During the pandemic, when people were isolated from one another, many people experienced feelings of weariness or sadness. Psychologists say that social isolation can cause people to focus too much on themselves and their own problems. Shifting the focus outward, however, away from personal worries and toward others and the larger world, can generate joy. Listen to learn about an online tool that helps people create positive emotions by finding delight in the daily sights and sounds around them.
Story Length: 3:31
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August 2, 2021
3:53
World-renowned gymnast Simone Biles has withdrawn from competing in high profile events at the Tokyo Olympics due to stress. Biles is one of several elite athletes who have recently spoken out about the pressure they feel during competition and how it impacts their mental health. Listen to hear more about Biles’ decision and learn what the Olympic Committee is doing to support the mental health of the Tokyo Games athletes.
Read MoreJune 10, 2021
7:45
Outdoor recreation is enjoyed around the world. The U.S. has its own particular set of traditions, which, for a variety of reasons, have not always been inclusive of all Americans. Ambreen Tariq, an immigrant from India, explores the meaning of camping for immigrants and people of color in her children’s book, Fatima’s Great Outdoors. She argues that the urge to connect with nature is universal, and camping offers immigrants the chance to participate in a fun, quintessentially American activity while maintaining their own cultural identities and traditions. Listen to the author describe her own experiences camping as a child and why she begged her parents to serve bacon for breakfast.
Read MoreNovember 4, 2020
2:22
People can generally tell if other people are friends when they overhear them laughing together. That’s what a scientist found several years ago. Recently, he performed a new experiment, this time to find out if people can understand other people’s relationships by overhearing their conversations. His goal was to study the signals that laughter and speech send to other people. Listen to learn more about the study and what it reveals about the role of laughter in human evolution.
Read MoreOctober 10, 2017
4:47
Everyone has experienced stress, which is your body’s response to a demand made on it. A surge of hormones is released when people are stressed and that helps them deal with the danger or threat, but it also affects the nervous system and can cause health problems. When we experience a lot of stress, our bodies don’t easily return to a relaxed state. Listen to hear more about what stress does to our bodies and what we can do about the impact of stress.
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