shannon

HUFFINGTON POST: The Secret to a Life of No Regrets: Live Before You Die

May 1, 2011 by Shannon

May 3rd 2011. Consider a place where people feel guilty if they enjoyed themselves — because they aren’t getting anything done. Where people see free time as inferior to the un-free time of work and performance. How’s that for chutzpah? It sounds absurd yet all too familiar, because that place is all around us, the...

WALL STREET JOURNAL: Is Happiness Overrated?

March 15, 2011 by Shannon

March 15th 2011. The relentless pursuit of happiness may be doing us more harm than good. Some researchers say happiness as people usually think of it—the experience of pleasure or positive feelings—is far less important to physical health than the type of well-being that comes from engaging in meaningful activity. Researchers refer to this latter state...

GantDaily.com: Freedom to Choose Leisure Activities Benefits People with Autism

March 2, 2011 by Shannon

March 2nd 2011. Free time is not always a fun time for people with autism. Giving them the power to choose their own leisure activities during free time, however, can boost their enjoyment, as well as improve communication and social skills, according to an international team of researchers. “For many of us, we look...

HUFFINGTON POST: Face to Face: Virtual Teachers Can’t Replace the Real Thing

January 27, 2011 by Shannon

January 27th 2011. The New York Times recently reported that Florida has adopted a plan that places more than 7,000 students in Miami-Dade County public schools in virtual classrooms where there are no teachers. Regardless of method, it is generally agreed that academic achievement is linked to students’ being motivated to learn. University of Rochester...

HUFFINGTON POST: Spectator Nation: Are You a Screen Junkie

January 11, 2011 by Shannon

January 11th 2011. If there’s one thing the U.S. economy is booming in, it’s the production of mass quantities of onlookers. We have become a nation of spectators, zoning into the glow of digital and high-def screens, cocooned in entertainment centers, oblivious to the sun in the sky, the breeze in the trees, and the...

AMERICAN SCIENTIST: The Moral Call of the Wild

December 1, 2010 by Shannon

December 1st 2009. I love spending time outside. From wild places like the backcountry of the Sierra Nevada mountains, to the mundane nature in my back yard, I find comfort in my natural experiences. These places are restful. Peaceful. They restore my batteries, and help me to focus. And I am not alone in...

HUFFINGTON POST: The 3 Core Needs: Satisfy Them and You’ll be Happy

November 10, 2010 by Shannon

November 15th 2010. If humans were cars, we would have been recalled a long time ago for a key fix in the ignition equipment. A serious defect keeps our desire machinery defaulting to a belief that other people, goodies, or status can make us happy or worthy — the exact opposite of what can do...

PBS MEDIASHIFT: Can Social Sharing Survive the Rise of Rewards-Based Campaigns

November 8, 2010 by Shannon

November 8th 2010. Left alone in a room, a group of people were given a complicated seven-piece puzzle, known as a Soma cube, and told to assemble the pieces into specific designs. One group was offered a monetary reward for each correctly assembled puzzle; another group was offered nothing. They worked at the puzzles...

Fast Company: Facebook Paying Users for Ad Views: The Good, The Bad, and The Psychologically Ugly