Humanity is on the threshold of disturbing half of the Earth’s landmass. Scientists say that could represent a crucial tipping point beyond which the planet’s biology would drastically change.
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Seth Shostak, senior astronomer with the SETI Institute, advises Hollywood on the science of extraterrestrials. He says aliens would be vastly stronger than us and far more intelligent.
Jonah Lehrer’s post at The New Yorker details some worrying research on cognition and thinking through biases, indicating that “intelligence seems to make [such] things worse.” This is because, as […]
I remember going to bed one night when I was 11, seriously afraid I would not be alive in the morning. It was October, 1962, and the frightening cold […]
It used to be that the word “doctor” brought to mind an image of a kindly old man in a small office with a stethoscope, but now it conjures up […]
In the two decades since German reunification, the German government has spent up to €1,6 trillion on upgrading the defunct economic infrastructure of the communist East to match that of […]
At Netroots Nation last week, I attended a panel on Citizens United, the infamous case in which the Supreme Court tossed aside decades of campaign finance laws and ruled that […]
SSA Week is ongoing, as atheist bloggers come together to raise money for the Secular Student Alliance. At the time this post was published, they’ve collectively raised $65,000 out of […]
The Chinese can’t innovate, right? All that rote learning drummed into their cerebellums from birth. Cloning, now that’s a Chinese forte. It makes a comforting chestnut for Americans looking just over the horizon at what the […]
The United Nations (UN) estimates that 56.9 million people died in 2008. Of those, 63.5% died because of Group II causes (i.e., noncommunicable diseases (NCDs)), and almost 30% died because […]
Responding to my post the other day (about the claim that entitlement programs discourage people from having kids) Ramesh Ponnuru replies here with the fair point that cultural differences among […]
What is so special about touching a piano John Lennon once owned? Why do we yell at our laptops? What drove the Yankees to dig up the Red Sox jersey […]
“Be yourself” can seem like risky advice in a competitive job market. But you know what’s riskier? Being nobody. Ken Segall explains how he became an ad man for Apple.
Learn how human-technology co-evolution, Technik and technology quotient are among the key skills necessary for success in the Hybrid Age.
What’s the Latest Development? There is no question as to whether or not the web provides us with a wealth of information. Every day an average of “300 billion emails” […]
More or less anybody who has ever done anything newsworthy can cite, as Henry Rollins can, some turning point at which they made a risky decision that paid off, and a lifelong sense of mission not easily derailed by minor failures.
While writing this post, my mood will vary. I’ll enjoy the beginning – riffing on a new idea is always exciting – but I’ll inevitably hit difficult patches. A few […]
What’s the Latest Development? It has become all too common to walk down a busy city street and see the majority of pedestrians glued to their phones and inattentive to […]
Three interesting pieces on Yemen have hit the internet in the past couple of days, which people who follow Waq al-waq should definitely read. The first, and most important, is […]
When we think of those opposed to homosexuality – which still sounds weird to me, like opposing left-handed people* – or stem-cell research or euthanasia, we tend conclude they’re justifying […]
One of the most interesting of the (ridiculously) long list of documents my daughter had to provide in order to work here in France was a letter stating that she […]
A group of Spanish activists have quickly raised over €15,000 by appealing to public demands that banking executives be brought to justice. The fund will be used to conduct legal research.
I’d like to get the Freakonomics guys to explain this paradox of K-12 education: The more money you spend for your children’s education, the fewer days they’ll actually be educated. […]
Using social media to facilitate communication within corporate structures has become an essential tool for innovation, say 2,700 business executives in a new survey of Europe.
Whether the future is a dystopian global class struggle over technology or a Pax Technologica of transparency, access and equity will depend on spreading technology quotient (TQ) above all else.
Humor fosters community and builds character, two virtues that educational reformers neglect.
Amid the tiny din of two-hundred micturating rodents, Ralph X. Bumblefutz goggled in disbelief at a discovery that would forever lay waste to the West’s most cherished ideas about incontinence. […]
Ask a gaggle of economists which country has the world’s fastest growing economy and they’ll most likely say China. At the very least, most Americans see China as the world’s […]
On July 1, Australia will implement its carbon tax. Will other countries follow Australia’s lead? Should they?
SSA Week is ongoing, as atheist bloggers come together to raise money for the Secular Student Alliance. At the time this post was published, they’ve collectively raised $59,680 out of […]