bigthinkeditor

bigthinkeditor

"According to a controversial new theory, our emotions have evolved as tools to manipulate others into cooperating with us." The New Scientist says emotions are the currency of relationships.
Big ideas are usually too big, says Jason Fried, co-founder of the software company 37signals and co-author of the workplace manifesto “Rework.” “If we have a big idea, let’s chop […]
A $20m refit aims to cut the Empire State Building's energy use by 40% and save emissions equal to 20,000 cars, says the Guardian. The motive is profit rather than conscience.
Conservative columnist Jonah Goldberg says the democratization of the media is an improvement over alleged moral gatekeepers like Walter Cronkite, the 'saint of bourgeois America.'
The Smart Set considers the phrase 'State-of-the-Art' and asks why some things receive so much praise just for being new? Progress, it says, is something distinct from improvement.
A group of leaders spread across the globe have been given secret keys and are "charged with rebooting the web if it is sent into meltdown by a terror attack or mass hacking."
"A reduction in crop yields caused by climate change could mean up to 6.7 million additional Mexicans will emigrate to the United States by 2080, says a study by Princeton University researchers."
General Motor's new hybrid car will soon sell for $33,500, after a government credit. The machine will be a test of the public's willingness to go hybrid and its confidence in a revamped GM.
"The Massachusetts Legislature has approved a new law intended to bypass the Electoral College system," says The Boston Globe. The state's electoral votes would follow the national popular vote.
"The communist government of North Korea, currently bouncing through the headlines once more, was supposed to have gone out of business at least a generation ago."
"Digital freedom campaigners have welcomed a US ruling that loosens Apple's tight control over what users of its iPhone can do with the device." The Independent on digital copyrights.
"People are turned on by photographs of people who resemble their close genetic counterparts," say researchers. The recent findings shed light onto who we are attracted to and why.
Let’s face it: The planet is heating up, Earth’s population is expanding at an exponential rate, and the the natural resources vital to our survival are running out faster than […]
In 2008, journalist Jere Van Dyk crossed the border from Afghanistan into Pakistan. An expert on the history and culture of the region, Van Dyk had lived with the Mujahideen […]
"New research from France finds restaurant patrons exposed to music with pro-social lyrics are more likely to leave tips." Miller-McCune on another delicious French sociology study.
"They sure buy a lot of cars for a society built on collective ownership." Slate says that while China's political party is highly centralized, most Maoist concepts have been abandoned.
What happens when you are on 'the same wavelength' as someone? New neurological data suggests physical traits are behind feeling a deep connection with someone.
"If we want to protect traditional marriage, we should be prepared to sacrifice our love affair with equal rights and sexual freedoms." An author at 3 Quarks reflects on the nature of tradition.
Nouns that have changed to verbs, such as 'login', 'text', and 'unlike' have some grammarians in a fuss, but one lexicographer celebrates the changes as evidence of language's dynamism.