Susan Sontag: 3 Steps to Refuting Any Argument
Calling to mind Daniel Dennett’s advice on how to compose a successful critical commentary, Susan Sontag offers three steps to refuting any argument, from the newly released As Consciousness Is …
Philosophy
Happy Birthday Jean-Jacques Rousseau
“Man is born free, yet everywhere he is in chains.” Jean-Jacques Rousseau was born to a family in Geneva. His mother passed only a few days after his birth. A few years later, his father fled after a …
The Noise Bottleneck: When More Information is Harmful
When consuming information, we strive for more signal and less noise. The problem is a cognitive illusion: we feel like the more information we consume the more signal we receive. While this is …
The Swerve: How the World Became Modern
In The Swerve: How the World Became Modern, Stephen Greenblatt tells the story of the most important person you’ve probably never heard of: Poggio Bracciolini. Although Bracciolini’s …
The Simple Principles of Good Management
Herbert Simon, Nobel Prize laureate and polymath, offered many contributions to the world in fields such as computer science/artificial intelligence, cognitive psychology, economics, and management. …
Seneca on Clemency, Blood, Happiness, and Anger
Susanna Braund‘s translation of Seneca’s De Clementia, is well worth the read. Seneca addresses De Clementia to the young Roman emperor Nero, with the aim of depicting the ideal ruler. …
What is a Black Swan?
Black swans are the unexpected outliers, the rare and unpredictable events that defy our usual expectations and profoundly impact our world. They are the surprises that no one sees coming, the …
Kantian Fairness Tendency: The World Isn’t Fair
The Kantian Fairness Tendency refers to the pursuit of perfect fairness which causes a lot of terrible problems. Stop expecting the world to be fair and adjust your behavior accordingly. To learn …
Donald Norman on the Two Types of Knowledge
An interesting excerpt from Donald Norman’s book The Design of Everyday Things on two types of knowledge. People function through their use of two kinds of knowledge: knowledge of and knowledge …
Derek Parfit: Does Anything Matter?
I must admit that I have Derek Parfit‘s long-awaited book On What Matters sitting on my nightstand at the moment. I’m aided in my procrastination by its daunting length—over 1400 pages in …
James March: The Ambiguities of Experience
How do our experiences help us learn? We’re often told that experience is the best way to learn. We might see this play out when someone gives us advice which we ignore, until experience teaches us …
Machiavelli’s Mistake: Why Good Laws Are No Substitute For Good Citizens
A summary of Samuel Bowles’ lecture series entitled “Machiavelli’s Mistake” at the Santa Fe Institute. 1. Moral Sentiments and Material Interests The classical thinkers from …
Niccolò Machiavelli and the Four Princes of Pragmatism
To top off the course The Moral Leader, Professor Badaracco’s students dissect Niccolo Machiavelli’s chilling classic The Prince. “You may think that’s an odd place to end what …
Bertrand Russell: On Avoiding Foolish Opinions
Want to steer clear of foolishness? Bertrand Russell has some timeless advice that can help. While it won’t make you infallible, his practical tips can go a long way in identifying and avoiding …