“Rejoice always, pray constantly, give thanks in all circumstances,” Saint Paul instructs in his letter to the Thessalonians. And whether you’re Christian, or Jew, Buddhist, Muslim, atheist or other, this is good advice. Because science shows that cultivating gratitude has a big impact on your brain, your happiness and your relationship with the world. Give […]
Oh, how quickly we adapt to new tech. Or perhaps how quickly new technology weakens us! I’ve had the iPhone 5S for about a week now, and just a moment ago was piqued by having to type my security code into my iPad. “What?” the unbidden (and apparently very lazy) voice in my head asks, […]
I heard about the new social media video app Vine last week on Slate’s Culture Gabfest’s podcast, that week’s episode titled, aptly, Six Seconds of My Life Manage to Bore Even Me Edition. Since then, it has seemed to come up everywhere. Like when you buy a car and the notice how many there are […]
It’s easy to feel the weight of the world some days – stock markets plunging, euro zone struggling, mid-East warring, politics mired in seemingly intransigent partisan demagoguery – but how’s this for good news: we may be living in the most peaceable era in human existence. This according to Harvard psych prof Steven Pinker, who […]
On our hike yesterday with four 8/9-year-old boys, a couple of things occurred to us. One was that 9 seems to be the absolute perfect age to be a boy. Coming into your physical and imaginative powers, yet with none of the baggage that attends the teen years. It also occurred to us that not […]
Great flight on Southwest today, with some very funny patter from the crew throughout. But the topper was a the “trainee twin sister” of one of the attendants they had pass through the cabin for trash pickup near the end of the flight. It’s irreverent, light hearted touches like this that really makes Southwest fun. […]
On March 18, On the Media hosted an excellent discussion about perceived bias in NPR’s reporting, including an appearance by This American Life’s Ira Glass. It was interesting to note, however, that it’s hard to get away from bias in our core language even when the discussion is bias and those discussing it are extra-sensitized […]
There’s an app for that, but should there be? CNET’s Chris Matyszczyk comments on this Sesame Street sketch satirizing app culture. As he puts it: “This song reflects quite beautifully man’s excessive reliance on technology to alleviate the deficiencies of his own narcotically addled brain.”
I see, and have to admit to using, a lot of PowerPoint in my work life. There’re things it’s good for, and some things it’s not. The Daily Show did a nice job of mocking a “things it’s not” use… Love the Star Wars moment near the end. The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Mon […]