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The Unexpected Charm of Facebook Memories
New York Magazine: Recently, Facebook resurfaced an old photo of mine, taken in 2009. Really, it is an unremarkable photo, just me and three friends sitting around playing video games. And yet I couldn’t stop looking at it: my friend’s old apartment, another friend’s old haircut, the Asics in which I ran my first half-marathon. Every boring detail in this ostensibly boring photo was captivating. ...
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The Best Day to Start a Goal
The Huffington Post: Setting goals is important. And starting them is a pretty big deal. Why? It marks the beginning of change. When you take action for what you want personally or professionally. We all know how tough it can be to follow through on your goals. So knowing how to effectively start pursuing them can help, right? New research published in the journal Psychological Science has found a piece of advice for those wanting to start a new goal off right. These researchers found that when you start can give you more motivation to start your goals. Read the whole story: The Huffington Post
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The science behind why people fear refugees
Vox: Fear in the wake of a terrorist attack is normal. It’s natural and human. But it can also be counterproductive — and even cruel. After the attacks in Paris last week, the gut reaction of many politicians around the world was to shut the door to Syrian refugees for fear that terrorists may be lurking among them. For those like New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie or House Speaker Paul Ryan, the "better safe than sorry" approach is winning out. Christie insisted he wouldn't want even a 5-year-old orphan refugee to enter his state. ... The reaction over refugees looks more comprehensible in the context of years of psychological work on conflict and emotion.
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How to Be a Better Decision Maker
Real Simple: Why is decision-making so agonizing? There’s an explosion of options in all areas of modern life—careers, wireless plans, shampoo. So we’re overwhelmed by choice? Definitely. Also, people don’t really know what they want. How can we narrow things down? By focusing on only the factors that are most important to us. You talk about two types of decision-makers: “maximizers” and “satisficers.” Yes. A maximizer looks at every possible choice to determine the strongest contender. A satisficer goes with “good enough.” We found that satisficers are happier with their choices. They also have more free time, since they’re not laboring over the alternatives.
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Having Kids Can Make Parents Less Empathetic
The Atlantic: Throughout my wife’s pregnancy, it seemed like everyone who already had kids was eager to tell us about the changes parenting would bring to our lives. Some were mundane but a little scary (losing the opportunity to shower every day), others profound and hopeful (a powerful new sense of purpose). At any rate, most of them were right—just a few weeks into her life, our daughter has already changed me in many ways. Some new experiences seem par for the course—feeling less annoyed by crying kids on planes, embarrassingly tearing up to dad-themed commercials—but other changes have surprised me. I’ve grown more suspicious of strangers, for example.
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Men eat more pizza when trying to impress women, study suggests
Los Angeles Times: Of all of the ways men try to impress the ladies, from big wallets to big muscles, here is one that has finally been quantified by science. In a woman’s presence, men eat 93% more pizza, according to researchers at Cornell University. ... They found that not only did men eat 93% more pizza (1.44 more slices) when dining with a female than when with another man, but they also ate 86% more salad. “These findings suggest that men tend to overeat to show off,” said Kevin Kniffin, visiting assistant professor and lead author of the study. “Instead of a feat of strength, it’s a feat of eating.” The study was published Nov. 10 in the journal Evolutionary Psychological Science.