Animal religion: Evolution, affect, and radical embodiment
"Radical embodiment applied to religious studies, then, suggests that religion is a complex outgrowth of multidimensional, affectively determined bodies, not a rationally elected and cognitively streamlined set of beliefs."
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
The Language of the Political Crowd in Tunisia | African Futures
The Language of the Political Crowd in Tunisia | African Futures
"The revolutionary crowds asserted the unity of the population, both rural and urban, against State oppression. The crowds were written over with words expressing the shared sentiment of the people. The events of 14 January and of Kasbah I and II , mass gatherings during the weeks after the flight of Ben Ali, in Tunis defied the politics of a rural/urban split when the populations from the central and southern regions came and occupied the center of political power, using a common language and holding the same signs."
"The revolutionary crowds asserted the unity of the population, both rural and urban, against State oppression. The crowds were written over with words expressing the shared sentiment of the people. The events of 14 January and of Kasbah I and II , mass gatherings during the weeks after the flight of Ben Ali, in Tunis defied the politics of a rural/urban split when the populations from the central and southern regions came and occupied the center of political power, using a common language and holding the same signs."
Saturday, December 22, 2012
James C. Scott, Farmer and Scholar of Anarchism - NYTimes.com
James C. Scott, Farmer and Scholar of Anarchism - NYTimes.com
"“Seeing Like a State,” published a decade later, looked at the limitations of state power from the other end, examining — through examples as diverse as 18th-century German scientific forestry and “villagization” in 1970s Tanzania — the way that “high modernist” social engineering doomed itself by ignoring local custom and practical knowledge, which Mr. Scott, borrowing the classical Greek word for wisdom, calls “metis.”"
"“Seeing Like a State,” published a decade later, looked at the limitations of state power from the other end, examining — through examples as diverse as 18th-century German scientific forestry and “villagization” in 1970s Tanzania — the way that “high modernist” social engineering doomed itself by ignoring local custom and practical knowledge, which Mr. Scott, borrowing the classical Greek word for wisdom, calls “metis.”"
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
A new model of empathy: The rat - The Washington Post
A new model of empathy: The rat - The Washington Post
"... Recently, scientists demonstrated “emotional contagion” in mice, a situation in which one animal’s stress worsens another’s.
But empathy that leads to helping activity — what psychologists term “pro-social behavior” — hasn’t been formally shown in non-primates until now."
"... Recently, scientists demonstrated “emotional contagion” in mice, a situation in which one animal’s stress worsens another’s.
But empathy that leads to helping activity — what psychologists term “pro-social behavior” — hasn’t been formally shown in non-primates until now."
Monday, December 17, 2012
Book Reviews
Book Reviews
"The more complex the structure the more effective is the energy dissemination. Populations are better in this respect than single individuals; ecosystems even more so, and most effective of all—so far—are human high-tech societies."
"The more complex the structure the more effective is the energy dissemination. Populations are better in this respect than single individuals; ecosystems even more so, and most effective of all—so far—are human high-tech societies."
Friday, December 14, 2012
Can Engineers and Scientists Ever Master “Complexity”? | Cross-Check, Scientific American Blog Network
Can Engineers and Scientists Ever Master “Complexity”? | Cross-Check, Scientific American Blog Network
*A key insight to emerge from chaos theory is that many complex systems are inherently unpredictable, because infinitesimal causes can have enormous consequences. This is the notorious butterfly effect—a term coined by meteorologist Edward Lorenz–which says that the fluttering of a butterfly’s wings in Iowa can culminate in a typhoon in India.
*A key insight to emerge from chaos theory is that many complex systems are inherently unpredictable, because infinitesimal causes can have enormous consequences. This is the notorious butterfly effect—a term coined by meteorologist Edward Lorenz–which says that the fluttering of a butterfly’s wings in Iowa can culminate in a typhoon in India.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)