Japan's Unlikely Hero
They can be seen all over Japan. Springing up in shelters and cities. Molded in the hands of dedicated volunteers. Nourishing tired faces, the recipients both young and old biting into them with smiles on their face. One of the quiet heroes to emerge in this time of grave crisis in Japan is the humble little white ball of rice called onigiri or omusubi. Portable, substantial, and lasting surprisin... posted on Mar 30 2011, 3,648 reads

The Technology of Compassion
The term "compassion" -- typically reserved for the saintly or the sappy -- has fallen out of touch with reality. Journalist Krista Tippett deconstructs the meaning of compassion as she traces the word through secular and spiritual icons like Mother Theresa, Gandhi, and Einstein, as well as everyday heroes like Matthew, a paraplegic yoga teacher. Through her stories, Tippett proposes a new, more a... posted on Mar 23 2011, 4,724 reads

How to Deliver the Speech of Your Life
Sweaty palms, trembling knees, that feeling of butterflies in the pit of your stomach. Whether you're at a job interview, standing in front of a class, or keynoting a conference, speaking in public can be intimidating. In fact, statistics have shown that people fear it more than death. But is it really that bad? Dan Pallotta used to think so. After a few years of doing it more, something changed.... posted on Mar 14 2011, 10,000 reads

Shhh! Quiet People at Work
Justice Clarence Thomas has not spoken during a Supreme Court argument in five years. In the past 40 years, no other member has been totally silent through a whole term-- not to mention, five terms. Loud People, of course, get all the attention. But if we take a look around, we'll notice that quiet people are everywhere. Quiet People are different from loners or introverts or recluses. And quietne... posted on Feb 28 2011, 7,794 reads

Habits May Be Good for You
For years, Dr. Val Curtis has been persuading people in the developing world to wash their hands habitually with soap. Meanwhile, researchers at Duke and Cornell universities were examining how often smokers quit while vacationing and how much people eat when their plates are deceptively large or small. Those and other studies revealed that as much as 45 percent of what we do every day is habitual... posted on Jan 11 2011, 4,007 reads

Importance of Kindgergarten
An experienced teacher and a small class in kindergarten can set a person up for life. At least according to a large-scale study by the National Bureau of Economic Research. The bureau study, conducted by a team of economists, draws on data from Project STAR, one of the most widely studied education experiments in the United States. The project spans 11,600 students and their teachers in kindergar... posted on Jan 05 2011, 3,820 reads

Social Ties Boost Survival by 50 Percent
The benefit of friends, family and even colleagues turns out to be just as good for long-term survival as giving up a 15-cigarette-a-day smoking habit. Despite this hyperconnected era, social isolation is on the rise. More people than not report feeling that they don't have a single person they can confide in - a percentage up threefold from 20 years ago. In fact, the decades of research that Juli... posted on Jan 02 2011, 1,750 reads

Facebook Takes a Look at Friendship
With 500 million users, Facebook has grown as big as the population of the European Union. With so much potential data, Paul Butler, an intern at Facebook, decided to map out at least one aspect: the locality of friendship. "I was interested in seeing how geography and political borders affected where people lived relative to their friends," he explains. The result is a stunning map of the world, ... posted on Dec 21 2010, 5,946 reads

Job Perks of an Optimist
A new study by researchers at Yale and Duke Universities find that optimism pays off in job hunting and promotions. After studying the effect of an optimistic disposition on MBA students' job searches, the researchers found that optimists fared better than their less-optimistic peers. Optimistic grads found jobs more easily, with less-intensive job searches. Even better, two years after graduation... posted on Nov 24 2010, 8,734 reads

5 Steps to Breaking Bad Work Habits
We all have our own bad habits at the office. Maybe it's gossiping or complaining. Or binge eating or nail-biting. Or checking e-mail incessantly. Whatever the habit, we'd be happier without it. Andrew Rosen, author of "How to Quit Your Job," offers 5 steps to leave bad workplace habits behind as you pave a healthier, balanced lifestyle.... posted on Nov 01 2010, 19,599 reads