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It has long been known that maternal depression may affect infant development. Studies have shown that children of depressed parents are at an increased risk of developing depression themselves. It has also been […]

Photo by Pete Souza via obamawhitehouse.archive.gov
As the current president grinds his ax on Twitter, the former one reads and reflects. Yesterday, Barack Obama posted on Facebook his summer reading list, a mix […]

by Dr. Robert G. Silverman
If you were to gather a soccer player, a powerlifter, a rower, an 800-meter sprinter, and a tennis player in a room, there would be more differences among them than just their sports. […]

We are surrounded by the message to “live in the moment.” But sometimes, the moment just seems too hard to manage. Our breath shortens and muscles tighten, and all we want to do is break free from the pre […]

The Byzantine Empire fell in the mid-15th century, but something of its spirit still lives on. A great deal of it lives on in the work of the French illustrator Antoine Helbert. “This passion was kindled by a […]

Elementary students are more likely to eat a nutritious school breakfast when given just 10 extra minutes in the cafeteria, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Agricultural […]

“R-E-S-P-E-C-T…” You know the rest.
When R&B legend Otis Redding, who wrote and first recorded “Respect,” heard Aretha Franklin’s version of the song, he reportedly said, “well, I guess it’s that gir […]


Mania has an odd place in our society. For people who have not experienced it, it’s seen has as exciting, productive, and desirable. For those of us who have been consumed by it, we are either thankful it isn […]

We here at Open Culture take great pleasure in soup to nuts documentaries of master craftspeople at work, particularly when the narration has been left out deliberately.
The meditative effect is more […]

A new study reveals that 1 in 15 Americans (6.5 percent) over the age of 40 experiences phantom odors — smells that aren’t actually there.
As we age, our ability to identify odors tends to decrease. Phantom odor […]

Toddlers whose mothers experienced interpersonal violence during pregnancy are more likely to exhibit aggression and defiance toward their mothers, according to a new study.
While it is well-known that pregnant […]

It’s a sweet idea, isn’t it? — The idea that there is someone out there who is a perfect match; who understands you completely, totally accepts you for who you are, is emotionally stable and sexually excit […]

Back in 2015, a survey conducted by Microsoft showed that people in this digital age have a shrinking attention span. In fact, sources like Time magazine claim we have the attention span of a goldfish. What a […]

Humans are highly prone to overestimating the likelihood of rare events, such as shark attacks or winning the lottery. This tendency is known as “availability bias,” the inclination to judge the frequency of an e […]

Elevated levels of a metabolite of the banned insecticide DDT in the blood of pregnant women have been linked to an increased risk for autism in children, according to new research.
The study of more than 1 […]

“We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.” – Epictetus
When we hear the word “generosity,” we may think about donating money and helping the needy. While these can be expres […]

August is a popular time for many of us to take vacations. That’s what summer is all about, right? Many of us look forward to this summer vacation time all year. But what if you have obsessive-compulsive d […]

There is more abundant and accessible stress reduction available to us if we direct our attention away from the “big ticket” relaxation events (the cruises, spas, and anniversary indulgences) and become cur […]

A new study has uncovered why some people who have brain markers of Alzheimer’s never develop dementia.
Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia, affects more than 5 million Americans. People suf […]

Behavioral scientists have known that social dominance depends at least partly on one’s ability to make decisions faster than other people.
This skill would allow the individual to act first in social s […]