Father’s day wishes
Posted by Rommil Santiago on June 16th, 2010
This Sunday will be my second father’s day. While for most fathers, this day will be about ties, socks and perhaps even a hammer, for me this father’s day is all about something else. Almost 2 years ago, my little daughter was born to me and my wonderful wife on a cold wintery day. After all the anticipation, we finally got to meet the little one that my wife nurtured within her for almost 9 months. And judging from my daughter’s reaction upon her big arrival, wow was she ever glad to meet us too. Loud enough to hear in the hallway, our daughter let the world know she had arrived. Little did we know that this liveliness would be her hallmark. Read more…
Libertarian Paternalism: My Take
Posted by Rommil Santiago on June 14th, 2010
I believe that North Americans, in general, like the concept of having free choice. They enjoy the concept of being able to decide on matters that will affect them. From what I can tell, this desire to choose starts at a young age. From my own life, I know my daughter enjoys picking the fruit she will eat for breakfast or the snack she will eat in the afternoon. While she usually sticks to picking apples and bananas, every now and then she’ll pick something out of the blue like, say, a raw egg. Now I know that eating a raw egg is not exactly the best dietary choice for a toddler, but she doesn’t know that. However, if I make her eat something else, she will start to pout and get upset she didn’t get to eat the raw egg. While I’m sure many parents can relate to this story, I wonder how many of them realize that as a people, we often act like this too. Read more…
Gene, Brain and Social Behaviour
Posted by Rommil Santiago on June 8th, 2010
Craving pudding pops
Emotions are important. Cognitive ability can lead you to water, but it’s your emotions that will urge you to drink. Advertisers have known this for a long time. They know it is better to sell you the sizzle rather than the steak because they know it’s better to reach you on an emotional level than on a logical one. This fact is the reason that many advertisers choose to use celebrity spokespeople. Read more…