The Well

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Ideas that inspire a life well-lived

Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional?

Life’s biggest questions rarely have simple answers. That is precisely why they continue to occupy the world’s most thoughtful minds. The Well is a place to engage those questions, drawing on insights from science, philosophy, and the humanities.

Created by the John Templeton Foundation in partnership with Big Think, The Well brings together ideas that inspire deeper understanding and a more considered approach to living.

in partnership with

The Templeton Foundation supports interdisciplinary research and catalyzes conversations that inspire awe and wonder.

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Why personal and collective risk-taking need completely different rules
We often ask what new technology can do. Yale philosopher L.A. Paul asks a deeper question: what does it do to the people who use it?

by L.A. Paul

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Everything Articles Videos
Side view X-ray image of a human head and brain in shades of purple, shown against a solid purple background, highlighting the serene focus often seen in meditators.
3mins
The Well
Superhumans: The remarkable brain waves of high-level meditators
Psychologist Daniel Goleman shares what he learned by studying the brain waves of Olympic-level meditators, and his findings are unprecedented.
Daniel Goleman
John Templeton Foundation
Illustration of a baboon standing on all fours, facing right, with a reddish-brown coat and a pink patch on its hindquarters—an awe-inspiring member of the animal kingdom.
The Well
I put a camera on a monkey. Here’s how it shook my understanding of humanity
Awe is a powerful force, a fact that is both exciting and terrifying.
Agustín Fuentes
John Templeton Foundation
A black-and-white abstract image featuring a dense field of small dots and a central dark oval, evoking the mysterious allure of black holes, surrounded by a lighter, glowing area.
The Well
What’s inside black holes?
To understand the edges of our universe, we’ll need to explore the edges of our own philosophies.
Avi Loeb
John Templeton Foundation
A black-and-white drawing of four students sitting at desks, each wearing helmet-like devices with wires extending upward, as if tapping into their intelligence.
8mins
The Well
There are 8 classes of intelligence. Which are you?
IQ tests only measure two of the eight intelligences. Howard Gardner explains them all.
Howard Gardner
John Templeton Foundation
Illustration of a woman holding up a balance scale, symbolizing justice, on a yellow background.
5mins
The Well
Your moral compass could be broken
People rarely question their own moral compass. But do you know what shapes yours?
Liane Young
John Templeton Foundation
Black line drawing of a person with a long nose, reminiscent of Pinocchio, wiping tears from their face against a solid green background, illustrating the impact of honesty on child development principles.
5mins
The Well
3 great untruths to stop telling kids—and ourselves
These psychological principles can unlock your resiliency.
Jonathan Haidt
John Templeton Foundation
A vintage-style illustration of a man in a suit with a mustache and top hat, the top of his head open as colorful smoke swirls out, symbolizing creativity.
3mins
The Well
How Picasso and Beethoven hacked creativity
Anyone can learn from this creativity challenge.
Anthony Brandt
John Templeton Foundation
Geometric abstract design featuring overlapping white wireframe curves forming a symmetrical star shape on a black background, evoking the cosmic elegance of the big bang.
The Well
The great Big Bang misconception
Thanks to time-traveling telescopes, we can see more about the Big Bang.
Michelle Thaller
John Templeton Foundation
A man in a suit rides a comet with a face through a star-filled night sky, reflecting on lessons learned from space travel; a top hat floats nearby as the moon smiles in the background.
The Well
How looking at 4 billion years of Earth’s history changes you
Astronaut Chris Hadfield shares how living in space has bettered his life on Earth.
Chris Hadfield
John Templeton Foundation
A person stands in front of a large face, peering into an oversized monocle held by a giant hand, as if searching for traces of free will within the magnified gaze.
5mins
The Well
Is free will an illusion?
Philosophers have been making the claim that free will is an illusion for hundreds of years. Dr. Uri Maoz shares what modern neuroscience has to say about it.
Dr. Uri Maoz
John Templeton Foundation
Illustration of a human brain, drawn with black ink lines on a solid orange background, symbolizing intellectual life.
5mins
The Well
How to live an intellectual life
According to Zena Hitz, the idea of the intellectual has become distorted. She believes “the real thing is something more extraordinary but also more available to us.”
Zena Hitz
John Templeton Foundation
Bronze sculpture of a seated man resting his chin on one hand, appearing deep in thought and embodying genius traits, against a plain background.
2mins
The Well
The common character trait of geniuses
James Gleick, the author of biographies of Isaac Newton and Richard Feynman, discusses what they and other geniuses have in common.
James Gleick
John Templeton Foundation
Learn from the world’s biggest thinkers.
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