Would you choose to cooperate with someone on a task even when it’s detrimental to your success? Research has found that human adults prefer to perform a task with a partner even when doing so actively hurts your chance of success. It seems that people may not be consciously thinking about their chances of success when cooperating with others because cooperation is beneficial to human life by default, so we think it’s more beneficial to do tasks with someone rather than alone. Read full article here
Societal Issues
To curb drug deaths, communities turn to Reddit, texts and wastewater
With drug overdose deaths on the rise, authorities are attempting to curb the epidemic by tracking and sharing information in real time. In one unique effort, a nonprofit in New York City is using drug-testing equipment and stamping or marking habits of dealers to identify drug batches that may endanger users. Other approaches are also being used, such as monitoring drug-related chatter on Reddit and analyzing local wastewater for opioid and other drug levels. With the combination of these efforts, researchers hope to put a dent in the opioid crisis and reduce overdose deaths. Read full article here
Merv
June 1, 2023
