Maybe pain is just bad (The New Yorker)
by Ariel Levy
We like to think that unpleasant experiences make us stronger and more empathetic. But a much-studied, extremely lovely woman with a genetic condition that eliminates pain and distress offers evidence for very different conclusions.

What a good birdie (NPR)
by Nell Greenfieldboyce
Scientists once believed that prosocial behavior was uniquely human. Turns out, African grey parrots also help each other even without expectation of a reward. But research suggests ravens and macaws may just be jerks.

Boys need better sex ed (The New York Times)
by Peggy Orenstein
Assumptions about male and female sexual roles hurt young men as well as young women. Real conversations with boys can help them do better for their partners, and themselves.

We’re drinking ourselves to death (CNN)
by Jen Christensen
A new study finds US alcohol-related deaths have more than doubled over the last two decades. Why are we drinking so much and in such dangerous ways?

The other victim of US-Iran conflict (The Washington Post)
by Zahra Ali
For months, Iraqis have been staging peaceful pro-democracy protests. A sociologist observing their work writes that the conflict unleashed by the US assassination of Qasem Soleimani has given their opponents in the government new ammunition.

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