The U.S. currently has the world’s largest prison population – not just on an aggregate basis, but also on a per capita basis. In fact, the U.S. now accounts for […]
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The Nantucket Project, a festival of ideas held this month on Nantucket, Massachusetts, was an event filled with big names. And yet, one of the most memorable performances came from an up-and-coming poet few had heard of.
Ray Kurzweil is an expert at predicting the future. In tracking our progress in the technological-evolutionary journey, Kurzweil has identified six epochs, each of which is characterized by a major paradigm shift.
With the global financial crisis ongoing, the concept of “short-termism” has emerged as one underlying explanation for our current woes. Larry Summers and Eric Schmidt, among others, tackle this question during a lively panel at The Nantucket Project.
Hey, Michele Bachmann, you know who was really, really pro-vaccination? The Founding Fathers. Read all about it in my new article at The Nation. George Washington argued for mandatory inoculation […]
Sir Brian Urquhart, one of the oldest surviving senior UN staff members, reminded us recently in an article in the New York Times that a former Secretary General of the […]
1. So the best news from the Emmys is that FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS won two key awards—for writing and for lead actor (Kyle Chandler as the Coach)—in the category of […]
It’s been over a month since the last MVP, so I thought it might be time to throw out another. Last time, Chris Reykjavik got the right answer – Kaula […]
I’m on the road, so posting will be a bit light until tomorrow. Until then, enjoy philosophers Jason Brennan and Kevin Vallier’s on Philosophy TV discussing whether political beliefs based […]
In August, 2010, Paul Rieckhoff, Founder of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, told Big Think, “I will put all the money in my pocket right now on the fact […]
Most scientists in the US and UK blame public ignorance of science for flawed policy preferences and political choices. They tend to be critical of media coverage, yet rate favorably […]
[This article appeared in the Daily Mail] The British people understand what politicians and diplomats euphemistically refer to as ‘realpolitik’. They accept that sometimes their leaders have to sit down […]
Over the past couple of days as the international media has once again focused on the bloody fighting in Sanaa, they have invariably asked themselves, Yemenis, and outside observers the […]
Readers in the Washington, DC area are invited to join us at American University this Fall semester for a seminar series sponsored by the Doctoral program in Communication. The seminars […]
As wireless devices proliferate, the U.S. needs to free up more spectrum for modern Internet uses. To do that, the F.C.C. is working to release ‘Super Wi-Fi’ which uses white space.
(The image to the left is from a Nancy Duarte presentation on the emotional path people travel down during great presentations) I was having drinks last evening with a startup […]
Now that Google’s Wallet program is live, owners of Sprint’s Nexus S 4G and a Citi Mastercard will be able to process payments through Google with a tap of plastic on plastic.
As provisions of goods and services becomes increasingly automated, economies that reward people for accumulation of the truly valuable goods, i.e. social capital, will prosper.
Facebook apps and mobile apps on smartphones and tablets have, according to the University of Maryland, given rise to a new industry that it calls the “app economy.”
The Pirate party, which ran an irreverent campaign initially focusing on filesharing, data protection and censorship drew 8.5% of Germany’s parliamentary vote, exit polls indicate.
According to Scott Galloway, the cost of education has increased at twice the rate of inflation, and student loan debt has become “an Albatross” around students necks that is choking innovation.
Fifty years after the female birth control pill hit the market, male birth control is finally becoming a reality. While I will admit that it must be harder to control […]
In branding, the conventional wisdom says that using the same computer or cologne as, say, George Clooney will make you feel more like him and, therefore, good about yourself. Conventional […]
Six months after the bloodiest day in Yemen’s uprising, forces loyal to President Ali Abdullah Salih were at it again. That time, six months ago on March 18, snipers loyal […]
If we could talk to the animals, we might gain insight into what it means to communicate with an extraterrestrial species.
Neuroscientist James Fallon is fascinated by the brains of murderers, especially in light of his own family history. His father’s side of the family was full of notorious murderers. So, […]
Well, I feel like a broken record, but I apologize for the dearth of posts. Amongst other things, I am mired in my third year review here, so I’ve been […]
–Guest post by Jamie Schleser, American University doctoral student. For those that don’t spend their days toiling away in the often peculiar atmosphere of institutions of higher learning, the how […]
White-hot conservative and libertarian anger at the size and intrusiveness of government is getting a lot of attention these days. It seems so fierce, so single-minded; Let the federal […]