-
Written in the Stars: How Humans Pick Out Constellations
Around the world, people have long gazed up at the stars and found meaning in them. The Renaissance polymath Nicolaus Copernicus once wrote, “Of all things visible, the highest is the heaven of the fixed stars.” Five centuries later, Kalpana Chawla, the first Indian woman in space, said, “When you look at the stars and the galaxy, you feel that you are not just from one particular piece of land, but from the solar system.” What we see in these connect-the-dot patterns is due largely to cultural influences, but humans are pattern-seeking creatures by nature.
-
The Snuggle Is Real
Kacie Willis, a 34-year-old audio producer in Atlanta, suffers from panic attacks with no known cause. She’s tried cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), anti-anxiety medication, mindfulness meditation, and CBD oil. Although some of these have provided relief, one coping mechanism has consistently helped her manage her anxiety, particularly at night: Kasey Kangaroo, a stuffed animal she’s had since she was four years old. Willis can’t quite pinpoint why her stuffed kangaroo helps her anxiety, but it does. “Even if I’m not holding it at night when I sleep, it’s close enough for me to know it’s there.
-
What the New Science of Authenticity Says About Discovering Your True Self
After following a white rabbit down a hole in the ground and changing sizes several times, Alice finds herself wondering “Who in the world am I?” This scene, from Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland,” might resonate with you: In a world that’s constantly changing, it can be challenging to find your authentic self.
-
Why We’re All Forgetting Things Right Now
Grant Shields was teaching a college seminar to 24 students last week when his mind went blank. He’d forgotten the name of his teaching assistant. “I was embarrassed,” says Dr. Shields, who thought he heard students laugh when he said the wrong name, then struggled to recover. “I wish my memory was as good as it used to be.” Dr. Shields is 32 years old. He’s a memory researcher. And he was teaching a class on how stress affects cognition. Short, temporary instances of forgetfulness—those ‘senior moments’—are happening to more of us more often these days, memory experts say.
-
Monkeys Can Sense Their Own Heartbeat. That Could Be Good News for Psychiatry
You know when your own heart races—whether from a tarantula on your lap or a text message from a crush. And according to a new study, monkeys do, too. For the first time, scientists have found evidence of a nonhuman animal sensing its own heartbeat—a result that might help scientists study human emotions on a cellular level. The ability to sense our inner worlds—everything from a pounding heart to a full bladder—is known as interoception. Just as touch, taste, and smell help us encode sensory information about the outside world, our interoceptive senses alert us to what’s going on inside our bodies.
-
Do We Need Hugs to Be Happy? I Don’t.
Recently published reports in Discover and Psychology Today assert that hugs are essential for human happiness. According to Suzanne Deggs-White, a professor at Northern Illinois University who studies social relationships, our need to be hugged goes back to our earliest days in the primeval morass, and a nice warm hug releases bonding hormones that not only make us happy but help make us successful human beings. “When we can’t hug, we don’t get that jolt of good hormones,” the professor says.
