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Artist Cristina Martinez on how technology can bring stories of hope and joy to new communities

Classical art is thriving in a digital world.

Cristina Martinez artist
Meta/Cristina Martinez

Cristina Martinez

In the age of artificial intelligence and virtual reality it’s easy to assume that original art is in jeopardy of being replaced by technology. But Cristina Martinez, an Afro-Latina contemporary artist known for her fine art content on Instagram, sharing the often-untold stories of Black and Brown people, is an example of how technological innovations can enhance the artistic process and help bring voices to often underserved communities.

Herdandez recently took part in the Meta Sonic Listening Party in Miami, an event that brought together artists from various disciplines to collaborate in unique ways as part of Meta’s “It’s Your World” campaign, designed to bring. together emerging artists, musicians and Creators to reimagine the next generation of creative expression.

Martinez spoke with Upworthy about her experience taking part in the Meta Sonic Listening Party and how new technology is shaping her as an artist and storyteller.


Upworthy: What inspired you to become an artist?


Cristina Martinez: I honestly feel like I don't know how to be any other way. Ever since I was little, I’ve always felt drawn to express myself creatively, I didn't always know what it meant.

I think just being an artist is who I am, I feel like I'm fulfilling my purpose here on Earth. One thing that keeps me going is the thought of all these amazing Black and Brown young artists that will come after me and you know, be able to look and see people that look like them doing the things that they dream of doing, which I think has changed a lot from when I was little. So I'm so blessed to be a part of that.

Upworthy: You mentioned how your art often focuses on highlighting those often untold stories of black and brown people. Do you think some of these different formats you've experimented with, like the Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses can be both a powerful tool for your own expression, but also helping to find new ways to reach those audiences in different communities?

Cristina Martinez: I think that it can broaden your audience. Just being able to share these stories and impact people and let people you know, come across my artwork, or the artwork of another talented artists and being able to like see a little bit of themselves and the artwork, it just builds connection. The Meta Ray-Bans help document my process in general because I think that one of the things that often gets missed about Black and Brown stories is just like regular life stuff. Like we focus so much on trauma, but you know, Black and Brown joy and love and just happiness, all of these things. It's like all of that can be captured and without even really trying. We just get to be who we are.

Upworthy: What was it like getting to take part in Meta’s “It’s Your World” campaign?

Cristina Martinez: It was very authentic. You know, partnering up with these companies, sometimes you can lose sight of lyour true self, because it's this great opportunity. But with this, I feel like I've been able to make art that is authentic to who I am, like when I made a painting with my glasses with my daughter. I got to just lbe myself through the whole thing.

Upworthy: Could talk a little more about what it was like using the Meta Ray-Ban smart glasses while you were painting during the party?

Cristina Martinez: I think for people that create in a very small bubble, I think art is such a sacred thing. And creative people. You know, there's all types of different creatives for me, I spent so many years like just creating for my sanity, and because I had to and so being able to still have that moment with my work. I think what's really special about it is that you do you get to just still be yourself and have those intimate moments with whatever you're doing, whether it's interacting with friends, or, you know, being a mom or cooking or whatever. And then you can document it. And then I'll let people into that space and inspire and connect with people later on. I think that that is a really special tool for a lot of people.

Upworthy: What it was like collaborating with Victoria Monet and learning to use the piano and Piano Vision with them?

Cristina Martinez: If I told anyone that actually knows me, like, ‘Hey, I'm about to go to this event and perform the piano,’ you know, everybody's initial thing is to laugh. But when I was there, and I did it, it really was very cool. It was just like, it was a new first time experience for me, but it felt really, really good.

Upworthy: For Upworthy readers that will be seeing you and your work for the first time, what do you hope they take away from experiencing your artwork?

Cristina Martinez: I think more than anything, I hope that my art inspires people to have compassion for each other. We all go through these things together. I like to acknowledge the realness of life and challenges and hardships and things that are unfair. But also to remind my viewers that on the other side of that is better days, bigger blooms, whatever you want to call it. I try to find the little things that are lights in hard parts of life. And I want people to see that.

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A 3-word method can help you make relaxed small talk that doesn't feel like an interview

Injecting some personality can make things a lot more fun.

via Canva/Photos

A man and woman chatting over some wine.

A lot of people are uncomfortable making small talk, but it’s an essential skill that can make or break your love life, career, and social experiences. Many people believe that being good at chatting with others is something innate, but those who excel at it work at their craft and pick up small tips along the way to become better communicators.

One of the tricks that all great communicators know is that you will be more likable when you're more interested than interesting. Study after study shows that people love talking about themselves, and if you ask people more questions, they will like you a lot more than if you did all the talking. So, how do we do this without creating a one-sided conversation where your conversation partner learns nothing about you? The folks at the Science of People have shared the statement-plus question technique.

The statement-plus technique

“One of the smoothest ways to keep conversation flowing is to share a brief personal statement followed by a question,” the Science of People writes. “This technique accomplishes two things: it gives the other person information about you (making you seem more approachable and interesting) while also redirecting focus to them.”

small talk, conversation, office party, people talking, wine Coworkers having a nice conversation.via Canva/Photos

Here are some examples:

Instead of asking “What do you do for work?” say:

“I’m a writer for Upworthy, and I enjoy seeing my work read by millions of people. What excites you about your job?”

Instead of asking, “Where do you live?” try:

“I live in Long Beach, California, and it’s really nice living by the ocean. What do you love the most about where you live?”

Instead of asking, “How do you know the person who threw the party?” say:

“I met Sarah at a church meeting seven years ago. Do you remember the first time you met her?”

These questions enable you to discuss yourself while maintaining the focus on the other person. They are also open-ended, so you don’t just get a one-word answer. You learn their job and what excites them about it. You know where they live, and they get to brag about what they like about the city. The technique also broadens the conversation because, according to the psychological phenomenon known as reciprocal self-disclosure, people are more likely to disclose things about themselves after you share something about yourself.

- YouTube youtu.be

What is reciprocal self-disclosure?

“The most likely result of your self-disclosure is that other people will do the same. In the field of communication, we refer to this as 'reciprocity.' When you share information about yourself, the most likely result is that people will start to disclose a similar type of information from their own lives," communication coach Alexander Lyon says. "In our presentations, we talk about this as a magic wand. Disclosure is the closest thing we have to a magic wand in terms of a concept in communication. When you disclose, other people almost automatically reciprocate."

Ultimately, people love to talk about themselves, and if you give them the opportunity, they will like you more for it. However, that doesn’t mean you can’t reveal some aspects of yourself at the same time while keeping the focus on them. The statement-plus question technique allows you to reveal some things about yourself while making the other person feel seen and comfortable telling you more about themselves. It’s sure to elevate your small talk to something more substantial in a relaxed way that doesn’t feel like an interview.

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Neuroscientist breaks down the 5 simple steps of true manifestation, without the 'woo woo'

It might seem like magic, but there's real science behind it.

Photo credit: Canva

James Doty breaks down what manifestation actually is from a neurological standpoint.

Manifestation can be an off-putting concept for myriad reasons, but arguably the biggest complaint is that it feels unrooted in any scientific reality. However, many experts in the scientific community recognize that manifestation is actually rooted in very real neuroscience. The recently passed neurosurgeon and author Dr. James Doty was certainly one of them.

Doty, who passed away in July 2025, dedicated the better part of his life to explaining the science behind manifesting and visualization—why it works, how it occurs in the brain, and how to do it effectively. This includes an incredibly simple routine for manifesting, “without the woo-woo,” as he put it.

Steps for Manifestation

1. Have an intention.

2. Write it down.

3. Read it silently.

4. Read it out loud.

5. Visualize it over and over and over again.


This process might look bare bones, but Doty attests that it uses “all of your sensory organs as much as possible” to embed your intention into your subconscious. All of which activates different parts of your brain, including the part of the brain that repeats self-talk about our identity. So much of how we create habits is tied to the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves, after all.

The caveat that Doty adds, which contradicts the “good vibes only” mantra promoted in many manifestation circles, is that negative self-talk “is not going to 100% go away.” However, with practices like this, even amongst the negative self-talk, you’re able to stay emotionally resilient and not let it “overpower you” by causing you to ruminate.

“In a lot of ways, it’s like accepting the shadow self," says Doty, referencing a term coined by Carl Jung, another pioneer who bridged the gap between metaphysical, spiritual principles, and clinical psychology.

Doty also notes that, contrary to popular opinion, manifestation is not primarily about acquiring things, but rather about gaining detachment from the need for external validation, which ultimately causes suffering.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

“I like material things. I drive a Porsche, I live in a very nice house. But the difference, though they’re wonderful to have, they're not necessary. If these things were taken away from me, it has no impact on who I see myself as.”

A few other tips, which Doty goes into detail about in his book Mind Magic: The Neuroscience of Manifestation and How It Changes Everything, include beginning with some gentle breathing exercises to get into a calm state (which releases stressors like fear and doubt which can hinder manifestation), followed by focusing on the joy and awe of being alive (putting you in a receptive mode), and taking aligned action after embedding an intuition (after your brain is rewired to search for possibilities).

At the end of the day, Doty’s five-step routine, and really his work in general, is a great way for the more cynical among us to still experience the benefits of manifesting, even if we don’t gel with the way it’s normally portrayed in pop culture.

“There is no magic here; this is fundamentally basic neuroscience, and it’s something we all have the ability to master.”

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Happiness researcher explains how making a 'reverse bucket list' can change your life

Counterintuitive in our culture, but effective.

Gage Skidmore/Wikimedia Commons

Harvard researcher Arthur C. Brooks studies what leads to human happiness.

We live in a society that prizes ambition, celebrating goal-setting, and hustle culture as praiseworthy vehicles on the road to success. We also live in a society that associates successfully getting whatever our hearts desire with happiness. The formula we internalize from an early age is that desire + ambition + goal-setting + doing what it takes = a successful, happy life.

But as Harvard University happiness researcher Arthur C. Brooks has found, in his studies as well as his own experience, that happiness doesn't follow that formula. "It took me too long to figure this one out," Brooks told podcast host Tim Ferris, explaining why he uses a "reverse bucket list" to live a happier life.

bucket list, wants, desires, goals, detachment Many people make bucket lists of things they want in life. Giphy

Brooks shared that on his birthday, he would always make a list of his desires, ambitions, and things he wanted to accomplish—a bucket list. But when he was 50, he found his bucket list from when he was 40 and had an epiphany: "I looked at that list from when I was 40, and I'd checked everything off that list. And I was less happy at 50 than I was at 40."

As a social scientist, he recognized that he was doing something wrong and analyzed it.

"This is a neurophysiological problem and a psychological problem all rolled into one handy package," he said. "I was making the mistake of thinking that my satisfaction would come from having more. And the truth of the matter is that lasting and stable satisfaction, which doesn't wear off in a minute, comes when you understand that your satisfaction is your haves divided by your wants…You can increase your satisfaction temporarily and inefficiently by having more, or permanently and securely by wanting less."

Brooks concluded that he needed a "reverse bucket list" that would help him "consciously detach" from his worldly wants and desires by simply writing them down and crossing them off.

"I know that these things are going to occur to me as natural goals," Brooks said, citing human evolutionary psychology. "But I do not want to be owned by them. I want to manage them." He discussed moving those desires from the instinctual limbic system to the conscious pre-frontal cortex by examining each one and saying, "Maybe I get it, maybe I don't," but crossing them off as attachments. "And I'm free…it works," he said.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

"When I write them down, I acknowledge that I have the desire," he explained on X. "When I cross them out, I acknowledge that I will not be attached to this goal."

The idea that attachment itself causes unhappiness is a concept found in many spiritual traditions, but it is most closely associated with Buddhism. Mike Brooks, PhD, explains that humans need healthy attachments, such as an attachment to staying alive and attachments to loved ones, to avoid suffering. But many things to which we are attached are not necessarily healthy, either by degree (over-attachment) or by nature (being attached to things that are impermanent).

"We should strive for flexibility in our attachments because the objects of our attachment are inherently in flux," Brooks writes in Psychology Today. "In this way, we suffer unnecessarily when we don't accept their impermanent nature."

What Arthur C. Brooks suggests that we strive to detach ourselves from our wants and desires because the simplest way to solve the 'haves/wants = happiness' formula is to reduce the denominator. The reverse bucket list, in which you cross off desires before you fulfill them, can help free you from attachment and lead to a happier overall existence.

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27 English words people have a hard time enunciating properly, even native speakers

"The word I notice people struggle with is 'vulnerable'. Something about that N following an L is tricky."

Image via Canva/Povozniuk

English words that are difficult to enunciate.

The English language is hard to master, even for native speakers. With over an estimated one million words in the language, not only are English words hard to memorize—they can be hard to properly pronounce and enunciate.

On the subreddit r/words, a person posed the question: "What's a word you've noticed many native English speakers have difficulty enunciating even though the word is used fairly often?"

Turns out, there are a menagerie of words people notoriously stumble over. These are 27 English words that people say are the hardest to enunciate.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

"The word I notice people struggle with is 'vulnerable'. Something about that N following an L is tricky." - common_grounder

"Rural." - Silent-Database5613

“'Nucular' for nuclear." - throwawayinthe818

"Remuneration v renumeration (first one is correct)." - RonanH69

"Exacerbated vs exasperated." - SNAFU-lophagus

"I hear grown adults calling wolves woofs and they're not doing it to be funny." - asexualrhino

"'Asterisk'. A lot of people wind up inadvertently name-checking Asterix. I think it's best for those who struggle to use the alternative name for that punctuation mark, the 'Nathan Hale', after the American patriot who famously declared, 'I can only regret that I have but one asterisk for my country!'" - John_EightThirtyTwo

"Jewelry." - weinthenolababy

- YouTube www.youtube.com

"Mirror. Some people pronounce it 'meer'." - weinthenolababy, diversalarums

"I realized recently I have always mispronounced mischievous. It's mis-chiv-us, not mis-chee-vee-us. I don't know if I've ever heard anyone pronounce that correctly." - callmebigley

"ET cetera, not 'ect' cetera. I think people are used to seeing the abbreviation etc and since there is no diphthong tc in English their mind bends it into ect." - AdFrequent4623

"February. It sounds like you're pronouncing it like it's spelled Febuary. But it's spelled February." - SDF5-0, ShadedSpaces

"'Supposebly' [supposedly]. Drives me up the wall." - BlushBrat

"Library. My coworker knows I hate it, so he’ll say Liberry every time." - Jillypenny

"The amount of people who say Pacific when they're trying to stay specific is pretty alarming. I'm not even sure if they know it's a different word sometimes." - Global-Discussion-41

"Then there was my old boss who would confidently and consistently use the word tenant when he meant tenet." - jaelith

- YouTube www.youtube.com

"'Mute' for moot. A good friend of mine, who's extremely intelligent and articulate otherwise, says that. Unfortunately, it's a word she likes to use. I haven't had the heart to tell her she's pronouncing it incorrectly, and it's been three decades." NewsSad5006, common_grounder

"Probably." - Rachel_Silver

"I can’t say the phrase 'rear wheel' without considerable effort." - ohn_the_quain

"Anthropomorphize is a word I have to use semi-frequently with limited success each attempt." - ohn_the_quain

"Turmeric. People drop the first R. It drives me nuts!" - Jillypenny

"Oh, and it’s espresso, no X [ex-presso]." - Jillypenny

espresso, espresso gif, sipping espresso, espresso drink, drinking espresso sipping modern family GIF Giphy

"Also cardamom with an N." - nemmalur

"Crayon 👑. My ex pronounced it 'cran'. Drove me up a wall." - rickulele, premeditatedlasagna

"Contemplate. It's one of those word I hear people stumble over more than anything, often it comes out as Comtemplate, Contempate or a combination of both." - megthebat49

"Pumpkin (punkin)." - evlmgs

"Eraser (erasure, but they're talking about the pink rubber thing)." - evlmgs

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This photo of a school lunch in South Korea sparked a debate about how American kids eat

It's certainly making adults' mouths water, though.

Canva

A young boy reaches for food at a buffet

School lunch in the United States has a complicated history. While many of us who grew up in the 80s or 90s are nostalgic for some of the menu items we remember fondly (rectangle pizza, anyone?), some of the serving choices were bizarre. We really grew up with someone handing us a tray of pizza, french fries, chocolate milk, and soggy green beans every morning at 10:30am.

The offerings have improved somewhat over the years, but everything's still so... beige. The main choices are typically pizza, chicken nuggets, or some form of questionable ground beef like burgers or meatloaf. Some people are stunned when they find out that school lunches from around the world can look very different.

A photo of lunch served at a school in South Korea recently went viral and had everyone's mouth watering.


from pics

A user on Reddit posted the photos to r/pics where they immediately racked up over 17,000 upvotes.

The colors on the tray stick out immediately, most notably the noodles covered in creamy red sauce. But it's really the stuffed lobster tail that's the star of this particular tray; potentially lobster thermidor.

You expect to see some cultural differences in the food offerings in different countries. Korean food is inherently different than American food in a number of ways. But Americans love lobster! Yet can you imagine American schools serving lobster tail to kids under any circumstances?

school lunch, South Korea, American food, nutrition, viral photo, Reddit, food culture, kids health, parenting, food debate Lobster dinner with a glass of beerCanva

The response from mostly-American users was fascinating. Some were in awe while others rightly pointed out why a lunch like this would never fly in the USA.

One of the main sentiments was that school lunches in other countries often put ours to utter shame:

"I used to teach in Korea and the lunches were always amazing, the beef and quails egg stew was a constant highlight."

"I studied in Korea for 6 months on uni exchange. The food at the uni cafeteria looked just like this, and was 10/10. My private room at the uni lodge was $500USD for the WHOLE semester, and included unlimited food."

"I live in Spain and my kid's school invited the parents to taste lunch one day. It was fantastic. Also, at the end of each month they share a calendar of the meals that will be served during the next one, day by day. They're all balanced, and prepared with proximity food. They prepare specific meals for every kid with allergies/intolerances/any kind of dietary restriction, e.g. restrictions related to religion. They also share a list of dinner suggestions - again, for the whole month - so you have ideas for dinners that are healthy, easy, cheap, and tasty for kids. It's a public school."

school lunch, South Korea, American food, nutrition, viral photo, Reddit, food culture, kids health, parenting, food debateGif of student choosing between healthy or tasty meal via Giphy


"I am from a third world country where many public schools lack a ton of funding and even we have better more healthy lunches than the slop that’s given to US students. I know because I went to school in the US and also in my home country."

"America hates its f*cking kids. It will always mistreat them and deny them opportunities."

"Lobster as a school lunch??? I need to go back to elementary school... I'll quit work for education and a lunch like that!"

Others, while impressed with the selection, had their doubts about if American schools could ever adopt something like this:

"This lunch is orders of magnitude better then US school lunches. And most American kids would utterly hate it."

"American kids have no palette! It’s all chicken nuggets and mac & cheese! ... I know some kids that would starve rather than try anything on that tray."

Some pointed out that those metal chopsticks would likely be used as a weapon almost immediately, and discontinued ASAP.

Americans, as a whole, have a dreadful diet devoid of enough nutrition and it causes catastrophic health problems in the longterm. For clues as to why, you can look at what we feed our kids — and why.


school lunch, South Korea, American food, nutrition, viral photo, Reddit, food culture, kids health, parenting, food debate Two young students eat lunchCanva

No, most American kids probably wouldn't like lobster tail. But there is a lot that goes into how our palette develops that might help explain it.

For starters, fresh produce and lean proteins are extremely expensive in America. It's far more cost-effective to pump people full of cheap, empty calories and sugar. School lunch used to be cooked fresh every day in the schools before major government budget cuts forced districts to more heavily on lean on frozen or reheated options. Kids get used to chicken nuggies all day every day from a young age!

The irony is that school lunches in American, while not overly exciting, at least meet some basic nutritional guidelines. But they're not free for everyone, and even kids who qualify for free or reduced lunch may not end up participating due to stigma or red-tape. When parents on a shoestring budget have to buy their own lunch supplies, things can get a lot worse than meatloaf and green beans. We all knew a few kids in school who had Pop Tarts for lunch every day. To be fair, we were all jealous at the time.

- YouTube www.youtube.com

And finally, Americans sure love to get fired up about our "right" to eat like crap. When Michelle Obama tried to clean up the school lunch program, she ran into massive pushback. RFK Jr. wants to do his own version of it, and we'll see how that goes.

The viral photo from South Korea shows what might be possible with a few key cultural and political shifts. Treating feeding our kids more like "preventive medicine" versus a cost to manage would definitely be a start.

This article originally appeared earlier this year. It has been updated.

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