NPR: Morning Edition

Kelly McEvers of NPR has a piece on al–Qaeda in Saudi Arabia and Yemen on Morning Edition this morning. It features both Thomas Hegghammerand myself talking about Saudi and Yemen […]

by

Gregory Johnsen

December 21, 2010

Get the Big Think newsletter on Substack

Kelly McEvers of NPR has a piece on al–Qaeda in Saudi Arabia and Yemen on Morning Edition this morning. It features both Thomas Hegghammerand myself talking about Saudi and Yemen respectively.

Gregory Johnsen

Near East Studies Scholar, Princeton University

Monthly Issue April 2026

The Energy Transition

In this monthly issue, we examine how our understanding of energy — and how we source and use it — is evolving.

1 video 11 articles

Two hands surround a glowing, illustrated sun with a human face, against a green background with radiating lines.

Related Content

What if the real driver of your health isn’t genes or diet — but energy flow?

A Columbia researcher argues that everything from stress to aging comes down to how energy moves through your body.

by Jasna Hodžić

Abstract illustration of a person running, shown in silhouette with layered, wavy bands of green, blue, black, and yellow in the background.

“If it sounds literary, it isn’t”: The deceptively simple rules behind good writing

Anne Lamott and Neal Allen join us to discuss why embracing constraints can be the best way to find freedom in the craft.

by Jasna Hodžić

Text "follow the rules?" is written in black on a light background, with red underlines and a question mark doodled in red at the end.

How a small shop in Kyoto connects mastery with meditation

What 150-year-old Japanese workshop Kaikado can teach us about finding calm through focus in an age of distraction.

by Eric Markowitz

A craftsman hammers metal on a wooden block; beside him, a cylindrical copper container—showcasing Kaikado mastery—rests against a green background.

5 literary conspiracy theories — debunked

A tour of the literary cover-ups, extraterrestrials, and cryptids lurking in the bookish backwoods.

by Josh Browning & Kevin Dickinson

Abstract illustration of two wide eyes with red irises peeking over a pale green, angular shape against a black background.

Learn from the world's biggest thinkers.

© Copyright 2007-2026 & BIG THINK, BIG THINK PLUS, SMARTER FASTER trademarks owned by Freethink Media, Inc. All rights reserved.