Might we someday use fetal stem cells, harvested from blood or organs, to boost the brain, treat cancer and neurodegenerative diseases, and reverse the ravages of age?
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Within any woman who has ever been pregnant, some of her baby’s cells may live for as long as she lives.
Modern communication technology could be harnessed to give the very best teachers to every classroom. Though teleconferencing, we could become a nation of life-long learners.
What’s the Big Idea? For corporations, growth is a quarterly concern — a hope maybe, but not a necessity. For small businesses and nonprofits, stagnation isn’t an option: it’s grow […]
We all know the standard script surrounding divorce. A young person learns his/her parents are divorcing and their fantasy of a happy family is shattered. Falling into despair they under-perform […]
What’s the Big Idea? There’s a revolution going on in neuroscience, says science writer Kayt Sukel, and it’s happening on two fronts. One way the science is changing: researchers are […]
Scientists have a lot of influence over how we live our lives. This is mostly a good thing – and will help us weed out the snake oil from the spinach – but only a terribly naive optimist could think the “Mozart Effect” won’t strike again.
“Do you think we should get our brains scanned before getting married?” a friend asked me as we browsed a crowded department store, selecting important items for her bridal registry. […]
Earlier this year, Berkeley psychologist Alison Gopnik published an essay entitled, “What’s Wrong With the Teenage Mind?” in the Wall Street Journal. It was a very interesting piece—and one that […]
A collection of the world’s top engineers and tech entrepreneurs will be invited to a hush-hush conference somewhere in the Pacific this May. Eccentric venture capitalists are behind the idea.
A technology company is working to bring virtual machines to your smartphone. In other words, your phone will simulate the software your company runs, so you can work from anywhere.
These days it’s hard enough to get any job at all. If it is part of a good life to have a job that you love then the current situation […]
In addition to in-house R&D, big businesses like Best Buy and Blue Cross Blue Shield are funding start ups to create new product lines and innovate the direction of the company.
The birth-control battle that’s dominated headlines for the past few weeks seems to be winding down, as religious conservatives belatedly realize it’s not a winning issue for them. But given […]
Another bead of sweat breaks through Zafar’s collar. He twists his neck, irritated. One morning cool enough for a suit is too much to ask from clay-oven Karachi, even for this day.
“Mr. Khan, welcome. Please follow me.” The white man’s collar is crisp, dry.
No carnefab Manager liked hearing from an NFA Inspector, but especially not when the message said, “Fieldspec high neuro count. Site audit 213245-1330. Pres Req.” Paul Ingersoll read the message and checked the time. 213245-1312.
It was a fact that on Planet Xeron 12, the gods ate small children. It wasn’t that these celestial highness’s gained extraordinary powers or insights from the experience–small people simply tasted good. Naja Krait wasn’t about to lose her only child to the greedy, Elysian mouths.
Happy International Day of You, women of the world. Unfortunately it remains internationally respectable to argue that science has shown that men are inherently better at math and scientific pursuits […]
What is the Big Idea? Thanks to the power of social media, a new 29 minute video aimed at capturing an international criminal has been viewed more than 30 million […]
The Big Think, Short Fiction contest was born out of our desire to find new ways of connecting with readers and foregrounding their voices on the site. Today we’re proud to publish the three winning entries, selected by author Nathan Englander.
The United States is entering uncharted waters as a superpower, as it slowly climbs out of a crippling recession and faces an electoral showdown this fall between cautious globalism and […]
There are few people I disagree with more than Sarah Palin, but I’m surprised that the famed Correspondents’ Dinner this year will feature the comedian Louis C.K., who’s said some […]
When author Nathan Englander visited Big Think, I had one major question for him, which I asked in about six different ways. How, I wondered, do you dare to embark […]
Mitt Romney is looking more and more like the inevitable Republican nominee. Romney won 6 of the 10 Super Tuesday states, including the crucial state of Ohio. He won the […]
A small non-profit called Invisible Children has created a huge stir over a highly-produced half-hour video which garnered millions of views in just hours. Did you see it? What do you think?
In the annals of heroic human defenses against sharks, Polish kite surfer Jan Lisewski might just take the cake. Lisewski is the first person to kite surf across the Baltic Sea, a […]
The 2012 Skyscraper Competition sponsored by the architecture journal eVolo inspired some amazing designs that predict the planet’s future population and geographical changes.
When Tim Cook introduced Apple’s new iPad, spoke of the post-PC revolution. What does that world look like? Will we recognize it when it arrives? Should you stop buying computers?
Nothing haunts like a skeleton in the closet. When art museums and cultural institutions talk about their treasures, there are always a few items they’d rather keep out of the […]
What’s the Big Idea? Happy International Women’s Day! This is the first of many events throughout the month which focus on celebrating the historic achievements of women around the world, […]