Culture & Religion — May 18, 2009

Tomorrow At Big Think: Global Health Expert Laurie Garrett

Council on Foreign Relations expert Laurie Garrett will discuss international health, infectious disease, bioterrorism and the impact of health policy on international relations tomorrow. Post your questions for Ms. Garret here.

a computer generated image of a human brain.

Thinking

The great free will debate featuring Michio Kaku and Steven Pinker

Who — or what — really controls your mind?

Building destroyed by the Halifax Explosion. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

The Past

The largest accidental explosion of all time

More than a century ago, Halifax suffered an accidental blast one-fifth the size of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

a collage of photos of a man with a hat and a book.

High Culture

6 great books with wildly unreliable narrators

Dive into the twisted truths and concealed realities told by literature’s most unreliable narrators.

a group of five matches on a pink background.

The Well

Signs you’re burned out — and how to bounce back

If you don’t feel better after the weekend, the “burnout paradox” could explain why.

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7 min

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with

Laurie Santos

Starts With A Bang

The trick to instantly identifying JWST images

If you can identify a foreground star, the spike patterns are a dead giveaway as to whether it’s a JWST image or any other observatory.

Up Next

Surprising Science

When Mobile Phones Become Eco-Watchdogs

From the Department of Really Cool Gadgets comes a protoype for a mobile phone that will alert us to all the bad stuff out there. It can sense pollen counts, […]