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Psychology

With frank text and bold illustrations, graphic novel tackles puberty head on
Gemma Hong and Sophie Young standing together holding copies of their book.

Penn undergraduates Gemma Hong (left) and Sophie Young (right) hold copies of the graphic novel they wrote and created with alum Julie Merberg and illustrator Amelia Pinney.

nocred

With frank text and bold illustrations, graphic novel tackles puberty head on

The new book, for 9- to 14-year-olds and written by two Penn undergrads and an alum, details what physically happens in the body as girls experience puberty, plus the internal emotions and external social forces that accompany it.

Michele W. Berger

Want to get in the flow? Try this math equation
Discover Magazine

Want to get in the flow? Try this math equation

Angela Duckworth of the School of Arts & Sciences says that the larger number of possible outcomes in graded assignments provides a greater reduction in uncertainty than pass-fail assignments.

Does more money correlate with greater happiness?
Illustration of a person holding a brief case bounding up stacks of money. Dollar signs float all around and one appears in a large circular coin at the bottom right.

Image: iStock/uniquepixel

Does more money correlate with greater happiness?

Reconciling previously contradictory results, researchers from Penn and Princeton find a steady association between larger incomes and greater happiness for most people but a rise and plateau for an unhappy minority.

Michele W. Berger

How your beliefs shape reality
“Hidden Brain,” National Public Radio

How your beliefs shape reality

Jer Clifton of the School of Arts & Sciences discusses how beliefs shape reality and how to use that knowledge to live a happier and more harmonious life.

Why do so many men avoid doctor’s visits?
The New York Times

Why do so many men avoid doctor’s visits?

Nora Brier of the Perelman School of Medicine says that avoidance can worsen the anxiety and fear triggered by potential visits to the doctor’s office.

Many differences between liberals and conservatives may boil down to one belief
Scientific American

Many differences between liberals and conservatives may boil down to one belief

Research by Jer Clifton and postdoc Nicholas Kerry of the School of Arts & Sciences suggests that the main difference between the political left and right is the belief that the world is inherently hierarchical.

How shock sites shaped the internet
Vice

How shock sites shaped the internet

A paper by Nina Strohminger of the Wharton School explores the theory of benign masochism, or the “enjoyment of negative sensations for their own sake.”