Surprising Science — April 20, 2010

Cash for Body Parts?

A British bioethics council is asking the public whether it’s ethical to use financial incentives to encourage people to donate organs.

bigthinkeditor

A British bioethics council is questioning the public about whether it’s ethical to use financial incentives—like the payment of funeral expenses—to encourage people to donate organs. The council also is weighing the idea of giving donors priority if they themselves need an organ transplant later in life. The question is in response to a demand for organ donors that has far outstripped supply.

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

Guest Thinkers

Hitler’s Books

In a new book, Timothy Ryback examines Adolf Hitler’s private library. He asserts that books were important in shaping the Führer’s life, and looks for insights in the books’ margin notes.