A new, three-part series, “Searching, Our Quest for Meaning in the Age of Science,” now airing on public television, features MIT physicist and author Alan Lightman, who explores timeless and deep ...

Perhaps because in the popular imagination meaning is mysterious and hard. We picture wise sages cloistered in remote caves meditating on the deepest questions of the universe, or larger than life ...

The specialized meaning of science words can lead to public confusion when the media apply scientific terms out of context. A poignant example recently occurred when the media reported the Antarctic ...

Here at 13.7, one of the things we try to do is to spark discussion and reflection on some perennial questions, be they related to pressing issues such as global warming and the energy crisis or to ...

Last week, I sat for an exam that induced more perspiration than was necessary. My previous exam had been more than a year ago and although the one last week was more of an informal affair (there were ...

Re “Anthropology a Science? Statement Deepens a Rift” (news article, Dec. 10): From my perspective as editor in chief of American Anthropologist, the flagship journal of the American Anthropological ...