Mild spoilers for the film Blade Runner 2049 follow. In Blade Runner’s world, it is the year 2049, and Earth looks substantially different than in 2017. Our fair city of San Diego is a literal garbage dump, crops are unable to grow outdoors, a single corporation dominates all agriculture and industry. The skies of […]
Category Archives: Social Psychology
October
13
Pop Culture Psychology: What Your Favorite Superhero Can Say About You
posted by Alie Astrocyte
[En espagñol] It’s October and the leaves are turning – Halloween is creeping up, and it’s time to start thinking about your costume. Vampires and zombies are always popular, but you’ve probably noticed a trend in the last few years: superheroes are where it’s at. We love our pop culture characters, and from Luke Cage […]
May
12
Sweet, Sweet Fructose
posted by Xi Jiang
When a cat licks you (lucky you), have you ever considered licking back? (Some have.) If you have, and did, you would have noticed that cats do not taste sweet. Nevertheless, phrases such as “sweet kittens” and “sweet deals”, alongside terms like “sweetheart”, pervade the modern English language; “sweet”, like “nice”, “awesome”, and “cool”, has […]
December
14
Real Jedi Mind Tricks: The Psychology of Mind Control
posted by Alie Astrocyte
[En Español] Welcome, my young padawans, to Star Wars week. Star Wars: The Force Awakens comes out THIS Friday, and the neurds on our team decided that it was a perfect opportunity to do one of our favorite things: connect neuroscience with pop culture! First up: real-world Jedi Mind Tricks. In Star Wars: A New […]
February
14
THE BRAIN IS A BATTLEFIELD (A LOOK AT YOUR BRAIN POST-BREAKUP)
posted by nkoblesky
All couples look forward to Valentine’s night. Flying around the apartment, you quickly assemble everything needed for the romantic evening: nice outfit, box stuffed with chocolates, blood-red envelope holding your oh-so-romantic valentine card. The doorbell rings, and you smile broadly as you pull open the door… to find your beloved standing there, frowning and valentine-less. […]
February
12
A science of falling in love?
posted by Melissa Troyer
“To fall in love with anyone, do this!” proclaimed the headline of a recent article from the New York Times’ Modern Love column. As a skeptic in everything (and what cognitive scientist wouldn’t be skeptical of such a statement?), it seemed shocking to discover that the secret to falling in love, according to the article, […]
