Take it in: The science of awe
Photo by Sabira Madady/ASU
Editor's note: This story originally appeared in the winter 2023 issue of ASU Thrive magazine.
Want to add more happiness to your life?
Take some advice from Associate Professor Michelle “Lani” Shiota, who researches the science behind awe and other positive emotions.
Shiota says a way to improve mental health is to cultivate the feeling of awe.
“Awe is that feeling you get when you perceive something as extraordinary — something so different from what your mind is used to that it stops whatever it was doing to pay attention. It’s great for giving our racing thoughts a break, and putting our day-to-day hassles and demands into perspective,” she says.
“You don’t have to go to the Grand Canyon to experience awe. Just go to new places nearby, and look at what’s around you with fresh eyes. Even stopping to take in our incredible Arizona sunsets can evoke a moment of awe.”
Read more about Shiota's work on the impact of awe.
More Science and technology
ASU forensics expert explains DNA tech being used in Guthrie investigation
It’s been more than 30 days since Nancy Guthrie disappeared from her Tucson, Arizona, home, and with little physical evidence pointing to a suspect, investigators have turned to an advanced forensic…
Digital crimes leave data trails; these students built a tool to help explain them
In a courtroom, truth often hinges on storytelling. But when that story involves hex values, file systems, packet captures or metadata time stamps, even the most seasoned judge can struggle to follow…
From traffic systems to trustworthy AI, ASU students are solving problems the world can’t ignore
How do you trust artificial intelligence when it doesn’t know what it doesn’t know? How do you safely move computing systems trained in simulation into the real world, where mistakes carry real…