There are five signs that someone dislikes you – but it’s best to ignore them | Polly Hudson 18 October 2026 at 11:00

There are five signs that someone dislikes you – but it’s best to ignore them | Polly Hudson

18 October 2026 at 11:00

All the possible indications, from eye contact to body language, come with a disclaimer. The truth is, you can never be totally sure ...

I’d be far less paranoid if everyone wasn’t out to get me, so when BBC Science Focus dangled “The subtle signs somebody secretly dislikes you”, I’ve never clicked so fast. Knowledge is power, after all, and the promised signals came courtesy of psychologists via a magazine with the word science in its title.

The first indication? They avoid eye contact. Apparently “someone who repeatedly looks away, scans the room or avoids mutual gaze might be creating psychological distance”. Agreed. But they may also be checking to see who else arrives, which might not mean they secretly hate you, only that they secretly don’t like you as much as whoever just came in.

The surprising psychology of morbid curiosity - video 13 October 2026 at 11:18

The surprising psychology of morbid curiosity - video

The Guardian

By: Presented by Ian Sample · with Madeleine Finlay · produced by Madeleine Finlay and Jacob Liebenberg · graphics by Elliot Ellis · the executive producer was Ellie Bury

13 October 2026 at 11:18

US defence secretary Pete Hegseth’s plan to livestream the execution of Nidal Malik Hasan has incurred condemnation from human rights groups and politicians on all sides. But according to Coltan Scrivner, an author and psychologist at Arizona State University and expert on morbid curiosity, people are still likely to watch in large numbers. He explains why we are drawn to dark and disturbing content, and Madeleine Finlay tells Ian Sample how consuming this kind of material can harm observers’ mental health

in-feeling: a history of empathy 12 October 2026 at 10:58

in-feeling: a history of empathy

MetaFilter

By: mittens

12 October 2026 at 10:58

"The word 'empathy' first appeared in English in 1909 when it was translated by Edward Bradford Titchener from the German Einfühlung, an old concept that had been gaining new meaning and increased relevance from the 1870s onward. While today we often treat 'empathy' as a synonym for 'sympathy,' if not—and more commonly—as an improvement on it, empathy at the turn of the century was used to describe a unique combination of cognitive effort and bodily feeling thought to characterize aesthetic experience. Such experience was not limited to contemplating works of art, however; for several of its earliest theorists, empathy named our aesthetic experiences of other people." Rae Greiner, 1909: The Introduction of the Word 'Empathy' into English

I will also share a shorter piece, Susan Lanzoni's The Origin of Empathy. But if you have time, Greiner's essay is really interesting; especially thought-provoking is the insistence that it is possible to feel like a Doric column.

Feelgood factor of human interaction | Brief letters 11 October 2026 at 11:52

Feelgood factor of human interaction | Brief letters

The Guardian

By: Guardian Staff

11 October 2026 at 11:52

Re your report (‘Pull the plug’: protesters resort to direct action against AI firms, 6 October), the US neuroscientist Ben Rein has shown that there is a fundamental difference in our cognitive response according to the type of interaction we have. In-person meetings and conversations show a dramatic increase in serotonin, oxytocin and dopamine – “feelgood” hormones – compared with online interactions. I have been encouraged to speak to people at bus stops.
Judith Furner
Eastbourne, East Sussex

• Re easing winter fuel costs (Report, 6 October), it would benefit everyone if the outrageous daily standing charges were reduced or on a sliding scale based on usage. I can’t be the only person whose standing charges each month are half or more than the energy used.
Judith Pearson
Sheffield

University students say procrastination is biggest threat to their academic performance 8 October 2026 at 02:00

University students say procrastination is biggest threat to their academic performance

The Guardian

By: Richard Adams Education editor

8 October 2026 at 02:00

More than half of US students surveyed said the problem damaged their ability to do academic work, study finds

Procrastination is the biggest problem that can harm students’ academic performance at university, according to a study of more than 65,000 young people who placed it above issues such as ADHD, anxiety or financial worries.

The study found that nearly half of the students surveyed named procrastination as the thing damaging their ability to do academic work, more than twice the number who named depression, while the same proportion said procrastination caused them significant distress above any other problems including family pressures or bullying.

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