Joe Carter

In physics, the twin paradox is a thought experiment in special relativity, in which a twin makes a journey into space in a high-speed rocket and returns home to find he has aged less than his identical twin who stayed on Earth. This result appears puzzling because each twin sees the other twin as . . . . Continue Reading »

1. TV’s Virtual Backlot °°°°°° 2. How to Write a Theological Paper °°°°°° 3. Zinc Is Probably the Most Effective Cold Treatment Known to Medicine Scientists still haven’t discovered a cure for the common cold, but researchers now say zinc . . . . Continue Reading »

The amendment to defund Planned Parenthood has passed in the U.S. House of Representatives: The House has approved a Republican proposal to block federal aid for Planned Parenthood. The 240-185 vote on Friday is a victory for anti-abortion forces led by Indiana GOP Rep. Mike Pence. He says . . . . Continue Reading »

The University of California-Davis has a peculiar new religious discrimination policy : The UC-Davis policy defines “Religious/Spiritual Discrimination” as “the loss of power and privilege to those who do not practice the dominant culture’s religion. In the United States, this . . . . Continue Reading »

Continuing on the theme that the novels of Jane Austen can be used to explain just about anything , I give you this passage from Dorothy L. Cheney and Robert M. Seyfarth’s Baboon Metaphysics : In sum, monkey society is governed by the same two general rules that governed the behavior of women . . . . Continue Reading »

Game theory is a branch of applied mathematics that attempts to mathematically capture behavior in strategic situations, or games, in which an individual’s success in making choices depends on the choices of others. In his new book (a draft of which is available free online ), Michael Chwe . . . . Continue Reading »

The New Yorker is notorious for it rigorous fact-checking. But I never realized the same standards were applied to poets : To a literal-minded reader, “Lust for Life,” a poem Michael Robbins published last April in  The New Yorker , would have raised a few questions. Are elephants . . . . Continue Reading »

A new poll finds that even though most Americans have grown more comfortable with same-sex or unmarried couples raising children, they still view single mothers as detrimental to society : The poll asked about 2,700 people for their views on seven trends in modern relationships that are upending . . . . Continue Reading »

Rick Gekoski thinks that reading may be a tad bit overrated : One might argue that literacy is unalloyedly a good thing – yes, I can think of counter-examples, but then again one always can – but it is pretty clear to me that reading, as in reading of literature, is not. What we read can . . . . Continue Reading »

Timothy Larsen, a professor at Wheaton College, answers four common questions young academics have about the mysterious process of getting a tenure-track professorship : Given how eminently well qualified I am for this position, how can you possibly justify eliminating me so early in the process? . . . . Continue Reading »