Over the last ten decades, students from all over the United States have made their way to the Scripps National Spelling Bee. In most cases, only one winner walks away with the prize after spelling a little-known word. And in most cases, the rest of us walk away scratching our heads over the definition of
READ MOREIf you study the long history of science, it’s striking how the thought of each age is dominated by some-or-other ruling metaphor that eventually gives way to another. That’s especially true when it comes to explaining human intelligence. (You can learn how in this book.) Ever since computer technology took off after World War II, our ruling metaphor for the human brain is
READ MOREMy colleague, Annie Holmquist, discovered some statistics about the decline in masculinity that have troubled me since the moment I looked over them. Here’s the key part of her piece: “In recent years, a mildly trending topic of discussion has been the question, ‘Where have all the men gone?’ While there are a number of
READ MOREIn the West, while there is a very long history of debate over law in society, the assumptions upon which the law rested have often been broadly shared, having come from the synthesis of Christianity and Hellenism or, as it is often referred to, the Greco-Roman, Judeo-Christian heritage. In The Law (1850), the political and
READ MOREA recent amendment to the House’s annual defense authorization bill would require women to register for the draft as well as men. Not surprisingly, this issue is one which is hotly contested. The amendment barely survived the committee vote (32-30), and the amendment could be removed from the bill long before it passes the House
READ MOREThe big news out this morning is the Pew Research finding that more young people ages 18 to 34 are living with their parents rather than married or cohabitating in their own households. Already, gallons of ink are being spilled by major news media about how this trend is driven by “declining employment” and a
READ MOREA humanitarian crisis is unfolding in Venezuela. Inflation is rampant (700 percent, as of Tuesday) and there is not enough food to feed the nation’s 31 million mouths. U.S. companies are pulling out. One of the reasons the crisis in Venezuela is so tragic is that it was so predictable. Mary Anastasia O’Grady, writing in
READ MOREShakespeare’s Hamlet is arguably the greatest play ever written. It is, however, also one of the most misunderstood. One could write a book, or perhaps a whole shelf-full of books, on the way in which the play is misconstrued by critics, or the manner in which it is sacrificed to the latest literary fads. The
READ MOREIn a recent Facebook post, Mike Rowe, host of the Discovery Channel’s Dirty Jobs show, shared a letter he received from an Arkansas mother. The letter ran as follows: Dear Mike My son, Spencer, decided to apply for the High Voltage Lineman program at Arkansas State University Newport. He went through the interviews just fine,
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