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History & Society
Trace how culture, power, and ideas shape societies across time.
Photons come in every wavelength you can imagine. But one particular quantum transition makes light at precisely 21 cm, and it's magical.
You don't need to be a scientist or a philosopher for facts, reality, and the truth to matter. The alternative is simply known as bullshit.
In this preview from "The Saucerian," author Gabriel Mckee explains how the combination of fantastical stories and obscure bureaucracy launched the “space age of the imagination.”
As we shape our future we should ask: Which interpretations of classic sci-fi fables hold sway with today’s powerful tech leaders?
The cofounder of Hyrox — one of the fastest-growing global brands in fitness — puts his snowballing success through a proper Big Think workout.
Warren Buffett famously noted that Berkshire Hathaway would “never depend on the kindness of strangers to stay in business.” Startups take note.
1hr 18mins
"The more uncertain and scary things get in the world, the more we as humans are drawn to simple dichotomies."
In all the known Universe, Earth is the only planet known to have native life. What should guide us in expanding humanity beyond our world?
Trump may make America great again — just not in the way he had intended.
Follow the money and you'll follow history.
After drastic cuts to the NIH, the FDA, the NSF, and the DOE, NASA science faces down its smallest budget ever. All of society will suffer.
"Try to love the questions themselves, like locked rooms, like books written in a truly foreign language."
Perhaps no existential question looms larger than that of our ultimate cosmic origins. At long last, science has provided the answers.
From religious iconography to modern mysticism, the human aura has been a subject of fascination across centuries and cultures.
The Hubble Space Telescope, launched in 1990, was originally seen as a colossal mistake. This one image, taken in 1995, changed everything.
In theory, scientists could've produced a deadly virus that accidentally infected lab workers. In practice, we know that didn't happen.
In "Enough Is Enuf," Gabe Henry traces the history of simplified spelling movements and the lessons they teach us about language.
Planets can create nuclear power on their own, naturally, without any intelligence or technology. Earth already did: 1.7 billion years ago.
Pessimissts are never disappointed, but are they also kinder?
The most famous Hubble images show glittering stars and galaxies amidst the black backdrop of space. But more was captured than we realized.