David Robson
@davidarobson.bsky.social
Award-winning science writer and author of The Intelligence Trap, The Expectation Effect, and The Laws of Connection (Canongate/Pegasus).
davidarobson.substack.com
davidarobson.substack.com
Reposted by David Robson
Has anyone else noticed that even their most politically disinterested friends/family/acquaintances are horrified by what’s been happening of late? Decency and morality still count for something, and most people are not as cynical and nihilistic as our authoritarian overlords would have us believe?
January 30, 2026 at 11:23 AM
Has anyone else noticed that even their most politically disinterested friends/family/acquaintances are horrified by what’s been happening of late? Decency and morality still count for something, and most people are not as cynical and nihilistic as our authoritarian overlords would have us believe?
I have a new piece in @nytimes.com on men's sexual health and the stigma surrounding it. Very pleased to write about this important topic - I was surprised to learn just how much our lifestyle can affect fertility www.nytimes.com/2026/01/21/w...
5 Things Doctors Wish Men Knew About Sexual Health
www.nytimes.com
January 21, 2026 at 10:59 AM
I have a new piece in @nytimes.com on men's sexual health and the stigma surrounding it. Very pleased to write about this important topic - I was surprised to learn just how much our lifestyle can affect fertility www.nytimes.com/2026/01/21/w...
Can AI diagnose mental illness as well as humans? My new piece for @newscientist.com explores the promise and risk of “digital biomarkers” www.newscientist.com/article/2509...
Psychiatry has finally found an objective way to spot mental illness
A decades-long push to identify clear biomarkers for anxiety and depression is at last achieving results
www.newscientist.com
January 15, 2026 at 5:56 PM
Can AI diagnose mental illness as well as humans? My new piece for @newscientist.com explores the promise and risk of “digital biomarkers” www.newscientist.com/article/2509...
"No pain, no gain" might sound inspirational, but it's a poor means of making positive changes in our lives.
My new piece in @theguardian.com draws on self-determination theory to explain why pleasure is the secret to successful self-improvement: www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...
My new piece in @theguardian.com draws on self-determination theory to explain why pleasure is the secret to successful self-improvement: www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...
Why pleasure is the key to self-improvement
Forget puritanical self-discipline – the way to really make a new habit stick is to lace it with instant gratification
www.theguardian.com
January 12, 2026 at 11:36 AM
"No pain, no gain" might sound inspirational, but it's a poor means of making positive changes in our lives.
My new piece in @theguardian.com draws on self-determination theory to explain why pleasure is the secret to successful self-improvement: www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...
My new piece in @theguardian.com draws on self-determination theory to explain why pleasure is the secret to successful self-improvement: www.theguardian.com/books/2026/j...
Reposted by David Robson
Next up, seek out the profound emotion of social connection. Whether it's watching a cute video or being moved to tears by live music, @davidarobson.bsky.social has investigated how to get more kama muta into your life, and why you should want to: www.newscientist.com/article/2507...
The emotion you never knew you had, and how to feel more of it
The warm and fuzzy emotion of kama muta underlies vital feel-good experiences like social connection and feeling part of something bigger. But are you getting enough of it?
www.newscientist.com
January 6, 2026 at 9:27 AM
Next up, seek out the profound emotion of social connection. Whether it's watching a cute video or being moved to tears by live music, @davidarobson.bsky.social has investigated how to get more kama muta into your life, and why you should want to: www.newscientist.com/article/2507...
This bilingual podcast is the first time I've given an interview in Spanish about my work! The perfectionist in me hates hearing my mistakes and hesitation, but the truth is that two years ago, I could only manage tourist transactions, so this seems like a milestone.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pPd...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pPd...
December 17, 2025 at 10:24 AM
This bilingual podcast is the first time I've given an interview in Spanish about my work! The perfectionist in me hates hearing my mistakes and hesitation, but the truth is that two years ago, I could only manage tourist transactions, so this seems like a milestone.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pPd...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pPd...
I loved writing this piece on “micropractices” - very brief acts of contemplation that can enhance our emotional wellbeing.
"Three breaths is all you need to tune into the present moment" - how small bursts of mindfulness practices lasting a minute or less can have unexpected benefits for those with busy lives, by @davidarobson.bsky.social www.newscientist.com/article/2502...
Too busy to meditate? Microdosing mindfulness has big health benefits
Small bursts of mindfulness practices lasting a minute or less can have unexpected benefits for those with busy lives - here’s how
www.newscientist.com
December 10, 2025 at 2:22 PM
I loved writing this piece on “micropractices” - very brief acts of contemplation that can enhance our emotional wellbeing.
Reposted by David Robson
An underappreciated reason why we fail to say no to a bad suggestion is ‘insinuation anxiety’—fear that so would be interpreted as insinuating something offensive about the other person, writes @davidarobson.bsky.social:
buff.ly/eZCOfEh
buff.ly/eZCOfEh
November 13, 2025 at 12:59 PM
An underappreciated reason why we fail to say no to a bad suggestion is ‘insinuation anxiety’—fear that so would be interpreted as insinuating something offensive about the other person, writes @davidarobson.bsky.social:
buff.ly/eZCOfEh
buff.ly/eZCOfEh
“Living itself means nothing other than being questioned; our whole act of being is nothing more than responding to — of being responsible toward — life. With this mental standpoint nothing can scare us anymore, no future, no apparent lack of a future.”
11 months after his release from the concentration camps, Viktor Frankl gave a set of lectures on moving beyond optimism and pessimism to find life's deepest source of meaning. They were lost for decades, never before published in English—and now they are: www.themarginalian.org/2020/05/17/y...
Yes to Life, in Spite of Everything: Viktor Frankl’s Lost Lectures on Moving Beyond Optimism and Pessimism to Find the Deepest Source of Meaning
“Everything depends on the individual human being, regardless of how small a number of like-minded people there is… on each person… creatively making the meaning of life a reality…
www.themarginalian.org
November 1, 2025 at 7:45 PM
“Living itself means nothing other than being questioned; our whole act of being is nothing more than responding to — of being responsible toward — life. With this mental standpoint nothing can scare us anymore, no future, no apparent lack of a future.”
Reposted by David Robson
Got purpose? Live longer!
@davidarobson.bsky.social finds sound evidence for the claim that purpose is more important than overall life satisfaction in predicting people’s physical health and longevity:
buff.ly/8llzpLm
@davidarobson.bsky.social finds sound evidence for the claim that purpose is more important than overall life satisfaction in predicting people’s physical health and longevity:
buff.ly/8llzpLm
October 24, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Got purpose? Live longer!
@davidarobson.bsky.social finds sound evidence for the claim that purpose is more important than overall life satisfaction in predicting people’s physical health and longevity:
buff.ly/8llzpLm
@davidarobson.bsky.social finds sound evidence for the claim that purpose is more important than overall life satisfaction in predicting people’s physical health and longevity:
buff.ly/8llzpLm
Reposted by David Robson
Leonardo was quite the genius inventor.
But he also documented his speculative invention “Method of Awakening the Mind to a Variety of Inventions” which led him to meaningful patterns in the random chaos of the world around him, writes @davidarobson.bsky.social:
buff.ly/blzt6Ml
But he also documented his speculative invention “Method of Awakening the Mind to a Variety of Inventions” which led him to meaningful patterns in the random chaos of the world around him, writes @davidarobson.bsky.social:
buff.ly/blzt6Ml
October 12, 2025 at 6:51 PM
Leonardo was quite the genius inventor.
But he also documented his speculative invention “Method of Awakening the Mind to a Variety of Inventions” which led him to meaningful patterns in the random chaos of the world around him, writes @davidarobson.bsky.social:
buff.ly/blzt6Ml
But he also documented his speculative invention “Method of Awakening the Mind to a Variety of Inventions” which led him to meaningful patterns in the random chaos of the world around him, writes @davidarobson.bsky.social:
buff.ly/blzt6Ml
Reposted by David Robson
Don’t care what the critics are saying, I unashamedly love The Life of A Showgirl, especially the clever play on Father Figure
October 6, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Don’t care what the critics are saying, I unashamedly love The Life of A Showgirl, especially the clever play on Father Figure
Reposted by David Robson
Writing this peace for @newscientist.com about the psychology of narcissism helped me to clarify a painful family dynamic www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
The truth about narcissists: How to handle them, and can they change?
Although narcissistic personality disorder is rarer than you might think, psychological research suggests it can come in two different types, one of which may be underdiagnosed
www.newscientist.com
September 24, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Writing this peace for @newscientist.com about the psychology of narcissism helped me to clarify a painful family dynamic www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
Writing this peace for @newscientist.com about the psychology of narcissism helped me to clarify a painful family dynamic www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
The truth about narcissists: How to handle them, and can they change?
Although narcissistic personality disorder is rarer than you might think, psychological research suggests it can come in two different types, one of which may be underdiagnosed
www.newscientist.com
September 24, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Writing this peace for @newscientist.com about the psychology of narcissism helped me to clarify a painful family dynamic www.newscientist.com/article/2496...
Thanks to the end-of-history illusion, we feel that we’re permanently on the cusp of understanding life - yet those epiphanies are little more than mirages of self-understanding
+ a shortcut to close bonds open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
+ a shortcut to close bonds open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
The dangers of false epiphanies
A shortcut to close bonds | The end-of-history illusion
open.substack.com
September 20, 2025 at 11:30 AM
Thanks to the end-of-history illusion, we feel that we’re permanently on the cusp of understanding life - yet those epiphanies are little more than mirages of self-understanding
+ a shortcut to close bonds open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
+ a shortcut to close bonds open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
Excited about this!
September 16, 2025 at 5:51 PM
Excited about this!
Reposted by David Robson
📱 Is Jonathan Haidt right about smartphones and screens? @jonsevers.bsky.social speaks to the Anxious Generation author – and his critics – in this in-depth investigation into one of today's major education debates.
Read the full article here ⬇️
Read the full article here ⬇️
Is Jonathan Haidt right about smartphones?
We speak to The Anxious Generation author – and his critics – about a key challenge for schools
www.tes.com
September 3, 2025 at 5:05 AM
📱 Is Jonathan Haidt right about smartphones and screens? @jonsevers.bsky.social speaks to the Anxious Generation author – and his critics – in this in-depth investigation into one of today's major education debates.
Read the full article here ⬇️
Read the full article here ⬇️
“While submission is transactional and involves a loss of control, when two people surrender to each other, they feel alive, empowered, accepted. They feel love.”
I hugely enjoyed Love’s Labour by psychoanalyst Stephen Grosz. It’s full of wisdom on the nuances and contradictions of romance.
I hugely enjoyed Love’s Labour by psychoanalyst Stephen Grosz. It’s full of wisdom on the nuances and contradictions of romance.
September 4, 2025 at 7:15 PM
“While submission is transactional and involves a loss of control, when two people surrender to each other, they feel alive, empowered, accepted. They feel love.”
I hugely enjoyed Love’s Labour by psychoanalyst Stephen Grosz. It’s full of wisdom on the nuances and contradictions of romance.
I hugely enjoyed Love’s Labour by psychoanalyst Stephen Grosz. It’s full of wisdom on the nuances and contradictions of romance.
Excited to have next week's cover feature for @newscientist.com about a big new theory in neuroscience, which claims that the brain lies on the boundary between order and disorder (1/5)
www.newscientist.com/article/2493...
www.newscientist.com/article/2493...
The crucial role of chaos in our brain’s most extraordinary functions
That the human mind treads a delicate line between order and disorder is a radical idea that’s gaining traction - and is changing our understanding of intelligence, consciousness and creativity
www.newscientist.com
September 2, 2025 at 12:43 PM
Excited to have next week's cover feature for @newscientist.com about a big new theory in neuroscience, which claims that the brain lies on the boundary between order and disorder (1/5)
www.newscientist.com/article/2493...
www.newscientist.com/article/2493...
My latest post examines the fact that employers exploit their most loyal workers, and the reasons that we find it hard to say no to bad ideas open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
August 23, 2025 at 3:32 PM
My latest post examines the fact that employers exploit their most loyal workers, and the reasons that we find it hard to say no to bad ideas open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
Why do we say yes to the bad ideas?
One reason is “insinuation anxiety” - our fear of demonstrating our distrust of the other person. It’s the subject of my latest newsletter. davidarobson.substack.com/p/insinuatio...
One reason is “insinuation anxiety” - our fear of demonstrating our distrust of the other person. It’s the subject of my latest newsletter. davidarobson.substack.com/p/insinuatio...
Insinuation anxiety: why it’s so hard to say ‘no’ to bad ideas
The reasons bosses exploit worker loyalty | How to be more defiant
davidarobson.substack.com
August 23, 2025 at 10:00 AM
Why do we say yes to the bad ideas?
One reason is “insinuation anxiety” - our fear of demonstrating our distrust of the other person. It’s the subject of my latest newsletter. davidarobson.substack.com/p/insinuatio...
One reason is “insinuation anxiety” - our fear of demonstrating our distrust of the other person. It’s the subject of my latest newsletter. davidarobson.substack.com/p/insinuatio...
Reposted by David Robson
Not sure why this is only framed around the rich - it might surprise you, but I hear that poor people also experience temperature
As Londoners struggle to adapt to rising temperatures, some of the city’s wealthier denizens are finding that money can’t always deliver the relief they seek
Rich Londoners Balk at Hearing ‘No’ in Efforts to Install ACs
As Londoners struggle to adapt to rising temperatures, some of the city’s wealthier denizens are finding that money can’t always deliver the relief they seek.
bloom.bg
August 19, 2025 at 7:04 AM
Not sure why this is only framed around the rich - it might surprise you, but I hear that poor people also experience temperature
Reposted by David Robson
Readers are less likely to die early than non-readers, and book readers the least likely.
@davidarobson.bsky.social digs into an extraordinary claim and finds the evidence supports it: deep reading does seem to confer longevity benefits:
open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
@davidarobson.bsky.social digs into an extraordinary claim and finds the evidence supports it: deep reading does seem to confer longevity benefits:
open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
August 18, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Readers are less likely to die early than non-readers, and book readers the least likely.
@davidarobson.bsky.social digs into an extraordinary claim and finds the evidence supports it: deep reading does seem to confer longevity benefits:
open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
@davidarobson.bsky.social digs into an extraordinary claim and finds the evidence supports it: deep reading does seem to confer longevity benefits:
open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...