When James Hansen created one of the world’s first climate modelers—then termed “Model Zero”—thirty years ago, he sounded a novel and somewhat abrupt alarm. The world, he predicted, is getting […]
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Last week’s New Yorker contained this mind-opening piece by Atul Gawande, who argues that muddling through with small-bore trial projects is not a bad response to the crisis in U.S. […]
A heated discussion has ensued about Big Think’s interview with Peter Thiel on Scott Sumner’s blog, The Money Illusion. Check it out after the jump. STATSGUY: “His message about blaming […]
“Hold tight,” said UNFCCC secretary Yvo de Boer yesterday at the UN climate summit in Copenhagen. “Mind the doors. The cable car is moving again.” De Boer – who has […]
People do many things without knowing why: buy stuff they didn’t think they wanted, vote differently when they’re in one setting than they would in another, order a different lunch […]
The Good Soldiers is nearly unbearable. Relentlessly so. Commendably so. Whether you’re a combat veteran, a soldier’s mom, an Iraqi, the 43rd U.S. president, an ordinary American, or some pundit […]
Iraqi militants have used cheap computer software to intercept live video feeds from US drones in a security breach which could give them enough information to evade air strikes.
Senate member and former vice presidential candidate Joe Lieberman is seen to be “holding Obama to ransom” by using his deciding vote to go against the health care reform bill.
Golfer Tiger Woods may well be spending the Christmas holidays alone after reports that his wife Elin is moving out of his den following revelations that the pro has been cheating.
The Hubble Space Telescope has captured festive-looking images of the cosmos (resembling a starry Christmas wreath) just in time for the holidays.
Scientists have completed research to sequence the genomes of skin and small-cell lung cancers – and it shows that many mutations could be prevented.
Planetary scientist Francis Nimmo says evidence from recent NASA expeditions suggests that conditions necessary for life may exist on the icy satellites of Saturn and Jupiter.
With just two days remaining at the Copenhagen climate summit China signalled last night that it sees “virtually no possibility” of finalising an agreement on Friday.
The British Broadcasting Corporation has sparked outrage for hosting an online debate asking people if homosexuals should face execution – in response to laws being discussed in Uganda.
Surgeons in Brazil are attempting to remove up to 50 sewing needles from a 2-year-old boy who suffered abuse at the hands of his stepfather and two unidentified women.
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has announced that the Western military bloc was not prepared to compromise with Russia over Georgia.
“The creation of crimes after the commission of the fact,” Alexander Hamilton wrote, “and the practice of arbitrary imprisonments, have been in all ages, the favorite and most formidable instruments […]
The Carter Center, the home base of ex- president Jimmy Carter, is best known for its peace summits and election observers. But the Atlanta based organization has used its ability […]
British comedian Stephen Fry is best known for his work as an actor, writer and, more recently, a new media aficionado, with some million-plus Twitter followers eagerly awaiting his every […]
Who needs proper porn when one can read Chaucer? Both might make us feel good in diverse ways, but assumptions that the afterglow of old poetry is uniquely cerebral are […]
NEW YORK, NY — Shortly after explaining the art of made-up journalism in a video interview with Big Think, Joseph “Joe” Randazzo, lead editor of The Onion, died on Wednesday […]
This morning astronaut Leroy Chiao spent some time with us at Big Think to chat about his four tours in outer space and his role as director at Excalibur Almaz, […]
If you want to speculate about an alternate-universe world without intelligent primates (and who doesn’t?), then your thoughts must turn to the octopus. Because the octopus has a large and […]
Even while wars have unfolded in all kinds of ways since it ended, World War II remains the war to end all wars. It’s scope so large that seemingly everyone […]
The US government has agreed to forgo billions in tax payments from Citigroup as part of a deal to help the company repay the massive taxpayer bailout which helped it weather the crisis.
A new study suggests that 15 per cent of teenagers have received explicitly sexually text messages, dubbed “sext messages”- while 4 per cent have sent sexts.
The new Boeing 787 Dreamliner made its maiden flight yesterday impressing onlookers with the grace of its lightweight carbon-fiber composite wings despite the rainy weather.
The sense of touch is more pertinent for women because their hands are smaller, a new study by the McMaster University in Ontario, Canada suggests.
It was only a matter of time before internet users used their “collective energy” to make a collaborative work of literature, writes The Independent.
The Obama administration is supporting the “loosening” of international copyright laws to enable cross-border distributions of special format reading materials for the blind.