Society
essay
Neuroscience
The empty brain
Your brain does not process information, retrieve knowledge or store memories. In short: your brain is not a computer
Robert Epstein
idea
Economics
Conspicuous consumption is over. It’s all about intangibles now
Elizabeth Currid-Halkett
essay
Language and linguistics
English is not normal
No, English isn’t uniquely vibrant or mighty or adaptable. But it really is weirder than pretty much every other language
John McWhorter
idea
Social psychology
A belief in meritocracy is not only false: it’s bad for you
Clifton Mark
essay
Work
Fuck work
Economists believe in full employment. Americans think that work builds character. But what if jobs aren’t working anymore?
James Livingston
idea
War and peace
What did Hannah Arendt really mean by the banality of evil?
Thomas White
essay
Gender and identity
Gender is not a spectrum
The idea that ‘gender is a spectrum’ is supposed to set us free. But it is both illogical and politically troubling
Rebecca Reilly-Cooper
idea
History of science
What Einstein meant by ‘God does not play dice’
Jim Baggott
essay
Cosmology
Exodus
Elon Musk argues that we must put a million people on Mars if we are to ensure that humanity has a future
Ross Andersen
idea
Philosophy of science
Why philosophy is so important in science education
Subrena E Smith
idea
Sports and games
Monopoly was invented to demonstrate the evils of capitalism
Kate Raworth
video
Beauty and aesthetics
This is the final resting place of your cast-off clothing
14 minutes
essay
Knowledge
Escape the echo chamber
First you don’t hear other views. Then you can’t trust them. Your personal information network entraps you just like a cult
C Thi Nguyen
idea
Computing and artificial intelligence
Algorithms associating appearance and criminality have a dark past
Catherine Stinson
essay
Fairness and equality
Poor teeth
If you have a mouthful of teeth shaped by a childhood in poverty, don’t go knocking on the door of American privilege
Sarah Smarsh
essay
Making
Chabuduo! Close enough …
Your balcony fell off? Chabuduo. Vaccines are overheated? Chabuduo. How China became the land of disastrous corner-cutting
James Palmer
essay
Future of technology
The golden quarter
Some of our greatest cultural and technological achievements took place between 1945 and 1971. Why has progress stalled?
Michael Hanlon
idea
Knowledge
You don’t have a right to believe whatever you want to
Daniel DeNicola
essay
Economics
Are coders worth it?
In today’s world, web developers have it all: money, perks, freedom, respect. But is there value in what we do?
James Somers
idea
Human rights and justice
Why the trial by ordeal was actually an effective test of guilt
Peter T Leeson
essay
Information and communication
The new mind control
The internet has spawned subtle forms of influence that can flip elections and manipulate everything we say, think and do
Robert Epstein
idea
Anthropology
It’s not that your teeth are too big: your jaw is too small
Peter Ungar
essay
Sex and sexuality
Pornucopia
Critics say that porn degrades women, dulls sexual pleasure, and ruins authentic relationships – are they right?
Maria Konnikova
essay
History
The salacious Middle Ages
Medieval people feared death by celibacy as much as venereal disease, and practiced complex sexual health regimens
Katherine Harvey