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Cognitive neuroscience

soccer team carrying the goalposts

Why your brain never runs out of problems to find

Science

Why do many problems in life seem to stubbornly stick around, no matter how hard people work to fix them? It turns out that a quirk in the way human brains process information means that when something becomes rare, we sometimes see it in more places than ever.

Neuronal activity

Research suggests a new reason for teens’ risky behavior

Science
Why we laugh

Why we: a) laugh b) love TV c) have nightmares

Science
Actress Julianne Moore arrives at the 2015 Canadian Screen Awards in Toronto on March 1, 2015. Her portrayal of Alzheimer's in the film "Still Alice" helped spotlight the effects of the disease on women.

Why do so many more women have Alzheimer’s than men?

Health
A Haitian child who will be placed for adoption sleeps in his crib at an orphanage outside of Port-au-Prince.

There may be languages lurking in your unconscious mind

Science
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Boys don’t do as well as girls in school – video games can help

Global Politics

Researcher says incorporating things that appeal to boys, like video games, will re-engage them in learning.

Is Empathy Inherited or Taught? Listeners Respond

Is empathy inherited? Is it taught? Dr. Perri Klass shared her thoughts and recent findings with the Takeaway and  listeners are sharing their opinions. Caroline from Detroit says:   “I think empathy comes more naturally to kids and we have to be retaught it as we get older.” Bruce from the Florida Keys agrees:   “Empathy like sociopathy […]

The World

Podcast: Finally, Proof that Fiction is Good for You

The World in Words

In this week’s World in Words podcast, researchers test the supposed link between reading fiction and empathy.

Consciousness, Poetry, and Bilingual Babies

The World in Words

In this week's World in Words podcast, we take a trip inside the mind. Rhitu Chatterjee takes us through some of the recent research into the bilingual brain. Also, theoretical psychologist Nicholas Humphrey gives us his take on consciousness, and why language may be only a small part of it. Then we consider poetry, which […]

The World

Science Note

Racial biases may affect how much empathy one person has for another.

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