Is free will real, or is just one of our happy illusions? As it turns out, the answer might not matter as much as our belief in the answer does. […]
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Have you had days that you would just like to erase out of existence? Or maybe burn away, collect the ashes and let the wind carry them as far away […]
A $10 million competition to create a mobile device that can diagnose illnesses could threaten to replace doctors in less than a decade.
Today is May 18 and that marks the date of the 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens in Washington that killed 57 people (video). I don’t have an elaborate post […]
When arrested in 1936 during a protest over the dismissal of 500 artists from the WPAFederal Art Project, Lee Krasner told the unsuspecting police officer processing her that her name […]
One of the more exciting frontiers in geology is that of planetary volcanology – that is, how do volcanoes work on other planets. We know at least a few in […]
Yale University didn’t wait for federal civil rights officials to determine whether the presence of the Delta Kappa Epsilon fraternity was contributing to a hostile sexual environment. The University has […]
So one of our BIG THINKERS, Daniel Honan, gave us a fine introduction to one of the biggest ideas around, THE END OF HISTORY. Daniel is right that the idea […]
“Unless you love, your life will flash by.” These are the last words of the voice-over for Terrence Malick’s Tree of Life trailer. There isn’t much that distinguishes them from […]
At American University, students can study dimensions of the climate change challenge across multiple disciplines including environmental science, communication, public affairs, business, and international relations. This spring two students in the School […]
Scheduled to launch in 2012, M.I.T. has developed a satellite the size of a loaf of bread that will search for Earthlike planets beyond our solar system—or exoplanets—that could support life.
Will homo sapiens define a geological period in the way dinosaurs—and their vanishing act—helped mark the Jurassic and the Cretaceous? Yes, say scientists, for better or worse.
The Holographic Principle is one of several clues suggesting that the concept of “space” is an elaborate illusion—it seems to have plenty of room to hold stuff, yet it doesn’t, writes George Musser.
Stephen Hawking recently said that the afterlife is a fairy tale for people “afraid of the dark”. He compares the mind to a computer—once its component parts stop, the whole operation ceases.
N.A.S.A. Administrator Charles Bolden recently spoke about private development of the American space program, getting help from the Russians and the future of deep space missions.
A group of astrophysicists believe they have discovered the first potentially habitable exoplanet, named Gliese 581d. And there could be billions more just like it.
Humanity is on the verge of making the transition off of Earth, making physicist and space activist Gerard K. O’Neill’s vision of space colonies ever closer to reality.
As more and more SlutWalk marches against sexual violence and victim blaming take place across the country and overseas, the movement is attracting criticism from some feminists who regard the […]
When I moved to Halifax Nova Scotia, where I live now, I was told that people in the Maritimes were happy to set their friends up for love and romance. […]
Power changes how we make decisions. That’s what I thought when I first read about Dominique Strauss-Kahn’s debacle – and the escapades that have apparently preceded it. Actually, the first […]
After last week’s steam-driven phreatic explosions, it might have been expected that Bulusan would go back to being quiet – that has been the pattern for over 8 months since […]
The working class job of tomorrow is going to be a digital job. The American economy can’t stay afloat and the workforce stay working unless we teach kids digital technology.
Environmental impact is often forgotten in the stampede to get the latest tech-toy. Apple has been accused of making it hard to fix or upgrade its latest iMacs. Should you care?
Apparently it’s Richard Elmore Day in my electronic inboxes today. Here are two great quotes… From Using technology to move beyond schools (Elmore & City): With rare exceptions, schools currently […]
Is this a fair starting point for global agreement on responsible use of cyberspace? Obama wants world computer security standards with penalties for countries that fall short.
The Sunday Times hopes its new Social List, a social media measurement tool, will come to rank alongside the publication’s popular rich list as a marker of influence.
Antenna that act like spotlights, tracking a device once they locate it, instead of radiating in all directions, like light bulbs, could form the basis for future smart cities.
The technology world is all about tipping points, and last month marked the first time ever that a mobile phone (the iPhone 4) became the most popular camera on the […]
It had been ages since I’d been in Shoreditch – West Londoners generally never stray east of Tower Bridge – but visiting relatives were determined to inspect the cool clubs […]