake. "This helps explain why, after a long day at the office, we're more likely to indulge in a pint of ice cream, or eat one too many slices of leftover pizza," Lehrer writes.