The Senate’s effectiveness is plagued by antiquated rules, fundraising pressures, ideological aides and an omnipresent media. The New Yorker says a once-great body is crumbling.
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While defining spirituality is ‘like shoveling fog’, an increasing number of Americans self identify as spiritual but not religious. One political scientist sees it as an outgrowth of the 1960s.
“Is the international scholarly pecking order about to be overturned?” America’s dominance in higher education is being put into question by emerging institutions overseas.
An expert on constitutional law at the University of Berkeley says yesterday’s ruling against California’s same-sex marriage ban could ultimately undermine broader gay rights objectives.
Reality TV concerns its viewers with artificial status, confuses celebrity for infamy, and has a tendency toward violence and moral depravity. Welcome to the circus, says Christine Rosen.
When evidence for a conspiracy theory falls short, an opportune moment to study cognitive dissonance arises as followers easily find ‘proof’ for an alternative explanation.
Scientists have developed a video game that allows players to predict and build protein structures that have stumped computers because of their inadequate spatial reasoning.
As marijuana legalization moves closer to being a legitimate political topic, the issue could divide the Tea Party along its libertarian and social conservative lines, says The Atlantic.
Bzzz. Bzzzzzzzz. Bz. Is that the sound of your caffeine buzz, or is it the hum of the millions of happy native bees you’re helping to house when you choose […]
One of the most overlooked aspects of the life of Frida Kahlo is that the artist who exemplified Mexican national identity had a father born in Germany. Thanks to exhibitions […]
A federal appeals court ruled today that California’s Proposition 8 is unconstitutional. Same-sex marriage is legal again in California—at least for the moment. Proposition 8 had amended the California Constitution […]
Some time ago, we looked at EyeWriter – an innovative eyetracking device that allows paralyzed patients to write with their gaze. Today, we’re turning to another form of sensory input […]
Hip hop legend and Big Think expert, Wyclef Jean may soon add the title of president to his list of accomplishments. The former Fugee is expected to announce his bid for […]
Imagine that the Journal ofHypochondriacal Cardiology reported that the incidence of fatal strokes aboard cruise ships was five times the national average. Should we conclude that the boat trips were […]
Part One of Two I often receive e-mails from my fans who state that my ability to popularize science and technology is reminiscent of the late Carl Sagan; This got […]
Today we introduce our newest blog, Dollars and Sex, written by Marina Adshade, an economics professor at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. There she teaches a popular undergraduate course […]
Interior design star Thom Filicia just stopped by the Big Think offices to tell us a thing or two about good taste and what it takes to be a tastemaker. […]
While the large banks have survived in one form or another, a spate of small- and medium-size banks are closing across the country at a rate of four to six […]
Making America fall in love with Don Draper is dangerous, because we will want to be him, or be with him, and both of these will bring moral compromise.
Good communication is a matter of getting “in sync” with others, as you’ve probably noticed when you’ve seen people match their steps perfectly as they walk, and imitate each other’s […]
How much is being American worth to you? Or British, Japanese, or German? The value of one’s nationality is largely intangible, but Nobel laureate Gary Becker tells Big Think that […]
While many minorities in our society face discrimination, being gay is a little different, according to GLAAD President Jarret Barrios. “You don’t wear that on your sleeve,” says Barrios. “It’s […]
PepsiCo Social Media director Bonin Bough thinks that CEOs who are comfortable on Twitter and Facebook can really help their companies out. “You look at a guy like Tony [Hsieh] […]
Economists find dating websites extremely useful, not to find the love of their lives because they provide an opportunity to observe a fascinating market in action: the market for marriage.
While psychologists have preferred the term ‘blended family’ to ‘broken home’, true blending rarely occurs in second-marriages. Fracture at home is becoming a tolerable reality of modern families.
China takes in 30% of the worldwide pornography revenue, and prostitution income makes up 8% of its massive GDP.
In a recent interview in the New York Times Magazine, Playboy founder Hugh Hefner said that he was very proud that he had paved the way for middle-class couples to […]
Marriage rates for educated women are falling in cities because there aren’t enough available men.
“Making nice doesn’t work. It was worth a try, but it didn’t work. So we’d better try something else.” A Methodist Sunday school teacher proposes standing up to inaction over climate change.
Critics who say WikiLeaks has blood on its hands over the release of Afghan war logs are hypocritical because they ignore the actors who more directly split Afghan and coalition blood.