Dan Brown, who is to history what Rasputin was to anti-coagulant therapy, has a new book out. But you knew that. Everyone knew that. Because it sold a million trillion copies in four minutes. It’s called The Lost Symbol and marks the return of Robert Langdon, symbologist (a degree now . . . . Continue Reading »
The question uppermost on everyone’s mind has now been answered: What the heck would a Bob Dylan Christmas album even sound like? Although the actual album won’t be released until October 13th, a full tracklist, along with thirty-second audio samples, has now been revealed on Amazon UK. . . . . Continue Reading »
Encountering an unexpected, bizarre situation—like a a story by Franz Kafka— can improve learning : According to research by psychologists at UC Santa Barbara and the University of British Columbia, exposure to the surrealism in, say, Kafka’s “The Country Doctor” or . . . . Continue Reading »
Speaking of children’s Mass sets, I can’t believe I didn’t see this, either. . . . . Continue Reading »
Before everyone gets tired of “playing the race card” game with Jimmy Carter, it might be worth noting that even though over fifty-four percent of the population of Washington, D.C. is African American, the white minority is not all that anxious to let the black folks vote on a . . . . Continue Reading »
Our friend Chris Mueller, who directs the music here in New York for Notre Dame, the Polish Dominican parish up near Columbia, joined what you’d have to call the battle of the early music bands last week. Secular vs. Sacred, the event featured Trio Triumvirum , an all-male ensemble singing . . . . Continue Reading »
When I was researching Consumer’s Guide to a Brave New World, it hit me that the ethical values of many scientists cut against the grain of most of the citizenry. Actually, that didn’t just hit me—I quote a major scientist making that very point. From my book (citations . . . . Continue Reading »
This is a cause that the social right and the political left, liberals and conservatives, and everyone in between can agree upon: Don’t permit human genes to be patented. Genes are not human inventions. Hence, they should not be subject to patent protection (as opposed, say, the . . . . Continue Reading »
A nice line on a philosopher: “He wants to substitute rhetoric for argument but without quite giving up argument. So he ends up giving shoddy arguments.” In a good online discussion of truth and Richard Rorty. . . . . Continue Reading »
I think an overwhelming portion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, that he’s African American. That of course, is former President Jimmy Carter playing the race card-—bigtime! Not just an extreme fringe mind . . . . Continue Reading »
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