You know when you see someone yawn, and suddenly, you find yourself yawning seconds later? It's possible that, just like a contagious yawn, stress works similarly. Think about how many times you've felt stressed out when a partner, family member, or even coworker around you was exhibiting symptoms of stress. So, is stress contagious? Krystal Lewis, clinical psychologist and board member of the Anxiety and Depression Association of America, explains if stress can be deemed emotionally contagious ...read more
Maybe you’re sprawled on the sofa, clutching the armrest in terror — yet still unable to tear your eyes away — as Freddy Kruger slices his way across the screen in A Nightmare on Elm Street. Or perhaps you’re tiptoeing through a haunted house at a local amusement park, bubbling with nervous anticipation as you walk around every corner. You might even be sitting in the dark of a movie theater, gasping and shrieking at Hollywood’s latest horror flick in unison with dozens of strangers. ...read more
In folklore, animals are depicted as messengers, symbols, or omens. Many of these stories are similar in cultures throughout millennia and feature folk beliefs brought on by fear of death, illness, and the unexplained. The animals mostly related to symbols or omens of death are scavengers, nocturnal, or associated with negative events. "So generally, in folklore, animals that are associated with death are the ones that are omens of death," says Sabina Magliocco, a folklorist and professor of an ...read more
Ancient Greeks knew that death was the final door they had to cross. After a burial in the Earth, water carried deceased mortals into Hades, the realm of the Underworld. They spent the rest of their existence there until they were ultimately forgotten.The Greeks’ idea of Hades and what it looked like constantly evolved over time, but one thing was certain: Once you were dead, you could not cross back into the living (and vice versa). The guardian of these barriers between life and the afterlif ...read more
While wooden stakes, sunlight that burns and bats come to mind when you think of vampires, you probably wouldn't think of a padlock and scythe. But the findings of an alleged "vampire" in Poland shows there was some paranoia around the paranormal. The remains of a 17th-century woman with a scythe across her neck and a padlock clamped on her toe indicate she may have been accused of being a witch or a vampire. She was buried with these precautions to ensure that she, the ghost or spirit of this ...read more
Author Vishay SinghPosted on Categories Discover Magazine