If you find it harder to be pleasantly lost in your thoughts or daydreams these days, you’re not alone. “This is part of our cognitive toolkit that’s underdeveloped, and it’s kind of sad,” said Erin Westgate, a psychology professor at the University of Florida. The ability to think for pleasure is important, and you can…
How Kindness Fits Into a Happy Life
We all know that it’s good to be kind to others. Kindness is an important virtue. It also sustains relationships and helps us build a trusting and cooperative society. You may have also heard that kindness makes you happier and healthier. But what does that mean for you? What acts of kindness will make us…
How to Bring Awe Into Your Daily Life
What is awe? We have all experienced it, even if we didn’t know what to call it. Whether we’re overlooking a beautiful view after a challenging hike or watching a new leaf grow on the plant we’ve been nurturing in lockdown, the feeling we get in that moment—amazed, inspired, transported—is what researchers call awe. In his…
AI Aims to Preempt Choice and Chance
The history of humans’ use of technology has always been a history of coevolution. Philosophers from Rousseau to Heidegger to Carl Schmitt have argued that technology is never a neutral tool for achieving human ends. Technological innovations—from the most rudimentary to the most sophisticated—reshape people as they use these innovations to control their environment. Artificial intelligence…
5 Tips for Making Sure Your Marriage Survives the Pandemic–According to Relationship Experts
For better or for worse, the pandemic has thrust many spouses into spending more time together than in pre-pandemic times. Normal, mundane concerns about money, domestic chores, and child-rearing have taken a backseat to more overwhelming concerns about health and even mortality. Not to mention, remote working, reduced freedoms, and the confines of a shared…
Getting Through the Pandemic Stronger
In late 2019, Dennis Gillan gave a TEDx talk about the loneliness epidemic, and right before February 2020, it was published online. “It was so bizarre,” said Gillan, a public speaker, suicide prevention advocate, and executive director of the Half A Sorrow Foundation, as in the Swedish proverb he likes to share: “A shared joy is…
John Keats’s Concept of ‘Negative Capability’ Is Needed Now More Than Ever
When John Keats died 200 years ago, on Feb. 23, 1821, he was just 25 years old. Despite his short life, he’s still considered one of the finest poets in the English language. Yet in addition to masterpieces such as “Ode to a Nightingale” and “To Autumn,” Keats’s legacy includes a remarkable concept: what he…
6 Ways to Manage Coronavirus Depression
Depression is increasing in the United States, in no small part due to COVID-19. According to recent reports, depressive symptoms are at least three times higher than they were before the pandemic hit, suggesting that the emotional cost of living through this time is enormous. For those who are vulnerable to depression already, this time is…
When We Are Alone Together
Many couples come to my office because they don’t feel deeply connected. Often, one of them is lonely in the relationship because they feel like they can’t bridge the distance. These couples describe their relationships as containing little intimacy. But something recently reminded me of the divine ingredients of connection and how simple—but not easy—it…
How to Execute a Big Idea on Limited Time
If I was to offer you $100 today or $120 a week from now, which would you choose? If you’re like most people, you’d choose the hundred bucks now. That’s the conclusion of a classic study that found that, when it comes to decision-making, most of us opt for immediate gratification. Why does this matter? Well, making…
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