First Blog

  Ships of Fools Katherine Anne Porter’s Ship of Fools presents a transatlantic crossing in 1931 as an allegorical stage for the prejudices, ambitions, and weaknesses of humankind. Her passengers, representatives of many nationalities, classes, and temperaments, sail together toward an uncertain future, mirroring a world drifting toward catastrophe. The ship becomes both a literal vessel and a metaphor for the human condition: enclosed, self-absorbed, unstable, and unable or unwilling to chart a better course. The ship at sea motif is fertile ground for launching metaphors for the human condition. In a sense, the television series Star Trek is another type, one of hundreds of people with differing talents and aspirations struggling against external dangers. It highlights various reactions to the same situation and allows the viewer to root for one or another player. Films such as Mutiny on the Bounty explore the torment, tyranny, and temptations of its players, though not all...

A.     You can’t outsmart bad data. --- Gabriel Millien B.     You dwell in a personal wasteland if all you care to discuss is yourself. C.     The brilliant scientist and the polar bear have one thing in common: Only about one in ten attempts to solve their respective problem succeeds. Redux. Memo to Students: “If AI can do everything you can do, what good are you?”

 

  According to a recent Microsoft study, the jobs most vulnerable to AI are: 1. Interpreters and translaters. 2. Historians. 3. Passenger attendants. 4. Sales representatives of services. 5. Writers and authors.

A.     The role of the single cell. Compare, a.       Not a single one of the cells that comprise you knows who you are, or cares. --- Daniel Dennett – American philosopher b.      However, every single cell that comprises you is a contributing member to the orchestra, which is you. --- me B.     To know how a political party will treat you, look carefully at its treatment given to opponents. C.     Either life happens to you, or you create your own. 

Introduction. We consider the evolutionary perspective on verbal telepathy, brain waves, and the potential for non-verbal telepathic communication. In this report, we posit verbal telepathy to be rather unlikely. In the second part we take up a form of telepathy that may be more realistic, even if relatively rare. Thus, our goal is first to deny telepathy on an evolutionary basis, but then support it in another, though weaker, form. The concept of telepathy, direct mind-to-mind communication without sensory intermediaries, has long captivated human imagination, from ancient myths to modern science fiction. While verbal language is a cornerstone of human communication, it is a relatively recent evolutionary development, emerging roughly 50,000–100,000 years ago in Homo sapiens. In contrast, the human brain’s capacity for synchronized neural activity, including brain waves like alpha waves (8–12 Hz), has roots in much older evolutionary processes. We explore why verbal telepathy may...

A.     Babies. When a baby is born, it communicates in nonverbal ways. Its mother learns this language, and soon both communicate without words, perhaps by touch, sounds, or maybe vision. What they do is to resonate together. This must be truly exciting, almost telepathic, for new mothers.*  B.     The cost of misconceptions.   It is impossible for a man to learn what he thinks he already knows. --- Epictetus, Greek philosopher C.     Some live their life as a leaf in the stream; others have a motor attached.   *Significance. I sent this to four young mothers, and all agreed in the strongest terms. 

Over the past 50 years, the average size of chickens raised for meat has increased by an astonishing 364%, growing from around 2 pounds in the 1970s to over 9 pounds today. This dramatic transformation is largely the result of selective breeding, industrial farming methods, and advances in feed and genetics—designed to produce birds that grow faster and yield more breast meat to meet consumer demand. High-efficiency breeds like the Cornish Cross, combined with controlled environments and optimized nutrition, have played a central role in accelerating this growth. However, these changes have sparked growing concerns among scientists and animal welfare advocates. Oversized chickens often suffer from mobility issues, organ strain, and reduced quality of life. Questions are also being raised about the nutritional quality of the meat and the sustainability of such intensive farming practices. As the poultry industry continues to prioritize efficiency and scale, debates about ethics, health,...

A.   We are all a bit scared of that new bully called AI. It threatens our jobs while titillating us with temptation. B.   Three maxims dating back to Sumerian (pre-Babylonian) culture, 2600 BCE • "Pass no judgment when drinking beer."  • "To be rich but not content — that is poverty."  • "Friendship lasts a day; kinship endures forever." C.   "Education isn't something you can finish." - Isaac Asimov (1920 - 1992) P.S. Did you know microfiber doesn't just clean better and absorb more than cotton, it also won't leave lint everywhere.

A.     For some, the gift most difficult to give is trust , and trust in oneself can be even more so.   B.     Memo to students: If AI can do whatever you can do, what good are you?   C.     New Stress Diet: With enough stress and hate inside you, you will burn huge energy and lose weight. You will also sleep less, and feel much discomfort. 

  In certain vital domains, a pervasive mediocrity among practitioners can stifle genuine advancement. When the intellectual output of a field is predominantly average, it inevitably produces research of corresponding quality. Nevertheless, some of these ideas, by sheer chance or perhaps through effective dissemination, will inevitably gain traction. A significant number of scholars and researchers will gravitate towards these trends, contributing to and propagating further work along these established lines. Such a trajectory allows an initially flawed concept to ascend to the status of mainstream orthodoxy. However, over an extended period, these prevailing ideas invariably fail to withstand rigorous scrutiny; they are ultimately and conclusively disproven. The disheartening pattern then reveals itself: rather than genuine progress, an equally unvalidated or incorrect idea often supplants the discredited one, swiftly establishing its own dominance. This cycle perpetuates, ensurin...

The human mind seeks familiarity not because it is wise, but because it is comfortable. Whether we dwell in fear, longing, pride, or sorrow, once we become accustomed to a certain state, we tend to return to it. Familiarity becomes a refuge, regardless of whether it nourishes or diminishes us. The mind does not ask:  Is this true? Is this good?  It asks:  Have I felt this before?  And if the answer is yes, it settles back into it, even if it brings suffering. Hence, we may revise the old maxim:  “Familiarity breeds comfort, not contempt.” States of mind, like all habits of being, become self-sustaining. The joyful tend toward joy. The bitter tend toward bitterness. Not because of fate, but because we live most often in the emotional rooms we’ve furnished for ourselves. Some people remain unhappy not because life denies them happiness, but because their minds have grown accustomed to unhappiness. It is what they know. It is what they return to. It becomes a quiet...