One of the frustrations that comes with a new and interesting idea is the large number of people who will tell you that you’re actually saying something old and familiar. […]
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The downfall of the dollar will only be a matter of time, says the economist. That means America may soon be stuck paying more for its imports and more for its debt.
The scholar and performer gives the new movie “Burlesque” two thumbs down for claiming to portray “original” burlesque while ignoring the art form’s history and vocabulary.
When The New Yorker Probes the “Decline Effect,” An Opportunity Emerges to Rethink Science Education
At the New Yorker last week, science journalist Jonah Lehrer penned a conversation-starting feature on the so-called “decline effect,” the tendency across scientific fields for a new and exciting finding […]
Healthy living has been shown to boost brain power. It may also reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s.
Yemen took a number of hits this week – what’s new? – including this report by Human Rights Watch, calling for investigations into past war crimes in Sa ‘dah. I’m […]
The 21st century belongs to China. As the societies of Europe and the United States plateau, developing countries in Asia and South America are racing forward at an unprecedented pace—with […]
I had a good conversation this afternoon with a friend who works at Google, and we touched on ideas about how the world of search and the world of social […]
Since the worldwide success of Zhang Yimou’s “Hero” in 2002, Beijing is increasingly churning out glossy blockbusters whose production values (and budgets) rival those of Hollywood. This is all part […]
Afters months of waiting, I have finally been able to get my act together enough to post the answers to questions you posed to Dr. Adam Kent. If you remember […]
Self justification, we are told, is an unhealthy preoccupation. But just for a change – and considering the enormity of the issues that are and have been at stake, I […]
It’s plain to see that I’m an optimist, sometimes more than is socially comfortable. The ease with which I dismiss the disastrous economic decline above serves as one example of that. I wrote that the recession will benefit our political system, and, before I cut this line, as having “rewarded our company for methodical execution and ruthless efficiency by removing competitors from the landscape.” I make no mention of the disastrous effects on millions of people, and the great uncertainty that grips any well-briefed mind, because it truly doesn’t stand in the foreground of my mind (despite suffering personal loss of wealth).
Our species is running towards a precipice with looming dangers like economic decline, political unrest, climate crisis, and more threatening to grip us as we jump off the edge, but my optimism is stronger now than ever before. On the other side of that looming gap are extraordinary breakthroughs in healthcare, communications technology, access to space, human productivity, artistic creation and literally hundreds of fields. With the right execution and a little bit of luck we’ll all live to see these breakthroughs — and members of my generation will live to see dramatically lengthened life-spans, exploration and colonization of space, and more opportunity than ever to work for passion instead of simply working for pay.
Instead of taking this space to regale you with the many personal and focused changes I intend to make in 2009, let me rather encourage you to spend time this year thinking, as I’m going to, more about what we can do in 2009 to positively affect the future our culture will face in 2020, 2050, 3000 and beyond.
While much remains unknown about the deadly disease, advances in research have shed new light on its mechanisms, and on how dementia affects the aging brain.
Theodore C. Sorensen, the special counsel to President John F. Kennedy who wrote the president’s speeches and helped shape his policy, has died, according to an obituary in the New […]
So this post–like some others–is meant to be diagnostic. It’s a postmodern and conservative observation on who sophisticated Americans think they are these days. As an attempt to be an […]
Only three percent of people who develop Alzheimer’s inherit a rare, genetic early-onset form of the disease. But sussing out its genetic triggers could help to yield treatments for everyone.
Innovation is built into the American way of life, says former President Jimmy Carter. “Quite often, the people who do leave their own nation and come to an unknown destination, […]
The Christmas season should be a lot less long. We should do more, if not all, of our carol singing, partying, giving, and such between Christmas and Epiphany.
Both in the U.S. and abroad, women’s progress has been cast as a struggle toward equality between genders. Yet now, in certain key power areas women are outpacing and outperforming […]
In guest post today, David Ropeik, author of “How Risky Is It,” takes a critical look at President Obama’s assertion in the days leading up to the election that many […]
In the future, we may manufacture the products that we used to buy at the store right in our very own homes. We may also find ourselves buying products that […]
“What are the fundamental roots of our behavior as human beings,” asks Harvard Business School professor Paul Lawrence. This is a huge question to be sure, but Lawrence has a […]
Given the Internet’s decentralized structure, it is virtually impossible to shut down this outlaw conduit and its public releases of secret government and corporate information.
Like Satan, he is known by many names—Sinterklaas, Père Noël, Tomte—but we Americans call him Santa Claus. The long white beard, red outfit, reindeer, etc., all seem like givens to […]
Big Think salutes 10 women who have made inroads in professions that have traditionally been the province of men.
Men who begin their online dating messages with “Howdy” have around a 40% better success rate than those who start with “Hey,” says Sam Yagan, CEO of dating site OkCupid, […]
I have a ton of respect for Facebook’s product team, they consistently launch innovative products that pull their users, often kicking and screaming, into more engaging experiences. This requires two […]
As rapid prototyping technologies become more affordable and accessible, we could be creating more and more of the products we use every day in our homes.
August may be behind us, but that doesn’t mean we’ve stopped thinking dangerously here at Big Think. At the end of last month, we asked readers to submit their own dangerous […]