Category Archives: Uncategorized

One of the puzzles that has long captivated me is this: how should we measure “progress” in such normative or value-laden fields as law, art, and ethics? Aren’t such first-order values as justice, beauty, and right vs. wrong supposed to … Continue reading →

According to Coasian economic theory, “transaction costs” are supposed to determine whether people will work as individuals or collectively as firms. But does this insight apply to science research? Via Nature: “Between 2009 and 2013, 573 manuscripts listing 1,000 co-authors or … Continue reading →

Check out this thoughtful essay/blog post by Jason Crawford, which is provocatively titled “Progress studies [is] a moral imperative.” Although I am generally skeptical of “moral imperatives” (after all, moral claims are hard, if not impossible, to test or falsify, … Continue reading →

… or the primacy of methodology. One team of scientists (led by David Kroodsma) published a study in the journal Science that concluded 55 percent of the world’s oceans are affected by fishing. Another group (led by Ricardo Amoroso), using … Continue reading →

Originally posted on prior probability:
We have always assumed that Banksy, our favorite mystery graffiti artist, is a man. But what if she is a woman? Kriston Capps makes a persuasive case in this beautiful essay for why Banksy is probably a…

Constance Grady (via Vox) explains how Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas,” which was released 25 years ago, finally reached #1 on Billboard’s official Hot 100 chart. (Here is the official announcement.) In brief, Mariah’s Christmas anthem was originally … Continue reading →

Mary Ann Carroll was one of the remarkable Florida Highwaymen artists–and the sole woman of this iconic group. Here is the official obituary. Below is one of her works: For your reference, this beautiful book (by Gary Monroe) is devoted … Continue reading →

I must confess that I am not a fan of superhero movies (I have yet to see a single Marvel movie, for example, nor do I plan to), but I might make an exception for “Wonder Woman 1984” (based on … Continue reading →

Let’s conclude our analysis of Hohfeldian rights, shall we? Thus far, we have reviewed liberty rights (or legal privileges), legal powers, and immunities from authority. This leaves one last type of Hohfeldian entitlement: claim rights. For Hohfeld, broadly speaking, a … Continue reading →

We interrupt our review of Hohfeldian rights to share this beautiful visualization (via Sky News) of the 12 Dec. 2019 United Kingdom general election results: