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Female hand holding cup of coffee on white wooden table. The coffee has a heart made out of chocolate dust on it.

The Mother Theresa Effect

I was sitting at the window of a coffee shop working on my laptop. I…

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Father and his child playing together. Child on father's shoulders with arms outstretched, looking at a sunset.

3 ways that being kind can slow ageing

It might sound ‘out there’, but it’s to do with the way kindness feels and how this feeling impacts some very important processes in the body.

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Bottles with some labels saying placebo and other labels saying extra strength placebo.

Does a placebo work if you know it’s a placebo?

Patients receiving ‘open label placebos’ had reduced pain compared with those who received ‘treatment as usual’. When the latter group were then offered placebos to supplement their usual treatment, their pain also then reduced.

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VR simulation of a head made of yellow lines wearing a VR headset

Can violent computer games make you violent?

After 320 students played either a violent or non-violent game, those who had played the violent game took almost five times longer to help someone in need.

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