Links for 2009-10-07

"Beam makes light of Adler's inflexibility, but he does not entirely embrace the by-now clichéd disdain for the Great Books, because they represent something admirable that, perhaps, should be revived in our culture: "The animating idea behind publishing the Great Books, aside from making money for Britannica and the University of Chicago," Beam observes, "was populism, not elitism." The books were household gods. They shared the living room with the television, and they made you feel guilty for being intellectually passive, for not taking control of your own mental development, for putting democracy at risk. "And thousands of copies, perhaps tens of thousands, were actually read, and had an enormous impact on the lives of the men, women, and children who read them.""

"Apparently Mythbusters showed that running is a better option for staying dry, but only after they corrected for a false result they'd obtained in a previous show. So how could you figure this out without going through the hassle (or fun) of running through some rain yourself?"

"This shift to a more vocal constituency for science is crucial. In Congress, in statehouses, and in the classroom, decisions are being made about how to balance science and religion, and we all benefit by ensuring that those discussions involve everyone. Religious moderates are the majority of that constituency, and there is no reason their voices should not be heard."

"[W]hile basketball fans may not agree on the best method for deciding the best team, I think that we can all agree on the worst: college football's BCS."