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Rhaina Cohen

Stories

  • A man sitting by himself at a picnic table.
    Health

    Guys, We Have A Problem: How American Masculinity Creates Lonely Men

    Boys get the message at a young age: don't show your feelings. Don't rely on anyone. This week, we bring you a favorite 2018 episode about misguided notions of masculinity in the United States. We explore how these notions create stressed-out romantic relationships, physical health problems, and a growing epidemic of loneliness. Plus, we consider how we might begin to tell a different story about what it means to be a man.

  • Our fear of death affects us more than we think.
    Science

    We're All Gonna Die! How Fear Of Death Drives Our Behavior

    Death may be inescapable, but we do our best to avoid thinking about it. Psychologist Sheldon Solomon says we're not very successful, though. This week on Hidden Brain, we confront how death anxiety courses through our actions, even when we don't realize it.

  • FILE - In this March 7, 2017 file photo, rowers paddle along the Charles River past the Harvard College campus in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)
    Education

    You Can't Hit Unsend: How A Social Media Scandal Unfolded At Harvard

    Social media sites offer quick and easy ways to share ideas, crack jokes, find old friends. They can make us feel part of something big and wonderful and fast-moving. But the things we post don't go away. And they can come back to haunt us. This week, we explore how one teenager's social media posts destroyed a golden opportunity he'd worked for all his life.

  • caption: Every time you give in to your phone or computer that's buzzing with notifications, you pay a price: little by little, you lose your ability to focus.
    Science

    You 2.0: Deep Work

    When your phone buzzes or a notification pops up your screen, do you stop what you're doing to look and respond? That's what many of us are doing. Even though we think we should be less distracted by technology, we haven't admitted the true cost of these interruptions. This week, we revisit our 2017 conversation with computer scientist Cal Newport, and consider ways we can all immerse ourselves in more meaningful work.

  • caption: Our voices convey so much more than just information. They can tell other people something essential about who we are.
    Science

    Finding Your Voice: How The Way We Sound Shapes Our Identities

    At some point in our lives, many of us realize that the way we hear our own voice isn't the way others hear us. This week on Hidden Brain, we look at the relationship between our voices and our identities. Plus, we hear how advances in technology might help people with vocal impairments, and consider the ethical quandaries that arise when we can create personalized, customized voices.

  • People line up outside the new Apple store on its opening day in Paris in 2017.
    Science

    I Buy, Therefore I Am: How Brands Become Part Of Who We Are

    All of us are surrounded by brands. Designer brands. Bargain-shopper brands. Brands for seemingly every demographic slice among us. But have you ever stopped to ask yourself how brands influence you? This week, we look at how companies create a worldview around the products they sell, and then get us to make those products a part of who we are.