load01 11/10/2010

• In Canton, Kindness of a Stranger Still Resonates - NYTimes.com

  tags: culture

• For Exercise in New York Futility, Push Button - New York Times

  +--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| The Placebo Effect Not Just On Drugs|   from the your-actions-are-futile dept.|   posted by samzenpus on Monday November 08, @14:01 (Idle)|   https://idle.slashdot.org/story/10/11/08/1521226/The-Placebo-Effect-Not-Just-On-Drugs?from=newsletter+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  dvdme writes "It seems [0]the placebo effect isn't just valid on drugs.It's also a fact on elevators, offices and traffic lights. An article byGreg Ross says: 'In most elevators installed since the early 1990s, the'close door' button has no effect. Otis Elevator engineers confirmed thefact to the Wall Street Journal in 2003. Similarly, many officethermostats are dummies, designed to give workers the illusion ofcontrol. "You just get tired of dealing with them and you screw in acheap thermostat," said Illinois HVAC specialist Richard Dawson. "Guesswhat? [1]They quit calling you." In 2004 the New York Times reported thatmore than 2,500 of the 3,250 "walk" buttons in New York intersections donothing. "The city [2]deactivated most of the pedestrian buttons long agowith the emergence of computer-controlled traffic signals, even as anunwitting public continued to push on."'"
  Discuss this story at:   http://idle.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/11/08/1521226&from=newsletter
  Links:   0. http://www.futilitycloset.com/2010/11/04/placebo-buttons/   1. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB1042577628591401304.html   2. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/27/nyregion/27BUTT.html

  tags: technology

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