Forgetting them, at any step, can lead to unscientific conclusions. No one, not even the smartest among us, were competent scientists from the outset. The concept of science is simple […]
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There are strict scientific standards a new ‘claimed discovery’ needs to meet. Has cold fusion gotten there? “Between cold fusion and respectable science there is virtually no communication at all. …because the […]
Astrophysicists have been looking for worlds like Proxima b since the 19th century. At last, they’re found! This article is contributed by Sabine Hossenfelder. Sabine is a theoretical physicist specialized in […]
And here’s the reason why, despite all you may have heard. “Thou shalt not embarrass thyself and thy colleagues by claiming false planets.” –Bill Cochran Late last year, one of the […]
A live-blog event of a fabulous public lecture given by Katie Freese on the unseen components in our Universe. “If you take everything we know… it only adds up to […]
Is looking for radio transmissions in space like claiming the lack of smoke signals means there are no modern humans? “[W]hat Fermi immediately realized was that the aliens have had […]
A series of mysterious white features lurk at the bottom of one of its most massive craters. Here’s what they could be, and how we’ll find out! “One of the […]
Can the world’s most fantastic and speculative “theory of everything” candidate shed light on the Universe’s most invisible objects? “I just think too many nice things have happened in string […]
How “faith” in the Universe destroyed two brilliant men of genius. “I don’t like it, and I’m sorry I ever had anything to do with it.” –Schrödinger The idea that […]
It’s the faintest and hardest object to see in the entire catalogue, but the rewards — and knowledge you gain — are priceless! “If there is nothing new under the sun, at least the […]
Messier himself lamented his own original discovery. If only he knew why he was so disappointed, he might’ve been amazed instead! “Things need not have happened to be true. Tales […]
Perhaps the most spectacular example of rebirth in our galaxy, this cavernous nebula is giving rise to the next generation of stars! Image credit: ESO, via http://www.eso.org/public/images/eso0925a/. “For in the […]
Facebook recently announced that it will display warnings beside satirical content. In this post we look at the flaws and implications of recent research on the spread of false information on Facebook.
It’s not “particularly” any one characteristic, and that makes it a rarity worth looking at. “Conceit spoils the finest genius. There is not much danger that real talent or goodness will […]
What is Punk? Punk isn’t about mohawks or studded leather, says Henry Rollins – it’s about resistance to tyranny in any form. How Art Can Change Society, with Sarah Lewis Sarah […]
“Red and dead” might describe the stars in most ellipticals, but this nearby galaxy tells a different story. “The line that describes the beautiful is elliptical. It has simplicity and […]
Of all the galaxies in our local supercluster, one outweighs them all. “I recognize my limits, but when I look around I realise I am not living, exactly, in a world […]
The physics of accurately knowing just how much time has passed. “While friendship itself has an air of eternity about it, seeming to transcend all natural limits, there is hardly any […]
Too much of the wrong type can be deadly, but not all mercuric compounds are created equal. Today, we have a guest post courtesy of Adrianne Stone. Adrianne is a graduate […]
It’s the first Virgo Cluster galaxy to rise over the horizon in the Northern Hemisphere, and you can find it tonight! “The image is more than an idea. It is a […]
Your first philosophers: Marcus Aurelius, Epictetus, Seneca, and one strange new face. Why the first books people read about Stoicism should be by one of these guys. On Stoicism Graduation season […]
Big Think Mentor connects world-class mentors with a global community of smart, driven users to teach the habits of mind and people skills we need to live happier, healthier, more productive lives.
As our political and media systems rapidly evolve, social scientists are revisiting and updating existing models, theories, and methods for investigating the effects of the media on political attitudes and […]
Public opinion about climate change, observes the New York Times’ Andrew Revkin, can be compared to “waves in a shallow pan,” easily tipped with “a lot of sloshing but not […]
The Did You Know? (Shift Happens) videos have been seen by at least 40 million people online and perhaps that many again during face-to-face conferences, workshops, etc. This week saw […]
This semester, 22 undergraduate and graduate students from a diversity of majors at American University have participated in a new course that I created titled “Science, Environment and the Media.” […]
Environmental groups–backed by clean energy investors and Hollywood moguls– have raised $26 million to defeat California’s Proposition 23, a measure that would rollback the state’s laws limiting greenhouse gas emissions. […]
The latest USGS/SI volcano report, how we use the magnetism of minerals to tell us about a volcano and should we dispose of nuclear waste by throwing it into a volcano (?!)
For DC readers, NOAA administrator Jane Lubchenco will be speaking at American University tonight. Details are below In 1998, Lubchenco as president of AAAS argued for a new social contract […]
Last week, I introduced a series about a Colorado ballot initiative that would amend the state’s constitution to define a person under the law as “a human being from the […]