Monthly Archives: January 2007

THE VALUE OF A COLLEGE EDUCATION.

Posted on January 31, 2007 by Philip

THE VALUE OF A COLLEGE EDUCATION. In this interesting article on income distribution by the author of a very important blog, I was surprised to learn that “In the United States, the average earnings premium received by those with four-year … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics | Leave a comment

WHEN BEING TALL IS A POLITICAL DISADVANTAGE.

Posted on January 31, 2007 by Philip

WHEN BEING TALL IS A POLITICAL DISADVANTAGE. The Wall Street Journal had an article yesterday (January 30) by Alan Cullison about possible successors to Putin if he retires. In the article, he mentions Dmitry Medvedev as a candidate, but says, … Continue reading →

Posted in History, Politics | 2 Comments

BEN FRANKLIN, LIBRARIES, AND THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION.

Posted on January 30, 2007 by Annalisa

Currently I’m reading a book my father gave me last Christmas, BENJAMIN FRANKLIN by Edmund S. Morgan. It’s a pretty comprehensive biography that moves at an appropriately brisk pace, which is good because there is so much ground to cover. … Continue reading →

Posted in History | 2 Comments

MUSCLE MEMORY AND HOT HANDS FOR BASKETBALL PLAYERS.

Posted on January 30, 2007 by Philip

MUSCLE MEMORY AND HOT HANDS FOR BASKETBALL PLAYERS. I was really pleased to find the neuroscience blog of Jonah Lehrer. I looked at the archives. This is a consistently interesting blog. One of the posts described the famous study by … Continue reading →

Posted in Basketball, Sports | 3 Comments

HOLLYWOOD STARS AND THE THEATER.

Posted on January 29, 2007 by Philip

HOLLYWOOD STARS AND THE THEATER. I revere Alan Ayckbourn, but I disagree strongly with this article in which Ayckbourn claims that Hollywood and television actors who are poor theater actors are destroying British theater. Anything to build an audience I … Continue reading →

Posted in Theater | Leave a comment

DO BASEBALL PLAYERS HAVE HOT STREAKS?

Posted on January 29, 2007 by Philip

DO BASEBALL PLAYERS HAVE HOT STREAKS? I had always refused to pay attention to the junk statistics on TV sports shows about players’ performances in the previous short run of games. “Small samples,” I sniffed. But last summer two bits … Continue reading →

Posted in Baseball, Sports | 3 Comments

DIAMOND AND OTHER MARKETS.

Posted on January 29, 2007 by Philip

This article describes a kind of market that has been very important in history. The kind of diamond market it describes is one of over two dozen diamond bourses scattered over the world. In this kind of market, enforcement of … Continue reading →

Posted in Economics | 1 Comment

COLORS.

Posted on January 28, 2007 by Philip

COLORS. This article begins with the fact that Welsh is one of a group of languages which does not distinguish between blue and green (called “grue” languages because they conflate blue and green). Is color perception a result of nature … Continue reading →

Posted in art, Science | 4 Comments

WHY DO ROMAN MATRONS BEHAVE SO BADLY? I BLAME SUETONIUS.

Posted on January 27, 2007 by Philip

WHY DO ROMAN MATRONS BEHAVE SO BADLY? I BLAME SUETONIUS. Why is it the fall of the Roman republic that draws so much interest today? Because it resonates with our historical circumstances? I think it’s simply such a good story. … Continue reading →

Posted in History | 1 Comment

PROUST AND NEUROSCIENCE BY AN EXPERT.

Posted on January 26, 2007 by Philip

PROUST AND NEUROSCIENCE BY AN EXPERT. I posted earlier on Proust and Happiness Psychology. This was a layman’s reaction to reading STUMBLING ON HAPPINESS by Daniel Gilbert. In reading about Milton Friedman just now I came across the fact that … Continue reading →

Posted in Literature | 4 Comments