David Hugh-Jones' blog

edge.org asked a bunch of scientists for their "dangerous idea" 

Not surprisingly, there are a lot of ones about science and religion. Also a lot of ones about minds, brains and genes. Cognitive science is "hot". These ideas are interesting but not so new, at least to me personally. Quite a lot of physicists talk about the idea of a "multiverse". A more political trend is a worry about American decline - there are a lot of grumbles about the lack of US science students.

Here are some of the ones I liked:

Sherry Turkle on the end of authenticity
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_8.html#turkle

Steven Strogatz on the end of insight
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_8.html#strogatz

Jaron Lanier on homuncular flexibility
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_7.html#lanier

Richard Nisbett on not knowing ourselves
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_3.html#nisbett

Jeremy Bernstein: the idea that we understand plutonium
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_3.html#bernstein

Frank Tipler on antimatter
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_4.html#tipler

Gregory Cochran: evolution has taken place within recorded history
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_4.html#cochran

Alison Gopnik: the idea of "dangerous ideas"
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_4.html#gopnik

Brian Greene on the multiverse (several physicists mention this theme):
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_5.html#greene

Diane F. Halpern on choosing your child's sex
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_7.html#halpern

Daniel Dennett: not enough minds for our memes
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_8.html#dennett

Robert Shapiro on monomers and the search for the origin of life
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_9.html#shapiro

Geoffrey Miller: aliens are too busy playing their Xboxes
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_9.html#miller

Bart Kosko: we're all using the wrong Bell Curve!
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_11.html#kosko

Marco Iacoboni: media violence induces imitative violence
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_11.html#iacaboni

Leo Chalupa: give me peace and quiet!
http://www.edge.org/q2006/q06_12.html#chalupa