Western Sahara, near the Mauritanian border.

Bruno Barbey/Magnum

Western Sahara: Why Africa’s last colony can’t break free

In global politics, playing by the rules doesn’t always help. By Jenn Abelson

Boston’s population boom speeds up

Michael Schmitt of the United States Naval War College.

Q&A

The laws of cyberwar

What a little chaos does for music

Brainiac

The password that even you don’t know

What if you could implant a passcode into your unconscious?

Uncommon Knowledge

Does homeownership make unemployment worse?

And more surprising insights from the social sciences.

“The stalemate over independence here in Western Sahara, Africa’s last remaining colony, raises the uncomfortable question of whether a peaceful breakup of nations is really possible — even when the process, officially speaking, enjoys the full support of the UN.”

Jenn Abelson 

Ideas on Boston.com

//c.o0bg.com/rf/image_90x90/Boston/2011-2020/2013/01/03/BostonGlobe.com/Ideas/Images/brainiac9090.gif Brainiac blog

Covering news and delights from the worlds of art, science, literature, history, design, and more.

Inside

How Boston changes in summer — by the numbers
A depiction of the interior of a bank owned by the Medici family of Florence. Woodcut, Italian, 15th century.

Someone tell the Vatican: Monarchy and banks don’t mix

Larry Hunter of the University of Colorado.

Q&A

Larry Hunter, the Cassandra of digital privacy
A boarded up home in a housing development in Warrensville, Ohio.

Q&A

Poverty finds the suburbs

Ideas

How Boston powered the gay rights movement

Should the school year be longer?

The daily planner: An American history
Messages at a memorial for the victims of the Boston Marathon bombings.

Boston’s Marathon memorial: How much should we save?

American energy independence: the great shake-up

Interactive graphic

A baby picture of the Web

Michael Kirham for The Boston Globe

The too-smart city

From Sunday’s Globe | Ideas

The long, weird history of the Nigerian e-mail scam

Brainiac

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Brainiac

The Tea Calendar, as it's called, was created by the German tea company Halssen & Lyon as a promotional tool for its tea industry clients.

A daily calendar made of tea

And other recent highlights from the Ideas blog.

The Word

The Word

Why we love ‘cronuts’

The devilish pull of the food portmanteau.

Uncommon Knowledge

Uncommon Knowledge

My Facebook posts make me love myself

And other surprising insights from the social sciences.

Books

Book Review

Columbia University neuroscientist Carl Hart used and sold drugs as a youth in Miami. He weaves personal stories with research to debunk what he considers myths about addiction.

‘High Price’ by Carl Hart

The Columbia neuroscientist weaves personal stories with research to debunk what he considers myths about addiction.

Opinion

“Americans aren’t stupid. At some point, insinuations and accusations will no longer be enough.”

Scot Lehigh 

Magazine

The cover for the June 16 2013 issue

Last of their kind
The cover for the June 9 2013 issue

Seaside haven
The cover for the June 2 2013 issue

Weekend Fun Guide 2013
The cover for the May 26 2013 issue

The great froyo gold rush