Life on Autopilot

Exploring the mind's accidents, curve balls, and backfires

by Keith Payne, Ph.D.

The West Memphis Three: A Four Step Recipe for False Confessions

It took Eddie Vedder and a Dixie Chick to seal the deal. That, and a little DNA. But last Friday, three men in Jonesboro, Arkansas walked out of prison after serving 18 years for a grisly crime they didn't commit. All because of a false confession. Read More

Do you own the thoughts that occur to you?

Where you think your thoughts come from shapes what you think you believe. Read More

Genetic disorder knocks out prejudice

Williams syndrome is a genetic disorder in which just 25 genes (out of about 25,000) are missing. Also missing is any feeling of social fear. Striking new research says that this lack of fear may translate into a lack of racial prejudice. So how much of prejudice is based on fear? Read More

Why is the death of one million a statistic?

Last month Newsweek posted a slideshow on their website showing pictures of the earthquake victims in Haiti. The first picture I saw was a little girl, her head wrapped in a makeshift bandage, with a black eye and a swollen bump on her forehead. My heart melted, and I had to look at the next one. Picture after picture showed more victims, more misery. Read More