Tasting while Stressed
Hu and associates had individuals experiencing varying levels of stress taste whole and skim milk. They report that “Chronic stress has been linked to changes in taste or odor perception. . . . Compared...
Human motivation and groups of people
Gabriel and Schneider “propose that much of modern human behaviour can be understood as the outcome of a primitive and implicit desire for social embeddedness (i.e., a desire to belong to a larger, societal-level...
Temperature and Thinking! The hotter it is….
Keivabu and Widmann found that “hot [out of comfort range] days reduce politicians’ language complexity, but not cold days. . . . Our data consists of all parliamentary speeches in Washington D.C. (United States,...
Unseen Forces – Part 1 – Sound
‘Tis the season for invisible forces. With Midsummer’s eve and good weather sitings of all sorts of gnomes and fairies, the unseen can be top of mind. In this issue we won’t talk about...
Design to Eat Together
There are many, many benefits of eating with other people. During times of the year when you are mainly dining inside, getting everyone together in one spot to eat might be a challenge—but during...
Why do we need Music?
Music seems to be, literally, everywhere we go, from down into the Tube to the park to Carnegie Hall. In a recent article in The New York Times (2024, “Why Do People Make Music?...
Workplace location, how it affects productivity and creativity
Arata and Kawakubo found that “productivity in simple tasks increased with the frequency of working from home. . . . improving the residential environment, including temperature and humidity control, is critical to enhance productivity...
A shout out for Nature!
Amy Thomas, in “Why ‘Biophilia’ Needs to be Part of Your Next Holiday” (2024, BBC Online,https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20240502-why-biophilia-needs-to-be-part-of-your-next-holiday) encourages people to improve their mental health by spending time outside—something that we talk about a lot here...
We eat healthier when we see nature… another “Biophilic” effect!
Via 5 experiments Langlois and Chandon learned that “individuals exposed to the natural environment choose healthier foods when compared to those exposed to urban environments or a control condition. Nature’s effects are observed for...
Nature is Good for our HEALTH – it could save £108.7million!
Grellier and teammates report that “Physical activity (PA) reduces the risk of several non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Natural environments support recreational PA. . . . Population-representative data from the Monitor of Engagement with the Natural...
Kids, Trees and ADHD
Buczylowska and team share that they “examined the association between lifelong exposure to greenspace and ADHD diagnosis and potential underlying mechanisms (i.e., perceived greenspace, PA [ physical activity], neighbourhood social cohesion, and neighbourhood safety)...
Active Workstations!
A study done at the Mayo Clinic and lead by Lopez-Jimenez found “that active workstations incorporating a walking pad, bike, stepper and/or standing desk are successful strategies for reducing sedentary time and improving mental...
Considering where to work
Many of us now have more choice where we work, at home at the office or anywhere else, at least some days. Neuroscience research makes it clear when some spaces can work out better...
We need Privacy….
Any human older than a toddler needs to be able to have privacy when they choose—privacy is not an option for our mental wellbeing. When we have privacy, we have control over who can...
Airports – Spaces the NEED Science
The airports on our planet need environmental psychology. A lot. They’re packed with people who are stressed, for any number of reasons—some are concerned about making connections, for example, and others are nervous about...
Feeling comfortable at airports – the credit card pod
Many airports across the United States are adding soothing refuges, applying some of the principles of neuroscience-informed biophilic design that we discuss in The Space Doctors’ articles. Christine Chung (2024, “Now Arriving at an...
What is the value of Greenspace to children’s development?
Using data collected from over 4 US states, Towe-Goodman and many colleagues link between living near green spaces (for instance, forests, parks, residential yards) and mental health. They report that “greater residential green space...
Choosing a New Place… The LONG READ
Relocating, changing where you live can be a jarring experience. There are all sorts of practical things that you need to figure out when you move – like the fastest route to the market...
Fix-it-up Timeline… what should you tackle first and why…
Even if you move into a brand-new home, one that has never been lived in by anyone else, you’ll need to make some changes before your new house becomes your new home. The first...
Building in Privacy
If you were at all happy in your old home you had privacy when you wanted it. To be happy in your new home your need to make sure that you do. Privacy is...
Future more Accessible Spaces
As Jordan Valinsky and Eva Rothenberg report in “Here’s What the Starbucks of the Future Looks Like” (2024, CNN,https://www.cnn.com/2024/02/17/food/starbucks-accessible-store-design/index.html ) Starbucks is making big changes, ones that should make their sites more pleasantly accessible...
Add Variety to be More Creative
Nagayama found that having multiple worksites can boost our creativity. Via a survey they probed “the relationship between MLW [multiple-locational work] . . . and worker outcomes, such as engagement, creativity, and well-being. ....
Collaboration – in person vs online
Van der Wouden and Youn (as reported by Ayshford) studied “17 million scientific publications over the past 45 years find[ing] that researchers who collaborated locally were much more likely to gain new knowledge from...
Teenagers and Physical Spaces
Buttazzoni and Minaker studied teenager (age 9 to 17) and identified “several significant associations. Notably, spaces high in complexity (visual richness), imageability (distinctiveness), and enclosure (room-like quality) tended to support positive affect [mood]. Additionally,...
Time Perception, Time in Nature
Correia shares that “There is growing evidence that nature experiences can influence human sense of time by (i) extending human perception of temporal duration and (ii) shifting time perspectives. People who spend time in...
Mental Health and Nature Access
Makram and colleagues “found that neighborhoods with a NatureScore of 60+ [0–100; low to high nature levels] had lower overall mental health utilization than those below 40. . . . This relationship persisted for...
Bigger = Better
Spielmann and Rossi “Through four studies, including a field study, we examine the associative semantic schema deduced from wider (versus narrower) glassware rim and how the ‘bigger is better’ bias influences consumer purchase behavior...
Garden Design – Creating the Right Path
When you are creating paths outside through gardens, etc., or inside by arranging the furniture in your living room, you can choose options that are straighter or more curved. Should you go with something...
Battling Burnout with Design
Spring can often seem to be the season for burnout, the winter has been long, and just before the plants really spring back to life, our existences can seem bleak—and we all work too...
Taking classes online
Harris and Whiting found that “Participants in online classrooms struggle to make sense of emotional interactions. This is due to the separation of physical place between persons and the inability to see the reaction...
English