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...
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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...
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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...
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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...
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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...
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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...
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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...
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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...
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October 22, 2010 by Shannon
October 22nd 2010. Exercising self-control isn’t fun. If you’re dieting, for instance, you may easily resist the blueberry muffin at that impossibly aromatic bakeshop you pass by in the morning. You may then have lunch with your friends but just order a small salad (sans creamy dressing, of course). But at some point later in...
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