Are we smarter than previous generations, or do we simply think differently?

Researcher James Flynn of the University of Otago identified a surprising phenomenon: “We get far more questions right on I.Q. tests than each succeeding generation. (...) Indeed, if you score the people a century ago against modern norms, they would have an average I.Q. of 70. If you score us against their norms, we would have an average I.Q. of 130. Now this...

When love blooms a second time | Couples who find each other after divorce

Many couples only realise after divorce the price they have paid for failing to find common ground, and a few even manage to rediscover the forgotten path to their partner's heart and to rebuild their relationship.

Why do some people believe the earth is flat?

Around 10% of Americans and 7% of Brazilians believe that the Earth is flat, that the moon landing was a hoax, and that those vaccinated against Covid-19 unknowingly received a microchip along with the vaccine. Several more percent remain uncertain about the veracity of official information.

Identity crisis: a short guide for parents of teenagers

I have two reasons for writing this article on identity crisis. First, I am the father of four children, three of whom are very different teenagers (14, 17 and 19 years old) and I think I have a vague idea of what it means to deal with teens. Second, in the studies I’ve recently taken up, I was surprised to discover that most...

The invention of movable type

"The world concedes without hesitation or dispute that Gutenberg's invention is incomparably the mightiest event that has ever happened in profane history." Mark Twain

Becoming a father in the second half of life

While the debate over the “ideal age” for fatherhood may go on endlessly, one fact is clear: the average age at which men in modern society become fathers has steadily increased in recent decades. Behind the polished statistics lie moving personal stories about what it means to embrace fatherhood at an age when youth is little more than a distant memory.

The self-esteem movement and the unhappiness of a generation

They say self-esteem is a vital ingredient for success in life. But what if everything we were taught about self-esteem is wrong?

Why should you tell your friends your secrets?

In 2004, Frank Warren, an American businessman, had "a crazy idea," as he himself describes it. He printed 3,000 postcards, wrote his address on them and a series of instructions, then left space on the back for the sender to write secrets they had never shared with anyone before.

The first Christmas gift-giver

In writing this article, I asked a handful of people what the worst thing they had ever received for Christmas was. The answers I received were interesting, to say the least.

In search of the descendants of the “Good Samaritan”

Those familiar with the Bible know the story of the Good Samaritan, who helped a Jewish man who had been robbed by giving him first aid and paying for his recovery.

Why is forgiveness the strongest proof of love?

Forgiveness? There are wounds that seem impossible to forget, and injustices that cry out for revenge. By nature, the human heart clings to resentment and seeks balance through punishment. And yet, in the midst of pain, a force overturns human logic: the love of God.

Psychotronic attacks, the news aggregator, and the absurdity factory

A recent article on the website of a Romanian news aggregator claims that prayer protects against psychotronic attacks because it "raises the brain's operating frequencies". The article is a prime example of an editorial genre that proliferates precisely because of the absurdity of its claims, not in spite of them.

From fairy tale to reality | A journey toward the happiness that matters

Before I even learned to read, I had already fallen in love with timeless stories. I would have loved to hear them every day. During the summer holidays, I would insist that my older sister—the one lucky enough to have already unlocked the secrets of the alphabet—read me one more story, and then another.

Lessons on God’s love from parenting

I was standing in the supermarket queue, pushing my daughter in her pushchair, when a man well past his prime wearing camouflage trousers gave her a long look. Then he turned to me, as if continuing a conversation about parenting we'd started long ago, and said, "You know, this little girl is going to heal a lot of things in you."

Does prayer work?

As a book editor who works in a Christian publishing house, I know prayer works from a sales perspective. Books on the topic of prayer are consistently among our best sellers. It seems that many of our customers and readers—mostly people of faith, but including people who are interested but uncertain about faith—are keen to be reassured that prayer works and to find...