We drink a lot of coffee in the office, so imagine my surprise when I read researchers have found that
people who held a cup of hot coffee for 10 to 25 seconds warmed to a perfect stranger. Holding a cup of iced coffee had the opposite effect . . . .The study, to be published today in the journal Science, is the latest to show how physical properties such as distance or temperature can unconsciously influence emotional reactions. In a previous experiment, for example, people who were asked to plot remote points on a graph expressed distant feelings about relatives afterward.
“Our mental processes are not separate and detached from the body,” said John A. Bargh, a Yale University psychologist and co-author of the current study . . . .
But when it comes to personal relationships, researchers said, a hot beverage can’t always overcome awkward habits and distasteful traits.
“If I had a nice, warm cup of coffee with Adolf Hitler, I’m still not going to like him,” Bargh said.
Now there’s some good news. We can continue drinking coffee and disliking Hitler.
You have a decision to make: double or nothing.
For this week only, a generous supporter has offered to fully match all new and increased donations to First Things up to $60,000.
In other words, your gift of $50 unlocks $100 for First Things, your gift of $100 unlocks $200, and so on, up to a total of $120,000. But if you don’t give, nothing.
So what will it be, dear reader: double, or nothing?
Make your year-end gift go twice as far for First Things by giving now.
