Cuteness is a way of aestheticizing powerlessness.

{ Sianne Ngai/Cabinet | Continue reading }

Through three separate experiments a team of scientists from Hiroshima University showed that people showed higher levels of concentration after looking at pictures of puppies or kittens. […]

“This finding suggests that viewing cute images makes participants behave more deliberately and perform tasks with greater time and care,” said the researchers, according to the published paper. […]

The study’s authors write that in the future cute objects could be used as a way to trigger emotions “to induce careful behavioral tendencies in specific situations, such as driving and office work.”

{ WSJ | Continue reading }

{ Thanks Jessica }

{ Harry the baby pygmy hippo. | More: Male pygmy hippos control sex ratio with their sperm. | The Pygmy Hippo is rarely seen because of its secretive, nocturnal habits and consequently not much is known of its ecology. }

previously { Are hippos the most dangerous animal? }

{ The three-spined toadfish is the only fish that cries like a baby. It’s not the only fish that can make a noise, however. | full story }

here’s chou-chat:

{ Blue-faced golden snub-nosed monkeys }