If you're an adult in your 20s who's looking to become the most popular person in your social circle, you might want to double down on the hooch. A new study shows that young adult binge drinkers occupy the highest statuses in their friend groups, mostly because they're the ones usually spearheading the campaign for… » 7/17/14 1:45pm 7/17/14 1:45pm

Just like your parents told you after that kid in homeroom made fun of your Yu-Gi-Oh binder, being cool in high school is very meaningless in the scheme of things — because we are all just insignificant specks in a vast and indifferent universe, but also because the "cool" kids tend to peak early. And now, at long… » 6/13/14 5:10pm 6/13/14 5:10pm

Many of us have believed that being a late bloomer was a good thing, that our shy, socially awkward ways in high school would be rewarded in spades if we made it to graduation. We heard that if you go through middle school and high school as an ugly duckling, and you are guaranteed to blossom into a brain scientist… » 10/23/12 9:30am 10/23/12 9:30am

I have always been a huge nerd, which is why I pretty much didn't even look at a cigarette until I was like 22—and even then it was just to deliver some morally superior sniffs about how some of us don't have to suck on a stanky Duraflame log just to have a good time. Some of us have ancient Greek city-states to… » 9/10/12 4:00pm 9/10/12 4:00pm

A new study has found that, rather than outcasts looking to shore up their own social status, most bullies are actually popular — but they're not at the very top of the social hierarchy. » 2/08/11 9:50am 2/08/11 9:50am

According to a very scientific-sounding survey by the Australian magazine Girlfriend, popular girls aren't necessarily the happiest. But what is popularity anyway? » 2/23/10 6:00pm 2/23/10 6:00pm

1937's lady-advice sounds like 2010's: "Madame Sylvia, the famous beauty adviser to the Hollywood stars, describes hundreds of ways to develop charm and personality in her new book… Pull Yourself Together, Baby! contains all the secrets on glamour…" [Modern Mechanix] » 1/11/10 7:40pm 1/11/10 7:40pm

During the election, Michelle Obama was accused of being an angry black woman, hating "whitey," and possessing "angry eyebrows." So when USA Today published poll findings that Michelle is now the more popular Obama, I thought: you damn right! » 10/23/09 5:20pm 10/23/09 5:20pm

Even post-high school, the popular kids continue to come out on top: They are more likely to grow up to be healthy adults than their peers with fewer friends and less social status, according to a Swedish study. [Reuters] » 9/30/09 9:40am 9/30/09 9:40am

Depressing (or comforting?) news for wallflowers: whether a teen is at the center or on the edge of a social network may be about 30% genetic. Genes may also influence how many people consider the teen a friend. [Scientific American] » 7/09/09 6:20pm 7/09/09 6:20pm

A new study, which one can only assume nerds released very reluctantly, shows that not only is life high school, but the prom queen always wins. » 5/11/09 5:00pm 5/11/09 5:00pm