Everybody needs a good placebo to get them through the day. For Behavioral economist and Predictably Irrational author Dan Ariely, it used to be Airborne. Even though he was mainly sure it didn’t work, that faint glimmer was enough to keep him taking it and cold-free. Then he read new studies that said it was totally placebo. His placebo stopped working thereafter. Luckily, his mom has sent him a new placebo! And he feels right as rain. What’s your favorite placebo? [via BoingBoing] [More]
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Stop Spending By Freezing Your Credit Card In Ice
By 6.16.08
If you have trouble controlling the amount and frequency of your credit card purchases, try putting your credit card in a glass of water and putting it in the freezer. This makes it so every time you want to use your credit card, you’ll have to wait for the credit card to melt. By the time the ice has thawed, your desire to impulsively purchase may have evaporated as well. I read about this in Predictably Irrational; Dan Ariely called it, “The Ice Glass Method.” Apparently, it doesn’t ruin the credit card, although it will if you try to microwave-defrost it. This method is probably only good for people who do their shopping sprees in-person. Online shopaholics would just look through the ice.
Decoy Pricing Explained With Sex
By 6.13.08
If you found our oddly popular post on decoy pricing too brainy, commenter SuffolkHouse offered an excellent concrete example that should drive the point home:
