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Survival’s Ick Factor
The New York Times: Disgust is the Cinderella of emotions. While fear, sadness and anger, its nasty, flashy sisters, have drawn the rapt attention of psychologists, poor disgust has been hidden away in a corner, left to muck around in the ashes. No longer. Disgust is having its moment in the light as researchers find that it does more than cause that sick feeling in the stomach. It protects human beings from disease and parasites, and affects almost every aspect of human relations, from romance to politics. In several new books and a steady stream of research papers, scientists are exploring the evolution of disgust and its role in attitudes toward food, sexuality and other people.
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We’re Sorry: Not All Apologies Are Apologies
Miller-McCune: Variations on “I’m sorry” are playing an increasingly prominent part in our public and private discourse, with figures as diverse as Charlie Sheen and the CEO of BP making widely circulated statements of remorse. In an era of truth commissions, demands for redress of historical grievances, and humiliating revelations of personal indiscretions, apologizing has evolved into a nuanced ritual, one that has attracted the interest of researchers from a variety of disciplines. Some studies provide insights into the effectiveness of apologies and explore the fine line between expressing regret and taking responsibility.
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Lifelong Learning: Times Ideas and Resources for Keeping Your Brain Sharp
The New York Times: A much-e-mailed article in the most recent issue of Education Life looks at research on why and how challenging the brain — whether via reading, getting a college degree, attending lectures, writing or doing puzzles — can keep one’s mind sharp for a lifetime: …one essential element of mental fitness has already been identified. “Education seems to be an elixir that can bring us a healthy body and mind throughout adulthood and even a longer life,” says Margie E. Lachman, a psychologist at Brandeis University who specializes in aging.
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Mothers who nurture, not spoil children, raise healthier adults
Examiner: In Utah County, it's hard to go anywhere without seeing an expectant mother. Utah women top all other states in fertility with an average of 2.6 children per woman, according to the most recent U.S. Census Bureau. Mothers deserve tribute for the many skinned knees they treated on the playground, the countless sporting and extracurricular events they cheered at for their children and the countless hours spent caring for sick children. Now scientists, who published their research in the journal Psychological Science, January 23, 2012, assert that all that nurturing by your mother may have contributed to better health as an adult.
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Notre carte intérieure est orientée vers le nord
Yahoo France: Les géographes occidentaux ont finalement bien raison d'orienter leur carte routière ou touristique en faisant correspondre le haut de ces cartes avec le nord. En tout cas, ce choix s'est ancré dans notre cerveau, au point de nous permettre de ne pas nous perdre, comme l'a constaté une équipe allemande de l'Institut Max-Planck de Tübingen dans la revue Psychological Science mise en ligne le 29 décembre. Read the whole story: Yahoo France
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Decisions: We’re maxed out say Montreal researchers
The Montreal Gazette: One has to wonder whether Liberal MP Justin Trudeau might have been suffering from a bout of decision fatigue when he launched an s-bomb on Environment Minister Peter Kent during Question Period in mid-December. Parliament was in its final days of a five-week session and Trudeau had recently been under attack for his views on abortion and the long-gun registry. The mental work of parliamentarians can wear them down, leading to slip-ups in self-control. It's a form of mental distress recently labeled by psychologists as decision fatigue.
