If we find the earliest signal from the Universe’s birth, how can we be sure we aren’t fooling ourselves? When it comes to the origin of the Universe, the Big […]
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The GoFly challenge has just announced 10 winning flying-car designs. It’s the first phase of a three-part contest, and they’re very cool.
Believe it or not, our eating habits are influenced by what music is playing and other forces that we may not be consciously aware of.
But if a radical new idea comes to fruition, maybe we can find them after all. After decades of planning, building, prototyping, upgrading, and calibrating, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) […]
Imagine looking at one saturated pixel for years on end, and somehow learning what worlds live around it. That’s what science is for! When you think of what’s out there in […]
A new study from MIT has found that piano lessons have a very specific effect on kindergartners’ ability to distinguish different pitches, which translates into an improvement in discriminating between spoken words.
A primer on the amazing possibilities of mixed reality, augmented reality, and virtual reality technology.
How we talk about genes shows many are confused. Seductive stats illusions, iffy gene ideas, bad causology, and lax jargon, are creating a recipe for epistemic comedy (and genetic tragedy).
Insert dial-up noise here. If you’re not concerned about what’s about to happen with net neutrality, you’re not paying attention.
How precise can measurements get? Imagine accurately measuring a quartz crystal with merely a few photons.
An Oxford physicist tries to cast doubt on dark energy, but the data says otherwise. It was a mere 20 years ago that our picture of the Universe got a […]
It’s the dawn of a new age. AI, VR, and robotics are creating the future that science-fiction writers have dreamed about.
Exhaustion and its effects have preoccupied thinkers since classical antiquity. A look at historically specific theories of exhaustion shows a tendency to look back nostalgically to a supposedly simpler time.
Researchers believe it’ll interweave the internet, A.I., and the human brain in a way that will create a “second self.”
Our always-on culture has us working harder, doing more, and sleeping less. While the health ailments of sleep deprivation are well known, a study by Rand Europe shows that it is costing the economy as well, with the U.S. estimated to lose up to $434 billion in 2020.
It isn’t just for merging neutron stars, anymore. Over the past three years, there’s arguably been no greater scientific discovery than the direct detection of gravitational waves. The two LIGO […]
The West has been doing well scientifically for a few hundred years now, but it took almost a thousand years for it to catch up to the Middle East. Here are ten of the biggest discoveries the Islamic world got first.
Bell Helicopter has just premiered its electric, self-piloting air taxi design at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
The widely beloved chef, writer and TV host Anthony Bourdain was found dead Friday morning at age 61. Here’s a brief look at the work and life that made him an international culinary star.
Using a machine-learning system known as a deep neural network, MIT researchers have created the first model that can identify a musical genre just like a human would.
Technology has grown by leaps and bounds over the last few generations. In the early 1960s, computer mainframes the size of semi-truck trailers that used transistors were considered cutting-edge because […]
The first detections were incredible. But now the real fun — and the real science — truly begins. On August 17, the signals from two merging neutron stars reached Earth after a journey of 130 […]
Humanity’s greatest-ever view of the Big Bang’s leftover glow has just released their final analysis. Here’s what we’ve learned. It’s been more than 50 years since humanity discovered a uniform bath […]
A new study finds that narwhals race dive deep with their hearts barely beating as they escape humans.
Several investigations have looked into the Taos hum. One scientist believes he has the most likely culprit.
Who are the new black atheists and what is behind their recent growth?
Did they perform their analysis sub-optimally? Maybe. But gravitational waves were seen no matter what. “We hope that interested people will repeat our calculations and will make up their own minds […]
You’ve heard that “perception is reality.” Well, it’s not. It might even be a hallucination.
The Big Think+ team is thrilled to present 20 brand new videos! How does an astronaut bridge cultural divide? This month, take new perspectives on the interesting world we work […]
Is “science broken” or self-correcting? And who is going to do the grown-up thing and fix the game (instead of scoring points within it)?