Last week, various headlines proclaimed that there’s a “cut-off age” of 17 or 18 if you want to learn a new language. The headlines were generated by a new study published by MIT researchers, and based on analysis of a grammar quiz they gave to 670,000 people. The researchers found that people “remain very skilled at
READ MORE“Civilization begins with distillation,” said William Faulkner, a writer and drinker. Although our thirst for alcohol dates back to the Stone Age, nobody has figured out a good way to deal with the ensuing hangover after getting drunk. As a chemical engineering professor and wine enthusiast, I felt I needed to find a solution. As
READ MOREAt the International Society for Individual Liberty’s Conference, Milton Friedman once gave a speech titled “Say ‘No’ to Intolerance” (you can find the transcription here) where he criticized the sectarianism of a part of the libertarian movement. To illustrate his point, he told an anecdote, which can be found in Barbara Branden’s biography of Ayn
READ MOREIn 2011, California’s state legislature passed the Fair, Accurate, Inclusive and Respectful (FAIR) Education Act. The law, the first of its kind in the U.S., required, among other things, that schools educate children on the contributions of LGBTQ individuals. By 2016, California’s state education board had approved 10 LGBTQ-inclusive history texts for children in kindergarten
READ MOREIn March 2017, frustrated by the new president’s casual approach to truth, Time Magazine published an issue cover with the title “Is Truth Dead?” Its graphics were identical to those of an iconic 1966 cover with the title “Is God Dead?” Such hype isn’t unique. Just last January, The Atlantic published a thoughtful article whose subtitle expressed a closely related
READ MORECritics of President Donald Trump said his response to the Florida school shooting earlier this year was ill-conceived and a failure. Yet a new startling revelation from school district officials in Broward County, Florida, shows the White House’s response was indeed appropriate—more than even the Trump administration knew. On Feb. 14, Nikolas Cruz, a student
READ MOREIf you wonder why prices at the gas pump have been climbing recently and are expected to continue to climb, look no further than the sharp drop in crude oil production in Venezuela, the Saudi Arabia of the Americas. Counting its huge tar-sands deposits, Venezuela has more crude oil than any other country in the
READ MOREThe decline of the prestige of Christianity raises the question of what will replace it. No culture can live without a philosophy which gives structure and meaning to social institutions and to individual lives. The alternative is nihilism, whose wintry bleakness makes it an unwelcome guest at the dinner table. So what, then? One answer
READ MOREThe internet has brought us many things, not the least of which is an escalation in parenting theories and “Mommy Wars.” But while it’s worthwhile to explore the pros and cons of attachment parenting, Tiger Moms, or free-range concepts, do we get too caught up in these theories? And in so doing, do we forget
READ MORE