Culture
‘Longtermism’ Movement Misses the Importance of War
A moral movement called longtermism, which focuses on protecting humanity’s future, dwells too much on artificial intelligence and not enough on war
Stories by John Horgan
Electronics
Should Machines Replace Mathematicians?
A “replication crisis” in mathematics raises questions about the purpose of knowledge
Mental Health
When Things Feel Unreal, Is That a Delusion or an Insight?
The psychiatric syndrome called derealization raises profound moral and philosophical questions
History
Will War Ever End?
As the war in Ukraine intensifies, rather than prepare for future wars, we should talk about ending war once and for all
Quantum Physics
Does Quantum Mechanics Rule Out Free Will?
Superdeterminism, a radical quantum hypothesis, says our “choices” are illusory
Anthropology
Ancient Peoples Teach Us That We Can Create a Better World
A radical retelling of civilization’s origins leads to an expansive vision of human possibility
Quantum Physics
Does Quantum Mechanics Reveal That Life Is But a Dream?
A radical quantum hypothesis casts doubt on objective reality
Quantum Physics
Can Quantum Mechanics Quell the Holiday Blues?
Scientists search for hidden variables underpinning our swerving moods and thoughts
Sociology
Thanksgiving and the Myth of Native American ‘Savages’
Prominent scientists exaggerate the violence of Native Americans, whom European invaders ravaged
Computing
Should Big Tech’s Plan for a Metaverse Scare Us?
Tech companies seek to create far more immersive digital environments, possibly mediated by brain implants
Health Care
An Elbow Injury Exposes the Exorbitant Costs of Health Care
Bills totaling $287,365.08 provide insights into the dysfunctional economics of American medicine
Exercise
Big Data, Questionable Benefits and My Girlfriend’s Magic Ring
Wearable devices that track our health may do more harm than good
Consciousness
Death, Physics and Wishful Thinking
Fear of mortality might underlie physicists’ fondness for the anthropic principle, multiverses, superdeterminism and other shaky ideas
Quantum Physics
Is There a Thing, or a Relationship between Things, at the Bottom of Things?
Quantum mechanics inspires us to speculate that interactions between entities, not entities in themselves, are fundamental to reality
Quantum Physics
Talking to My Daughter Can Be Harder Than Learning Quantum Mechanics
Ordinary human dilemmas are tougher to solve than the most difficult problems of physics and mathematics
Behavior
What God, Quantum Mechanics and Consciousness Have in Common
Theories that try to explain these big metaphysical mysteries fall short, making agnosticism the only sensible stance
Behavior
What Is a Question?
A 92-year-old essay provokes musings on the nature of knowledge, reality—and uptalk
Cognition
Quantum Mechanics, Plato’s Cave and the Blind Piranha
Can we ever really know the world?
Fitness
My Stupid Elbow and the Crisis in Health Care
A lingering hockey injury forces a science writer to reconsider his criticism of American medicine
Policy
Science Should Not Try to Absorb Religion and Other Ways of Knowing
Our diverse ways of seeing reality will never, and should never, meld into a monolithic worldview
