Evidence comes that the polar oceans, once thought to be relatively barren, are teeming with an “astonishing richness of marine life.” Many thousands of species found to be living in the water at each pole include many that have never … Continue reading →
Wendy Hill, a psychology professor at Lafayette College, is interested in kissing—the science of it, that is. Her research found that kissing (of the romantic variety) has a measurable effect on certain hormones: [Hill’s team] found that kissing reduced the … Continue reading →
It’s not been a real good week for The Lancet, the well-known medical journal based in London and New York. Remember the famous Iraq casualty study, researched by one Gilbert Burnham of Johns Hopkins, and published in Lancet’s pages back … Continue reading →
We sometimes speak of having a “good cry,” reflecting the common assumption that crying when upset can lead to a release of tension and make us feel better. This NY Times article reports on research that indicates that this is … Continue reading →
Long-term psychotherapy, especially of the Freudian type, has gone out of style. Perhaps that’s because we’ve become more impatient these days. Or perhaps it’s due to the fact that psychotherapy seems more an art than a science, and an expensive … Continue reading →
This article mentions that the world has passed an important milestone: more than half its population lives in cities. That means that city life is having a greater and greater effect on our culture, bodies, and psyches. So there’s reason … Continue reading →
I’m rather fond of dogs. But I can’t quite imagine cloning a beloved pet to the tune of $155,000. Some people can, though. And not only can they imagine it, but they’ve paid to have it done. Is this the … Continue reading →
It’s that time again—time for revision of the DSM, the diagnostic bible of therapy. This will be the fifth edition, and although it won’t be out for three more years, the controversies and jockeying for position are intense. For those … Continue reading →
This is fascinating news: the classic “Obedience to Authority” experiments of Stanley Milgram, one of the most famous and influential pieces of research in the annals of psychology, have more or less been duplicated. If you’re unfamiliar with the Milgram … Continue reading →
Gerard Vanderleun provided the following US weather map yesterday. If you study it, you’ll see it was much colder than usual in the entire country: It’s easy to quip that this puts the lie to global warming. It doesn’t quite … Continue reading →
This is interesting. And here’s something related. It’s from a year ago, when a number of previously convinced scientists were having doubts about the proof that global warming is generated by human activity. That number seems to have increased since—and … Continue reading →
Want to photograph snowflakes? The approach of winter makes it seem an attractive proposition. If so—and if you can follow these incredibly complex instructions—no doubt you’ll be rewarded with some wonderful photos. And if you can, no doubt you are … Continue reading →