Your spacecraft is spiralling out of control, and you will hit planet Arakis unless you fire up the thermal after-boosters. Which of the two buttons below would help you fire up the boosters on time? Would you be more likely to survive if the cockpit designer had installed the button on the left or the […] … learn more→
Blog Archives
![The science of beauty: how aesthetics can boost your mood and cognition](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/aesthetics.jpg)
The science of beauty: how aesthetics can boost your mood and cognition
![“The other side of words”: Veganism](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/veganism.jpg)
“The other side of words”: Veganism
Based on respect for animal life and its rights, as well as ethical, environmental and health considerations, veganism is distinguished from vegetarianism by excluding from the diet not only meat but also products derived from animals, such as dairy products, eggs, honey or leather… Even if the promotion of a non-meat diet is not new (as shown […] … learn more→
![What to do if you, or someone you know, is targeted with deepfake porn or AI nudes](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/deep_fakes_revenge.jpg)
What to do if you, or someone you know, is targeted with deepfake porn or AI nudes
This week, about 50 female students from Victoria’s Bacchus Marsh Grammar School had fake, sexually explicit images of them shared without their consent on Instagram and Snapchat. Images of their faces, purportedly obtained from social media, were stitched onto pornographic images using artificial intelligence (AI). Deepfake porn, or what our team calls “AI-generated image-based sexual abuse”, involves the use […] … learn more→
![Why we’re so bad at spotting lies – most of us only perform slightly better than chance](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/expert-liar.jpg)
Why we’re so bad at spotting lies – most of us only perform slightly better than chance
You don’t have to be in the middle of an election campaign to be concerned about your ability to spot a lie. Psychology research suggests people lie at least once a day. A 2006 review of 206 papers found that we are little better then chance at guessing whether something is a lie or not, 54% to be exact. […] … learn more→
![Admiration, a feeling that makes us grow?](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/admiration.jpg)
Admiration, a feeling that makes us grow?
We all remember teachers we deeply admired. Personally, the only teachers who left an impression on me were those who counted for their generosity, the extent of their knowledge, the simplicity with which they managed to transmit something living. The deep interest they had in the subjects they taught made them brilliant. They managed to […] … learn more→
![Here’s why you may not be getting the benefits you expected from mindfulness](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/mindfulness.jpeg)
Here’s why you may not be getting the benefits you expected from mindfulness
You’ve probably seen the word mindfulness everywhere these days, from the news, to magazines, to social media. Mindfulness is sometimes packaged as a mental health cure-all, and studies do suggest that mindfulness-based therapies support mental health. Your friends or family may even have told you that mindfulness has changed their lives. But if you have tried mindfulness and feel like it isn’t […] … learn more→
![‘Woke’ and ‘gaslight’ don’t mean what you think they do – here’s why that’s a problem](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Woke.jpg)
‘Woke’ and ‘gaslight’ don’t mean what you think they do – here’s why that’s a problem
Words and phrases change their meaning often as language evolves. In the past, something was “awful” if it was amazing (think “awesome” or “awe-inspiring”). A “naughty” person was poor rather than poorly behaved. Only museum exhibitions could be curated, certainly not wardrobes, flats or social media pages. “Bimbo” meant “reckless man”, but is now a sexist word for a young woman, complicated by […] … learn more→
![What do bilingualism and video games have in common?](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/couple-playing-video-game.jpeg)
What do bilingualism and video games have in common?
We speak of bilingualism when a person masters two languages at a similar level and speaks them fluently (either from the cradle or at a later age). Today in our global society, millions of people are able to communicate in more than one language . Speaking several languages is often worthy of admiration by people who do not have […] … learn more→
![College students in Austin, Texas, have dwelled in windowless rooms for years − here’s why the city finally decided to ban them](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/windowlessroom.avif)
College students in Austin, Texas, have dwelled in windowless rooms for years − here’s why the city finally decided to ban them
In the past few years, the city of Austin, Texas, has approved the construction of thousands of windowless rooms in new apartment buildings next to The University of Texas at Austin. Most of these rooms are being leased to UT students, resulting in a deterioration of their well-being. In April 2024, the Austin City Council finally voted to ban […] … learn more→
![Childhood friendships: a sentimental education deciphered by sociology](https://world.edu/wp-content/themes/homepage/includes/php/image-jit/?filter=thumbnail&file=/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/friendships.jpeg)
Childhood friendships: a sentimental education deciphered by sociology
“Birds of a feather flock together,” says the proverb. When it comes to childhood friendships, the rule is true: it is with friends of the same age, same sex and sharing the same activities that children first get along. But how are these social codes put in place? How do children tell them and in what way […] … learn more→