Category Archives: uncategorized

Jim Holt, in the NYTimes (via 3Qdaily) says “Physicists, Stop the Churlishness“. Oh come on! This ‘churlishness’ is all just part of the ‘game’ that has been going on *between* philosophers ever since the beginning. And philosophers themselves have never … Continue reading →

I was surprised to see media claims that Bill Clinton was advocating an extension of the Bush tax cuts, but Robert Reich (who was there) explains that the comment was not about what should happen but what might happen as … Continue reading →

Here are some favourite lines from Alexander Pope’s Essay on Man. Know, then, thyself, presume not God to scan; The proper study of mankind is man. Placed on this isthmus of a middle state, A being darkly wise, and rudely … Continue reading →

A current | LinkedIn discussion asks “Did man invent Maths or was it there all along waiting to be discovered?”. So I thought I’d take the return of that old question as a prompt to review and express some thoughts … Continue reading →

Apostolos Koutropoulos asks whether blogging or participation in discussion forums is preferable for participants in a MOOC. But since it’s a while since I participated in any course with him I would not have seen his question (or other stuff … Continue reading →

Nick Hanauer’s TED Presentation About Why Rich People Aren't Job Creators was initially withheld from publication. So now it’s up to others to make sure the message keeps getting repeated. Wealth concentration reduces total consumption (because the wealthy cannot actually … Continue reading →

Philosophy seems to have a self-esteem problem these days. Partly it is a matter of depending for a sense of self-worth unduly on the opinions of others, but there is no denying that some of those opinions are negative. The … Continue reading →

This time it’s christians taking offense (and getting support from the legal system in India) at the”blasphemy” of revealing the actual mechanism behind a purported “miracle”. And yet

Robert Reich’s ‘Thoughts on Tax Day 2012’ is worth noting if only for its reminder of two famous quotes. Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.(1904): “taxes are the price we pay for a civilized society.” Louis Brandeis (1897):  “we may have a democracy … Continue reading →

Byron Jennings of TRIUMF has a blog at Quantum Diaries where his latest post challenges the Intelligent Design crowd to actually make some kind of testable prediction. An alternative to making predictions, though, is just to declare the opposition in default for … Continue reading →

British Chief Rabbi Lord Sacks claims to know The Limits of Secularism, but he seems to be confusing secularism with science rather than just considering it as freedom from religion. The two essential roles that he reserves for religion are … Continue reading →

Law professor Stanley Fish probably knows quite a bit about evidence, but from his recent article with the above title I am led to doubt that he really understands much about science. In particular, his main point appears to be … Continue reading →

Philosophers seem to always be worried about not being taken seriously as providers of answers to important questions. But Philosophy Is Not a Science and so it is foolish of them to expect that kind of respect. They do not … Continue reading →

I guess it’s at least a way of generating traffic for The Chronicle Review and those who have written books and articles on the subject, but I don’t know if there’s anything really new being said – either in those … Continue reading →

What Is Science? From Feynman to Sagan to Curie, an Omnibus of Definitions is collected by Maria Popova at Brain Pickings, and John S Wilkins at Evolving Thoughts has The Knight’s Song, or What is a Theory? My own take is … Continue reading →

William M. Briggs » Good Friday: Rally For Reason With St Anselm’s Ontological Argument believes that one can “come to religion through rational argument”. Of course, if one admits a wrong argument expressed in a superficially rational-looking form as a … Continue reading →

Russell Blackford seems to like the fact that a recent Pew survey shows more Americans are getting wary of religion in politics. So do I. I am offended by the view that religions should have privileged treatment under the law … Continue reading →

This ‘debate’ at The Chronicle Review came to my attention via Jean Kazez and Russell Blackford.

The fact that Facebook Co-Founder Chris Hughes has purchased The New Republic is a good sign that those who bewail the impact of the web on serious writing.

This New Yorker article gives a nice blend of personal,  scientific,  and species history. It would be interesting to know if what we picked up from our bigger brained but ultimately less successful cousins was just random or if it includes … Continue reading →