Culture & Religion — March 2, 2009

Billionaire Philanthropist is an Oxymoron

“The concept of a ‘billionaire philanthropist’ is an oxymoron. If somebody has amassed a billion dollars, that person likely did so by overcharging for products/services through monopolistic power in the marketplace. It would be much more impressive to see the ‘billionaire philanthropist’ drastically cut prices for the benefit of mankind rather than merely handing over 10%-20% of personal net worth for purposes of obtaining a tax break.”

Catman Cohen

When elites use their muscle in the market to gouge consumers, then returning a tiny fraction of the loot hardly constitutes philanthropy.

a computer generated image of a human brain.

Thinking

The great free will debate featuring Michio Kaku and Steven Pinker

Who — or what — really controls your mind?

Building destroyed by the Halifax Explosion. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

The Past

The largest accidental explosion of all time

More than a century ago, Halifax suffered an accidental blast one-fifth the size of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

a collage of photos of a man with a hat and a book.

High Culture

6 great books with wildly unreliable narrators

Dive into the twisted truths and concealed realities told by literature’s most unreliable narrators.

a group of five matches on a pink background.

The Well

Signs you’re burned out — and how to bounce back

If you don’t feel better after the weekend, the “burnout paradox” could explain why.

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7 min

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with

Laurie Santos

Starts With A Bang

The trick to instantly identifying JWST images

If you can identify a foreground star, the spike patterns are a dead giveaway as to whether it’s a JWST image or any other observatory.

Up Next

Culture & Religion

Freedom of Expression is No Longer Sufficient for a True Democracy

“There is a strange illusion of freedom in this plutocracy masquerading as a democracy. Yes, we have the freedom to be obscene, wear the latest Halloween costume, and behave rudely. But we remain slaves to a system that will imprison us if we don’t pay our taxes, compels us to buy essentials from monopolies, and will seize our house if we fail to make the mortgage. Just because you can say ‘f-ck’ in public does not change the fact you remain a slave to the dollar bill.”