The Well

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Ideas that inspire a life well-lived

Do we inhabit a multiverse? Do we have free will? What is love? Is evolution directional?

Life’s biggest questions rarely have simple answers. That is precisely why they continue to occupy the world’s most thoughtful minds. The Well is a place to engage those questions, drawing on insights from science, philosophy, and the humanities.

Created by the John Templeton Foundation in partnership with Big Think, The Well brings together ideas that inspire deeper understanding and a more considered approach to living.

with

The Templeton Foundation supports interdisciplinary research and catalyzes conversations that inspire awe and wonder.

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What happens when we admit we don’t know?
Kelly Corrigan on why humility fuels curiosity — and how to cultivate these qualities in an age of certainty.

Kelly Corrigan

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6mins
With great genius comes great rigidity. Professor Barabara Oakley on how to stay mentally agile — and get smarter as a result:
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6mins
Psychologist Daniel Goleman on how to train your brain with just ten minutes a day.
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8mins
James Suzman lived with a tribe of hunter-gatherers to witness how an ancient culture survives one of the most brutal climates on Earth. His learnings may surprise you.
A star is being stretched and pulled apart by the gravity of a black hole in the middle of a field of stars.
7mins
Is information intrinsic in our universe? NASA’s Michelle Thaller explains.
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4mins
When one path is blocked, a new one must be paved. How Einstein, Heisenberg and Gödel used constraints to make life-changing discoveries:
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3mins
What is perception, really? Philosopher Alva Noë on why perception is a puzzling phenomenon:
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6mins
Science writer George Musser on the unsung role of friendship in science’s biggest discoveries.