I remember being told in primary school that no one else on the planet had exactly the same fingerprints as me. Pretty powerful stuff for a seven year old. Patterns that were uniquely mine and that I’d never really looked at before, despite the fact they had been part of me since before I was born. But is it true? Are each of your fingerprints truly one of a kind?
Are you into colouring books? Right now a quarter of the best-selling books on Amazon were colouring books. Adult colouring books. It’s an international craze that doesn’t show any sign of slowing. But is there any evidence for their touted health benefits? Will you be any calmer, less anxious or more focused if you spend time colouring-in?
The other day my seven-year-old told me a blatant lie. He wasn’t trying to hide the lie but instead immediately asked ‘did you notice the twinkle in my eye?’ Somewhere along the way he’d heard that twinkling eyes are a good indication of lying and he wanted to test me out. We’re all aware of certain gestures that are meant to clearly give away dishonesty. But it turns out although we may hear dozens of […]
What’s your earliest memory? Chances are you can’t remember anything before the age of three. Otherwise known as childhood amnesia, it affects us all but isn’t quite the stuff of Hollywood. In the movies, the plot usually revolves around someone being bopped on the head and suddenly having no idea who they are or what they are supposed to be doing. And more often than not, a second whack to the head and the person’s memories return, good as new. But is that an accurate depiction of amnesia?
Most young kids do it. Michael Jordan was famous for it. And it’s quite possible you do it too. What am I talking about? Sticking your tongue out when you concentrate. It’s incredibly common and over the years there have been a variety of theories attempting to explain the habit. Recent research supports the suggestion it’s connected to the way humans evolved spoken language. A quirky tongue? Next time you have the opportunity, watch a […]
Today I saw something I’ve never seen before: a man breaking out into dance in the supermarket. One aisle over, I caught another shopper smiling and humming along. I don’t normally notice the music being played in shops, but I also felt more energised than I had moments earlier. Whether it be how long you spend in a shop, the amount you spend, even whether you buy French or German wine, music has power over our behaviour. And shops are using it to their advantage.
Remember when Marty McFly desperately tried to warn the 1955 Doc Emmett Brown that in 1985, Doc was going to be gunned down by Libyan terrorists in Back to the Future? Doc insists that he doesn’t want to know about the future. How about you? Would you want know in advance when you are going to die? New research out of the UK can tell you the chances you’ll still be alive in five years based on your answers to some very simple questions.
Want to build more muscle, play sport more skillfully and heal better after injury, all without lifting a finger? I’m talking about <em>visualisation</em>: imagining your body doing something before you actually do it. Rather than an urban myth, it turns out there is lots of science behind the power of mental training.
Confession time: I adore chocolate. I’ll never forget a chocolate experience I had almost 20 years ago when I was given the opportunity to try some <em>Gymnema sylvestre</em>. It’s a herb that suppresses your ability to taste sweetness. And eating chocolate straight after the herb was rather distressing. The chocolate had virtually no taste and had the texture of wax, or maybe soap. I could feel it coating my tongue and teeth and I couldn’t imagine ever wanting to eat it again. That’s the power of our taste buds. But not all animals can taste the same flavours we can.
When I was a kid I aspired to live to 100 so I could get my letter from the Queen. These days I have a rather different view of the monarchy and more insight into the pivotal role of good health in old age. If you want to talk old age, there are a plenty of other animals and plants with lifespans far more impressive than ours. The question is: why do some living things live so much longer than others?
Dr Jen Martin 