brain science

Woman reading by the fire and comforting her white kitten
Focus
6 Mindfulness Books to Read on Cozy Winter Days 

From the science of awe to navigating grief and loss, here are six mindful books and three podcasts to inspire your practice this winter. Read More 

  • Amber Tucker, Ava Whitney-Coulter, Barry Boyce, Kylee Ross, and Stephanie Domet
  • December 13, 2022
Why Our Brains are Designed to Forget—Illustration of a white face with the back of it going through a shredder with a dark blue background with three yellow stars.
Focus
Why Our Brains Are Designed to Forget 

While many of us yearn to sharpen our memory, the science of sleep shows that, in fact, our brains are designed to forget—a process that unlocks the mind’s capacity to dream and think in creative ways. Read More 

  • Scott A. Small
  • July 28, 2022
The science of curiosity
Focus
The Science of Curiosity 

The thrill of curiosity can motivate us to learn—or it can send us hurtling into rabbit holes and habit loops. Dr. Judson Brewer breaks down what this inner drive has to do with shifting our most ingrained habits. Read More 

  • Judson Brewer
  • January 6, 2022
We’re All Biased. Here’s How Meditation May Help—Painting of two hands painted in many colors coming together from left and right with their fingers interlocking in the middle over a red background.
Compassion
We’re All Biased. Here’s How Meditation May Help. 

By engaging in practices that increase awareness, focus on our similarities, and develop care and kindness, writes Mind & Life Institute Science Director Wendy Hasenkamp, we might also be loosening the hold of implicit bias. Read More 

  • Wendy Hasenkamp
  • November 4, 2021
Daily Gratitude
Calm
How to Make Gratitude a Daily Habit 

It’s easy to focus on what we want rather than what we have. But when we shift our awareness to the present moment, we begin finding moments of gratitude in everyday life. Read More 

  • Eric Langshur and Nate Klemp
  • November 1, 2021
Ad for a mindfulness app with meditations, articles, and a section sidebar, shown on a phone held in hand.