Even economists aren’t satisfied with gross domestic product and incomes anymore. Now we also want to know how happy people are and how much they feel they can realize their potential.
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What’s the Big Idea? In the U.S., the weekends sandwiching the 4th of July are the most popular travel time of the year. The cherries are ripe, the pool water is swimmable, and […]
Google’s new glasses, which work like a hands-free smartphone, will continue to erase technological barriers to entering modern culture. Our storytelling ability stands to benefit greatly.
This week, physicists in Europe are expected to announce whether or not they have found the Higgs boson, which is the last undiscovered particle in the Standard Model of particle physics.
People with deep spiritual conviction—from religious fundamentalists to high Himalayan mystics—possess the greatest existential gift of all: certainty. But these days, it’s not a gift that we find it easy […]
Neil DeGrasse Tyson, who ought to know, says that the future won’t be anything like The Terminator. “I live in the real world, and in the real world that’s simply […]
Canada’s vast oil sands make it the world’s second-most oil producing nation. But the benefits of greater wealth and energy independence must be weighed against the environment.
There’s wicked, like the Wicked Witch. Wicked, as in evil. There’s wicked, like “It’s WICKED hot!” Wicked, urban slang for ‘very’. And then there are Wicked Problems; […]
Harvard sociologist Robert Putnam recently told activists that class division has become the dominant form of social difficulties in America, and that the problem is getting worse.
So I go to Panera Bread (a great example of how a well-designed national chain can serve localist ends) yesterday and was confronted by several Floyd County members or fellow […]
It seems Afghanistan may go the way of Angola and the Congo, which have both suffered greatly as a result of material wealth coupled with unaccountable political institutions.
A Berkeley physics discussion group asked “the late night big questions of quantum theory” which served to refocus the field of quantum physics.
Globalization has entered its knowledge phase, where small companies can take advantage of computer software to leverage their limited resources throughout the world.
The Partido Revolucionario Institucional has returned to power after a twelve-year hiatus. Previously, it ruled the nation’s politics for 70 years, allowing drug cartels to operate with impunity.
Art theft is a terrible problem worldwide. Aside from robbing the public of enjoying the great works of the past, art theft often leads to damage to the art and […]
As Einstein once said, “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” Not being burdened by the failures of the past or the incompetencies of the present, the students’ forward-looking approach transforms these challenges into great opportunities.
We do our society a great disservice by associating “having it all” with working long hours, whether at the office or at home–or both, says Boston University professor Ellen Shell.
As a solution to extreme color-blindness, one cybernetic device allows colors to be experienced as sounds, even the infrared spectrum. Should we get on the cyborg bandwagon?
According to contemporary Western science, measurable consciousness is extinguished when the body dies. But Eastern traditions see it differently. Does that mean they are wrong?
The Supreme Court’s recent decision on healthcare reform put more than health policy on the public agenda – it triggered a recurring debate in the United States on the power […]
So I’ve basically been on vacation during all the commentary on the decision upholding ObamaCare. Still, I’ve found time for two brief observations. First, eight of nine members of the […]
Happy weekend, everybody! If you’re looking for something to read along with your Saturday morning coffee, I’ve got something that’s better than any newspaper: Daylight Atheism, The Book is now […]
By recording electronic signals produced by the brain in laboratory settings, scientists are able to identify what patients are thinking about before they are consciously aware of the thought.
The constant stimulation provided by our mobile devices activates the brain’s reward center, like cocaine, but also causes stress by never giving us a break from our responsibilities.
According to researchers, older women who have insufficient levels of vitamin D may gain more weight than women with sufficient levels of the vitamin.
Researchers at Ohio State University say that reading a good book written in the first person can change the reader in different ways.
By Chris Arkenberg “The intelligence of the city is on the streets.“ – Manu Fernandez Amidst the swirling maelstrom of technological progress so often heralded as the imminent salvation to […]
Dear readers, Book Think debuted one year ago this month, and I’m in the mood to commemorate. Since it’s too hot for books, thinking, or even turning pages absently while […]
The idea of artists running museums sounds to many like allowing the inmates to run the asylum. A profile in the current issue of The New Yorker of Tate Gallery […]
Scientists believe they may have come up with the vaccine to keep nicotine from reaching the human brain. They are hopeful that it will make the effort to quit smoking possible.