“Some astronomers believe a hidden mini star nicknamed Nemesis is orbiting the sun, but a new analysis of life extinction cycles on Earth suggests this dark companion may not exist.”
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“It makes no difference whether determinism is true or false. We can’t be ultimately morally responsible either way.” A philosophy professor takes the gravity out of the free-will debate.
“We’re not in a double-dip recession yet. We’re in a one and a half dip recession.” Robert Reich says the President should advocate a WPA-style public works program.
“The dignity of sumo wrestling vanishing. Allegations of match-fixing, dope-smoking, orgies, and ties to gangsters among the sport’s top stars have enraged the Japanese public.”
Publishers are irrevocably changing their industry as they make more and more titles available as e-books, says Goodnight Gutenburg. Soon agents may be publishing their authors electronically.
Once the process of aging is correctly identified, will pharmaceuticals be able to counteract it? Slate reviews two books that take on aging and the human endeavor for immorality.
Ta-Nehisi Coates asks, “How does one deal with finding out that one of your most beloved artworks was created by a man or woman whose personal behavior is (or was) odious?”
“Behind every successful entrepreneur is a vast network.” And the more diverse the network, the better, says a study of successful entrepreneurs’ social networks.
The average person flushes more than 7,000 liters of water down the toilet every year. With more than half of the world’s population using flushable toilets, this amounts to trillions […]
“Words matter.” This was what Obama said during his campaign. Did his celebrated belief in—and unique gift with—language factor into his choice of artist Ed Ruscha when considering a gift […]
“[The painting is] one of the most powerful, horrible and yet fascinating pictures that has been painted anywhere in this century,” wrote the New York Tribune in 1879 of then […]
“I think the primary technological barrier that keeps us from being more emotionally engaged with video games is the barrier of speech,” says Jesse Schell, the video game designer and […]
A strange, rare flower that smells like decomposing flesh is set to bloom any moment at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. The Sumatran Amorphophallus titanum is endangered in the wild due to deforestation, and even in cultivation it is difficult to grow.
The U.S. Navy has successfully tested a sea-bound laser weapon, ushering in a new era of warfare. In light of this news, Big Think presents a timeline of the history of laser technology.
Legendary reporter Carl Bernstein stopped by Big Think’s offices this afternoon for a video interview to talk about the legacy of Watergate, the state of investigative journalism today, and how […]
Sometimes it seems that everyone has abandoned the notion that rational self-interest drives people’s decisions. It’s high time for some answers to the next obvious question: If Reason doesn’t rule […]
Today it started to cost me four dollars a week to keep a clean conscience. No, I’m not giving to the Church. I’m paying money to read the news (gasp!). […]
What does it mean to have our lives watched by an invited guest who never forgets anything he sees? Mr. Internet comes in many guises – Count Facebook, Mssr Twitter, Professor LinkedIn, […]
IT is ten days since French MPs voted to ban the Burqa, on the grounds that the garment “is an insult to the country’s values”. Yesterday two women wearing a […]
Money doesn’t buy happiness because when we try to treat ourselves, we can end up spoiling ourselves, ruining the enjoyment of everyday pleasures like a chocolate bar, says Wired Science.
“The heaviest and brightest star known to exist—with a mass some 300 times as big as our own Sun—has been discovered by British astronomers.” The Independent reports.
The disturbing imagery of blocking the sun to slow climate change aside, geoengineering faces serious practical concerns. The Economist looks at the ups and downs of this radical solution.
While appreciating music does stimulate the brain, “It will be a sad day when the only way to persuade educationalists to embrace music is via its side effects on cognition and intelligence.”
A former Treasury secretary, a labor union leader, a hedge-fund billionaire, and an heiress all agree: “The estate tax’s impending revival couldn’t come at a better time.”
In his new book, Wesley J. Smith says the precondition for the human rights movement is exactly what elevates humans above animals: namely, a moral sense of right and wrong.
Is current Middle East violence the after effect of a stabilizing Ottoman Empire or a modern consequence of leaders exploiting cultural differences for political gain?
“America, are you happy? The emotional words contained in hundreds of millions of messages posted to the Twitter website may hold the answer.” Two scientists on mulling Twitter data.
BP, Tiger Woods, Goldman Sachs: Why haven’t public relations machines been able to keep their companies’ images better intact? Have social media overwhelmed these propaganda machines?
“What’s wrong with praising our troops to the rafters and adding them to our pantheon of heroes? A lot.” A retired lieutenant colonel laments the blanket praise heaped on our troops.
Dani Shapiro’s recent New York Times editorial was not the first shot fired in the never-ending debate about the limits of artistic license, but it is one of the most […]