Politics & Current Affairs — April 15, 2011

Why Lincoln Would Make a Terrible Candidate in 2012

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His agnosticism would make him a completely untenable candidate in modern times, especially within the Republican party.

The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

Microscopic view of green cyanobacteria chains forming spiral and linear patterns against a dark background, highlighting their role within the microbiome.

Books

Why your microbiome may matter more than DNA for your lifelong health

In “The Microbiome Master Key,” Brett and Jessica Finlay argue that we need to stop waging war on all germs and start working with the microbes that make us who we are.

A split image shows a hand with fingers crossed on the left, evoking the idea of a noble lie, and a person in military uniform saluting on the right.

Mini Philosophy

The noble lie: Why countries that lie together, stay together

This is my country and this is what we stand for. At least for now.

Infographic displays spacecraft names and missions around the Sun, planets, and moons, illustrating the current and planned science fleet exploring the Solar System.

Starts With A Bang

American science to soon face its largest brain drain in history

Over the first half of 2025, the US has cut science as never before. This disaster for American science may be a gift to the rest of the world.

A young armored man consults an elderly bearded man holding a key and a staff, both seated and looking at an open book, as if exploring how stories teach philosophy.

Big Think Books

5 stories that teach you philosophy (better than some philosophy books)

Want to study philosophy but skip some of its heavier tomes? These five novels are a great place to start. (Existential despair guaranteed.)

A dense field of distant galaxies and bright stars against a black background, as captured in a JWST early galaxies deep space telescope image.

Starts With A Bang

JWST’s early galaxies didn’t break the Universe. They revealed it.

Originally, the abundance of bright, early galaxies shocked astronomers. After 3 years of JWST, we now know what’s really going on.

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