All articles tagged with #social interaction
A study finds that helping others through volunteering or informal support can slow cognitive decline in adults over 50 by 15-20%, with 2-4 hours of weekly help being most beneficial, highlighting the importance of social engagement for brain health.
The author stopped using noise-canceling headphones for three months, which increased their safety, awareness of surroundings, social interactions, and overall confidence, leading to a more engaged and connected experience with the world around them.
Excessive alone time during adolescence can negatively impact brain development, particularly in areas related to social cognition and emotional processing, emphasizing the importance of meaningful social interactions for healthy teen development.
Research on SuperAgers—people over 80 with youthful cognitive abilities—reveals that social engagement and maintaining brain activity are key factors in preserving mental sharpness and protecting against dementia, with SuperAgers showing less brain atrophy and more social-related neurons, highlighting the importance of socializing for healthy aging.
Lifelong social housing in rats preserves memory and cognitive flexibility during aging by enhancing hippocampal activity and neural balance, highlighting social connection as a key factor in protecting brain health in old age.
A study using AI and historical footage reveals that pedestrians in three northeastern U.S. cities walk 15% faster and spend less time in public spaces since 1980, likely due to digital communication and the rise of indoor venues like coffee shops, indicating a shift in urban social dynamics.
The article explores the phenomenon of the 'Gen Z stare,' a term describing Gen Z's tendency to stare blankly during interactions, and discusses whether it reflects social awkwardness, boredom, or a broader societal shift. Experts suggest it may be more about authentic communication and the impact of screen time than a unique generational trait, emphasizing the importance of understanding larger social contexts.
A study shows that playing tennis can add nearly 10 years to your life, outperforming running and weight training, likely due to its high-intensity, social, and interval nature, which benefits cardiovascular health and emotional well-being.
Engaging in simple social interactions, such as talking to friends or even strangers, can effectively lower cortisol levels and reduce stress, contributing to better health and longevity, as supported by experts and studies on social relationships.
Chinese researchers have developed an AI-powered robotic rat named Smuro, capable of interacting with real rodents by mimicking their body language and social cues. The robot, equipped with a camera and motor, can engage in real-time social interactions, capturing the attention of rats and altering their emotional states. This breakthrough in animal-robot interaction demonstrates the potential for future AI systems to engage in social learning and interaction with living beings, possibly paving the way for similar human-AI interactions.
Researchers at the Beijing Institute of Technology and the Technical University of Munich have developed a rat-like robot capable of socially interacting with real lab rats. Using AI and reinforcement learning, the robot mimics rat behaviors, such as aggression and playfulness, to convincingly engage with real rats. The study, published in Nature Machine Intelligence, suggests these robots could be used to study social interactions and emotional states in lab rats.
A new study in Autism Research reveals that individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have lower physiological responses to touch but report higher ratings for both pleasant and unpleasant touch sensations compared to typically developing individuals. This highlights a complex relationship between subjective experience and physiological response in people with ASD, which may impact their social interactions and quality of life. The study underscores the need for further research to better understand sensory processing in ASD and its implications for diagnosis and therapy.
AI technology could help combat loneliness by providing social interaction and helping people practice social skills, but experts warn that regulation may be needed to prevent excessive dependence on AI.
AI could play a significant role in alleviating human loneliness by providing companionship and helping individuals practice social skills, argues Tony Prescott, professor of cognitive robotics. While some experts caution against over-reliance on AI for meaningful connections, Prescott believes the benefits could outweigh the risks, especially for those facing chronic loneliness.
A study from the University of Washington's Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences (I-LABS) using magnetoencephalography (MEG) found that social interactions with adults, characterized by "parentese," smiles, and eye contact, significantly impact infant brain development and language growth. Enhanced brain activity from social interactions at 5 months correlates with better language skills up to 2.5 years old, highlighting the importance of early social engagement in strengthening the parent-child bond and playing a crucial role in the child’s linguistic and cognitive development.