If you imagine each thought going through your mind as a seed destined to grow the events of your future, how do you feel about the quality of the seeds you’re planting? Are they growing success, joy, and love, or bitterness, pain, and disappointment?

There are two paths before you: One of them takes you to Heaven, a place more beautiful than you can imagine. The other takes you to Hell, a land full of darkness, despair, and wretched individuals. You are to choose a path.

In his dazzling book Far from the Tree, Andrew Solomon points out that while we are all members of the tribes we are born into (part of our family, our geographical area, our native language, and our era), we also must seek out the tribe that celebrates our specialness.

Just like adults, children use humour in their everyday lives. Some like to make fun of themselves whereas others like to laugh at the expense of others.

Roughly 90% of humans are right-handed and this is one of the traits that separates us from most other primates who don’t really show any overall preference for left or right handedness.

Time is money, as they say. As a culture, we hate the notion of wasting time, of losing time, and we often find ourselves running out of time, fighting against the clock. Doing nothing is almost sinful. But what really is a waste of time?

A common argument for the value of the arts is the claim they cultivate empathy. Reading literature, viewing quality cinema and listening to fine music refine our sensibilities and make us better and more humane – or so the argument goes.

The transformation of U.S. television that began in 2015 – with more companies distributing television content over the internet – continued in 2016.

Do you remember being taught you should never start your sentences with “And” or “But”?

The Merlin Bird Photo ID mobile app can identify hundreds of North American species it “sees” in photos, thanks to machine-learning technology.

There are many social norms that dictate gift-giving, including when, how and what to give as gifts. Interestingly, these norms don’t seem to be about making sure that recipients get the gifts they want.

It’s the time of year where retailers bombard us with advertisements and special offers of magical gifts to delight our nearest and dearest.

Disney’s Christmas release transports us to the seas of Polynesia, where a young girl – Moana – takes on a leadership role and risks everything to save her tribe and her community.

Have you ever found yourself dreading a leisurely activity you had eagerly scheduled days or weeks in advance?

One of my fondest Christmas memories happened many years ago. We decided to do something extra special one year, so we worked up a volunteer army of helpers to feed the largest homeless shelter in Salt Lake City. I called upon...

Once upon a time a little Being was sitting by a stream…sighing, sad, and just a bit frightened. At that same moment, as the fates would have it, Solo­mon, the wise old owl, happened to be flying by just overhead...

A blank canvas. An empty music score. A newly opened Word document or electric circuit simulation. Trying to harness creativity at will haunts artists, scientists, technologists, and even bureaucrats. How can we open our minds and wander into new, innovative territory?

Pulitzer-Prize-winning poet Robert Lowell said that Bob Dylan wasn’t a poet because he “leaned on the crutch of his guitar”. The Nobel committee clearly disagree – they awarded him the Nobel Prize in Literature. Indeed, Dylan has leaned on poetry more than any other musician, before or since.

The human mind: It’s the best drama machine around. It’s portable. It runs day and night. It requires only imagination to operate. It cranks out some of the best stories around. Just feed it a few tidbits of hearsay, half-truths, some emotional charge, some childhood memories (the more traumatic, the better), and voilà...

Denis Villeneuve’s alien movie Arrival, which has just reached cinemas, is the latest in a long sci-fi tradition of “first contact” narratives.

New statistical analysis identifies Christopher Marlowe as a likely coauthor of all three of William Shakespeare’s Henry VI plays.

A long time ago, a girl named Li-Li got married and went to live with her husband and mother-in-law. In a very short time, Li-Li found that she couldn't get along with her mother-in-law at all.

For the last 30 years or so the rise of creative writing programmes in universities has been met with seemingly unending howls of derision from all quarters.