Being Human

People who contribute content to sites like YouTube and Wikipedia may be in it for personal glory, not the common good

To understand how we think, we need to study our surroundings as well as our brains, says (full text available to subscribers)

If you feel your life is out of control and you can't change it, it might be your mum's low expectations that are to blame – if you're a woman

Drugs that stimulate the "stress hormone" cortisol might one day curb violence and aggression, research suggests

With the US facing economic crisis and the shuttle on the brink of retirement, how will NASA's space programme fare under the next president

People who contribute content to sites like YouTube and Wikipedia may be in it for personal glory, not the common good

fMRI is a widely-accepted, useful research tool, but whether it can really predict who is telling the truth is another matter entirely (full text available to subscribers)

How do the most gifted and talented brains stand out from the crowd? discovers what grey matter is like at the outer limits of human achievement (full text available to subscribers)

People who are socially excluded seem to feel colder than people who are included in the group

People who are socially excluded seem to feel colder than people who are included in the group

A blast of rose scent stimulates pleasant dreams, whilst the stink of rotten eggs makes the land of nod a less hospitable place

Graphics that seem to move on paper give headaches to both observers and the scientists studying them – now it seems tiny eye movements are to blame

Winning the votes of white evangelical Christians was a vital push that helped Bush become president – if Obama fails to do the same, science could suffer

People who are socially excluded seem to feel colder than people who are included in the group

Winning the votes of white evangelical Christians was a vital push that helped Bush become president – if Obama fails to do the same, science could suffer (full text available to subscribers)

Graphics that seem to move on paper give headaches to both observers and the scientists studying them – now it seems tiny eye movements are to blame

A blast of rose scent stimulates pleasant dreams, whilst the stink of rotten eggs makes the land of nod a less hospitable place

People who are socially excluded seem to feel colder than people who are included in the group

Legislation introduced six years ago in Egypt outlawing the custom of female genital mutilation appears to be failing

Most theories about the disorder assume affected people have neurological deficits – in fact, the reverse may be true, says (full text available to subscribers)