Sarah Perry’s monumental essay on Cooperative Ignorance makes a compelling point that when interacting with other human beings (as opposed to indifferent nature), it is often beneficial to be deliberately ignorant or otherwise constrained in one’s options. In this overview I’ve compiled a few highlights; read the whole thing when you can make the time. … Continue reading “Sarah Perry’s Cooperative Ignorance”
Category: Science
Science, history & philosophy
Tainter’s Collapse of Complex Societies
The Collapse of Complex Societies (Cambridge University Press 1988; paperback 1990, 250 pages, ISBN 978-0-521-38673-9) is Joseph A. Tainter’s magnum opus and deservedly considered a classic. Tainter packs an overview of explanations of collapse, analyses of historical cases, and his own overarching theory into one slim book, soberly argued from quantifiable data yet quite readable. … Continue reading “Tainter’s Collapse of Complex Societies”
Stellarators & Qubits in Garching
The Garching Research Center near Munich yesterday staged one of its infrequent open door nights, with all the various institutes showing off their work in lectures and demonstrations. The campus is big and I arrived rather late, but I did make it to the two most interesting places: the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics … Continue reading “Stellarators & Qubits in Garching”
Statistical (In-)Significance
In 2005 John Ioannidis famously declared that Most Published Research Findings Are False. How can this be? Ioannidis refers to studies employing statistical significance testing which has become the norm in many fields, especially medicine – Ioannidis himself is an epidemiologist. Research involving only abstract reasoning (e.g. mathematics) or reliably repeatable mechanisms (e.g. engineering) is … Continue reading “Statistical (In-)Significance”
Tales from the Roman Republic
Rome’s messy transition from republic to principate has been well-documented by ancient authors and often revisited by modern ones. Since 1990 there has been a veritable explosion of historical fiction set in this era. I’ve devoured a good part of it, so here are some recommendations for your reading pleasure. The authors generally keep to … Continue reading “Tales from the Roman Republic”
How Great Was Alexander?
Following his observations on Napoleon, sociologist Randall Collins has posted another insightful article on one of history’s greatest warlords: What Made Alexander Great? Once again, I recommend you take an hour or two to read the whole thing. Below follows a summary with noteworthy excerpts. Philip’s Groundwork Alexander’s father Philip laid the groundwork to his … Continue reading “How Great Was Alexander?”
Napoleon’s Unlikely Career
Sociologist Randall Collins has published another fascinating essay-length post, this time on the illustrious career of Napoleon Bonaparte and the old question of talent versus luck. The single worst thing about the article is the title, Napoleon as CEO: A Career of Emotional Energy, which sounds like something written by robots to fill the space … Continue reading “Napoleon’s Unlikely Career”
Luttwak’s Grand Strategy of Rome
Edward N. Luttwak’s The Grand Strategy of the Roman Empire (Johns Hopkins University Press 1976) is a compact (255 pages) and brilliant classic on military and diplomatic strategies from the principate to the tetrarchy. Recently Luttwak published his long-awaited companion piece, The Grand Strategy of the Byzantine Empire (Harvard University Press 2009), much delayed and … Continue reading “Luttwak’s Grand Strategy of Rome”
John Glassie on Athanasius Kircher
John Glassie’s A Man of Misconceptions (Riverhead Books 2012) is an immensely entertaining account of the life and times of Athanasius Kircher (1601/2–1680), a Jesuit scholar who escaped the Thirty Years War ravaging his native Germany to become famous throughout Europe for his prolific writing, museum of curiosities, and peculiar scientific theories. Kircher lived at … Continue reading “John Glassie on Athanasius Kircher”
Sociological Eye on Revolutions
Successful revolutions provide the founding myths for the newly established order, and are accordingly glorified as the spontaneous uprising of the righteous and downtrodden against their oppressors and exploiters. Randall Collins, professor of sociology at the University of Pennsylvania, has turned his Sociological Eye on the realities behind the myths. The articles quoted below are … Continue reading “Sociological Eye on Revolutions”