Category: science
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the end is near
I spotted a news item today posted on the CNN website with the following headline: “Near-Earth asteroid Bennu could hit Earth in 157 years and set off a global ‘impact winter,’ study says” At first blush it seemed like an article worth skipping, as I expect neither my wife nor myself to be alive in…
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on my mind
As the year comes to a close, I’ve been thinking a lot about thinking. Having explored books on topics covering neuroscience, consciousness, free will and logic this past year, I’ve come to appreciate more than ever how much a bunch of smart people have been thinking far more deeply about thought than I’d ever dared.…
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no one in their left mind
Illustration above: Bedroom curtains and blinds (7/6/24) I recently stumbled upon an art instruction classic (well-known to millions of others since 1979): Dr. Betty Edwards’ “Drawing On the Right Side of the Brain.” Its title says it all. The corpus callosum is the nerve bridge bundle that allows the brain’s left and right hemispheres to…
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survivorship bias
by
During World War II, researchers at the Center for Naval Analyses conducted a study on the damage done to Allied aircraft returning after bombing missions. Based on damage assessments, they recommended adding armor to those areas showing the most extensive damage in order to minimize future losses to enemy fire. However, Abraham Wald suggested that…
