Fail better
Nina Power says the centenary of Samuel Beckett's birth is worth celebrating
Ideas
Meme Wars (part 1)
Evolution cannot explain culture: there are limits to the uses of Darwinism, says Adam Kuper
Remarkable things
How should sociology respond to a globalised world? Les Back recommends a return to the link between individual stories and the bigger picture
Game theory
Peter Cave tries some thought experiments
United states?
Kalypso Nicolaïdis puts her faith in the idea of Europe
Defender of faiths: Laurie Taylor interviews Eileen Barker
Eileen Barker, the world's leading expert on religious cults, tells Laurie Taylor how it takes an agnostic to truly understand why people choose to believe
Slippery slope
Richard Norman assesses the arguments for the final choice
Very big ideas
Julian Baggini weighs up a hefty tome
Classic Intellectual
AC Grayling admires Umberto Eco's new opus
Good Thinking
Jonathan Derbyshire thinks, therefore it must be Descartes