EARTH
What's Your Utopia?
Imagining an ideal world can help us make this world better
Stories by John Horgan
Cognition
David Chalmers Thinks the Hard Problem Is Really Hard
Consciousness will still mystify us even if we scientifically solve it, philosopher predicts
Policy
Will Neuroweapons, Micro-Drones and Other Killer Apps Really Make Us Safer?
Americans should have a more vigorous debate over Pentagon’s relentless pursuit of “disruptive” innovations
Behavior
R.I.P. Huston Smith, Religious Scholar Who Defended Psychedelics' Spiritual Potential
The advocate of "perennial philosophy" held that “entheogens” can provide glimpses of transcendent truths embodied in religions
Public Health
Is Nuclear War the Only Cure for Inequality?
A historian claims only apocalyptic destruction can close the gap between rich and poor
Cognition
Is Consciousness Real?
Philosopher Daniel Dennett tries, once again, to explain away consciousness
Computing
Polymath Stephen Wolfram Defends His Computational Theory of Everything
Creator of Mathematica and A New Kind of Science remains confident that he can transform science and other realms of knowledge
Mental Health
Why Freud Still Isn't Dead
Psychoanalysis still attracts adherents in spite of relentless criticism and the rise of psychopharmacology and other alternatives
Neuroscience
Astronomy Writer Confronts Mysteries of Inner Space
Science Journalist Michael Lemonick answers questions about his new book The Perpetual Now: A Story of Amnesia, Memory, and Love.
Culture
Philosophers Push Back
Philosophers react to a science journalist’s critique of their calling
Culture
What Is Philosophy's Point?, Part 5--A Call for "Negative Philosophy"
Philosophy’s chief value is countering our terrible tendency toward certitude
Culture
What Is Philosophy's Point?, Part 4--Maybe It's Poetry with No Rhyme and Lots of Reason
The line between philosophy and the arts can get awfully blurry
Policy
What Is Philosophy's Point?, Part 3--Maybe It Should Stick to Ethics
Philosophers keep giving us moral advice in spite of their doubts about all ethical systems
Policy
Dear Anti-Trump Protestors, Please Renounce Violence
Protesters who smashed windows and punched police on Inauguration Day are mirroring the violence they supposedly abhor
Culture
What Is Philosophy's Point?, Part 2--Maybe It's a Martial Art
Philosophers sometimes seem more concerned with winning than wisdom
Culture
What Is Philosophy's Point?, Part 1 (Hint: It's Not Discovering Truth)
Philosophy can still serve many purposes, even if it can’t compete with science as a method of accumulating knowledge
Culture
Seeing the Miracle of Existence in the Darkest of Times
A winter solstice ritual helps a faithless science writer appreciate life’s infinite improbability
Mental Health
Psychiatrists Must Face Possibility That Medications Hurt More Than They Help
Mental health has declined as prescriptions for antidepressants and other drugs keep surging
Evolution
Does Evolution Have a "Higher Purpose"?
Life might have a divinely imposed meaning, but we’re better off assuming it doesn’t
Space & Physics
Astrophysicist Says Experiments Might Soon Reveal Dark Matter's "True Nature"
In a Q&A, Priyamvada Natarajan takes multiverses seriously but not cosmos-as-simulation idea
