The Latest from Big Think

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A barred spiral galaxy is shown with a bright central bar, curved arms, and scattered blue regions indicating star formation, against a dark background.
The history of atoms in the Universe is our own history: without them, there would be no us. So how do we piece their cosmic story together?
A man in a dark suit stands in front of a large sign that reads "SPIELBERG DISCLOSURE DAY" on a modern, metallic backdrop.
The movie gestures at one of humanity's biggest questions yet chooses to look away, writes Big Think producer Clark Frankel.
A minimalist line drawing of a person reading a book with an orange cover at a table, with a small vase in the foreground.
A gifted paperback sends me down a rabbit hole to discover whether how we read is just as important as what we read.
observable universe size
For all we know, the cosmos could truly be infinite in scale. But the observable part of our Universe? It's finite, and its size is known.
An older man with gray hair sits on a chair in front of a white backdrop, wearing a dark blazer, gray pants, and black shoes, with a purple gradient background behind him.
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Psychologist Paul Bloom examines why loneliness feels like starvation, why people are drawn to behaving poorly, and why revenge feels righteous until it destroys everything.
A person stands in front of two dome-shaped adobe houses, embracing homesteading life in Cochise County, with mountains rising in the background under a clear sky.
A writer’s search for an affordable home leads to the desert — and a community building a different kind of American dream.
A white van with its side door open is parked on desert ground next to a Joshua tree, embodying the spirit of van life, with mountains in the background under a clear blue sky.
I’ve lived in a converted van for six years. The freedom is real — but so are the trade-offs people rarely talk about.
People sit around a campfire next to a covered wagon at dusk, some opting out of the warmth to tend cooking supplies on the ground, while the softly illuminated wagon glows in the evening light.
From Amish Country to Slab City, these are the places where Americans reject the mainstream.
A collage featuring vintage papers, a sketch of Bartleby seated, a window frame, and colored circles on a dark background.
The ambiguity of Bartleby shows that opting out can be a form of resistance, retreat, or something harder to judge.
Two men stand beside an early D'Ieteren motor vehicle with large wheels and a lamp, set against a brown and pink background.
This carriage maker didn’t get wiped out by the automobile. Instead, it became one of the most successful car businesses in European history.
An illustration of a house in a forest, with part of a man's face drawn on one side—evoking transcendentalism—nestled among green trees and dark foliage.
How a culture of independence gave rise to a philosophy of self-reliance, solitude, and inner authority.
A grayscale collage features a man’s portrait overlapped with an American flag and a document related to U.S. policy, next to an image of the Great Wall of China with two people walking.
A conversation with Richard Haass about reorienting the U.S. toward long-term thinking and reinstating global stability into the 22nd century.
A man wearing a black cap and blue shirt, reminiscent of Dan Carlin's signature style, is shown against a solid red background.
A conversation with the Hardcore History host on executive power, political independents, and how America drifted into partisan dysfunction.
Collage of planets from the solar system, with Jupiter in the center, astronomical charts, and a gradient blue sky background evoke an accelerando towards the singularity—a visual homage to "A Journey in Other Worlds.
From Gilded Age space dreams to AI’s cosmic endgame, fiction reveals how the drive to shed obligations to others can escalate.
Assorted 2000s-era items including a decorated laptop, Game Boy, CD player, flip phone, iPods, cassette, VHS tape, sewing tools, puzzles, and craft supplies arranged on a colorful background evoke pure nostalgia.
A nostalgia-fueled real-world renaissance is underway, led by young adults striving to counter the cultural pessimism and division that pervades much of online life.
A hand moves a white king chess piece toward a black queen on a stylized, fragmented chessboard with a blue background, symbolizing the strategic tension surrounding the U.S. withdrawal.
With the U.S. stepping away from international organizations en masse, the groups are being forced to find a new balance.
Illustration of a floating cat, cassette tape, pencil, bird, eraser, and a person standing on a hill—all symbols reflecting life's passion—set against a blue and white background.
Trying to solve one’s existential dread by finding a singular purpose is a game won only by not playing.
Three students sit at desks in a classroom, writing on paper. The focus is on the student in front resting her head as she writes, with two others visible working behind her.
Philosopher Gert Biesta on the real reason we should be wary of AI in education.
A child’s silhouette walks through layered arches against a collage of historical U.S. documents and illustrations in blue, red, and brown tones.
The printing press gave us objective truth. Social media made truth tribal again. AI could make it something else entirely.
An aerial view of LIGO Hanford, showing two long, perpendicular arms extending across a flat, brown landscape with a few buildings at the intersection.
The LIGO facilities in the U.S. are the most sensitive gravitational wave detectors in the world. Their future remains uncertain.