Life stages

Photo of two people in a pool, wearing floral swim caps using inflatable pink flamingo rings, with bunting overhead.

How to make friends as an adult

Friendships give us so much. Be bold, take the initiative, and you’ll be surprised how many people are pleased to connect

by Marisa G Franco

Photo of two people laughing and an elderly man sitting on a mosaic bench in a park with green trees in the background.

There’s a reason some of us find it easier to change than others

There is a personality trait we carry throughout life that explains why some of us find it easier to change than others

by Amanda J Wright

A romantic 18th-century painting depicting a seated couple embracing in a lush garden scene with soft, earthy tones.
LOVE

Working, flirting and sex: courtship in 18th-century France

Flirting, sex and affection: working-class couples courting in 18th-century France show they are not so different from today

by Julie Hardwick

Photo of a man lounging on a beach towel with a ball as a pillow a woman sits nearby with colourful umbrellas and buildings.

Human bodies change through life. So does our sexuality

Sexual identity is more than sexual orientation. It develops and changes as our bodies develop and change through our lives

by Jana Byars

A boy wearing a cap and t-shirt sits alone on white stadium bleachers, looking to the side with his arms crossed.

How to overcome the loneliness of youth

It’s extremely common to feel lonely when you’re young. Many strategies can help, the key is finding what works for you

by Lily Verity & Pamela Qualter

Painting of a skull adorned with vibrant flowers and a butterfly, with a candle and sheet music in the background.

The immortalists have got it wrong – here’s why we need death

The immortalists say beating death will lead to peace. But what if mortality is our bittersweet path to love and harmony?

by Susan Cain

Photo of a cyclist in a yellow shirt on a winding park path at sunset with a city skyline in the background.

I thought I knew everything about death. Then grief struck me

Even though I grew up in Death World, and still live there, it couldn’t prepare me for being my family’s sole survivor

by John Troyer

Photo of two people on a bench overlooking a sunny seaside with trees casting shadows on grass and a stone balustrade.
AGEING

Older people are battling despair, but Erikson offers us hope

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a mental toll on older people. The psychoanalyst Erik Erikson offers a way out of our despair

by Jane Adams

A close-up of a hand completing a jigsaw puzzle showing a street scene with shops and a clock against a black background.

On the consolatory pleasure of jigsaws when the world is in bits

It’s not memory that makes us human but meaning-making. When life falls apart, jigsaw puzzles help us put some pieces back

by Melanie McGrath

Photo of two elderly women walking together on a city pavement, with a red bus and two other people in the background.

Quit the millennial bashing – generationalism is bad science

‘Boomer’ and ‘Gen Z’ seem like handy ways of sorting people, but they are more cultural creations than natural phenomena

by Cort W Rudolph

Photo of a child wearing red sunglasses and a colourful top with rainbows and clouds, standing indoors.

In the chaos of raising a toddler there lies a path to nirvana

Toddler nirvana: facing the storms and challenges of raising a child can help you transcend your self and live in the moment

by Kurt Gray

Photo of people in colourful costumes at night outside a neon-lit restaurant.

Legal definitions aside – what makes you think you’re an adult?

Achieving adult status is a momentous part of life. Our research suggests getting there takes more than years or milestones

by Megan Wright

Photo of a green hummingbird with a red bill in flight against a blurred green background.

A vast, thrilling world of nature unfolds outside of human time

Human life might stretch over decades, but the lifespans of many other organisms on this pale blue dot leave us in the dust

by Nicholas P Money

Monichrome drawing of a bearded man with a hat, holding a pole, facing a striped lighthouse on an island, both reflected on a calm body of water.
POETRY

Sail through Shakespeare’s melancholic soliloquy on life’s seven stages

Directed by Jérémie Balais and Jeffig Le Bars

Photo of a healthcare worker in protective gear preparing a syringe in a hospital room with patients receiving treatment.

We need to address society’s unrealistic view of caregivers

Measured against the figure of the strong carer, I felt I came up shamefully short – I was vulnerable, too

by Joanne Limburg

Mountain biker in orange gear riding at sunset on a dirt trail in a desert landscape with sandstone cliffs in the background.

Meandering with purpose across the US, on his mountain bike, aged 71

Directed by Brandon Watts