As we stepped into 2026, January brought a rich mix of research and perspectives in the Humanities & Social Sciences Communities, from philosophical heritage and lived cognition to global health awareness and psychological interventions. In this round-up, I’d like to share some standout posts that sparked conversation this month.

If a piece resonates with you, don’t forget to like and share your thoughts in the comments – your voice helps keep the conversation going!  

Rethinking Elements, Memory, and Migration in Social Thought

In this Social Science Matters blog post, @Elaine Stratford introduces her book The Drowned: Elements of Loss and Repair. She explains how water has played a role in human violence and suffering, from drownings in the past to refugees dying at sea today. Through these examples, she shows that water is not neutral – it is often linked to power, injustice, and forgetting. Using an “elemental thinking” approach, the post shows how social science can help us remember these histories and think about care, responsibility, and justice, especially in the context of climate change and forced migration. Read the full blog post here.

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Social Science Matters blogs offer a window into the diversity of social science research today, bringing together reflections on society, culture, and change from researchers and editors across disciplines. If you’re interested in reading more, explore all Social Science Matters blogs here.

Philosophical Legacy and Public Memory

In this Behind the Paper blog post, @Andris Hiršs explores how Immanuel Kant’s legacy is remembered and reshaped in Latvia – not only in academic philosophy, but also in public spaces and cultural stories. The author discusses monuments, library records, public debates, and even false attributions that connect Kant to Latvia, showing how philosophical authority can take symbolic and sometimes unexpected forms. The post argues that a philosopher’s influence lives not only in texts and ideas, but also in memory, myth, and everyday public life. Read the full blog post.

World Cancer Day 2026: Research & Advocacy

Marking World Cancer Day, @Sonia Tomescu-Stachie and colleagues introduce ‘Turning the Page’, a pilot study exploring whether online shared reading can support people affected by gynaecological cancers. The authors describe how small, online reading groups – guided by a trained facilitator and focused on shared discussion rather than therapy – may offer a gentle and accessible way to support wellbeing, connection, and reflection. The post highlights the potential of creative, low‑cost interventions to complement medical care and improve quality of life during and after cancer. Read the full blog post.

Personality Change Across the Life Span

In this Behind the Paper blog post, @Cornelia Wrzus discusses a study on whether personality traits can change through intervention at different ages. The research followed younger and older adults who wanted to become more emotionally stable and more socially confident during an eight‑week training. The results show that both age groups changed in similar ways, challenging the idea that personality is harder to change later in life. The post highlights that motivation and engagement played an important role, especially among older adults, and shows that meaningful personality change is possible across the human lifespan. Read the full blog post.

Animal Cognition & Winter Survival 

In this Behind the Paper post, @Ai Ana Hein Richmond introduces research on chickadees and their remarkable memory. Living through the harsh winters of the eastern Sierra Nevada, these small birds survive by hiding and later retrieving thousands of seeds, making them an important model for studying memory and cognitive flexibility. Alongside the blog, the author also shares a short video that walks you through the research process and methods, offering a clear and engaging look at how scientists study animal cognition in the field. Dive into the post!

Together, these posts reflect the breadth of Humanities and Social Sciences research, from intellectual histories and cultural memory to psychological science, animal cognition, and global health advocacy. I hope they spark your curiosity and invite further reading and discussion.

Further readings: 

• Top Posts from the Research Communities in 2025: A Year in Review
• Highlights from Humanities and Social Sciences Communities 
• Highlights from Medicine and Life Sciences Research Communities 
• Highlights from the Mathematics, Physical & Applied Sciences Communities