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Sunday, 09 January 2022 06:16

The world’s religions face a post-pandemic reckoning

Ask a vicar, a rabbi or an imam about the biggest challenge facing his or her congregation, and the need to foster spiritual values in a secular world may leap off the tongue. Yet the world’s religions face an equally acute but different sort of problem: how to stay in business in a material, competitive sense. In religion as elsewhere, covid-19 has helped sort out winners and losers. Churches that were catering effectively to the needs of their flocks even before the pandemic have often thrived as people worry more about death—and in lockdown have found more time to spare…

Wednesday, 05 January 2022 06:05

Here’s why you can still get infected with Covid-19 despite having been vaccinated

Why are so many vaccinated people getting Covid-19 lately? A couple of factors are at play, starting with the emergence of the highly contagious omicron variant. Omicron is more likely to infect people, even if it doesn’t make them very sick, and its surge coincided with the holiday travel season in many places. People might mistakenly think the Covid-19 vaccines will completely block infection, but the shots are mainly designed to prevent severe illness, says Louis Mansky, a virus researcher at the University of Minnesota. And the vaccines are still doing their job on that front, particularly for people who’ve…

Tuesday, 04 January 2022 06:25

10 New Year’s resolutions that are good for the soul

Tish Harrison Warren I accomplished zero percent of my New Year’s resolutions last year. I’m obviously no sage of discipline. But I’d argue that the chief value of resolutions is not found in our success or failure at keeping them. Instead, they help us reflect on what our lives are like, what we would like them to be like and what practices might bridge the difference. There is goodness then in the very process of making resolutions. There is hope in the idea that we can change — that we can keep growing, learning and trying new things. This hope…

Monday, 03 January 2022 06:14

What is aquamation? The process behind Desmond Tutu’s ‘green cremation’

The body of Archbishop Desmond Tutu will undergo aquamation, an increasingly popular and environmentally friendly alternative to traditional cremation methods, using water instead of fire. With aquamation, or “alkaline hydrolysis”, the body of the deceased is immersed for three to four hours in a mixture of water and a strong alkali, such as potassium hydroxide, in a pressurised metal cylinder and heated to around 150C. The process liquifies everything except for the bones, which are then dried in an oven and reduced to white dust, placed in an urn and handed to relatives. Like human composting, a technique of composting…

Sunday, 02 January 2022 06:14

Psychologist reveals what your subconscious is trying to tell you when you dream

A psychologist has shed light on the meaning behind the ten most common dreams - including death, snakes and paralysis, as well as cheating, flying and falling. Carmen Harra, American author of Committed: Finding Love and Loyalty Through the Seven Archetypes, has revealed exclusively to FEMAIL what our subconscious is trying to tell us during our nightmares. 'Because they originate in the subconscious mind, dreams can reveal our deepest needs, fears, and desires,' explained Carmen. 'Dreams prompt us to examine our feelings and states of mind. They mainly occur during the rapid-eye movement or R.E.M. stage of sleep, when brain…

Saturday, 01 January 2022 06:10

10 simple quotes to inspire kindness in the New Year & help you build realistic resolutions

These words will help you make it a practice not just to think about kindness, but to practice it year-round The new year is almost upon us. And while there's still a lot of uncertainty swirling about, the way forward is not anxious action or anger, but kindness, compassion, and understanding. There are many inspiring quotes to lean on that can remind us of this as we dive headlong into the future, but here are my favorites at the moment -- I recommend reflecting on them as prepare for 2022. 1. "Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." --…

Saturday, 01 January 2022 06:08

The unconventional approach to New Year’s resolutions that makes them stick

Mark Canada If you’ve made a New Year’s resolution, your plot for self-improvement probably kicks into gear sometime on Jan. 1, when the hangover wears off and the quest for the “new you” begins in earnest. But if research on habit change is any indication, only about half of New Year’s resolutions are likely to make it out of January, much less last a lifetime. As experts in positive psychology and literature, we recommend an unconventional but more promising approach. We call it the “old year’s resolution.” It combines insights from psychologists and America’s first self-improvement guru, Benjamin Franklin, who…

Wednesday, 29 December 2021 06:13

5 things science learned about how to live a happier, more meaningful life in 2021

It's been a busy and productive year in the field of positive psychology. This year has been a banner year for science as researchers around the globe turned out vaccines and new therapeutics in near miraculous times. But the pandemic hasn't just turned up the pressure on our physical health. It's been a pressure cooker for our mental health too. And just as brilliant medical researchers have been racing to make discoveries that will keep us physically healthier, psychologists and behavioral scientists have been hard at work figuring out how we can all be a little happier, more resilient, and…

Sunday, 26 December 2021 06:07

Use the S-A-S rule to quickly diffuse conflict and end arguments

Conflict appears in many forms, but we seldom are prepared to deal with it. Fortunately, this 3-step rule diffuses tense situations and facilitates constructive resolution. Unfortunately, conflict is something we all face. Hopefully, it's an infrequent occurrence, but it's helpful to know how to diffuse tense situations when they occur. Only when we can address things clearly, logically, and with a level head can issues be effectively resolved -- which is why learning how to deal with conflict is key. As I was researching best methods, I came across a stepped process from the Department of Veterans Affairs. It's really…

Sunday, 12 December 2021 06:01

Why flexible thinking is more important than ever

In a world of incessant change and increasing complexity, flexibility is one skill that is rising in importance. With its role in fostering creativity, innovation, and agility, cognitive flexibility is one of the top skills required to excel in today’s workplace. However, flexible thinking doesn’t always come easy. When we’re feeling anxious, under the gun, or depleted, we can be especially susceptible to falling into narrow and rigid thought patterns. The good news is that anyone can learn how to think more elastically. Take my client, Kris, a former management consultant who was struggling to adjust to a work environment…

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Saturday, 11 December 2021 04:50

Popular foods ruining your weight loss efforts, say dietitians

When it comes to looking your best, finding the right eating plan that keeps cravings at bay always proves incredibly tough. Even if you end up finding a balanced diet that helps manage calories while delivering proper nutrition, grabbing an extra slice of cake or bag of cookies feels tempting beyond belief. Whether you love snacking in between meals or including some less-than-savory foods into your regular meal plan, your decisions might end up setting back your weight loss goals. Trying to sort through a myriad of food options can feel impossible, especially when so many of the choices can…

Wednesday, 08 December 2021 05:55

Omicron, the Death Metal Band, would like to clarify a few things

Let’s cut to the chase. There’s a death metal band in Belgium that, as of last week, shares its name with a coronavirus variant. But unlike the World Health Organisation, they were “totally not” influenced by the Greek alphabet. “Our guitarist Philippe has an unhealthy obsession with aliens and all the interstellar obscurity that comes with it,” the band told VICE World News via email. “He came up with our name because he was inspired by the Dyson sphere that had been found in the Omicron Cygni constellation.” “And he’s never been probed, as far as he knows.” The WHO…

Sunday, 05 December 2021 06:01

In poor Lagos district, 'slum party' brings hope and life

To the rhythm of drums, two plastic giants whirl and kick up dust in an alleyway in Orowonshoki, one of the poorer districts of Lagos, Nigeria's megalopolis economic capital. From shanty houses of wood and tin, inhabitants poke their heads outside, and watch wide-eyed as the strange procession bounces past. Soon, the whole street sways and joins the dancers, whose costumes are crafted entirely from plastic bottles collected from the neighbourhood streets. The "Slum Party" kicks off with a burst of music, dance and the flames of a fire breathing act. For three years, a collective of 10 young Nigerian…

Saturday, 04 December 2021 06:16

Why your brain doesn’t rest during sleep

Sleep used to be regarded as a time when the brain turned itself off to recharge its batteries, but research over the past 20 years has put that theory to rest. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanners, which use magnetic resonance to generate images of brain activity, have shown that the organ is active during sleep. Although there is still much to be discovered, the brain uses that time to clean out toxins and repair itself, and to reinforce memories and lessons learned during the day. Sleep research is a relatively new discipline, but it’s already understood that a good…

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