Can buildings make you happy?
Is it possible to have a building that can make you happy, sad, or even angry?
The Spirit of ... Adventure
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."
The Spirit of Design: Designing the Perfect Consumer
Consumers today have more power than ever before. The large and diverse selection of media available on newsstands means that customers know what they should be getting, and if they aren't satisfied with the service there's a host of Web sites and forums on which they can let everyone know.
French maestro gives an A to Z of teamwork
Zinedine Zidane is sure of the quality most necessary to create a successful team: mutual respect.
The Spirit of Diplomacy: The envoy who spoke out
Common opinion holds that diplomacy involves careful negotiation and an ability to bite your tongue. But what happens when the political situation in a country is so corrupt that you feel it is your moral duty to speak out?
Obama, McCain and the tall tales of politicians
When Americans go to the polls this November, there will be many factors that influence where they eventually decide to cast their vote:
Uncovering the secrets of storytelling
We have all heard that time-worn phrase trotted out about everyone having at least one book inside them, and most of us like to believe it's true.
Queen Rania most inspirational leader of 2008
She is one of the world's most likeable and photogenic leaders, has her own YouTube channel, and is determined to change the face of learning in the Middle East.
10 ideas that changed the world
Imagine a world without zero: The magic number that has given us everything from simple algebra to quantum physics, which forms the basis of modern computing in binary code and which, less profoundly, but perhaps more importantly, lets us know when we've drained our bank account with one too many shopping trips.
The spirit of leadership
"The Spirit of..." team has been running an online poll asking viewers to choose who they think has been the most influential leader to have featured on the show over the course of the past twelve months.
Can buildings make you happy?
Is it possible to have a building that can make you happy, sad, or even angry?
The Spirit of ... Adventure
"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."
The Spirit of Design: Designing the Perfect Consumer
Consumers today have more power than ever before. The large and diverse selection of media available on newsstands means that customers know what they should be getting, and if they aren't satisfied with the service there's a host of Web sites and forums on which they can let everyone know.
French maestro gives an A to Z of teamwork
Zinedine Zidane is sure of the quality most necessary to create a successful team: mutual respect.
The Spirit of Diplomacy: The envoy who spoke out
Common opinion holds that diplomacy involves careful negotiation and an ability to bite your tongue. But what happens when the political situation in a country is so corrupt that you feel it is your moral duty to speak out?
Obama, McCain and the tall tales of politicians
When Americans go to the polls this November, there will be many factors that influence where they eventually decide to cast their vote:
Uncovering the secrets of storytelling
We have all heard that time-worn phrase trotted out about everyone having at least one book inside them, and most of us like to believe it's true.
Queen Rania most inspirational leader of 2008
She is one of the world's most likeable and photogenic leaders, has her own YouTube channel, and is determined to change the face of learning in the Middle East.
10 ideas that changed the world
Imagine a world without zero: The magic number that has given us everything from simple algebra to quantum physics, which forms the basis of modern computing in binary code and which, less profoundly, but perhaps more importantly, lets us know when we've drained our bank account with one too many shopping trips.
The spirit of leadership
"The Spirit of..." team has been running an online poll asking viewers to choose who they think has been the most influential leader to have featured on the show over the course of the past twelve months.
All change: Can Obama save the U.S. economy?
Change -- probably the single word used more than any other by President-elect Barack Obama to enunciate his vision of a post-Bush America.
Who was the most inspirational leader featured in 2008?
Who do you feel has been the most inspirational leader featured on The Spirit Of in 2008?
The Spirit of Change
In this end-of-year programme, "The Spirit of..." examines the financial crisis that has impacted the world and asks what financial and political world leaders can do to help.
Churches at a changing point
The architecture of churches has undergone some major changes in the last century -- but has this been a change for the better or worse?
The Spirit of Architecture
In November we step inside the world of design as show host Becky Anderson searches for the Spirit of Architecture.
The world's ugliest buildings
Monstrosities, eyesores, nightmares of architecture -- call them what you like, ugly buildings are sadly all around us.
Is this the best building in the world?
How do you pick the best buildings in the world? And what makes them stand out from the rest?
Blending safety with sexy: Space fashion is here
You can almost picture it now: Paris Hilton swallowed up by a tight-fitting futuristic designer space suit -- one hand waving at the on-flight camera, the other clasping a Dior "space traveler" handbag.
Hawking: If we survive the next 200 years, we should be OK
Professor Stephen Hawking, one of the world's great scientists, is looking to the stars to save the human race -- but pessimism is overriding his natural optimism.
Predict the great leaders of 2009
It's your turn to tell us at CNN who you think the great leaders of 2009 will be.
'Space elevator' would take humans into orbit
A new space race is officially under way, and this one should have the sci-fi geeks salivating.
Astronaut teachers to inspire next generation
It may be one small step for civilian space travel, but it's a leap for education.
'The Spirit of Space' in October
"The moon's been there for about four billion years and it's moving further and further away from the earth. And it's been a destination or quizzical thing for humans for thousands of years, centuries; it's been something that you dream about." -- Astronaut Buzz Aldrin on "The Spirit of Space."
Training for civilian space travel is no picnic, Garriott says
Getting "out of this world" with civilian space travel is not quite as simple as you may think.
Ask Stephen Hawking a space question
Cosmologist, theoretical physicist and author, Stephen Hawking is possibly the world's greatest living scientist.
How did Lagos become more expensive than L.A.?
It's very rarely African cities get compared with their flashy European counterparts, yet, when it comes to cost of living Lagos isn't just competing with its neighbors in Europe -- it's beating them.
Cell phones promise fairer elections in Africa
The humble mobile phone is driving a new revolution which some experts hope could bring fairer elections and democracy to some African states.
Six of the best: CNN readers tell us their stories
Writers can be notoriously prickly about new technology.
Tom Waits: The bard of Americana
As the lights went down in the theater the low murmur built to a thunderous ovation as the odd-looking man in the crumpled suit and bowler hat took to the stage.
Doris Lessing: Born into stories
"Do you ever listen to stories? You do. You don't even know you do. Also you tell stories all the time."
Queen Rania of Jordan: a beautiful paradox
Beautiful and intelligent, and balancing a modern outlook with a deep concern for her people, Jordan's Queen Rania seems in many ways to represent the optimistic face of the Middle East's future.
Venezuela orchestra inspires fight against child poverty
Britain's rundown housing estates and deprived inner cities will be the setting for a new project that aims to use classical music to lift children out of the poverty trap.
Young people break down barriers in the Middle East
When you grow up in a place of war, your realities are inevitably driven by the violence surrounding you.
Five of sport's greatest ever underdogs
In sport, being the best is not just about the having the greatest players. Here are five teams that have gone from zeroes to heroes, and in the process left their mark on sporting history.
The height of teamwork on Everest
A veteran of over 20 years of mountain climbing, Dave Bunting has been in some pretty tight scrapes.
Survivalists get ready for meltdown
Derek is compiling a survival guide on how to cope after the total collapse of society. It is, as you can imagine, a big job.
Townsfolk prepare for life after oil
Imagine a life where each morning you cycle to work, and come home at night to tend your allotment and eat a dinner of locally produced food.
Gaia straits: Planetary doctor says condition terminal
James Lovelock refers to himself as a "planetary doctor."
Profile: Craig Brown, Satirist
It could be argued when Tony Blair left the office of Prime Minister in June, his parting from the public stage was mourned by few but chief among those mourners were Britain's satirists. The characteristics of the Blair government with its emphasis on spin and sound bites created a wealth of material for top British satirist Craig Brown.
Is collaboration the future of invention?
A question. What connects Facebook enthusiasts in China busy translating the social networking site into Mandarin and a community of orthopaedic surgeons swapping ideas on how to treat spinal injuries?
From Velcro to zero: a history of patents
When the English inventor Henry Bessemmer launched his extravagant cure for sea-sickness in 1875 it must have seemed like a sure thing.
Six species under threat in Mexico
Home to up to 10 percent of all known species, Mexico is recognized as one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet.
Out of trouble: How diplomacy brought peace to Northern Ireland
Commentators who have watched the conflict in Northern Ireland play out for decades call the peace process a miracle.
Do The Monster Mash
When Brian Burton, a little known DJ operating under the name of Danger Mouse, released "The Grey Album" in 2003, he brought to mainstream attention a new form of musical genre made possible by the advance of modern technology and the Internet. He also inadvertently sparked a debate about record labels' monopoly of music ownership.
The battle for London's teenagers
Michelle Forbes' son Leon was an aspiring hip-hop musician when he was shot and killed near his home in South London at the age of 21.
The Spirit of Music: Is the protest over?
"This here ain't no protest song or anything like that, cause I don't write no protest songs."
The Spirit of Music: The Science of Pop
Since the early days of pop music, the music industry has been searching for the secret formula to writing a successful song -- for that special alchemy that separates a Grammy-winner from a dud. For a period in the 1970s and 80s, the self-styled King of Pop Michael Jackson seemed to have stumbled upon it, but somewhere along the line he, too, seems to have misplaced it.
Scientists forecast a storm from climate change
White sand beaches, tropical rain forests and colorful coral reefs -- southern Mexico would appear to have it all.
Grief on the reef
The world's coral reefs are under threat. Overfishing, unsustainable tourism, coastal development, pollution, the global aquarium trade and climate change are having a devastating effect on these fragile ecosystems, according to the International Coral Reef Initiative.
Disposing of our throwaway culture
Remember the days when a washing machine lasted for decades? If it broke down it could be fixed. But now it seems it is cheaper to discard our broken products and buy new ones. The side effects of our throwaway society are ever-larger waste mountains festering with toxic chemicals and the depletion of natural resources such as rare metals.
Profile: Craig Brown, Satirist
It could be argued when Tony Blair left the office of Prime Minister in June, his parting from the public stage was mourned by few but chief among those mourners were Britain's satirists. The characteristics of the Blair government with its emphasis on spin and sound bites created a wealth of material for top British satirist Craig Brown.
The Spirit of Satire: How to Get a Laugh
It's boom-boom time for comedians and satirists. They pack out tents at music festivals, clubs and pubs and fill up the prime time slots on TV and radio. They have colonized multimedia with podcasts, vodcasts and blogs. So if you need cheering up or feel like a laugh, there have never been more places to get it.
Prevention better than cure
Finally you've decided to commit yourself to a sport -- you've brought the gear, you've joined a team, you've got the equipment -- then on your first try, an injury occurs. Doh!
The Spirit of Sport: Obscure Pastimes
Always last to be picked for the team? Couldn't catch a ball if your life depended on it? Got coordination skills that make you a laughing stock?
Face to face charity
Who'd be a chugger? It's a thankless task -- standing on the High Street often in the rain, wearing a fluorescent vest, hold in a clipboard and trying to get someone, anyone, to stop and talk to you -- and maybe even donate some money.
Your dreams and inspirations
When we asked you last week to share your dreams with us, some of the most inspiring responses came from the world's poorest countries.
The Spirit of Giving: Ten Ways to Give
It doesn't have to be Christmas for you to start thinking of giving -- how you can do it, where you can do it and those most likely to benefit from your gifts.
Be adventurous: join Future Friday
In an age of unromance, of Internet dating, of gut reaction cynicism -- I love hearing a story about how Lenny Ann Low of Sydney met her fiancé Alan of Glasgow.
Disconnecting is key to exploring
There is such a thing as being out of time: of looking at a map in your bedroom and realizing the most intriguing bits of the world have already been explored, that many indigenous groups had already been ruined by modern life, that vast tracts of rainforests or deserts or seas had also been spoiled by progress, that climbing Everest has become just another sport.
The Spirit of Discovery: Pioneering medical discoveries
The discovery of HIV, a breakthrough in the treatment of bipolar disorder, the advent of the contraceptive pill ... CNN looks at some of the scientific discoveries that changed the world.
