Scotty Hendricks
Contributing Writer
Scotty Hendricks is a graduate student and long-time contributor to Big Think. He resides in Chicago.
Yeet! As society changes, the dictionary gets weirder
English is a dynamic language, and this summer's new additions to dictionary.com tell us a lot about how we're living.
To boost the economy, treat the cause of aging
By slowing down aging, we could reap trillions of dollars in economic benefits.
Thanks to Iceland, the four-day workweek is coming
A new study from Iceland confirms that a shorter workweek improves productivity.
Study finds exactly how long people want to live: it isn’t forever
Biomedical science assumes that people want to live as long as possible. They don't.
Conventional wisdom says we shouldn’t date our friends. It’s wrong.
Two-thirds of romances start out as friendships.
Animal altruism: nature isn’t as cruel as the Discovery Channel says
One man studied apes for 50 years. He says nature isn't as cruel as you think.
Psilocybin and depression: “magic mushroom” drug could regrow lost brain connections
Psychedelics have been shown to help reduce depression. This study may show us why.
Lab grown chicken nuggets makes cruelty-free meat possible
We eat 50 billion chickens every year. Is there a better way?
Fossilized dinosaur poop contains new insect species
Discovering fossilized insects is difficult, but a new find suggests a unique place to look.
Study: In college, quarters are better than semesters
Most schools use a semester system, but a new study suggests that they should switch to quarters.
3,000-year-old shark attack victim found
The skeleton of the world's oldest known shark attack victim exhibits telltale wounds.
How the “Bomber Mafia” planned to win World War II with just a few dozen bombs
Can a war be won from the air? A group of renegade pilots in the 1930s thought so.
“Game of Thrones” in real life: How kinship changed war in early modern Europe
When the mutual relatives of two royal families died, the countries were likelier to go to war.
Want to help animals? You might have to eat a few more
A virtuous diet isn't strictly vegan.
Air pollution linked to violent crime in Chicago
As air pollution increases, so does violent crime.
Heliogen: concentrated solar power plant produces temperatures of 2700° F
How one startup plans to use "death rays" for good instead of evil.
Don’t be rude to your doctor. It might kill you.
Dealing with rudeness can nudge you toward cognitive errors.
Just when the Middle Ages couldn’t get worse, everyone had bunions
The Black Death wasn't the only plague in the 1300s.
There never was a male fertility crisis
A new study suggests that reports of the impending infertility of the human male are greatly exaggerated.
No news is good news? Think again
Information economics suggests that "no news" means somebody is hiding something. But people are bad at noticing that.
Brain study strengthens link between lithium and suicide
A lithium imbalance appears linked to suicide.
First-of-its-kind flower smells like dead insects
Life finds a way — in this case, by smelling like death.
New AI-based theory explains your weird dreams
Dreams are weird. According to a new theory, that's what makes them useful.
Virtual reality warps your sense of time
Ever lose track of time while doing something? It gets worse with a VR headset on.
Your voice might reveal personality traits
The way you speak might reveal a lot about you, such as your willingness to engage in casual sex.
Modern society is as unequal as 14th century Europe
As bad as this sounds, a new essay suggests that we live in a surprisingly egalitarian age.
You are suffering from “tab overload”
Our love-hate relationship with browser tabs drives all of us crazy. There is a solution.
Study: You would spend 90 extra days in jail in a private prison
A new study suggests that private prisons hold prisoners for a longer period of time, wasting the cost savings that private prisons are supposed to provide over public ones.