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The brain is behavior.
What is this thing called love? I took my own stab at understanding the neurobiological circuits underlying love and sex with my own book, DIRTY MINDS: HOW OUR BRAINS INFLUENCE LOVE, SEX AND RELATIONSHIPS. But now, Emory University's Larry Young, arguably one of the most prolific researchers in ...
When my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, I started to worry. The diagnosis itself was scary enough. But I must admit, I was also not looking forward to dealing with the healthcare bureaucracy--because, as anyone who has had to deal with a serious health issue knows, one bad apple in that ...
Thanks to the hilarious and provocative Rob Reiner film, When Harry Met Sally, there is one debate that still gets even the most reticent people taking a stand. And, that, of course, is whether men and women can really be friends (y'know, of the strictly platonic variety). In the film, Billy ...
William Souder's 2004 biography of John James Audobon, Under a Wild Sky , was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. His newest book, On a Farther Shore , chronicles the life and times of Rachel Carson, author of the controversial book Silent Spring -- a tome that many consider to be the Bible of the ...
Several years ago, a SUNY Albany study linked unprotected sex with elevated mood in college-aged women. The researchers surveyed nearly 300 female students about both their sexual practices and their mood. The results were striking -- women who reported engaging regularly in oral sex or ...
For centuries, great thinkers from philosopher John Locke to scientist Stephen Pinker have debated whether or not humans are born with innate traits like morality and empathy. Some go with the idea of tabula rasa, believing that infants are blank slates waiting to be written on by parents, society ...
My eighth grade art teacher was the first to introduce me to the concept of "right-brain thinking." He brought his copy of DRAWING FROM THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE BRAIN (at that time a new bestseller poised to change the face of education) into the classroom to share with us. And he used the ideas ...
Jesse Bering is the author of the new book, "Why is the Penis Shaped Like that?: And Other Reflections on Being Human." He is well known in my circles as someone willing to answer any question posed to him, no matter how private or unusual. Here, Bering tells me about how human sexuality is ...
Like most people, I've been thinking a lot about the shootings in Aurora, Colorado. And over the past week, I've seen the tragedy dissected in all manner of ways. I've seen Mommy Bloggers eviscerate (and defend) some of the victims for bringing young children to see a violent film. I've heard ...
I've been thinking a lot this week about assumptions. Especially when it comes to trying to study bold, complicated and human constructs like love, empathy and creativity in the brain. It started a few weeks ago. I was talking with a neuroscientist about various brain states linked to the ...
One of the most common questions I'm asked when I give lectures is how the brain differentiates love and lust. It's an interesting question -- and as most of us have confused love and lust a time or two (or sixteen), it's an important one. After all, how many of us have been burned by confusing ...
In the past year, there have been a few studies that suggest that volunteer work is as healthy for the aging body and brain as exercise and the right diet. In that spirit, I spoke with Ken Budd, executive editor of AARP, the Magazine, and author of the new book, The Voluntourist: A Six-Country Tale ...
Forgive me, but this is not a post about neuroscience. Rather, this is a post about conservation and loss. Today, the Charles Darwin Research Station in the Galapagos Islands confirmed that Lonesome George, the last living Chelonoidis nigra abingdoni, a subspecies of land tortoise, passed away ...
Millions of people log on to Lumosity daily to flex their brain muscles--and hopefully improve memory, attention and general cognitive performance in the process. But this brain training site has recently garnered attention for a large-scale survey which found that better brain performance was ...
Nearly two decades ago, I walked into my first Abnormal Psychology class. Given the course title, I thought I had a pretty good handle on what the subject matter would be. So imagine my surprise when the professor walked in and said, "The 'abnormal' in the course title is a bit of a misnomer," he ...