Kicking My Caffeine Addiction
A science writer and java junkie struggles to stop abusing the world’s most popular drug
Stories by John Horgan
Mind–Body Problems: My Meta-Solution to the Mystery of Who We Really Are
The author of a new book about consciousness, free will and the meaning of life conducts a testy interview with himself
The Paradox of Karl Popper
The great philosopher, renowned for his ferocious attacks on scientific and political dogmatism, could be quite dogmatic
Why STEM Students Need Humanities Courses
The more science and technology dominate our culture, the more we need the humanities
Buddhism, the Good and the Bad
A science writer, in the afterglow of a one-week silent retreat, still has lingering doubts about Buddhism
A Buddhism Critic Goes on a Silent Buddhist Retreat
Something weird happens to a skeptical science writer during a week of meditation, chanting and skygazing
David Bohm, Quantum Mechanics and Enlightenment
The visionary physicist, whose ideas remain influential, sought spiritual as well as scientific illumination
Yes, Make Psychedelics Legally Available, but Don't Forget the Risks
Psychedelics have psychological and spiritual benefits, as a new best seller claims, but they’re far from a panacea
Why Does Jim Holt Exist?
A connoisseur of science, math and philosophy takes on the really big questions
How Physics Lost Its Way
Physicist Sabine Hossenfelder claims desire for beauty and other subjective biases have led physicists astray
Shouldn't Americans Care That Their Country Is Killing as Well as Imprisoning Kids?
Americans objecting to U.S. detainment of children at borders should also protest killing of kids overseas
Bloomsday Tribute to James Joyce, Greatest Mind-Scientist Ever
Ulysses doesn’t solve the hard problem, but it conveys with unsurpassed vividness what it feels like to be human.
Do Our Questions Create the World?
Quantum theorist John Wheeler’s “it from bit” hypothesis anticipated ongoing speculation that consciousness is fundamental to reality
How Google Could Help End War
By renouncing military contracts, Google could catalyze a much-needed discussion about how the U.S. and other nations can move beyond militarism
Responses to "Was Wittgenstein a Mystic?"
The philosopher’s great work Tractatus is perhaps “a blank canvas” on which we project what we want to see.
Was Wittgenstein a Mystic?
The philosopher's greatest work, Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, only makes sense in the light of mysticism
Freeman Dyson's Solution to the Problem of Evil
Dyson’s principle of maximum diversity says that without hardship and suffering, life would be too dull
A Super-Simple, Non-Quantum Theory of Eternal Consciousness
A sleepy philosopher inspires thoughts on how consciousness could endure forever
Journalists Offer Sharply Divergent Views of Brain Implants for Depression
One reporter emphasizes the promise of an experimental treatment, another the peril
Is Science Hitting a Wall?, Part 2
Analysis of drug research identifies causes of declining returns, like the "better than the Beatles" problem, and a possible solution, "Dead Drugs Officers"
