Survival Achieved–Now What?
Humans, as a species, no longer struggle to survive. We survive. Arguably too well. We inhabit almost every corner of the globe and have figured out how to survive in […]
Category Archives: Politics & Culture
Making Better Use of Humanity’s Most Valuable Resource: Good Ideas
Srinivasa Ramanujan has an interesting life story. As a child in India, Ramanujan was a mathematical prodigy, but lacked access to teachers who could help him exploit that brilliance. Instead, he […]
Power in Diversity: Storytelling as a Social Catalyst
Our lives are shaped by stories – even the most frivolous and whimsical are essential in the construction of our subjective and shared realities. Stories convey information we have learned; […]
Stories to Live By: Changing Our Minds, Pt 1
We hate changing our minds. When politicians do it, pundits call it a “flip-flop” and laugh at them. When pundits do it, other pundits laugh at them. (Except for Philip Tetlock, […]
Storytelling: The Dangerous Art of Identity Formation
When I was four years old, I attended a church-based preschool in a small town in Minnesota. My parents carpooled with friends from the neighborhood, and because of this arrangement […]
4 Lessons from My Failed Project as an Able-Bodied Ally
This past January I had an idea for a project. I work for a transition program in Berkeley, CA that provides life skills training and support for young people as […]
Black America & Radicalism: Thoughts on Malcom X’s Birthday
America preaches integration and practices segregation. – Malcolm X I’ve always been fascinated by how the 70’s were such an important time in terms of Black consciousness-raising, most of which […]
Why is Literature Important? The 3 Social Functions of Fiction
What’s the purpose of literature? Of fiction? Of course it’s enjoyable – it sweeps our emotions this way and that and allows us to ‘experience’ so much beyond our everyday life. […]
New Studies: the Rise of Men in ‘Pink Collar Ghettos’ & the Gender Wage Gap
This Year’s Equal Pay Day April 8th of this year was Equal Pay Day. This rather unpleasant “holiday”, which originated in 1996, symbolizes the amount of additional days women must […]
Math & the Liberal Arts Education at Rutgers University
Introductory-level mathematics education is a festering wart on this country’s nose. More locally, Rutgers—a university which touts some of the best researchers in applied mathematics, as well as a top-twenty […]
Applied Sentience 