A University of Adelaide student found a relatively simple way to convert the humble-but-environmentally-dangerous plastic bag into a material that has great high-tech potential but is currently too difficult to produce in large qualities.
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The brazen terrorist attack by Islamic militants on the Westgate Mall in Nairobi this week was tragic, devastating and emotionally wrenching. It was also, unfortunately, inevitable. No matter how good a job […]
To test the effects of microgravity on astronauts traveling on extended space missions, the agency will pay qualified candidates who are willing and able to stay (mostly) horizontal for 70 days straight.
There’s nothing new under the sun, or, to put it another way, there is nothing new about Twitter’s 140-character format for microblog posts.
The sunk cost fallacy means making a choice based on a desire not to see your past investment go to waste.
Is it pure dumb luck that we have not had an accident involving nuclear weapons? In fact, we have had many such accidents.
What kind of people confess to crimes they didn’t commit? You might imagine they’re sleepless and terrified, with cops telling them there’s already proof of their guilt. And you’d be […]
‘All man’s miseries,’ wrote the French mathematician Blaise Pascal, ‘derive from not being able to sit in a quiet room alone.’ Silence can do sinister things to a human being. […]
Last week a US appellate court sided with a group of public sector employees who claimed they were fired because they “liked” the Facebook page of their boss’ election opponent.
Working in collaboration with Tumblr, Phillips’ “Paddles ON!” will auction off preselected works of digital art both live and online. It will also display the works in a special show at their physical gallery on New York City’s Park Avenue.
The signs, some of which will contains messages like “It can wait,” will direct drivers to one of 91 already-existing rest stops and parking areas in the hopes of combating texting while driving.
The 141-year-old magazine announced that it will no longer allow readers to comment on its Web site, citing research to back up its claim that the tone of the discussions hindered the championing of science.
The law, signed by Governor Jerry Brown Monday (Sept. 23), allows them to delete posted content that they might regret when they’re older. It’s part of a larger measure designed to protect children’s privacy.
So my class on technology is beginning to consider skeptical views of the transformative possibilities of biotechnology. One comes from those who say that the evolutionary understanding of nature explains […]
“The more players that want to create original content and finance it,” Littlefield says, “the more exciting it is in the world of ideas.”
What would make a quantum computer so powerful is the ability to do many computations at same time.
In my recent New York Times bestseller, Flash Foresight, I share seven principles that can make invisible opportunities visible. Being able to direct your future is essential for success in […]
For couples with lots of cash, agencies will provide a American surrogate who will carry a child to term. Once that child turns 21, they can apply for visas that will allow the whole family to emigrate to the US.
“Weary with toil, I haste me to my bed/ The dear repose for limbs with travel tired,” William Shakespeare writes in his Sonnet 27. “But then begins a journey in […]
Conceived of by former Trader Joe’s president Doug Rauch, the store will offer affordable foods that, while technically “expired,” are still perfectly edible. He says it’s one solution to the growing problem of food waste.
Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev proposed the hike so that more people will “switch on [their] brain” when entering a marriage. It’s part of a growing trend towards increased social conservatism.
Judas was often portrayed as a redhead. But now the gingers are fighting back
What a golden age these past few decades have been for learning about how human cognition works. And what a humbling age, as we discover the truth that satirist […]
It’s an attempt to encourage marriage — and the legal and financial benefits that come with it — in a country where cohabitation has old cultural roots.
According to a research firm, Chinese could be consuming 5 million extra metric tons’ worth of packaged food by 2015. The reasons mirror America’s past; the potential consequences mirror America’s present and future.
We are at a point when we’re completely rethinking disease.
The reason Socrates banished laughter or comedy from the poetry of the just city is that comedians, at their best, remind us of what we all know: There’s an inexpressible […]
Suppose you knew that Earth and all its inhabitants would be destroyed 30 days after your death in a collision with a giant asteroid. How would this knowledge affect you?
Scientists are using brain scan technology to hone individuals’ ability to control the direction and precision of their own thoughts.
Planet Earth will be able to sustain life for another 1.75 billion years, after which point the surface will become too hot to support liquid water.