Dan Ariely is a professor of behavior economics at Duke University. His latest book, The (Honest) Truth about Dishonesty, explains how creativity makes us better liars--even to ourselves

Volunteers who spent at least four days hiking with no communications or computing technology scored higher on creativity tests upon their return than did a control group. Rose Eveleth reports

The American Chemical Society has produced a YouTube video with info to help you survive the holiday eating season. Katherine Harmon reports

Weather prediction models armed with citizens' flu symptom query data enable researchers to predict flu outbreaks. Katherine Harmon reports

Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder were more likely to have experienced violence or abuse in civilian life, especially during childhood. Karen Hopkin reports

People who score higher on negative personality traits know how to look hotter when they try harder than do those with more stable characters. Christie Nicholson reports

A study finds that patients who enter information online about common infections get decent diagnoses from docs, although antibiotics may be overprescribed. Katherine Harmon reports.

New research finds a way to break an embedded habit, even a bad habit, at least for mice. Christie Nicholson reports

Blindfolded subjects were able to successfully use a plastic version of a rat's whisker to help them detect objects. Christie Nicholson reports

Patients know that health care workers should wash their hands, but are are often reluctant to ask a doctor or nurse to lather up. Katherine Harmon reports