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With several seemingly incompatible observations, cosmology faces many puzzles. Could early, supermassive stars be the unified solution?
As we look to larger cosmic scales, we get a broader view of the expansive cosmic forest, eventually revealing the grandest views of all.
Explanations for the cosmic speed limit often conflate mass with inertia.
1hr 13mins
“Nothing about human behavior makes sense except in the light of culture and in anthropology, and we need to understand the cultural component to our behaviors as well.”
The Universe isn't just expanding; the expansion is accelerating. If different methods yield incompatible results, is dark energy evolving?
When you don't have enough clues to bring your detective story to a close, you should expect that your educated guesses will all be wrong.
10 years ago, LIGO saw its first gravitational wave. After 218 detections, our view of black holes has changed forever. Can this era endure?
In this excerpt from "Tales of Militant Chemistry," Alice Lovejoy exposes how the need for uranium during WWII led the Allied governments to turn a blind eye to colonial exploitation.
The latest "Superman" film sets Metropolis in the First State.
Designed to map galaxies, the SPHEREx mission's first science result is instead about interstellar interloper 3I/ATLAS. No, it's not aliens.
In our own Milky Way, a recently deceased star creates a ghostly, hand-like shape in X-rays some 150 light-years wide. Here's how it's made.
1hr 26mins
“I like to say that physics is hard because physics is easy, by which I mean we actually think about physics as students.”
Throughout history, "free energy" has been a scammer's game, such as perpetual motion. But with zero-point energy, is it actually possible?
In “The Secret History of Denisovans,” Silvana Condemi and François Savatier trace the story of our mysterious hominin ancestor.
There could be variables beyond the ones we've identified and know how to measure. But they can't get rid of quantum weirdness.
A conversation with neuroscientist Erik Hoel about the future of consciousness research.
A conversation with Annaka Harris on shared perception, experimental science, and why our intuition about consciousness is wrong.
5-MeO-DMT may offer a practical way to access and study consciousness in its most basic form.
A conversation about intelligence and consciousness with philosopher Peter Godfrey-Smith.
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?
For many of us, our imperfect vision compels us to wear corrective lenses to see properly. Here's what everyone should know about LASIK.
Across planet Earth, dark and pristine night skies are an increasingly rare resource. These photos showcase the best of what we still have.
Nuclear chemist Tim Gregory joins Big Think to make the case that nuclear energy can still transform the world for the better.
Just 13.8 billion years after the hot Big Bang, we can see 46.1 billion light-years away in all directions. Doesn't that violate...something?
Einstein is credited with saying, "If the facts don't fit the theory, change the facts." What he actually said has a very different meaning.
Our Earthbound definitions of life could leave us blind to the Universe’s strangest forms.
At the center of Hubble's famous "cosmic horseshoe," a very heavy supermassive black hole has been robustly measured. How is it possible?
In the post-AI startup landscape, the role of the entrepreneur will evolve from operator to orchestrator. Are you ready?
2mins
Astrobiologist Betül Kaçar on why the simple act of asking questions (without needing a reason) is one of the most powerful things a human can do.