Stories by John Horgan

Skeptics have questioned a story told by the late counterculture icon in his classic best seller Be Here Now

Philosopher Catherine Wilson thinks the ancient sage Epicurus can provide guidance for our modern scientific age

A freewheeling symposium explores experiences, theories and philosophies that challenge conventional materialist science

Philosopher Hedda Hassel Mørch defends the idea that consciousness pervades the cosmos

New books by a physicist and science journalist mount aggressive but ultimately unpersuasive defenses of multiverses

The Epstein scandal, which embroiled many prominent scientists, is just one of many signs that a gloomy prophecy is being fulfilled

Modern scientists revive a crude form of biological determinism

A prominent oncologist urges continuous testing of everyone from birth onward with implanted devices that detect cancerous cells before they spread

Cross-check columns on physics, cosmology and related topics

A new book examines the insidious effects of scientific investigations into race

Bloom’s book The Anxiety of Influence helped a science writer understand the plight of modern scientists trying to surpass their predecessors

Science writer John Horgan wins a 2002 bet with physicist Michio Kaku that by 2020 no unified theory of physics will win a Nobel Prize

A young philosopher finds philosophy consoling because it is impossible.

Chagnon’s views of the “fierce” Yanomamö and of the roots of war were more subtle than his critics or admirers suggested

An alarming book provokes a vision of a world that has solved the problems of global warming and war

Mathematicians disagree over whether their fundamental assumptions, or axioms, are true

Some big questions, such as how matter makes mind and what quantum mechanics means, may not have a single, definitive answer

As time passes, the claim that science can comprehend everything looks increasingly nutty

Pondering the origins of your beliefs and yourself can be the first step toward making a better world

A sudden moment of self-awareness in childhood propels people on a quest to explore life’s mysteries

A Harvard scholar says viewing science and technology with a critical eye can make the world a better place

Our aggressive, expensive approach to cancer is doing more harm than good

A Harvard historian urges psychiatrists to focus less on making money and more on helping patients

Philosopher Jacob Stegenga, author of a scathing critique of medicine, discusses vaccines and his own health