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.
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A mindful life, one decision at a time
Can the way we think actually change the wiring, activation patters, and physical landscape of our brains? In other words, can our mind, in a sense, control or at least influence the direction of our brain? Our brains are incredibly flexible. Long after the exuberance (fast growth) and the ...
A few months ago, I wrote about the ability of smell to regularly influence our choices, often without any awareness on our part. But smell is not the only culprit. Indeed, one of the senses that can most drastically influence our perceptions and our decisions, also without our being aware of the ...
When we remember, what is it that we’re remembering? Do we try to recapture the appearance of a moment, like a photograph or a postcard that shows us a perfect still image of a point in time? Do we try to incorporate motion, a movie reel that we can fast-forward, pause, and rewind at will? Do we ...
One of my favorite movies is When Harry Met Sally. I can watch it over and over and love it every single time—maybe even more than I did before. There’s a scene that will be familiar to any of the movie’s fans: Harry and Sally have just embarked on their drive to New York City and Harry starts ...
Good morning. How are you feeling right now? Like, on a scale of 0 (very bad), to 100 (very good), where would you be? 75? 90? 20? Thanks for letting me know. Now, would you mind telling me what you’re doing right now? Interesting. Just one more question. Are you thinking about something other than ...
Lessons from Sherlock Holmes fans: a new installment of the series is now available at Scientific American, here. I will not be posting any more series updates on this blog, but you can expect new columns regularly—for now, every Tuesday and Friday—on Scientific American. Again, if you'd like to be ...
I’m hungry. I head to the fridge—but first, I shake my head and say mournfully to myself, there’s nothing to eat. I’m not looking forward to the process of choosing from what I know to be inferior choices. Imagine, then, my surprise when I open the door and see a plate of… it doesn’t actually ...
A 5.8 earthquake hits the East Cost. New Yorkers quake. Californians laugh. Along comes a Category 1—no wait, tropical storm—hurricane. Now, not all New Yorkers are quaking; instead, while some quake, others laugh. And not all Californians are laughing; while some laugh, others offer helpful hints ...
OMG. I better tweet this. Or post it on Facebook. Or click that oh-so-tempting like button. Maybe tumblr? Stumbleupon? Some other sharing service that I’m too slow to have noted, but that I absolutely must must must add now? Many of us have gone through some modified version of that reaction. We ...
A recent article in the Wall Street Journal suggests that technology and, more specifically, time spent online might actually be helping people be friendlier, more empathetic, and in general, just nicer in their off-line life. The piece is an anomaly. It goes right against more popular reports of ...
A few updates! First, Lessons from Sherlock Holmes is moving to a new home on Scientific American. So, Holmes fans can now read the column in a more continuous fashion. The first one appeared on Friday (a modified version of the first lesson to appear here); the next three will also be repeats from ...
Pet owners are a unique breed. Even those that hadn’t wanted a pet often find themselves enthralled once they join the ranks of proud possessors of a furry (or not so furry; we don’t discriminate) companion. Witness Adam Gopnik’s recent tale of dog-ownership in the New Yorker. And that’s all well ...
It’s been raining and gloomy since Saturday night. I think the change of weather is nice. I don’t mind. But my brain does. And whether or not I know it, it sends signals, triggered by this gray and misty environment, that will affect—sometimes subtly, sometimes more strongly—my decisions and my ...
Details are important, often crucial. But focus exclusively on the details, without taking a step back, and you run the risk of getting lost in minutiae – and more likely than not, of missing any actual importance the details might contain. In other words, don’t forget the old proverb, “Don’t miss ...
Which would you rather have: an apple or a Kit-Kat bar? It’s not an easy question. The answer depends on many factors, including how hungry you are, how much you like apples and Kit-Kats, what your mood is like, what time of day it is, when you expect to eat next, and the list goes on. However, for ...