April 13, 2012

The Big Enigma #6: Expanding Hole

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

Quick. Grab a pencil. Some crayons. A notepad. Wrap your brain around this Friday’s Big Enigma from Ivan Moscovitch’s The Big Book of Brain Games.

Share a photo of your solution in the comments thread. Brag about how you arrived at it. Argue with others over whose solution is more elegant . . . Take it away, folks!

A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people

Person examining a petri dish with tweezers, holding small colored objects, against a dark background.

Health

Are microplastics really destroying our health?

They’re in our brains, hearts, and blood — but what are they doing to us?

Collage showcasing a stratospheric balloon soaring over Earth and a close-up of fingers, with "The Nightcrawler" emblazoned at the top, capturing the spirit of a creative renaissance.

Business

How AI is ushering in a creative renaissance

Welcome to The Nightcrawler — a weekly newsletter from Eric Markowitz covering tech, innovation, and long-term thinking.

Two colorful cells with purple nuclei, green cell edges, and radiating filament structures against a black background.

Health

When muscles work out, they help neurons to grow

The findings suggest that biochemical and physical effects of exercise could help heal nerves.

Two people viewed from behind against a blue sky, one wearing a pink top and the other an orange top, share a moment of quiet solace as the person in pink rests their head on the other's shoulder. It’s a serene scene that hints at healing and support after trauma.

Neuropsych

3 emotional intelligence tips for helping a friend in a rough patch

Listen, set boundaries, and point them where to go.

Arms burdened with a large stack of papers, folders, and rolled-up documents, a person exemplifies toxic productivity. Their black bag hangs precariously from their arm as they navigate the weight of their workload.

The Learning Curve

How to break free from your “toxic productivity” cycle

Psychotherapist Israa Nasir explains how a “value-aligned life” can help us crush our goals — without being crushed by the need to accomplish more.

Up Next

Politics & Current Affairs

Are You Living In The Real World?

The accusation “you are not living in the real world” is always either ideological, narcissistic, or a poorly phrased attempt to say something else. But it is frequently used. I […]