Rats with low social status drink more than those with high social status

In behavioral studies, researchers found that subordinate rats those lower in the social hierarchy consume significantly more alcohol than dominant rats. The low-status rats also showed greater anxiety and stress levels. When given the opportunity to drink, they self-medicated t…

An altered state of consciousness can be achieved by staring into someone’s eyes for 10 minutes.

In a 2015 Italian psychology experiment, participants who stared into each other’s eyes for 10 uninterrupted minutes reported dissociative experiences feeling detached from time, space, and their own bodies. Some saw monsters, relatives, or their own faces morphing. The effect, …

People who have had their frown lines removed with Botox find it harder to read difficult sentences.

Botox paralyzes the corrugator supercilii muscles the ones responsible for frowning. A study found that people who received Botox injections to smooth frown lines took longer to read and understand complex sentences. The reason? Frowning may actually help the brain process diffi…