Students in China are out performing countries who spend far more education.
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When popular culture appropriates complex scientific theories, such as quantum mechanics, Joe Schmoe opines all over the Internet. Is it worth bringing science to the mainstream?
While walking in Fairmount Park in 1872 with his minister father, 12-year-old Henry Ossawa Tanner saw a man painting and became curious about art. His family fed that curiosity, which […]
Thanks to federal restrictions that hamstring research,” a new paper argues, “opportunities to further study marijuana’s risks and benefits and develop new pharmacotherapies are squandered.”
Will longer working lives – like longer working hours – mean fewer people being employed? We’re almost certain to find out, as Malthus rears his well-coiffed head again.
Ziggy Marley tells Big Think that smoking marijuana is “a very spiritual, sacramental, private thing.” But hemp, he says, can save the planet.
According to Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian the most active users tend to be left-of-center or libertarian, and both those groups advocate for the legalization of marijuana.
When Facebook allowed page administrators to interact on Facebook as the page, I was elated. But I am increasingly finding that other changes in Facebook are making it much less […]
Maer Roshan, author of Courtney Comes Clean: The High Life and Dark Depths of Music’s Most Controversial Icon, is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Fix. Previously he was deputy of New York Magazine, editorial […]
Why is there something rather than nothing? For starters, why do we think nothing is a more natural state than something? Physicists are answering old questions in brand new ways.
Every Wednesday, Dr. Michio Kaku answers reader questions about physics and futuristic science. If you have a question for Dr. Kaku, just post it in the comments section below and […]
Batman is wrong to be nonlethal in the case of the Joker. This shows we can, in some cases, morally kill someone against his will. I am something of a […]
The question of my last post: Why do we deny that it’s our nature to die? The answer from many of my threaders: We aren’t merely or even essentially natural […]
Environmental groups and climate activists have been harshly critical of Mitt Romney’s unfortunate backtracking on climate science and his commitment to policy action. Much of the criticism has argued that […]
The space telescope has worsened NASA’s relationships with Congress, who felt duped by the exploding cost of the project. Still, the telescope may prove an amazing technical achievement.
The Hubble Space Telescope has confirmed that a distant planet discovered in 2009 is largely composed of water. Its physical attributes could mean an exotic mix of elements are present.
The winds of stellar-mass black hole have been clocked at 20 million miles per hour. Curiously, scientists say the winds carry away as much matter as the black hole draws in.
LONDON, February 22 – It’s been a rough week for Richard Dawkins, prominent evolutionary biologist and noted God-hater. Our reporters can reveal that on Monday, while Dawkins was ordering breakfast […]
When we think family, we often think values, tradition, averages: 2 parents, 2.5 kids. But the concept of what makes up a family is anything but stable, says Sonia Arrison, a policy analyst who studies the impact of new technologies on society. And due to an unprecedented recent increase in longevity, it’s changing again.
It took ESPN 35 minutes to remove its controversial “Chink in the Armor” headline about Jeremy Lin. It took Senate candidate Pete Hoekstra a lot longer to remove a political […]
Earlier today I answered five questions for PBS’ NewsHour on the elections in Yemen and what it means going forward. Since I covered a lot of ground in the Q-and-A […]
Francis Tapon is the author of the new book, The Hidden Europe: What Eastern Europeans Can Teach Us. This article is an adapted excerpt from the chapter on Slovenia.
Following the meltdown of the financial system in 2008, subsequent economic downturn, innumerable investigative journalism pieces about the big banks and investment practices, and finally the rise of the Occupy […]
In January, super PACs out fundraised and spent their aligned GOP candidates. Given that independent TV ads tend to be disportionately more negative than candidate ads, there has been a […]
In Acts of God and Man: Ruminations on Risk and Insurance,Michael Powers examines how risk impacts our lives, health, and possessions and how we can go about analyzing the uncertainty. In […]
Depending on which economist has the stage, America’s economy is either experiencing slow growth, remains dismally flat, or stands ready to fall off a cliff. Nearly everyone agrees that the economy needs help. The nation’s debt and budget deficits are reaching, or have already reached, fiscal crisis levels. Historians will analyze someday how close the United States came during this period to reaching the economic breaking point as a nation. Truth be told, some fear that the breaking point may still occur.
So far we’ve had Free Market Jesus, Cowboy Jesus, Mack Daddy Jesus, and Finally Come To Jesus as front runners in the Republican primary. Now we’ve got My Jesus Is […]