Power of Slow Change
"People love stories of turning points, wake-up calls, sudden conversions, breakthroughs, the stuff about changes that happen in a flash," points out historian Rebecca Solnit. Yet, meaningful transformations often take time. "You want tomorrow to be different than today, and it may seem the same, or worse, but next year will be different than this one, because those tiny increments added up. The t... posted on Jan 28 2024, 1,800 reads

The Bizarre Genius of a Brainless Blob
Meet Physarum polycephalum, better known as the slime mold, that's been here on Earth for more than 500 million years. This brainless, single-celled organism may lack brains but compensates with a level of intelligence that continues to stun scientists across the globe. Despite its lack of neurons, it's capable of complexities like remembering, making decisions, and recognizing itself. The slime m... posted on Jan 27 2024, 2,199 reads

How Two Moms Founded An Adaptive Clothing Company
When Nicole Puzzo's daughter, Stella, was dealing with her recovery from a double hip surgery in 2015, the challenge of dressing for her condition sparked an ingenious idea. Puzzo created a pair of pants that could be worn over Stella's casts, transforming an everyday struggle into a practical solution. "Understanding how difficult it can be, and what a struggle it can be for millions of people, w... posted on Jan 17 2024, 1,531 reads

The Geometry Of Other People
"On the surface, the language we use to describe landscapes and buildings has little in common with the ways we think about our social worlds. A mountain range has little in common with a family; the design of a city is nothing like a colleague or so it seems. But if that is true, then why do we use spatial and architectural metaphors to describe so many of our human relationships?" asks postdoct... posted on Jan 15 2024, 2,069 reads

Extraordinary Ordinary People
Around the world, an army of unsung heroes are upon us. These are not saints, but very human individuals, who, bolstered by their engaged spirituality, have surfaced deep contributions to the fabric of their communities, fields, and the world at large. "A lot of the reporting on religion is often negative. It's about abuse, it's about corruption, it's about the decline of a particular institutiona... posted on Jan 13 2024, 1,951 reads

Niksen: The Dutch Art of Purposefully Doing Nothing
In an increasingly busy world, the Dutch have mastered the art of niksen - purposefully doing nothing. This powerful practice counteracts anxiety and bolsters creativity and productivity. Instead of always focusing on efficiency, practicing niksen by setting aside specific time for purposeless relaxation, such as sitting in a caf simply savoring your coffee and daydreaming, can b... posted on Dec 30 2023, 2,992 reads

How Two Enemy Soldiers Saved Each Other, Over 20 Years Apart
In the brutalities of the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s, two soldiers on opposite sides formed an unlikely bond. In 1982, Iraqi forces captured the Iranian city of Khorramshahr. In response, Iran plotted to retake the city. Shortly after that battle began, Najah Aboud, from southern Iraq, was severely wounded in the head, chest, and back. Crawling to a bunker, he prepared for the death that seemed in... posted on Dec 29 2023, 1,918 reads

Cooperative Ways to Weather the Silver Tsunami
When Baltimore's Common Ground Cafe abruptly shut down in mid-2023, it wasn't just the loss of a beloved coffee shop, but a devastating jolt to the 30 employees who relied on it for their livelihood. But they weren't ready to give up. Rallying together, the baristas raised thousands of dollars and leaned on each other's strengths. They formed a worker's cooperative and took control of the cafe the... posted on Dec 26 2023, 1,508 reads

The Giving Tree in Nova Scotia
From the beginning, it was literally something sweet. "I just wanted to put some candy canes up for the little ones," Peggy Feltmate recalls the first year she put up a "giving tree" outside her home. It was cold outside, and she saw children reaching for the candy canes without any gloves or mittens on their hands. "Okay, I'm a grandma, I'm going to add some mittens and things to the tree," Feltm... posted on Dec 24 2023, 2,100 reads

The Living Sculpture Made by 90 Generations
While walking outside your home, or on a familiar street in your neighborhood, have you ever wondered who -- what kinds of people and life journeys -- walked those very same steps before you? The land has a way of connecting us across time, and a 3,000-year-old natural sculpture in Oxfordshire, England is a living embodiment of such interconnection. The Uffington White Horse is a football-field si... posted on Dec 14 2023, 1,570 reads