Why the Word “Moist” Makes Your Skin Crawl Kate MacNamee Science & Medicine I used to find the word moist nauseating to hear and even worse to utter—I hate it for what seemed like no reason. When I started telling people how much I hated the word, I was surprised to find that others...
Lie Down on the Couch, Virtually Phillip Freeman Psychology, Society & Culture Who better than the psychoanalyst to appreciate the liberations and confinements of private, virtual worlds like Second Life? The pathos of simulations that inevitably evoke what these worlds cannot be?
Annoying Song Stuck in Your Head and Don’t Know Why? Here’s Your Answer Georgia Floridou Art & Literature, Arts & Culture, Ask Me Anything, Psychology, Science, Science & Medicine, Society & Culture Ever wondered why you can’t get a commercial jingle out of your head or why some songs are easier on your ears than others? Now you’ve got your answers. We opened the floor to our Hippo readers and in this, our second Ask Me Anything installment, a researcher on music, mind, and brain, Georgia Floridou, takes on your most pressing questions.
The Best “Smart” Beach Reads of 2014: Edition #1 Kaitlin Solimine Art & Literature, Arts & Culture, Psychology How to know what pages this summer make the sunscreen-slathered cut and which will stay on bookshelves? Hippo Reads is here to make recommendations for the smartest, and most engaging, summer reads in arts, literature, and psychology.
Pet or Predator? What Our Relationship to Animal Icons Says About Us Sarah LaBrie Psychology, Science, Science & Medicine Humankind’s relationship with the animal world has always been fraught with conflict. Enter Blackfish: 2013’s breakout Sundance documentary that tells the story of the 2010 death of Sea World trainer Dawn Brancheau. Blackfish and the ensuing controversy have opened up a necessary conversation about the ethics of using animals as entertainment.
Altruism: Are Humans Inherently Altruistic? Kaitlin Solimine Psychology, Society & Culture The tragic bombings at the Boston Marathon happened live. As cell towers struggled with traffic and calls couldn’t get through, the conversation moved to Facebook, Twitter, Google. Beyond the heroism of...
Philanthropy: Selfless or Tax-Incentivized? Hui Wen Chan Government, Psychology It’s unlikely you are feeling charitable today, especially since taxes are due soon. 2013 marks the 100th anniversary of the federal income tax—and with it, the complex and contentious relationship between...
