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Fighting the Fear of Public Speaking
The Wall Street Journal: Everyone is afraid of something. Spiders, heights, angry bees. But while spiders and bees can make a picnic challenging, they usually don’t get in the way of doing a job. Unfortunately, my fear is public speaking. At one point, my phobia got so bad that when I gave presentations, my right eye would twitch. Not only would I get nervous about my talk, but I would also stress about the possibility of the eye-twitch emerging, which made it hard to actually present my information. (Try reading notes through an eyeball that has a mind of its own.) The stressing, of course, just made the twitch inevitable. It was a vicious circle. Read more: The Wall Street Journal
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The ultimate brain-boosting evening
Men's Health UK: The area of your brain responsible for memory formation is the hippocampus – and the bigger yours the better. Researchers from the University of Illinois and the University of Pittsburgh recently discovered a strong correlation between physical fitness and hippocampus size. "If you want to keep your memory and the rest of your mental skills in shape, you need to feed your brain through regular exercise," says Tony Buzan, inventor of Mind Mapping and author of over 100 books on the brain. Read more: Men's Health UK
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Trying Out New Identities Key to Video Games’ Appeal: Study
U.S. News & World Report: One reason why people worldwide spend 3 billion hours per week playing video games may be because the games allow them to "try on" characteristics they might like to have, a new study suggests. The research included hundreds of casual game players and nearly a thousand dedicated players who were asked about their motivation for playing, as well as their post-game emotions. The British researchers found that players' enjoyment seemed to be greater when there was an overlap between their actual self and their "ideal" self. That meant that being able to adopt a new identity during a game made players feel better about themselves and less negative. Read more: U.S.
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Social Class as Culture
Social class is more than just how much money you have. It’s also the clothes you wear, the music you like, the school you go to—and has a strong influence on how you interact with others, according to the authors of a new article in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. People from lower classes have fundamentally different ways of thinking about the world than people in upper classes—a fact that should figure into debates on public policy, according to the authors.
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Oxytocin: Not Just the “Cuddle Chemical”
SELF Magazine: Feeling all warm and fuzzy? Chalk it up to oxytocin, the touchy-feely hormone that enables mothers to bond with their babies (thus the nickname the "cuddle chemical"). Oxytocin fluctuates throughout our lives--during and after childbirth, as well as when you're sexually aroused or reach the big O. But this feel-good chemical may have a surprising dark side, according to research published in the August issue of the journal Current Directions in Psychological Science. Rather than oxytocin making them feel like they were in the "trust tree" singing "Kumbaya," study subjects given the chemical before playing a game of chance exhibited more gloating and envy of their opponents.
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Pets may not contribute to better health: researcher
The Globe and Mail: You get home after a rough day -- its high point being laid off, getting dumped or finding out your mom's in the hospital -- and Old Yeller charges over, panting with glee at your arrival. Instantly, your face breaks into a smile and the day's worries subside. This could be a PSA that suggests pets equal a longer, happier life, no? Read more: