Matthew Davis
Big Think
Contact Matthew
Discover and connect with journalists and influencers around the world, save time on email research, monitor the news, and more.
| Recent: |
|
| Past: |
|
Past articles by Matthew:
Millions of bats have died since 2006. Here's why it matters.
White-nose syndrome is decimating bats at a rate that's comparable to what the Black Plague did to humans. Here's why, how, and what we're doing about it. → Read More
5 types of climate change deniers, and how to change their minds
Talk to the right person, in the right way, and you may change a mind that helps reverse climate change. Use the Socratic method, reframe the conversation. Climate change deniers often have entrenched positions and are subject to the backfire effect. But prominent deniers, like Michael Shermer, have changed their minds, proving that it can be done. → Read More
Carl Sagan’s baloney detection kit: Improve your critical thinking
Talk to the right person, in the right way, and you may change a mind that helps reverse climate change. Use the Socratic method, reframe the conversation. Climate change deniers often have entrenched positions and are subject to the backfire effect. But prominent deniers, like Michael Shermer, have changed their minds, proving that it can be done. → Read More
How will we travel to another star?
Proxima Centauri, our closest star, is more than 4 light years away. Reaching it under ten thousand years will be incredibly challenging; reaching it with living humans will be even harder. → Read More
Tholins: The red goo critical to life in the universe
What are tholins? A class of red, gooey chemicals Carl Sagan called "star-tar," may have important properties that help life to emerge, and they're common in our solar system. Played a role in the origins of life. → Read More
How kugelblitz black holes could power future spacecraft
We usually think of black holes as being produced when matter is so densely packed that light can't escape its gravity, but rather than matter, energy can be used to do the same thing. The result is a kugelblitz. → Read More
Why natural disasters make men take more risks
New research shows that Japanese men became significantly more likely to gamble and take risks after the 2011 earthquake that struck Japan. Women, however, experienced no such change. → Read More
At least 340,000 Americans died from radioactive fallout between 1951 and 1973
Domestic nuclear testing wreaked havoc on thousands of families. → Read More
Why going 'flexitarian' might be the best way to fight climate change
Research shows that beef and sheep meat are outsized contributors to climate change. There are many ways to fight against climate change, but one of the easiest but consequential ways is to adopt a flexitarian diet. → Read More
Lab-grown meat's steady march to your plate
When lab-grown meat was first proposed, it would have cost a fortune to make just one hamburger. Now, costs are falling and techniques are improving. With all the benefits lab-grown meat offers, can we really afford not to eat it? → Read More
The boozy and violent story behind America's Eggnog Riot
What was the eggnog riot? What happened? Did anyone die? West Point Academy wasn't always the disciplined institution it was today. In fact, cadets in 1826 got so drunk on eggnog they destroyed public property, threatened officers with swords, and nearly shot one. → Read More
How introducing microbial life to Mars can make it livable for humans
Mars is an inhospitable place right now. But by recreating the same events that brought about life on Earth, we can make Mars a more habitable place. The key? Using microbial life. → Read More
How to colonize Venus, and why it's a better plan than Mars
Why humanity should colonize Venus and how it can be done. Life on Venus, Earth's sister planet. We spend most of our time thinking about how humans can live on Mars, but there's a much closer--and potentially much more habitable--target for colonization in our solar system: Venus → Read More
What do psychopaths and creatives have in common?
As it turns out, being just enough of a psychopath can do wonders for your creative career. → Read More
Who believes fake news? Study identifies 3 groups of people
A new study conducted several surveys showing that religious fundamentalists, dogmatists, and delusional people are more prone to believing fake news. → Read More
Domestication syndrome: Why all domesticated animals look alike
Whenever a species is domesticated, it tends to have the same physiological traits as other domesticated species: floppy ears, short snout, spotted coat, etc. Now, researchers have found the reason why. → Read More
Project 100,000: The Vietnam War's cruel and deadly experiment
Who were McNamara's Morons? Project 100,000 was an ill-fated initiative designed to get more troops to the Vietnam War and help the impoverished by lowering military eligibility requirements. As a result, a number of physically and mentally ill-equipped soldiers were disproportionately killed in action. → Read More
Why humanity owes a lot to Jupiter
Jupiter is the biggest planet in our solar system, but planets like Jupiter are actually pretty rare. Some evidence suggests that having a planet like Jupiter in the cosmic neighborhood might be crucial for life to develop. → Read More
Why Japan's Buddhists run a deadly 1,000-day marathon
The Tendai Buddhist sect in Japan practices kaihogyo, a grueling, 1,000-day marathon stretched over the course of seven years. It ranks among the most difficult physical challenges in the world. So why do they do it? → Read More
How to enter the 'flow state' for effortless creativity
The "flow state" has appeared in different philosophies for millennia. Now, researchers have pinned down exactly what this effortless and intrinsically rewarding phenomenon is about. → Read More