Tech
Lessons from the COVID data wizards
Data dashboards have been an important part of pandemic response and planning. What have their developers learnt about communicating science in a crisis?
Matthew Clapp
Motion
An explosive result in particle physics could change everything
A tiny discrepancy in the weight of a fundamental particle called the W boson could blow open one of our major theories for understanding everything – if the measurement stands up to scrutiny
Thinking
Problem Solving 101
"In analytics, the term fishing expedition refers to a project that was never framed correctly to begin with and involves trolling the data for unexpected correlations." There is an excellent article in the MIT Sloan Management Review, Framing Data Science Problems the Right Way From the Start. This
Matthew
Does Information Want to Be Free?
It's been a long time since I checked in on #opensource publishing software. I learned perl and then PHP by using tools like WordPress, Drupal, and others I'm sure I've forgotten about. Like going back to a place you saw as a child, the
Culture
Above the Stars He Surely Dwells
The Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, is a choral symphony, the final complete symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven, composed between 1822 and 1824. It was first performed in Vienna on 7 May 1824.
Matthew
Wanting to Die in Space
I didn't sleep well last night, but I always seem to dream somehow. I only write down the weirdest, and last night's dream was pretty odd, and I remember the dream starting in the middle of a total adventure.
Film
From Gertie to Dylan
Drew Barrymore was born in 1975, so we were about the same age when I saw E.T. at the theatre. She grew up in West Hollywood until she moved to Sherman Oaks at seven. In her 2015 memoir, Wildflower, Drew says she talks "like a valley girl" because she grew up in Sherman Oaks.
Thinking
Albert Einstein vs. Henri Bergson
It all began in 1922, when Einstein and Bergson met in an unplanned but fateful debate. Einstein had been invited to give a presentation in Paris on his theory of relativity. Time was central to Einstein’s work. It was, however, also the central issue in Bergson’s philosophy. Their
Culture
How Anna Nicole Smith Became America's Punchline
How does a woman turn from a mortal to an icon overnight? Think of Pamela Anderson, in a tight Labatt Blue shirt, at a football game with her friends, and finding herself featured on the stadium jumbotron long enough for the crowd — and later the world — to fall in love
Culture
No One Left to Speak For Me
Passages on the importance of treating all people equality are scattered from Old Testament to New. Genesis even begins by highlighting our equality by pointing out that “God created man in His own image.” That means we are equal in God’s eyes. James 2, Chapter 1-4 says, “My brothers
The Era of Inclusion and Hope Comes to a Close
As an era of inclusion and hope comes to a close, I feel a real sense of sadness for where we are heading. Eight years ago people around the world cried tears of joy as the impossible was made possible. Today, those tears have turned to sadness. It’s not
Mind
Could Suicidal Behaviors Be the Result of Evolution?
Some psychologists believe suicide and depression can be strategic. One in six Americans will suffer a major depressive disorder at some point in life.1 That word—disorder—characterizes how most of us see depression. It’s a breakdown, a flaw in the system, something to be remedied and moved