Conspicuous (non) consumption

 Conspicuous (non) consumption

One way to show status is by demonstrating how many resources you have. A bespoke suit, a huge graduation party, a fancy building… A bully who physically intimidates or an angry driver who cuts you off in traffic are each working to show their status and strength.

But it’s also possible to demonstrate security and confidence by doing precisely the opposite. The billionaire in a t-shirt. The person who holds the door open and lets you go first in line… these are also demonstrations of status.

The interesting question isn’t whether someone has status. It’s whether they’re gutsy enough to demonstrate it by making things better for others.

The first wiring map of an insect's brain hints at incredible complexity

 The first wiring map of an insect's brain hints at incredible complexity

'The fruit fly larva connectome is an important advance because it's "closer in many regards to a human brain than the other ones," says Joshua Vogelstein, an author of the study and an associate professor of biomedical engineering at Johns Hopkins University.'

Todays Thought

 A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

Hail to the man who went through life always helping others, knowing no fear, and to whom aggressiveness and resentment are alien. 

-Albert Einstein, physicist, Nobel laureate (14 Mar 1879-1955)

Todays Thought

 A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

What has occurred over the course of the last few centuries is a growing (but by no means universal or certain) recognition that science gets the job done, while religion makes excuses. Sometimes they are very pretty excuses that capture the imagination of the public, but ultimately, when you want to win a war or heal a dying child or get rich from a discovery or explore Antarctica, you turn to science and reason, or you fail. 

-PZ Myers, biology professor (b. 9 Mar 1957)

Todays Thought

 A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

Death tugs at my ear and says, "Live, I am coming." 

-Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr., poet, novelist, essayist, and physician (8 Mar 1809-1894)

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Researchers say they can use the quantum world to reverse time

 Researchers say they can use the quantum world to reverse time