science
The Science Behind Relationships; Humans Media explores the basis of our attraction, contempt, why we do what we do and to whom we do it.
Falling Between Every System
Modern social systems are often described as safety nets. Employment law protects workers. Healthcare programs provide treatment. Disability benefits replace lost income. Unemployment insurance bridges job loss. Each system is presented as a safeguard designed to catch people when life disrupts their ability to function normally. Yet for many people living with disability, chronic illness, or injury, the lived experience is the opposite. Rather than forming a net, these systems stack vertically, each with its own eligibility rules, thresholds, and assumptions. Instead of catching the fall, they create gaps. People do not slip through because they failed to try. They fall because the systems were never designed to align.
By Peter Thwing - Host of the FST Podcast8 months ago in Humans
Darkness Descends
Flying over the rift valley formed between the left and right, a kettle of rapacious vultures are patiently circling. Although the scent of death has only just begun to seep through the air, these necrophages salaciously wait in anticipation. Ogling a well intentioned yet largely uniformed society tear itself apart, they covetously await the feast with complete disregard for the collective.
By S. J. Leahy8 months ago in Humans
The Algorithm That Remembered Us. AI-Generated.
The first time the platform forgot her, it was subtle. Mira noticed it on a Tuesday morning in her apartment in Frankfurt — the gray light pressing gently against the window, the river moving with indifferent precision below. Her post from the night before, a careful meditation on loneliness in hyperconnected cities, had earned 12 views.
By LUNA EDITH8 months ago in Humans
Human-Centered Innovation: Integrating Modern Technology Without Losing the Human Touch
In today’s fast-moving world, integrating modern technology is no longer a choice. It shapes how we work, learn, shop, and connect. Yet many people worry that screens and systems may replace real human care. The truth is that technology does not have to remove empathy. When used with care, it can support stronger relationships and better service. The key is balance. We must adopt tools that help us grow while keeping people at the center of every decision.
By Ian Schenkel Haliburton8 months ago in Humans
Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series: Concentrated Wealth and the Architecture of Particle Physics
Oligarchy is usually discussed in the language of boardrooms and balance sheets. Particle physics, by contrast, lives in equations, accelerators, and theories about the smallest building blocks of matter. They seem unrelated. Yet the Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series explores how concentrated economic structures can intersect with the world of high-energy physics in ways that are rarely examined in public debate.
By Stanislav Kondrashov9 months ago in Humans
Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series: Economic Concentration and the Frontiers of Particle Physics
When people hear the word oligarchy, they tend to think of boardrooms, billion-dollar assets, and tightly connected business circles. When they hear particle physics, they picture vast underground tunnels, complex detectors, and equations few can fully grasp. At first sight, these worlds do not overlap. Yet the Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series explores how concentrated economic structures and fundamental science can intersect in subtle but meaningful ways.
By Stanislav Kondrashov 9 months ago in Humans
Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series: When Oligarchy Meets Particle Physics
In public debate, oligarchy is usually discussed in terms of wealth concentration, political leverage, and industrial empires. Particle physics, by contrast, seems to belong to a completely different universe—one of accelerators, quantum fields, and subatomic particles moving at nearly the speed of light. Yet in the Stanislav Kondrashov Oligarch Series, these two worlds intersect in ways that are rarely examined.
By Stanislav Kondrashov9 months ago in Humans
Heat Therapy Is a Game-Changer for Your Health
For centuries, cultures around the world have embraced the power of heat. From traditional Finnish saunas to modern infrared rooms, heat therapy has long been associated with relaxation, cleansing, and overall well-being. Today, saunas are more than just a luxury at spas—they’re becoming a staple in health routines for athletes, entrepreneurs, and wellness enthusiasts alike.
By AnthonyBTV9 months ago in Humans
Why is Europe banning social media for young people?
In Portugal, young people can legally engage in sexual relations from the age of 14, but following the approval of a new law, they will only be allowed to create social media accounts from the age of 16. Portugal is the latest European country to impose restrictions on social media for children. The law approved by parliament will limit free access to social media and other platforms for children under 16, requiring parental or legal guardian consent. Prohibition of “bullying” Proposed regulations in Europe are both explicit and broad: children under 13 will not be allowed to access any platform, service, game, or application covered by the law. In addition, teenagers aged 13 to 16 will need formal parental consent to use these services. In Portugal, the restriction is not limited to social networks; it also includes image and video-sharing services, betting platforms, online games, resources containing violent or sexual content, as well as “any online intermediary service whose nature or content could harm the physical or mental development of children.” However, WhatsApp messenger for personal communication, applications specifically designed for children, “knowledge-based or educational” online games, and certain resources related to education and health are exempt from the rule. Even with parental consent, teenagers will still face restrictions. Platforms will be required to ensure that their accounts remain “private,” do not appear in search results, and that algorithms are set to present only “approved” content in recommendations. In addition, features such as autoplay, AI-powered video and image production services, and the ability to “scroll” (continuous and addictive scrolling or browsing of content) will be disabled for children. The impact of the internet on young people’s mental health In 2022, the “Health Behaviour in School-aged Children” research consortium, in collaboration with the World Health Organization, studied 280,000 adolescents aged 11, 13, and 15 across 44 countries, including European nations, Central Asia, and Canada. The findings showed that more than one in ten young people display symptoms of social media addiction and face serious difficulties controlling the time they spend browsing content. This figure was higher among girls (13 percent) than boys (9 percent). Thirty-six percent of adolescents also said they are in constant contact with friends via social media, a figure that reaches 44 percent among 15-year-old girls. One-third of young people admitted to playing online games daily, and 22 percent of them spend at least four hours a day doing so. In addition to lawmakers, international organizations have also warned about the issue. In its 2024 gender report, UNESCO emphasized that platforms based on visual content and recommendation algorithms (such as Instagram) increase users’ exposure to content that promotes unhealthy behavioral patterns and unrealistic beauty standards. This trend has multiple negative consequences, including low self-esteem, negative body image, harm to mental health, and academic failure. This is particularly true for girls. Research included in the report shows that 32 percent of teenage girls believe social media has increased negative feelings about their bodies. This perspective also faces challenges and counterarguments. In 2019, Oxford University researchers Amy Orben and Andrew Przybylski tested the hypothesis that “digital technologies are harming adolescents’ health and well-being” using large-scale data from 355,000 teenagers. Using advanced statistical models, they concluded that while there is a link between adolescent mental health and digital technologies, the connection is so small (around 0.4 percent) that making major policy changes based on it seems unreasonable. Australia’s “reasonable” measures Portugal has repeatedly cited other countries’ experiences in defending its decision to set a “digital adulthood” age. Australia has been a pioneer in this area, implementing a similar restriction late last year, although regulators there prefer to describe it as “delayed access” until 16. Australian youths under that age are not allowed to have accounts on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, X, Threads, and YouTube, but they are still permitted access to Messenger, YouTube Kids, Pinterest, and Discord. The main difference between the Australian model and the Portuguese plan lies in the method of verification. Unlike Portugal, Australia has not mandated a single mechanism; instead, it requires each platform to take “reasonable steps” to prevent registration by those under 16. For example, Meta (owner of Facebook and Instagram) offers options such as providing a passport or verifying identity through a video selfie. Despite these measures, organizations such as the Digital Freedom Project in Sydney are seeking to challenge the law in court. The organization’s president and New South Wales state parliamentarian John Ruddick said, “Monitoring online activities is primarily the responsibility of parents, and we do not want to hand over this responsibility to the government and unelected bureaucrats.” YouTube’s owner Google has also deactivated all accounts of users under 16 in Australia, calling the rule “hasty” and the result of a misunderstanding of how young people use digital platforms. Economic consequences and ways to circumvent the law For tech giants like Google and Meta, these measures mean financial losses. Since December, social media companies have suspended approximately five million teenage accounts. This has led to a decline in key metrics such as daily and monthly active users, which directly affects the volume of advertising they attract. Meanwhile, more countries including Denmark, Greece, Norway, and the United Kingdom are considering similar models. In Central Europe, the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic has supported the idea of banning social media for children under 15. The European Parliament also passed a resolution last November urging member states to consider imposing restrictions on children under 16. On the other hand, critics argue that full enforcement of such restrictions is impossible and that children will be pushed toward unmonitored and potentially dangerous online spaces by seeking alternatives. There is also a warning that missing the opportunity to create safe online communities could disproportionately affect vulnerable groups compared to others.
By Real content9 months ago in Humans
Low Testosterone and Sex Drive: Symptoms, NHS Guidelines, Benefits and Risks of TRT
Back in the ’90s, Alan Reeves was on stage all the time—he was one of “The Dreamboys,” taking his clothes off in front of massive crowds. People loved him so much that he and his fellow dancers even landed a spot in the Spice Girls’ movie, Spice World. He was just 24 then, pretty full of himself and, honestly, he says he was “attractive.” But his thirties hit, and everything flipped. His mood dropped and his interest in sex just faded. “I just didn’t feel right,” he says. Now Reeves is 52, and he admits his low sex drive messed with his long-term relationship. “We’d go three or four months without sex. I just wasn’t interested. Stuff like that can really pull a couple apart.” And it’s not just men. More women are turning to testosterone, too. Rachel Mason, who’s 37 and blogs about menopause, says taking the hormone has done “amazing” things for her—she’s got more energy, can focus again, and her sex drive is back. Testosterone prescriptions are soaring. According to data from the Care Quality Commission and NHS Business Services Authority, they’ve jumped 135% from 2021 to 2024. All this is happening while, across the UK, people seem less interested in sex. The National Survey of Sexual Attitudes and Lifestyles checks in with around 10,000 people every ten years, and it’s been showing a steady drop in sexual activity. More numbers are coming later this year, but here’s the trend: in the ’90s, people aged 16 to 44 said they had sex about five times a month. That dropped to four times in the 2000s, then three times in the 2010s. The next round of results is due at the end of the year, and researchers expect the decline to keep going. No one’s found one clear reason. So, does boosting testosterone really bring back your sex drive, or is it just clever marketing? Losing Interest in Sex Alan Reeves isn’t alone. More and more people are feeling the same way, and researchers are taking notice. Suze Clifton, academic director at Natsal, says, “Over the years, we’ve seen a drop across every group. For example, there are fewer couples living together now than in the ’90s, which could explain some of it. But even when we look just at couples who still live together, desire is down.” The biggest drop shows up in older couples, especially those who are married or living together. Clifton says figuring out exactly why people want sex less these days is tough. “We don’t really know why the whole population is having less sex,” she says. Researchers keep trying to get to the bottom of it. Some point to the digital world—it just eats up everyone’s attention, leaving no room for much else. Dr. Ben Davis, a sex therapist, adds that stress is a huge factor. It’s spiked over the last 30 years. “There’s just a lot in people’s lives right now. Sure, there’s technology, but there’s also more stress, more depression, more loneliness. All of that kills desire.” There’s another theory that’s blowing up online—and it’s turned into big business: the idea that low testosterone is to blame. Professor Geoffrey Hackett, who’s with the British Society for Sexual Medicine and works as a consultant urologist, says, “Testosterone levels in men are definitely dropping. Obesity, type 2 diabetes, and being less active all lower testosterone. And when testosterone drops, so does desire.” Big studies over the last twenty years back this up—testosterone in men is going down. But Hackett says it’s not that simple. Low testosterone can affect sex drive, but not everyone with low levels feels less desire. Even so, ads are everywhere now—on the Tube, at bus stops, all over social media: Low sex drive? Brain fog? Tired all the time? Check your testosterone! Has your man lost his spark? Maybe it’s his hormones! So, is testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) really a fix for low libido? Testosterone Turned Things Around for Me Melissa Green started taking testosterone about a year ago. She says it didn’t just bring back her “spark for life,” it saved her marriage. At 43, her low sex drive was causing problems in her relationship. She was already on estrogen and progesterone for perimenopause—her doctor prescribed those as part of hormone replacement therapy. But when she asked about testosterone, her doctor said she didn’t need it and wouldn’t even check her levels. The NHS sticks to guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, which says testosterone should only be considered for women who have already tried…
By Real content9 months ago in Humans
