I did not even know there were neuromarketing companies

What Neuroscience Has to Say About Gap’s Logo Disaster
[Via Discoblog]

The abysmal flop of the Gap logo redesign has prompted a flurry of critique from marketing experts, branding consultants, as well as the inner critic in each of us that wants to explain what, exactly, went so wrong.

Now another group is chiming in: neuroscientists. NeuroFocus, one of the leading neuromarketing firms in the country, just released an analysis of why our deep subconscious rejected the Gap logo with such finality. Here are some of their findings:

1. When words overlap with images, as in the unsuccessful Gap logo, our brain tends to bypass the word and focus on the image. So we ignore the “p” when it’s placed over the blue box (for the Gap name, that’s a big fail).

2. We’re hardwired to avoid sharp edges because in nature they represent a threat. The sharp edge of the box cutting into the curved “p” is unappealing for that reason.

3. Being a little funky appeals to the brain. The original Gap typeface was unusual enough to stand out from the crowd. The new one, on the other hand, is boring old Helvetica (which really is taking over the world).

4. The brain loves high contrast. In the original logo, white letters “pop” against a dark blue background. In the new logo, the blue box weakens the black/white contrast.

[More]

It kind of makes you wonder about the neurology of the people who approved the new logo? Are they wired differently than the rest of us or do they have some learned response that overcomes their natural neural pathways?

The little blue box in the new one might work if they wanted to emphasize the ‘P’ but it does not work for ‘Gap’. I wonder if it would have worked better with a blue circle overlapping all the letters?

Neuromarketing sounds all cool and such but I wonder how well it really works?

Coolest Halloween idea

Halloween Costume Idea: Pretend You Have a Portal in Your Torso
[Via Discoblog]

There are still a few days before Halloween costume frenzy will reach its peak, but we think we have a winner. Forget all those Lady Gaga and Chilean miner costumes: We’re taken with Ben Heck’s ingenious see-through portal t-shirt.

This high-tech costume makes it look like the wearer has a hole in his torso, thanks to a tiny camera on his back, and an LCD screen on his chest that shows the image captured by the camera. Want your own? Here’s a blow-by-blow video of how to build it. There are a few digressions into other projects, but we encourage you to watch through and get all the info you need to avoid the fate of being just another Gaga.

[More]

I’d imagine this could be used to really great effect for Halloween. I wonder how well the effect works in person compared to seeing a picture?

Erasing all files from an ebook reader – Not a good thing to hear

by meshmar2

Yet Another Reminder That You Don’t Own Your Ebooks: B&N Nook Deletes Files, Blames User
[Via Techdirt]

Just as Barnes and Noble is updating the Nook, its ebook reader that hasn’t gotten much traction, comes reports that of an upset customer who found that the Nook deleted all of his files, and when he complained to B&N, the company basically told him it was his fault and there was nothing it could do. While B&N was able to restore the ebooks, it could not restore anything else, not from B&N, such as his own documents and notes:

I tried to turn my Nook on this morning and it wouldn’t turn on. Finally, it gave me a screen that said it was updating and that I needed to leave it be, so I did. When it had finished updating it had wiped all of the files off of my nook. When I reregister the device, the books from B&N will return, but everything, including documents not from B&N, has been deleted.

When I called technical support (1-800-THE-BOOK) to complain/make sure they were aware of the problem so that it wouldn’t happen to other people, I was informed that this can happen when the device hasn’t been updated in awhile. I asked if this was something they were trying to fix and I was blamed for the fact that everything had been wiped from my device because I had not been studiously updating the device. I asked if he understood how absurdly incompetent this was, my computer, after all, does not delete all my files because I don’t update it for awhile. I was informed that my computer updates everyday, whereas I have apparently not updated my nook in a terribly long unspecified length of time, which was just too long and too many updates for it to handle without deleting all my files.

Amazon got in a lot of hot water years ago for deleting copies of an ebook. You would think Barnes & Noble would know better than to do the same.

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Erasing all the files does not seem to be a good way to update a reader. One of the nicer things about tying an iPad to a computer is that it creates backups of the iPad, as well as remind about syncing.

Not as great a chance of losing everything. Just another instance of Apple having a better implementation of an idea.

Finding humor in the comments

Christine O’Donnell’s campaign manager offers $1,000 to anyone who can prove “separation of church & state” is in the Constitution
[Via Boing Boing]

Jonathan Moseley, a Virginia attorney serving as Christine O’Donnell’s campaign manager during the primary, offers a “$1,000 reward to anyone who can find the phrase ‘Separation of Church & State’ in the US Constitution.” (via Teresa Nielsen Hayden)

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Most times comments, particularly when dealing with political things, are a real waste of time. Not much intelligent thought. But Boing, Boing often has some real gems amongst the detritus so I do check.

And found this reply and request for their money:

Micah

But it’s right there in Article I, Sections 1 and 2:

Article. I.

Section. 1.

All legiSlativE Powers herein grAnted shall be vested in a CongRess of the United StATes, whIch shall cONsist OF a Senate and House of Representatives.

Section. 2.

The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members CHosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall have the QUalifications Requisite for EleCtors of tHe most numerous Branch of the State Legislature.

No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the Age of twenty five Years, AND been seven Years a Citizen of the United STATEs, and who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.

Answering a stupid request with an ingeniously stupid reply. The Constitution Code. Nice.

Macbook Air an early Christmas present?

by dan taylor

Apple’s hot selling 11-inch MacBook Air sees shipping times slip
[Via AppleInsider]

New orders of the $999 11.6-inch MacBook Air are now estimated to ship within 1 to 3 business days, suggesting demand for the entry-level version of Apple’s new thin-and-light notebook lineup has been greatest in the first week of sales.

[More]

I’ve had Macs since the original 128K. And in all those years I do not remember a laptop from Apple being so popular that its supplies were constrained.

But if these new Air laptops really will represent 17% of all Mac shipments this quarter, Apple had better find a way to produce enough of them.

I think the 11-inch will appeal to those who want an iPad’s light weight and responsiveness with a little more oomph for creating content. The iPad is wonderful in so many ways but it is not optimal – yet – for creating Keynote presentations, for example. A Macbook Air could be.

And I love this exchange in the comments:

Quote: Originally Posted by s4mb4 i ordered a 13″ Air from MacConnection on Tuesday and it is on my porch right now. Going to run home at lunch to grab it.
They left a MacBook Air on your porch and didn’t consider the possibility that it might get stolen?

…

Quote:Originally Posted by Joe hs They left a MacBook Air on your porch and didn’t consider the possibility that it might get stolen?
I’ve spent the last hour trying to figure out where he lives.