Journeyman + 20
Twenty years ago I published an essay on the psychological and practical aspects of leaving academia. I had recently moved from U.C. Davis to Chicago and a job at Encyclopedia
“more than any exotic destination, stillness appears to be the elusive luxury of our age”
The ancient Romans believed in generous vacations: They took sightseeing tours for two to five years at a time. In more recent centuries, Europeans of means and faint
Boyd Varty on lions, rest, and the wisdom of nature
Boyd Varty, the South African writer and conservationist, talks about lions and rest in the the latest TED Radio Hour podcast (starts around 26 minutes in): I grew
Something else to look forward to when the 1% get even more: Human sacrifice
Anthropologists and historians have put forward the ‘social control hypothesis’ of human sacrifice. According to this theory, sacrificial rites served as a function for social elites. Human sacrifice
Science of Us on the virtues of naps
It’s a rare thing indeed when something fun also happens to be good for you. Fried food, alcohol, sitting in front of the TV for long stretches at
Chocolate and “likes” activate the same parts of the teenage brain
The same brain circuits that are activated by eating chocolate and winning money are activated when teenagers see large numbers of "likes" on their own photos or the
Bertrand Russell, In Praise of Idleness
I think that there is far too much work done in the world, that immense harm is caused by the belief that work is virtuous, and that what
Bertrand Russell, In Praise of Idleness
I want to say, in all seriousness, that a great deal of harm is being done in the modern world by the belief in the virtuousness of work,
Tim Wu on the “sofalarity”
I missed this in when it first came out in 2014: In his book “What Technology Wants,” Kelly writes: “Technology wants what life wants: Increasing efficiency; Increasing opportunity;
“Enjoyment comes in the highest degree not from going out to seek ‘fun’ and trying to chop it out of life with an axe,”
From Bertie Forbes, “Recreation,” in Keys to Success: Personal Efficiency (New York: B. C. Forbes, 1918) 222-230. If you want to accomplish the largest amount of work of which you