Toddlers are known for their adorable antics, and one might think that they aren't too mindful of their surroundings. But the truth is that children start adapting to their environment early on and often regulate their behavior to avoid angering adults. A study conducted by researchers at the University of Washington has discovered that even 15-month-olds can observe and understand whether people in their vicinity are angry or displaying extreme emotions.
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The study, published in the October-November issue of the journal Cognitive Development, revealed that experts detected the first signs of toddlers using multiple cues from their surroundings to understand the mood of people around them. “At 15 months of age, children are trying to understand their social world and how people will react,” lead author of the study, Betty Repacholi, who is also a faculty researcher at UW’s Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences and an associate professor of psychology, said. She also added, “In this study, we found that toddlers who aren’t yet speaking can use visual and social cues to understand other people–that’s sophisticated cognitive skills for 15-month-olds.”
A video was shared by the YouTube channel of the Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences (UW I-LABS), where the study was conducted on a 15-month-old toddler. The footage from 2014 shows a toddler sitting on his mom's lap as someone pulls out a box and extends it toward him. "There's something inside. Can you see what's inside the box?" the other woman asks, prompting the toddler to remove the lid. Then she asks if there is anything in the box or not. The toddler finds a green comb inside the box. “There's a green comb!” the woman exclaims, as the toddler flashes a smile. “You want to put it back inside the box?”
“I'm going to put the lid back on the box and close it up,” the woman says before taking away the box as the toddler goes back to his formal neutral state, and the smile fades away. The woman shows the toddler how to play with a strand of beads that makes noise when it's dropped into a plastic cup. The toddler continues fiddling with it until another lady named Kelly enters the room, settles on a seat, and says, "I am going to sit here and read a magazine." The toddler becomes aware of the new person in the room as they look at each other.
Next time, when the toddler drops the beads in the cup and it makes a noise, Kelly expresses her displeasure by calling it "aggravating" and "annoying." The toddler senses the shift in mood around him and refrains from playing with the beads, even though he could do so freely. The shift in the toddler's behavior indicates how he is using emotional information to regulate his own behavior. On the University of Washington's website, it was mentioned that the experiment was conducted on 150 toddlers at the age of 15 months, who watched as a person sitting at a table repeated the same process with each of them.
This article originally appeared last year.
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21 products that are gaslighting us into thinking they’re essential when they’re not
Some things in life are actually necessary—clean water, decent healthcare, basic human decency. But then there are the things that feel like they’re gaslighting us. The things we’re told we can’t live without, even though we survived just fine before they existed. Things like "smart" fridges, lawn fertilizer services, and yes—whole body deodorant.
Recently, our sister-site Upworthy asked their Facebook audience the question: What's a product or service that feels like it's gaslighting all of us into thinking it's necessary? More than 8,000 responses poured in. The answers were passionate, funny, and surprisingly unified.
Here are 21 products, services, and systems people called out for pretending to be essential—when they might actually be optional, overpriced, or flat-out invented.
1. Whole body deodorant
"Take a shower," said Shannon H.
“How did we ever manage all those years without it!! 😂😵💫” added Karen R.
Others noted it may help people with medical conditions—but for the average person, it's definitely a marketing creation.
2. Health insurance
It topped the list. Erica L. explained: “My doctor prescribes, the pharmacist issues meds, nurses care for people, surgeons do surgery—Health Insurance stands between health care and patients and says no, exclusively on whether they think it’s financially effective to treat you.”
Important note: Health insurance can provide life-saving access for many—but what people are frustrated by here is the profit-first system, not care itself.
3. The wedding industry
Multiple people slammed the high cost of modern weddings.
JoElla B. put it plainly: “We spend too much time and money planning one day, and not enough thought on how to blend two lives in a mutually beneficial one.”
Others called out expensive dresses, venues, and pressure to perform for social media.
4. Bottled water
Carole D. said: “Water in plastic bottles! Get a cup!”
While bottled water has value in emergencies, it’s often just filtered tap water—sold for profit in plastic.
5. Baby product overload
“Most baby products,” wrote Kelli O. “They really aren’t as needy and complicated as companies want us to think.”
6. Fabric softener
“It’s bad for clothes, bad for the Earth, bad for the wallet, and totally unnecessary,” said Gail H.
Some experts agree—many softeners contain chemicals that can reduce fabric lifespan and irritate skin.
7. Smart appliances
“Adding ‘phone controls’ to every appliance instead of making them last as long as they used to,” wrote Sherry S.
When your fridge needs a software update, something’s gone off the rails.
8. Makeup and anti-aging products
“Anything anti-aging,” said Melissa T., “Please just let me age into the gargoyle I was meant to become.”
Others questioned products designed to “fix” eyelashes, eyebrows, pores, and graying hair.
April S. added, “Products that women are convinced they MUST have in order to be ‘beautiful’ and therefore ‘loved.’”
9. Cosmetic surgery
Ron P. called out the industry as a whole. And while body autonomy matters, many commenters questioned whether insecurities are being commodified and sold back to us.
10. Ticketmaster and “convenience fees”
“Let’s go back to waiting in line at a record store,” wrote Nicole C.
Zaida B. added: “Convenience fee for online purchases—then charging $10 more at the actual event.”
11. Engagement rings
James P. didn’t mince words: “Engagement rings.”
The diamond industry has long been criticized for manufactured scarcity and marketing-fueled necessity.
12. Lawn chemicals and services
“Plant native grasses and you don’t have the pests or need for constant watering,” wrote Jamie B.
Environmental groups have raised similar concerns over runoff and unnecessary pesticide use.
13. AI and generative tech
“This stuff squeezes the lifeblood and individuality out of the human experience,” said Teresa L.
Saskia D. and others echoed skepticism about its necessity, even as many of us are being pushed to use it.
14. Funeral services
Amy W. shared: “My parents both have already paid to have themselves cremated and are very adamant that they do not want anything big done for them. In their words, ‘I won’t care, I’m dead.’”
Of course, some families find comfort in tradition—but the cost and pressure can feel overwhelming and predatory.
15. Rinse and repeat
Amy D. nailed it: “It’s just to sell more. Not even sure you need it at all.”
16. Credit Card Surcharges
Shawn S. took aim at the extra fees popping up at checkout: “That is the cost of doing business and shouldn’t be the burden of the purchaser.”
Many questioned why customers are increasingly being asked to pay extra simply for the convenience of using a card.
17. Constant phone upgrades
“Apple are notorious for releasing the same shit every year,” said Steph S.
Diana H. added, “Needing to upgrade our phones so frequently.”
Built-in obsolescence and marketing cycles drive most of the demand.
18. Vitamins and supplements
“If I took every supplement they say I NEED I wouldn’t need food. Nor could I afford it,” said Tausha L.
19. Fake pockets on women’s pants
Jessica W. said, “I have to buy men’s pants for work because women’s pants would just get torn up too fast!”
Form over function, and then they charge more for it.
20. Disposable everything
“The ‘convenience’ of disposable everything,” said Rick R.
It’s killing the planet—and draining wallets.
21. Tipping
“I’m sick of supplementing for corporations that refuse to pay a living wage,” wrote Susan V.
Tipping culture has evolved into something far removed from its original intent, and for many, it now feels like a burden shifted onto the customer.
The bigger picture
People aren’t saying all these things should vanish tomorrow. But when we start seeing convenience sold as necessity, and insecurity turned into billion-dollar markets, it's worth asking: who benefits from all of this?
And more importantly—who pays?
This article originally appeared earlier this year.