FRESH IDEAS: Swear and enjoy yourself

From The New Yorker: "In 2009, Richard Stephens, a psychologist at Keele University, in England, asked a group of volunteers to plunge one hand into a bucket of ice-cold water and keep it there for as long as they could. Sometimes Stephens instructed them to repeat an expletive of their choice — one that 'they might use if they banged their head or hit their thumb with a hammer,' according to an article he wrote about the study.

COMMENTARY: Another way the system mistreats the poor.

"Other times he had them repeat a neutral word, like 'wooden' or 'brown.' With few exceptions, the volunteers could hold their hand in the water for longer when they cursed — about 40 seconds longer, on average. Swearing, Stephens thinks, may be a form of pain management, maybe even empowerment."

Read the original essay here.

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