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A young woman in a red bikini and an older man in black trunks cool off at an outdoor shower, with a sunny beach background.

Gender

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What sex-difference science misses about the messy reality of sex

Men aren’t from Mars, women aren’t from Venus, and other persistent myths derived from debunked sex-difference science

by Jeffrey W Lockhart

Marble bust of an ancient Greek man with curly hair, a beard, and an intense expression, set against a black background.

Human nature

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Our innate ideas prevent us seeing what is innate in human nature

We have a great deal of trouble telling what is innate and what is learned in human nature, whether ideas or emotions

by Iris Berent

A portrait painting of a woman with a solemn expression and dark hair against a dark, textured background.

Emotions

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Are you sure you know what emotions are?

It’s tricky to define what an emotion is: is surprise one, or something else? Here are a few simple rules to get started

by Andrew Ortony

Illustration of animals in human clothing in a courtroom setting. A lion is the judge, and a man is questioning a donkey in the dock, surrounded by other animals.

Animals

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What our use of animal-based slurs and endearments says about us

The image of the adorable kitten and the insult of calling someone a ‘pussy’ have more in common than you might realise

by David Egan

Black-and-white photo of people scrubbing the ground while a large crowd watches. Buckets of water are placed around them.

Social history

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The rise of the bystander as a complicit historical actor

‘The appalling silence of the good people’: how the bystander rose to prominence as a morally complicit actor in history

by Dennis Klein

Black-and-white photograph of people among the rubble of collapsed buildings, including a partially standing tower, with bare trees in view.

Human nature

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The radical aristocrat who put kindness on a scientific footing

Peter Kropotkin took on social Darwinism, casting evolution in a cooperative light and laying the groundwork for mutual aid

by Lydia Syson

Painting of early hominids using tools in a rocky landscape with scattered animal skulls and a distant horizon.

Human nature

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Do humans really have a killer instinct or is that just manly fancy?

The killer-instinct idea achieved such cultural power because it came embedded in gripping stories about human nature

by Nadine Weidman

Photo of an office building’s facade with illuminated windows revealing people working inside at desks and meeting spaces.

Personality

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Introverts are excluded unfairly in an extraverts’ world

One in three people are introverts, physically present, but culturally absent. We shouldn’t have to change to be heard

by Noa Herz

Black and white photo of three men in a shop, two in bowler hats clowning with an electric fan while a clerk watches amusedly.

Violence and aggression

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Ever taken pleasure in another’s pain? That’s ‘everyday sadism’

It’s not just killers who are sadistic. To counteract the suffering caused by everyday sadism, recognise how common it is

by Lucy Foulkes