Happiness is… a warm puppy? It is for me. Our mixed-breed Yorky snuggles at my feet at night, after a flurry of good-night face licks.
Susan Dominus has written a great magazine piece for the New York Times magazine, on decades of research on what makes people happy. Thousands of people, interviews, questionnaires, longitudinal studies tracking people almost from birth to death, observations….. [1]
Hey! Scholars! It is hiding in plain view. Honest.
Last week, in the Parshah (chapter) of the Bible Jewish people read in synagogue on the Sabbath, we read in Leviticus 18:19: Love thy neighbor as yourself. The Golden Rule. But importantly, this has an important context. For 18 verses before the Golden Rule, we are told to help the poor, pay fair wages, tell the truth, not to lie, leave gleanings in the wheat field for the needy, …. In other words, how to be kind, compassionate, helpful, loving, loving, to others – ALL others, not just our loved ones.
The final editing of the Hebrew Bible, the five books of Moses, probably took place during the Jewish exile in Babylon, 6th to 5th century B.C.E. (Deepy religious Jews believe the Torah, Bible, was given in totum to Moses at Mount Sinai).
So, what did the Harvard happiness studies find? Happiness is….healthy, vibrant relationships with other people. Love thy neighbor.
Not for a moment am I denigrating this research that ended up finding what we knew, or should have known. As an economist, I spent 40 years reading and even writing research that involved truly unimportant questions. Happiness is a worthy topic. We owe thanks to Professor Martin Seligman, who as President of the American Psychological Association years ago, used his bully pulpit to refocus psychological research, from mental illness to mental wellness. Positive psychology.
So, yes, happiness is a warm puppy – and a warm relationship with friends, family, and everyone else.
Here is a small example. In Israel, when people dismount from public transportation (buses), we almost always say thanks to the driver. I did this morning. Try it sometime.
Another example. I bought some take-out food, waited quite long for it, and then, instead of rebuking the cashier or grumbling, smiled at her and said thanks. She smiled back. Have you noticed? If you smile at someone, they will almost automatically smile back. And then, you have reciprocal smiles, rather than frowns.
Love your neighbor. It’s not an abstract theory. It’s an action item. And it works!
[1] Susan Dominus. “How nearly a century of happiness research led to one big finding!”. New York Times magazine, May 1, 2025. “Decades of happiness studies have identified a formula for happiness, but you won’t figure it out alone.”
“Conservative estimates suggest that chronic pain affects over one and a half billion people, or 20% of the world’s population.”
Typically, chronic pain is treated with pain relievers. “The global market for analgesics was valued at $53.5 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach $72.8 billion by 2030.” This is big business. And rather risky.
The main painkiller medicine is comprised of opioids (from ‘opium’), such as OxyContin. They are addictive and overdoses kill. OxyContin is the trade name for oxycodone, produced and sold by Purdue, and the Sackler family.
“The number of annual opioid overdose deaths remains more than six times higher than it was in 1999; There were approximately 81,806 opioid overdose deaths in 2022 and 90% involved synthetic opioids other than methadone.”
So if you have chronic pain — is there an alternative way to deal with it, other than opoids? Here is what I learned from a great episode of a podcast, Science Friday:
Chronic pain is remarkably common: Roughly 20% of adults in the US live with it. And people with chronic pain are more likely to have depression, anxiety, and substance abuse disorders. But this relationship between physical and mental health is not as straightforward as you might think, and there’s still a stigma attached to neuro-psychological causes of chronic pain.
“The latest research suggests that untangling the connections between mind and body is a key part of developing better treatments for people with chronic pain. Now, a new psychological treatment called pain reprocessing therapy has shown initial success in eliminating back pain in research participants
Guests: Dr. Lauren Heathcote is a Senior Lecturer in Health Psychology in the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at King’s College London in London, England. Dr. Yoni Ashar is an assistant professor and Co-Director of the Pain Science Program at University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, Colorado.
Flora Lichtman (SciFri contributor): “Roughly 20% of adults in the US live with it. And people with chronic pain are more likely to have depression, anxiety, and substance abuse disorders. But this relationship between physical and mental health is not as straightforward as you might think. And the latest research suggests that untangling the connections between mind and body is a key part of developing better treatments for people who have chronic pain.
Expert guest Dr. Lauren Heathcote: “In the case of chronic pain, it’s more the case that the brain is getting it a bit wrong. So it might be that there was some sort of initial injury, but that that has now healed, or potentially that there is still some ongoing inflammation in the body, some kind of bodily damage in some way, but the brain is still producing a pain signal even when it’s not particularly helpful anymore.”
Expert guest Dr. Yoni Ashar: “The way pain is processed in the brain is quite complex. There’s no one region that’s the pain region. Pain is processed, everywhere and nowhere. And we see changes along all parts of the pain processing pathways. ….a lot of people come to us thinking that their bulging disk or their arthritis or et cetera, that’s the cause of their pain. And the major step is education, that actually bulging disks and arthritis are highly prevalent in people who have no pain whatsoever, and they’re typically not related to the pain… And that education to help people shift their thinking to this pain is actually not a sign of tissue injury. This pain is an indication that my pain system has gotten sensitized.”
Science Friday producer, Shoshannah Buxbaum: “One of the new treatments is called pain reprocessing therapy. It’s designed specifically for people who have pain that’s primarily due to changes in the mind and brain. The goal is to have patients unlearn the pain pathways that their brain has formed, which are, in turn, causing them to experience pain. So step one is educating patients on the science of chronic pain and what’s actually going on in their bodies.”
“The first study testing the efficacy of pain reprocessing therapy was in patients with chronic back pain. And back pain is among the most common chronic pain conditions in the US. Severe chronic back pain affects over 8% of adults in the US, and lower back pain, specifically, is the most frequent cause of job-related disability in the country.
“I wanted to understand what going through this type of therapy was actually like. So I talked to Sal, who is a participant in that first study. We’re just using Sal’s first name to respect their privacy. So I started off by asking them about when their pain first started.
SAL: I mean, I first noticed my back pain beginning in high school around when I was 15. I’m in my 30s now. So it’s been probably more than half my life at this point. It was a daily thing. It’s something I woke up with every day. And I think I just almost resigned myself of, like, this is just how my body feels, right. So I met with John. He does pain reprocessing therapy. And he himself had also benefited from the treatment greatly. We met for an hour once a week for six or eight weeks. Part of the treatment itself is acknowledging, from the cognitive standpoint, of reminding yourself that you’re safe and that your body doesn’t need to be feeling fight or flight.
“ Learning about the research and learning about how pain works in the brain and the body is part of the treatment. And I told John, throughout the whole process– I said, this is really dumb. And he’s like, I know. Because it almost feels like there was nothing intensive. There was nothing that I radically learned that was different. So it would just be breathing exercises and focusing specifically in this spot in my right shoulder that feels uncomfortable or feels pain.
“And what is the quality of the pain? Does it feel tingly? Does it feel sharp? Does it feel cold? Does it feel hot? So noticing on the actual sensation of pain, and trying to spread that out or dissolve it a little bit, or just focusing on it and taking a deep breath while focusing on it. And so just taking a moment to remind yourself and your body that you’re safe and that you don’t have to carry that tension or that pain. And just even the small act of doing that provides relief.
“I would say I went from a daily, waking up, six or a seven pain, and just chronic all day, and increasing or decreasing, depending on my stress. But I’m at a zero or one. And even now I’m skeptical. I’m like, oh, really? I don’t wake up with pain anymore? That’s cool.”
Expert guest Dr. Yoni Ashar: “When we started this work, I was concerned that people would storm out of our offices and feel dismissed and invalidated. But more often it’s the opposite of people telling us, wow, now things make sense. I saw 10 different doctors before this who had 10 different stories, and none of it really made sense or could explain all my symptoms. And now, for the first time, things are falling into place. Things are clicking.”
“For some people with chronic pain, there’s a big component of trauma and history of deeply entrenched patterns of self-criticism. These make it a lot harder to just try to treat the pain in isolation. What we’re finding is that for a number of people you can’t just talk about the pain and expect everything to get better, but it will require a deeper dive into what’s making them feel unsafe more broadly. And trying to help people resolve those other mental health challenges will be the key to helping their pain.”
Perhaps one day, alternative approaches to chronic pain relief will put the Big Pharma big bucks out of business. And fewer people will die of overdoses.
Who am I? Can we find out about ourselves with AI?
Posting on the Medium website, Mohammed Bakry proposes the following prompt, to ask AI about someone and dig through the Internet for information:
“Do intensive research on XXXXXX and give me a massive report on everything you find. Find the needle in the haystack — something unexpected — so I can reach out with a surprising personal connection.”
So I tried it on myself. Here is the result (with my annotation):
Shlomo Maital is a renowned figure, [false; beware of AI obsequious flattery] primarily recognized for his contributions in the field of economics and innovation management. As a professor and senior researcher at the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology, he has influenced both academic circles and industry practices significantly. Maital’s work often emphasizes the practical application of economic theory in fostering innovation and entrepreneurship.
One of his noteworthy roles has been as the Academic Director of the TIM-Technion Institute of Management, which focuses on executive training and development. His research and teachings often explore the intersection of economic theory and real-world applications, striving to make complex concepts accessible to practitioners and policymakers.
Maital is also an accomplished author, having published several books and numerous articles on innovation management, creativity, and entrepreneurship. His writings frequently address the challenges organizations face in cultivating innovation and the strategies they can employ to overcome them.
An unexpected angle to explore when connecting with him could be his interest in the psychological and social aspects of economics. Maital has often focused on how behavioral insights can enhance economic policies, a topic that diverges from the traditional economic narratives and showcases his interdisciplinary approach. [Failed to mention my wife Dr. Sharone Maital, psychologist, who is and was an essential collaborator]. Engaging with him on how behavioral economics can drive sustainable innovation might serve as an unexpected yet impactful point of connection.
To reach out with a surprising personal connection, you might consider referencing his involvement with societal and educational initiatives, reflecting shared interests in how education can drive economic development and societal well-being. His emphasis on the human aspects in economic systems could provide a unique personal touch to your outreach.
[Missing: Our grandchildren and great-grandchildren, light of our lives; our synagogue Ve’ahavta, and Rabbi Elisha Wolfin, with whom I do a weekly podcast on the Bible – a deep and meaningful activity; my column in Jerusalem Report, also a huge focus for me; the think tank where I now work, S. Neaman Institute, my second family].
OK — bottom line. Who am I? AI will not help much. Who is XX? AI won’t help much.
Claude is an AI large language model (LLM) by a 2021 startup, Anthropic, launched by entrepreneurs who left OpenAI. Amazon invested $4 billion in Anthropic.
I have done a small experiment. I decided to write a blog on “God as a Working Hypothesis”. I hesitated, because matters of faith are very personal and individual.
I framed a few sentences in my mind. Then, I asked Claure to write 300 words on the subject. And the truth is: Claude did this task far far better than I did.
Here is what Claude wrote. Judge for yourself:
“God as a working hypothesis” is a concept that has intrigued theologians, philosophers, and scientists for centuries. It suggests approaching the idea of God not as an absolute certainty, but as a provisional assumption that can be used to explore and understand various aspects of existence, morality, and the human experience.
“This perspective allows for a more flexible and open-minded approach to discussions about faith and spirituality. Rather than demanding unwavering belief or outright rejection, it invites individuals to consider the implications and potential benefits of accepting God’s existence as a starting point for further inquiry and reflection.
“As a working hypothesis, the concept of God can serve as a framework for addressing fundamental questions about the origin of the universe, the nature of consciousness, and the purpose of human life. It provides a lens through which to examine ethical dilemmas, explore the boundaries of human knowledge, and contemplate the mysteries of existence that science has yet to fully explain.
“Proponents of this approach argue that it allows for a more nuanced and intellectually honest engagement with religious and philosophical ideas. By treating God as a hypothesis rather than an irrefutable fact, individuals can critically examine religious teachings, cultural traditions, and personal experiences without feeling constrained by dogma or the fear of blasphemy.
“Critics, however, may argue that reducing God to a mere hypothesis diminishes the profound spiritual experiences and deeply held convictions of believers. They might contend that faith, by its very nature, transcends empirical evidence and rational argumentation.
“Nevertheless, viewing God as a working hypothesis can foster dialogue between believers and non-believers, as well as between different religious traditions. It creates a common ground for discussion, allowing individuals to explore the implications of divine existence without necessarily committing to a particular belief system.”
“This approach also aligns with the scientific method, which relies on hypotheses to advance knowledge and understanding. Just as scientists formulate and test hypotheses to explain natural phenomena, individuals can use the God hypothesis to explore existential questions and evaluate its explanatory power in various contexts.
“Ultimately, treating God as a working hypothesis encourages intellectual curiosity, promotes open-mindedness, and allows for a more inclusive conversation about spirituality and the nature of reality. It acknowledges the limitations of human knowledge while still engaging with the profound questions that have captivated humanity throughout history.”
The Catholic Church has done the Jewish people considerable harm in the past. But this Pope was different.
As Cardinal of Buenos Aires, he daily took the bus to his headquarters. A master of the meaningful gesture, he wanted to show his flock that he was one of them, not above them. As New York Times Vatican correspondent Jason Horowitz (Jewish) noted, Francis hated ‘clericalism’ above all – defined as “the formal, church-based dominant leadership or opinion of ordained clergy in matters of the church”, or in other words, we the clergy are above you all.
We Jews learned – or should have learned – a lot from Francis. In Israel, our Ultra-Orthodox clerics, rabbis, cloistered in halls of study called ‘yeshivas’, instruct their students never to agree to do army service, as the law requires, even when our country is under attack and many reserve soldiers are serving for 200 or more days a year, ruining their businesses, away from their wives and children, and risking their lives.
This is clericalism. Religious leaders who do not live as Francis counseled among the people, listening to the people, empathic with them, feeling their pain and suffering.
Iran is led exclusively by an 85-year-old cleric. It will not end well.
The rabbis of the Talmud all had trades – carpenters, shoemakers, bakers – because they had to, to earn a living. They lived among the people and the 2,000 pages of the Talmud reflects this. They ‘took the bus’, as did Francis. (He used to drive around Rome in a Ford Focus. A meaningful gesture).
Today, the Ultra-Orthodox Jewish rabbis support an anti-democratic government, filch many many millions of shekels of taxpayer money to support their life of study, without jobs or army service, and now demand a law enabling them to legally evade what every other citizen must do, serve their country.
We Jews can learn from Pope Francis. In the Conclave of cardinals (only those under 80; if you’re over 80, you don’t get to vote), in 2013, Pope Francis like many other cardinals made a short speech. As Jason Horowitz reports, you are not allowed to campaign for yourself in the Conclave – but you can give a speech about the priorities you think are vital for the Church, which is of course a campaign speech. Francis spoke about getting the priests out of the cloistered churches and into the field, among the people, into the “periphery”, as his speech became known. It gained him the papacy.
Let us hope and pray the Conclave Cardinals choose a worthy successor to Pope Francis – one who in spirit and in mindset is one of the people, not one of the autocratic clerics who live in splendor and have no idea how the vast majority of their flock lives. The chances are good. Many of the current Cardinals were appointed by him and share his world view.
As I and many others have learned, the hard way, you can get some great output from AI – but it is crucial to ask for it in just the right words. Kind of like getting kids to do what you want. The key is the wording of your ‘prompt’ – what you ask for and how you ask for it.
I found a very helpful post by Eva Keiffenheim on the MEDIUM website. I will try to summarize and shorten it.
Level One: Five Ingredients of a Strong Prompt. Here is a mnemonic to help remember it. Tall Cats Read Every Issue. T – task. C – Context. R – references. E – Evaluate. I – Iterate.
Task: Start with a persona, then a clear verb, then a specific output format. E.g. “As a cognitive scientist, explain long-term retention. Present the findings in a table, with columns for … etc. etc.
Context: Details needed? Your end goals? Your desired impact? E.g. “Make cognitive science approachable, no jargon, use tangible examples.”
References: Give AI examples to mimic for tone, structure, style. E.g. “Use a tone similar to this excerpt from ….. etc.”
Evaluate: Is this result useful? Paste the received output into a fact-checking plugin. Is anything missing or incorrect? Does it meet my goal?
Iterate: Tweak and improve. Refine until the output meets or exceeds your needs. Prompting equals iterating.
Level Two. Use These Four Techniques:
Simplify. AI likes simplicity. Use clean, short digestible steps.
Shift perspective. Instead of telling AI “you’re a cognitive scientist..”, try telling it – “you’re a science journalist seeking to…”
Modify the language. If you don’t get great results, change the phrasing, tone, and structure. (I’ve found AI likes praise, and a friendly tone).
Impose constraints. AI likes to have limits. 5 book titles, 5 words each for summaries, etc.
Mnemonic: Sister Suzie played Many Long Concertos. Simplify Shift perspective Modify language Constraints.
Level 3. Advanced Prompting.
Treat AI like a teammate. Prompting is like building blocks..start simple, add layers. Turn tasks into bullet points.
And perhaps the best tip of all: “Add this phrase to your prompt: Explain your reasoning step by step before answering.” Then, use ‘tree of thought’ – get AI to explore several reasoning paths.
Ask AI to write better prompts for you. E.g. “AI – act as a prompt engineer. Write a prompt that generates 10 creative but practical startup ideas in the [xxxx[ space.” Remember: Prompting = Thinking. Clarify your thinking – mine usually begins fuzzy, and badly needs focus and sharpening. Fuzzy prompts = fuzzy AI responses.
The incredible James Webb Space Telescope has just discovered DMS dimethyl sulfide and DMDS dimethyl disulfide on a distant planet K2-18b.
So? So what?
These two compounds are ONLY produced…. By living organisms. How did the telescope discover it? By spectroscopy — analyzing the light and breaking it down into components that contain the ‘fingerprint’ of DMS.
On Planet Earth, these compounds are emitted to the atmosphere by phytoplankton. They are widely produced by bacteria, metabolizing waste, and produce bad smells (rotten eggs, e.g.).
No, this is not absolute certain proof of life outside Earth. But it’s a wow, isn’t it?
Human beings on earth evolved first 50,000 years ago. The Earth is 4.8 billion years old. So if 4.8 billion years is, say, one year, human beings have been on Earth for just 30 minutes. Just a blink of an eye. So perhaps on K2-18b, things are just getting rolling.
Fun to imagine how life on K2-18b might look eventually.
In this space, I have often written about the importance for the elderly to maintain muscle strength. Sarcopenia, loss of muscle, is rapid and stealthy among those 60 and over, and it’s hard to get it back once it’s gone.
Now, writing in the New York Times, April 5, 2025, Amanda Loudin notes that not only strength but agility is crucial for us golden agers. As we age, our bodies stiffen – but exercise can maintain flexibility. She offers a quick workout to maintain agility; I’ve summarized it below. I’ve tried it – it is effective, not difficult, and seems to do the job.
“Sequence: Complete each drill three times before moving to the next. Start with one minute of rest after each drill and work that down to 30 seconds. For each movement: Do as many repetitions as you can in the time allowed. The goal is to increase your speed.”
Carioca drill Repetitions: 30 seconds in each direction, repeated three times
Standing in place with your knees slightly bent, cross your right foot in front of your left, then bring your left foot out and step sideways. Bring your right foot behind your left, then move your left foot to the left and sideways. Continue each lateral movement for 30 seconds, rest, then switch directions. Ideally you should do this in an open area, but if you have limited space, adapt to what is available.
Ladder drills Repetitions: 30 seconds, repeated three times
Start with a 15-foot chalk line, tape or cord. Quickly step over the line with one foot at a time, bringing both feet to one side before going back across to the other. With each step, move sideways down the line until you reach the end. Turn back to go the opposite way. As you improve, try an agility ladder to do these step-ins/outs while moving forward up and down the ladder.
Figure Eight Drill Repetitions: 20 seconds, repeated three times
Set two dumbbells, cones or yoga blocks 10 to 15 feet apart. Picture the top, bottom and middle of a figure eight in your mind. Run the figure eight, aiming to improve your reaction time on turns and curves. Try switching directions with each set.
Agility Balls Repetitions: 30 seconds, repeated three times
Hold a tennis ball or other small, bouncy ball in front of you near ear level. Drop it and squat down quickly with the goal of catching it in the same hand after it bounces once and starts to come down again. To make this more challenging, toss the ball against a wall and catch it one hand.
Skaters Repetitions: 15 repetitions, repeated three times.
Beginning on your left foot, hop sideways onto the right, then quickly back to the left while gently swinging your arms. Work into a back-and-forth rhythm and focus on a soft landings. As you improve your control and speed, practice staying on one foot for a few seconds before hopping to the other.
Shuttle runs Repetitions: 30 seconds, repeated three times.
On a flat, open space, mark two points about 25 feet apart. Sprint from one to the other, stopping briefly before sprinting back. You can do this by shuffling side to side for more of a challenge, or just run up and back.
Thanks, Amanda. This may save some of us some serious falls.
Each early morning, when I take our little mixed-breed Yorkie for her walk, I say hello to our blossoming hedge.
And it’s magical.
Brunfelsia pauciflora. An unassuming little hedge that does an incredible magic trick.
When it blossoms in Spring, as it does now, its flowers emerge in day one as violet in color. By day three, the flowers are purple and some of them have turned white.
Nature has figured out how to turn purple flowers into white.
Naturally, scientists had to figure out why and how. It has to do with “anthocyanin degradation”. Anthocyanin is a protein in the flowers’ pigment. Water, temperature, light and pollinating bees and insects act to degrade this protein, and as it degrades, the purple turns white.
Things in Nature don’t just happen. It must be evolution at work here. But why? I think that this sleight of hand magic trick gives Brunfelsia an advantage. Some pollinators are more attracted to the blue flowers. Some are more attracted to white flowers. The combination gets more pollinators than just blue or white alone.
Brunfelsia originated in Brazil and is also known as Brazil raintree. Other names for it (you could look it up) are: today, tomorrow, together; morning, noon and night; kiss me quick.
Take your pick! Any flowering hedge that turns purple to white deserves a catchy name.
Stuck: How the Privileged and the Propertied Broke the Engine of American Opportunity. by Yoni Appelbaum. Feb. 2025.
In Root Cause Analysis (RCA), you keep asking questions, until you get to the bottom of the problem.
How did Trump gain a (small) majority of voters to support his crackpot ideas – now weaking havoc on America and the world?
Yoni Applebaum is deputy executive editor of The Atlantic, a leading magazine. His new book offers a root cause explanation.
The problem is costly housing, which limited mobility, which was the traditional way low-income Americans made more money.
Here is how it worked.
Under the Democrats, America off-shored its manufacturing to Southeast Asia, mainly China. This hurt the industrial heartland and manufacturing workers, in the Midwest, the South, and elsewhere.
In the past, a US worker thrown out of work picked up, packed up, and moved to where there were jobs.
But because housing became super-expensive, and hard to find (try to find a rental in Boston!), moving for this group was not an option, because while their wages would rise, they would be more than eaten up by hugely expensive housing.
Not so for the elites. A lawyer could leave Alabama, and earn fortunes in New York City, more than enough to cover the housing costs.
Hence, Americans, who once were highly mobile, are far less so today. They are stuck – Stuck in backwater places like Flint, Michigan, once a manufacturing hub, now a slum with water full of lead.
The elites (who vote Democrat) have escaped long ago. The working class are stuck and left behind.
Hello, Dems? Are you listening? Did you see the problem of housing? Did you do anything? NO?
TIMnovate 