Can Science Teach Us Something About How to Live?
In science, and in life, there is an artful balance between being cautious and adventurous; to find the balance takes experimentation, tolerance for mistakes, and humility.
December 13, 2017
When the State Sinks, Science Is the Anchor
As history has shown, political and ideological repression passes — but scientific knowledge remains.
November 2, 2017
Would You Become an Immortal Machine?
The prospects can be either beatific or terrifying depending where you come from but, whatever your choice, transhumanism is here to stay.
March 29, 2017
A New Culture of Cooperation in Academia Is Emerging
A liberal arts education was supposed to expose students to the sciences and the humanities without exploring their affinities or overlaps — but this era is coming to an end.
October 4, 2016
The Porous Boundary Between Science and the Mysterious
Imagine how sad it would be if, one day, we arrived at the end of knowledge — that would be incomparably worse than embracing doubt as the unavoidable partner of a curious mind.
August 23, 2016
The Madness of Humanity Part 4: Science vs. Religion
Science is not out there to kill people's faiths: Science is out there to make sense of the world we live in — and when science gets pitched against religion, everyone loses.
August 16, 2016
Knowledge, the Endless Pursuit
Imagine how sad it would be if we one day arrived at the end of knowledge — no new questions to explore, no boundaries to expand, no great discoveries ahead.
July 12, 2016
The Need To Believe: Where Does It Come From?
Religious belief offers a sense of community with the unknown — with what transcends the confines of our humanity — as science aims to extend our reality.
November 17, 2015
Are Science and Truth at Odds?
A curious personalization of science is underway — it's as if scientific issues are simply matters of opinion and not the product of a very thorough process.
September 15, 2015
Einstein's Universe Turns 100
Einstein's greatest lesson may be that reality is not what it seems; what we perceive as real is a distortion due to how our brains take in the world around, and within, us.
April 29, 2015
What the 'God of The Gaps' Teaches Us About Science
To put God in our current knowledge gaps would not further our understanding of the universe. For that, we need science and its stubbornly secular approach.
April 22, 2015
Clinging to Timelessness in a Changing Cosmos
Traditional science has little to offer our longing for permanence, leading many to disenchantment. Can we be scientific and satisfy our desire for transcendence?
March 4. 2015
A Quest for the Unattainable Unification of Knowledge
There is no reason to expect that we can get to the ultimate nature of reality. We must learn to live with the mystery, with the fact that we cannot know everything.
December 17, 2014
Can Scientific Belief Go Too Far?
Can scientists have too much faith, insisting that an idea is right despite contrary evidence? Marcelo says yes, which could pay off in the end — or be a colossal waste of time.
November 12, 2014
The Never-Ending Climb Of Mount Science
Marcelo says the mystery that surrounds us will always be here; there is no complete or final knowledge, and this fact gives science a unique character.
October 29, 2014
No End In Sight? No Problem!
Our quest for knowledge will never end because we just can't know everything, no matter how hard we try. But that's a good thing. Here's why.
August 13, 2014
The Game of the Gods Keeps us Watching
If nature is like a game played by the gods, scientists are the observers trying to figure out the rules. Marcelo asks: Can our knowledge ever be complete?
July 16, 2014