Guest Thinkers — August 16, 2010

The Physics of Bending it Like Beckham

The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

Talk about facilitating incidental exposure to science. The Boston Globe explains how David Beckham is able to curl a soccer ball around an 8 man wide wall. Hat tip to Knight Science Tracker.

The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free.

A retro computer displays a ghost on the screen as pixelated chains drift across the foreground, reminiscent of a scene from a Ken Liu short story. This digital haunt unfolds against a vivid orange background.

High Culture

“The gods will not be chained”: A short story by Ken Liu

The first in a series of short stories by the Hugo- and Nebula-winning author that inspired the cult hit “Pantheon.”

Person sleeping with EEG cap and sensors on face, covered with a purple blanket.

Neuropsych

Inside the emerging world of anesthesia “dream therapy”

“The amount of interest is enormous,” says anesthesiologist Boris Heifets. “People are dropping in and coming out of the woodwork, trying to understand how to do this.”

Portrait of a smiling man in front of a background featuring chemical structures and molecular models in green and blue hues.

The Present

Inside the battle for FDA approval of MDMA therapy

MAPS founder Rick Doblin speaks to Big Think about the FDA’s rejection of MDMA therapy and the future of psychedelic treatments.

Illustration of a partially hidden scale showing a weight of 240 pounds, with the other half depicting a person in a striped shirt against a blue grid background.

Health

Has the US reached “peak obesity”?

A CDC survey suggests America’s obesity rate may be falling.

A collage featuring hands holding a plant, additional hands in sepia tone, a grid background, orange accents, and the text "Reclaim Meaning" with the number 4.

Thinking

How to reclaim meaning in a changing world

What if the barrier to a fulfilled life isn’t technology but culture?

Up Next

Guest Thinkers

Paul Kurtz on What’s Missing from The New Atheism

The philosopher Paul Kurtz has published a new position booklet that addresses much of what I have been arguing is missing–and so deeply troubling–about the New Atheist movement. Below is […]