What is the Big Idea? Human beings have biological clocks that are set to the path of the sun. But our modern lives disrupt this synchronization of internal and social […]
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For the first time since Google appeared on the scene in 1998, search engines are undergoing a fundamental change by learning to operate more like the human brain.
NASA released this video of the late Ray Bradbury reading a wonderful short poem entitled “If Only We Had Taller Been,” which Bradbury wrote on the occasion of the historic Mariner […]
I’m a bit busy this week, since I’m at Netroots Nation until Sunday. But I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the major fundraising drive that’s just kicked off: the […]
A California company has developed new ‘microfluidics’ technology in which fluid sacs rise up like buttons from a flat touchscreen, then seemingly disappear on a user’s command.
A few days ago, Ramesh Ponnuru made an interesting case for a massive U.S. tax break for childrearing—not a piddly deduction, but a honking big $5,000-per-kid credit. His reasoning (to […]
Larry Arnhart, the leading Darwinian conservative, wonders whether I’ve converted to his faith, doubtless due to his efforts at sharing the good, evolutionary news. Larry is, of course, not an […]
Jad Abumrad loves collecting sounds and playing with high-tech gadgetry, but he deploys his geekery in service of a higher calling – creating in Radiolab a hybrid medium that is a natural evolution of the ancient art of storytelling.
The size of the Internet just expanded exponentially on June 6, a date also known as World IPv6 Launch Day. Internet Service Providers and leading Internet companies like Facebook and Google […]
The good news is that you don’t have to wait for government action to take control of your own health. The bad news is it’s not always easy. You have to go cold turkey.
The recently announced partnership of Udacity with Pearson VUE testing centers has caused quite a stir in Higher Education community. I have read opinions that range from sell-out to a […]
By combining magnetic levitation train technology with vacuum-sealed tunnels, trains could reach speeds of 2,500 miles per hour, reducing trans-Atlantic journeys to just one hour.
A coming age of neural implants and super-prosthetics should easily augment the natural capacities of the human body. The benefits will go to the disabled first, making them super-human.
A novel mixture of hardware and software allows individuals to carry all their portable financial information in a specially designed phone case protected by fingerprinting technology.
The aftermath of Wisconsin’s recall election seems like a perfect time to reflect on the role and desirability of labor unions. I’ve arguedelsewhere that public- and private-sector unions are quite […]
So I’m glad Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin gets to keep his job. The RECALL, for one thing, is a very ill-considered progressive reform (originating, of course, in La Follette’s […]
I’m so frustrated. What’s wrong? I know I should vote in November, but I’m totally over Obama, and Romney is kind of a tool. I don’t know what to do. […]
Previously limited to explaining the behavior of subatomic particles, quantum mechanics may govern biological life and be selected for by evolution, says cosmologist Paul Davies.
Stories of German film director Werner Herzog’s calm under pressure are legendary. Not only did he continue an on-camera interview after being shot in the stomach by a sniper, but he saved Joaquin Phoenix from a car wreck that could have exploded.
Most “honest” people are willing to cheat by “fudging” their results in order to give themselves small gains.
It’s no new news that the art world remains a man’s world for the most part, but that the situation’s getting better. Cindy Sherman’s major retrospective exhibition Cindy Sherman, which […]
With private companies announcing their intentions to mine the lunar surface and asteroids for precious minerals, legal questions have arisen over how far the concept of ownership can be applied.
The Department of Defense is handing down two telescopes it built for spying purposes. By retrofitting the hardware, NASA will be able to look for dark energy at the edges of the Universe.
I interviewed Paul Zak, founding Director of the Center for Neuroeconomics Studies at Claremont Graduate University, for the first time two years ago. We met for a coffee at Neuroscience […]
Perhaps the world’s most fiercely original aerospace engineer, Rutan has pioneered beautifully designed aircraft that (successfully) go against the grain of conventional wisdom.
By measuring the planet’s atmosphere as light from the sun refracted against it, scientists will be better equipped to find and analyze the composition of planets outside our solar system.
Most of us, especially if we follow the principles of critical thinking, go through life slowly building up a patina of evidence supporting the beliefs that matter to us. Under […]
Warning: a Scott Walker victory in the Wisconsin gubernatorial recall election may finally inspire the rest of the Democratic Party to start acting like they really want to keep Barack […]
The former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Mike Mullen, characterized “cyber” as an “existential threat to the United States of America” in a recent issue of Fortune […]
Earlier today an anonymous US official confirmed the death of Abu Yahya al-Libi. Now, I don’t have a lot to say about al-Libi – other than to say wait for […]