Measuring Cool

The latest issue of wired has an article with a catchy title, If You Secretly Like Michael Bolton, We'll Know. The article is about using fMRI to measure "coolness" at the subconscious level. It's a very witty informative read from beginning to end, which ends in the classic problem between objectivity and subjectivity.

An fMRI scan features all the excitement of an afternoon nap - except that it's noisy and you aren't allowed to move. First my head is packed into a spongy wedge, then further braced with earmuffs and a hockey mask. In the tube, amid a raucous buzzing, images begin flashing across the overhead display. Because the reactions Quartz is recording are subconscious, there's nothing to do but lie back and watch the parade. It's a rather boring one: a procession of loafers, office chairs, toasters, and washer-driers, interspersed with different kinds of bottled water and celebrities like Eminem, Madonna, and the guy who played Newman on Seinfeld.