Wrapping paper is a striptease that hides and reveals, transforming otherwise ordinary objects into gifts.
Why Do So Many People Want to Die?A veteran scholar contemplates the origins of the peculiarly human phenomenon of suicide.
Learning to Trust Machines That LearnWhat can studies of human relationships tell us about whether or not we should trust artificial intelligence?
Why Humans Are So Smart—And So Stressed OutHomo sapiens evolved big brains not so that we could make tools but so that we could keep track of 150 friends and competitors.
The Perils and Privileges of an Amazonian HallucinogenTourism based on consumption of the plant brew known as ayahuasca is booming, for better and for worse.
Schizophrenia’s Tangled RootsAs an increasingly complex picture of schizophrenia emerges, researchers are recognizing that a more individualized and humane approach is needed to better understand and treat the condition.
How Smart Were the First Toolmakers?State-of-the-art brain imaging technology is shedding new light on the evolution of human intelligence.
How Do You Count Without Numbers?Some human societies lack words for numbers. What does this say about the rest of us—and human evolution?
What Role Did Autism Play in Human Evolution?Traits we often tend to disparage were—and arguably still are—critical to human communities.
Do Dreams Give Voice to the Divine?An anthropologist immerses herself in Islamic dream culture to understand how the divine plays a role in everyday lives.
