Guest Thinkers — August 16, 2010

Ira Flatow on His New Book: Present at the Future

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Ira Flatow has a new book out chronicling his award winning interviews at NPR’s Science Friday. Flatow appeared on NPR’s Diane Rehm show yesterday to talk about Present at the Future and his experience as host of Science Friday.

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

A soldier in camouflage uniform holding a Ukrainian flag stands amid rubble, facing a damaged building.

Books

How neuroscience is rewriting the story of war

In “Warhead,” neuroscientist and national security adviser Nicholas Wright explains how the brain navigates warfare and why it is our ultimate weapon (and instrument for peace).

An old black and white photo showing a man smoking a cigarette.

Mini Philosophy

Saṃvega: The urgent realization that you need a more meaningful life

If you feel like you’re missing out on something bigger, you might be feeling saṃvega.

A man with short dark hair, glasses, and a goatee, wearing a blue jacket over a light shirt, stands in front of a beige, textured background.

13.8

“Mystery humbles you”: Scott Derrickson on why skepticism and faith aren’t enemies

The “Doctor Strange” director says mystery shifts your worldview — “not in a metaphorical sense, but in a deeply experiential one.”

Silhouette of a person with a backpack looking at a phone or book, filled with a galaxy pattern, on a light, swirling background.

Mini Philosophy

“Cosmic realism”: The secret ingredient to great books

In the tears and laughter of a single life, you find the grief and joy of humanity.

Abstract illustration of a figure reaching for a yellow sphere on the left, with colored overlapping circles and concentric arcs—evoking themes of physics and consciousness—set against a vibrant multicolored gradient background.

Starts With A Bang

Does physics truly have anything to say about consciousness?

Many, from neuroscientists to philosophers to anesthesiologists, have claimed to understand consciousness. Do physicists? Does anyone?

Up Next

Guest Thinkers

Rather than devout, Americans prefer their candidates to be “somewhat religious;” more than a third of Americans willing to vote for an atheist

According to a new Pew polling analysis, religion is not proving to be a clear-cut positive in the 2008 presidential campaign. According to Pew, candidates viewed by voters as the […]