Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 90

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

Nobody ever wrote a best selling novel about Raphael, and yet…

Don’t believe in God? Try UFOs instead.

Monopoly was actually invented to demonstrate the evils of capitalism.

Take a cold shower, it’s a really good idea (but ignore what the author says about Stoicism, he’s got it wrong, as usual).

What cultural taste for chili peppers tells us about the evolution of social norms.

Umberto Eco and the 14 defining characteristics of fascism. See how many you can spot in the current Republican leader.

Want to be happy? Buy whatever makes you save time.

The problem of meaningless academic language.

Parenthood not recommended.

_____

Please notice that the duration of the comments window is three days (including publication day), and that comments are moderated for relevance (to the post one is allegedly commenting on), redundancy (not good), and tone (constructive is what we aim for). This applies to both the suggested readings and the regular posts. Thanks!

Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 89

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

On Tyranny: a test of American traditions.

Understatement of the decade: as a guru, Ayn Rand may have limits.

ABSOLUTE MUST-READ: on the rise and fall of globalization.

Is linguistics a science? Does it matter?

Doctor Who breaks its 👽 glass ceiling, and predictably some people don’t like it.

_____

Please notice that the duration of the comments window is three days (including publication day), and that comments are moderated for relevance (to the post one is allegedly commenting on), redundancy (not good), and tone (constructive is what we aim for). This applies to both the suggested readings and the regular posts. Thanks!

Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 88

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

Fascinating essay tracing the ethical history of money lending.

How Google search data reveals just how sexist, racist and generally ugly our society really is.

In dramatic shift, most Republicans now say colleges are not good for students.

When is speech violence?

It’s a bad idea to tell students that (certain kinds of) words are violence. (This is Jonathan Haidt’s response to the previous article. I must say, I think Haidt is right here.)

_____

Please notice that the duration of the comments window is three days (including publication day), and that comments are moderated for relevance (to the post one is allegedly commenting on), redundancy (not good), and tone (constructive is what we aim for). This applies to both the suggested readings and the regular posts. Thanks!

Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 87

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

How effective is economic theory? (Hint: not much…)

Why a moratorium on microaggressions might be a good idea.

Time to accept the reality of time.

In praise of (philosophical, but also otherwise) specialization.

Major new study finds that political polarization is mainly a Right-Wing thing.

_____

Please notice that the duration of the comments window is three days (including publication day), and that comments are moderated for relevance (to the post one is allegedly commenting on), redundancy (not good), and tone (constructive is what we aim for). This applies to both the suggested readings and the regular posts. Thanks!

Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 86

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

A bizarre experiment in “just sitting and thinking” (but about what?).

A growing number of people think their jobs are useless. Time to rethink the meaning of “work”?

How to use the enduring power of Greek myths in your classroom.

Vegan, vegetarian, or reducetarian?

Even the ancient Greeks thought their best days were history.

_____

Please notice that the duration of the comments window is three days (including publication day), and that comments are moderated for relevance (to the post one is allegedly commenting on), redundancy (not good), and tone (constructive is what we aim for). This applies to both the suggested readings and the regular posts. Thanks!

Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 85

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

People with multiple personalities are changing psychologists’ ideas of the self.

The “busy” trap and how to escape it.

Radical theory overturns old model of how emotions are made.

Calm yourself, write in a diary.

The psychologists who helped the CIA to torture detainees speak, trying to defend themselves. It’s chilling.

_____

P.S.: beginning next week, the regular publication schedule for the blog will shift to essays on Tuesdays (rather than Monday) and reading suggestions on Friday (as usual). Please notice that the current duration of the comments window is three days (including publication day), and that comments are moderated for relevance (to the post one is allegedly commenting on), redundancy (not good), and tone (constructive is what we aim for).

Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 84

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

Watching too many television shows about crime fighting reinforces authoritarian tendencies.

Moral enhancement might not work for precisely the reasons it is claimed to be desirable.

A mathematical approach to emergent causality?

Daryl Bem, p-hacking, and why parapsychology is still a pseudoscience.

Why are the languages of transhumanists and religion so similar?

Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 83

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

Contra this article, this was one awful idea the ancient Greeks came up with. Let’s not follow it.

The science and fad of diets based on fasting.

Chiropractic: still a pseudoscience, after all these years.

Que será será, and other useful tautologies.

Most US colleges are bad at teaching critical thinking skills. I wonder if that bothers their administrators.

Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 82

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

Live long and prosper: how Star Trek challenged racial and gender stereotypes.

What do you really want? And how do you know that?

The persistence myth, despite evidence, of the placebo effect.

Whole Foods and the failure of (libertarian inspired) so-called conscious capitalism.

The complicated history, and potential current relevance, of the Frankfurt School.

Frank Bruni gets it exactly right on the latest instance of “campus inquisition.”

Plato’s reading suggestions, episode 81

Here it is, our regular Friday diet of suggested readings for the weekend:

Does talent matter, or does practice make perfect? (Or, more likely, both?)

The neuroscience argument against “living in the present.”

Putting off the important things? It may be for the wrong reasons.

Why the future is always, or at least often, on your mind.

David Hume, friendships, feuds, and faith.

The coming age of biological inequality.