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
“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...
Reposted by David Robson
Over the past year I’ve noticed more and more that reading is essential for my mental health. Now there’s evidence it can boost our longevity too. davidarobson.substack.com/p/how-readin...
The life-expanding benefits of 'deep reading'
Why literature is good for your health | Are our screens making us stupid?
davidarobson.substack.com
August 17, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Over the past year I’ve noticed more and more that reading is essential for my mental health. Now there’s evidence it can boost our longevity too. davidarobson.substack.com/p/how-readin...
Over the past year I’ve noticed more and more that reading is essential for my mental health. Now there’s evidence it can boost our longevity too. davidarobson.substack.com/p/how-readin...
The life-expanding benefits of 'deep reading'
Why literature is good for your health | Are our screens making us stupid?
davidarobson.substack.com
August 17, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Over the past year I’ve noticed more and more that reading is essential for my mental health. Now there’s evidence it can boost our longevity too. davidarobson.substack.com/p/how-readin...
Reposted by David Robson
This is useful from @davidarobson.bsky.social (whom I was happy to meet IRL last night!)...
I am on a real mission atm to remove hasslers from my life – so much of my discontent comes from people who pester and hassle me, usually unnecessarily, and I'm not surprised there is physiological impact.
I am on a real mission atm to remove hasslers from my life – so much of my discontent comes from people who pester and hassle me, usually unnecessarily, and I'm not surprised there is physiological impact.
“The same person who comforts you today might criticise you tomorrow, creating more physiological damage than relationships you can simply categorise as bad and potentially avoid.”
A Q&A with sociologist BK Lee on the reasons “hasslers” accelerate ageing open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
A Q&A with sociologist BK Lee on the reasons “hasslers” accelerate ageing open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
August 15, 2025 at 4:38 PM
This is useful from @davidarobson.bsky.social (whom I was happy to meet IRL last night!)...
I am on a real mission atm to remove hasslers from my life – so much of my discontent comes from people who pester and hassle me, usually unnecessarily, and I'm not surprised there is physiological impact.
I am on a real mission atm to remove hasslers from my life – so much of my discontent comes from people who pester and hassle me, usually unnecessarily, and I'm not surprised there is physiological impact.
Huge congratulations to Melissa Hogenboom for this gem!
Breadwinners examines the fascinating psychology of power dynamics at work and in the home - it’s a must-read for anyone who wants to live in a fairer world.
Happy publication day!
Breadwinners examines the fascinating psychology of power dynamics at work and in the home - it’s a must-read for anyone who wants to live in a fairer world.
Happy publication day!
August 14, 2025 at 7:29 PM
Huge congratulations to Melissa Hogenboom for this gem!
Breadwinners examines the fascinating psychology of power dynamics at work and in the home - it’s a must-read for anyone who wants to live in a fairer world.
Happy publication day!
Breadwinners examines the fascinating psychology of power dynamics at work and in the home - it’s a must-read for anyone who wants to live in a fairer world.
Happy publication day!
Reposted by David Robson
Climate journalist and New Scientist contributor Alec Luhn has gone missing on a Norwegian glacier. His family is asking that anyone hiking in the region share any information with local authorities. www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news...
American climate journalist Alec Luhn missing on Norwegian glacier
A search is underway for award-winning climate journalist Alec Luhn, a Wisconsin native, who is missing on a Norwegian glacier.
www.cbsnews.com
August 6, 2025 at 10:53 AM
Climate journalist and New Scientist contributor Alec Luhn has gone missing on a Norwegian glacier. His family is asking that anyone hiking in the region share any information with local authorities. www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news...
Enjoyed chatting to Jim Mora on Radio New Zealand’s Sunday Morning Show about the ways our social circle influence our biological ageing www.rnz.co.nz/national/pro...
Annoying people might be ageing you
A recent study shows negative social ties could add as much as 2.5 months to your biological age.
www.rnz.co.nz
August 3, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Enjoyed chatting to Jim Mora on Radio New Zealand’s Sunday Morning Show about the ways our social circle influence our biological ageing www.rnz.co.nz/national/pro...
“The same person who comforts you today might criticise you tomorrow, creating more physiological damage than relationships you can simply categorise as bad and potentially avoid.”
A Q&A with sociologist BK Lee on the reasons “hasslers” accelerate ageing open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
A Q&A with sociologist BK Lee on the reasons “hasslers” accelerate ageing open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
August 2, 2025 at 3:50 PM
“The same person who comforts you today might criticise you tomorrow, creating more physiological damage than relationships you can simply categorise as bad and potentially avoid.”
A Q&A with sociologist BK Lee on the reasons “hasslers” accelerate ageing open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
A Q&A with sociologist BK Lee on the reasons “hasslers” accelerate ageing open.substack.com/pub/davidaro...
Do you have a “hassler” in your social circle? They are the people who bring unnecessary drama - and recent research suggests that the subsequent stress can accelerate our biological ageing.
I’ve just published a Q&A with the scientist behind the study davidarobson.substack.com/p/why-the-ha...
I’ve just published a Q&A with the scientist behind the study davidarobson.substack.com/p/why-the-ha...
August 2, 2025 at 9:13 AM
Do you have a “hassler” in your social circle? They are the people who bring unnecessary drama - and recent research suggests that the subsequent stress can accelerate our biological ageing.
I’ve just published a Q&A with the scientist behind the study davidarobson.substack.com/p/why-the-ha...
I’ve just published a Q&A with the scientist behind the study davidarobson.substack.com/p/why-the-ha...