Is There Such a Thing as “Triple-Edged?” (Excluding Shaving) Speaking of office meetings . . . another good, overheard line regarding the term “edgy” at yesterday’s. As in, there’s “good edgy” and “bad edgy.” Not sure that I can (or want to) to define the difference . . . but I know it when I...Read More
How Popular Is That? First, Yogi Berra gave us the restaurant that was so popular, it was actually unpopular: ‘no one goes there anymore, it’s too crowded.” Now, NY Times travel writer Bill Pennington gives us the converse. According to Pennington, Maine ski mountain Sugarloaf is “popular because it’s not that popular.” Makes sense to...Read More
“The Hard (Irreducible?) Problem of Human Consciousness” There is nothing about the physics of the material world (quarks, electrons, photons, atoms, etc.), and specifically, the intricate structure of the brain, that gives the slightest clue as to the mechanism of consciousness. –Dr. Eben Alexander, “Proof of Heaven” (2012); p. 154 Parsing Alexander’s claims of encountering...Read More
Onto Fiscal Cliff #2 (and #3, and #4, and . . . ???) Statistician Nate Silver has advanced an interesting explanation for ever more frequent (and seemingly more acute) attacks of political gridlock nationally — the just-averted Fiscal Cliff fiasco serving as Exhibit A. Namely, politicians on both sides of the aisle have conspired to...Read More
Ouch! My 8 year-old daughter’s mantra lately seems to be “it’s not F-A-I-I-R-R-R!!” So, I chided her that she has WAY more stuff than I ever had, when I was her age. To which she retorted, “Yeah, but the stuff I have hadn’t even been invented when you were a kid.” See, “i.Everything?” “i.World?” “i.Giveup”...Read More
Products vs. Services Like a lot of people, I’m sure, I have a drawer-full of coupons — for restaurants, haircuts, and even a massage — that are set to expire unused Monday (Dec. 31). The explanation? The lines have been too long. It’s not a deal if you can’t take advantage of it . ....Read More
