News articles and commentary on the place of the humanities in the modern world.
Thinking critically on the job (Kate Davidson, Wall Street Journal)
Thinking critically on the job: do workers have what it takes (non-technically speaking) to succeed in the Age of Technology? From the article: To determine the most sought-after soft skills, LinkedIn analyzed those listed on the [...]
No literature allowed (Steven Pearlstein, Washington Post)
No literature allowed: parents see little need for their children to receive a broad university education, as its ROI seems negligible. From the article: For me, there’s nothing more depressing than meeting incoming freshmen at Mason who [...]
Math and the Mayans (Eric Vance, National Geographic)
Math and the Mayans: an archaeologist brings his engineering experience to bear in reinterpreting pre-Columbian calendars. From the article: Archaeologists have long looked to Venus to understand Maya calendars and tradition. But now, a fresh look [...]
What was Shakespeare thinking? (Scott L. Newstock, Chronicle of Higher Education)
What was Shakespeare thinking (and why does it matter)? The ways that old, even ancient, methods of learning can produce original results. From the article: You take it for granted that Olympic athletes and professional [...]
Sifting through and sifting out: ways employers are testing the college degree (Ryan Craig, EdSurge)
Sifting through and sifting out: ways employers are testing the college degree. Do employers (and students) expect too much from university education, or too little? From the article: According to the Gallup-Lumina survey, only 11 percent of [...]
The arts of medicine
The arts of medicine: for those in the healing field, knowing their patients requires more than the natural sciences. From the article: "[T]oday’s medical curriculum teaches new doctors about culture and communication. It is no longer good enough [...]
Solve problems, find work, enjoy automation (David Autor, Journal of Economic Perspectives)
Solve problems, find work, enjoy automation: how technology enhances the value of the humanities. From the article: The final section of this paper reflects on how recent and future advances in artificial intelligence and robotics should shape [...]
Therapy and the nurture of nature (Fiona Macdonald, BBC Culture)
Therapy and the nurture of nature: how landscape and the natural world foster (from the Greek, therapeia) wholeness. From the article: For many writers, the act of observing nature has healing properties. Amy Liptrot found it [...]
Good books in Damascus (Mike Thomson, BBC)
Good books in Damascus: how a library can offer a respite from war and civic disintegration. From the article: I ask [Abdulbaset Alahmar], in a besieged town that has only had access to two aid [...]
Poetic Justice (Elisa Gonzalez, The New Yorker)
Poetic justice: how a poet may know the justice system, inside and out. From the article: Reginald Dwayne Betts has wanted to be a lawyer for almost as long as he has wanted to be a poet. [...]