A “speculative” theory no more; it’s had four of them confirmed. “Scientific ideas should be simple, explanatory, predictive. The inflationary multiverse as currently understood appears to have none of those […]

You may have heard of Laniakea, but don’t count on it being real. “It’s the gravity that shapes the large scale structure of the universe, even though it is the weakest […]

“Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans,” said John Lennon. The most important details in life can pass us by if we’re not careful. Noticing […]

It burns so hot and intense, it’s probably already gone. But what a sight! “The flame that burns twice as bright burns half as long.” –Lao Tzu Image credit: NASA, […]

There is a crisis in male health. Learn what it is and how scientists plan to overcome it.

Four states are currently in the process of approving measures to allow high school students to fulfill foreign language-learning requirements with a computer language instead.

Pitching 1,807 innings against the most feared hitters on the planet, including Ken Griffey Jr., Barry Bonds, and Cal Ripken Jr., is no easy feat. It takes as much mental […]

Planets, Stars, Galaxies, Groups and Clusters are all real. But Superclusters? They’re nothing more than optical illusions. “It is far harder to kill a phantom than a reality.” –Virginia Woolf […]

Sick of yogurt winding up stuck to the underside of the lid? Problem solved. “My love for you would blot out the sun like a cloud made out of yogurt. […]

What everyone should know about where our matter-and-radiation-filled Universe came from. “I don’t think at this point we have any way of knowing where the laws of physics came from. We […]

Several dozen Canadian academics have utilized a job vacancy at the University of Alberta to protest high administrator salaries. Slate's Rebecca Schuman examines administrative bloat and the "corporatization of the University."

There has been a lot of attention in recent years on flow—complete absorption in a task that it almost seems effortless. The modern pursuit of flow—how to achieve it, how […]

Don’t read this blog post. Definitely don’t read it to the end. Didn’t I tell you not to read this blog post? You’re still doing it… We can laugh at […]

To the limits of our observable Universe and well beyond, here’s what we know the minimum size of the Universe must be, along with how we know it. “The greatest enemy […]

What’s the Big Idea? The Internet has a terrible habit of misquoting Einstein on energy and creativity until he sounds like he’s the author of The Secret, not the theory […]

It’s the most natural thing in the world – for an American parent especially – to praise a child for her intelligence or talent, rather than for how hard she […]

The idea that social classes are intentional constructions built and reinforced for strategic purposes is appealing because no other idea of social class makes much sense to me. 

One of the world's largest motor manufacturers is working with scientists based in Switzerland to design a car that can read its driver's mind and predict his or her next move.

The recent berthing of SpaceX’s (NSG 100: SET; #1) Dragon capsule at the International Space Station (ISS) changed history by becoming the first commercial spacecraft to successfully berth with the […]

Market reports sometimes use the phrase “testing the bottom.” It’s when a market flirts with a new low, below which it will not fall. The phrase also applies to the […]

Mind reading devices that can alert soldiers to things they've seen, but that their brains aren't yet aware of, could save lives. Some scientists worry it could also extend the theater of war. 

Why do we not give P.E. credit for participating in football? Or any of the other various sports requiring physical activity? The kids are far more active in football than […]

Editor’s note: This is an overview by Robert F. Schuyler of his book TIME, available from Rosedog Press.  I believe that this presentation is not just theory; it is fact.  We […]

In a major environmental decision, the Environmental Protection Agency has vetoed the largest mountaintop removal mining permit in the history of West Virginia.

If the F.D.A. deems saccharin safe enough for coffee, then the E.P.A. should not treat it as hazardous waste, writes President Barack Obama at The Wall Street Journal.

This semester I am teaching a doctoral seminar on the important questions and trends related to media, technology and democracy. In this post, I introduce several major topics and provide […]

–Guest post by Alyssa Martori, American University graduate student. People around the world working toward environmental preservation, conservation, and sustainability are often described as part of a global environmental movement. […]

Why is democracy so difficult? Could be because it demands that each of us accept, as the anthropologist Clifford Geertz said to me way back when I wrote this, “that […]

Next year is the latest deadline set by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (G.P.E.I.), the multinational body charged with dealing with the disease. A new report says this deadline is at risk.

This semester, students from a diversity of majors at American University are participating in an advanced seminar I am teaching on science and environmental communication. For the first part of the […]