The Latest from Big Think

One of the hallmarks of a good story is the element of surprise. A good story leads us down a path of expectations, slowly building tension until an unexpected plot […]

The "fiscal cliff" is so named because the change it describes will not be gradual, but steep and dramatic. Howard Dean argues that pain is necessary in order to restore fiscal sanity. 

Despite the steady increase in women’s Olympics participation over the past few decades, some believe the time has come to push for true gender equality in terms of medal opportunities.

There are many people in the world who do not worry about not having access to the Internet or being able to use a computer on a day to day […]

What's the Big Idea? Isaac Newton defined the optical spectrum, but it was Goethe who first understood that color is more than just a physical problem. In Theory of Colours (1840), the German […]

I’m always impressed at the low-tech nature of today’s most brazen hacking attacks and abuses of identity. It’s inevitable that someone will lie to get at your information, then leverage […]

The Olympics gives spectators permission to say things about athletes’ bodies that they would never say in polite company.

The new CNN poll  has Obama leading Romney 52-45.  That's close to the margin separating the two candidates among independents.  It's also close to the distance between them when it […]

Editor's note: This is an overview by Robert F. Schuyler of his book TIME, available from Rosedog Press.  I believe that this presentation is not just theory; it is fact.  We […]

Research done on physical development of high-performing young athletes shows that there are no clear answers despite what anecdotal evidence seems to suggest.

Howard Dean's most faithful aide on the secret to wowing your boss.

Through luck or sheer force of will, these seven former interns all managed to make it from paper-pushing, truck-loading, and (literally) shit-shovelling to the very top of their fields. Many went […]

Science writer Jesse Bering says that not only do we visualize erotic scenes when we’re masturbating, "but we also use our imagination in this way when we’re actually having sex […]

My eighth grade art teacher was the first to introduce me to the concept of "right-brain thinking." He brought his copy of DRAWING FROM THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE BRAIN […]

Plenty of people are happy for their leaders and bosses to make choices for them, as long as they probably would have made similar choices themselves.  Yet when leaders and bosses don't truly represent the interests of their constituents and employees, nudging can be toxic. 

In 1990, Kate O'Connor was the aide for the lieutenant governor of a small, largely inconsequential New England state. Fourteen years later, when Howard Dean became a front runner for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination, that job -- her first -- suddenly changed.    

Before the FDA starts meddling with the legality of bio-implants, rogue hackers are pushing the man-machine boundary in an attempt to augment and improve our natural senses. 

Software developed for Microsoft's workplace social network, Yammer, can gauge the emotions of employees using the network by analyzing the messages they sent through it.

A lingering problem with renewable energy is that it is not a consistent producer. But a new battery can store energy for later use, making renewables more cost-effective for business.