Hannah Arendt on Marx’s equivocal view of labour
Marx’s attitude toward labor, and that is toward the very center of his thought, has never ceased to be equivocal. While it was an “eternal… Read More »Hannah Arendt on Marx’s equivocal view of labour
History
Not long ago; or, Little by little (10): Switzerland’s iodine revolution
At the turn of the 20th century, the Swiss were plagued by strange, interlinked medical conditions, which existed elsewhere to a degree, but in Switzerland… Read More »Not long ago; or, Little by little (10): Switzerland’s iodine revolution
Splendour and Horror: Agnes Callard on shopping, Zola, and the birth of consumerism
I hope this snippet makes you go and read the whole thing. In his Theory of the Leisure Class … Thorstein Veblen explains that “conspicuous… Read More »Splendour and Horror: Agnes Callard on shopping, Zola, and the birth of consumerism
Niels Bohr [via Werner Heisenberg] on breaking with Newton and the poetry of atoms
Heisenberg prefaces Physics and Beyond with the note that “needless to say, conversations cannot be reconstructed literally after several decades….” [Niels Bohr, as recalled Heisenberg]:… Read More »Niels Bohr [via Werner Heisenberg] on breaking with Newton and the poetry of atoms
James Yorke: fifty years of chaos (theory)
Almost fifty years ago, when my student T. Y. Li and I wrote a math paper titled “Period 3 Implies Chaos”, I could not predict… Read More »James Yorke: fifty years of chaos (theory)
Ian Leslie on story as intellectual anaesthetic
Historians have an increasingly strong incentive to tell dramatic stories which gain attention and make ‘impact’. But anyone in the business of reporting on reality… Read More »Ian Leslie on story as intellectual anaesthetic
Lant Pritchett on the limits of information technology; or, The Moore the Merrier?
I think people have been seduced into thinking that the advance in information technology is going to bring more change to the future than I… Read More »Lant Pritchett on the limits of information technology; or, The Moore the Merrier?
Public holidays and compensation for body parts, 9th century edition; Or, King Alfred and the Book of Doom
The title Doom Book (Old English dōm-bōc) comes from the Old English word dōm meaning judgment or law – as in Alfred’s admonishment to “Doom… Read More »Public holidays and compensation for body parts, 9th century edition; Or, King Alfred and the Book of Doom
Ian Mortimer on the network effects and feedback loops of medieval travel
The expansion of personal horizons mentioned above has implications for the whole of society: people’s geographic knowledge increases exponentially the further they ride or walk.… Read More »Ian Mortimer on the network effects and feedback loops of medieval travel
Catch-up Logic: Sam Bowman on Britain as a Developing Economy
See also: Not long ago; or, Little by little (8): Singapore market, early 1970sNot long ago; or, Little by little (1): Raymond Briggs on 1940s… Read More »Catch-up Logic: Sam Bowman on Britain as a Developing Economy