Is beauty natural?
Charles Darwin was as fascinated by extravagant ornament in nature as Jane Austen was in culture. Did their explanations agree?
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Home
The joy of clutter
The world sees Japan as a paragon of minimalism. But its hidden clutter culture shows that ‘more’ can be as magical as ‘less’
Matt Alt
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Sex and sexuality
Sex and death
Our culture works hard to keep sex and death separate but recharging the libido might provide the release that grief needs
Cody Delistraty
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Anthropology
Witches around the world
The belief in witches is an almost universal feature of human societies. What does it reveal about our deepest fears?
Gregory Forth
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Philosophy of science
Life makes mistakes
Hens try to hatch golf balls, whales get beached. Getting things wrong seems to play a fundamental role in life on Earth
David S Oderberg
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Philosophy of science
Elusive but everywhere
Everything in the Universe, from wandering turtles to falling rocks, is surrounded by ‘fields’ that guide and direct movement
Daniel W McShea & Gunnar O Babcock
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Human rights and justice
When a burial for slave trade victims is unearthed, a small island faces a reckoning
29 minutes
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Physics
The city of wisdom
Don’t be intimidated by physics: it is made of stories and metaphors. Learn these and the field will open up to you
Jamie Zvirzdin
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Technology and the self
A haunting scene from ‘Minority Report’ inspires a voyage into time and memory
7 minutes
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Family life
The stream-of-consciousness thoughts and memories that emerge while cooking a meal
5 minutes
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Nations and empires
Colonies of former colonies
India’s ongoing subjugation of Kashmir holds portentous lessons about the nature of contemporary colonialism
Hafsa Kanjwal
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Ecology and environmental sciences
GPS tracking reveals stunning insights into the patterns of migratory birds
6 minutes
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Philosophy of science
The forces of chance
Social scientists cling to simple models of reality – with disastrous results. Instead they must embrace chaos theory
Brian Klaas
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Human rights and justice
Can providing humanitarian aid be illegal? A troubling case from the US-Mexico border
17 minutes
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History of ideas
Settling accounts
Before he was famous, Jean-Jacques Rousseau was Louise Dupin’s scribe. It’s her ideas on inequality that fill his writings
Rebecca Wilkin
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Philosophy of mind
Rage against the machine
For all the promise and dangers of AI, computers plainly can’t think. To think is to resist – something no machine does
Alva Noë
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Space exploration
The rarely told story of the fruit flies, primates and canines that preceded us in space
12 minutes
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Food and drink
The fermented crescent
Ancient Mesopotamians had a profound love of beer: a beverage they found celebratory, intoxicating and strangely erotic
Tate Paulette
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Film and visual culture
A lush animated opus evokes the frenzied pace of modern life
4 minutes
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Philosophy of science
Life makes mistakes
Hens try to hatch golf balls, whales get beached. Getting things wrong seems to play a fundamental role in life on Earth
David S Oderberg
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Family life
The precious family keepsakes that hold meaning for generations
10 minutes
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Sex and sexuality
Sex and death
Our culture works hard to keep sex and death separate but recharging the libido might provide the release that grief needs
Cody Delistraty
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Politics and government
The spectre of insecurity
Liberals have forgotten that in order for our lives not to be nasty, brutish and short, we need stability. Enter Hobbes
Jennifer M Morton
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Neuroscience
This intricate map of a fruit fly brain could signal a revolution in neuroscience
2 minutes
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Religion
The script creator
Pau Cin Hau dreamt of an alphabet for a language that had never been written down. So began the religion of Laipianism
Bikash K Bhattacharya
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Archaeology
What did the first people who entered Tutankhamun’s tomb see?
5 minutes
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Cosmology
Stars behaving absurdly
For centuries, the only way in which to illuminate the mysteries of black holes was through the power of mathematics
Steve Nadis & Shing-Tung Yau
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Information and communication
Coverage of the ‘balloon boy’ hoax forms a withering indictment of for-profit news
17 minutes
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Mental health
Constant confession
Mental health campaigns place huge trust in people’s ability to act as therapists. But when should professionals step in?
Aaron Neiman