June 26, 2013

Supreme Court Tosses DOMA and Prop 8 into the Dustbin of History

“DOMA’s principal effect is to identify and make unequal a subset of state-sanctioned marriages,” wrote Justice Anthony M. Kennedy in today’s U.S. Supreme Court ruling striking down the Federal Defense of Marriage Act.

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A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

In a separate ruling, high court decided that defenders of California’s gay marriage ban did not have standing, meaning lower court rulings striking down the ban in California will stand.

What do you think?

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

A digital illustration of a human brain with blue veins and a glowing light at the top, set against a black background.

The Future

How Neuralink’s chief competitor is tapping into the brain without surgery

“Neurotech is not just about the brain,” says Synchron CTO Riki Banerjee, explaining how their tech can help with paralysis, brain diseases, and beyond.

An abstract illustration features a bell curve with red dots and a percentage labeled 49%. The background includes a monochrome portion of a face with wide-open eyes peeking below the curve.

Thinking

Everyday Philosophy: Bad at probability? That might be a blessing.

How black and white is your thinking?

Image of Earth set against a black background with the text "A Volatile World" in large white letters.

Why does it feel like the world is falling apart?

“We’ve engineered a volatile world where Starbucks is completely unchanging from year to year, but democracies are collapsing and rivers are drying up.”

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11 min

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with

Brian Klaas

Starts With A Bang

Ask Ethan: Do gravitons need to exist?

Electromagnetism, both nuclear forces, and even the Higgs force are mediated by known bosons. What about gravity? Does it require gravitons?

A close-up of a neoclassical building's facade with ornate carvings and columns, featuring an emblem at the center, reflects the grandeur often associated with the global elite.

The Present

A surprising share of the global elite went to Harvard

A survey of more than 6,000 of the world’s richest, most influential people shows that 9% of them attended Harvard University.

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RadioPhobia Strikes Again. And Again.

It’s been a bad few weeks for RadioPhobia, the powerful fear of radiation that far exceeds the actual risk. From three different places come new examples of this version […]