Guest Thinkers — September 23, 2011

Big Think’s Sexy New Look

As you have probably noticed, BigThink.com has undergone several cosmetic changes today, all intended to enhance your reading and viewing experience. We hope you like it, but we’re not done yet. This visual refresh is the first step in a process that will unfold in the coming days, weeks and months.

Some things you will notice over time is BigThink.com will become more mobile-friendly, and you’ll also find greater clarity about what this site is all about: a forum where top experts explore the big ideas and core skills defining the 21st century.

Stay tuned. In the meantime, we’ll leave you with the musings of one of our favorite Big Thinkers—the artist Julian Schnabel—who reflects on the usefulness and limitations of the Internet, revealing, in the process, his philosophy about art and the role of the artist in our digital age.

Watch here:

Collage of classical art suggesting a theme related to somatic markers.

Business

How “somatic markers” can transform your decision-making

Ditch the old brain vs. heart assumptions, and instead think about a heart-led brain.

A black and white image of a bunch of spheres, symbolizing the multiverse concept discussed by scientists.

Starts With A Bang

How logic and reasoning can fail as scientific tools

In logic, 'reductio ad absurdum' shows how flawed arguments fall apart. Our absurd Universe, however, often defies our intuitive reasoning.

A wooden sign indicating "assisted migration rep 2" in a pine forest under a clear blue sky.

Life

Moving trees north to save the forests

As the world warms, trees in forests such as those in Minnesota will no longer be adapted to their local climates. That’s where assisted migration comes in.

Historical map illustration depicting a planned city layout with a circular central area and radiating streets.

Strange Maps

Ohio’s Circleville ditched the grid system. Then it got squared.

A small Ohio town tried to escape America’s addiction to rectangular grids. It didn’t last long.

Bullet Cluster separation mass gravity x-ray lensing

Starts With A Bang

Flagship NASA space telescope faces a penny-pinching death

NASA's only flagship X-ray telescope ever, Chandra, still works and has no planned successor. So why does the President want to kill it?

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Guest Thinkers

The Last of the Red Hot Lovers: A Zombie in the Land of the Eternally Undead, Evidently

This was originally published in 2010 at www.pamelahaag.com I was browsing through Amazon’s directory of book reviewers to find someone, and I ended up lost in the weeds for hours. […]