One simple word makes children 30% more likely to cooperate. It works on adults, too.

Human psychology really isn’t that complicated, if you think about it.

By Tod Perry

Human psychology really isn’t that complicated, if you think about it. Everybody wants to see themselves in a positive light. That’s the key to understanding Jonah Berger’s simple tactic that makes people 30% more likely to do what you ask. Berger is a marketing professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and the bestselling author of “Magic Words: What to Say to Get Your Way.”

Berger explained the technique using a Stanford University study involving preschoolers. The researchers messed up a classroom and made two similar requests to groups of 5-year-olds to help clean up.

One group was asked, “Can you help clean?” The other was asked, “Can you be a helper and clean up?” The kids who were asked if they wanted to be a “helper” were 30% more likely to want to clean the classroom. The children weren’t interested in cleaning but wanted to be known as “helpers.” 

Shade up or shade down? Flight attendant settles the plane window etiquette debate.

A rude passenger on a flight over the Arctic has people talking.

By Cecily Knobler

Even though commercial airlines have been taking flight for 112 years, questions about etiquette still spark heated debates. Who gets the middle seat armrest? How many bags are fair to put in the overhead compartment? And one small argument continues to rage: Should the window shade be up or down, and who gets to decide?

While plenty of online discussions ping-pong the debate, the topic went viral last month after a woman documented a flight across the Arctic Ocean. Passenger Kelly Meng was flying in an economy seat from Chicago to Tokyo when, unfortunately, a fellow passenger didn’t comply with others’ wishes.

Core memory.

Education is freedom. 🙌

This International Women’s Month, Pura is celebrating girls’ right to education in a collection inspired by Malala Fund's work in Tanzania, Brazil, Pakistan and Nigeria. Pura is supporting their mission to ensure that all girls can access and complete 12 years of education.

The Pura x Malala Fund collection reflects the courage, resilience, and joy of girls pursuing their right to learn and celebrate the unique places they call home. Learn more about the collection - linked here!

Chemical engineer breaks down the science behind the ‘impossible’ ice cream transfer trick

There’s a “surprisingly deep” explanation for how chocolate and vanilla transfer simultaneously.

By Annie Reneau

We live in an era of incredible scientific advancements, from genetic editing to immunotherapy to nanotechnology. And yet, even the simplest science experiments using basic materials can still blow our minds.

People have been sharing what happens when you swipe two ice cream scoops against each other, with an unexpected result. It’s not surprising that some of one flavor transfers to the other. What’s weird is that both scoops transfer to each other, as if there’s an equal exchange of matter. How does that work?