Human Behavior, features and articles | Educational Science

Dec 31, 2015

Why David Bowie Was So Loved: The Science of Nonconformity

In the aftermath of David Bowie's death at age 69 from cancer, a re-occurring theme has appeared in tributes to the famously idiosyncratic performer: his importance to those who felt like misfits. Yes, I'm obsessing about Bowie today, tweeted science writer Steve Silberman. To the terrified gay kid I was...

Dec 31, 2015

Is Powerball Drawing Truly Random?

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. The math behind all the discussion of tonight’s Powerball drawing assumes true randomness – equal likelihood for each number to be chosen, both in the drawing itself and, crucially,...

Nov 30, 2017

Ancient Wari Queen Brought to Life with Stunning Re-Creation of Head

At first glance, the wrinkled face of a dark haired-woman wearing round, gold earrings looks incredibly real. But it's not — it's a reconstruction crafted from modeling clay, based on the skull of a Wari queen who lived about 1,200 years ago in what is now Peru. Peruvian and Polish...

Nov 30, 2017

8 Human-Animal Encounters That Went Horribly Wrong in 2017

Bad decisions (Image credit: Shutterstock)Taking selfies near large and dangerous wildlife. Toying with snakes. Fighting bedbugs with fire. Sometimes when people interact casually with animals, their behavior is inappropriate, deliberately provocative, ill-informed or careless, and this can have catastrophic or even deadly consequences. The outcomes of such encounters — which...

Nov 30, 2017

Why We Make New Year's Resolutions

Got plans to lose weight, eat healthier or save more money? If these or any other New Year's resolutions are on your list, you're in good company because you are taking part in a goal-driven tradition that has emerged in different forms throughout history. This year, 44 percent of respondents...

Oct 31, 2017

What in the World? Flat-Earthers Gather at First Conference

A conference aimed at disputing the idea that the world is round just wrapped up in North Carolina. The first-ever 2017 Flat Earth International Conference (FEIC) was held in Raleigh on Nov. 9 and 10, featuring some of the big names in round-Earth denial. Among the speakers were Darryle Marble,...

Sep 30, 2017

How to Combat Racial Bias: Start in Childhood

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. Racial bias can seem like an intractable problem. Psychologists and other social scientists have had difficulty finding effective ways to counter it – even among people who say they...

Sep 30, 2017

Trump Orders Release of 2,800 JFK Assassination Files, Holds Back Others

Updated at 6:51 p.m. ET. In a long-awaited declassification of files related to the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy, President Donald Trump said this afternoon that he was releasing to the public 2,800 documents, while holding back others due to national security concerns. In a White House memo, Trump...

Sep 30, 2017

Bible May Record Oldest Known Solar Eclipse

The Old Testament Book of Joshua may contain the oldest known reference to a solar eclipse recorded by humanity. And it occurred 3,224 years ago today (Oct. 30). If so, this poetic reference firms up the dates of the reign of the Egyptian pharaoh Ramesses the Great (also called Ramesses...

Aug 31, 2017

Did Squabble Over a Vaccine Cause a Rift in Ben Franklin's Marriage?

Why was Benjamin Franklin estranged from his wife for nearly two decades? A new theory argues that the founding father's marriage may have been strained by his son's health — and an argument about inoculation. The theory is detailed by author and historian Stephen Coss in the September 2017 issue...

Aug 31, 2017

Shipping Regulation Lifted for Puerto Rico: What Is the Jones Act?

Today (Sept. 28), the White House authorized the temporary waiving of a shipping regulation dating to nearly a century ago, known as the Jones Act, to enable much-needed aid to reach Puerto Rico. Also known as the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, the Jones Act states that transportation of passengers...

Jul 31, 2017

How Benjamin Franklin Spread Science on 'Supernatural' Solar Eclipses

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Live Science's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. By the time he was 20 years old, colonial American Benjamin Franklin had already spent two years working as a printer in London. He returned to Philadelphia in 1726....

Jul 31, 2017

Live Science Remembers Bruno Gulotta, Friend and Colleague Killed in Barcelona Attack

We lost a friend and a colleague to terrorism yesterday (Aug. 17). Bruno Gulotta, 35, an employee of Tom's Hardware Italy — a brand owned by Live Science parent company Purch — was on holiday in Barcelona, Spain, strolling along Las Ramblas with his partner and two young children, when...

Jul 31, 2017

Civil War Mystery Solved? Confederate Sub's Torpedo May Have Killed Its Crew

The crew of the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley, the first combat submarine to sink an enemy ship, may have instantly killed themselves with their own weapon, according to a new study. This finding may have solved a mystery that has endured for more than 150 years about the fate of...

Jun 30, 2017

Bullied Kids More Likely to Have Loaded Guns, Report Suggests

This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights. For school-aged youth, access to a gun can increase their risk for becoming a victim of or for committing a violent crime, including suicide and homicide. It also increases a...