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The 2008 book Ritual and Its Consequences: An Essay on the Limits of Sincerity is hard for me to understand, but I’ve been trying to figure it out, as the concepts it considers seem interesting and important:
Rob Henderson has a great essay summarizing the expert vs elite distinction I discussed in 6 prior posts (1 2 3 4 5 6):
You might expect us to understand our romantic couple breakups very well.
More in history
Hey folks, Fireside this week! As I noted a couple of weeks ago, things are probably going to get more than a little fireside-y over the next few weeks, simply because of the start of the semester – and a semester in which I am undertaking a set of entire new preps (that is, teaching … Continue reading Fireside Friday, August 27, 2025 (On Defending History) →
Can we know anything for certain? That’s the question behind David Hume’s Problem of Induction. Hume undermines the basis for using past experience to predict what will happen in the future, calling into question not only science and knowledge but also our everyday beliefs. If we can’t logically justify our confidence that the sun […]
A charming pop-up book about a trip to the moon. Like other pop-up books it is hard to share how wonderful it is to see the rocket rise up or how the surface of the Moon is 3-d. It is a reprint and was was originally Czechoslovakian but I don't know much more about the original book. Kubasta, V. Tip & Top and The Moon Rocket. London: Bancroft and Co. (7 p.) 1964.
Known all over the world as the king with six wives, Henry VIII was the second Tudor monarch in England. His reign left indelible imprints on British history. Often portrayed in popular media as a mercurial, irascible figure who would turn on those around him in a flash, Henry VIII did have certain consistent […]
