The Superhuman Mind

Cases of extraordinary mental ability
Berit Brogaard, DMSci, PhD and Kristian Marlow
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Are Emotions a Product of Human Design?

In individualistic but not collective cultures, positive high-arousal affect, such as love of power, is held in high esteem. Paradoxically, this triggers misery and dysphoria.
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The Mysterious Disappearance of Unipolar Mania

Unipolar mania (mania without depression) is currently diagnosed as bipolar I disorder. But scientific evidence suggests that it may be a subtype of ADHD.
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What Causes Brain Zaps?

Brain zaps can be an unbearable side-effect of discontinuing an antidepressant. Although these brain shocks are often described as harmless, they may in fact be minor seizures.
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How Does Coffee Help Alleviate Depression?

Coffee may help alleviate depression by preventing inflammation to the brain and by making dopamine signaling in the brain more effective.
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The Amazing Link Between Our Appearance and Our Personality

Even when we only get a chance to look at a person for a few seconds, our judgment of personality is fairly reliable. What is the reason behind this almost "magic" ability?
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The Feral Child Nicknamed Genie

Genie spent the first 13 years of her life strapped to a potty or a chair in a homemade straightjacket. She was never spoken to but turned out to be highly intelligent.
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The One Good Deed A Day Approach to Happiness

Being rude to others fosters immediate gratification in most cases but in the long run it does nothing for your well-being.
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What Defines a Serial Killer?

The concept of a serial killer is best understood as a prototype concept. The prototype definition of a serial killer allows for a killer to be more or less of a serial killer.
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Is Depression Caused by an Inflammation to the Brain?

New results strongly indicate that serotonin-altering drugs (SSRIs) may not work directly by inhibiting the serotonin transporter but may have an impact on the immune system.
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Ketamine: The New Wonder Drug for Depression

Ketamine could be our first real wonder drug for the treatment of serious depression. But how does it work exactly?
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Number One Reason SSRIs Take Four to Six Weeks to Work

It is peculiar that the common antidepressants SSRIs do not kick in for a long time. There is, however, a good scientific explanation of why they do not.
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Hate Crimes Spurned By Group-Based Hatred

Hate speech is “the willful denigration of others based on ... group characteristics.” There is currently no clear legislation against hate speech in the U.S.
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Linda The Bank Teller Case Revisited

The skill of providing answers on the basis of the meaning that is literally given to us is not typically a useful skill.
Lovesick Love, used with permission.

Quadriplegic: How Does Sex Work?

Tiff's injury left her paralyzed in her legs, hands, and triceps. How does sex work under these conditions? Tiff explains.
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Why Do We Dream We Are Flying?

The important difference between the function of dreams and the meaning of dreams.
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5 Signs That You're Dealing With a Passive-Aggressive Person

Because passive-aggressive behavior is implicit or indirect, it can be hard to spot. Here are five ways to know if you're dealing with a passive-aggressive person.
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6 Job Interview Mistakes That Will Ruin Your Chances

Don't commit one of the deadly blunders that fell many inexperienced interviewees. Following this advice can help you land your dream job.
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There's Nothing Wrong With a Low Sex Drive

If you are not interested in sex, and it really bothers you, then there are pharmaceutical and natural remedies that can help.
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Are You Living Up to Your Full Potential?

Adaptive preferences can increase life satisfaction.
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Nature or Nurture? Brain Science and Biological Essentialism

It is not unlikely that lived experiences as a man or woman in a wider sense of these words can alter gene expression.
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Having A Child Means Giving Up Basic Needs

People need to feel autonomous. This is a dictum most people will agree to. But parenting seems to be inconsistent with personal autonomy.
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Is There Consciousness in Everything?

A new volume of papers on panpsychism—the view that every physical particle in the universe harbors consciousness—discusses the roots of consciousness.
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Children: Stairway to Heaven?

“The dirty little secret of parenthood ... is that those first 18 years of of parenting are the most difficult, most exhausting, least fulfilling years of anyone’s life."
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10 Signs of an Emotionally Immature Adult

Little Princes and Princesses are grown men or women who act like they are selfish children, narcissistic teenagers, or irresponsible young adults.
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Is There Such a Thing as a Vaginal Orgasm?

Orgasm, for most women, requires rhythmic stimulation of multiple parts of the entire clitoris as well as the nipples.
Berit Brogaard

Humans Are Not the Only Mind-Reading Species

A study published in Science suggests that the great apes can attribute false beliefs to others. But an even more important lesson can be drawn from the study.
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Why Don't We Want Birth Control Pills for Men?

If male and female contraception in the form of an injection or a pill are about equally effective and have similar side effects, both ought to be made available to us.
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How a Coma Made a Young Man Suddenly Speak Fluent Spanish

Sixteen-year-old Reuben Nsemoh was playing soccer when he got hit on the head and ended up in a coma. When he woke up, spoke Spanish fluently. How is that possible?
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The Deviant Psychologies of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton

In Sex and the City Carrie's love interest, Mr. Big, a real-estate mogul, is compared to Trump, which raises the question: which television character is Hilary Clinton?
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The Power of Personality

These are the ways to make a real change to the main facets of extroversion.

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