Order to the Chaos of Life: Isabel Allende on Writing
Source: Brain Pickings
Chilean American author Isabel Allende answers the question why writers write. Read why she shows up every day to make her voice heard.
Opinion
Why Air Force Cadets Ought to Study Philosophy
Source: The Atlantic
An admiral realized that the Air Force Academy studies in STEM subjects should be balanced with humanities courses. Find out why the Academy thinks these courses will help young people as they grow into adulthood and face present-day challenges.
As Life Slips By: Why Eye Movement Doesn’t Blur the Picture
Source: ScienceNewsline
A molecular “glue” has been discovered that builds the brain connections that keep visual images clear and still, even as objects or your eyes move.
How pickpockets trick your mind
Source: BBC
The key to a successful pickpocket isn’t sleight of hand, but knowing about how our brains work, according to neuroscientist Susana Martinez-Conde.
The Don’s Don: J.R.R. Tolkien’s Beowulf translation finally arrives.
Source: Slate
Katy Waldman, a correspondant for Slate, reviews J.R.R. Tolkien’s translation of Beowulf, published in 2014.
Iraq’s Cycles of Revenge
Source: The New York Times
In this opinion piece, the editorial board of The New York Times argues that progress in Iraq has been interrupted by cycles of revenge between sects.
The Great Myth of Success
Source: Inc.
In this column, Inc. editor John Brandon offers an alternative framework to the definition of success.
Why we love ghost stories
Source: CNN
Author Ilie Ruby recalls the thrills of hearing ghost stories around campfires and explores why it is we are drawn to them.
Gordon Parks exhibit offers intimate glimpse into segregation-era life for African Americans
Source: The Conversation
In 1950, just before the Civil Rights movement, Gordon Parks took a series of photographs of Fort Scott, Kansas, his hometown, for Life magazine. Now on display in an exhibit at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts, art lecturer Toni Pepe Den reviews the images.
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Funny Civil War
Source: The New York Times
In the second year of the Civil War, Nathaniel Hawthorne published an article in Atlantic Monthly outlining his unconventional views on the war. American Studies professor Cynthia Wachtell offers her opinion about the piece.