Literature

3 02, 2017

Between wisdom and enlightenment

By |2017-02-10T00:03:08-05:00February 3rd, 2017|2017, Arts, Asia, Everything Else, February, Literature, Philosophy, Quotes, science|0 Comments

Between wisdom and enlightenment: self-understanding outshines knowledge of other people and things Knowing others is wisdom; Knowing the self is enlightenment. Mastering others requires force; Mastering the self needs strength. He who knows he has enough is rich. Perseverance is a sign of power. He who stays where he is endures. To die but not [...]

22 01, 2017

Humanities aid the growth of STEM (Neil Kobitz, Chronicle for Higher Education)

By |2017-03-08T22:45:54-05:00January 22nd, 2017|2017, Academia, Debate / dialogue, education, Everything Else, History, January, Language, Literature, mathematics, News, Politics, science, STEM, U.S. / Canada, Writing|0 Comments

Humanities aid the growth of STEM: a mathematics professor calculates their value, an important formula...when others are now estimating the worth of the NEH as close to zero. From the editorial: ... [F]or STEM majors, as much as for other future professionals, a broad background in the humanities is likely to give them a tremendous advantage in [...]

17 01, 2017

Addressing or dismissing the anxieties of conscience

By |2017-01-25T20:56:22-05:00January 17th, 2017|2017, Debate / dialogue, Europe, Everything Else, February, health, Literature, Medicine, Philosophy, psychology, Quotes, Religion, science, Writing|0 Comments

Addressing or dismissing the anxieties of conscience: is this the purview of medical science? Or of other therapy? In our time (this is truth, and it is significant for the Christianity of our time), in our time it is the physician who exercises the cure of souls. People have perhaps an unfounded dread of calling in [...]

15 01, 2017

Mocking the humanities (George Will, Pittsburgh Tribune)

By |2017-01-14T14:22:20-05:00January 15th, 2017|2017, Academia, Debate / dialogue, Everything Else, January, Language, Literature, News, Philosophy, science, U.S. / Canada|0 Comments

Mocking the humanities: a pundit recounts how a scientist used parody -- a classic literary mode of expression -- to mock  academic practices in the humanities. From the commentary: Alan Sokal's point ... was that intellectual inquiry in the humanities often is not open. The humanities, he today tells The Chronicle, had become a “subculture” [...]

9 01, 2017

What do the humanities have to say? And who should listen?

By |2017-01-09T10:39:09-05:00January 9th, 2017|2017, Academia, Debate / dialogue, education, Europe, History, January, Language, Literature, News, science, STEM|0 Comments

What do the humanities have to say? And who should listen? A note from Mary Beard, at year's end: They have just issued on the website a top 24 of Cambridge research stories this year. On my reckoning, 19 of those are pure science.... You’d think from looking at this roster that none of the work that [...]

2 01, 2017

The Greatest of New Years

By |2017-01-07T12:18:13-05:00January 2nd, 2017|2017, Academia, Debate / dialogue, education, Europe, Everything Else, History, January, Language, Literature, mathematics, Observations, Philosophy, science, STEM, Technology|0 Comments

The Greatest of New Years: that our age of science is also the age of the humanities, from our St. Petersburg correspondent, 1 January 2017 “S nastupivishim!”: “Happy upcoming New Year!” So the new year begins here, ahead of yours, and we have been enjoying the sparkling lights in the Nevsky Prospekt. There are fewer tourists [...]

1 01, 2017

Time and remembrance

By |2017-01-01T16:56:09-05:00January 1st, 2017|2017, Arts, Europe, Everything Else, History, January, Language, Literature, Philosophy, poetry, Quotes, Religion, Writing|0 Comments

Time and remembrance: recalling our place in the change of the year opens up new possibilities for us to commemorate the lives of others, to "preserve frail transitory fame," and also to acknowledge the source of what is lasting and eternal. To the Countess of Bedford, On New Year's Day THIS twilight of two years, not past, nor [...]

23 12, 2016

Do the humanities provide nothing?

By |2016-12-23T08:31:09-05:00December 23rd, 2016|2016, Asia, December, Everything Else, Literature, Philosophy, poetry, Quotes, Religion, science, U.S. / Canada|0 Comments

Do the humanities provide nothing? And if so, does this "nothingness" reveal more than does science or other fields of knowledge? The Yellow Emperor went wandering To the north of the Red Water To the Kwan Lun mountain. He looked around Over the edge of the world. On the way home He lost his night-colored pearl. [...]

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