The Joys and Challenges of Interdisciplinary Research
Academia can be a fiercely jealous environment — jealous, that is, of the boundaries between disciplines. Rather than “scientists,” you’ll find physicists and oceanographers, biologists and chemists,...
View ArticleThe Myth of the Egalitarian Noble Savage
Are hunter-gatherer societies really the original egalitarian society? One anthropologist argues against the myth of the leaderless noble savage.
View ArticleMusic and Dance in Human Evolution
Humans everywhere play music and dance. But other animals don't — so where did these unique abilities come from? New research provides some suggestions.
View ArticleThe Catholic Latin Mass is a Strong Credibility-Enhancing Display
Pope Francis recently restricted the Catholic Tridentine Latin mass. The resulting firestorm of controversy may help illuminate why so many people don’t believe what their churches teach.
View ArticleFaith and the Evolutionary Predicament
The "scientific image" of humans offered by evolutionary biology is cold, impersonal, alienating…and objective. But reality is more than objectivity.
View ArticleGeophysicist Dorian Abbot Loses MIT Lecture Thanks to Twitter Mob
University of Chicago geophysicist Dorian Abbot was disinvited from giving a lecture on exoplanets at MIT because of his outspoken opinions about how universities should prioritize diversity, equity,...
View ArticleThe Natural History of Music
I’m teaching a course on the evolution of music through Scholarium in January and February. Or, more accurately, I’m teaching about the origins of human rhythm — our unique ability to “keep together in...
View ArticleMore Signal, Less Noise
A while back, I left formal academia. In the post where I announced that decision, I promised that I’d start writing here more frequently again, since I’d be free from the crushing pressure to...
View ArticleSo Long, Pax Americana
War has returned to Europe after a long, dreamy sabbatical. Russia’s troops and tanks are advancing toward Kiev, the capital city of Ukraine and the Ur-heimat of Slavic Christendom. Apartment buildings...
View ArticleWhy Rites of Passage Are Painful
At the podcast "How God Works," I discuss the worldwide phenomenon of painful adolescent rites of passage with psychologist David DeSteno.
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