Joe Nucci, author of “Psychobabble,” joins us to discuss how the misuse of psychological language risks blurring the lines between everyday problems and clinical diagnoses.
In this excerpt from “Strange Stability,” Benjamin Wilson explores how the concept of “deterrence” went from explaining criminal behavior to becoming a nuclear strategy.
In this excerpt from “The Great Math War,” Jason Socrates Bardi explores how Georg Cantor revolutionized mathematics and reshaped how our finite minds conceived of the infinite.
Kuang discusses the rituals, routines, and words of advice that have helped her write six best-selling novels in one decade.
From white holes to dark stars and multiverses, James Riordon explores the bizarre exhibits of general relativity’s “cryptozoo.”
These expert-recommended books reveal how big ideas can shape — and sometimes redefine — human progress.
In this excerpt from The Breath of the Gods, Simon Winchester explores how the Sumerians first named the wind and shaped our early understanding of the natural world.
“Our ultimate goal, after all, is not a good death but a good life to the very end.”
In this excerpt from “The First Eight,” Congressman Jim Clyburn shares the story of Robert Smalls, the man whose audience with Lincoln may have saved the Union army.
The great books aren’t just classics — they’re cultural Schelling points that give our minds a place to meet up in the world of ideas.
In this excerpt from “The Shortest History of AI,” Toby Walsh explores the history of the Logic Theorist, the first AI to prove mathematical theorems.
A preview of the latest novel by the National Book Award finalist Brandon Hobson.
Natural navigator Tristan Gooley joins us to discuss the philosophy of reading nature’s hidden clues — and how relearning this ancient skill can help us see the world, and ourselves, with greater awareness.
In this excerpt from “Playful,” Cas Holman surveys the research that brought the neuroscience of play into the mainstream.
In this excerpt from “One Hand Clapping,” Nikolay Kukushkin makes the case that neurons reveal how memory, meaning, and even consciousness emerge from the same biological roots in humans, sea slugs, and beyond.
In “Warhead,” neuroscientist and national security adviser Nicholas Wright explains how the brain navigates warfare and why it is our ultimate weapon (and instrument for peace).
A preview of the latest novel by the Hugo- and Nebula-winning author.
In this excerpt from “Lucky By Design,” Judd Kessler explains how opportunity costs shape our choices and why time is the real price we pay.
Each of these stories rests on a foundation of great ideas that will scare you to death and make you think.
In “We the People,” Harvard historian Jill Lepore examines how the U.S. Constitution became unamendable and its implications for the health of the democracy.
In this excerpt from “The Art of Spending Money,” Morgan Housel lays out the spending and financial habits guaranteed to end in regret.
In this excerpt from “Governing Babel,” John Wihbey explores how AI is reshaping online moderation by offering tools that can help human moderators, but also raises the risk of disinformation and digital chaos.
In this excerpt from “America’s Most Gothic,” Leanna Hieber and Andrea Janes examine the history and folklore of Maine’s vanished schooner.
In this excerpt from “The Formula for Better Health,” Tom Frieden explores how Alice Hamilton transformed public health in her fight against lead poisoning.
In this excerpt from “Seven Rivers,” historian Vanessa Taylor explores how Ancient Egyptian pharaohs harnessed the Nile River to build empires and secure their power.
In this excerpt from “When Everyone Knows That Everyone Knows…,” Steven Pinker examines how crying may have evolved as part of a suite of emotional expressions aimed at strengthening social bonds.
Neuroscientist Rachel Barr shares her favorite books on the brain and how they shaped her approach to the field.
In “On Liberalism,” Cass Sunstein argues that liberalism can only endure if we reclaim its core commitments and revive its spirit of freedom and hope for the future.
In this excerpt from “Facing Infinity,” Jonas Enander examines how John Michell conceived of “dark stars,” or massive bodies with enough gravity to trap light, all the way back in 1783.
In “That Book Is Dangerous,” author Adam Szetela examines the rise of the “Sensitivity Era” in publishing and how outrage campaigns try to control what books authors can write and readers can read.