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The newest essays, interviews, and features from Big Think.
In a new book, Timothy Ryback examines Adolf Hitler's private library. He asserts that books were important in shaping the Führer's life, and looks for insights in the books' margin notes.
While political debates might suggest that the question of climate change is yet unresolved, the world of industry and commerce is convinced that global warming is real, and imminent.
Big Think blogger Michio Kaku writes that a "perfect storm" of wind and ice conditions turned the Icelandic volcano eruption into a crisis. He gives three scenarios for what we can now expect.
Synthetic biologists have discovered new chemical reactions that could "rewire" plants to more efficiently process carbon dioxide—allowing crops to grow to enormous size.
"Right now, America has neither the opportunity nor frankly the balls to do truly big things on Arab-Israeli peacemaking," writes Aaron David Miller.
Scientists have found a distinctive kind of breaking wave in the deep sea representing a subtle force that stirs the seabed and helps distribute rare nutrients.
"No matter where consumers buy books, their belief that electronic media should cost less—that something you can’t hold simply isn’t worth as much money—will exert a powerful force," writes Ken Auletta.
"Although there must be a physical limit to how many memories we can store, it is extremely large. We don’t have to worry about running out of space in our lifetime," writes Paul Reber.
One of the highest-impact lifestyle changes a person can make in the name of environmentalism is to go veggie. It takes – as this blog’s image illustrates – 698 and […]
A study has found that people who report having had "near-death experiences" also have elevated levels of carbon dioxide in their blood—indicating that oxygen deprivation may be the cause.
“A few snapshots.” According to novelist Tim O’Brien, that’s all our minds retain of our childhoods, adulthoods, and even the people we’ve loved most deeply. “And that’s memory? Little remnant […]
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Our minds don’t capture and record reality, but rather blend experience with fantasy—a process that often results in convincing, yet completely false, memories.
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Remaining mentally active and engaged is critical to retaining information as we age.
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The neuroscientist explains how our mind produces memories and why they actually alter our DNA.
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Less than 5% of Alzheimer’s Disease cases are genetically transmitted. The disease is a consequence of aging, and doesn’t target specific demographics.
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Simply paying attention can do a lot to improve recollection, but scientists are also working on a wide variety of memory-boosting drugs.
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A protein that scientists once thought was a “piece of garbage in the brain” turns out to play a key role in memory formation. At high concentrations, however, it spells […]
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A conversation with the professor at the Taub Institute for Research in Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain at Columbia University.
“It has been clear to me since the time of the commission that I led in the ’80’s, that no doubt the historic responsibility for where we are has to […]
As we push for better health care and longer lives, Gregory Rodriguez writes that we should think about the societal consequences of having so many old people hanging around.