Like Charlie Gard before him, British toddler Alfie Evan’s situation highlights not just questions of medical ethics, but the power of the state over the individual. I wrote about Charlie here. Alfie Evans’ situation differs in some details, but it’s … Continue reading →
Google has a new director of AI: The new AI boss at Google is Jeff Dean. The lean 50-year-old computer scientist joined the company in 1999, when it was a startup less than one year old. He earned a reputation … Continue reading →
[NOTE: Today’s news is so depressing and appalling that I wanted a respite from it by going big. This is about as big as it gets.] Maria Popova writes: In our recent On Being conversation, NASA astrophysicist and exoplanet researcher … Continue reading →
In particular, they are making it less likely we will pay close attention in the first place. Huh? What’s that you said? Simply put, it’s the idea that we’re literally outsourcing our mental capabilities to computers. In 2011, the journal … Continue reading →
This comment from “The Other Chuck” was so good I decided to highlight it [emphasis mine]: [Postmodernism is] the destruction of human reason, using reason, and the destruction of everything flowing from reason. If this sounds like nihilism, yes, but … Continue reading →
Pass it around: Does he even take a breath? On Marxism’s appeal: Last summer I wrote a post on that latter subject. Here it is: When I first saw this tweet, I thought it very clever: Difference between Nazi and … Continue reading →
Well of course luck has something to do with success. But the basics must be there in terms of brains, drive, and ability, or it won’t work out in the long run even with some luck. I don’t think much … Continue reading →
Take a look. The following quote is in line with something I’ve observed as well, which is that Peterson speaks in an unusually measured, solemn way that comes across as exceedingly thoughtful. His every utterance appears to emanate from a … Continue reading →
—John Updike: we may skate upon an intense radiance we do not see because we see nothing else. Delmore Schwartz was a mid-20th-century poet with a tragic life but a wonderful gift. In fact, Saul Bellow wrote the novel Humboldt’s … Continue reading →
Yesterday and today, on the comments thread to this post I put up last night, there was a great deal of discussion about the reactions of the security guard at Parkland who failed to engage the shooter or even enter … Continue reading →
It’s called 12 Rules For Life: An Antidote to Chaos, and it’s been #1 for much of the time since it was released on January 23, 2018. As I write this it has over 600 customer reviews and, astoundingly, almost … Continue reading →
The difference between these two speeches is abundantly clear: Trump offered bleakness, hostility, bigotry, and division. Kennedy offered hope, honesty, integrity, and unity.#SOTU — Charlotte Clymer???? (@cmclymer) January 31, 2018 Made me think of the first paragraph of Hans Christian … Continue reading →