Lifestyle
Alongside taking care of other people and the planet, make sure you take good care of yourself. The Lifestyle section at the Optimist Daily has solutions for everyday wellbeing on topics like food, beauty, fashion, and the latest trends. Curious about caring for houseplants, eating plant-based, or parenting tips? It’s all in there.
A new look at sarcasm: Study finds it stimulates creativity and problem solving skills
Sarcasm doesn't have a very good reputation, but a new study by researchers at the Harvard Business School and other universities shows that sarcasm stimulates creativity and problem solving skills. According to the researches, sarcasm forces the brain to switch to a more abstract thinking, which Read More...
Sleep almost doubles chances to remember something you've forgotten
We already knew that sleep boosts our memory, but a new study found that there's even more to it: sleep sharpens memories overnight. According to researchers at the British University of Exeter, sleep doubles chances of remembering previously forgotten information. The researchers asked a group of Read More...
A solution to the refugee crisis: Create a new country
The number of refugees in the world is growing, now at an all-time high of nearly 60 million people. A Silicon Valley entrepreneur has a radical idea: Let’s create a new country for all these people. He suggests using one of the world’s less inhabited islands or a newly built island. Other Read More...
Uber cheaper and faster than taxis in low-income neighborhoods
Some say that on-demand ride-hailing services like Uber only serve in city centers and well-to-do neighborhoods. However, a study funded by Uber shows that it took Uber cars less than half as long as calling for a taxi in several low-income neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Moreover, the trips Read More...
The world is a better place than you think
OK, we stole that headline; it's a popular rubric in our quarterly magazine. (We guess you can't really call it "stealing" then, can you?) Stealing, and crime in general, is on the decline. That's one of many important, positive long-term trends that we describe on the very last page of each issue. Read More...
Ikea raises pay for workers, encouraging wide campaign for better pay
Ikea has announced it will pay its UK staff the living wage. The decision by the Swedish home furnishing retailer is a big boon for a nationwide campaign to raise low wages. Ikea will pay its staff a minimum of £9.15 an hour in London and £7.85 across the rest of the UK. More than 4,500 employees Read More...
Obama speaks powerfully about the failings of America’s justice system
For the first time in American history, according to The New York Times, a president visited a prison. Hard to believe given the enormous damage that decades of mass incarceration have brought to the United States. Afterwards Barack Obama spoke words that hopefully find receptive ears in Read More...
Taking maternity leave to the next level: shipping breast milk for free
Sweden and Norway may have the best parental leave in the world—more than a year paid for the mother and father combined. In contrast, U.S. federal law allows women and men to take three months—unpaid. But IBM is adding a new dimension to parental leave in the U.S. The company will launch a Read More...
Get ready for the ultimate slow space tourism experience
Space travel doesn't need to involve a rocket. All you need is a balloon. Get ready for the first tourist operators offering to take you to the stratosphere, sooner than you think. Just like the first photos from the Earth, taken from outer space, created a consciousness to take care of our planet, Read More...
Help Greece and go there on a vacation
To help the Greeks go through their economic and political crisis, some have suggested to go there on a holiday. This will boost the Greek tourism industry. You won’t be alone. In the first three months of this year, more than 800,000 international arrivals, which is up 30% from the previous Read More...