Imagine a fourth-grader in a classroom full of chatter and potential. The teacher announces, “Form your groups,” and he waits—scanning faces, hoping someone gestures toward him but no one does. That ache in the chest? That’s not just embarrassment or disappointment it’s rejection—and for kids, it lands with surprising force. Or consider the reality for a teenager who finds out that their friends hosted a dinner party sans their invitation. These experiences are not just momentary disappointments; they can be deeply ingrained in the fabric of our emotions, influencing not just behaviors but our mental well-being.

We often think of rejection as a bruising experience to be avoided. As adults, we know the sting—being passed over for a promotion, left out of a gathering, or ghosted after a second date. But for children navigating their earliest friendships and social landscapes, rejection can feel like a signal flare going off in their brains. And according to new and emerging research, that pain might actually be useful.

Rejection, as it turns out, is more than just a blow to the ego. It’s a biological signal, a teaching moment, and a map to social understanding—especially during childhood. Far from just scarring kids, it can guide them to build stronger, more meaningful relationships, if we understand what’s happening beneath the surface.

Rejection as a Social Learning Tool

Social psychology and neuroscience researchers have spent years untangling the emotional toll of rejection and here’s what they’ve found: rejection doesn’t just feel bad—it actually activates the same areas of the brain involved in physical pain. The anterior cingulate cortex, to be specific.

From an evolutionary standpoint, rejection has profound significance. Our ancestors likely cultivated social bonds for survival. In prehistoric times, being excluded from social groups jeopardized one's safety and resource access, rendering social belonging a fundamental human necessity. Hence, our brains evolved to respond with urgency to feelings of rejection; the anterior cingulate cortex—known to activate in response to physical pain—fires up in reaction to social exclusion.

There’s more to it than hurt feelings, as social psychologists puts it, rejection is not just pain—it’s feedback. Neuroscience has revealed intriguing insights into this complex interplay of feelings and actions. In an environment where social dynamics are not static but constantly evolving, children learn to read behaviors, decipher intentions, and refine their assumptions throughout their experiences with peers. Early rejection may lead to reflection on one's behavior, intentions, and ultimately, a more keen ability to navigate future interactions.

In studies where participants were excluded from a simple virtual ball-tossing game, their brains didn’t just light up from distress—they showed signs of processing surprise. That surprise, researchers now believe, may be what turns rejection into a learning signal.

What this means is that the brain doesn’t just say, “Ouch, that hurt.” It says, “Wait, what happened—and what can I do differently next time?” In the social landscape, especially among kids, rejection may actually help refine how they approach relationships in the future. It becomes a kind of emotional GPS—updating their internal models of trust, value, and connection.

How the Brain Processes Acceptance and Rejection Differently?

Intriguingly, while an anxious child might avoid disruptive behaviors, a child conditioned to anticipate rejection might instead develop a more rebellious stance against peer conformity. This indicates that rejection can lead to various coping mechanisms, thereby influencing children’s decision-making processes when navigating peer relationships.

Recent research has found that the brain treats social rejection and acceptance as distinct—but complementary—forms of learning.

When someone experiences acceptance, areas like the ventral striatum activate. That’s the part of the brain associated with rewards like praise, money, or affection. In contrast, the anterior cingulate cortex processes social devaluation or rejection—but not just as emotional pain. It recalibrates a person’s sense of social standing, helping them update beliefs about where they stand in the group.

So when kids are rejected, especially unexpectedly, their brains are doing more than just hurting. They’re recalculating relational value: Who likes me? Who doesn’t? Who can I trust?

That recalibration can actually lead to better social decision-making. It helps kids discern between relationships worth investing in and those that may not be safe or reciprocal. That’s a skill they’ll need their entire lives.

While rejection can serve as a powerful teacher, it’s not experienced the same way by every child. New research from the University of Georgia reveals two key reactions in children who are sensitive to rejection:

Rejection Expectancy: A cognitive pattern where children assume they’ll be rejected.

Anxious Rejection Anticipation: An emotional state where the child fears being excluded, even without evidence.

These patterns show up in fascinating—and sometimes contradictory—ways.

Children who fear rejection tend to conform more. They try harder in school, follow rules more closely, and avoid troublemaking behaviors. In essence, they try to stay in good standing by blending in and performing well.

On the other hand, children who expect rejection often resist conforming. They’re less likely to follow group norms or academic expectations, perhaps because they’ve already assumed there’s no reward in fitting in.

This split in behavior shows that rejection isn’t just a one-size-fits-all experience. How a child interprets rejection—cognitively and emotionally—shapes whether it motivates connection or fuels isolation.

When Rejection Teaches the Wrong Lessons?

Of course, not all rejection leads to growth. Chronic or repeated social exclusion—especially in environments marked by bullying or relational aggression—can reinforce a child’s belief that they are unworthy of connection. This can lead to emotional withdrawal, aggression, or symptoms of depression, often before those children even have the language to articulate their pain.

Children who don’t receive support after rejection may also misread future social cues, seeing threats where none exist. In extreme cases, this hypersensitivity can contribute to the development of conditions like borderline personality disorder, which is often characterized by unstable relationships and intense emotional responses to both praise and criticism.

That’s why parental and educator intervention is crucial. Teaching children to understand and regulate their emotional responses to rejection—and to make sense of their social world—is just as important as teaching math or reading.

What Can Adults Do to Help?

When kids experience rejection, adults often respond with platitudes: “They’re just jealous,” or “You don’t need them anyway.” But these responses, though well-meaning, can invalidate a child’s feelings or prevent them from developing the skills to handle future rejection constructively. Instead, adults can:

Normalize rejection as part of social life. Explain that everyone feels excluded sometimes, and it doesn’t define their worth.

Help children distinguish between one-off slights and patterns of exclusion. Was it a misunderstanding, or is it part of a larger trend?

Support emotional regulation. Teach children to manage anger, sadness, and shame without suppressing them.

Model healthy responses to rejection in their own lives. Kids learn from watching how adults handle setbacks.

Ultimately, rejection teaches kids how to belong. It helps them calibrate their expectations, recognize which friendships are reciprocal, and learn how to show up more authentically in relationships.

When rejection is met with support, reflection, and context, it can become a bridge—not a barrier—to deeper connection.

Drinking a hot cup of coffee on a winter morning or chilly evening is one of the best feelings one in the world. However, did you know this habit could lead to you risking your health?

A new study suggests that drinking very hot tea or coffee often might increase your risk of a type of throat cancer known as oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). Researchers looked at the habits of over 450,000 people in the UK. They found that those who drank eight or more cups of "very hot" drinks a day were almost six times more likely to get this cancer over a 12-year period.

A "very hot" drink was defined as being hotter than 149°F (65°C). The study also found that the more hot drinks a person had, the higher their risk. For example, drinking four to six cups a day raised the risk by almost four times, and six to eight cups raised it by nearly five times.

Do Hot Drinks Lead To Cancer?

Although scientists don't know the exact reason, they think that drinking very hot liquids over and over might damage the cells in your throat. This constant damage could eventually lead to cancer.

In a study with animals, drinking very hot water (158°F or 70°C) actually helped tumors grow in rats. A separate study in Iran also found that people who drank tea hotter than 140°F (60°C) had a higher risk of throat cancer.

Experts from Cancer Research UK noted that 60°C is "a lot hotter than most cups of tea." They added that if you let your tea cool for a few minutes or add cold milk, you are likely not to increase your risk of cancer. The key takeaway is to avoid drinking beverages at extremely high temperatures.

Do Hot Drinks Harm Our Health?

According to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the idea that very hot drinks like coffee or tea could cause cancer has been around for a long time. The theory is that the heat could damage the lining of your throat, and over time, this damage could lead to cancer. While some animal studies have shown a link, this was at temperatures much hotter than what people would normally drink.

More recently, some studies from other countries have linked hot drinks to a type of throat cancer, but the evidence isn't very strong, especially for people in the U.S. and Europe. They explained how a study from China also found a higher risk of throat cancer in people who drank very hot tea, but these people were also heavy smokers or drinkers. This makes it difficult to say that the hot tea alone was the cause.

Do Hot Drinks Cause Cancer?

While many researchers have pointed that out there is a link, there are many crucial factors missing. Experts explain that these studies are misleading for several reasons:

• The type of cancer linked to hot drinks (squamous cell carcinoma) is much less common in the U.S. than other types.
• The study participants often had other risk factors, like smoking, drinking alcohol, or living with environmental issues. This makes it hard to be sure if the hot tea was the real problem.
• The China study wasn't very scientific; it just asked people to guess how hot their tea was.
• Even the study from Iran, which actually measured the temperature, had a problem because almost everyone in that region drinks hot tea, so there was no good group to compare them to.
• Healthcare professionals explain that there is no solid evidence that drinking hot liquids by themselves increases your risk of cancer. At most, it might add to the risk if you also smoke or drink alcohol.

In a groundbreaking achievement, a team of Australian scientists has successfully grown the world’s first fully functioning lab-made human skin that comes with its own blood supply. This breakthrough, developed at the University of Queensland, could transform how we treat burns, skin grafts, and chronic skin diseases.

A Skin Model That Mimics Real Human Skin

The team, led by researchers at UQ’s Frazer Institute, used stem cells to create a replica of human skin that is almost indistinguishable from natural skin. This lab-grown model includes blood vessels, capillaries, hair follicles, nerves, different tissue layers, and even immune cells.

“This is the most life-like skin model developed anywhere in the world. It will allow us to study diseases and test treatments far more accurately,” explained lead researcher Dr. Abbas Shafiee, a tissue engineering and regenerative medicine scientist.

Until now, scientists were restricted in how closely they could study skin disorders and design therapies. With this new model, those barriers have been lifted.

Also Read: Japan Races To Develop World’s First Artificial Blood, Trials To Begin

How Scientists Built It

The process behind this innovation is as fascinating as the outcome. The team started by taking human skin cells and reprogramming them into stem cells. Stem cells are unique because they have the ability to transform into any type of cell in the body.

Once prepared, these stem cells were placed into petri dishes where they grew into miniature versions of skin, known as skin organoids. To make the skin more life-like, the researchers used the same stem cells to create tiny blood vessels. These were integrated into the organoids, enabling the skin to develop in a way that mirrored natural growth.

“It developed just like natural human skin, with layers, follicles, pigmentation, appendages, nerves, and most importantly, its own blood supply,” said Dr. Shafiee. The findings were recently published in the journal Wiley Advanced Healthcare Materials.

Six Years in the Making

The breakthrough did not happen overnight. The lab-grown skin model is the result of six years of research and testing. The development demonstrates how far regenerative medicine has come, particularly in the field of stem cell science.

By creating skin with its own blood supply, researchers believe they can take skin engineering to a whole new level. Previous skin models lacked this crucial feature, limiting how effective they were for research or medical use.

Potential for Treating Skin Diseases

Co-author Professor Kiarash Khosrotehrani from the Frazer Institute highlighted how this achievement could change treatment options for people with chronic skin conditions. “Skin disorders can be difficult to treat, and it’s a real breakthrough to provide hope for people living with these challenges,” he said.

The model may be especially useful for studying and developing treatments for inflammatory and genetic skin conditions such as psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, and scleroderma. It could also lead to more effective skin grafts for burn victims and people with severe injuries.

As soon as people became aware of AI videos and pictures, one of the first things people were concerned about was how this can fake videos of people and cause trouble. Concerns about manipulative videos that can tarnish a person’s identity, revenge porn and many other issues were raised. Although many people remained steadfast in their belief that they would be able to recognize AI videos or pictures, other pointed out how it won’t be long before we start to no longer distinguish between the two. That time is not far off, in fact we may have already hit another roadblock, misinformation.

Dr. Joel Bervell, a well-known physician on social media, recently discovered a deepfake video using his likeness to promote a product. The video featured his face but a different voice, and was posted on several platforms, including TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

A CBS News investigation found more than 100 videos across social media featuring fake doctors. Some of these videos used the identities of real physicians to give medical advice or sell products, mostly related to beauty, wellness, and weight loss. Many of these videos were viewed millions of times. Cybersecurity company ESET also found over 20 similar accounts, noting that this type of content is reaching an increasingly wide audience.

What Are These Deepfake Videos On Social Media?

Deepfakes are duped videos or audios that are made with AI. This isn’t simple face swapping or editing, it is basically manipulating the media files to make it look like an individual is doing certain things or say something they never did. Reports of fake videos to TikTok, Meta (the parent company of Instagram), and YouTube. Both TikTok and Meta removed the flagged videos, stating they violated company policies. TikTok says it has proactively removed over 94% of content that violates its AI policies.

YouTube, however, said the videos did not violate its Community Guidelines and would remain on the platform. The company stated its policies prohibit content that spreads medical misinformation contradicting local health authority guidance, but did not find the flagged videos to be in violation. Meta also noted that scammers are always changing their tactics to get around platform rules.

How Can You Spot Deepfakes?

According to Illinois State University identifying deepfakes can be difficult. Here are some things that could reveal whether a media file is deepfake or not.

Skin

Look at the cheeks and forehead. Does the skin look too smooth or too wrinkled? Does it match the person's age? Sometimes, deepfakes don't get these details right.

Eyes and Eyebrows

Check for natural shadows. Deepfakes can fail to correctly show how light and shadows work, making things look unnatural.

Facial Hair

Does a beard, mustache, or sideburns look real? Deepfakes can add or remove facial hair, but it might not look completely natural.

Blinking and Lips

Watch how the person blinks. Do they blink too much or not enough? Also, look at their lips. Do they match the size and color of the rest of their face? Deepfakes can often mess up these small details.

Glasses

Look for glare on their glasses. Is there too much glare? Does the glare change in a realistic way when they move? Fake videos often get this wrong.

Moles

If the person has a mole or other facial marks, do they look real? Deepfakes might not recreate them accurately.

How Can You Identify Medical Misinformation?

Before you can fight misinformation, you need to be able to recognize it. Here are some key things to check when you're looking at information online:

Check the Source

Look for a "Contact Us" or "About Us" page on the website. Is the website from a trustworthy place, like a university (.edu) or government (.gov)? What are the author's qualifications, and have they written other things? Also, consider who shared the information with you—are they a reliable source, like a healthcare professional?

Read Past the Headline

Headlines are often written to grab your attention. Make sure the actual article backs up the headline's claims. Watch out for authors who only use certain facts or take information out of context.

Examine the Evidence

Credible articles will back up their claims with facts and sources. If a story has no sources, that's a red flag. If it does, check them to see if you come to the same conclusions.

Check the Date

Sometimes people share old information that is no longer correct. Make sure the information is recent and relevant.

Be Aware of Your Own Biases

Think about your own beliefs. Are you looking at the information objectively, or just looking for things that agree with what you already think?

Look for Satire

If something sounds too outrageous to be true, it might be a joke. Some websites create funny, fake news stories for entertainment. If you are unsure, ask a doctor, scientist, or even a librarian for help. You can also use reliable fact-checking websites to see if something is true.