Have you ever walked into a tiny room and thought ‘I couldn’t swing a cat in here?’ Have you ever ‘rubbed someone up the wrong way?’ These are examples of phrases we use all the time, but do you know their origins? I love words. I love metaphors, words that…
Ever wondered why you remember some things and other things are quickly forgotten? Well, this could be due to the primacy effect. The science behind the primacy effect is simple yet complicated to navigate. I’ve recognized the characteristics of this effect many times in my life. This curious state of…
Our language is a wonderful tool. We use it to communicate our innermost thoughts and feelings. Writers in particular love to seek out words that add nuance and layers to their work. But in doing so, they can sometimes pick commonly misused words. It can be tempting to pop that…
Some words are so intrinsically embedded into our unconscious that we don’t even realise they are foreign words. Take the internationally-known distress call of ‘May Day!’ for example. It derives from the French verb for help – 'aider'. In the 1920s, people were getting used to new international radio communications.…
The English language is full of beautiful sounding words that are a delight to hear. How many of these aesthetic words do you know? Some of the most beautiful words in the English language conjure up a sense of something magical. Finding the perfect words for a sensation or feeling…
Animal intelligence could stretch to more than just an elephant’s excellent memory! As these examples will reveal. The intelligence of animals surpasses what we realize. But the first question is, how is animal intelligence measured? There have been many experiments carried out that could prove animal intelligence really exists. We…
Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations is a powerful book that has stood the test of time. It can provide deeply helpful and important lessons to us all. However, before we discuss these lessons, we should recognise who the author was. Marcus Aurelius (121-180AD), also known as ‘the Philosopher’, was Roman emperor from…
There are certain French philosophers whose ideas can provide valuable and critical insight into our lives and society today. They were highly influential in western philosophical thought, and are widely considered to be some of the greatest French thinkers of all time. The philosophers in question have similarities in their…
