We pulled together some of the most interesting articles we’ve read recently – and included the quotes that got us talking the most.

Your Brain’s Music Circuit has Been Discovered
Source: Nautilus
Former DJ and current professor of Brain and Cognitive Sciences at MIT Josh McDermott made a recent discovery with fellow MIT professors that proves just how important music is to humans. According to their study, there is a specific neural pathway in our brains that is activated by music and music alone. This discovery was found by comparing the brain’s reaction to common sounds (a dog barking, a man speaking, a car driving, etc.) to the brain’s reaction to music. When the music played, a much more specific set of neurons lit up. Whether music-selective neurons serve an evolutionary purpose or not, this study shows just how much music can effect us. Anyone ready to predict a resurgence in the commercial jingle?

Millennials are Bringing Email Back into Style
Source: AdWeek
According to a study conducted by global marketing company Epsilon, email isn’t dead quite yet. In fact, Millennials, more so than any other generation, are checking their inboxes to see what retailers have to offer. If you think about it, this kind of makes sense. Millennials, especially the older ones, cannot rely on Snapchat and Instagram forever, because let’s be honest, they both have the potential to die as quickly as MySpace. Email isn’t the only old-school shopping method Millennials are keeping alive. Forty-seven percent of them have used printable coupons in the past six months, and in the same time period, 53% of them used daily deal offers. It’ll be interesting to see if the younger generation, Generation Z, will follow in similar footsteps and keep these old methods alive even longer.

This Hilariously Genius Chrome Extension Makes You Keep Working
Source: PSFK
If we’re being honest, sometimes it’s just impossible to stay focused at work when you have Facebook, online shopping, or the Full Contact blog at your fingertips. Your quick newsfeed check turns into a 20-minute distraction that just sucks away from your time dedicated to working. That’s where new Google Chrome extension, “Go F***ing Work” comes in. This extension allows you to add your websites of choice to its blacklist. When you try and go to that website, a playful message like “What the f***? Go to work.” or “You’re dying soon. Work.” will pop up and motivate you to focus. It even notices if you’re trying to get around its functionality by calling you out for refreshing the page. Don’t worry; the extension won’t take over your computer forever. You have the ability to take the websites off the blacklist after a certain hour or even if you just simply can’t take the block any longer. Time to get rid of my cheesy, motivational desktop background and give this extension a try.