paulsol wrote:
Quote:
Liberals have more grey matter in a part of the brain associated with understanding complexity, while the conservative brain is bigger in the section related to processing fear, said the study today in Current Biology.
Link. Can't argue with that really...
At the risk of giving much weight to the study at all, that's not remotely what the findings actually show. The larger area of the brain related to processing fear determines whether one faces fears or shrinks away from them. Predictably, conservatives face fearful situations, while liberals tend to run away.
Similarly, the larger area associated with "understanding complexity", really isn't about understanding it so much as accepting it. Specifically, it measures a willingness to accept contradictions out of a belief that complex systems can't be understood fully anyway. Conservatives are less inclined to accept such things.
Which kinda perfectly explains their different views on things like global warming, for example. If we're taking the study at face value anyway.