Author Archives: Mark R. Kelly

E.O. Wilson: ON HUMAN NATURE

Posted on 14 April 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

I first read this book shortly after its 1978 hardcover publication, and it was revelatory; elegantly written and insightful, it challenged conventional ideas about human nature, especially the one about the mind being a ‘blank slate’ completely molded by environment, … Continue reading →

Posted in Book Notes, Evolution, Religion | 1 Comment

The Blish/Lawrence Star Trek adaptations

Posted on 13 April 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

[this is a draft to be linked into the set of Trek review pages when complete. will add a photo of the entire set of books. details of how each adaptation varied from its script original will be added to … Continue reading →

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Kinsley: OLD AGE

Posted on 24 March 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

Michael Kinsley’s OLD AGE: A BEGINNER’S GUIDE (Crown/Tim Duggan Books 2016) is another slender book that, like part of Junger’s, was originally published as various magazine pieces. Kinsley is known for his ‘law’ — “A gaffe is when a politician … Continue reading →

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Junger: TRIBE

Posted on 23 March 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

Sebastian Junger’s TRIBE: On Homecoming and Belonging (Grand Central/Twelve 2016) is one of several short, relatively ‘incidental’, books I’ve read in the past month — ‘incidental’ in that they’re mostly off-topic to my more serious themes of science, philosophy, and … Continue reading →

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Links and Comments: Petty Rage; EO Wilson; Rutger Bregman; Conservative Causes; Zealots

Posted on 23 March 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

Paul Krugman’s March 11 column, The Power of Petty Personal Rage discusses incidents about plastic straws, hamburgers, and Captain Marvel. The point is that demented anger is a significant factor in modern American political life — and overwhelmingly on one … Continue reading →

Posted in Changing One's Mind, Conservative Resistance, Lunacy, Politics | Leave a comment

Links and Comments: Anti-Vaxxers

Posted on 14 March 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

From Sunday’s New York Times, essay by Frank Bruni: The Real Horror of the Anti-Vaxxers, subtitled “This isn’t just a public health crisis. It’s a public sanity one.” (The print title was “The Anti-Vaxxers’ War on Truth”.) How many studies … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservative Resistance, Lunacy, Psychology | Leave a comment

Links and Comments: The Smart Ones Figure It Out; Coyne on Yet Another Religious Apologetic

Posted on 24 February 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

I’ve mentioned before how I think “the smart ones figure it out,” even as traditionally it’s been impolite to discuss it. The smart ones are generally smart enough not to make an issue of it; to not challenge their friends … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Religion | Leave a comment

Links and Comments: Scientific Humanism; the Socialist Menace; Border Crisis

Posted on 24 February 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

Michael Shermer’s final Scientific American column, in January, summarizes The Case for Scientific Humanism, a “blending of scientific naturalism and Enlightenment humanism,” echoing my own Provisional Conclusion #5: Modern science arose in the 16th and 17th centuries following the Scientific … Continue reading →

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Oliver Sacks on Forster and Rees

Posted on 24 February 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

There’s a short essay by the late Oliver Sacks in current issue of The New Yorker: The Machine Stops. He muses about people walking down the street staring at their phones. Much of this, remarkably, was envisaged by E. M. Forster … Continue reading →

Posted in Culture, Human Progress, Science, science fiction | Leave a comment

Lilla: THE ONCE AND FUTURE LIBERAL

Posted on 20 February 2019 by Mark R. Kelly

THE ONCE AND FUTURE LIBERAL: After Identity Politics (Harper, 2017) is by Mark Lilla, a professor at Columbia University, and is much more explicitly about politics than most books I read. (Because my concerns extend far outside the relatively narrow … Continue reading →

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