Quotes from thinkers, old and new, about how the humanities relate to our lives.
Flowers, humanity, and the use of the useless
What is "useless" serves to remind us of our humanity.
On science and ignorance, and re-viewing the history of “progress”
How science meets its limits in questions awaiting answers.
The beauty of nature observed in its unfolding.
Beauty in nature is there to be seen, if we have eyes for it.
Sun, nature, spirit, philanthropy
The spirit of philanthropy at Christmas, evoked by nature.
The poet and civilization: why does a poet write, and why does it matter?
Poets write not merely for themselves but more importantly for the world and civilization in which they live.
Rivers of time and change, outside and within
Change over time leads to thoughts of our accepted certainties.
Handwriting, typing, word-processing, texting: an evolution, or devolution, of understanding.
How the shift from handwriting to technological word-processing indicates a loss of language's deeper meaning.
On American reading, technology, and intellectual life
How American society limits our reading and concentration, also by technology.
Science meets mythology
Two formative thinkers of the 20th-century consider the force of instinctual aggression.
The weight of mountains and the price of wealth
The gravity of time and existence overcomes any social power and wealth we might possess.