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Psychology

This shows a representation of an open world video game with an NPC and a mountain.

·December 18, 2024·4 min read

Open-World Video Games Boost Relaxation and Mental Well-Being

Open-world video games can significantly improve relaxation and mental health, especially for postgraduate students. These games, offering expansive environments and player autonomy, provide a form of cognitive escapism that helps reduce stress and enhance mood.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology Visual Neuroscience

·December 18, 2024·5 min read

Study Ties Visual Errors to Paranoid Beliefs

A new study suggests complex beliefs like paranoia may have roots in visual misperception. Participants prone to paranoia or teleological thinking were more likely to wrongly identify one moving dot as chasing another in a visual task.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·December 17, 2024·5 min read

Teen Brain’s Blunted Reward Response Predicts Depression Onset

A new study reveals that a reduced neural response to rewards in teens predicts the first onset of depression, but not anxiety or suicidality. Researchers used EEG scans to measure "reward positivity" in at-risk adolescents and found that those with blunted responses were more likely to develop depression.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·December 17, 2024·6 min read

Ketamine Reduces “Giving Up” by Targeting Brain Support Cells

Researchers have found that ketamine’s antidepressant effects target astroglia, a type of brain support cell, rather than neurons, challenging conventional views. Using zebrafish, scientists observed that ketamine suppressed the “giving up” behavior caused by futility signals, an effect linked to astroglial activation.

This shows a person and a digital brain.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·December 17, 2024·3 min read

AI Tweaks Personality Tests to Appear More Likable

Large language models (LLMs) can identify when they are being given personality tests and adjust their responses to appear more socially desirable. Researchers found that LLMs, like GPT-4, showed exaggerated traits such as reduced neuroticism and increased extraversion when asked multiple test questions.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology Visual Neuroscience

·December 17, 2024·4 min read

Being Watched Changes How Your Brain Processes Faces

A new study shows that knowing you're under surveillance triggers a faster, automatic brain response to detect faces and gaze direction. Researchers found that participants monitored via CCTV became hyper-aware of facial stimuli nearly a second faster than those not being watched, even without realizing it.

Featured Genetics Neuroscience Psychology

·December 16, 2024·5 min read

Twin Dynamics: How Developmental Differences Shape Dominance Roles

A new study reveals that developmental differences strongly influence dominance roles in twin relationships, with typically developing twins perceived as dominant over their nontypically developing siblings. This dominance imbalance persists throughout childhood, even if developmental challenges improve.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·December 16, 2024·3 min read

Dopamine Plays Key Role in the Heart’s Stress Response

Researchers have discovered how stress-induced cardiovascular changes are controlled by the brain. Experiments in rats show that activating the lateral habenula, a stress-sensitive brain region, triggers changes in heart rate and blood pressure.

This shows the bone fragments discovered.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·December 16, 2024·4 min read

Human Remains Reveal Violence and Cannibalism in Bronze Age Britain

Archaeologists studying the Charterhouse Warren site in England found evidence of a massacre, where at least 37 individuals were butchered, likely partly consumed, and dehumanized by their enemies. Analysis of over 3,000 bone fragments revealed blunt force trauma and cut marks, indicating intentional violence rather than ritualistic funerary practices.

This shows people climbing a mountain while another looks on.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·December 15, 2024·4 min read

Positive Attitude Boosts Passion and Determination

New research links a positive attitude, or "growth mindset," to higher levels of passion and determination. A study of over 1,500 participants aged 13 to 77 found that those with the most positive outlook had significantly greater willpower and enthusiasm than those with a negative mindset.

This shows a brain, shopping carts, and bags.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·December 15, 2024·7 min read

Why We Buy What We Buy: The Neuroscience of Shopping

New research in neuroeconomics explores the brain processes behind shopping decisions, revealing how factors like brand recognition, pricing, and online versus in-person experiences influence purchases. The ventral striatum, a brain region linked to reward, evaluates products even without active decision-making.

Featured Neuroscience Psychology

·December 14, 2024·5 min read

Moms Carry 71% of the Mental Load

New research shows that mothers take on 71% of household mental load tasks, including planning, scheduling, and organizing, while fathers manage just 45%. This imbalance often leads to stress, burnout, and strain on women’s careers and relationships.

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Psychology

Open-World Video Games Boost Relaxation and Mental Well-Being

Study Ties Visual Errors to Paranoid Beliefs

Teen Brain’s Blunted Reward Response Predicts Depression Onset

Ketamine Reduces “Giving Up” by Targeting Brain Support Cells

AI Tweaks Personality Tests to Appear More Likable

Being Watched Changes How Your Brain Processes Faces

Twin Dynamics: How Developmental Differences Shape Dominance Roles

Dopamine Plays Key Role in the Heart’s Stress Response

Human Remains Reveal Violence and Cannibalism in Bronze Age Britain

Positive Attitude Boosts Passion and Determination

Why We Buy What We Buy: The Neuroscience of Shopping

Moms Carry 71% of the Mental Load

AI Body Gap: Why Robots Need “Internal Feelings” to be Safe

Wetware AI: Living Brain Cells Trained to Run Chaos Math

Mapping the Brain’s Internal Stopwatch

Individual Cone Cells Create Our Sharpest Sight

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