Guest Thinkers — June 3, 2010

No News Is Good News

Garrison Keillor is feeling especially powerless these days: “As the Gulf turns dark and the polar ice cap melts, I intend to listen to Bach more and listen to the news less,” he says.

bigthinkeditor

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

Garrison Keillor is feeling especially powerless these days: “As the Gulf turns dark and the polar ice cap melts, I intend to listen to Bach more and listen to the news less,” he says. The Midwesterner has had it up to here with contradictory TEA Party platforms and a once-great nation being sold for a barrel of oil. “If man is pushing the planet toward extinction, then we should stop doing what we’re doing, and if we cannot stop ourselves or tolerate government making us stop or slow down, then I suppose we should enjoy the ride. The condemned man ate a hearty breakfast,” Keillor writes.

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

A golden-brown turkey being carefully lowered into a metal pot outdoors, ready for a deep fry amidst the grassy area and wooden fence.

Starts With A Bang

What happens if you deep fry a frozen turkey?

It’s the ultimate setup for a Thanksgiving Day disaster. The physics of water and its solid, liquid, and gas phases compels us not to do it.

A green and abstract background with connected molecular diagrams and labeled sections: "Building block" and "Assembly pool," with an "Assembly index: 8.

13.8

The pre-life puzzle: Tracing the rise of complexity in a lifeless world

We need a “theory that explains the evolution of evolution,” argues theoretical physicist Sara Imari Walker.

The Present

Microplastic overload: Is cutting production the only realistic way to curb pollution?

On November 25, U.N. members will meet in South Korea to cap off a series of meetings aiming to reduce global plastic pollution.

Collage of architectural designs: a detailed stone arch with sculptures reflecting ancient architecture, an ornate geometric pattern, and a faded image of the Taj Mahal.

The Long Game

Why every long-term investor should study ancient architecture

Magnificent time-tested buildings are filled with lessons in resilience and stability — and the benefits for investment strategy can be huge.

Open book with a sketch of two toy characters on the left page and a story prompt with fill-in-the-blanks, inspired by a Pixar career hack, on the right.

Business

Use this genius Pixar hack to get your career back on track

Storytelling skills are not just for entertainment — practical exercises used by the cream of Hollywood can transform your work-life.

Up Next

Surprising Science

Dark Matter Sighting?

“For the first time, physicists have confirmed that certain subatomic particles have mass,” writes the L.A. Times. The mass could account for the mysterious existence of dark matter.