We’ve talked about literature this week—what’s so great about books and why we read them. “But,” you may wonder, “why do we have to read all these old books?” Franz Kafka gives an answer: “You spend too much time on ephemeras. The...
I Met a Dragon Face to FaceBy Jack Prelutsky I met a dragon face to facethe year when I was ten,I took a trip to outer space,I braved a pirate’s den,I wrestled with a wicked troll,and fought a great white shark,I trailed a...
About 600 BC, King Jehoiakim destroyed Jeremiah’s scroll in a fire. Around 250 BC Emperor Qin Shi Huang of China ordered the burning of all philosophy books and history books from states other than Qin. Following the conversion of the Maldives to Islam...
What’s the point of stories? I mean, why do we bother reading them? They’re not particularly useful. Nobody reads Moby Dick as a sailing instruction manual, (although perhaps you could!); or the Chronicles of Narnia to better understand wardrobe furniture;...
Do you believe in science, or do you believe in God? That is the choice that the modern world would have you make. Science, they say, is the province of reason; faith is irrational or non-rational belief. Pick one or...
Every field of knowledge has the capacity to amaze us: There are astonishing tales of history; awe-inspiring works of art and music; incredibly simple (and complex) mathematical proofs; brilliant and moving stories from literature. But science—the study of our natural...
Yesterday, we talked about some of the surprising ways science has given us great new inventions: microwaves, antibiotics, x-rays, and more. But science also has given us atomic bombs, artificial intelligence, and cloning. So, is scientific progress a good thing...
Scientific breakthroughs often take years or decades of research, directed at a very specific problem or question, frequently led by large teams of scientists who are dedicated to finding an answer. Engaging in scientific research often is an act of...
Surgeons often tell of how their necks and backs wear out from looking down on patients at the operating table day after day, year after year. When it comes to the discipline of science, this looking down—the analytical posture—is the...
Yesterday I said that real history is a true story, and that just because it can be told differently doesn’t mean that the truth of history depends on who’s telling it. Whether you’re reading history or writing it, it takes...
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