If it isn’t in another category, it is here.
Merging Human with Artificial Intelligence: The Reality of Sam Altman. The co-founder of Y Combinator considers the consequences of technology. From the article: On a trip to New York, Altman dropped by my apartment one Saturday to discuss how tech was transforming our view of who we are. Curled up on the sofa, knees [...]
Military mindfulness: STEM soldiers should also cultivate the liberal arts. The modern military needs the humanities to realize its mission. From the editorial: But even in an age of highly sophisticated warfare, our military leaders should not be too narrowly focused on STEM. If we want leaders who communicate clearly, solve problems creatively and appreciate cultural differences [...]
Kudos to our modernity: how science continues to transform our lives for the better, to the point that now is the greatest time in history to be alive. From the editorial: This kind of progress hasn’t happened on its own. It happened because people organized and voted for better prospects; because leaders enacted smart, forward-looking policies; [...]
On science and the humanities, of and in the world: how closely related are the investigations of the sciences and the humanities? They may begin at a common origin, but they diverge and specialize with different aims in mind where world making is concerned. Science attempts to make a world that remains invariant across human [...]
Death by technology: how living with technology deprives us of silence, inwardness, and the ability to find the well-springs of life. And this condition has its own, overlooked history. From the article: The English Reformation began, one recalls, with an assault on the monasteries, and what silence the Protestants didn’t banish the philosophers of the Enlightenment [...]
Education is useless (or rather: is education useless?): a neighborly discussion about what’s worth learning, and where one should learn what's needed -- or useful -- for life. Crimpet: Hello, neighbor. Crumpet: Why are you so happy, Crimpet? You look like you won the office pool. Crimpet: Nothing as wonderful as that. But I’m glad to [...]
The 17th-C. plague in London: now we know. How DNA (and Daniel Defoe) reveal the killer bacteria's identity in one of history's longest cold cases. From the article: Testing in Germany confirmed the presence of DNA from the Yersinia pestis bacterium - the agent that causes bubonic plague - rather than another pathogen. Some authors have previously questioned the [...]
In an recent study, Norwegian researchers funded by Microsoft discovered that using a pen stimulated more cerebral activity than typing on a computer. Drawing words makes the brain more prone to learning. From the article: Inspired by previous studies that suggested long-hand notetaking using a pen deepens the mind’s ability to retain and process information, van der [...]
Healthy living from technology and modern science: how the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative would change history within the next generation. “Can we work together to cure, prevent or manage all disease within our children’s lifetime?” Chan said Wednesday onstage at an event in San Francisco for the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. “Mark and I believe that this is possible.” Chan, a [...]
Humanities Watch Do you find more need these days to voice the value of the humanities? A new website and newsletter offers help. Who watches the watchmen, who guards the guardians? If the humanities are central to the history of our schools, and thus our way of life, do they stand watch over our leading [...]
