Joe Nucci, author of “Psychobabble,” joins us to discuss how the misuse of psychological language risks blurring the lines between everyday problems and clinical diagnoses.
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Features & Reviews
“Our ultimate goal, after all, is not a good death but a good life to the very end.”
Scotty Hendricks is a graduate student and long-time contributor to Big Think. He resides in Chicago.
The great books aren’t just classics — they’re cultural Schelling points that give our minds a place to meet up in the world of ideas.
Daniel Greco is a professor of philosophy at Yale University. He is the author of Idealization in Epistemology: A Modest Modeling Approach (Oxford University Press) and has published widely in[…]
Reading classic books can teach you as much about the present as the past.
Kevin Dickinson is a staff writer and columnist at Big Think. His writing focuses on the intersection between education, psychology, business, and science. He holds a master’s in English and[…]
Interviews
Natural navigator Tristan Gooley joins us to discuss the philosophy of reading nature’s hidden clues — and how relearning this ancient skill can help us see the world, and ourselves, with greater awareness.
Kevin Dickinson is a staff writer and columnist at Big Think. His writing focuses on the intersection between education, psychology, business, and science. He holds a master’s in English and[…]
In “Warhead,” neuroscientist and national security adviser Nicholas Wright explains how the brain navigates warfare and why it is our ultimate weapon (and instrument for peace).
Tim Brinkhof is a Dutch-born, New York-based journalist reporting on art, history, and literature. He studied early Netherlandish painting and Slavic literature at New York University, worked as an editorial[…]
In “We the People,” Harvard historian Jill Lepore examines how the U.S. Constitution became unamendable and its implications for the health of the democracy.
Tim Brinkhof is a Dutch-born, New York-based journalist reporting on art, history, and literature. He studied early Netherlandish painting and Slavic literature at New York University, worked as an editorial[…]
Wordcraft
The Japanese practice of “tsundoku” bestows joy and lasting benefits to those who make books an important part of their lives.
Kevin Dickinson is a staff writer and columnist at Big Think. His writing focuses on the intersection between education, psychology, business, and science. He holds a master’s in English and[…]
A thesaurus isn’t for finding fancy words; it’s a resource to help you keep your rhythm.
Kevin Dickinson is a staff writer and columnist at Big Think. His writing focuses on the intersection between education, psychology, business, and science. He holds a master’s in English and[…]
In “Enough Is Enuf,” Gabe Henry traces the history of simplified spelling movements and the lessons they teach us about language.
Kevin Dickinson is a staff writer and columnist at Big Think. His writing focuses on the intersection between education, psychology, business, and science. He holds a master’s in English and[…]
Next Reads
In this excerpt from “The First Eight,” Congressman Jim Clyburn shares the story of Robert Smalls, the man whose audience with Lincoln may have saved the Union army.
James E. Clyburn is the Congressman representing South Carolina’s 6th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he previously served as Majority Whip. A veteran of more than[…]
In this excerpt from “The Shortest History of AI,” Toby Walsh explores the history of the Logic Theorist, the first AI to prove mathematical theorems.
Toby Walsh is one of the world’s leading researchers in artificial intelligence. He is a professor of artificial intelligence at the University of New South Wales and chief scientist at[…]
A preview of the latest novel by the National Book Award finalist Brandon Hobson.
Brandon Hobson is the author of the novels The Removed (2021) and The Devil Is a Southpaw (2025). His novel Where the Dead Sit Talking (2018) was a finalist for the National Book[…]