Been duped? Tempted to adopt a more cynical attitude to avoid being taken for a fool again?

Don’t. Research suggests it won’t make you any better at spotting bullshit merchants, but will turn you bitter, writes @davidarobson.bsky.social :

buff.ly/PhtrGGu

'Singing' dogs may show the evolutionary roots of musicality Some Samoyeds adjust the pitch of their howls depending on the music being played, showing a form of vocal ability they might have inherited from their wolf ancestors

Singing dogs hint at the origins of human musicality www.newscientist.com/article/2518...

Ah, great subject! 😊

Ha ha thanks Jon - I’m really intrigued now about the topic?!

I really enjoyed reading this interview!

What to read this week: Bonded by Evolution by Paul Eastwick We are told we need cynical strategies to "play" the dating game, but the science says this is totally wrong. David Robson enjoys an evidence-based takedown from psychologist Paul Eastwick

TY @newscientist.com & @davidarobson.bsky.social for recommending SINGLE AT HEART: “Society has put enormous pressure on us to couple up, but, as social psychologist DePaolo shows...
www.newscientist.com/article/mg26...

Why self-expansion is the key to long-lasting love and friendship A growing body of psychological research shows that the best relationships – romantic or otherwise – come with a feeling of personal growth. Columnist David Robson explores the evidence-backed ways to...

My second piece on love this week explores the thrilling feeling of “self-expansion” in the first flush of romance - and how to keep that excitement alive www.newscientist.com/article/2515...

I found this insight especially interesting: “The consensus on someone’s appeal quickly falls apart as soon as people get to know them… If I think you’re hot, someone agrees with me a mere 53% of the time… Mere weeks after potential romantic partners meet each other, hotness loses its magnetic pull”

What to read this week: Bonded by Evolution by Paul Eastwick We are told we need cynical strategies to "play" the dating game, but the science says this is totally wrong. David Robson enjoys an evidence-based takedown from psychologist Paul Eastwick

It’s nearly Valentine’s Day, so I’ve been writing a lot about love. First is a review of Bonded by Evolution by @pauleastwick.bsky.social for @newscientist.com, an enlightening new book that dismantles lots of the lazy cliches about dating www.newscientist.com/article/mg26...

'Modern masterpiece' or 'enraging': Why Vigil, a wacky, 'climate change Christmas Carol' is dividing readers Vigil, the new novel from acclaimed writer and Booker Prize-winner George Saunders, centres on a dying oil tycoon and climate change denier. Why is it polarising critics so fiercely?

Super chuffed to have interviewed one of my literary heroes, George Saunders, about his new book Vigil, which has been dividing critics.

It's a step out of my comfort zone to write about culture but I always enjoy it.

www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...

'Modern masterpiece' or 'enraging': Why Vigil, a wacky, 'climate change Christmas Carol' is dividing readers Vigil, the new novel from acclaimed writer and Booker Prize-winner George Saunders, centres on a dying oil tycoon and climate change denier. Why is it polarising critics so fiercely?

Super chuffed to have interviewed one of my literary heroes, George Saunders, about his new book Vigil, which has been dividing critics.

It's a step out of my comfort zone to write about culture but I always enjoy it.

www.bbc.co.uk/culture/arti...

Has anyone else noticed that even their most politically disinterested friends/family/acquaintances are horrified by what’s been happening of late? Decency and morality still count for something, and most people are not as cynical and nihilistic as our authoritarian overlords would have us believe?

How sad that health content is issued with a warning label!

5 Things Doctors Wish Men Knew About Sexual Health

I have a new piece in @nytimes.com on men's sexual health and the stigma surrounding it. Very pleased to write about this important topic - I was surprised to learn just how much our lifestyle can affect fertility www.nytimes.com/2026/01/21/w...

Psychiatry has finally found an objective way to spot mental illness A decades-long push to identify clear biomarkers for anxiety and depression is at last achieving results

Can AI diagnose mental illness as well as humans? My new piece for @newscientist.com explores the promise and risk of “digital biomarkers” www.newscientist.com/article/2509...

Why pleasure is the key to self-improvement Forget puritanical self-discipline – the way to really make a new habit stick is to lace it with instant gratification

"No pain, no gain" might sound inspirational, but it's a poor means of making positive changes in our lives.

My new piece in @theguardian.com draws on self-determination theory to explain why pleasure is the secret to successful self-improvement: www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...

The emotion you never knew you had, and how to feel more of it The warm and fuzzy emotion of kama muta underlies vital feel-good experiences like social connection and feeling part of something bigger. But are you getting enough of it?

Next up, seek out the profound emotion of social connection. Whether it's watching a cute video or being moved to tears by live music, @davidarobson.bsky.social has investigated how to get more kama muta into your life, and why you should want to: www.newscientist.com/article/2507...

Thank you Rowan!

This bilingual podcast is the first time I've given an interview in Spanish about my work! The perfectionist in me hates hearing my mistakes and hesitation, but the truth is that two years ago, I could only manage tourist transactions, so this seems like a milestone.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pPd...

I loved writing this piece on “micropractices” - very brief acts of contemplation that can enhance our emotional wellbeing.

An underappreciated reason why we fail to say no to a bad suggestion is ‘insinuation anxiety’—fear that so would be interpreted as insinuating something offensive about the other person, writes @davidarobson.bsky.social:

buff.ly/eZCOfEh

“Living itself means nothing other than being questioned; our whole act of being is nothing more than responding to — of being responsible toward — life. With this mental standpoint nothing can scare us anymore, no future, no apparent lack of a future.”

Got purpose? Live longer!

@davidarobson.bsky.social finds sound evidence for the claim that purpose is more important than overall life satisfaction in predicting people’s physical health and longevity:

buff.ly/8llzpLm

Leonardo was quite the genius inventor.

But he also documented his speculative invention “Method of Awakening the Mind to a Variety of Inventions” which led him to meaningful patterns in the random chaos of the world around him, writes @davidarobson.bsky.social:

buff.ly/blzt6Ml

Don’t care what the critics are saying, I unashamedly love The Life of A Showgirl, especially the clever play on Father Figure

Thank you! 🥳

The Big 4-0! 🤯

The truth about narcissists: How to handle them, and can they change? Although narcissistic personality disorder is rarer than you might think, psychological research suggests it can come in two different types, one of which may be underdiagnosed

Writing this peace for @newscientist.com about the psychology of narcissism helped me to clarify a painful family dynamic www.newscientist.com/article/2496...

The truth about narcissists: How to handle them, and can they change? Although narcissistic personality disorder is rarer than you might think, psychological research suggests it can come in two different types, one of which may be underdiagnosed

Writing this peace for @newscientist.com about the psychology of narcissism helped me to clarify a painful family dynamic www.newscientist.com/article/2496...