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Suppressing negative emotions may actually benefit your mental heath, study finds

If you struggle with depression, it can be a challenge to imagine feeling better even for a minute. Yet a new study by scientists at the University of Cambridge found that there is a technique which consistently helps people combat their feelings of depression. Even three months after the 16 country-spanning experiment had ended, these patients often reported that their depression symptoms remained less than they had been before....

Originally posted on salon.com

Marijuana can often help with autism symptoms, but it’s complicated. A new study indicates why

Autistic people who smoke marijuana often report having positive experiences. Yet their anecdotal evidence does not in and of itself prove that marijuana is an effective drug for treating autistic symptoms. To help fill that void, a recent study published in the journal Frontiers in Psychiatry examined 20 patients with autistic symptoms who had been treated with full-spectrum cannabis extracts (FCEs)....

Originally posted on salon.com

Humans are dangerously pushing the limits of our planet in ways other than climate change

Our planet is relatively massive, but it is a world of finite resources and we are quickly approaching our limits. The planetary boundaries framework establishes how safely humanity can operate within Earth’s biological and physical limitations before undermining our own ability to survive. This is why when burning fossil fuels causes global heating, scientists warn about the safe upper limits of climate change....

Originally posted on salon.com

Ape elbows and shoulders evolved differently than monkeys, allowing us to throw with precision

Mary Joy is an undergraduate student at Dartmouth University’s Department of Anthropology — and, additionally, is a climber and runner. Indeed, Joy’s athletic interests have fueled her scientific endeavors in at least one important way: They helped her develop a hypothesis about the evolution of shoulders, elbows and wrists in human beings....

Originally posted on salon.com

Experts say you should talk to your dog like a baby. A surprising new study reveals the canine brain

An encounter with a puppy or a baby, it doesn’t matter, can often draw out the same behavior, almost involuntarily. You know the one: A high pitched cooing, an exaggerated drawl, a tone beaming with unconditional love. Scientists call this “exaggerated prosody.” To ordinary people, we know it as “the cute-sie voice.”...

Originally posted on salon.com