John Horgan

TODAY! Wed. March 11, 2-3 PM EST, nuclear historian Alex Wellerstein discusses “The Most Awful Responsibility,” his gripping and all-too-relevant book on Truman and The Bomb. Free and open to all. stevens.zoom.us/j/98020511582

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Wed. March 11, 2-3 PM EST, historian Alex Wellerstein will discuss his gripping and all-too-relevant book on Truman and the Bomb, “The Most Awful Responsibility." stevens.zoom.us/j/98020511582

Visiting the UN as Bombs Fall on Iran — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, MARCH 6, 2026.   This is a time of bitter ironies. Three days ago I visited the United Nations headquarters in Manhattan with my girlfriend Vicki. The timing was a coincidence. Vicki sc...

I visited the UN on Tuesday, the day after Melania Trump gave a talk there. My thoughts: johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

Should Killer Robots Have Rights? — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, MARCH 3, 2026.  I love philosophers, but sometimes they annoy me--for example, when they focus on what you might call sci-fi versus real-world problems. Example: On January 26 a philos...

If killer robots have feelings, does that mean they should have the right to vote and own property? johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

The Epstein scandal "provides especially sordid evidence of how depressingly short modern science falls from the ideal of passionate truth-seeking." by @jhorganism.bsky.social www.realclearscience.com/2026/02/27/e...

Being a Science Critic When Science Is Imperiled — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, APRIL 15, 2025. I don’t march for science . That’s like waving a flag and yelling, “Yay U.S.A.!” Science is a big, powerful institution, and it doesn’t need cheerleaders any more than the ...

Yeah, I've agonized over the contradictions myself: johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

Epstein and The End of “Pure” Science — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, FEBRUARY 26, 2026.   Two things have been happening: One: Podcasters are asking me how I feel about The End of Science , which was published 30 years ago. Do I still cling to my rid...

My dark thoughts on the Epstein files. johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

The Upside and Downside of Our Longing to Matter — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, FEBRUARY 18, 2026.   What an ingenious invention is God! A loving, all-seeing being watches over each and every one of us and remembers us, forever, after we’re gone. God also judges us....

Our yearning to matter brings out the best and worst in us says Rebecca Goldstein in her brilliant, timely book "The Mattering Instinct." johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

This was a blast, thanks Andy and Steve.

Coffee is great but it does not prevent dementia I did not think it necessary to even review this study but seemingly smart people were duped by it, so here goes.

The invaluable site "Sensible Medicine" demolishes study that supposedly shows caffeine reduces dementia risk: www.sensible-med.com/p/coffee-is-...

What Is It Like to Be a Superintelligent Machine? — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, FEBRUARY 13, 2026.   My mind has felt as stubbornly frozen lately as the snow encasing Hoboken. But a 1996 sci-fi novel I’ve been reading, Excession by Iain Banks, has inspired me to r...

Thoughts on the sci-fi novel "Excession," the film "Her," "synthetic morphology" and "The End of Science." johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

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TODAY, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2-3 PM EST. Philosopher/novelist Rebecca Goldstein will discuss “The Mattering Instinct: How Our Deepest Longing Drives Us and Divides Us," with John Horgan via zoom: stevens.zoom.us/j/93137080869

Murray Gell-Mann and “The End of Science” — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, FEBRUARY 3, 2026.  Murray Gell-Mann (1929-2019) was a diminutive titan of 20th century physics. I interviewed him twice: in 1991, for a Scientific American profile; and in 1995, for an ...

Murray Gell-Mann's agent once said he “has five brains, and every one is smarter than yours.” Here is my profile of the man who discovered and named quarks. And wrote me a check for $40. johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

Proust Was Goofing on Us — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, JANUARY 29, 2026.   You’re in a groovy jazz club, Dizzy’s , where a trumpet player dazzles you with his virtuosity. An hour in he pauses for breath, you start clapping with relief, now ...

I finally finished "Swann's Way." That's more than enough Proust for me: johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

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Feb. 7, 2026, 2-3 PM EST, philosopher/novelist Rebecca Goldstein will discuss her new book “The Mattering Instinct: How Our Deepest Longing Drives Us and Divides Us" live via zoom with me: stevens.zoom.us/j/93137080869

Why AI Pioneer Marvin Minsky Called Me “Racist” — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, JANUARY 24, 2026. The brouhaha over artificial intelligence keeps reminding me of AI pioneer Marvin Minsky (1927-2016). That’s why I’m posting this revised version of my write-up of Min...

Legendary AI pioneer Marvin Minsky once called me "racist." Here's the backstory: johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

Living Ironically — John Horgan (The Science Writer) WAUWINET, AUGUST 7, 2025.   In 1987 the Denver Broncos made it to the Superbowl. I’d loved the Broncos since I lived in Denver in the late 1970s, so I was very excited. As the Superbowl approach...

The recent Broncos win prompts me to re-post this essay on being an "ironic" fan: johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

On Feb. 7, I’ll have a live online conversation with one of my favorite thinkers, philosopher/novelist Rebecca Goldstein, about her brilliant, timely new book “The Mattering Instinct.”

India and the Unfairness Problem — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, JAN. 12, 2026.  I’m a white American male born to loving parents who could afford to send me and my four siblings to college and graduate school. This makes me luckier than the vast maj...

Some lucky souls have a lot, others nothing. A trip to India forced me to reflect on this persistent feature of existence. Should we calmly accept it, as Buddha suggested, or do something about it, as Marx urged? johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

India and the Solipsism Problem — John Horgan (The Science Writer) KOLKATA, INDIA, JANUARY 10, 2026.   India, which I’m just about to leave, shatters my habituation. It smushes my face in truths that are always right there before me at home but to which I become...

A trip to India rubs my face in a fundamental limit of knowledge. johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

Never been to Asia before, it's time.

Here for an Indian wedding. Son of an old friend.

“Auntie Mame,” “The Dead” and My New Year’s Resolution — John Horgan (The Science Writer) DELHI, INDIA, JANUARY 1, 2026. [See Note 1.] It’s a truism of physics as well as mysticism that this thing, whatever this is, is one, or at least has much in common, with that thing, whatever ...

A frothy flick and melancholy short story inspire a New Year's resolution: johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

Aviv's piece is fascinating, lots of insights into Sacks' complicated psyche.

Oliver Sacks Fudged Facts. Does That Bother Me? — John Horgan (The Science Writer) HOBOKEN, DECEMBER 22, 2025.   Oliver Sacks made up details of his stories about patients with brain disorders, Rachel Aviv reports in the December 15 New Yorker . Does this revelation diminish m...

The New Yorker's Rachel Aviv reports that neurologist/author Oliver Sacks made stuff up. Here's my reaction: johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

I'm not sure I recommend Pynchon. But I definitely recommend my columns on him.

Pynchon, Thanatoids and the Ferris Wheel of Life — John Horgan (The Science Writer) I stand under a black, starless sky watching a Ferris wheel turning, turning. The wheel’s bedazzled perimeter and spokes make the surrounding darkness darker. I can barely see the passengers going up ...

We're all Thanatoids now. My take on Pynchon's novel "Vineland," which inspired Anderson's film "One Battle After Another." johnhorgan.org/cross-check/...

Were Gandhi and MLK weaklings and suckers?

The point is to create a world in which there are no Hitlers, Saddams, Putins--not to mention American warmongers.

We just need to see violent bullies as assholes and make sure they never get any power.