Robb G. BestMar 22, 20182 minWhat Copernicus Can Tell Us About Your Company's Staying PowerIn 1543, Polish astronomer and mathematician Copernicus published a then-radical theory, carefully timed just before his death: the Renai...
Robb G. BestDec 7, 20172 minThe Science of "Mini-brains"StartFragment What makes the human brain so, well, human? It’s not purely a matter of size—from studying the cranial cavities of Neandert...
Robb G. BestJul 8, 20173 minWhy Evidence Doesn't MatterGiven that a good reporter is supposed to be both truthful and balanced, how should journalists cover an issue when opposing camps refuse...
Robb G. BestJan 5, 20162 minCreativity Crunching: How Do We Measure Human Ingenuity?Scientists trying to get to the core of creativity encounter a very basic problem at the outset. Unlike, say, size, or time, creativity i...
Robb G. BestOct 27, 20152 minTransposons: The Improvisers Inside Your BrainEven if you from time to time think about your neurons, those little chemical-electrical switches that dictate your mental and physical a...
Robb G. BestAug 5, 20152 minOld science and new horizonsThe human brain is one of the true wonders of the world; after all, it contained the source material for building each of the seven famou...
Robb G. BestMay 13, 20152 minThe Brain as a SupercomputerHave you ever wondered how your brain and your smartphone's operating systems compare? After all, people commonly draw analogies between ...
Robb G. BestApr 24, 20153 minTalking to the Brain: How One Scientist Skipped the Middle Man—and Found Deep Philosophical TruthsImagine waking up in a hospital room, unable to move. You can hear the doctor telling someone that they're not sure what level of brain f...
Robb G. BestMar 13, 20152 minGut Feeling: When You're One Parasite Away From Better HealthThe American Heart Institute estimates that 1 in 6 Americans currently have metabolic syndrome—and it's likely almost none of them know i...
Robb G. BestMar 6, 20152 minWhat Do You and Your Cat Have in Common?What do you and your cat have in common? Well, one possibility is a unicellular organism called Toxoplasma gondii. There are roughly 7 bi...
Robb G. BestFeb 20, 20153 minThe Key of You: The Symphony of Your Biological ClocksWestern medicine prides itself on the ability to diagnose and treat a variety of maladies that a very short time ago were considered fata...
Robb G. BestFeb 13, 20153 minHow Your Brain is Like an Ant ColonyAnts are amazing. They can carry 50 times their body weight. Their total biomass worldwide equals the total biomass of humans. Fungus ant...
Robb G. BestJan 16, 20152 minThe Immortality Atlas: Mapping the Human ConnectomeThe Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci guaranteed his immortality when he literally put his name on the map—at least, if ...
Robb G. BestOct 31, 20142 minProcrastination, the McClellan Problem, and YouGeneral George B. “Little Mac” McClellan was the Union force commander during the Civil War. Beloved by his men, and a stickler for train...
Robb G. BestOct 24, 20143 minThe Strange Case of Phineas Gage, reduxIn January of 2013, I wrote a post on one of neuroscience’s most famous cases. New details make it necessary to retell the story. It’s th...
Robb G. BestNov 23, 20122 minIs Thanksgiving Doomed?How do I know Thanksgiving is over? I simply look out the back window of my home to witness the brilliant array of Christmas lights. To b...
Robb G. BestSep 21, 20124 minAbout FaceI’m writing to you from Shanghai tonight, a city of contradictions where it’s just as likely you’ll find a person on their Macbook Air as...
Robb G. BestSep 9, 20123 minMan vs. MouseMickey Mouse is far more formidable than you might imagine. It’s no secret that Walt Disney has built an entire empire––or kingdom, if yo...
Robb G. BestAug 31, 20123 minWhat Do The Airlines Have in Common with Your DNA?The airlines have an interesting policy. Unofficially, it’s called the 1% Defection Rule, and it goes something like this. Imagine that y...