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psychology

Videos

  • Spotlight: The Dao of Zib

    Strip away the trimmings of a traditional science presentation, add cocktails, and you have WSF Spotlight. This is a wug. Now there is another one. There are two of them. There...

  • The Many Faces of Human Sexuality

    When were you first aware of your sexuality? Where did the notion of a defined sexuality come from? Join us as we explore the cultural, biological, psychological, and historical...

  • Is Sexuality a Choice?

    How much is choice a factor in our sexual orientation? Can we choose our behaviors, who we are, or what we’re attracted to? Neuroscientists Paul Vasey, Jim Pfaus, and psychologist...

  • Strip Club Science

    Hormonal changes in the body can often give off scent cues, whether we’re aware of them or not. For example, factors such as sexual maturation, pregnancy, and ovulation all cause...

  • The Power of Smell

    Despite being one of the oldest senses, our sense of smell is easily one of the least understood. It’s also the only one with a direct connection to our brain. With each breath we...

  • The Unbearable Lightness of Memory

    Full 90 Minute Program: It’s the thought of your childhood home. It’s that comforting aroma you can still smell ten years later. It’s the way you define yourself. It’s...

  • The Fallibility of 9/11 Memories

    How confident are you in your memories? After a dramatic, emotionally charged event such as the 9/11 terrorist attack, people describe their memories of the event as being...

  • How Good Is Your Memory?

    One of the fascinating things about people who have had a misattribution memory is the confidence in which they will defend their recollection. Building upon his anecdote about...

  • How to Define Consciousness?

    Known for centuries as “the difficult problem,” the question of how to define consciousness has troubled philosophers for generations. Here, leading intellectuals from varying...

Blog Posts

  • Full Program: Scents and Sensibiities

    What does fear smell like? Love? Can we use scent to control behavior? Do humans really sense pheromones? What if you could diagnose diseases just by smelling them? And exactly how does our brain convert floating organic molecules into chemical signals that our brain processes...

  • The Smell of Fear

    Yesterday we looked at the power of scent to signal biological changes and influence attraction. But what about other emotions? Can one really smell fear?

  • The Unbearable Lightness of Memory

    This week we explored our tenuous relationship with our own memories. We learned how powerful they could be, as well as how they can lead us astray.

  • A Folly of Confidence

    Yesterday we saw just how easily one can hone their memory with simple techniques. Conversely, it's just as easy for our memories to fail us.

  • Does Genius Come from a Dark Place?

    When talking about geniuses, the conversation inevitably strays towards topics of eccentricity, or even madness. But is there really anything to this idea of the "tortured genius?"

  • Instant Reaction:  Origins of Orientation

    Origins of Orientation panelists delved into riveting discussions about arousal, longing, bonding and, of course, sexual activity on Saturday night at the World Science Festival.

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