🕷️ Crawler Inspector

URL Lookup

Direct Parameter Lookup

Raw Queries and Responses

1. Shard Calculation

Query:
Response:
Calculated Shard: 132 (from laksa134)

2. Crawled Status Check

Query:
Response:

3. Robots.txt Check

Query:
Response:

4. Spam/Ban Check

Query:
Response:

5. Seen Status Check

ℹ️ Skipped - page is already crawled

📄
INDEXABLE
✅
CRAWLED
4 days ago
🤖
ROBOTS ALLOWED

Page Info Filters

FilterStatusConditionDetails
HTTP statusPASSdownload_http_code = 200HTTP 200
Age cutoffPASSdownload_stamp > now() - 6 MONTH0.2 months ago
History dropPASSisNull(history_drop_reason)No drop reason
Spam/banPASSfh_dont_index != 1 AND ml_spam_score = 0ml_spam_score=0
CanonicalPASSmeta_canonical IS NULL OR = '' OR = src_unparsedNot set

Page Details

PropertyValue
URLhttps://www.openculture.com/2022/07/is-there-life-after-death.html
Last Crawled2026-04-17 19:23:11 (4 days ago)
First Indexed2022-07-22 11:24:05 (3 years ago)
HTTP Status Code200
Content
Meta TitleIs There Life After Death?: Michio Kaku, Bill Nye, Sam Harris & More Explore One of Life's Biggest Questions | Open Culture
Meta DescriptionWe should probably not look to science to have cherished beliefs confirmed. As scientific understanding of the world has progressed over the centuries, it has brought on a loss of humans' status as privileged beings at the center of the universe whose task is to subdue and conquer nature. Open Culture, openculture.com
Meta Canonicalnull
Boilerpipe Text
We should prob­a­bly not look to sci­ence to have cher­ished beliefs con­firmed. As sci­en­tif­ic under­stand­ing of the world has pro­gressed over the cen­turies, it has brought on a loss of humans’ sta­tus as priv­i­leged beings at the cen­ter of the uni­verse whose task is to sub­due and con­quer nature. (The stub­born per­sis­tence of those atti­tudes among the pow­er­ful has not served the species well .) We are not spe­cial, but we are still respon­si­ble, we have learned — maybe total­ly respon­si­ble for our lives on this plan­et. The meth­ods of sci­ence do not lend them­selves to sooth­ing exis­ten­tial anx­i­ety. But what about the most cher­ished, and like­ly ancient, of human beliefs: faith in an after­life?  Ideas of an under­world, or heav­en, or hell have ani­mat­ed human cul­ture since its ear­li­est ori­gins. There is no soci­ety in the world where we will not find some belief in an after­life exist­ing com­fort­ably along­side life’s most mun­dane events. Is it a harm­ful idea? Is there any real evi­dence to sup­port it? And which ver­sion of an after­life — if such a thing exist­ed — should we believe? Such ques­tions stack up. Answers in forms sci­ence can rec­on­cile seem dimin­ish­ing­ly few. Nonethe­less, as we see in the Big Think video above, sci­en­tists, sci­ence com­mu­ni­ca­tors, and sci­ence enthu­si­asts are will­ing to dis­cuss the pos­si­bil­i­ty, or impos­si­bil­i­ty, of con­tin­u­ing after death. We begin with NASA astronomer Michelle Thaller, who ref­er­ences Ein­stein’s the­o­ry of the uni­verse as ful­ly com­plete, “so every point in the past and every point in the future are just as real as the point of time you feel your­self in right now.” Time spreads out in a land­scape, each moment already mapped and sur­veyed. When a close friend died, Ein­stein wrote a let­ter to his friend’s wife explain­ing, “Your hus­band, my friend, is just over the next hill. He’s still there” — in a the­o­ret­i­cal sense. It may not have been the com­fort she was look­ing for. The hope of an after­life is that we’ll see our loved ones again, some­thing Ein­stein’s solu­tion does not allow. Sam Har­ris — who has leaned into the mys­ti­cal prac­tice of med­i­ta­tion while pulling it from its reli­gious con­text — admits that death is a “dark mys­tery.” When peo­ple die, “there’s just the sheer not know­ing what hap­pened to them. And into this void, reli­gion comes rush­ing with a very con­sol­ing sto­ry, say­ing noth­ing hap­pened them; they’re in a bet­ter place and you’re going to meet up with them after.” The sto­ry isn’t always so con­sol­ing, depend­ing on how puni­tive the reli­gion, but it does offer an expla­na­tion and sense of cer­tain­ty in the face of “sheer not know­ing.” The human mind does not tol­er­ate uncer­tain­ty par­tic­u­lar­ly well. Death feels like the great­est unknown of all. (Har­ris’ argu­ment par­al­lels that of anthro­pol­o­gist Pas­cal Boy­er on the ori­gin of all reli­gions .) But the phe­nom­e­non of death is not unknown to us. We are sur­round­ed by it dai­ly, from the plants and ani­mals we con­sume to the pets we sad­ly let go when their lifes­pans end. Do we keep our­selves up won­der­ing what hap­pened to these beings? Maybe our spir­i­tu­al or reli­gious beliefs aren’t always about death.… “In the Old Tes­ta­ment there isn’t real­ly any sort of view of the after­life,” says Rob Bell, a spir­i­tu­al teacher (and the only talk­ing head here not aligned with a sci­en­tif­ic insti­tu­tion or ratio­nal­ist move­ment). “This idea that the whole thing is about when you die is not real­ly the way that lots of peo­ple have thought about it.” For many reli­gious prac­ti­tion­ers, the idea of eter­nal life means “liv­ing in har­mo­ny with the divine right now.” For many, this “right now” — this very moment and each one we expe­ri­ence after it — is eter­nal. See more views of the after­life above from sci­ence edu­ca­tors like Bill Nye and sci­en­tists like Michio Kaku, who says the kind of after­lives we’ve only seen in sci­ence fic­tion — “dig­i­tal and genet­ic immor­tal­i­ty” — “are with­in reach.” Relat­ed Con­tent: Bene­dict Cum­ber­batch Reads Nick Cave’s Beau­ti­ful Let­ter About Grief Richard Feyn­man on Reli­gion, Sci­ence, the Search for Truth & Our Will­ing­ness to Live with Doubt Michio Kaku & Bri­an Green Explain String The­o­ry in a Nut­shell: Ele­gant Expla­na­tions of an Ele­gant The­o­ry Philoso­pher Sam Har­ris Leads You Through a 26-Minute Guid­ed Med­i­ta­tion Josh Jones  is a writer and musi­cian based in Durham, NC. Fol­low him at  @jdmagness .
Markdown
- [Online Courses](https://www.openculture.com/freeonlinecourses "Online Courses") - [Audio Books](https://www.openculture.com/freeaudiobooks "Audio Books") - [Movies](https://www.openculture.com/freemoviesonline "Movies") - [Podcasts](https://www.openculture.com/great-podcasts "Podcasts") - [K-12](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources "K-12 Resources") - [eBooks](https://www.openculture.com/free_ebooks "eBooks") - [Languages](https://www.openculture.com/freelanguagelessons "Language Lessons") - [Donate](https://www.openculture.com/help-fund-open-culture "Donate") ![]() # [Is There Life After Death?: Michio Kaku, Bill Nye, Sam Harris & More Explore One of Life’s Biggest Questions](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07/is-there-life-after-death.html "Permanent Link to Is There Life After Death?: Michio Kaku, Bill Nye, Sam Harris & More Explore One of Life’s Biggest Questions") in *, [Religion](https://www.openculture.com/category/religion), [Science](https://www.openculture.com/category/science)* \| July 22nd, 2022 [2 Comments](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07/is-there-life-after-death.html#comments) We should prob­a­bly not look to sci­ence to have cher­ished beliefs con­firmed. As sci­en­tif­ic under­stand­ing of the world has pro­gressed over the cen­turies, it has brought on a loss of humans’ sta­tus as priv­i­leged beings at the cen­ter of the uni­verse whose task is to sub­due and con­quer nature. (The stub­born per­sis­tence of those atti­tudes among the pow­er­ful [has not served the species well](https://www.monbiot.com/2022/07/19/days-of-rage/).) We are not spe­cial, but we are still respon­si­ble, we have learned — maybe total­ly respon­si­ble for our lives on this plan­et. The meth­ods of sci­ence do not lend them­selves to sooth­ing exis­ten­tial anx­i­ety. But what about the most cher­ished, and like­ly ancient, of human beliefs: faith in an after­life? Ideas of an under­world, or heav­en, or hell have ani­mat­ed human cul­ture since its ear­li­est ori­gins. There is no soci­ety in the world where we will not find some belief in an after­life exist­ing com­fort­ably along­side life’s most mun­dane events. Is it a harm­ful idea? Is there any real evi­dence to sup­port it? And which ver­sion of an after­life — if such a thing exist­ed — should we believe? Such ques­tions stack up. Answers in forms sci­ence can rec­on­cile seem dimin­ish­ing­ly few. Nonethe­less, as we see in the Big Think video above, sci­en­tists, sci­ence com­mu­ni­ca­tors, and sci­ence enthu­si­asts are will­ing to dis­cuss the pos­si­bil­i­ty, or impos­si­bil­i­ty, of con­tin­u­ing after death. We begin with NASA astronomer Michelle Thaller, who ref­er­ences Ein­stein’s the­o­ry of the uni­verse as ful­ly com­plete, “so every point in the past and every point in the future are just as real as the point of time you feel your­self in right now.” Time spreads out in a land­scape, each moment already mapped and sur­veyed. When a close friend died, Ein­stein wrote a let­ter to his friend’s wife explain­ing, “Your hus­band, my friend, is just over the next hill. He’s still there” — in a the­o­ret­i­cal sense. It may not have been the com­fort she was look­ing for. The hope of an after­life is that we’ll see our loved ones again, some­thing Ein­stein’s solu­tion does not allow. Sam Har­ris — who has [leaned into the mys­ti­cal prac­tice of med­i­ta­tion](https://www.openculture.com/2016/08/philosopher-sam-harris-leads-you-through-a-26-minute-guided-meditation.html) while pulling it from its reli­gious con­text — admits that death is a “dark mys­tery.” When peo­ple die, “there’s just the sheer not know­ing what hap­pened to them. And into this void, reli­gion comes rush­ing with a very con­sol­ing sto­ry, say­ing noth­ing hap­pened them; they’re in a bet­ter place and you’re going to meet up with them after.” The sto­ry isn’t always so con­sol­ing, depend­ing on how puni­tive the reli­gion, but it does offer an expla­na­tion and sense of cer­tain­ty in the face of “sheer not know­ing.” The human mind does not tol­er­ate uncer­tain­ty par­tic­u­lar­ly well. Death feels like the great­est unknown of all. (Har­ris’ argu­ment par­al­lels that of [anthro­pol­o­gist Pas­cal Boy­er on the ori­gin of all reli­gions](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0010NZKMY/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1).) But the phe­nom­e­non of death is not unknown to us. We are sur­round­ed by it dai­ly, from the plants and ani­mals we con­sume to the pets we sad­ly let go when their lifes­pans end. Do we keep our­selves up won­der­ing what hap­pened to these beings? Maybe our spir­i­tu­al or reli­gious beliefs aren’t always about death.… “In the Old Tes­ta­ment there isn’t real­ly any sort of view of the after­life,” says Rob Bell, a spir­i­tu­al teacher (and the only talk­ing head here not aligned with a sci­en­tif­ic insti­tu­tion or ratio­nal­ist move­ment). “This idea that the whole thing is about when you die is not real­ly the way that lots of peo­ple have thought about it.” For many reli­gious prac­ti­tion­ers, the idea of eter­nal life means “liv­ing in har­mo­ny with the divine right now.” For many, this “right now” — this very moment and each one we expe­ri­ence after it — is eter­nal. See more views of the after­life above from sci­ence edu­ca­tors like Bill Nye and sci­en­tists like Michio Kaku, who says the kind of after­lives we’ve only seen in sci­ence fic­tion — “dig­i­tal and genet­ic immor­tal­i­ty” — “are with­in reach.” **Relat­ed Con­tent:** [Bene­dict Cum­ber­batch Reads Nick Cave’s Beau­ti­ful Let­ter About Grief](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07/benedict-cumberbatch-reads-nick-caves-beautiful-letter-about-grief.html) [Richard Feyn­man on Reli­gion, Sci­ence, the Search for Truth & Our Will­ing­ness to Live with Doubt](https://www.openculture.com/2014/03/richard-feynman-on-religion-science.html) [Michio Kaku & Bri­an Green Explain String The­o­ry in a Nut­shell: Ele­gant Expla­na­tions of an Ele­gant The­o­ry](https://www.openculture.com/2015/11/michio-kaku-brian-green-explain-string-theory-in-nutshell.html) [Philoso­pher Sam Har­ris Leads You Through a 26-Minute Guid­ed Med­i­ta­tion](https://www.openculture.com/2016/08/philosopher-sam-harris-leads-you-through-a-26-minute-guided-meditation.html) *[Josh Jones](http://about.me/jonesjoshua) is a writer and musi­cian based in Durham, NC. Fol­low him at [@jdmagness](https://twitter.com/jdmagness).* by [Josh Jones](https://www.openculture.com/author/jdavidjones "Posts by Josh Jones") \| [Permalink](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07/is-there-life-after-death.html "Permalink") \| Comments (2) \| **Sup­port Open Cul­ture** We’re hop­ing to rely on our loy­al read­ers rather than errat­ic ads. To sup­port Open Cul­ture’s edu­ca­tion­al mis­sion, please con­sid­er [mak­ing a dona­tion](https://bit.ly/3p25YTp). We accept Pay­Pal, Ven­mo (@openculture), Patre­on and Cryp­to! Please find all options [here](https://bit.ly/3p25YTp). We thank you! [![](https://www.openculture.com/wp-content/plugins/native-lazyload/assets/images/placeholder.svg)![](https://cdn8.openculture.com/2017/03/30092526/btn_donate_cc_147x47.png)](http://bit.ly/2ElJo2F) [Comments (2) You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.]() - [Dan Parkin says:]() [September 4, 2023 at 4:16 pm](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07/is-there-life-after-death.html#comment-3346891) Mat­ter can­not be destroyed. Spir­it Exists in all of us . We as Spir­it s exisit­ed before we entered our phys­i­cal state. After our death our Spir­it stir exists in the Spir­it world wait­ing for Christ Sec­ond Com­ing to return the rest of mankind’s body’s to their Spir­it s. The Ressurec­tion. It’s all explained by God’s mod­ern day Prophet Joseph Smith jr. Don’t assume read and pray for your­self the still small voice will speak to you the truth. Holy Ghost is the third mem­ber of the God­head it’s pur­pose is to bare wit­ness of the truth­ful­ness of Gods and His son Jesus Christ exis­tence. For as we learned in mod­ern day rev­e­la­tion that the God­head is three dis­tinct mem­bers. God the Father. His son Jesus Christ who came down to earth for mankind s Sal­va­tion and the Speak­er of truth none oth­er than the Holy Ghost [Reply](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07/is-there-life-after-death.html#comment-3346891) - Randy Morton says: [September 28, 2023 at 5:56 pm](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07/is-there-life-after-death.html#comment-3348599) Prove it. All you have is a fairy tale that can’t be proven. [Reply](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07/is-there-life-after-death.html#comment-3348599) ### Leave a Reply - ## Essentials - [1,700 Free Online Courses](https://www.openculture.com/freeonlinecourses) - [200 Online Certificate Programs](https://www.openculture.com/online-certificate-programs) - [100+ Online Degree & Mini-Degree Programs](https://www.openculture.com/online-degrees) - [1,150 Free Movies](https://www.openculture.com/freemoviesonline) - [1,000 Free Audio Books](https://www.openculture.com/freeaudiobooks) - [150+ Best Podcasts](https://www.openculture.com/great-podcasts) - [800 Free eBooks](https://www.openculture.com/free_ebooks) - [200 Free Textbooks](https://www.openculture.com/free_textbooks) - [300 Free Language Lessons](https://www.openculture.com/freelanguagelessons) - [150 Free Business Courses](https://www.openculture.com/business_free_courses) - [Free K-12 Education](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources) - [Get Our Daily Email](https://www.openculture.com/dailyemail) - ## Support Us We're hoping to rely on loyal readers, rather than erratic ads. Please click the Donate button and support Open Culture. You can use Paypal, Venmo, Patreon, even Crypto! We thank you! [![](https://cdn8.openculture.com/2017/03/30092526/btn_donate_cc_147x47.png)](https://www.openculture.com/help-fund-open-culture) - ## Free Courses - [Art & Art History](https://www.openculture.com/free-art-art-history-courses) - [Astronomy](https://www.openculture.com/astronomy-free-online-courses) - [Biology](https://www.openculture.com/biology_free_courses) - [Business](https://www.openculture.com/business_free_courses) - [Chemistry](https://www.openculture.com/chemistry-free-courses) - [Classics/Ancient World](https://www.openculture.com/free-courses-in-ancient-history-literature-philosophy) - [Computer Science](https://www.openculture.com/computer_science_free_courses) - [Data Science](https://www.openculture.com/free-online-data-science-courses) - [Economics](https://www.openculture.com/economics_free_courses) - [Engineering](https://www.openculture.com/engineering_free_courses) - [Environment](https://www.openculture.com/environment-free-online-courses) - [History](https://www.openculture.com/history_free_courses) - [Literature](https://www.openculture.com/literature_free_courses) - [Math](https://www.openculture.com/math_free_courses%20) - [Philosophy](https://www.openculture.com/philosophy_free_courses) - [Physics](https://www.openculture.com/physics_free_courses) - [Political Science](https://www.openculture.com/political_science_free_courses) - [Psychology](https://www.openculture.com/psychology_free_courses) - [Religion](https://www.openculture.com/religion-free-courses-online) - [Writing & Journalism](https://www.openculture.com/free-online-writing-journalism-courses) - [All 1700 Free Courses](https://www.openculture.com/freeonlinecourses) - ## Receive our Daily Email ### FREE UPDATES\! #### GET OUR DAILY EMAIL Get the best cultural and educational resources on the web curated for you in a daily email. We never spam. Unsubscribe at any time. **[Click Here to sign up for our newsletter](https://www.openculture.com/newsletter-signup)** FOLLOW ON SOCIAL MEDIA - ## Free Movies - [1150 Free Movies Online](https://www.openculture.com/freemoviesonline) - [Free Film Noir](https://www.openculture.com/free_film_noir_movies) - [Silent Films](https://www.openculture.com/free-silent-films) - [Documentaries](https://www.openculture.com/free-documentaries-online/) - [Martial Arts/Kung Fu](https://www.openculture.com/free-kung-fu-martial-arts-movies-online/) - [Animations](https://www.openculture.com/free-animated-films) - [Free Hitchcock Films](https://www.openculture.com/free_hitchcock_movies_online) - [Free Charlie Chaplin](https://www.openculture.com/2011/12/free_charlie_chaplin_films_on_the_web.html) - [Free John Wayne Movies](https://www.openculture.com/2011/01/john_wayne_25_free_western_films_online.html) - [Free Tarkovsky Films](https://www.openculture.com/2010/07/tarkovksy.html) - [Free Dziga Vertov](https://www.openculture.com/2014/09/eight-free-films-by-dziga-vertov.html) - [Free Oscar Winners](https://www.openculture.com/2012/02/28_free_oscar_films_on_the_web.html) - ## Free Language Lessons - [Arabic](https://www.openculture.com/free_arabic_lessons) - [Chinese](https://www.openculture.com/free_mandarin_chinese_lessons) - [English](https://www.openculture.com/free_english_lessons) - [French](https://www.openculture.com/free_french_lessons) - [German](https://www.openculture.com/free_german_lessons) - [Italian](https://www.openculture.com/free_italian_lessons) - [Russian](https://www.openculture.com/free_russian_lessons%20) - [Spanish](https://www.openculture.com/free_spanish_lessons) - [All Languages](https://www.openculture.com/2006/10/foreign_languag.html) - ## Free eBooks - [700 Free eBooks](https://www.openculture.com/free_ebooks) - [Free Philosophy eBooks](https://www.openculture.com/free-philosophy-ebooks) - [The Harvard Classics](https://www.openculture.com/2011/07/the_harvard_classics_a_free_digital_collection.html) - [Philip K. Dick Stories](https://www.openculture.com/?p=25048) - [Neil Gaiman Stories](https://www.openculture.com/2011/12/neil_gaimans_free_short_stories.html) - [David Foster Wallace Stories & Essays](https://www.openculture.com/2012/02/23_free_essays_stories_by_david_foster_wallace_available_on_the_web.html) - [Hemingway Stories](https://www.openculture.com/2014/04/ernest-hemingways-very-first-published-stories-free-as-an-ebook.html) - [Great Gatsby & Other Fitzgerald Novels](https://www.openculture.com/2013/06/read_f_scott_fitzgeralds_story_may_day_and_nearly_all_of_his_other_work_free_online.html) - [HP Lovecraft](https://www.openculture.com/2014/10/h-p-lovecrafts-classic-horror-stories-free-online.html) - [Edgar Allan Poe](https://www.openculture.com/2014/10/download-the-complete-works-of-edgar-allan-poe-macabre-stories-as-free-ebooks-audio-books.html) - [Free Alice Munro Stories](https://www.openculture.com/2013/10/read-14-short-stories-from-nobel-prize-winning-writer-alice-munro-free-online.html) - [Jennifer Egan Stories](https://www.openculture.com/2013/03/stories_by_jennifer_egan.html) - [George Saunders Stories](https://www.openculture.com/?p=59123) - [Hunter S. Thompson Essays](https://www.openculture.com/2013/12/read-10-free-articles-by-hunter-s-thompson.html) - [Joan Didion Essays](https://www.openculture.com/2014/01/read-17-joan-didion-essays-free-online-1966-to-2013.html) - [Gabriel Garcia Marquez Stories](https://www.openculture.com/2014/04/10-short-stories-by-gabriel-garcia-marquez.html) - [David Sedaris Stories](https://www.openculture.com/2014/09/20-free-essays-stories-by-david-sedaris.html) - [Stephen King](https://www.openculture.com/2014/10/six-free-stephen-king-stories.html) - [Chomsky](https://www.openculture.com/2014/05/read-9-books-by-noam-chomsky-free-online.html) - [Golden Age Comics](https://www.openculture.com/2014/03/download-over-22000-golden-silver-age-comic-books-from-the-comic-book-plus-archive.html) - [Free Books by UC Press](https://www.openculture.com/2014/01/read-700-free-ebooks-made-available-by-the-university-of-california-press.html) - [Life Changing Books](https://www.openculture.com/2007/08/life-changing_books_your_picks.html) - ## Free Audio Books - [700 Free Audio Books](https://www.openculture.com/freeaudiobooks) - [Free Audio Books: Fiction](https://www.openculture.com/audio_books_fiction) - [Free Audio Books: Poetry](https://www.openculture.com/audio_books_poetry) - [Free Audio Books: Non-Fiction](https://www.openculture.com/audio_books_non-fiction) - ## Free Textbooks - [200 Free Textbooks](https://www.openculture.com/free_textbooks) - [Free Physics Textbooks](https://www.openculture.com/free-physics-textbooks) - [Free Computer Science Textbooks](https://www.openculture.com/free-computer-science-textbooks) - [Free Math Textbooks](https://www.openculture.com/free-math-textbooks) - ## K-12 Resources - [Free Books](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources#Books) - [Free Video Lessons](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources#Tutorials) - [Web Resources by Subject](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources#Apps</a></li>%0D%0A<li><a%20href=) - [Free Language Lessons](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources#Languages) - [Quality YouTube Channels](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources#YouTube) - [Teacher Resources](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources#TeacherRef) - [Test Prep](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources#TestPrep) - [All Free Kids Resources](https://www.openculture.com/free_k-12_educational_resources) - ## Free Art & Images - [All Art Images & Books](https://www.openculture.com/2016/05/1-8-million-free-works-of-art-from-world-class-museums-a-meta-list.html) - [The Met](https://www.openculture.com/2014/05/the-met-puts-400000-high-res-images-online.html) - [The Getty](https://www.openculture.com/2014/04/getty-museum-adds-another-77000-images-to-its-open-content-archive.html) - [The Rijksmuseum](https://www.openculture.com/2015/04/rijksmuseum-digitizes-makes-free-online-210000-works-of-art-masterpieces-included.html) - [Smithsonian](https://www.openculture.com/2015/06/smithsonian-digitizes-lets-you-download-40000-works-of-asian-and-american-art.html) - [The Guggenheim](https://www.openculture.com/2015/10/free-the-guggenheim-puts-online-1600-great-works-of-modern-art-from-575-artists.html) - [The Tate](https://www.openculture.com/2014/12/the-tate-digitizes-70000-works-of-art.html) - [The National Gallery](https://www.openculture.com/2014/04/download-35000-works-of-art-from-the-national-gallery.html) - [The Whitney](https://www.openculture.com/2015/01/whitney-museum-puts-online-21000-works-of-american-art.html) - [LA County Museum](https://www.openculture.com/2013/03/la_county_museum_makes_20000_artistic_images_available_for_free.html) - [Stanford University](https://www.openculture.com/2015/12/45000-works-of-art-from-stanford-universitys-cantor-arts-center-now-freely-viewable-online.html) - [British Library](https://www.openculture.com/2015/09/the-british-library-puts-over-1000000-images-in-the-public-domain-a-deeper-dive-into-the-collection.html) - [Google Art Project](https://www.openculture.com/2013/12/google-puts-over-57000-works-of-art-on-the-web.html) - [French Revolution](https://www.openculture.com/2014/02/14000-free-images-from-the-french-revolution-now-available-online.html) - [Getty Images](https://www.openculture.com/2014/03/getty-images-makes-35-million-photos-free-to-use-online.html) - [Guggenheim Art Books](https://www.openculture.com/2012/01/free_the_guggenheim_puts_65_modern_art_books_online.html) - [Met Art Books](https://www.openculture.com/2015/03/download-422-free-art-books-from-the-metropolitan-museum-of-art.html) - [Getty Art Books](https://www.openculture.com/2014/01/download-over-250-free-art-books-from-the-getty-museum.html) - [New York Public Library Maps](https://www.openculture.com/2014/03/new-york-public-library-puts-20000-hi-res-maps-online.html) - [Museum of New Zealand](https://www.openculture.com/2014/06/download-30000-free-images-from-the-museum-of-new-zealand.html) - [Street Art](https://www.openculture.com/2015/03/google-puts-online-10000-works-of-street-art-from-across-the-globe.html) - [Smarthistory](https://www.openculture.com/2014/05/100-great-works-of-art-with-videos-created-by-khan-academy.html) - [Rembrandt](https://www.openculture.com/2015/11/300-etchings-by-rembrandt-now-free-online-thanks-to-the-morgan-library-museum.html) - [Van Gogh](https://www.openculture.com/2016/02/download-hundreds-of-van-gogh-paintings-sketches-letters-in-high-resolution.html) - [Coloring Books](https://www.openculture.com/2016/02/download-free-coloring-books-from-world-class-libraries-museums.html) - ## Free Music - [All Bach Organ Works](https://www.openculture.com/2011/11/a_big_bach_download_the_complete_organ_works_free.html) - [All of Bach](https://www.openculture.com/2014/05/all-of-bach-for-free.html) - [80,000 Classical Music Scores](https://www.openculture.com/2011/02/classicalscores.html) - [Free Classical Music](https://www.openculture.com/2013/09/download-free-classical-music-from-150-composers-courtesy-of-musopen-org.html) - [Live Classical Music](https://www.openculture.com/2014/03/the-world-concert-hall-listen-to-the-best-live-classical-music-concerts-for-free.html) - [9,000 Grateful Dead Concerts](https://www.openculture.com/2012/11/8976_free_grateful_dead_concert_recordings_in_the_internet_archive_explored_by_the_inew_yorkeri.html) - [Alan Lomax Blues & Folk Archive](https://www.openculture.com/2012/03/the_alan_lomax_music_archive_now_online.html) - ## Writing Tips - [Hemingway](https://www.openculture.com/2013/02/seven_tips_from_ernest_hemingway_on_how_to_write_fiction.html) - [Fitzgerald](https://www.openculture.com/2013/02/seven_tips_from_f_scott_fitzgerald_on_how_to_write_fiction.html) - [Stephen King](https://www.openculture.com/2014/03/stephen-kings-top-20-rules-for-writers.html) - [Ray Bradbury](https://www.openculture.com/2012/04/ray_bradbury_gives_12_pieces_of_writing_advice_to_young_authors_2001.html) - [William Zinsser](https://www.openculture.com/2015/05/10-writing-tips-from-legendary-writing-teacher-william-zinsser.html) - [Kurt Vonnegut](https://www.openculture.com/2015/04/kurt-vonneguts-8-tips-on-how-to-write-a-good-short-story.html) - [Toni Morrison](https://www.openculture.com/2012/12/toni_morrison_dispenses_writing_wisdom_in_1993_iparis_reviewi_interview.html) - [Edgar Allan Poe](https://www.openculture.com/2015/01/seven-tips-from-edgar-allan-poe-on-how-to-write-vivid-stories-and-poems.html) - [Margaret Atwood](https://www.openculture.com/2012/01/writing_rules.html) - [David Ogilvy](https://www.openculture.com/2015/04/david-ogilvys-1982-memo-how-to-write-offers-10-pieces-of-timeless-advice.html) - [Steinbeck](https://www.openculture.com/2012/02/john_steinbecks_nobel_prize_speech_and_his_six_tips_for_the_aspiring_writer.html) - [Billy Wilder](https://www.openculture.com/2013/08/10-tips-from-billy-wilder-on-how-to-write-a-good-screenplay.html) - ## Archive - [All posts by date](https://www.openculture.com/archive) - ## Personal Finance - [Open Personal Finance](https://www.openpersonalfinance.com/) - ## Categories - [Amazon Kindle](https://www.openculture.com/category/amazon_kindle) - [Animation](https://www.openculture.com/category/animation-2) - [Apple](https://www.openculture.com/category/apple) - [Archaeology](https://www.openculture.com/category/archaeology) - [Architecture](https://www.openculture.com/category/architecture-2) - [Archives](https://www.openculture.com/category/archives) - [Art](https://www.openculture.com/category/art) - [Artificial Intelligence](https://www.openculture.com/category/artificial-intelligence) - [Astronomy](https://www.openculture.com/category/astronomy-2) - [Audio Books](https://www.openculture.com/category/audio_books) - [Biology](https://www.openculture.com/category/biology-2) - [Books](https://www.openculture.com/category/books) - [Business](https://www.openculture.com/category/business) - [Chemistry](https://www.openculture.com/category/chemistry) - [Coloring Books](https://www.openculture.com/category/coloring-books) - [Comedy](https://www.openculture.com/category/comedy) - [Comics/Cartoons](https://www.openculture.com/category/comics) - [Computer Science](https://www.openculture.com/category/computer-science) - [Creativity](https://www.openculture.com/category/creativity-2) - [Current Affairs](https://www.openculture.com/category/current_affairs) - [Dance](https://www.openculture.com/category/dance) - [Data](https://www.openculture.com/category/data) - [Deals](https://www.openculture.com/category/deals) - [Design](https://www.openculture.com/category/design-2) - [e-books](https://www.openculture.com/category/e-books) - [Economics](https://www.openculture.com/category/economics) - [Education](https://www.openculture.com/category/education) - [English Language](https://www.openculture.com/category/english_language) - [Entrepreneurship](https://www.openculture.com/category/entrepreneurship) - [Environment](https://www.openculture.com/category/environment) - [Fashion](https://www.openculture.com/category/fashion) - [Film](https://www.openculture.com/category/film) - [Finance](https://www.openculture.com/category/finance) - [Food & Drink](https://www.openculture.com/category/food_drink) - [Games](https://www.openculture.com/category/games) - [Gender](https://www.openculture.com/category/gender) - [Google](https://www.openculture.com/category/google) - [Graduation Speech](https://www.openculture.com/category/graduation-speech) - [Harvard](https://www.openculture.com/category/harvard) - [Health](https://www.openculture.com/category/health) - [History](https://www.openculture.com/category/history) - [How to Learn for Free](https://www.openculture.com/category/how-to-learn-for-free) - [Internet Archive](https://www.openculture.com/category/internet-archive) - [iPad](https://www.openculture.com/category/ipad) - [iPhone](https://www.openculture.com/category/iphone) - [Jazz](https://www.openculture.com/category/jazz) - [K-12](https://www.openculture.com/category/k-12) - [Language](https://www.openculture.com/category/language) - [Language Lessons](https://www.openculture.com/category/language_lessons) - [Law](https://www.openculture.com/category/law) - [Letters](https://www.openculture.com/category/letters) - [Libraries](https://www.openculture.com/category/libraries) - [Life](https://www.openculture.com/category/life) - [Literature](https://www.openculture.com/category/literature) - [Magazines](https://www.openculture.com/category/magazines) - [Maps](https://www.openculture.com/category/maps) - [Math](https://www.openculture.com/category/math) - [Media](https://www.openculture.com/category/media) - [MIT](https://www.openculture.com/category/mit) - [MOOCs](https://www.openculture.com/category/moocs) - [Most Popular](https://www.openculture.com/category/most_popular) - [Museums](https://www.openculture.com/category/museums) - [Music](https://www.openculture.com/category/music) - [Nature](https://www.openculture.com/category/nature) - [Neuroscience](https://www.openculture.com/category/neuroscience) - [Online Courses](https://www.openculture.com/category/online_courses) - [Opera](https://www.openculture.com/category/opera) - [Philosophy](https://www.openculture.com/category/philosophy) - [Photography](https://www.openculture.com/category/photography-2) - [Physics](https://www.openculture.com/category/physics) - [Podcasts](https://www.openculture.com/category/podcast_articles_and_resources) - [Poetry](https://www.openculture.com/category/poetry) - [Politics](https://www.openculture.com/category/politics) - [Pretty Much Pop](https://www.openculture.com/category/pretty-much-pop) - [Productivity](https://www.openculture.com/category/productivity) - [Psychology](https://www.openculture.com/category/psychology) - [Radio](https://www.openculture.com/category/radio-2) - [Random](https://www.openculture.com/category/random) - [Religion](https://www.openculture.com/category/religion) - [Sci Fi](https://www.openculture.com/category/sci_fi) - [Science](https://www.openculture.com/category/science) - [Software](https://www.openculture.com/category/software) - [Sports](https://www.openculture.com/category/sports) - [Stanford](https://www.openculture.com/category/stanford) - [Technology](https://www.openculture.com/category/technology) - [TED Talks](https://www.openculture.com/category/ted_talks) - [Television](https://www.openculture.com/category/television) - [Theatre](https://www.openculture.com/category/theater) - [Travel](https://www.openculture.com/category/travel-2) - [Twitter](https://www.openculture.com/category/twitter) - [UC Berkeley](https://www.openculture.com/category/uc_berkeley) - [Uncategorized](https://www.openculture.com/category/uncategorized) - [Video - Arts & Culture](https://www.openculture.com/category/video_-_arts_culture) - [Video - Politics/Society](https://www.openculture.com/category/video_-_politicssociety) - [Video - Science](https://www.openculture.com/category/video_-_science) - [Video Games](https://www.openculture.com/category/video-games) - [Web/Tech](https://www.openculture.com/category/webtech) - [Wikipedia](https://www.openculture.com/category/wikipedia) - [Writing](https://www.openculture.com/category/writing) - [Yale](https://www.openculture.com/category/yale) - [YouTube](https://www.openculture.com/category/youtube) - ## Great Lectures - [Michel Foucault](https://www.openculture.com/2012/01/michel_foucault_free_lectures.html) - [Sun Ra at UC Berkeley](https://www.openculture.com/2014/07/full-lecture-and-reading-list-from-sun-ras-1971-uc-berkeley-course.html) - [Richard Feynman](https://www.openculture.com/2012/08/the_character_of_physical_law_richard_feynmans_legendary_lecture_series_at_cornell_1964.html) - [Joseph Campbell](https://www.openculture.com/2015/08/48-hours-of-joseph-campbell-lectures-free-online.html) - [Carl Sagan](https://www.openculture.com/2012/08/carl_sagan_presents_six_lectures_on_exploring_mars.html) - [Margaret Atwood](https://www.openculture.com/2013/08/the-celebrity-lecture-series-from-michigan-state-features-talks-by-great-writers-of-our-time.html) - [Jorge Luis Borges](https://www.openculture.com/2012/05/jorge_luis_borges_1967-8_norton_lectures_on_poetry_and_everything_else_literary.html) - [Leonard Bernstein](https://www.openculture.com/2012/03/leonard_bernsteins_masterful_lectures_on_music.html) - [Richard Dawkins](https://www.openculture.com/2012/04/igrowing_up_in_the_universei_richard_dawkins_presents_captivating_science_lectures_for_kids_1991.html) - [Buckminster Fuller](https://www.openculture.com/2012/08/ieverything_i_knowi_42_hours_of_visionary_buckminster_fuller_lectures_1975.html) - [Walter Kaufmann on Existentialism](https://www.openculture.com/2011/04/walter_kaufmanns_lectures.html) - [Jacques Lacan](https://www.openculture.com/2011/03/jacques_lacan_speaks_zizek_provides_free_cliffs_notes.html) - [Roland Barthes](https://www.openculture.com/2014/07/listen-to-roland-barthes-deliver-his-40-hour-lecture-course-la-preparation-du-roman-in-french-1978-80.html) - [Nobel Lectures by Writers](https://www.openculture.com/2013/05/7_nobel_speeches_by_7_great_writers.html) - [Toni Morrison](http://www.nobelprize.org/mediaplayer/index.php?id=1502) - [Bertrand Russell](https://www.openculture.com/2011/07/bertrand_russell_bbc_lecture_series_.html) - [Oxford Philosophy Lectures](https://www.openculture.com/2012/11/take_first-class_philosophy_lectures_anywhere_with_free_oxford_podcasts.html) - ## Sign up for Newsletter - ## About Us ![](https://cdn3.openculture.com/wp-content/themes/openculture_v4a/images/open-culture-stacked-logo.svg) Open Culture scours the web for the best educational media. We find the free courses and audio books you need, the language lessons & educational videos you want, and plenty of enlightenment in between. - ## Great Recordings - [T.S. Eliot Reads Waste Land](https://www.openculture.com/2012/07/ts_eliot_reads_his_modernist_masterpieces.html) - [Sylvia Plath - Ariel](https://www.openculture.com/2013/05/hear_sylvia_plath_read_fifteen_poems_from_her_final_collection_ariel_in_1962_recording.html) - [Joyce Reads Ulysses](https://www.openculture.com/2013/06/on_bloomsday_hear_james_joyce_read_from_his_epic_iulyssesi_1924.html) - [Joyce - Finnegans Wake](https://www.openculture.com/2012/02/james_joyce_reads_anna_livia_plurabelle_from_ifinnegans_wakei.html) - [Patti Smith Reads Virginia Woolf](https://www.openculture.com/2013/01/watch_patti_smith_read_from_virginia_woolf_and_hear_the_only_surviving_recording_of_woolfs_voice.html) - [Albert Einstein](https://www.openculture.com/2013/03/listen_as_albert_einstein_reads_the_common_language_of_science_1941.html) - [Charles Bukowski](https://www.openculture.com/2013/08/charles-bukowski-poem-read-by-bukowski-tom-waits-and-bono.html) - [Bill Murray](https://www.openculture.com/2013/07/bill-murray-reads-poetry-by-billy-collins-cole-porter-and-sarah-manguso.html) - [Hemingway](https://www.openculture.com/2010/04/ernest_hemingway_reads_in_harrys_bar_in_venice.html) - [Fitzgerald Reads Shakespeare](https://www.openculture.com/2012/09/f_scott_fitzgerald_reads_from_shakespeares_iothelloi_and_john_masefields_on_growing_old_c1940.html) - [William Faulkner](https://www.openculture.com/2010/04/william_faulkner_reads_from_as_i_lay_dying.html) - [Flannery O'Connor](https://www.openculture.com/2012/05/rare_1959_audio_flannery_oconnor_reads_a_good_man_is_hard_to_find.html) - [Tolkien - The Hobbit](https://www.openculture.com/2013/07/j-r-r-tolkien-reads-from-the-two-towers-the-second-book-of-the-lord-of-the-rings-trilogy.html) - [Allen Ginsberg - Howl](https://www.openculture.com/2012/06/allen_ginsberg_reads_his_beat_classic_poem_howl.html) - [W.B Yeats](https://www.openculture.com/2012/06/rare_1930s_audio_wb_yeats_reads_four_of_his_poems.html) - [Ezra Pound](https://www.openculture.com/2012/10/ezra_pounds_fiery_1939_reading_of_his_early_poem_isestina_altafortei.html) - [Dylan Thomas](https://www.openculture.com/2012/08/dylan_thomas_recites_do_not_go_gentle_into_that_good_night_and_other_poems.html) - [Anne Sexton](https://www.openculture.com/2013/02/anne_sexton_confessional_poet_reads_wanting_to_die_in_ominous_1966_video.html) - [John Cheever](https://www.openculture.com/2014/06/john-cheever-reads-the-swimmer.html) - [David Foster Wallace](https://www.openculture.com/2014/09/hear-david-foster-wallace-read-his-own-essays-and-short-fiction.html) - ## Book Lists By - [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://www.openculture.com/2011/12/neil_degrasse_tyson_8_books_every_intelligent_person_should_read.html) - [Ernest Hemingway](https://www.openculture.com/2013/05/ernest_hemingways_reading_list_for_a_young_writer_1934.html) - [F. Scott Fitzgerald](https://www.openculture.com/2013/08/f-scott-fitzgerald-creates-a-list-of-22-essential-books-1936.html) - [Allen Ginsberg](https://www.openculture.com/2013/05/allen_ginsbergs_celestial_homework_a_reading_list_for_his_class_literary_history_of_the_beats.html) - [Patti Smith](https://www.openculture.com/2015/04/patti-smiths-list-of-favorite-books.html) - [Brian Eno](https://www.openculture.com/2015/08/brian-eno-book-lists.html) - [Henry Miller](https://www.openculture.com/2015/04/henry-miller-makes-a-list-of-the-100-books-that-influenced-me-most.html) - [Christopher Hitchens](https://www.openculture.com/2012/09/christopher_hitchens_creates_a_reading_list_for_eight-year-old_girl.html) - [Joseph Brodsky](https://www.openculture.com/2013/11/joseph-brodskys-reading-list-for-having-an-intelligent-conversation.html) - [W.H. Auden](https://www.openculture.com/2013/02/wh_audens_1941_literature_syllabus_asks_students_to_read_32_great_works_covering_6000_pages_.html) - [Donald Barthelme](https://www.openculture.com/2013/03/donald_barthelmes_syllabus_highlights_81_books_essential_for_a_literary_education_.html) - [Carl Sagan](https://www.openculture.com/2012/07/carl_sagans_undergrad_reading_list_from_plato_and_shakespeare_to_huxley_and_gide.html) - [David Bowie](https://www.openculture.com/2013/10/david-bowies-list-of-top-100-books.html) - [Samuel Beckett](https://www.openculture.com/2015/03/the-books-samuel-beckett-really-liked.html) - [Art Garfunkel](https://www.openculture.com/2014/09/art-garfunkel-lists-1195-books.html) - [Marilyn Monroe](https://www.openculture.com/2014/10/the-430-books-in-marilyn-monroes-library.html) - [Jorge Luis Borges](https://www.openculture.com/2015/03/jorge-luis-borges-personal-library.html) - [Picks by Female Creatives](https://www.openculture.com/2015/03/74-books-curated-by-female-creatives.html) - ## Syllabi - [WH Auden](https://www.openculture.com/2013/02/wh_audens_1941_literature_syllabus_asks_students_to_read_32_great_works_covering_6000_pages_.html) - [David Foster Wallace](https://www.openculture.com/2013/02/david_foster_wallaces_1994_syllabus.html) - [Donald Barthelme](https://www.openculture.com/2013/03/donald_barthelmes_syllabus_highlights_81_books_essential_for_a_literary_education_.html) - [Allen Ginsberg](https://www.openculture.com/2013/05/allen_ginsbergs_celestial_homework_a_reading_list_for_his_class_literary_history_of_the_beats.html) - [Zadie Smith & Gary Shteyngart](https://www.openculture.com/2013/08/zadie-smith-and-gary-shteyngarts-syllabi-from-columbia-university.html) - [Spike Lee](https://www.openculture.com/2013/07/spike-lee-shares-his-nyu-teaching-list-of-87-essential-films-every-aspiring-director-should-see.html) - [Lynda Barry](https://www.openculture.com/2014/11/lynda-barrys-wonderfully-illustrated-syllabus-homework-assignments-from-her-uw-madison-class-the-unthinkable-mind.html) - [Junot Diaz](https://www.openculture.com/2015/02/junot-diazs-syllabi-for-his-mit-writing-classes.html) - ## Favorite Movies - [Kubrick](https://www.openculture.com/2013/07/stanley-kubricks-list-of-top-ten-films.html) - [Kurosawa's 100](https://www.openculture.com/2015/01/akira-kurosawas-list-of-his-100-favorite-movies.html) - [Tarantino](https://www.openculture.com/2013/08/quentin-tarantino-lists-the-12-greatest-films-of-all-time.html) - [Scorsese](https://www.openculture.com/2013/07/martin-scorsese-reveals-his-10-favorite-movies.html) - [Tarkovsky](https://www.openculture.com/2014/08/andrei-tarkovsky-creates-a-list-of-his-10-favorite-films-1972.html) - [David Lynch](https://www.openculture.com/2013/09/david-lynch-on-his-favorite-directors-including-fellini-wilder-tati-and-hitchcock.html) - [Werner Herzog](https://www.openculture.com/2014/05/werner-herzog-picks-his-5-favorite-films.html) - [Woody Allen](https://www.openculture.com/2013/08/woody-allen-lists-the-greatest-films-of-all-time.html) - [Wes Anderson](https://www.openculture.com/2014/03/wes-andersons-favorite-films.html) - [Luis Buñuel](https://www.openculture.com/2015/05/the-10-favorite-films-of-avant-garde-surrealist-filmmaker-luis-bunuel-including-his-own-collaboration-with-salvador-dali.html) - [Roger Ebert](https://www.openculture.com/2014/07/roger-eberts-final-list-of-his-top-10-favorite-films-2012.html) - [Susan Sontag](https://www.openculture.com/2013/12/susan-sontags-50-favorite-films.html) - [Scorsese Foreign Films](https://www.openculture.com/2014/10/scorseses-list-of-39-essential-foreign-films.html) - [Philosophy Films](https://www.openculture.com/2014/10/44-essential-movies-for-the-student-of-philosophy.html) - ## Archives - [April 2026](https://www.openculture.com/2026/04) - [March 2026](https://www.openculture.com/2026/03) - [February 2026](https://www.openculture.com/2026/02) - [January 2026](https://www.openculture.com/2026/01) - [December 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/12) - [November 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/11) - [October 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/10) - [September 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/09) - [August 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/08) - [July 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/07) - [June 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/06) - [May 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/05) - [April 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/04) - [March 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/03) - [February 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/02) - [January 2025](https://www.openculture.com/2025/01) - [December 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/12) - [November 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/11) - [October 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/10) - [September 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/09) - [August 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/08) - [July 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/07) - [June 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/06) - [May 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/05) - [April 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/04) - [March 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/03) - [February 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/02) - [January 2024](https://www.openculture.com/2024/01) - [December 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/12) - [November 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/11) - [October 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/10) - [September 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/09) - [August 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/08) - [July 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/07) - [June 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/06) - [May 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/05) - [April 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/04) - [March 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/03) - [February 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/02) - [January 2023](https://www.openculture.com/2023/01) - [December 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/12) - [November 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/11) - [October 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/10) - [September 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/09) - [August 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/08) - [July 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07) - [June 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/06) - [May 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/05) - [April 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/04) - [March 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/03) - [February 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/02) - [January 2022](https://www.openculture.com/2022/01) - [December 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/12) - [November 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/11) - [October 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/10) - [September 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/09) - [August 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/08) - [July 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/07) - [June 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/06) - [May 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/05) - [April 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/04) - [March 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/03) - [February 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/02) - [January 2021](https://www.openculture.com/2021/01) - [December 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/12) - [November 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/11) - [October 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/10) - [September 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/09) - [August 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/08) - [July 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/07) - [June 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/06) - [May 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/05) - [April 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/04) - [March 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/03) - [February 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/02) - [January 2020](https://www.openculture.com/2020/01) - [December 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/12) - [November 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/11) - [October 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/10) - [September 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/09) - [August 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/08) - [July 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/07) - [June 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/06) - [May 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/05) - [April 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/04) - [March 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/03) - [February 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/02) - [January 2019](https://www.openculture.com/2019/01) - [December 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/12) - [November 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/11) - [October 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/10) - [September 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/09) - [August 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/08) - [July 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/07) - [June 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/06) - [May 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/05) - [April 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/04) - [March 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/03) - [February 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/02) - [January 2018](https://www.openculture.com/2018/01) - [December 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/12) - [November 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/11) - [October 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/10) - [September 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/09) - [August 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/08) - [July 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/07) - [June 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/06) - [May 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/05) - [April 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/04) - [March 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/03) - [February 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/02) - [January 2017](https://www.openculture.com/2017/01) - [December 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/12) - [November 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/11) - [October 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/10) - [September 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/09) - [August 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/08) - [July 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/07) - [June 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/06) - [May 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/05) - [April 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/04) - [March 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/03) - [February 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/02) - [January 2016](https://www.openculture.com/2016/01) - [December 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/12) - [November 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/11) - [October 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/10) - [September 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/09) - [August 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/08) - [July 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/07) - [June 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/06) - [May 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/05) - [April 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/04) - [March 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/03) - [February 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/02) - [January 2015](https://www.openculture.com/2015/01) - [December 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/12) - [November 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/11) - [October 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/10) - [September 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/09) - [August 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/08) - [July 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/07) - [June 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/06) - [May 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/05) - [April 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/04) - [March 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/03) - [February 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/02) - [January 2014](https://www.openculture.com/2014/01) - [December 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/12) - [November 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/11) - [October 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/10) - [September 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/09) - [August 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/08) - [July 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/07) - [June 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/06) - [May 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/05) - [April 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/04) - [March 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/03) - [February 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/02) - [January 2013](https://www.openculture.com/2013/01) - [December 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/12) - [November 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/11) - [October 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/10) - [September 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/09) - [August 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/08) - [July 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/07) - [June 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/06) - [May 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/05) - [April 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/04) - [March 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/03) - [February 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/02) - [January 2012](https://www.openculture.com/2012/01) - [December 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/12) - [November 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/11) - [October 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/10) - [September 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/09) - [August 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/08) - [July 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/07) - [June 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/06) - [May 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/05) - [April 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/04) - [March 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/03) - [February 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/02) - [January 2011](https://www.openculture.com/2011/01) - [December 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/12) - [November 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/11) - [October 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/10) - [September 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/09) - [August 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/08) - [July 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/07) - [June 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/06) - [May 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/05) - [April 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/04) - [March 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/03) - [February 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/02) - [January 2010](https://www.openculture.com/2010/01) - [December 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/12) - [November 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/11) - [October 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/10) - [September 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/09) - [August 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/08) - [July 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/07) - [June 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/06) - [May 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/05) - [April 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/04) - [March 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/03) - [February 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/02) - [January 2009](https://www.openculture.com/2009/01) - [December 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/12) - [November 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/11) - [October 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/10) - [September 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/09) - [August 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/08) - [July 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/07) - [June 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/06) - [May 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/05) - [April 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/04) - [March 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/03) - [February 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/02) - [January 2008](https://www.openculture.com/2008/01) - [December 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/12) - [November 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/11) - [October 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/10) - [September 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/09) - [August 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/08) - [July 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/07) - [June 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/06) - [May 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/05) - [April 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/04) - [March 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/03) - [February 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/02) - [January 2007](https://www.openculture.com/2007/01) - [December 2006](https://www.openculture.com/2006/12) - [November 2006](https://www.openculture.com/2006/11) - [October 2006](https://www.openculture.com/2006/10) - [September 2006](https://www.openculture.com/2006/09) - ## Search ![](https://cdn3.openculture.com/wp-content/themes/openculture_v4a/images/open-culture-stacked-logo-black.svg) ©2006-2026 Open Culture, LLC. All rights reserved. - [Home](https://www.openculture.com/) - [About Us](https://www.openculture.com/faq) - [Advertise with Us](https://www.openculture.com/advertise) - [Copyright Policy](https://www.openculture.com/copyright_policy) - [Privacy Policy](https://www.openculture.com/privacy_policy) - [Terms of Use](https://www.openculture.com/terms_of_use_agreement) - [Bio](https://www.linkedin.com/in/dancolman) - [Audio Books](https://www.openculture.com/freeaudiobooks "Audio Books") - [Online Courses](https://www.openculture.com/freeonlinecourses "Online Courses") - [MOOCs](https://www.openculture.com/free_certificate_courses "MOOCs") - [Movies](https://www.openculture.com/freemoviesonline "Movies") - [Languages](https://www.openculture.com/freelanguagelessons "Language Lessons") - [Textbooks](https://www.openculture.com/free_textbooks "Free Textbooks") - [eBooks](https://www.openculture.com/free_ebooks "eBooks") ![Quantcast](https://pixel.quantserve.com/pixel/p-0dRTlf6K0FnoM.gif)
Readable Markdown
We should prob­a­bly not look to sci­ence to have cher­ished beliefs con­firmed. As sci­en­tif­ic under­stand­ing of the world has pro­gressed over the cen­turies, it has brought on a loss of humans’ sta­tus as priv­i­leged beings at the cen­ter of the uni­verse whose task is to sub­due and con­quer nature. (The stub­born per­sis­tence of those atti­tudes among the pow­er­ful [has not served the species well](https://www.monbiot.com/2022/07/19/days-of-rage/).) We are not spe­cial, but we are still respon­si­ble, we have learned — maybe total­ly respon­si­ble for our lives on this plan­et. The meth­ods of sci­ence do not lend them­selves to sooth­ing exis­ten­tial anx­i­ety. But what about the most cher­ished, and like­ly ancient, of human beliefs: faith in an after­life? Ideas of an under­world, or heav­en, or hell have ani­mat­ed human cul­ture since its ear­li­est ori­gins. There is no soci­ety in the world where we will not find some belief in an after­life exist­ing com­fort­ably along­side life’s most mun­dane events. Is it a harm­ful idea? Is there any real evi­dence to sup­port it? And which ver­sion of an after­life — if such a thing exist­ed — should we believe? Such ques­tions stack up. Answers in forms sci­ence can rec­on­cile seem dimin­ish­ing­ly few. Nonethe­less, as we see in the Big Think video above, sci­en­tists, sci­ence com­mu­ni­ca­tors, and sci­ence enthu­si­asts are will­ing to dis­cuss the pos­si­bil­i­ty, or impos­si­bil­i­ty, of con­tin­u­ing after death. We begin with NASA astronomer Michelle Thaller, who ref­er­ences Ein­stein’s the­o­ry of the uni­verse as ful­ly com­plete, “so every point in the past and every point in the future are just as real as the point of time you feel your­self in right now.” Time spreads out in a land­scape, each moment already mapped and sur­veyed. When a close friend died, Ein­stein wrote a let­ter to his friend’s wife explain­ing, “Your hus­band, my friend, is just over the next hill. He’s still there” — in a the­o­ret­i­cal sense. It may not have been the com­fort she was look­ing for. The hope of an after­life is that we’ll see our loved ones again, some­thing Ein­stein’s solu­tion does not allow. Sam Har­ris — who has [leaned into the mys­ti­cal prac­tice of med­i­ta­tion](https://www.openculture.com/2016/08/philosopher-sam-harris-leads-you-through-a-26-minute-guided-meditation.html) while pulling it from its reli­gious con­text — admits that death is a “dark mys­tery.” When peo­ple die, “there’s just the sheer not know­ing what hap­pened to them. And into this void, reli­gion comes rush­ing with a very con­sol­ing sto­ry, say­ing noth­ing hap­pened them; they’re in a bet­ter place and you’re going to meet up with them after.” The sto­ry isn’t always so con­sol­ing, depend­ing on how puni­tive the reli­gion, but it does offer an expla­na­tion and sense of cer­tain­ty in the face of “sheer not know­ing.” The human mind does not tol­er­ate uncer­tain­ty par­tic­u­lar­ly well. Death feels like the great­est unknown of all. (Har­ris’ argu­ment par­al­lels that of [anthro­pol­o­gist Pas­cal Boy­er on the ori­gin of all reli­gions](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0010NZKMY/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1).) But the phe­nom­e­non of death is not unknown to us. We are sur­round­ed by it dai­ly, from the plants and ani­mals we con­sume to the pets we sad­ly let go when their lifes­pans end. Do we keep our­selves up won­der­ing what hap­pened to these beings? Maybe our spir­i­tu­al or reli­gious beliefs aren’t always about death.… “In the Old Tes­ta­ment there isn’t real­ly any sort of view of the after­life,” says Rob Bell, a spir­i­tu­al teacher (and the only talk­ing head here not aligned with a sci­en­tif­ic insti­tu­tion or ratio­nal­ist move­ment). “This idea that the whole thing is about when you die is not real­ly the way that lots of peo­ple have thought about it.” For many reli­gious prac­ti­tion­ers, the idea of eter­nal life means “liv­ing in har­mo­ny with the divine right now.” For many, this “right now” — this very moment and each one we expe­ri­ence after it — is eter­nal. See more views of the after­life above from sci­ence edu­ca­tors like Bill Nye and sci­en­tists like Michio Kaku, who says the kind of after­lives we’ve only seen in sci­ence fic­tion — “dig­i­tal and genet­ic immor­tal­i­ty” — “are with­in reach.” **Relat­ed Con­tent:** [Bene­dict Cum­ber­batch Reads Nick Cave’s Beau­ti­ful Let­ter About Grief](https://www.openculture.com/2022/07/benedict-cumberbatch-reads-nick-caves-beautiful-letter-about-grief.html) [Richard Feyn­man on Reli­gion, Sci­ence, the Search for Truth & Our Will­ing­ness to Live with Doubt](https://www.openculture.com/2014/03/richard-feynman-on-religion-science.html) [Michio Kaku & Bri­an Green Explain String The­o­ry in a Nut­shell: Ele­gant Expla­na­tions of an Ele­gant The­o­ry](https://www.openculture.com/2015/11/michio-kaku-brian-green-explain-string-theory-in-nutshell.html) [Philoso­pher Sam Har­ris Leads You Through a 26-Minute Guid­ed Med­i­ta­tion](https://www.openculture.com/2016/08/philosopher-sam-harris-leads-you-through-a-26-minute-guided-meditation.html) *[Josh Jones](http://about.me/jonesjoshua) is a writer and musi­cian based in Durham, NC. Fol­low him at [@jdmagness](https://twitter.com/jdmagness).*
ML Classification
ML Categoriesnull
ML Page Typesnull
ML Intent Typesnull
Content Metadata
Languageen-us
AuthorJosh Jones
Publish Timenot set
Original Publish Time2022-07-01 00:00:00 (3 years ago)
RepublishedNo
Word Count (Total)2,796
Word Count (Content)1,001
Links
External Links19
Internal Links584
Technical SEO
Meta NofollowNo
Meta NoarchiveNo
JS RenderedNo
Redirect Targetnull
Performance
Download Time (ms)59
TTFB (ms)57
Download Size (bytes)45,781
Shard132 (laksa)
Root Hash10352169780023415932
Unparsed URLcom,openculture!www,/2022/07/is-there-life-after-death.html s443