The Invention of the Don: An excerpt from Intellect and Character in Victorian England by H. S. Jones. From The Pomegranate, a review of Not in His Image: Gnostic Vision, Sacred Ecology, and the Future of Belief by John Lamb Lash and a review of The Nature of Magic: An Anthropology of Consciousness by Susan Greenwood. Parallel universes, alien religions and Carl Jung: An interview with Clifford Pickover, author of Sex, Drugs, Einstein and Elves. A review of Critical realism today. A review of Facets of Sociality. Freedom's Just Another Word for Nothing Left to Choose: Stoics say freedom is an illusion. That's why they have no choice but to think deeply about the Grateful Dead. In the quiet spa town now known as Marianske Lazne, visitors can relax in the footsteps of Czar Nicholas II, Friedrich Nietzsche, Franz Kafka and Rudyard Kipling.
From TED, starting with the deceptively simple story of an ant, Dan Dennett unleashes a dazzling sequence of ideas, making a powerful case for the existence of "memes". Window of Possibility: Why the Hubble Ultra Deep Field is the most incredible photograph ever taken. While the argument against animal maltreatment is nothing new, some activists are proposing a new, more coherent theory of animal rights that would focus on just one issue: the right not to be treated as human property. But is the world ready even to question the morality of pet ownership, never mind condemn it? Which is better: not good or not bad? For Their Eyes Only: Intelligence agencies are a difficult research topic but too important for scholars to ignore. A review of Alexis de Tocqueville: A Life by Hugh Brogan and Alexis de Tocqueville: Democracy’s Guide by Joseph Epstein. A review of Unknown Quantity: A Real and Imaginary History of Algebra by John Derbyshire.
A review of The Making of the Fittest: DNA and the Ultimate Forensic Record of Evolution by Sean B. Carroll. Wrong by design: Guillermo Gonzalez has been denied a physics post by his university. Quite right: you cannot believe in ID and call yourself a scientist. A review of Living with Darwin: Evolution, Design, and the Future of Faith by Philip Kitcher. A review of The God Gene: How Faith Is Hardwired into Our Genes by Dean H. Hamer. A review of The Improbability of God. A review of The Self Awakened: Pragmatism Unbound by Roberto Mangabeira Unger. A review of Feminism and Philosophy of Science: An Introduction by Elizabeth Potter. A review of The Hite Report: A National Study of Female Sexuality by Shere Hite. Listening to MP3s in a storm could blow your mind: Wearing personal stereo earphones in a thunderstorm can conduct the lightning into the head, as a Canadian man discovered to his cost.
From Discover, what’s so friggin' funny? Nothing—laughter is simply how we connect. The Overestimation of Niels Bohr: More on Faust in Copenhagen. A Trip Back in Time and Space: The Harvard Observatory holds more than half a million images constituting humanity’s only record of a century’s worth of sky. Regarding a New Humanism: The true "sacred texts" of the western tradition have been for centuries, those of the great authors. Quantum physics is no less-inspired a monument than the Bible. Nor less ambiguous. And You Thought Your Job Was Rough: A look at the worst jobs in science. Determined to Reinspire a Culture of Innovation: William A. Wulf says innovation in science and manufacturing starts with the eureka moment, in which people discover the reward in solving problems. Says who? You, too, can be a self-proclaimed expert on something, according to an expert on the matter.
