There Are Shockingly Few Industrialized Countries

It's a huge lie! Most of us are not doing well.

Sincerely,

Comrade Andrea, apparently.

P.S. A question for another time, in a far-off place: Is industrialization good?

Apples and sundry

Having written is one of the best feelings in the world. It is better than kissing, better than shopping, better than vegan apple bars. It may or may not be better than lying in a cornfield looking up.

Important, and I Mean It

Here are two things that are related, but I know nothing about.

First, there is a reasonably new program in some medical schools to specifically admit students whose undergraduate training was in the humanities, not the physical sciences.

Second, we (society and medical professionals, more specifically) have no idea how to treat and care for end-of-life patients. (Warning: this article is horribly sad.)

I am in no position to offer further thoughts on this matter at present besides the following: I still don't know whether offering medical classes to non-medical doctors would ultimately be good for everybody. Nor do I know if I care, when I go to the doctor, how broadly read in the humanities he is. But I do know that there is a reason medicine is still fundamentally practiced by humans, not robots.

Ask Again Later

Here's a social science puzzle for you.

Why was the Magic Eight Ball ever remotely popular? Why did we buy these things?

What is wrong with us?

Dear Mr. Boss, Sir:

I have decided I will no longer allow others to tell me what to do. Please let me know if this is acceptable. In addition, I refuse to continue apologizing for my decisions. I am sorry if this is an inconvenience for you.

Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally

This mnemonic never really worked for me because I always got hung up on what it was Sally did that needed so much excusing. I am pretty sure she got blackout drunk at a strip mall, but that doesn't make any sense, because then it would mean you set something to Base 2 before Differentiating and Setting equal to zero and Measuring. Which, obviously, is wrong.