reading becomes us

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In what Geoff Kaufman and Lisa Libby term "experience-taking," it turns out that reading about characters can actually influence us to become more like them.  The effects actually seem to persist and even influence some real-world behavior.  There are as many questions raised as answered by these findings, but it's intriguing to consider.

http://io9.com/psychology/

So we become what we read.  Sounds an awful lot like the old adage "you are what you eat." (If so, I am comprised of much more kale than you might suspect just looking at me.)

More fun links on this phenomenon:

http://jezebel.com/character/

http://www.sunstoneonline.com/tag/reading

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