Sheep and Mirrors: On Being Social
What is it about other people that bestows such joy, such comfort, such indispensable meaning on our lives?
Emma Wilkins
· 13 min read
Racial Slurs and Deferential Condescension
We are effectively being told that, at this truth-seeking institution, it is inappropriate for us to utter certain indisputably true statements, because the value of truth is trumped by the emotional states of one or another demographic.
Matthew Small
· 5 min read
Andrew Yang—Technocratic Populist
Government and policy would be better off if they were presided over and/or dictated by technical experts.
Marshawn Brewer
· 12 min read
Science and Data: Notes on a Misconception
The theory that science is based on evidence derives from a philosophy known as empiricism.
Lucas Smalldon
· 7 min read
How Feminism Has Constrained Our Understanding of Gender
Feminist research into sex differences has typically concluded that the number of sex differences is small, and therefore unimportant, thus making the logical error that a small number of differences means those differences are inconsequential.
John Barry
· 7 min read
Right of Reply: Our Response to Jerry Coyne
Careless in his facts, Coyne is also careless in his references.
Günter Bechly, Brian Miller and David Berlinski
· 14 min read
There is No ‘Gay Gene,’ but Sexuality is Affected by Many Genes of Small Effect
Day by day, as genetic science advances, it becomes ever clearer that all psychological traits are genetically influenced.
Jerry Barnett
· 4 min read
In Praise of Renoir's Male Gaze
Renoir’s nudes are the evidence of a tirelessly hopeful soul struggling against the dingy reality of the modern world, with its modern industry and its modern warfare, that turns all human flesh into disposable objects, without joy or humanity.
Marilyn Simon
· 8 min read
David Gelernter is Wrong About Ditching Darwin
The last lesson of Gelernter’s piece is that while we shouldn’t judge someone’s arguments by their credentials alone, neither should we give unwarranted credence to those who have impressive credentials, particularly when they pronounce on a field in which they lack expertise.
Jerry A. Coyne
· 11 min read
In Celebration of Errors
Shouting someone down for speaking a thought in public effectively ends the critical discussion. There can be no further exploration of why the idea at issue is wrong, or what kernel of truth there may be therein.
Logan Chipkin
· 6 min read
Free Speech Matters, Even When it’s Not Protected by the First Amendment
As chilling effects go, “I would speak out, but I don’t want to risk going to jail” is not all that different from “I would speak out, but I don’t want to risk losing my friends and my livelihood.”
Jason Richwine
· 6 min read
The Bigotry of Environmental Pessimism
The “Lorax” view of environmental problems as a consequence of greed has always been wrong and depressing.
Michael Shellenberger
· 8 min read
Theoterrorism versus Freedom of Speech—A Review
Not only had Carrell hurt the feelings of the Iranian people, but he had hurt the feelings of Muslims all over the world. There would be consequences.
Rumy Hasan
· 8 min read
Memories of Life at Kingdom Hall: An Alberta Schoolgirl Waits for Armageddon
Paradise was as real to us as a memory—and even though it wasn’t something concrete, our minds were already there in it.
Amber Scorah
· 10 min read
Abandon in Place: The Price of the First Steps to the Moon
I was a child in the 1960s, and I embraced Apollo as the adventure of all time
Craig Colgan
· 10 min read