Reading Kafka improves learning

It's official, weird is good.

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Reading a book by Franz Kafka –– or watching a film by director David Lynch –– could make you smarter.

According to research by psychologists at UC Santa Barbara and the University of British Columbia, exposure to the surrealism in, say, Kafka's "The Country Doctor" or Lynch's "Blue Velvet" enhances the cognitive mechanisms that oversee implicit learning functions. The researchers' findings appear in an article published in the September issue of the journal Psychological Science.

http://www.labspaces.net/99690/Reading_Kafka_improves_learning

Then I must be a genius, as I've watched Mulholland Drive about 10 times and am still not really sure what it's all about.

Quote: Tim Walker @ September 17 2009, 9:26 AM BST

Then I must be a genius, as I've watched Mulholland Drive about 10 times and am still not really sure what it's all about.

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Some surrealists do not intend there to be any explicit 'meaning' to their work. For them, it is not 'about' anything, other than confounding your expectations in an interesting manner. Perhaps it is because the comprehension is difficult, that the mind is made to work harder, resulting in cognitive improvements elsewhere?

Agreed. However, when it comes to Mulholland Drive I have about 6 different theories. I love the film, yet it frustrates me more than any other. I refuse to search the internet for an explanation as I am determined to crack it to my own satisafaction.

I suppose that in such cases, it's more fun to speculate, than to know the answer. A bit like a variation of 'the chase is better than the catch'.

Quote: Tim Walker @ September 17 2009, 9:26 AM BST

Then I must be a genius, as I've watched Mulholland Drive about 10 times and am still not really sure what it's all about.

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Dirty monkey.

You fool no one.

Quote: Tim Walker @ September 17 2009, 9:26 AM BST

Then I must be a genius, as I've watched Mulholland Drive about 10 times and am still not really sure what it's all about.

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It's about lesbians. Duh...

Quote: Tim Walker @ September 17 2009, 9:48 AM BST

Agreed. However, when it comes to Mulholland Drive I have about 6 different theories.

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Wasn't it meant to be the pilot for a TV series that never happened?

Quote: David Bussell @ September 17 2009, 10:43 AM BST

It's about lesbians. Duh...

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Quote: Tim Walker @ September 17 2009, 9:48 AM BST

Agreed. However, when it comes to Mulholland Drive I have about 6 different theories. I love the film, yet it frustrates me more than any other. I refuse to search the internet for an explanation as I am determined to crack it to my own satisafaction.

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When this first came out on cable, I paid like £3 for it and couldn't make out a lesbian tit from a dykey elbow, so you bet your bottom that I went online to find out what the hell it was I just paid for.

I found an explaination, read it, went 'Oh yeah, now I get it' and then moved on with my life.

Then again, I had to do the same thing for 'Must Love Dogs', so maybe you shouldn't take my advice.

She was dying innit, the whole film was her final thoughts as she died, only took her a few seconds, but took us two whoooole hours.
(Was good though.)
I like Kafka and Lynch, so I too must be a fricking genius.

Bit like Jacob's Ladder then. Which was also about somebody's last moments while dying.

Is it? I have seen it, but can't remember a thing about it. It's always on telly, I'll have to watch it again.

Oh, has it got Jews?

Much as I love David Lynch, his last film, Inland Empire, was f**king pig shit.

Then again, perhaps I'm just a thick c**t. Who knows.

Quote: zooo @ September 17 2009, 2:14 PM BST

Is it? I have seen it, but can't remember a thing about it. It's always on telly, I'll have to watch it again.

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I wouldn't bother. McCauley Culkin plays his son and we're meant to believe that he's really upset because his son's dead. You wouldn't be upset if Culkin was your son and he died. Fact.

Quote: john lucas 101 @ September 17 2009, 2:18 PM BST

I'm just a thick c**t

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Don't be too harsh on yourself, you big f**k off thick c**t.