The Latest from Big Think

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Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.
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9mins
“You can be aware of sadness from a point of view that is not merely sad, and you can be aware of fear from a point of view that's not merely afraid.”
There could be variables beyond the ones we've identified and know how to measure. But they can't get rid of quantum weirdness.
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Sikh American scholar and historian Simran Jeet Singh on helping kids imagine — and create — a more empathetic world.
John Templeton Foundation
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A conversation with neuroscientist Erik Hoel about the future of consciousness research.
A minimalist drawing of a duck outlined in white against a gradient background, with an orange star shape marking the eye, invites you to question your perception.
“Who ya gonna believe: me or your own eyes?” Until you can assess your perception, the answer should be neither.
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A conversation with Annaka Harris on shared perception, experimental science, and why our intuition about consciousness is wrong.
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Science helps us imagine the vastness of space and time — and our small but meaningful place within it.
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"Ordinary dreams are, perhaps, the clearest articulation of what it is like to be."
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The overlooked reason why "AI consciousness" isn't coming anytime soon.
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5-MeO-DMT may offer a practical way to access and study consciousness in its most basic form.
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A universal signature could make surgeries safer — and help reveal what holds consciousness together.
A man and woman sit on a bed with two young children, sharing a quiet moment; the older child stands while the younger, cradled by the woman, embodies the precious gift of consciousness within the family.
After the trauma of a high-risk medical procedure, Eric Markowitz discovered a kind of consciousness that lives not in thought — but in presence.
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These expert-recommended books try to answer the questions of consciousness, from its fundamental nature to its role in human experience and the natural world.
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A conversation about intelligence and consciousness with philosopher Peter Godfrey-Smith.
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Philosophers once prophesied that evolution would lead to minds far greater — and stranger — than our own.
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"For many people, the idea that consciousness is a set of tricks is offensive," the late philosopher told Big Think in 2012. "I think that's a prime mistake."
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Introducing Big Think's Consciousness Issue.
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In the Embers series, historian M.G. Sheftall shares the stories of Hiroshima and Nagasaki’s last survivors and reveals why their testimony must endure.
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3mins
Humans have always had religion. What does this say about our minds? Reza Aslan PhD, Lisa Miller PhD, and Rob Bell MDiv explain.
Unlikely Collaborators