The Think Inc. Podcast

This week your life in the metaverse, Aussie enviro woes, James Webb's tiny storage, a zombifying fungus, and the unlikely key to space travel. Don't forget we're bringing Peter Singer to Auckland on Saturday August 6th, and we're holding a 30% off sale at our shop on books, merch and more! Just head to thinkinc.org.au. Also, Join our mailing list → http://bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week why feathered dinosaurs ruled, big splatter matters, you have no free-will, why Aussie voting is great, and Carl Sagan's prescient lecture. Don't forget we're bringing Peter Singer to Auckland on Saturday August 6th, and we're holding a 30% off sale at our shop on books, merch and more! Just head to thinkinc.org.au. Also, Join our mailing list → http://bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week why the orgy on our face is in danger, sponge-hat fluffy crabs, big boy bacteria, sending rockets from Arnhem Land, and bad news for vape nation. Don't forget our 4-week live and online introduction to cosmology starts on Tuesday July 5! Enrol today and learn from Professor Alan Duffy, the Director of the Space Technology and Industry Institute. Just head to thinkinc.org.au. Also, Join our mailing list → http://bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week a new subpopulation of polar bears, probes powering down, vivid pics from Mars, how we managed to see black holes, and Assange's extradition. Don't forget our 4-week live and online introduction to cosmology starts on Tuesday July 5! Enrol today and learn from Professor Alan Duffy, the Director of the Space Technology and Industry Institute. Just head to thinkinc.org.au. Also, Join our mailing list → http://bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week starquakes and stellar DNA, microplastics in fresh Antarctic snow, a sentient A.I. powered by Google, should you have kids, and the problem with IQ tests.

This week when is a bee a fish?; miraculous 3D-printed ears, why your brain trips out, the EU's hypocrisy, the problems with social media, and the wonders of our universe!

This week we dive into why NASA wants to study global dust, the snaps and pops of the ocean, how scientists managed to make agro mutant hamsters, Douglas Murray's take on how we talk about Monkeypox, and John McWhorter's thoughts on gun violence in the US

This week, the recent monkeypox outbreak, medicinal magic mushrooms, a shark-infested volcano erupts, flaws in the Hubble constant, and Lawrence Krauss on gender inequality in Universities.

This week: growing food on the moon, a strange cave on Mars, the first photos of our own blackhole, Dawkins argues with pro-Lifers, and is this the end of crypto!?MOON FOODHave you seen the film High Life? It's about a group of criminals on death row who get sent on a mission to space to extract alternative energy from a black hole.It's a pretty sick film, not just because of the plot - it also shows a spaceship with an incredible garden that's tended by Andre 3000!The garden is full of fruits and vegetables that sustain the crew, but is it actually possible?This recent news shows that it might be!For the first time, scientists have grown plants in lunar soil collected on the moon by the Apollo astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.The scientists had no idea if anything would sprout in the harsh moon dirt, and wanted to see if it could be used to grow food by a new generation of lunar explorers.While there was some growth, compared to the plants grown in Earth's dirt, the moon plants were stunted.The scientists worked out that the longer the soil was exposed to punishing cosmic radiation and solar winds on the moon, the worse the plants seemed to do. So for now, Earth food will have to do.MARTIAN DOORWhat is this door on Mars and who built it?That's what the world was asking last Thursday when a recent photo taken by the Mars Curiosity rover went viral.While it definitely looks like a Martian hobbit hole, unfortunately the reality is not that exciting.Neil Hodgson, an expert in Martian geology, said that while it was a very curious image “it looks like natural erosion to me."AWW! Way to ruin our fun, Neil!He's right though… to the trained eye there are some obvious signs that it's not a door. Firstly, it's less than a metre tall, so the martians must be bloody short.Secondly, check out the rocky layers, known as “strata”. These were likely deposited some 4 billion years ago, possibly in one of the abundant rivers that used to flow on Mars. The curved form is similar to other wind-eroded spots on Mars.Curiosity has been whipping around on Mars for a decade, and this is without a doubt one of the weirdest photos it's captured. We can't wait to see what it finds next!BLACKHOLESome of the biggest space news this week is that we have the first ever image of the supermassive blackhole that sits at the heart of our galaxy.The blackhole is called Sagittarius A*, and it's our baby! Unlike other supermassive blackholes, this one sits in our backyard, which makes it a little easier to study.This recent image was captured by the Event Horizon Telescope. The event horizon refers to the boundary of the black hole beyond which no light can escape.While we can't see the event horizon itself because it doesn't emit light, we can see glowing gas orbiting the blackhole. This light is being bent by the blackhole's powerful gravity, which is 4 MILLION times more massive than our Sun.Despite its size, scientists are surprised at how little gas and dust it eats.Michael Johnson from the Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics said that “If Saggittarius A* was a person, it would consume the equivalent of a grain of rice once every million years.”Talk about an extreme diet… We hope the astronomers find out more about its eating habits, and we hope it doesn't involve snacking on Earth!ABORTIONIs an acorn an oak tree? This is one of the questions that Richard Dawkins asks us to ponder in a fiery new essay on a perhaps the hottest cultural topic of today - abortion.Abortion is back in the public discourse after it was leaked that the US Supreme Court will overturn Roe vs Wade; a landmark decision that ruled that the US Constitution protects a pregnant woman's liberty to have an abortion.Dawkins is a biologist who's not afraid to dive head first into these prickly discussions. In his recent essay titled They Think It's Murder, he provides us with persuasive arguments against the religious Right.Firstly, Dawkins tackles their argument that the embryo experiences pain. He says that if you think this, you better be a vegan too, because animals definitely experience pain yet we justify their killing.What about people who are against killing an embryo because it has the potential of becoming a human? By that logic, every sperm that ends up in a sock and not in a cervix is also a crime!Check out his essay for more arguments, and let us know your thoughts in the comments.CRYPTOWhat's up with crypto?People have lost hundreds of MILLIONS of dollars due to the crypto crash.So, what's the cause of it all?It's hard to pinpoint, and some people are even suspecting an “evil genius” could be behind it all.But the TL;DR version is that there was a stablecoin called Luna, which was designed to stay equal to the US dollar, hence the name “stable”.Well, stable it wasn't! One Luna coin went from being worth $122 dollars to 5 CENTS in a matter of days.It wasn't just Luna, pretty much every crypto currency crashed, leaving Changpeng Zhao, the CEO of Binance down an incredible $47.6 BILLION DOLLARS!Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of FTX who also happens to be a big fan of our mate Peter Singer, is down $3 billion.And while we all enjoy seeing rich people lose money, it's not as funny when you realise that Sam is an effective altruist who donates large swathes of his wealth to good causes.So, let us know, do you think this is the end of crypto? Was it just a phase? Let us know in the comments.---That's all for this week. Don't forget we're taking Peter Singer to Auckland on August 6 - get your tickets at thinkinc.org.au or at the link in our bio.Until next time, take care!Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

INTROThis week we're talking about finding the fountain of youth, sending nudes into space and listening to black holes. Also, Richard Dawkins on what we should tell the aliens, and Douglas Murray chats with Sam Harris and Michael Shermer.1. Finding the Fountain Of YouthIt's hard to accept that you're ageing. Just look at Madonna's recent Instagram and TikTok escapades.While plastic surgery and smoking blunts may make her APPEAR younger, as we know, ageing comes from the inside- it is the accumulation of molecular and cellular damage over time.Most people just accept that ageing is a part of nature, but more and more scientists, in particular, our mate David Sinclair, are showing that ageing can, and SHOULD, be avoided.In a recent talk led by Brian Greene at the World Science Festival, David explains that ageing is like scratches on a CD. The song data is still there- it's just not able to be read due to damage. Buff out the scratches and the sound will play well just like before.Ok, maybe that's putting it a bit simply, so make sure you go and watch the video for yourself.Also, check out David's book Lifespan at the link in our bio, where you can also grab tickets to see the string theorist and founder of the World Science Festival, Professor Brian Greene, live in conversation!2. Space nudesTwo words: SPACE NUDES.You heard right, NASA plans to beam an image of two humans waving in their birthday suits into space, in the hope that this could attract the attention of extraterrestrials.Along with the Adam & Eve cartoon, there will be a drawing of the DNA double helix, and an image of an object falling, depicting Earth's gravity.The images will come with an invitation to respond, all written in binary code, which the scientists think might be a universal language understood by all intelligent life forms.The message will also include information about Earth's location, which has some people worried. What about if the aliens are hostile and use this info to damage Earth?To be fair, this isn't the first time we've sent images of nude humans into space- the Pioneer plaques sent in 1972 and 1973 also had some naked folk. Granted, it was the 70s, and pretty much everyone was naked all the time!I wanna know, if you had to explain Earth to aliens in just three images, what would they be? Let us know in the comments.3. Richard Dawkins newsCalling all Richard Dawkins fans: we've got two pieces of new content you can't miss.First up, Dawko recently opened the International Science Festival in Gothenburg, Sweden. He gave a fascinating speech called “What Shall We Tell the Aliens?”.Don't get it twisted, Dawko doesn't believe we are going to meet aliens, but he does make another bold claim: he says that if aliens DO exist, he believes they will also be a product of Darwinian selection. How wild is that!?Secondly, don't miss an excerpt from his latest book, Flights of Fancy, published in Quillette last week. In it he talks about why many animals shed their wings.For example, did you know that worker ants can sprout wings, but don't? And that ant and termite queens bite off their wings after mating?And what about flightless birds such as penguins, what's the point of having wings if you can't fly!?Evolution can explain why, but you'll have to read the article to find out.Don't forget we're running our Evolutionary Biology course again at Think Inc. Academy, sign up for the waitlist at the link in our bio.4. Douglas Murray newsDouglas Murray has been a very busy man! His latest book The War on The West: How to Prevail in the Age of Unreason was JUST published a few weeks ago.In his book, Douglas argues that the West is self-cannibalising! We are so critical of our own “sins”, but don't criticise the sins of other societies.This latest book follows on from The Madness of Crowds and The Strange Death of Europe, which we have a SIGNED copy of in our shop.Before you get your hands on a copy, you can listen to Douglas speak on the Michael Shermer Show. Michael describes Douglas as the Christopher Hitchens of our time!It's true that Douglas, just like Hitch, is a fiery social and political commentator who isn't afraid of diving head first into the “culture war” debate.Douglas also went on the Making Sense podcast with our mate Sam Harris- it's also worth a listen.5. Black hole soundsDon't listen to this if you get freaked out easily.This ghostly howl is what it sounds like when x-ray light bounces around inside a black hole.Despite the name, black holes actually emit some light, and it's all thanks to their diet.They gobble up matter around them, usually gas and dust from orbiting stars, and a bit like a sparkly fart, they emit x-ray light that makes a sound.Yeah- you know that thing about space being silent? That's a myth! Just because space is a vacuum, it doesn't mean there's no sound.Actually, galaxy clusters are full of gas that provides a medium for sound waves to travel along.These recent sound waves were picked up by NASA's Chandra X-Ray in the Perseus black hole. Scientists from MIT ran the data through a tool called the Reverberation Machine- which is also a great name for a psychedelic rock band!The machine spat out this creepy tune, which the scientists resynthesized to make it audible for the human ear. We can't wait to see what other remixes they release!Keen to learn more about black holes? Sign up to our Cosmology course with Professor Alan Duffy at the link in our bio!OUTROThat's all for this week- I hope you learned something cool! Make sure you sign up to our newsletter for specials on our upcoming shows and Think Inc. Academy courses- Just head to the link in our bio.Until next time, take care.

This week: evidence that we may have come from outer space, prosecuting crimes on the moon, Tasmania goes carbon negative, probes on Uranus, and unveiling the last interview with the late Christopher Hitchens.DNA meteoriteHey Alexa… play “Life on Mars” by David Bowie.Kids, if you don't know who Bowie was, he was a famous astronaut from the 1980s, and he'd be very excited about this news.Scientists recently discovered the final chemical ingredients to make human DNA- in METEORITES!The new discovery supports the theory that some four BILLION years ago, the ingredients needed for life arrived on Earth after a meteorite shower.BUT, not all scientists agree. Some think that these meteorites could have picked up DNA when they touched down on Earth.To confirm whether DNA arrived here extraterrestrially, scientists will next test asteroids. For example, the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 recently brought the asteroid Ryugu down to Earth, and NASA's OSIRIS-REx probe is due to touch down with samples of the near-Earth asteroid Bennu in 2023. Let's wait and see what they find.Crimes on the moonImagine this: it's the year 2100, and you're out having a few moon brews with your buds.You get in your moon buggy to head home, but halfway there you're stopped by a space cop who breathalyses you.Shit! You're over the limit, but it's ok - there are no laws on the moon, right?WRONG!Moon law is now in force… at least if you're Canadian.Just last week Canadian lawmakers passed an amendment to their Criminal Code to allow for the prosecution of crimes committed ON THE MOON.Now, crimes committed by Canadian astronauts either en route to the moon, on space stations, or on the moon's surface, will be treated the same as crimes committed on Earth.The update comes as the number of space flights are increasing, and now that Canada's announced it will create the Lunar Gateway space station.The station is set to launch in 2024, and will conduct scientific experiments and prep for missions to Mars. And while crime isn't common in space, they will be ready if it does happen once in a blue moon.Carbon neutral TasmaniaForget carbon neutral - Tasmania has gone carbon NEGATIVE!Yes, Tasmania has become one of the first parts of the world to actually remove more CO2 than it emits.Scientists from the Australian National University and Griffith Uni recently looked at each state's greenhouse gas emissions, and saw that Tasmania has completely reversed its carbon footprint.They suspect that this is probably thanks to the reduction in native forest logging, meaning that forests have been able to grow and remove carbon from the atmosphere.If you didn't know, nearly HALF of Tasmania is forested, and more than 20% of the island is a World Heritage Area. It also has Huon pine trees, which are some of the oldest living things on Earth!Tasmania's beautiful forests allowed for a profitable logging industry for many decades. This is something that Bob Brown, one of the founding members of the Australian Greens Party, and old colleague of our mate Peter Singer, has been fighting against for decades.While logging made lots of money, researchers believe that “tree farms” can satisfy the need for timber without increasing emissions and damaging the natural forest.Next stop, UranusHow do you feel about a probe to your anus - I mean Uranus?Scientists know Uranus doesn't get much attention, and that it's often the butt of jokes, but they think it's very mysterious and are planning to explore it in the coming years.These plans come after a new report from a panel of US planetary scientists urged NASA to send a flagship mission to study the giant planet.Uranus has been neglected partly due to how far away it is from the Sun - It's over 2.9 billion kilometres away and takes 84 years to orbit the Sun, meaning a gargantuan amount of planning is needed before a probe is sent.Maybe it's something in its water and amorphous ice, but everything to do with this strange planet takes a long time. It was the first planet to be discovered, but it took scientists 70 years to name it!William Herschel, who discovered it in 1781, wanted to call it George's Star, after his patron King George III, but then the name Uranus was settled on 70 years later.So what's funnier, a planet named Uranus or a planet named George? Let us know in the comments.Last interview with HitchensRichard Dawkins has shared with us the never-before heard recording of Christopher Hitchens' last interview.Christopher Hitchens, known as Hitch by his fans, was one of the founding thinkers of the New Atheist movement, along with Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and Daniel Dennett.Perhaps most famous for his book “God is Not Great”, Hitchens was also known for his wit and sharp intellect. Unfortunately he passed away just over 10 years ago after a long fight with cancer.His friend and colleague, Richard Dawkins, explains that he thought the recording had been lost, and was deeply moved as he listened to it.We totally understand what he means. Listening to Hitchens talk in this completely unabridged and raw recording, taken just two months before his death, is quite eerie.In the hour-long interview, Dawkins and Hitchens talk about a huge range of issues. They tackle the common myth that Stalin and the Nazis were atheists, the debate Hitchens had with Tony Blair, feminism, abortion and Mother Theresa. Give it a listen!---That's all for this week! I hope you learned something cool! Make sure you sign up to our newsletter for specials on our upcoming shows and Think Inc. Academy courses- Just head to the link in our bio. Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week: Brian Greene on why we're religious, physicists discover what's inside the Great Pyramid of Giza, switching on the Large Hadron Collider, Elon Musk buys Twitter, and what is the future of atheism?BRIAN GREENE LIVESTREAMWhy did our ancient relatives create art and ritual if it didn't help them find food?If you know anything about evolution, you'll know that ancient humans didn't like to waste much time or energy on things that weren't necessary for survival - things like hunting or building shelters. So why did they create beautiful trinkets or elaborate rituals?This is a question Darwin himself considered, and it's the topic of a whole chapter in Brian Greene's latest book Until the End of Time. Brian explains that the common belief that religion gave our ancestors might have helped them work and fight together.He also talks about the terror management theory of religion. It's the theory that religion offering people an afterlife helped our ancestors not be frozen in fear, thinking about their death 24/7.Brian talks about religion and other fascinating topics, including his theories on consciousness and his predictions for the next big steps in cosmology, in his recent talk with Progressive Forum - it's definitely worth a look!And, there's nothing like seeing events in-person, so come and see, or even MEET, Brian when we tour him across Australia and New Zealand this June! Tickets are at the link in our bio.PYRAMID PARTICLESEver wondered what's inside the Great Pyramid of Giza? Well soon we'll know, all thanks to subatomic particles called muons.Muons are the awkward cousins of electrons. Their mass is about 207 times as large as an electron's, making them able to pass through hundreds of metres of rock.Picture an electron like a bullet, and a muon like a cannonball. The cannonball can smash through walls while bullets get stuck. Other technologies, such as ultrasound, ground-penetrating radar and X-rays, can only penetrate a short distance from the surface, but muons can go further.It was thanks to muons that in 2017 scientists discovered a surprising hidden chamber inside the Great Pyramid. Now, as part of international project ScanPyramids, the detectors are back to scan the Great Pyramid from another angle. The team also plan on scanning other ruins such as the Mayan Chichen Itza in Mexico, and they've already started mapping out the inner workings of Mount Vesuvius using muography.We can't wait to see what they find!HADRON COLLIDERAfter a 3 year nap, the Large Hadron Collider was switched on last week to help explain why the universe exists.During its well-earned break, the LHC got pampered with some maintenance and upgrades, to prepare it for its third and most powerful experimental period. If all goes to plan, scientists at CERN will begin experiments in June.Run 3 is all about the elusive neutrino. Neutrinos are among the most abundant particles in the universe. They're the size of an electron, but have no charge, hence the name “neutrino”.The question is, what are the properties of neutrinos? We still know pretty much nothing about them. If CERN manages to solve the neutrino conundrum, then it will be a landmark moment and could help refine the Standard Model.The Standard Model helps explain the forces in the universe and how different fundamental particles fit together to generate the cosmos we call home. Neutrinos are also critical to understanding nuclear physics, from the fusion reactions that power stars, to the fission reactions that occur in nuclear energy reactors.Let's hope they solve the conundrum!MUSK BUYS TWITTERWill Elon Musk be a free speech champion or new tech overlord? That's what everyone's wondering now that he's the owner of Twitter.Musk has been critical of Twitter's moderation of speech, and within a day of his takeover, some high-profile banned users have been allowed back on the site. As for Donald Trump, Alex Jones, Milo Yiannopoulos, and even Azealia Banks and Tila Tequila (yes- they're banned as well!), it's not clear whether they'll get their accounts back.Elon has said that he hopes that even his worst critics remain on Twitter, because that is what free speech is about. But despite his wishes, many people are already announcing they're leaving Twitter.With Elon at the helm, Twitter users could also expect an edit button, and an open source algorithm, meaning they'd be able to view the code that curates what they see. Musk has also said that users should be able to see if their post has been promoted or demoted.So, do you think Elon will have a positive or negative influence ? Let us know in the comments!NEW LANDSCAPE ATHEISMWho was the first atheist?If you listen to the British philosopher Julian Baggini in his recent talk “Atheism Revisited”, the first open and proud atheist was actually a Catholic priest.His name was Jean Meslier, and while working as a priest in 18th century France, he came to see that the church was not helping the poor as they said they were, but were actually lining their pockets.After that, there was David Hume, a Scottish Enlightenment philosopher who is the hero of many atheists today.But long after that came the New Atheist movement, fronted by some of the thinkers we've toured here at Think Inc.: Sam Harris and Richard Dawkins.These thinkers popularised atheism, but did they go too far? According to Baggini, author of ”Atheism: A Very Short Introduction”, perhaps they were a bit too militant, and isolated people from the cause instead of creating a “coalition of the reasonable”, which could also include reasonable religious believers.Have a listen to his talk, and make up your mind for yourself. And if you want to learn more about different schools of philosophical ethics, come along to our course starting next week. Tickets are at the link in our bio.---That's all for this week. Don't forget we've got two Think Inc. Academy courses starting next week, and tickets to our upcoming Brian Greene tour can be found at the link in our bio.Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week: Yuval Noah Harari speaks with Andrew Yang, Jonathan Haidt on why the last ten years have been uniquely stupid, why coastal cities are sinking, how a working-class Aussie miner got invited to NASA, and how to spot the alignment of four planets this month.YUVAL HARARI & ANDREW YANGYuval Noah Harari, the historian and author of the best-selling book “Sapiens”, has talked to US presidential candidate Andrew Yang in a fascinating conversation about AI, public policy and the future of work.Andrew is known for campaigning for universal basic income- a very controversial idea, especially in the United States. He's also very concerned about job automation, and what happens to people who lose their careers due to technological advancements.His insights go hand in hand with Yuval, who has written extensively on what happens when we face massive technological changes, such as the Industrial Revolution, or the now with the AI Revolution.They discuss how job automation and idless can lead to people heading down rabbit holes of political and religious extremism, and how the war in Ukraine may be our biggest motivation to move away from fossil fuels.Yep- they cover some very important topics, and we definitely recommend you give it a watch and let us know your thoughts in the comments section.And if you're interested in the ethical implications of AI and automation- don't miss our Philosophical Ethics course starting next month. Sign up at the link in our bio.JON HAIDTEveryone's talking about Jonathan Haidt's latest essay “Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid”, published last week in The Atlantic.It's been called the best explanation of how social media is making us unfit for democracy. And in it, Jon uses the metaphor of the tower of Babel.If you went to a religious school, maybe you know the story- but if you don't, the cliff notes version is that after the Great Flood, a group of people speaking one shared language built a tower tall enough to reach heaven.This made God angry, and he thinks that these people have gotten too big for their boots, and are going to get more and more cocky. So he confuses their language so they can't understand each other, therefore stopping their ability to work together.According to Jon Haidt, a social psychologist, this is what social media is doing to us.We hoped social media would help us work together, but instead it is fracturing the way we communicate, and it's having terrible effects on our society.And if you haven't yet, grab yourself a SIGNED copy of Jon's must-read book, “The Righteous Mind” from our shop. We only have one copy left! Head to the link in our bio.SINKING CITIESHave you got that sinking feeling?Well if you live in a coastal city, that's literally what's happening to you.Earth scientists recently published a paper showing that coastal cities around the globe are sinking by up to 5 centimetres a year! They studied the satellite imagery of 99 cities on 6 continents to find that the sinkiest cities are mostly in Asia- such as Tianjin, Karachi and Manila.While rising sea levels due to climate change play a major role in the sinking, scientists believe that most of it is caused by humans.When the researchers looked at Google Earth imagery of the sinking regions, the team saw mostly residential or commercial areas, leading them to believe that groundwater pumping is the main culprit.But there's hope! Back in the day, Shanghai and Jakarta were sinking more than 10 centimetres per year, on average. Then their governments better regulated groundwater extraction, and the sinking has slowed right down.AMATEUR ASTRONOMERThis miner from outback Australia went from being a school dropout to a prized astronomer!His name is Trevor Barry, and he's the recent recipient of the Astronomical Society of Australia award. He's known in the space world for his contributions to astronomy, all done from his backyard in the isolated town of Broken Hill.Trevor left high school to take up an apprenticeship at one of the local mines, but he always wondered why the night sky looked the way it did. His obsession with astronomy reached its peak when he designed and built his own observatory and telescopes!In 2008 he found a white spot on his favourite planet, Saturn, which ended up being an electrical storm. NASA and the Cassini team have used Trevor's data, and three years ago Trevor got to travel to NASA's headquarters to meet the leader of the Cassini imaging team, Carolyn Porco.We love Trevor's story- it teaches us that there are so many alternative pathways to achieve success, and that all you need is passion!If you're an amateur astronomer, come study cosmology at Think Inc Academy with Professor Alan Duffy. Sign up at the link in our bio.APRIL SKIESSky gazers- this is your month!April is perhaps the best month for peeping our planets. Yep- April skies are so clear there's even a song written about them.Beginning around Sunday morning, you'll be able to see something pretty rare- Mars, Venus, Jupiter AND Saturn in one straight line.To see this awesome planetary foursome, those of us in the Southern Hemisphere should head out about an hour before sunrise and look to the southeast, where the sun is about to rise.There you'll be able to see with your naked eyes all four planets in a neat line.While this makes sky gazing far easier, the line is just an optical illusion. The planets aren't actually lined up, and from any other vantage point in space you'd be able to see that they're far apart.If you're someone who's always gazing up into space thinking about the meaning of it all- come along to see theoretical physicist Brian Greene LIVE in conversation this June. You'll have the chance to pick Brian's brain about life's biggest questions. Tickets are at the link in our bio.---That's all for this week- we hope you learned something new! Don't forget to subscribe to our mailing list for specials on our upcoming Brian Greene tour, and on our Think Inc. Academy courses starting next month. Until then, keep well!Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week: Space X sends some rich dudes into space, scientists make old skin young again, why a crypto billionaire drives a Corolla, how Richard Dawkins helped a jihadi become an atheist, and Darwin's stolen notebooks are returned!SPACEXSpaceX has sent 4 rich businessmen to the ISS!And, when I say, rich, I don't mean your great uncle who has a boat and flies premium economy - I'm talking Scrooge McDuck rich.While it's not clear exactly how much they paid, Axiom Space, the private startup that's coordinating these flights, have previously said that tickets are about 55 MILLION US DOLLARS.The crew of four blasted off in the Crew Dragon Capsule on Saturday, and were welcomed onto the ISS the next day, where they will stay for eight days conducting science experiments, breaking bread with the professional astronauts already there, and enjoying the incredible views of our Earth.The crew is headed by a former NASA astronaut and current AXIOM employee, a real estate tycoon, a shipping CEO and former fighter-pilot slash businessman.This is no doubt just the start of a burgeoning space tourism industry, that maybe one day, our great, great, great grandkids will be able to enjoy once it becomes affordable for us plebs.YOUNG SKINHave you enjoyed enough beers and ciggies in the sun that your skin's looking like beef jerky?Don't worry about putting in the hard work to change your lifestyle - that's old fashioned. Just get your skin rejuvenated with delicious, nutritious stem cells!Scientists at the Babraham Institute in Cambridge recently collected skin cell samples from three human donors that had an average age of around 50, then exposed the cells to Yamanaka factors for just 13 days to partially anti-age the cells. They then removed the Yamanaka factors and left the cells to grow.⁠The team found that the epigenetic clock of the cells matched the profiles of skin cells that belonged to people who were 30 years younger!So, what are these magical Yamanaka factors? They're the four specialist molecules that reverse cell development, and were discovered in 2007 by Shinya Yamanaka at Kyoto University.Do you love genetics? Check out our two most popular books on genetics at the Think Inc. shop: ‘Hacking Darwin' by Jamie Metzl and ‘Lifespan' by David Sinclair. Both are available at the link in our bio.CRYPTO PHILANTHROPISTWhat would you do if you were a young billionaire? You'd treat yourself to some nice wheels, a fancy mansion, maybe start a YouTube channel showing off your lifestyle…Not 30-year-old Sam Bankman-Fried. His net worth is estimated at around $20 billion which he generated over just a few years as CEO of crypto exchange FTX, but he still drives a Corolla!Why? He says you very quickly run out of exciting ways to spend your money!But he's found a way to make use of his fat stacks- all thanks to our mate Peter Singer. Sam, like countless others, read Peter Singer's philosophy as a teenager and was forever changed by it.First he became passionate about reducing animal suffering, and then he got into effective altruism, which is all about reducing human suffering. Since then he's been giving at least half of his salary to effective causes, which is very inspiring.If you want to be inspired by Peter's work, grab a copy of one of his most influential books on effective altruism, ‘The Most Good You Can Do', from our shop.And if you're into philosophical ethics, check out our Think Inc. Academy course starting next month! More info at the link in our bio.ISIS TO ATHEISM From jihadi to atheist- this is the story of Musa Cerantonio.Musa, now going by his birth name of Robert, grew up in Melbourne to Italian parents. He had a pretty average upbringing, but went on to become one of Australia's most notorious jihadis, inspiring young people to join ISIS through his activism and preaching.In 2016, Robert was sent to Port Phillip prison where he's been ever since- until he's released next year.While some inmates become more radical or violent in jail- he's the opposite, and that's thanks to two special and surprising figures: Richard Dawkins and Alexander the Great.While in jail, Robert read ‘The God Delusion', and like many of us, it made him a full blown atheist. As for Alexander the Great- well, that story is a bit more complicated. You'll have to read about it in Graeme Wood's recent article in The Atlantic- it's absolutely fascinating.Once you've finished reading that- grab yourself a signed copy of Dawkins' ‘Science in the Soul' at our shop, and we'll send it off to you, even if you're in jail! We don't judge here.DARWINIAN EASTER MYSTERYIt's Good Friday tomorrow, but librarians had a fantastic Wednesday last month when they were finally returned two missing notebooks belonging to the late Charles Darwin.In 2000 some asshole stole Darwin's notebooks from the Special Collections vault at Cambridge University library. One of the books contained Darwin's famous “tree of life” sketch which shows his earliest theory on the origin of species.For many years the librarians thought the books had simply been misplaced. But in 2020 they completed an in-depth search, including fingertip examinations, which led them to believe the books had most likely been stolen.After pleading to the public for info, just last month the books were returned wrapped in a pink gift bag and with a plain brown envelope with the message:Librarian, Happy Easter, signed XIs this just one massive troll? Is it an angry Christian trolling an Atheist icon? We don't know, but we will be watching this Darwinian Easter Mystery very closely as the police continue their investigations.---That's all for this week. Hopefully we'll catch you at our Brian Greene tour which kicks off in June, or at one of our upcoming Think Inc. Academy courses that start back up next month!Find more information at the link in our bio. See you next time!Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week: Elon takes over Twitter, magnetic slime that moves through the body, giant arctic sea sponges, animal sentience consensus and Russia hands over the ISS to NASA.Elon takes over Twitter?Elon Musk has bought a whopping $3 billion in Twitter shares, making him Twitter's largest shareholder. His share is now 9.2%, even more than the former CEO Jack Dorsey.He's also been appointed to the board, with the current CEO Parag Agrawal saying “he's both a passionate believer and intense critic of the service which is exactly what we need on Twitter, and in the boardroom, to make us stronger in the long term”.Elon has been highly critical of Twitter due to what he sees as a lack of free speech. He hasn't given us examples of how Twitter limits free speech, although we can assume he's referring to cases such as when Trump was permanently banned from the site while he was president.On the other hand, Elon's critics say that he is an example of how Twitter does allow freedom of speech, as he's made a number of controversial tweets, one that even led to him being sued (unsuccessfully) for defamation.So, do you think Elon will change Twitter for better or for worse? Let us know in the comments.Magnetic slimeIs your pet, or baby, for that matter, constantly swallowing stuff they shouldn't? Well, this might be the solution!Scientists at the Chinese University of Hong Kong have used magnetic SLIME to create a slimy robot that can navigate narrow passages to clear objects and fix broken circuits.The scientists used neodymium magnet particles with borax, a common household detergent, and polyvinyl alcohol, a kind of resin, to form a slime that can be controlled by an external magnetic field.They then added a silicon compound that coats the magnetic particles to make them non-toxic for use in the human body.⁠⁠The team tested the robot in different scenarios, for example, they saw if it could retrieve a lost battery in a model stomach, and it seemed to do it quite well!The slime can also “heal itself”, or come back together when it's cut into bits.Now the team just needs to make sure that the toxic magnetic particles don't escape through the silicon, and then maybe next time you swallow something stupid you'll be saved by one of these little guys!⁠Giant spongesThis is the Langseth Ridge, an underwater mountain range not far from the north pole. It used to have volcanic activity, but now it sits beneath a permanent sheet of ice. It has no food, no nutrients, and very little light.It doesn't sound like a nice place to live, does it? Well, not if you're a tube worm. See, thousands of years ago when the area had volcanic activity, sulphur was being released all the time, providing food for the tube worms. But when the volcanic activity stopped, the worms ran out of food, died, and became fossils.Now scientists have discovered that another species is thriving there. They were surprised to find that this barren seafloor is like a paradise of massive sea sponge gardens.The sponges are about 300 years old, grow up to 1 metre long, and feed on fossilised tube worms- YUM!While the scientists are thrilled about their discovery, they're concerned that with sea-ice rap­idly de­clin­ing and the ocean en­vir­on­ment chan­ging, these strange sea sponges may be impacted badly.Animal sentienceDo babies feel pain? That question sounds stupid, but actually, up until the 1980s, some doctors believed that babies didn't feel pain, and performed surgery on them with little to no anasthesia.Now, we can all accept that babies DO feel pain, and that they should be protected from it, but the next milestone is animals. Most of us accept that vertebrates like dogs and cats feel pain and shouldn't be made to endure it, but what about invertebrates like octopuses and bugs?While it's taken science and culture a while to come around to it, a recent issue of Science magazine says that a consensus is starting to form.Yes, invertebrates feel emotions- not just pain. A 2016 study found that rats experience joy and something similar to laughter when they're tickled, and a study from last year found that octopuses not only experience pain, they remember the pain, and change their behaviour even long after the pain has stopped.So, just like how we came to accept that babies feel pain and should be legally protected, now that we're getting to a scientific consensus that invertebrates feel pain, the laws on animal protection should be updated, don't you agree? Let us know.Russia hands over ISS to NASALast week Russia handed over control of the ISS to NASA while the world watched on nervously.With so much tension between Russia and the rest of the world, people were watching the ISS change of command ceremony with knots in their stomach- but thankfully, everything went smoothly.Russian cosmonaut Anton Shkaplerov said “people have problems on Earth, but in orbit we are one crew… I think the ISS is like a symbol of friendship, cooperation, and the future of space exploration”.Eyebrows were raised when the replacement Russian team arrived in yellow and blue suits, the colour as the Ukrainian flag. But Roscosmos, the Russian Space Agency, quickly dismissed it as a coincidence.Since the change of command, the head of Roscosmos threatened to leave the ISS for good unless western nations lift sanctions on Russia. Maybe he should take a leaf from Anton's book and see that cooperation and peace is the only way to move forward.-----That's all for this week. A massive thank you to everyone who came along to our Peter Singer tour, it was a blast seeing you there. Hopefully I'll catch you at our Brian Greene tour which kicks off in June, or at some of our Think Inc. academy courses starting back next month. Find more information at the link in our bio. Until next week- peace out!Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week: micro plastics found in human blood, success with the male contraceptive pill, a new timeline of our universe's history, and how stoicism could have helped Will Smith!MICRO-PLASTICS IN BLOODMicroplastics have been found on the summit of Mount Everest, in the deepest corners of the ocean, and now, close to home in HUMAN BLOOD!Sorry to break it to you, but you probably have some micro plastics floating around your body right now. A recent study conducted in Amsterdam analysed the blood from 22 healthy donors and found micro plastics in 17 of them!Half of them contained PET plastic, commonly used in drink bottles, while a third contained polystyrene. A quarter of the blood samples contained polyethylene, which is used to make plastic bags.Once the plastic gets into our body, through eating, drinking or breathing, it can actually lodge in our organs and cause considerable harm.Easy steps to avoid this include not heating up food in plastic containers, using a water filter, cutting out disposable takeaway cups, and limiting seafood consumption. You'd be helping the environment too, so it's a no brainer!MALE CONTRACEPTIVE PILLWatch out wannabe baby daddies!A male contraceptive pill was recently shown to be 99% effective in preventing pregnancy... In mice.If you've ever had pet mice, you'll know that those guys love to fuck, so this is quite a feat.Unlike the female contraceptive pill that messes with hormones, often resulting in side effects such as depression and weight gain, this new pill for men targets retinoid acid protein receptors.Retinoic acid, a type of vitamin A, is needed to create sperm. So the scientists were able to tinker with this protein to result in lower sperm counts with no observable side effects.Once the male mice were taken off the drug, they could get back to baby making within 4 to 6 weeks.Human trials are set to begin at the end of the year, but the question is, would women trust men to be diligent enough to take it everyday?It's a big responsibility to be placed in a man's…. Hands? Mouth?[funny]UPDATING OUR UNIVERSE'S TIMELINEWe now have more accurate birthdays for many of the stars in our Milky Way!Astronomers studied almost 250,000 subgiants- those are stars that are growing larger and cooler after using up the hydrogen fuel at their centres.And a bit like how you can tell how old someone is judging by whether they know who this guy is [PAUSE] you can tell how old these stars are by testing their temperature and brightness.They discovered that the Milky Way's thick, girthy disk got its start about 13 billion years ago, and kept forming stars until about 8 billion years ago when it ran out of gas.They hope that the James Webb telescope might be able to spot similar disks in galaxies 13 billion light-years away, which may be baby pics of our Milky Way.If you're a space nerd, come and chat with Professor Brian Greene, a physicist who has written many books on the fascinating history of our universe.We'll be touring him this June at shows across Australia and New Zealand, and at our Virtual Event- tickets are at the link in our bio.SECULAR NATIONS ARE THE HAPPIESTWhat happens when a nation loses its faith? Some people will tell you that the country will become a disaster, but the latest World Happiness Report shows otherwise.For the fifth year in a row, Finland tops out as the happiest country, followed by Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Sweden, Norway, Israel, and New Zealand.Dammit New Zealand! You may have a higher happiness rate, but WE have a higher crime rate, so, yeah. Take that.What do these countries have in common? Apart from all being fucking cold, except for Israel, they are all very secular… yet again, except Israel.So, are secular countries happier because of the lack of religion? Or is is that as a country progresses, it becomes less religious? Let us know what you think in the comments.WILL SMITH NEEDS STOICISMHas anyone checked on Will Smith?By now you've probably seen that wild footage from the Oscars of Will Smith clocking Chris Rock in the face.Maybe if you're the ultimate philosopher, living in Plato's cave, or Diogenes' barrel, you haven't seen the footage, but then again, you probably wouldn't be watching this video either.The incident got us thinking- our man Will could use a healthy dose of stoicism.What is stoicism? It's the practical philosophy that teaches us to not act on every impulse we have, as it usually causes more suffering.Our Think Inc. Academy course ‘How to be a Stoic' starts on the 3rd of May, and in it you'll learn techniques to help you control your negative emotions with grace and rationality, unlike the Fresh Prince.Stoicism is a great secular philosophy that can be used to improve both your personal and work life.Serious about becoming Stoic? Sign up at the link in our bio.-----That's all, guys! Thank you to everyone who's come along to our Sydney and Brisbane shows with Peter Singer. They've been an absolute blast!We're looking forward to our online Salon tomorrow, and our Melbourne and Virtual Events on Sunday. A few tickets are still available for them, so snag them at the link in our bio.Until then, take care, guys!Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week: the first photos from the James Webb space telescope, Mercury's diamond-rich surface, Brian Greene speaks with Biden's science advisor, Peter Singer speaks with Osher Gunsberg, and Russia creates its own Instagram.FIRST JWST PHOTOSIs this the best selfie ever?Yeah, I bet you take some great selfies, but they can't get better than this. This is a selfie of the James Webb space telescope's 18 mirrors, which are all collecting light from the same star at the same time.What star were they looking at? This beauty. And while it's a pretty run-of-the-mill star (Sorry mate), it's the centre stage for this first image taken by the telescope.See all the little dots around the star? That's not space dust on the lens, they're actually little galaxies.If this is just the start, we can't wait to see what other amazing photos this monumental telescope is going to take. I wonder… will it capture images of other lifeforms? Only time will tell!MERCURY'S DIAMONDSDo you love diamonds? Let's be real, who doesn't.The only thing that could make diamonds better would be GALACTIC DIAMONDS!Yes, scientists believe that Mercury may be encrusted with diamonds after billions of years of meteorite impacts. Planetary scientist Kevin Cannon has made computer simulations which predict that around one-third of the planet's crust is rich with a diamond stockpile far larger than Earth's. How'd they come to be? Well, as the saying goes,“A diamond is a chunk of coal that did well under pressure”, and there's no pressure quite like a meteor impact.Elon, if you're listening to this, don't rush out and start diamond mining on Mercury quite yet, because these are just predictions. The truth as to whether Mercury is like a DISCO BALL will be unveiled in 2025 when the BepiColombo mission reaches Mercury.Until then, this might just be wishful thinking.BRIAN GREENE & FRANCIS COLLINSCan you be scientist AND a devout Christian?This was one questions that came up in a fascinating new conversation between the new science advisor to President Biden, Francis Collins, and our favourite physicist, Brian Greene.The conversation is an insight into how Collins came to be one of the most influential scientists alive today, and how he went from being an atheist to a Christian, when it usually happens the other way round!Brian, on the other hand, is a pretty outspoken atheist, maybe not Dawko level, but definitely a known atheist. Atheists sometimes get a bad rap as being militant, but in this conversation you can see how it's possible to have an open discussion about creationism, without anyone getting offended. YES- IT IS POSSIBLE! This open discussion and respect for science is something we're all about at Think Inc.If you're the same, come join our fam. Don't miss your opportunity to come and see Brian Greene speak live in June this year. While it's going to be a pretty nerdy affair, Brian also loves discussing philosophy, art and culture- so there's going to be something for everyone. Tickets are at the link in our bio.PETER SINGER PODCASTSWho's the most influential philosopher alive today?Many people will tell you it's Peter Singer, a philosopher at Princeton who hails from Melbourne. Why's he so influential? Well before his 1975 book Animal Liberation, animal welfare wasn't really a “thing”. People saw animals like pieces of meat who didn't deserve any protection or help. Now, thankfully, there are laws in place that mean people can't torture or mistreat animals without risking jail. Also, his book put plant based diets on the map. Before Peter, plant based diets were reserved for rabbits only!Apart from animal rights, Peter has been extremely influential in the effective altruism movement, which is all about creating a better world by giving some of your disposable income to people who really need it.If you're interested in Peter's work, check out two new podcasts that that he recorded recently: one with Osher Gunsberg and one with Sarah Wilson. They're the perfect accompaniment to your afternoon stroll or morning commute.And of course, there's nothing like seeing someone talk in person. So come along to one of our shows in Sydney, Brisbane or Melbourne or at our virtual event next week! Tickets are at the link in our bio.RUSSIAN INSTAGRAMNow is not a great time to be an influencer in Russia.Instagram is the most popular social media app for young Russians, but on Monday people found themselves unable to use the app, leaving some influencers to search for other sources of income.To be clear, it wasn't Meta who blocked the app from being used in Russia. It was actually a Russian court, who banned it for “extremist activites” after Meta ignored government requests to remove what Russia argues is “fake news” about its invasion of Ukraine.While Instagram and Facebook have been blocked, WhatsApp, which is also owned by Meta, is still allowed to operate.Russian tech entrepreneurs are set to launch their own copy of Instagram. It will be called Rossgram, and is set to be launched on March 28. Let's wait and see how it catches on.-----That's all for this week! I will see you THIS SUNDAY at the Peter Singer show in Sydney, then in Brisbane on Tuesday, and Melbourne on the 3rd. Grab your last minute tickets at the link in our bio. Until then, peace out!Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

This week: a limit to CRISPR's abilities, nanobots purify our water, a xenotransplant death, Assange ties the knot, and Douglas Murray's new book.ASSANGE NEWSIs that sound whistle blowing or wedding bells!?The well known whistle blower Julian Assange is getting married! While we're happy for Julian and his fiance Stella, I'm sure this isn't the wedding they were hoping for.Just a few days ago Julian's appeal against his extradition to the US was denied by the Supreme Court in London. As a result, the couple and parents of two young boys will be getting married in Belmarsh Maximum Security Prison, where Julian has been trapped for 3 years.The wedding is planned for the 23rd of March, and a quarter of the wedding party will be prison guards. Before saying ‘I do', Stella will be searched multiple times and will have to pass through security scanners and possibly sniffer dogs… but the brightside is that all this will be done wearing a beautiful wedding dress and an unmistakable corset designed by the longtime supporter of Assange, Vivienne Westwood, who has also designed a tartan kilt for Julian in honour of his Scottish roots.Julian is a friend of Think Inc. and we wish him and Stella a very happy marriage despite these terrible circumstances.DOUGLAS MURRAY NEWS/NEW BOOKIs there a war being waged on Western values?Douglas Murray thinks there is, so he decided to write a new book on it! The War on the West: How to Prevail in the Age of Unreason will be released in the coming weeks, and will tackle what Douglas sees as an intentional attack on reason, democracy, science, progress, and other values that he argues are the backbone of Western civilisation.The new book will build on from his fascinating and timely books The Madness of Crowds, and The Strange Death of Europe, which we have signed copies of in our Think Inc. shop- check out the link to it in our bio. And now's the time to buy it, as Afterpay Day starts TODAY and you'll get 20 per cent off!If you're into Douglas' work and you're concerned about how polarised and tribal our society has become, or how we've lost our ability to think critically in an age of misinformation, then our Think Inc. Academy courses are for you. Both our critical thinking and politics and religion courses are taught by University professors, sign up at the link in our bio!EXTINCT RAT CRISPYTwo words: Christmas Island.What's the first thing that comes to mind? For Australians, it's probably this: human rights abuses!For other people… maybe you think of this?Long before detention centres and old men in red suits, there was the Christmas Island rat. Also known as Maclear's rat or rattus nativitatis, it was one of the two native rats of Christmas Island. It was last spotted in 1903, and evolutionary biologists have tried to bring it back from extinction using CRISPR technology. They wanted to test whether this was possible without having its full genome, as they only had about 95% from old dried specimens and related species.Unfortunately, they didn't succeed at making a similar copy of the extinct rat. But it hasn't stopped them from wanting to try more ambitious experiments, like editing the genome of an Asian elephant to make it resemble a woolly mammoth.Are you interested in evolutionary biology? Sign up for the waitlist to our upcoming Evolutionary Biology course with Dr Rob Brooks at the link in our bio.NANOBOTS FILTER WATERWhat's in your water?Even if you filter your drinking water, depending on where you live in the world there are still a huge number of toxins and pollutants that make their way into our glasses or into our food via pesticides.A nasty one is atrazine, which can lead to cancer and low sperm counts. That's why chemical engineers are always looking for new ways to make our water healthier, and they recently had a breakthrough: NANOBOTS!These nanobots are propelled and brought back using a magnetic field. They are also thermoresponsive, which makes the pick-up and release of pollutants easily controlled by the temperature of the bot's environment.In a recent paper, scientists reported that the nanobots were able to collect over 70 percent of the water pollutants in a matter of hours.Based on this success, they hope that these tiny bots could play an important role in reversing environmental damage to our beautiful waterways.XENOTRANSPLANT DEATHThe first man to receive a pig heart transplant has died just two weeks after the surgery.We reported on this exciting scientific milestone some episodes ago, and were very happy that the patient David Bennett, who suffered from terminal heart disease, was feeling well after the surgery.But things soon took a turn for the worst and David's health started declining again. Despite this terrible outcome, his son is thankful that doctors tried this experimental surgery as a last-resort.He said: "We are grateful for every innovative moment, every crazy dream, every sleepless night that went into this historic effort… We hope this story can be the beginning of hope and not the end."-----That's all for this week! I hope you enjoyed it, and if you're a curious mind perhaps you'd like to volunteer at our Peter Singer shows at the end of the month! Sign up at the link in our bio, or grab a ticket if you haven't already! I can't wait to see you all there. Until next week, peace out!Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Poo transplants, an astronomer makes a huge mistake, Brian Greene says he wants to chat with aliens, effective altruism for dummies, and is Putin the new Hitler?POO TRANSPLANTSPoo transplants. That's all.Yes, they sound gross, but if you've got a peanut allergy, maybe you'll want to try one. Recently a small study was done on adults with severe peanut allergies. By giving them “crapsules” filled with poop from other people, the allergy sufferers were able to better tolerate those pesky nuts by the end of the trial. To celebrate, the participants were given Reeses Pieces. Nah.. I made that part up.And if you didn't think that was good enough, faecal transplants may even help with bipolar disorder and depression! Other recent studies have found that patients given crapsules from happier donors resulted in many of their symptoms going away.Why? Well scientists aren't 100% sure, but the link between our brain and our gut microbiome is only getting stronger.Only time will tell whether poo transplants are the real deal, or just a load of crap.BLACK HOLEIn 2020 Thomas Rivinus and his team were over the moon (excuse the pun) when they discovered a black hole just 1,000 light-years from Earth - pretty much in our cosmic backyard.The discovery caused headlines, because previously the closest blackhole was over 3,000 light-years away.But soon astronomers were doing what science does so well - criticising the findings and seeing if there were other plausible explanations.A team from Belgium started picking holes in Thomas' theory, and found out that he wasn't using the best telescope for the job. After the initial awkwardness and sleepless nights that Thomas had, thinking his discovery might be proven incorrect in front of the whole world, Thomas and the Belgian team decided to work together to get to the truth.And guess what, Thomas and his Chilean team were WRONG - it wasn't a blackhole! It was light caused by one star slowly consuming a star next to it as a sort of star snack!This story shows something so remarkable about science - there's no room for confirmation bias. If a theory is incorrect, there's no way to hide it, and scientists can't take that personally.If only the whole world worked like that, we wouldn't have so many problems. Do you agree? Let us know in the comments.UKRAINEIs Putin the new Hitler?Peter Singer is best known for his groundbreaking work in the animal welfare and effective altruism movements. But Peter is a moral philosopher who'ss written on a huge number of political and philosphical topics, and the ethics of war and genocide is something close to home, as he's the son of Austrian Jewish refugees who escaped Nazi Europe.That's why Peter's recent article on the Ukraine-Russia war is so insightful. In it he compares Putin's actions to those of Hitler when he threatened to invade Czechoslovakia during World War 2 while other European nations watched on and didn't act.Peter applies his utilitarian ethics in arguing that, even though strict sanctions will hurt kind Russians who are against the war, they're the only way to stop Putin.You're invited to come and speak with Peter about ethics at our events in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane over the next month. Buy your tickets at the link in our bio.ALIENSWould things get violent if we met aliens?Brian Greene thinks there's a chance of that, judging by our history, but that doesn't mean he wouldn't like us to meet aliens and compare notes on everything they know about our universe.Brian is ridiculously excited about the James Webb telescope and everything it's going to tell us about the history of our universe, and whether there could be other forms of intelligent life out there.And there's PLENTY of room for it. Scientists now predict there's about one planet per star, so that means there are hundreds of billions of planets in our universe, but does Brian think there's life on them?Eh, he's doubtful, but doesn't rule it out completely. He says it's pretty unlikely that humans are the MOST intelligent beings around, so why wouldn't other beings make themselves known? If other beings are so advanced, surely we'd know about it if they did exist.Or maybe there's different forms of living or consciousness that we can't perceive? He doesn't rule that out.If you're a space nerd, don't miss out on meeting Brian at our tour in June this year. Join us across Australia and New Zealand, or at our Virtual Event if you live overseas or on a different planet! Tickets are at the link in our bio.EFEECTIVE ALTRIUSMWe all have one mate who says “we need to overthrow the government to make change! It's the only way!” ... or maybe I'm hanging out with the wrong people…But suffice to say, everyone thinks bigger is better when it comes to making positive changes. But often people don't have a concrete plan in place of how that change would actually be made. Ok … replace evil capitalism, but with what!? How? When?These are all questions that effective altruists take very seriously. Effective altruism is sometimes criticised for focusing on helping individuals, when bigger governmental changes would be better. But effective altruism is not for dreamers, it's about focusing on issues that can actually be solved, and often small individual changes are way easier than getting the whole government or system to change.Listen to Peter Singer respond to this common criticism of effective altruism, and if you want to know more, come meet Peter at our show at the end of the month - tickets are at the link in our bio.-----That's all for this week, hopefully we will see you at our Peter Singer event at the end of the month! If you haven't bought your tickets yet, you can do so at the link in our bio. Until next time - take care!Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Proof that your life really does flash before your eyes when you die, a strange disease that makes your wee smell like maple syrup; Brian Greene, Eric Weinstein, and Michael Shermer debate a theory of everything, the biggest family tree EVER, and Elon helps Ukraine.FULL SCRIPTLife really does flash before your eyes when you die! Scientists were performing a routine brain scan on a man when he suddenly died, and while it's very unfortunate for him and his family, it's a blessing for neuroscientists! They saw that the 30 seconds before and after the man's heart stopped beating he had some crazy brain activity, very similar to what is seen when someone is dreaming or thinking about a memory. They can't be 100% sure of the findings, because the man had epilepsy and therefore his brain waves aren't the norm. But these findings are in line with studies done on rats, which also have a flashback of their whole rat life before they die: what do they think about? I guess they reminisce about the best cheese they ate, wires they chewed on, the gutters they played in…Is your pee smelling like maple syrup? You probably have maple syrup urine disease! Yes, it's real, but it doesn't sound too bad, does it? This is one of the genetic diseases that our mate, Aussie biologist David Sinclair, was trying to crack when he was a young researcher at the University of New South Wales. Now he's at the Sinclair Lab at Harvard University, cooking up mini brains and making rats age like Benjamin Button. David recently talked to ABC radio about his life long pursuit to slow down ageing, and to show that ageing isn't inevitable but is like scratches on a CD- the scratches can be buffed out! While he and his team are working out the complicated science of senescence, you can do a few simple things, like fasting from food, sleeping better, and giving up the booze and ciggies, and you're already on your way to living to 120. Check out the Think Inc. shop for David's best selling book, Lifespan, and our YouTube channel for the chat we had with David last year!Is it possible to find a theory of everything?! Also known as a final, ultimate or master theory, it is one of the major unsolved problems in theoretical physics. Some argue that string theory and M theory are theories of everything, but not all scientists agree. Even Brian Greene, one of the most acclaimed string theorists, doesn't necessarily believe that string theory can explain everything. This is what he says in a fascinating new conversation he has with fellow physicists Sabine Hossenfelder, and Eric Weinstein, and science writer and OG of the New Atheist movement, Michael Shermer. hese four super brains met over Zoom to discuss this age-old question, and they definitely don't all see eye to eye! Watch the video and see whether you agree with Brian, and if you want to discuss it with him, come to our show in June this year! Brian will be chatting to smart folk across Australia and New Zealand, and if you don't live here, don't worry, you can attend the virtual event or even have a private Zoom call with Brian! Buy your tickets at the link in our bio.What's up, cuz? No, seriously, we're related, geneticists say so! They've just unveiled the largest human family tree EVER created. It weaves together more than 3600 individual genomes that date back more than 100 THOUSAND years, giving us new insights into our shared history. While the findings confirm some facts we already knew about the timing of human migration, there were some surprises. For example, it shows that our neighbours in Papua New Guinea got there about 100 thousand years earlier than we thought! Make sure to send this video to your boyfriend or girlfriend to let them know that you're actually related! And let them know about our incredible Evolutionary Biology course at Think Inc. academy- sign up for the waiting list at the link in our bio.Elon Musk is saving the day! He has provided Ukraine with his powerful Starlink satellite to help them defend their country against Russia's attacks. The Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine asked Musk on Twitter for his help, and within a day Musk and his team at Space X were activating the satellite service with the aims to connect thousands of at-risk Ukrainians. The Vice PM has shown just how powerful Twitter can be at getting a message across very quickly. He's already used Twitter to ask Meta to filter Russian propaganda, which he wants Google and YouTube to do as well. TikTok, on the other hand, is said to be full of pro-Russian propaganda. Has any of it been popping up on your feed? While this conflict is extremely troubling, it's nice to see that some powerful people like Elon, who have the ability to make a huge difference, are actually doing so and not just sitting back and watching the injustice take place.That's all for this week, hopefully we will see you at our Peter Singer event at the end of the month. If you haven't bought your tickets yet, you can do so at the link in our bio!-----Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

The first ever photos of Venus' glowing surface, how lizard tails stay on, the price of sex and diamonds, the Maajid Nawaz controversy, and outlawing animal murder in shelters.FULL SCRIPTLook at the FIRST EVER visible-light photos we have of Venus' surface. Venus is covered by a thick cloud of sulfuric acid, but NASA's Parker Solar Probe managed to pierce through to show a planet SO HOT that it GLOWS, sort of like a red-hot iron. The pattern of bright and dark that you see is basically a temperature map - brighter regions are hotter and darker regions are cooler. The telescope wasn't able to take photos during Venus' day time because it's far too bright, so it took these images at night. Like this video if you're excited about NASA's next two missions, DAVINCI+ and VERITAS, heading to Venus over the next few years.Lizard tails - how do they stay on!? We all know that some lizards drop their tail as a defense mechanism, but if they can come off, how do they stay on? A recent report published in Science explains that lizard tails strike a fine balance between being too loose and too sturdy, and that this balance is maintained by a series of segments. Each segment of the tail contains eight cone-shaped muscles that function like a plug that slips into a corresponding socket. Nanopores help the plugs adhere, but not too tightly. This balance is important because having a drop-tail is a costly defense mechanism that affects a lizard's ability to run, leap, mate and escape future predators. So, it's important that the lizard abandons its limb only when necessary.Diamonds aren't forever, and neither is your love! This is the title of our Evolutionary Biology teacher, Rob Brook's latest article in Quillette. Why are humans so obsessed with big, shiny and expensive diamonds? We use them to show our love, but just like relationships, diamonds can also be damaged and destroyed. In his article, Rob shows the similarities between the exclusivity of diamonds and the exclusivity of sex. If something is deemed a precious or scarce resource, it's more expensive. But according to Rob, the price of sex is going down! As society has become more relaxed about sex, sex becomes less scarce and therefore cheaper and more accessible. If you're interested in evolutionary biology, check out our course taught by Rob at the link in our bio.Maajid Nawaz - how does his name make you feel? Think Inc. and Maajid go way back. We produced his film with Sam Harris, Islam and the Future of Tolerance - which you can find at the link in our bio - and we toured him across Australia in 2016. Maajid is a really smart guy, and while he became known for his discourse on religion, he is now associated with his criticism of vaccine mandates and big government. He recently went on the Joe Rogan Experience, where he talks about his experience of being a young radical islamist and being tortured in an Egyptian jail, amongst other topics. Some report that the podcast was removed from Spotify, apparently due to COVID misinformation. We want to know: did you listen to the podcast, and do you think it's possible to truly appreciate someone for some of their beliefs, whilst disagreeing with their other core ones?No more euthanasia in animal shelters! Euthanasia is something that happens a lot in Australia although shelters don't have to report the exact figures. Just last year there was massive outcry when Bourke Shire council euthanised 15 puppies despite at least 2 rehoming services offering to take them. Partly in response to cases like this, the NSW government recently passed a bill that would prohibit the convenient murder of animals inside shetler. It requires that councils take certain steps towards rehoming a seized or surrendered animal before euthanisation, which is something that the RSPCA and us say is a massive win for animal welfare.Ok, that's all for this week, don't forget that we've got two very interesting courses: Moral Philosophy AND Politics and Religion at Think Inc. Academy- sign up at the link in our bio. Until next time!-----Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Sex in space, banning certain dog breeds, whether plants feel pain, ethical xenotransplants, and the unknown science behind curling.FULL SCRIPTLet's talk about sex in space - scientists say we should start getting busy! It's been more than 20 years since we've done experiments on vertebrate reproduction in space flight. If we're going to be doing 3 year missions to Mars, we need to know how spaceflight can affect reproduction. Radiation, gravity and stress could all have adverse side effects on our baby making, but obviously there are ethical and practical obstacles to doing experiments. For the time being, scientists are testing freeze-dried sperm from mice sent to the ISS- and so far, they're going swimmingly!Should we ban certain dog breeds? Norway just banned the breeding of Cavalier King Charles spaniels and English bulldogs. Cavaliers are susceptible to heart mitral valve disease (MVD) while Brachycephalic dog breeds, pretty much any dog with a squashed face, like bulldogs, are prone to breathing issues. Animal Welfare advocates are hoping the decision will raise awareness of quality of life issues in dog breeding in Australia, but will our government also ban these breeds? We're not sure yet, but if it means that our furry companions suffer less, it has to be a good thing, right? Let us know what you think.Can plants feel pain? This is one of the things most vegetarians or vegans get asked at least once in their life. Well don't worry- Peter Singer recently answered the question for us, and his answer may surprise you. He says that it would be foolish to exclude the possibility that plants have some type of consciousness that we don't yet know about. However, from what we know so far, they do not experience pain like vertebrates do. But Peter reasons that even if plants were as sensitive to pain as animals, it would still be better to eat them than to eat meat, purely based on the food value ratio- that is, that animals are poor converters of energy compared to plants. Come chat to Peter about this at our show by grabbing a meet and greet ticket- the link to tickets is in our bio.Curling - do you love it or hate it? It's pretty controversial, but not just for that reason. It's also controversial because physicists can't agree on the science behind it! Tribology is a branch of physics that explains why an upturned glass can slide across a table- the glass deflects to where there is LESS friction. But curling stones behave in exactly the opposite way- they deflect in the direction of STRONGER friction. Why? Scientists don't know, but they have multiple competing theories. In 2020 each theory was tested against each other, but no clear winner emerged. How bizarre!?Is it ethical to take a life to save a life? The first pig-to-human heart transplant just took place in Maryland and was a huge success, but due to Australia's quarantine laws that say we can't import live pigs, it's not going to happen here anytime soon. See, for xenotransplants to be safe, the animal needs to be bred for this purpose. We already breed animals for other reasons, like for meat, but are xenotransplants a more ethical reason for killing? Most would say YES, but would your answer change if you knew the person needing an organ transplant was an innocent child, or on the other hand, someone who had abused substances which resulted in organ failure? Obviously these questions are not that easy to answer, but by studying moral philosophy, we can better rationalise the decisions we make, and can learn to make better decisions. Sign up to our moral philosophy course at the link in our bio.Ok, that's all for this week, don't forget that we've got two very interesting courses: Moral Philosophy AND Politics and Religion at Think Inc. Academy- sign up at the link in our bio. Until next time!-----Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

The Julian Assange trial, a debate over indigenous mythology in science classrooms, a newly discovered galaxy without dark matter, and more!EDITOR'S NOTE:After three decades in the making, the new James Webb telescope is set to launch... soon.The oft-delayed launch was supposed to take place this coming Wednesday, but late last night an update came in that it would launch no earlier than 24 December. Perhaps we will have an extra surprise present on Christmas Day

Earth's new black box, xenobots that can reproduce themselves, the case for wrongful conception, and much more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-038/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Blood tests for depression, a new ultra hot planet, the tech prodigy Audrey Tang tells us how to combat misinformation, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-037/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

News about Kathryn Paige Harden's recent seminar at Princeton, Rob Brooks talks about sex, dating and AI, and much more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-036/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Why the international space community is angry with Russia, Anil Seth blesses us with a new TED Talk, The Great Resignation, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-035/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Why Yuval Noah Harari is worried we'll become ‘hacked humans', a controversial new IDW University is founded, Chomsky talks about cancel culture, and we discuss gravitational waves, finding the next Earth and some incredible dinosaur eggs found in Argentina.Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-034/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

No more cracked phone screens, Juno news, Haidt, Pinker and Peterson have a cheeky chat, Dawkins doubles down, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-033/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Xenotransplantation progress, a new exoplanet, algae and beer - a match made in heaven; Facebook's metaverse, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-032/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Anil Seth's beast machines, Australia heads to the moon, curing koala chlamydia, the push toward nuclear energy, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-031/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Carcinogens in vape juice, Denmark's massive plant-based research injection, Douglas Murray news, The Weeknd's new role, and more! Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-030/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Incredible brain implants, the hottest Nobel Prize winners, Shatner in space, assassinating Assange, monomania madness, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-029/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Resurrecting the woolly mammoth, ghostly human footprints, finding better politicians, are we allowed to think, and much more! Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-028/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Evolution's major win, Facebook Files, Aussie concentration camps, AI predicting melting ice, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-027/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

mRNA shrinking cancer, HD moon streams, religious exemptions, social media division, The Genetic Lottery, and much more!CORRECTION - Peter is donating half of his prize money to The Life You Can Save, a quarter to animal rights organisations, and the final quarter is up to a public vote that you can take part in (yes, were bad at math haha

Samples from Mars, the future of wind energy, Australia's crumbling online privacy, Metzl and Rudd together at last, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-025/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Fighting fatbergs, new exoplanets, isolationism on the rise, approved by Wolverine, Murdoch vs ABC, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-024/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Culture wars, euphemism treadmills, life's lemons, Elon's robot, a double-decker reef and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-023/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Making COIVD crispy, vexed by the un-vaxxed, Dragons in Queensland, and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-022/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Peter Singer talks mandatory jabs, charming tetraquarks, escaping fundamentalism, NASA wants YOU (not really), and more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-021/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Haidt on teenage loneliness, landmark AI rights, Stoicism and the Olympic mindset, giving up on antivaxxers, and much more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-020/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Apollo 15's anniversary, keeping the COVID blues away with stoicism, cancel culture peaking, a win for renewables, and much more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-019/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Who's to say what's 'offensive', 7-Eleven sliding into surveillance, spotting a player, a dementia breakthrough, more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-018/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Branson in space with Bezos close behind, grow tall by being cold, which country is happiest, and much more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-017/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

The shocking fire in the Gulf of Mexico, mainstream psychedelics, does being rich make you mean, and much more!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-016/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Is scientism bad? Are we too laissez-faire about the risks involved in biotech research? Is Dragon Man a new species? SO MANY QUESTIONS!Read the blog → thinkinc.org.au/think-inc-thursdays-015/Watch the full ep → instagram.com/thinkinc/channel/ Sign up to our newsletter → bit.ly/think-sign-up

Your DNA is not your destiny, and aging doesn’t need to be an eventuality we begrudgingly accept. We can get in front of it, control it; steer the ship towards death rather than be led by the hand.Professor David Sinclair is here to show you that “if we studied aging as a disease in its own right, and really sought to understand its mechanics, we could not only treat it, but beat it. All of us could live to be 150 and die gracefully.”ABOUT THINK INC.Think Inc. is a community of individuals on a mission to expose the true face of modern society. Armed with ideas, we defy the stale conventions of learning by shifting the world’s attention to global ideas, while opening minds. We’re not on the fringe. We are trendsetters with the power to shift perceptions and reshape the face of the mainstream.CONNECT WITH USJoin our mailing list → http://bit.ly/think-sign-upCheck out our store → http://bit.ly/ao-think-storeWebsite: https://thinkinc.org.au/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThinkInc.org.au/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/thinkincAUInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkinc/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/think-inc.-events/

Trump’s bastardised brand of democracy will leave a lasting impact on global politics, so how do we bring the US, and the free world, back from the brink? “You do not beat Trump until you have restored an America that has room for all its people”, says David Frum.The staunch republican, prolific political commentator and speechwriter for President George W. Bush is here to go beyond the trite conflicts of Republicans and Democrats, showing us how everyday people are the key to truly making America great again.ABOUT THINK INC.Think Inc. is a community of individuals on a mission to expose the true face of modern society. Armed with ideas, we defy the stale conventions of learning by shifting the world’s attention to global ideas, while opening minds. We’re not on the fringe. We are trendsetters with the power to shift perceptions and reshape the face of the mainstream.CONNECT WITH USJoin our mailing list → http://bit.ly/think-sign-upCheck out our store → http://bit.ly/ao-think-storeWebsite: https://thinkinc.org.au/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThinkInc.org.au/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/thinkincAUInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkinc/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/think-inc.-events/

Liberals are failing themselves by avoiding any criticism of non-Christian religions. Rather than fighting for fundamental liberal values, they are letting human rights violations pass by in the name of religious freedoms. So how do you move away from virtue signalling “I am not Islamophobic” to being virtuous, evangelising the doctrine of “equal rights for all”? Yasmine Mohammed has a guide for you.ABOUT THINK INC.Think Inc. is a community of individuals on a mission to expose the true face of modern society. Armed with ideas, we defy the stale conventions of learning by shifting the world’s attention to global ideas, while opening minds. We’re not on the fringe. We are trendsetters with the power to shift perceptions and reshape the face of the mainstream.CONNECT WITH USJoin our mailing list → http://bit.ly/think-sign-upCheck out our store → http://bit.ly/ao-think-storeWebsite: https://thinkinc.org.au/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThinkInc.org.au/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/thinkincAUInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkinc/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/think-inc.-events/

Our world is not real. Okay, that might be a bit dramatic, but our experience of it isn’t exactly accurate. That’s because you are constantly tripping out, and your brain is the drug. If a hallucination is the experience of uncontrolled perception, perception is a controlled hallucination, and that control is monopolised by the pink sponge in your head. It’s the translator of sensory signals, the nervous mess expecting things to happen, and the supercomputer which uses all that to predict the future.So if we never experience the world directly, but instead through the lens of our brains, then our experience of existing has little grounding in reality. Our consciousness is a creation of our own imagination…Confused? Scared? Angry for some reason? Don’t worry – Anil Seth is here to clear things up.ABOUT THINK INC.Think Inc. is a community of individuals on a mission to expose the true face of modern society. Armed with ideas, we defy the stale conventions of learning by shifting the world’s attention to global ideas, while opening minds. We’re not on the fringe. We are trendsetters with the power to shift perceptions and reshape the face of the mainstream.CONNECT WITH USJoin our mailing list → http://bit.ly/think-sign-upCheck out our store → http://bit.ly/ao-think-storeWebsite: https://thinkinc.org.au/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThinkInc.org.au/Twitter: https://twitter.com/thinkincAUInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thinkinc/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/think-inc.-events/