Society

A person holds up a cardboard sign with the message "psychedelics are not a crime" in a crowded room.

Psychedelic drugs and the law: What’s next?

The push to legalize magic mushrooms, MDMA, LSD, and other hallucinogens is likely to heighten tensions between state and federal law.

Ben Seal | Knowable Magazine

A break-routine alarm clock with a chain.

Psychology

Trapped in routine? Here’s how to “dishabituate” and rediscover joy

Neuroscientist Tali Sharot shares two ways to “dishabituate” yourself from your routine: take a break or make a change.

Jonny Thomson

A group of Buddhist monks practicing mindfulness while meditating on rocks.

Psychology

The 3 myths of mindfulness

Mindfulness is hugely popular today, but one philosopher has argued that certain unchecked types of mindfulness are deeply flawed.

Jonny Thomson

Homelessness

New tiny home village for unhoused people to open in 2023

Salt Lake City is building a new tiny home village to help Utahns experiencing chronic homelessness get off the street permanently.

Kristin Houser

Criminal Justice

Biden pardons federal cannabis possession cases, urges states to do the same

The Biden administration is pardoning federal possession offenses, encouraging states to do the same, and reexamining its drug scheduling.

B. David Zarley

Psychology

Americans are becoming more likely to cooperate with strangers, not less

Americans are more likely to cooperate with strangers today than they were in the 1950s, according to the American Psychological Association.

Kristin Houser

Drugs

San Francisco decriminalizes plant-based psychedelics

San Francisco joins Oakland, Santa Cruz, DC, and Denver in decriminalizing some psychedelics.

B. David Zarley

Poverty

Fighting poverty with direct cash payments

GiveDirectly has delivered over $500 million in cash to impoverished people, letting recipients decide how best to meet their needs.

Zach Winn | MIT News Office

Psychology

To make great changes in your life, follow the philosophy of kaizen

Kaizen asks us to make small changes, slowly and over time. It's a hard skill to master in an age of instant gratification.

Jonny Thomson

Psychology

Mathematicians suggest the “37% rule” for life’s biggest decisions

Mathematicians tell us that, to maximize the chances of the best outcome, we ought to ditch the first 37% of any options.

Jonny Thomson

Homelessness

Debunking stereotypes about mobile homes could make them a new face of affordable housing

People see manufactured housing parks as problems. We recognize them as part of the solution to housing crises.

Linda Shi and Jason Spicer and Zachary Lamb

Startups

Startup that created Elon Musk’s foldable house opens a new factory

Elon Musk has confirmed he owns a foldable house made by Boxabl, a startup hoping its manufactured homes can help end the housing shortage.

Kristin Houser

Biology

The Singularity: When will we all become super-humans?

Are we really only a moment away from "The Singularity," a technological epoch that will usher in a new era in human evolution?

Jonny Thomson

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