Mind & Brain

A preliminary study suggests that sex and gender are represented differently in the brain

The U-shaped curve that pegged youth and old age as the happiest times of life has changed

People are reluctant to reach out to friends they have lost touch with—but both sides are gratified when they reconnect

During the lockdown phase of the COVID pandemic, we indulged our toddler son. Years later, we wonder if his current behavior is normal or a result of that early isolation 

Fear of phantom costs pushes us to avoid “free money” or “too good to be true” offers

The extent to which people experience “inner speech” varies greatly, and the differences matter for performing certain cognitive tasks

The EEG has shaped researchers’ understanding of cognition for everything from perception to memory

Heat and mood are closely linked, which may explain summertime depression—and how to treat it

A Stanford anesthesiologist deconstructs the component parts of what it means to undergo a psychedelic trip

Despite great progress, we lack even the beginning of an explanation of how the brain produces our inner world of colors, sounds, smells and tastes. A thought experiment with “pain-pleasure” zombies illustrates that the mystery is deeper than we thought

People whose eyes dilated more performed better on tests of working memory

Wealth and well-being go together in many studies, but certain communities complicate this link