Author posts
How to read the HR diagram, the most important graph in astrophysics
One single plot of data embodies the most profound thing we know about the stars.
Hertzsprung-Russell diagram: the most important graph in astrophysics
If you truly want to understand modern astrophysics, knowing how to read this graph is essential.
The most important boring idea in the universe
We live in a world dominated by science, but most people don't understand its most essential characteristic: establishing standards of evidence to keep us from getting fooled by our own biases and opinions.
Why condensed matter physicists reject reductionism
Reduction is an approach that has been successful in science but is not itself synonymous with "science."
The future of humanity: can we avert disaster?
Climate change and artificial intelligence pose substantial — and possibly existential — problems for humanity to solve. Can we?
How do we know the sun is a star?
Today, it's common knowledge, but it took scientists centuries to figure out.
The impossible cool of Cowboy Bebop
The 1998 hit is making a comeback. Stop what you're doing and watch the original.
Does quantum mechanics favor Buddhist philosophy?
No. But Buddhism and quantum mechanics have much to teach each other.
How cell phone data can help redesign cities
With the rise of Big Data, methods used to study the movement of stars or atoms can now reveal the movement of people. This could have important implications for cities.
Reductionism vs. emergence: Are you “nothing but” your atoms?
Reductionism offers a narrow view of the universe that fails to explain reality.
When great video games make great art
Sometimes, moral lessons can be learned from blowing away zombies.
The universe has a Hubble constant problem
Differences in the way that the Hubble constant—which measures the rate of cosmic expansion—are measured have profound implications for the future of cosmology.
If you hate your job, blame the Agricultural Revolution
Hunter-gatherers probably had more spare time than you.
What is life? Why cells and atoms haven’t answered the question.
75 years after Erwin Schrödinger's prescient description of something like DNA, we still don't know the "laws of life."
Can you be scientific and spiritual?
Spirituality can be an uncomfortable word for atheists. But does it deserve the antagonism that it gets?
How “WandaVision” goes beyond peak superhero stories
Even diehard fans are experiencing superhero exhaustion. But it's not impossible to do something original.
If we do find alien life, what kind will it be?
Three lines of evidence point to the idea of complex, multicellular alien life being a wild goose chase. But are we clever enough to know?
Best. Science. Fiction. Show. Ever.
"The Expanse" is the best vision I've ever seen of a space-faring future that may be just a few generations away.
What democracy and science demand: The ‘Smartmatic vs Fox News’ case
The opening lines of Smartmatic's $2.7 billion lawsuit against Fox News lay bare the culture of denial in the US.
Thinking thresholds: Is science the only source of truth in the world?
Adam Frank, a card-carrying atheist and physics professor, wonders if there might be more to life than pure science.
13.8: Why we’re here
Welcome to the 13.8 relaunch, a new Big Think column led by physicists and friends Adam Frank and Marcelo Gleiser.
Life lessons from the sun
Observing the great gas giant helps me to keep important things in perspective.
The evolution of climate science
Since the late 1800s, what we know has advanced light years ahead.
The joy of finding out
The process of digging into hard questions makes the moment of discovery all the more satisfying.
The weirdness behind quantum supremacy
Superposition, entanglement, qubits, and Google's big announcement.
Settle on Mars to save ourselves?
Colonizing the Red Planet isn't a bad idea in theory. But . . .
Whither wonder?
We're bored, and we've lost our ability to be awestruck and amazed. Let's fix that.
The galactic tree of life
Is it time to take the idea of panspermia more seriously?
The obstinacy of the real
The collapse of Theranos reminds us that in science, facts have the last word.
Alien ethics
When we send messages to the stars, just what are we getting ourselves into?
'One Strange Rock'
Documentary explores astrobiology, astronauts, and the awe of it all.
Flat earth and climate denial: Why?
The resistance movements may be more about identity than science.
Hi, I’m Adam. And I’m looking for aliens.
An astrobiologist joins a like-minded global community in ramping up the search.
Breathtaking. Literally.
The realism of video games takes storytelling to another level.
When everyone watches dragons
TV's shared cultural “now" moments embody the intersection of time and tech.
Confessions of a nerd
The Avengers movies have done a marvelous job melding science and story.
How cold is cold?
The Polar Vortex was brutal, but not compared to the rest of the Universe.
Beyond the 'Goldilocks Zone'
The meaning—and range—of “habitable" goes much farther than we once thought.
What we can learn from Ultima Thule
From 4 billion miles away, it says a lot about the meaning of time.
The outer limits?
Technology's rapid advances may slow down, limiting our possibilities.
Nature gone wild
California's raging fires show how climate change can unleash totally new—and deadly—kinds of weather.
Complexity is beautiful, too
Binary stars and common envelope evolution illustrate messy but “tasty" science.
Climate change and the power of story
To spur action on climate change, we need a story of mythical proportions.
A new home for 13.7 . . . make that 13.8
Adam Frank and Marcelo Gleiser, founders of the popular blog, have landed at ORBITER.
Adam Frank is a professor of astrophysics at the University of Rochester and a leading expert on the final stages of evolution for stars like the sun. Frank's computational research group at the University of Rochester has developed advanced supercomputer tools for studying how stars form and how they die. A self-described “evangelist of science," he is the author of four books and the co-founder of 13.8, where he explores the beauty and power of science in culture with physicist Marcelo Gleiser.
