Robby Berman
Contributing Writer
I’m a writer, musician, and father living in central New York with my wife, two daughters, one dog, two cats, and countless questions. I’m especially interested in animal rights, creativity, politics, the nature of things and time, and in making a worthwhile contribution. You can follow me @everyrobby.
A new study suggests that 70% of the time scientists see brain activity on an fMRI, they aren’t.
Samuel Arbesman warns that we’ve entered a new “age of Entanglement” with our complex technology-based systems.
SETI researchers have found a major radio telescope signal and are trying to nail down where it’s from.
Alien life may be so different from us that we wouldn’t even recognize it as life.
Studies suggest that giving elementary students homework does more harm than good.
Sleep psychologist Shelby Harris reviews ideas about what dreams may be.
A small village in western Minnesota has just re-elected a dog as their mayor for his third term.
A solution to the problem of internet trolls may evolve that will protect us from them, but also from the free exchange of ideas.
China’s new satellite is going to attempt to create uncrackable encryption using quantum mechanics.
Radiolab’s Jad Abumrad talks about the mystery of the continued popularity of radio’s and its cousin podcast.
The Justice Department announces the end of privately run Bureau of Prisons jails, and activists are excited.
The confidence we crave in our leaders compromises their ability to help us avoid risk.
Radioactive crystals left behind by ancient bacteria tell us about a long-ago supernova nearby.
The director of the National Museum of Natural History offers an under-three-minute joyride through the history of life on earth.
Positive thinking all by itself is more destructive than helpful, but when combined with realism and strategy and planning, can be turned to good use.
Psychologist Kevin Dutton points out that psychopathic traits are not only common among great athletes, they may be required.
Clinical psychologist Steven Hayes explains how embracing your anxieties keeps them from overwhelming you in panic attacks.
Science can’t seem to disprove the giant alien megastructure some have proposed as an explanation for Tabby’s star, AKA, the WTF star, AKA KIC 8462852.
Language expert David Bellos talks about the difficulties of learning about languages other species may be speaking.
The explosive success on Pokémon Go ushers in an age of augmented reality that will change us.
Linguist Noam Chomsky presents two very basic questions about language that are still open for debate.
Paul Davies suggests we open our minds to where alien messages might be hiding, including in our own DNA.
For some unknown reason, rare corpse flower blooms are occurring across the U.S.
Alcohol is only a truth serum for a brain that’s not working well, not your everyday brain.
Modern detective work reveals the haunting story behind one of the most important rock records ever: Elvis Presley’s “Heartbreak Hotel.”
Neil deGrasse Tyson compares our actual progress in space to what was predicted in the 1968 movie 2001: A Space Odyssey.
A new study examines the behavior of seven species of marine animals around the dead.
Philosopher Alva Noë explains why neuroscientists assume the answer to an old philosophical question that really can’t be resolved.
Fashion designer Tina Gorjanc has introduced a line of leather handbags and jackets made from late designer Alexander McQueen’s lab-grown skin.
Are robots and AI really ready for us to begin depending on them?