We live in a time of information abundance, which far too many of us see as information overload. With the sum total of human knowledge, past and present, at our fingertips, we’re faced with a crisis of attention: which ideas should we engage with, and why? Big Think is an evolving roadmap to the best thinking on the planet — the ideas that can help you think flexibly and act decisively in a multivariate world.
A word about Big Ideas and Themes — The architecture of Big Think
Big ideas are lenses for envisioning the future. Every article and video on bigthink.com and on our learning platforms is based on an emerging “big idea” that is significant, widely relevant, and actionable. We’re sifting the noise for the questions and insights that have the power to change all of our lives, for decades to come. For example, reverse-engineering is a big idea in that the concept is increasingly useful across multiple disciplines, from education to nanotechnology.
Themes are the seven broad umbrellas under which we organize the hundreds of big ideas that populate Big Think. They include New World Order, Earth and Beyond, 21st Century Living, Going Mental, Extreme Biology, Power and Influence, and Inventing the Future.
Browse videos featuring experts across a wide range of disciplines, from personal health to business leadership to neuroscience.
Big Think’s contributors offer expert analysis of the big ideas behind the news.
Big Think’s Edge learning platform for career mentorship and professional development provides engaging and actionable courses delivered by the people who are shaping our future.
Management strategies for the evolving 21st century workspace
What's the Latest Development? In an era where every digital interaction leaves a mark, companies are better prepared than ever to hire and promote the best people, thanks to a new discipline called work-force science. The massive amounts of worker data gathered annually by recruiting company ...
Imagine a group of senior vice presidents sitting around a massive conference table in their company’s board room. The CEO suddenly resigned and it’s up to this huge and now sequestered bunch to vote in a new chief executive by a two-thirds-plus-one majority. These folks can vote up to four ...
New data shows Americans haven’t a clue how stunningly massive the wealth gap in their country really is. An excellent video blowing up on YouTube depicts this disparity and explains how badly Americans tend to underestimate it. No matter how many statistics you’ve read on the subject, the video ...
What's the Big Idea? The Tao de Ching, that 2400 year old leadership bestseller, paints a picture of effective leadership that contrasts strongly with the Western idea of the Alpha boss. In place of decisive action, it recommends listening. In place of “a backbone,” it counsels flexibility and ...
What's the Big Idea? In 1990, Kate O'Connor was the aide for the lieutenant governor of a small, largely inconsequential New England state. Fourteen years later, when Howard Dean became a clear front runner for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination, that job -- her first -- suddenly took ...
What's the Big Idea? Gone, more or less, are the days of the secure, blue-collar factory job in the United States. These days, America manufactures ideas and services, the latter being ideas in physical form. Take Fab.com, for example, a website and newsletter that sells haute design at (more ...
What's the Big Idea? What does the millennial generation want? Today's recent graduates may still be finding themselves, but the culture has plenty of labels ready. Are they confident or anxious? Rebels against consumerism, or simply people who don't want to buy stuff? Reckless adultolescents ...
The best and worst part about being a twenty-something is that every decision you make can change the rest of your life. Once you're in your 30's or 40's, it gets harder and harder to reinvent yourself. In this Q&A with Dr. Meg Jay, the clinical psychologist explains why the twenties matter ...
What's the Big Idea? The backbone of every organization is its people. We know this to be true. Workers are the fundamental source of productivity and the drivers of innovation, especially in the knowledge economy. Happy workers save employers crucial time, money, and energy by being actively ...
What's the Big Idea? Ever wonder how Michael Jordan came to be the best basketball player that ever lived? Unlike the stories we hear of many world champions who set out for greatness from day one, MJ didn’t even think about professional basketball until deep into his college years at the ...
What's the Big Idea? Why does it feel better to be paid hourly than to receive a salary? Why are we willing to gamble, even when we know there's a house advantage? Why would anyone buy stock in Blockbuster or Borders? (Respected financier Bill Ackman owned 10.6 million shares of the latter on ...
What’s the Big Idea? In the end, it’s not the vision that makes the business – it’s the people. Yet the hiring and managing of employees is the achilles heel of many an otherwise tightly-run organization. Why? Because human beings come with many more variables than do widgets – we’re trickier ...
What is the Big Idea? The LIBOR scandal may be breaking now, but industry insiders told The Economist that the rate fixing goes back much further than that. “Fifteen years ago the word was that LIBOR was being rigged,” says one industry veteran involved in the LIBOR process. Barclays ...
What's the Big Idea? My brother-in-law, a tenured professor at Osgood law school in Toronto, sent me an article yesterday. “This will interest you. Anne-Marie is a rockstar academic!” The rockstar academic wrote of why women still can’t have it all -- an interesting article from a unique vantage ...
What’s the Big Idea? Women in prominent leadership positions frequently get asked about gendered differences in leadership style. Are women more collaborative? Is an aggressive negotiating style a more “naturally” masculine trait? Susan Schwab, who negotiated complex, high-stakes international ...