We have a moral duty to allow others to make ‘transformative choices’ such as changing careers, migrating and having children, a new study argues. This duty can be outweighed by competing moral considerations such as preventing murder but in many cases we should interfere with far greater caution. If you’ve told an adult friend or...
Edgar Allan Poe, who would have turned 214 years old on Jan. 19, 2023, remains one of the world’s most recognizable and popular literary figures. His face – with its sunken eyes, enormous forehead and disheveled black hair – adorns tote bags, coffee mugs, T-shirts and lunch boxes. He appears as a meme, either sporting a popped collar and aviator...
As a religion professor, I’ve come to know many students from other countries who identify as Christian. I realized they were puzzled at some of the things Americans often bundled into their faith – things these international Christians didn’t consider relevant to their own religious identity. One issue in particular sparked a question from a...
Do you think that creativity is an innate gift? Think again. Many people believe that creative thinking is difficult – that the ability to come up with ideas in novel and interesting ways graces only some talented individuals and not most others. The media often portrays creatives as those with quirky personalities and unique talent....
With the world’s population topping 8 billion last year, it’s clear that humans have achieved a unique status in Earth’s history. We are the only creature that dominate all other organisms on the planet, from animals and fungi to plants and microbes. It remains to be seen whether humans can retain this dominance as we...
We have all endured a global pandemic. There are coughs and colds everywhere. Bills are mounting. It is safe to say we are all exhausted – but when does tiredness tip into burnout? An expert in mental health and mood disorders has been studying the phenomenon of burnout closely for several years. The extensive research...
Whether it’s on television or in a movie, we love the villain. No matter how egotistical, power hungry or greedy the person is, many of us are still attracted to their dark side—in part because we suspect some may have a redeeming quality. In fact, according to a new University of Michigan study, both adults...
A new study published in the CABI journal Human-Animal Interactions has cast more light on the species of nonhuman animals that we see as ‘friends,’ ‘food,’ and those ‘worth fighting for.’ The research attempted to assess people’s social perceptions about various nonhuman animals including ‘food animals’ which have often been classified as being less sentient and historically...
At work, mindfulness, ’present-moment awareness’, benefits not only the individual but the whole work community, comes up in Laura Urrila’s doctoral dissertation in human resource management. When an individual participates in mindfulness training, the implications spill over to the wider work community. – Leaders who practise mindfulness are more present, give others space, seek to...
To reduce racial inequality in the U.S. criminal justice system, local, state, and federal government should explore ways to reduce police stops and searches, jail detention, prison admission, and long sentences, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The report recommends governments explore coordinated policy reforms across each stage of the...
