Global Spin

You read that right. Steven Pinker thinks so and I’m inclined to agree with much of his reasoning. “We’re Getting Nicer Every Day” is an html version of a pdf, so a bit messy, but you can always download it if you prefer…

Posted by Deana in Academia, Crime, Culture, History, Oddly Enough, Politics, Religion, Science on September 8th, 2007 | 1 Comment »

Slate.com often features interesting historical “slide shows” that both entertain and educate. I really enjoyed today’s about What the First Moviegoers Saw”, especially the hand-tinted “Serpentine Dance”.

Posted by Deana in Culture, Film, History, Technology on June 15th, 2007 | Comments Off

Wired News posted commentary by Regina Lynn called The Uncomfortable Reality of Sex in Space, which asks intriguing questions about the social realities of long space voyages: I don’t care if you have a same-sex crew of great-grandparents who have never had a flicker of sexual desire in their entire lives. Lock a group of [...]

Posted by Chris in Anthropology, Culture, Sexuality, Space on May 19th, 2007 | Comments Off

Looks like New York is still making halting steps forward on same-sex marriage rights: Gov. Eliot Spitzer proposed legislation on Friday that would make New York the second state in the country to legally sanction same-sex marriage, fulfilling a longtime pledge to supporters of gay rights. Mr. Spitzer has acknowledged that he does not expect [...]

Posted by Chris in Culture, Law on April 27th, 2007 | Comments Off

Those of you with an interest in things Chinese and para-Chinese (I’m looking at you. Ahem.) might be interested in reading the blog that anthropologist David K. Jordan has been maintaining while spending a semester teaching in Asia. It’s chock full of linguistic and religious observations, all with that pleasant snarkiness that DKJ has mastered.

Posted by Deana in Academia, Blog, Culture, Fun, Humor, Language, Religion, Travel on April 26th, 2007 | 2 Comments »