Sunday Reads...

An irregular roundup of thought-provoking reads. Most made me go “hmm…” — none should be mistaken for endorsement.

Quote of the Day:

“There is a point in the history of society when it becomes so pathologically soft and tender that, among other things its sides even with those who harm it, criminals, and does this quite seriously and honestly.” – Friedrich Nietzsche (Beyond Good and Evil)

• What happens to the Sistine Chapel during the conclave? Check it out.

• A fine example of servant leadership comes from Michigan's world of public policy.  You can read about Sister Monica, who, in one brief window of her journey, I had the opportunity to work with as we advocated for better schooling options for poor children.   The world was better because it had her in it, and it needs more “Sister Monicas.”

• A writer ponders whether their life choices would measure up to the approval of what another writer would call the “democracy of the dead.”

• Rock of Ages?  America’s oldest stone is in Michigan; check it out here.

• Ugh. Two-thirds of the National Guard and Reserve troops are overweight.

• Countries that don't get enough exercise (good news, America is not the worst!), charted:

Nations that don't get enough exercise

• AI agents are now predictors of who is a good leader.

• Confirming common sense:

  • Legislators are, on average, wiser than the mob. Research on policy accuracy concludes that when it comes time to vote on legislation, legislators have more accurate information about the policy topic they are voting on than the general public.

  • People motivated by pleasure prefer pleasurable jobs.  Those who have a high degree of self-control prefer…meaningful jobs.

  • The pause on student loan repayments has – and will – cost the U.S. taxpayer more ($193 billion).  Ugh!

  • Physical fitness and loneliness are inversely correlated

  • Standardized test scores correlate highly with future academic performance.

  • Older and want to be happy?  Move.  Get active.

•  While American “media” struggles with credibility, the BBC is hiring Jew-hating pro-terrorists “talent.”

• Harvard released its report on campus antisemitism this week.  Shocking. Students were :

  • Denouncing Israel

  • Saying Jewish students are colonizers

  • After Oct 7, students published “Israel deserved it.”

  • The faculty promotes rampant support for terrorists and pro-terror criminals.

• George Lucas reveals why Yoda’s dialect is…well, Yoda.  Hint: for memorability.

• An online exhibit celebrating the “Beat Generation.”  How cool, man!

• An American Island stuck in the British past?  Check out the dingbatters here.

• 12 charts on the economic impact of the first 100 days of the new Administration.

• Biologically, gender differences are fundamental. According to this research, we carry this knowledge forward, which manifests in our leadership approach. People will lead groups of women differently from groups of men. Leaders morph to cater to the stereotype of the cohort they seek to influence.

• The robots are not ready for prime time! A fake AI-run company staffed entirely with AI agents flopped.

• FUN! 53 ways to fold a paper airplane.  Which one goes furthest?

• Unintended consequences (or another example of the “fatal conceit):  When states enact prohibitions on “revolving door” practices for ethics reasons, it appears to lower the quality and volume of new candidates for office.

• A fascinating study on education reform (Wisconsin Act 10), a law that weakened government teachers’ union power, resulted in higher test scores and better teacher pay.  More please!

• Bookends of the ideological spectrum, Cornel West and Robert George, pen an essay on academic freedom.

• The upside of discrimination (not a defense of!):  LGBT legislators elected in a highly anti-LGBT environment are measured on a variety of performance measures and determined to be more effective.  The common sense here is that resilient people who prevail through adversity are, via a survivor selection bias, superior at the task in question.

• The binding power of experience is confirmed in this study, which notes that legislators who grew up near each other have similar voting patterns.

• Studies examining intelligence are rightly suspect and require skepticism and rigor.  However, they can highlight interesting correlations, such as this study that finds a “height” advantage for people in academic environments. 

• A broken muffler theory? Motorists in clunkers appear to get more law enforcement attention than those in a new Bentley.

• Good news! Diabetes death rates have fallen to the lowest levels in recent years.

• Traveling?  Here’s a list of fantastic independent bookstores to visit.

• A wide-ranging and engaging exchange with the often maligned Jordan Peterson:

  Jordan Peterson

  

  Sunday Reads