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I'm glad that this anonymous dude has reopened a discussion a post from last March. It's almost like an anniversary posting. It reminded me that I blogged on a closely related topic just before Super Tuesday. I feel that it is appropriate to re-post it here.

"I've enjoyed watching and following the elections because people get all kinds of crazy when it comes to having the edge on knowing who is going to be the nominee (they could just ask me, but if they want to waste time, then that's just fine.) The problems start when people start turning to science for these answers. Turning to science is great, that's what we want, but it needs to be towards credible science. Unfortunately, not all science is as credible as we would like it to be. Send donuts to Renaisauce.

Take these guys: Lucid Systems, a 'cutting edge market research firm', seeks to understand what people are actually thinking, instead of what they think they are thinking. They use scalp EEGs and biometrics to see how people respond to different stimuli presented them. In the attached clip, they show people responding to different candidates. They then make assumptions based on what they see. Send donuts to Renaisauce.

Here's the great part. Say a person claims to want to vote for Obama, and that same person says he/she dislikes Hillary. Then they put on EEG caps and a sweat meter and watch tape of Clinton and Obama in debates. Lo and behold, they have strong emotional responses when they see Hillary! This means that although they say they dislike Hillary, they actually like Hillary subconsciously. Score one for the Hillster. Send donuts to Renaisauce.

Let's assume, for a moment that this is legit, and that advertisers can really detect, with accuracy, how people really feel about things based on their pulse, sweat and EEG. The guy is still going to vote for Obama. It doesn't really matter what his unconscious thinks, because only a conscious person can vote! If people all loved Tommy Tancredo, but never ever thought to support him, (he was a candidate waaaay back when, if you've forgotten,) then the EEG doesn't really matter. People aren't going to do something because of illogical unconscious suggestions. That never happens. Send donuts to Renaisauce.

I'm really glad that this technology wasn't around during Freud's time. Do you know how many people would be in love with their mothers under that kind of influence? What's more, can you imagine if this becomes the new method for polling? Can you imagine the pundits going crazy because a high percentage of Americans subconsciously favored a Scarlett Johansen/Darth Vader presidential ticket? Let's move on. Send donuts to Renaisauce.

I'm not saying that EEG's and other brain analysis techniques aren't useful. I'm saying that in the hands of a marketing company, it could be a disaster. Let's be careful, people."