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History and Society
NASA's 1958 charter's top priority was, "the expansion of human knowledge of phenomena in the atmosphere and space." Is this how it ends?
The host of the Founders podcast joins Big Think for a chat about success, obsession, business genius, human nature, and more.
The Universe was born incredibly hot, and has expanded and cooled ever since. Could life have begun back when space was "room temperature?"
Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.
The Japanese practice of "tsundoku" bestows joy and lasting benefits to those who make books an important part of their lives.
Social entrepreneur Aaron Hurst explains why the decline of social connection is the greatest challenge of our time — and offers a roadmap for restoration.
These short books offer insights and meditations on timeless themes, without the time commitment.
Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.
Wonder is like a guest you haven’t planned for.
There are real concerns with long-term power generation on the Moon; nuclear could be the answer. But for NASA, will the cost be too high?
From Einstein to Twain, Garson O’Toole investigates the truth behind your favorite — and often misattributed — quotes.
The investment advisor and host of the Talking Billions podcast explores childhood curiosity, building networks through kindness, and more.
At the end of July, hundreds of scientists convened to plan NASA's upcoming astrophysics flagship mission. Will the US allow it to happen?
“Climate analog mapping” finds the place that is currently as warm as your city might be in 60 years.
Historians Alexandra Churchill and Nicolai Eberholst reexamine the pivotal conflict from a grassroots perspective.
Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.
One does not simply make a meme go viral.
Author and geopolitical strategist Paulo Cardoso do Amaral urges us to ask: Will we shape AI with wisdom, or will AI reshape us with strategy?
The psychologist, educator, and former NBA player discusses the professional volumes and childhood stories that shaped his life and his approach to it.
Somewhere, at some point in the history of our Universe, life arose. We're evidence of that here on Earth, but many big puzzles remain.
Even just by examining the Moon with the unaided eye, we can learn an incredible amount about the Moon, Earth, and more.
Some books are remembered for their lyrical prose or engaging stories. Others are remembered for simply being weird.
It makes no sense to talk about a “religious life” and a “public life” — there is just life.
With the right material at the right temperature and a magnetic track, physics really does allow perpetual motion without energy loss.
In "The Headache," Tom Zeller Jr. explores one of the human brain's most enduring, and painful, enigmas.
The JFK Memorial at Runnymede provides a link between America's and Britain's founding documents.
Once you cross a black hole's event horizon, there's no going back. But inside, could creating a singularity give birth to a new Universe?
Before becoming America’s most infamous assassin, John Wilkes Booth was a magnetic actor who was beloved by audiences and courted by critics.
Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.