Virtual Reality and Ethics: Is Phone Sex Cheating?
If you break a rule in imagination, have you actually broken the rule?read more
View ArticleImagination According to Science, Engineering, and Philosophy
Imagination seems like it's impossible to study, but three disciplines have tried to tackle it, with wildly different approaches and results. read more
View ArticleUsing Imagination to Reduce Clutter In Your Home
Part of why people can have a hard time getting rid of things is because they imagine that it's more valuable to them than it is. Here's a trick to avoid the problem.read more
View ArticleMindfulness and When Not to Use it
Mindfulness has great benefits. But when is mindfulness counter to your goals?read more
View ArticleHow Feeding Plants Can Turn You Into a Murderer
Imagination is the engine of fiction. How can fiction teach us about how people do evil things?read more
View ArticleWhat Is a Penguin For, Really?
How we are making computers imaginative, and how that relates to the functions of objects. read more
View ArticleComputer Games: Art or Not?
Are computer games art? The Museum of Modern Art has cast its vote.read more
View ArticleDo You Really Need To Say That?: When To Shut Up
Should you be more reluctant to speak when there are lots of people around?read more
View ArticleNew Year's Resolutions and How to Boost Your Willpower
Are you someone who never makes resolutions because you have no hope of keeping them? Here is why people with low willpower benefit *most* from trying to keep resolutions.read more
View ArticleShould We View Animals As Humanlike?
People will often attribute minds and mental states to things that aren't people. It seems silly to believe that storms actually are angry, but what about when we attribute something like jealousy to a...
View ArticleYou Should Not Believe All of Your Beliefs
How can we believe and not believe something at the same time?read more
View ArticleHow Much of What You Believe Did You Hear From Other People?
We seem to know a lot of things we hear or read about. Sometimes it seems that most of what we believe comes from other people. Does it? read more
View ArticleCreativity and Star Trek Alien Foreheads
Are the designers that make aliens for television uncreative, or are they working under constraints that we don't understand? Part of the answer has to do with the nature of television production, but...
View ArticleWhat's the Intuitive Way To Cross the Street?
Designers should strive to make intuitive artifacts. But are intuitions ever in conflict?read more
View ArticleGenes Affect Culture; Culture Affects Genes
The nature-nurture debate continues to rage in scholarly studies of human behavior. How can we tell the relative contributions of each?read more
View ArticleSocieties We Cannot Imagine
Imagine trying to explain life in New York City to members of an undiscovered tribe in a rain forest. Now try to imagine understanding a society that is much more advanced than ours. Our imagination is...
View ArticleThe Good Science You Never Hear About
We use peer-reviewed scientific papers to know what's true about the world. But not all of the good science that's done gets published, which can lead us to misunderstandings about our world. read more
View ArticleHow You Raise Your Kids Doesn't Affect Religion Much
How much affect on religion does raising your kids with religion have? The answer will surprise you.read more
View ArticleA Better Way To Look at "Failed" Relationships
If you go on vacation, is it a "failed" vacation just because you eventually came back home?read more
View ArticleAn Imaginative Computer
Can a computer program have imagination? Judge for yourself.read more
View ArticleWhy Your Inner Child Might Not Be So Creative After All
Creativity gurus sometimes say to get in touch with your inner child. But are children really that creative?read more
View ArticlePasswords and the Limits of Imagination
We're often asked to think of "good" passwords. How good are we?read more
View ArticleWhat's the Best Color for a Triangle?
Before reading this article, do me a favor: decide what is the most natural color of a triangle? How about a square? A circle?read more
View ArticleAre desires real?
Don't be too quick to dismiss someone's abstract concepts in psychology. You probably have many of your own.read more
View ArticleUsing the Wisdom of the Crowd in a Computer Game
A free game that uses the wisdom of the crowd. read more
View ArticleIs This Documentary Fair?
What does it mean to be fair to two sides of an argument?read more
View ArticleMan's Search for Meaning and Korean Karaoke
We search for meaning even in places where we should know better. Why?read more
View ArticleIs it Possible to Feel Sympathy For Many People at Once?
Why do we feel more sympathy for a single person's tragedy than many?read more
View ArticleThe Psychology of Hating the Star Wars Prequels
Why do people seem to dislike the Star Wars prequels? People can give you reasons, but how do we know whether they are right or wrong about themselves? read more
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