By Virginia Morell for Science Now Laugh and your best friend will probably join in. Her face will also instantly mimic your mirthful expression. Scientists call this emotional contagion (it also happens when someone yawns), and regard it as a basic form of empathy—the ability to experience what someone else is feeling. But humans aren’t…
Read MoreEye Contact: How Long Is Too Long?
Written by Melinda Wenner Moyer for Scientific American There’s a reason your mother told you to look people in the eye when you talk to them: eye contact conveys important social cues. Yet when someone holds your gaze for more than a few seconds, the experience can take on a different tenor. New work elucidates the…
Read MoreIn Texting, Punctuation Conveys Different Emotions. Period.
By Christina Passariello for the WSJ Technology is changing language, period. The use of a period in text messages conveys insincerity, annoyance and abruptness, according to a new study from the State University of New York Binghamton. Omitting better communicates the conversational tone of a text message, the study says. As with any study by…
Read MoreGratitude Is Good For The Soul And Helps The Heart, Too
By Patti Neighmond for NPR Research shows that feeling grateful doesn’t just make you feel good. It also helps — literally helps — the heart. A positive mental attitude is good for your heart. It fends off depression, stress and anxiety, which can increase the risk of heart disease, says Paul Mills, a professor of…
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