Topics about how people think and learn (especially children), and various tricks and techniques for teaching — not just school learning, but *life* learning.
Ridiculous. The belief that the Earth is less than 10,000 years old is about on par with the heliocentric geocentric model of the solar system — the evidence is pretty damning against both. However, as I suggested recently to a voluble evolution denier, they’re welcome to try. The discipline of science is self-correcting, and will …
Continue reading ‘“Creationists are infiltrating US geology circles”’ »
Did you ever hear the story about the first man to run a sub-four-minute mile? As I heard it, after he did so, it suddenly seemed that everyone could do it. I’ve also heard that the first man to lift 400 pounds was tricked into it by his trainer, who told him it was only …
Continue reading ‘“A Little Deception Helps Push Athletes to the Limit”’ »
You know, I can understand this. If you don’t know how technology works, you’re as likely to believe impossible things as possible ones. What I can’t believe is how many people here fall for things just as ludicrous.
I don’t know how long this article will stay available, but it’s worth taking the time to glance at, because it explains why teenagers’ minds work the way they do — and why, despite the more-than-occasional stupidity of their actions, the system actually makes them smarter in the end.
Interesting article, but I especially love the “Mormon porn” at the bottom. (Don’t worry, Ploni, if it’s safe for Mormons, it’s safe for you too.)
I ran across an article the other day that baldly stated that the survival instinct is not the strongest and most universal instinct. Creating value is. Surprising on the face of it, but the more I thought of it, the more I had to admit that there’s something to it. Conventional wisdom (which may actually …
It’s true. The modern conveniences are great, once you know how to do things the old-fashioned, by-hand way. But if you’ve always used the conveniences, and never bothered to learn the hard way of doing something, you’re cheating yourself. I see it all the time in programming. People who started out with a high-level language …
Continue reading ‘“Increase Your Brain Power by Doing Things the Hard Way”’ »
The future is getting closer. 🙂
One family I know (whose identity will not be mentioned to protect the guilty as well as myself) is well-known for their knock-down, drag-out, no-holds-barred battles. When they get into arguments, their opponents are called every name in the book and accused of the most heinous crimes against humanity, whether the names or accusations make …
Vitamin D, produced in human skin when it’s bombarded by the ultraviolet rays of the sun, may be the most powerful anticancer agent ever known, and lack of it during a mother’s pregnancy and breastfeeding (and keeping babies shielded from ultraviolet sunlight) could be the cause of most autism: Many researchers now fear that the …
Continue reading ‘“Tanning Can Cause Cancer, but Not Tanning Could Cause a Lot Worse”’ »