FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Cindy Deppe, media relations, 641-269-4834

February 12, 2008

EXPERIMENTAL PSYCHOLOGIST TO ANSWER RIDDLE:

“What Weighs More—A Pound of Feathers or a Pound of Lead?”

ROBERTS LECTURER AT GRINNELL COLLEGE

GRINNELL, IA.— Experimental psychologist Jeff Wagman will present the annual Roberts Lecture and consider the classic riddle, “What Weighs More—A Pound of Feathers or a Pound of Lead?” at Grinnell College on Fri., Feb. 22 at noon in ARH 302.

Wagman, who is assistant professor of psychology at Illinois State University, will discuss why human senses sometimes cause misjudgment of reality. His research explores how the mind and body interact to negotiate deceivingly simple tasks such as walking across a crowded room or catching a ball. Wagman, who earned a doctorate in experimental psychology at the University of Connecticut, has published in the fields of sensation and perception, and how perception changes with the environment, experience, or human capability.

Wagman’s presentation is the college’s annual Roberts Lecture established in 1968 to bring visiting scholars to campus to speak on “topics of scientific research, literary work, influence on student character or other outstanding achievements.”

Alumni Recitation Hall (ARH) is located at the corner of 8th Ave. and Park St. on the Grinnell College campus.

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