Brexit, for sure, as England determines how to exit the European Union. Diversity also came up as a major issue.
Tag: 12.19.16
Will Progressive Foundations Come Under Attack In The Populist Trump Era?
“The question is not whether anyone has the power to truly intimidate them—because nobody does. The question is whether foundations will allow themselves to be intimidated.”
A Neuroscientist Explains How Our Brains Grapple With Abstract Art
“The mind-bending point that Eric Kandel makes is that abstract art, which strips away the narrative, the real-life, expected visuals, requires active problem-solving. We instinctively search for patterns, recognizable shapes, formal figures within the abstraction. We want to impose a rational explanation onto the work, and abstract and minimalist art resists this. It makes our brains work in a different, harder, way at a subconscious level. Though we don’t articulate it as such, perhaps that is why people find abstract art more intimidating, and are hastier to dismiss it. It requires their brains to function in a different, less comfortable, more puzzled way. More puzzled even than when looking at a formal, puzzle painting.”
Rambo Takes A Pass On Running The NEA
The actor said he’s “incredibly flattered to have been suggested to be involved with the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA),” but he’d be better suited for a role helping veterans. “I believe I could be more effective by bringing national attention to returning military personnel in an effort to find gainful employment, suitable housing and financial assistance these heroes respectfully deserve.”
The Battle For The Heart And Soul Of The Bay Area
The basics: “While one group of recyclers is valorized and financially rewarded for their efforts, another constituency is criminalized and harassed for simply trying to live. Where do we draw the line between art and trash, between good recycling and bad? The answer to this question is at the core of the battle being fought for the soul of the region.”
The Harpsichordist Who Survived Three Concentration Camps And Communist Persecution
Zuzana Ruzickova fell in love with piano and harpsichord early – and then the Nazis took her family to Terezin (Theresienstadt). “She insists music helped her survive. She remembers writing down a small section of Bach’s English Suite No 5 in E minor on a scrap of paper when she left Terezin in a cattle truck bound for Auschwitz.”
How To Be A Stoic (A Real One) And Stop Making Yourself Crazy
“Reading Epictetus, I realized that most of the pain in my life came not from any actual privations or insults but, rather, from the shame of thinking that they could have been avoided.” Elif Batuman writes about how the teachings of a first-century ex-slave kept her sane.
What Is Time? Perhaps It’s No More Than Our Own Experience Of It
“For more than two thousand years, the world’s great minds have argued about the essence of time. Is it finite or infinite? Does it flow like a river or is it granular, proceeding in small bits, like sand trickling through an hourglass? And what is the present? Is now an indivisible instant, a line of vapor between the past and the future? Or is it an instant that can be measured – and, if so, how long is it? And what lies between the instants?” Adam Burdick argues that the first thinker we know of who got it right was St. Augustine.
Formidable! Guess Which Will Soon Be The Most-Spoken Language On The Planet?
“While the top languages in the world today are Mandarin, English, Spanish, and Arabic, Natixis has produced figures that show French will be number one in 35 years time.”