Category: ideas

“‘From an early age, humans seem to have genuine concern for the welfare of others,’ concludes a research team led by Robert Hepach … [He] and his colleagues argue that before they are socialized into selfishness, children are intrinsically motivated to help others – and not because they wish to ‘take credit’ for their beneficence.”

“In addition to providing significantly more precise 3-D images, it also allows for overgrowth to be taken out of the equation. What’s more, one can capture images of massive expanses in one fell swoop.”

“The association between horses and wealth was forged millennia ago. In fact, the first people known to celebrate hierarchies of power, whose inequalities of wealth were integral to their society and culture – the people you could call the first 1 percent – were the first people to ride horses.”

“Networked individualism is reshaping social interaction as we renegotiate the balance between the one and the many.”

“New research suggests this difficulty may reflect the way you process information–specifically, whether you zero in on the details or the big picture. It finds that, when it comes to comprehending “ambiguous, complex and abstract stimuli,” forest-focused folks are better than their tree-centric counterparts.”

“The research uncovered that the existing pleasure centers of the brain, which have been established science for decades, actually create desires, not pleasures. Researchers are looking into how the stimulation of the newly discovered hotspots of pleasure can be used to treat mental illness and addiction.”

“A new study suggests having your pet nearby – or even thinking about him or her – can boost confidence and reduce stress, along with its physical symptoms.” (Previous studies had established that already.) “But there’s a caveat: This dynamic only applies to owners who feel a loving connection to their feline or canine companion. If you think of Fluffy as a flea-infested nuisance, no benefits.”

“Confusionist: One who takes comfort or finds truth in the complex, the nuanced, the sloppy. Synonyms: Grayshader. Fenceposter. Betwixtee.”

“We might feel overwhelmed, occasionally or often, by all the stuff that is out there — by the trove of global knowledge so vast that it would seem to defy comprehensibility, let alone comprehension. In all that, however, we are in good company with humans of prior generations.”

“Manhattan’s compact geography, points out Pfahler, means many artistic projects begin with chance encounters. ‘No matter what neighbourhood it is, no matter what decade it is, if you walk down the street you’ll have a chance of running into someone you know.'”