Philosophy
What does it mean for one to be a genius? Is genius just the upper end of the really smart continuum? Is there a difference between genius and really, really, really, smart? Is it a difference of kind or degree? Is genius a matter of smart plus something? creativity? insight? an ability to see things differently? Can you be a genius, but not be smart at all? Is smart a propensity and genius a judgment of results? Can you be a genius, but not have done anything with it? Is there a difference between being a genius and a prodigy other than age?
- Can You Really Own A Position?
I've been thinking about the use of the verb to own with respect to an intellectual view. When a student is being wishy-washy about a proposition he or she is arguing for and clearly believes, I'll tell the student to "own the position." ...
- What's The Difference: Equality, Justice, And Fairness
We were talking about bathrooms the other day. I mentioned that in my building at work, on the top floor there used to be one single stall men's and one single stall women's room. They have since chanced the men's room into a unisex...
- Group E-mail Vs. Spam
Is there a difference between sending an e-mail to a group of people and spam? Is the difference based on the number of people contacted? If so, where is the dividing line between contacting a bunch of folks and sending spam? Or is it...
- Historians, Archaeologists, And Scientists
Are historians scientists? They frame hypotheses about the causes and effects of real events and use empirical evidence to support their accounts. But they don't do not look for regularities to make into laws; to the contrary, they account...
- Grammar Curmudeons
Had a student ask yesterday about grammatical pet peeves. His was "irregardless." My big three are: 1) "Quote" used for "quotation." Quote is a verb. You quote someone. What you write down is not a quote, but a quotation. ...
Philosophy
The Nature of Genius
What does it mean for one to be a genius? Is genius just the upper end of the really smart continuum? Is there a difference between genius and really, really, really, smart? Is it a difference of kind or degree? Is genius a matter of smart plus something? creativity? insight? an ability to see things differently? Can you be a genius, but not be smart at all? Is smart a propensity and genius a judgment of results? Can you be a genius, but not have done anything with it? Is there a difference between being a genius and a prodigy other than age?
- Can You Really Own A Position?
I've been thinking about the use of the verb to own with respect to an intellectual view. When a student is being wishy-washy about a proposition he or she is arguing for and clearly believes, I'll tell the student to "own the position." ...
- What's The Difference: Equality, Justice, And Fairness
We were talking about bathrooms the other day. I mentioned that in my building at work, on the top floor there used to be one single stall men's and one single stall women's room. They have since chanced the men's room into a unisex...
- Group E-mail Vs. Spam
Is there a difference between sending an e-mail to a group of people and spam? Is the difference based on the number of people contacted? If so, where is the dividing line between contacting a bunch of folks and sending spam? Or is it...
- Historians, Archaeologists, And Scientists
Are historians scientists? They frame hypotheses about the causes and effects of real events and use empirical evidence to support their accounts. But they don't do not look for regularities to make into laws; to the contrary, they account...
- Grammar Curmudeons
Had a student ask yesterday about grammatical pet peeves. His was "irregardless." My big three are: 1) "Quote" used for "quotation." Quote is a verb. You quote someone. What you write down is not a quote, but a quotation. ...