Australasian Science: Australia's authority on science since 1938
Neuropsy
The Dark Side
By Tim Hannan
A new study suggests that dark personality traits are the expression of a single underlying disposition.
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What Makes Words Funny?
By Tim Hannan
A new study predicts the most amusing words in the English language.
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Too Many Choices
By Tim Hannan
Decisions are most easily made when the right number of options are available.
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The Moving Finger Writes, and Tells a Ghost Story
Credit: Couperfield/Adobe
By Tim Hannan
A reduced sense of personal agency persuades Ouija board users to believe in ghostly messages.
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Rise and Shine, Soldier!
By Tim Hannan
Army research suggests that the timing of your caffeine hit is more important than the amount consumed.
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If Music Be the Food of Love, Play On
By Tim Hannan
Extreme re-listening to popular songs reflects personality type.
Music plays an important role in our lives, and new digital technologies make it possible to access just about any song at the touch of a button. So why does my teenage daughter listen to the same few songs repeatedly? As far as I can tell, it is not due to any musical merit, as the selections in question all seem to me to be indistinguishable and utterly forgettable. (In defence of my parenting, I would add that her musical taste is not the result of deficiencies in her upbringing, as she was exposed to only classical music from the time of her birth – Dylan, Sondheim and Lehrer).
The Criminal Brain
By Tim Hannan
Antisocial behaviour after brain injury is associated with lesions to a single neural network.
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Seeing Is Believing
By Tim Hannan
Illusory pattern perception is associated with a belief in conspiracy theories.
The Mystery of Agatha’s Amnesia
By Tim Hannan
A popular fictional theme, psychogenic amnesia is a possible consequence of stress or trauma.
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Watching the Detective
By Tim Hannan
Studies of neural activity in viewers of Sherlock reveal how we connect story elements.
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