
Is there joy in missing out?
Researchers talk about our attachment to social media in terms of the fear of missing out (FOMO). We can’t look away from our mobile devices because we might miss the possibility to make or enhance a connection.

Is there joy in missing out?
Researchers talk about our attachment to social media in terms of the fear of missing out (FOMO). We can’t look away from our mobile devices because we might miss the possibility to make or enhance a connection.

Five Things Being a Zumba Instructor Has Taught Me About Science Communication
So, here is something that the casual reader of this blog may or may not know about me: In my other, non-psychology life, I’ve been working part-time for the past 2 years as a licensed Zumba® Fitness instructor.


Our public affair with food porn
Do you ever feel like your social feed is overrun by pictures of food? A report from the Pew Internet & American Life Project from October 2013 found that more than half of all Internet users have posted original photos or videos to a website.

Will SciArt Find a Foothold on Ello?
Ello and their “you are not a product” manifesto swept through social media discourse like an eyeless smiling tornado a few weeks ago.

How to Manage Death in a World of Social Networks
A good friend of mine passed away in June. John had cancer. Before you offer condolences, you should know he did not want to be mourned. It’s been a hard request to follow, but he felt he had lived a full life.

Essential Social Media Sites for Science Illustrators
During my recent talk at the AMI conference about social media and illustration, I skimmed this slide near the end. Talks were intended to be 20 minutes long and I don’t like to rehearse too much: I don’t read off of my slides so I tend to remind myself of the critical points and fret [...]

How To Talk To a Roomful of Artists Who Are Better Than You
This past weekend I participated in the Association of Medical Illustrators annual meeting (hashtag #AMI2014), held with the hospitality of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota, USA.

Math Twitter Bots, Reviewed and Rated
In the course of being a math person on Twitter, I have run across some math-related Twitter bots and feeds. It would just be mean to grade my human tweeps, but I have no qualms about rating the bots!

Why is the grass always greener on social media?
Are you on social media? I’m willing to bet you’re on at least one channel (and it’s probably Facebook). In December 2013, 73% of adults online were using a social networking site of some sort.

Book Review: The End of Absence
Books and recommendations from Scientific American

Facebook Emotions Are Contagious
The number of positive or negative posts people saw in their feeds was manipulated and found to influence the content of users' subsequent posts

Rent Your Everything
Peer-to-peer transactions are spreading offline and into the real world. Are you riding with strangers yet?