Author archives: Invited Researcher

Assassins

Assassins

Prepared to kill

By Invited Researcher

They were not killed by delinquents who’d had a life of trauma, nor by sadists sunk in the abysses of sex. Their executioners were not barbarians inhabited by notions of genocides, nor slaves to sects that annul reason. They were not killed by the madness that cities sometimes engender. The horror was the handiwork – […]

Can consciousness be explained by quantum physics? My research takes us a step closer to finding out

Can consciousness be explained by quantum physics? My research takes us a step closer to finding out

NeurosciencePhysics

By Invited Researcher

One of the most important open questions in science is how our consciousness is established. In the 1990s, long before winning the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics for his prediction of black holes, physicist Roger Penrose teamed up with anaesthesiologist Stuart Hameroff to propose an ambitious answer. They claimed that the brain’s neuronal system forms […]

Altcoins could provide a green solution to energy-guzzling cryptocurrencies

Altcoins could provide a green solution to energy-guzzling cryptocurrencies

Computer scienceEconomics

By Invited Researcher

The cryptocurrency bitcoin now uses up more electricity a year than the whole of Argentina, according to recent estimates from the University of Cambridge. That’s because the creation of a bitcoin, in a process called mining, is achieved by powerful computers that work night and day to decode and solve complex mathematical problems. The energy […]

IQ tests can’t measure it, but ‘cognitive flexibility’ is key to learning and creativity

IQ tests can’t measure it, but ‘cognitive flexibility’ is key to learning and creativity

NeurosciencePsychology

By Invited Researcher

IQ is often hailed as a crucial driver of success, particularly in fields such as science, innovation and technology. In fact, many people have an endless fascination with the IQ scores of famous people. But the truth is that some of the greatest achievements by our species have primarily relied on qualities such as creativity […]

Online harassment toward women

Online harassment toward women

Sociology

By Invited Researcher

Author: Martha R. Villabona works at Subdirección General de Cooperación Territorial e Innovación Educativa of the Spanish Ministry of Education and Vocational Training, where she coordinates the area of multiple literacies. The seemingly unlimited possibilities of citizen participation in social networks are affected by the polarization of debate, the aggressive style of communication and the […]

Pseudo-hallucinations: why some people see more vivid mental images than others – test yourself here

Pseudo-hallucinations: why some people see more vivid mental images than others – test yourself here

NeurosciencePsychology

By Invited Researcher

Consider the statements below. What do they describe? A trip on psychedelics? A dream? I felt I could reach through the screen to get to another place. Lasers became entire fans of light sweeping around, and then it felt as if the screen began to expand. I saw old stone buildings … like a castle […]