What mixed emotions look like in your brain

+ wisdom from cowboy commentator Will Rogers US Edition - Today's top story: Mixed emotions – neuroscience is exploring how your brain lets you experience two opposite feelings at once [View in browser]( US Edition | 23 September 2024 [The Conversation] [The Conversation]( Top headlines - [DDT and acid rain hold lessons for solving climate change]( - [What happened when Goodwill built a school for high school dropouts]( - [Why can’t it always be summer?]( Lead story Life has its ups and downs – and sometimes it can feel like they’re happening at once. Have you experienced the mixed emotions of excitement, pride and fear as you embark on a new challenge? Or a blend of love and sadness when a family member moves away? Most people are familiar with feeling mixed emotions. But USC Dornsife neuroscientist Anthony Gianni Vaccaro writes that a lot of psychology research hasn’t considered it possible to hold both a positive emotion and a negative emotion simultaneously. Are we just toggling back and forth between these emotions super quickly? Vaccaro and his colleagues investigated by scanning people’s brains while they watched a bittersweet short film. Their study “revealed something new about [how complex feelings are formed in the brain](.” [ [The latest on philanthropy and nonprofits. Sign up for our weekly Giving Today newsletter](. ] Maggie Villiger Senior Science + Technology Editor Today's newsletter supported by [our texting service]( Can you hold a positive emotion simultaneously with a negative one? Dimitri Otis/Stone via Getty Images [Mixed emotions – neuroscience is exploring how your brain lets you experience two opposite feelings at once]( Anthony Gianni Vaccaro, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences Bittersweet experiences aren’t uncommon. Do people ever truly feel both positive and negative at the same exact moment, or do we just switch quickly back and forth? Politics + Society - [How sheriffs define law and order for their counties depends a lot on their views − and most are white Republican men]( Mirya Holman, University of Houston; Emily Farris, Texas Christian University There is a long history of sheriffs reinforcing social inequality − both informally and by using formal powers of their office - [Gun violence in Philadelphia plummeted in 2024 − researchers aren’t sure why, but here are 3 factors at play]( Carla Lewandowski, Rowan University; John A. Shjarback, Rowan University As of late September 2024, homicides in Philadelphia are down 40% compared with 2023. - [View politics critically but charitably and with good old common sense: cowboy commentator Will Rogers’ wisdom for 2024]( Steven Watts, University of Missouri-Columbia Humorist Will Rogers spent decades gleefully skewering what he called the ‘bunk’ of American politics − hypocrisy, inflated egos, shady deal-making. Both parties stood guilty of peddling bunk. International - [A weakened Hezbollah is being goaded into all-out conflict with Israel – the consequences would be devastating for all]( Asher Kaufman, University of Notre Dame Israelis and Lebanese face similar predicaments: Their well-being is being sacrificed for military priorities. Environment + Energy - [Climate change is a pollution problem, and countries have stopped similar threats before – think DDT and acid rain]( Alexander E. Gates, Rutgers University - Newark Pollution solutions start with public pressure, often in the face of industry pushback and slow-moving political responses. - [Sharks and rays leap out of the water for many reasons, including feeding, courtship and communication]( A. Peter Klimley, University of California, Davis Breaching is one of the most spectacular behaviors among marine animals. A recent review shows that many shark and ray species breach, and identifies the most commonly hypothesized reasons. Science + Technology - [Here’s how to maintain healthy smartphone habits]( Shelia R. Cotten, Clemson University Healthy smartphone use depends as much on the way you use it as how much you use it. The key is paying attention to your phone behavior. - [Why can’t it always be summer? It’s all about the Earth’s tilt]( Stephanie Spera, University of Richmond The tilt of the Earth and your distance from the equator are just 2 reasons why summer’s not year-round. Ethics + Religion - [A video game based on the Chinese novel ‘Journey to the West’ is the most recent example of innovative retelling of this popular story]( Michael Naparstek, University of Tennessee The game allows players to free Sun Wukong, the monkey protagonist from the popular 16th century novel ‘Journey to the West,’ and introduces players to the complexity of Chinese religion. Education - [Goodwill created a new high school for dropouts − it led to better jobs and higher wages]( Patrick Turner, University of Notre Dame Graduates of The Excel Center in Indiana got steadier jobs and saw a 40% increase in earnings. Arts + Culture - [Inside the collapse of Disney’s America, the US history-themed park that almost was]( Jared Bahir Browsh, University of Colorado Boulder 30 years ago, the company had grand plans to build a history-themed park in Virginia. But efforts to ‘Disneyfy’ American history met staunch opposition, even in the halcyon 1990s. Trending on site - [Trump’s second assassination attempt is shocking, but attempts on presidents’ lives are not rare in US history]( - [Men are carrying the brunt of the ‘loneliness epidemic’ amid potent societal pressures]( - [Pager attack on Hezbollah was a sophisticated ‘booby-trap’ operation − it was also illegal]( Reader Comments 💬 "I’ve always viewed aspen forests as stands of placid trees with creatures scurrying around and all over them. But the trees themselves didn’t seem to be doing anything apart from growing....Now I learn that aspen trees can summon up resources to defend themselves. Truly amazing stuff!" – Reader Bohdanna Pankiw on the story [Invasive caterpillars can make aspen forests more toxic for native insects – a team of ecologists explains how]( - - More of The Conversation Like this newsletter? 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