From Tara:
I first encountered the work of Princeton psychology professor Daniel Kahneman (writing with his collaborator Amos Tversky) as a new graduate student at the University of Minnesota's Institute of Child Development. I was fortunate to be in a department full of brilliant scientists, and it was only after lots of reading and listening that I was able to figure out that even among brilliant scientists, there are ESPECIALLY brilliant scientists. Nobel laureate Kahneman is one of the most brilliant.
Check out his wonderful Q-and-A at Freakonomics. Joshua Northey's question about "consumption traps" and Kahneman's excellent reply are especially compelling. And then there's the following:
Q.Have you applied the “focusing illusion” concept to voting? Might it be an explanation for What’s the Matter With Kansas?, i.e. that voters may ratify a political platform that goes against their interests because of abortion legislation, etc. -frankenduf A.I wanted to say “you are right,” but the more accurate statement is that I agree with you. A lot of political talk is designed to focus people’s attention on very specific issues about which they feel strongly.