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Scarcity Mindset Study Reanalyzed: Game Rules, Not Tunnel Vision, Explained the Results

MHD card with receding teal tunnel rings and a narrow spotlight falling on three gold coins beside a small target, illustrating a reanalysis finding that the scarcity tunneling effect came from game rules.

A new study reanalyzed a widely cited target-shooting experiment used to support the scarcity mindset theory. That theory says money shortages focus attention on immediate needs and make future costs easier to overlook.1 Giving players fewer or more shots changed their opportunities to score and borrow, explaining results previously attributed to narrowed attention. The findings …

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Ultra-Processed Foods Linked to Lower Attention in 2,192 Adults

MHD featured image for ultra-processed foods, attention, and dementia-risk scores.

A 2026 Australian study involving 2,192 dementia-free adults found that each 10% higher ultra-processed food intake was associated with 0.05-point lower attention and 0.24-point higher modified CAIDE dementia-risk score.1 The memory result was not significant, so the honest read is attention and risk-score signal, not global cognitive collapse. Research Highlights Attention was lower: Each 10% …

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How Betrayal Biases Trust: Selective Attention, Distrust, and Social Judgment

Betrayal does not just make people less trusting. It can also change what they pay attention to afterward. After a negative social surprise, people may start scanning more closely for signs of threat, which can make distrust easier to confirm and harder to undo. Research Highlights Selective observation: Son and Yoo 2026 modeled social inference …

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Self-Directed Neuroplasticity: Consciously Changing Your Brain Function

Self-directed neuroplasticity is a concept derived from the researcher Dr. Jeffrey M. Schwartz in his book, “The Mind & The Brain“ (Neuroplasticity and the Power of Mental Force). In the book, he makes a compelling argument that you aren’t at the mercy of genetically-predetermined brain activity. His research suggests that you play an active role in influencing brain function …

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