bigthinkeditor

Economist and Nobel laureate Gary Becker predicts that the recent uprisings across the Middle East will make its economies more competitive and raise oil prices in the short and long run.

Singer and social activist Annie Lennox gathered five “high-flying” women to discuss what feminism means to them and how the movement might inspire the next generation.

Animal smuggling has grown to a $9.8 billion-a-year criminal industry, and is exceeded only by the drugs and arms trades. Profits help to fund terrorism and civil wars, says The Independent.

In the brains of people blind from birth, structures used in sight are still put to work—but for a different purpose. Rather than processing visual information, they appear to handle language.

Though the revolution against Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi has no set leader, rebels in Benghazi have set up a provisional government in a courthouse which is now the center of the revolution.

Why do the simplest consumer choices, such as choosing a variety of toothpaste, cause us such a dilemma? A cluttered store shelf tricks us into thinking we are making an important decision.

While humans are social animals, does it follow that being alone is bad for us? An emerging body of research is suggesting that spending time alone, if done right, can be good for us.

Current laws do not require the systematic screening of chemicals for their ability to cause brain damage, says a concerned mother who finds her child awash in a chemical world.

A happy adolescence increases the odds of a happy adulthood, says new research. There’s a catch, of course: those who have enjoyable teenage years are more likely to get divorced as adults.

A new study published in Psychological Science suggests that parents create rosy pictures of parental joy as a way to justify the huge emotional and financial investment that kids require.

Neuroengineer and speaker at the TED2011 conference, Ed Boyden wants to use modern technology to understand the brain, treat neural conditions and uncover the basis of human existence.

Lonely people, it seems, are at greater risk than the gregarious of developing illnesses associated with chronic inflammation, such as heart disease and certain cancers.

What do many diseases have in common? The body’s voltage, which is another way of looking at low alkalinity or high acidity, is at the basis of many types of disorder in the human body.

Besides the immense pleasure that it gives, bet you didn’t know that regular sex is also a great way to improve your physical and psychological health. Yes, sex does a body good!

In the first redesign of its physical fitness test in 30 years, the Army incorporates elements of yoga and the benefits of rest. Some vets ask if the Army is babying new recruits.

Apparently, fewer teens and young adults are having sex, according to a federal study that offers numbers but doesn’t examine the reasons. Why might it be decreasing?

A group of neuroscientsts say they have isolated a single enzyme in the brain that can help long-term memories remain crisp in your mind. The isolated enzyme is called PKMzeta.

Brain cells that play a critical role in Alzheimer’s disease have been created in the laboratory by scientists, allowing a limitless supply of neurons on which to test new drugs.

Scientists continue to document the “marriage advantage”: the fact that married people, on average, appear to be healthier and live longer than unmarried people.

While Internet health sites seek a larger audience for health and wellness-related content, the fact that each person’s medical situation is so different makes universal appeal difficult.

Scientists say they may have found a new way to measure obesity that has nothing to do with how much you weigh. The new measurement is called the Body Adiposity Index, or BAI.

Brazilians are among the world’s biggest fans of Twitter. Now they are using it to outwit police over a drink-driving campaign known as Operation Lei Seca, or “dry law”.

It’s not that the web is making us less intelligent…it’s that the web may be an enemy of creativity. Which is why Woody Allen might be wise in avoiding it altogether.

Here’s what Democrats should be saying: Hike taxes on the super-rich. Reform the tax code to create more brackets at the top with higher rates for millionaires and billionaires.

President Sarkozy is accused of trying to win far-right votes as France outlaws full-face veils with its controversial niqab ban.

The Guardian: For the LSE, in thrall to a dictator, Gaddafi was pure roast duck. The school’s association with Libya’s leader illustrates the predicament now facing all UK universities.

Michael T. Klare on the collapse of the old oil order: Only the rapid development of alternative sources of energy…might spare the world the most severe economic repercussions.

Are the days of billable hours nearly over for lawyers? LawPivot is a site designed to aid startups find legal advice, by using a Quora-type question and answer format.

David Kirkpatrick talks to Jack Dorsey about his taxicab inspiration, his ejection as Twitter’s C.E.O., and his ambition to make Square the payment network of the future.

American ships are again under siege by pirates off the African coast. The Pirates of Somalia — we have the weapons to defeat them. All we lack is the will.