[janjan]

> That said, what really interests me is the mechanisms behind addictions. Why do smokers smoke, knowing full well by now that it will kill them earlier than non-smokers? Why stuff obese people themselves, knowing full well that it will cause serious health issues down the line.

Let's take this one step further: Is the reason/mechanism a smoker smokes the same why I browse reddit and HN all day instead of working on my PhD?

[eru]

Probably not completely the same. There's a variable reward schedule behind browsing HN (and that can be addictive). Smoking seems to give a different `reward'.