Bbenzon
Description
Humankind got its start on the African savannas some hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years ago. At various times in our cultural history we’ve moved to distinctly new cultural ground, as it were. And so we are moving now, and have been for the past half century. This blog is how I see that move. Intellectually, I'm broadly interested in culture and the brain. Within that compass, anything could show up here. Literature and films (including animation), certainly, music as well, and graffiti. But, other things may show up as well. It's a blog, don't you know, it moves.
MY BLOGS
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New Savanna
http://new-savanna.blogspot.com/
Humankind got its start on the African savannas some hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of years ago. At various times in our cultural history we’ve moved to distinctly new cultural ground, as it were. And so we are moving now, and have been for the past half century. This blog is how I see that move. I'm broadly interested in culture and the brain. Within that compass, anything could show up here. Literature and films (including animation), certainly, music as well, and graffiti. But, other things may show up as well. It's a blog, don't you know, it moves.
LATEST ARTICLES ( 7356 )
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Communicating with Yourself, Some Data Points in the Contemporary Intellectual...
But first, not so contemporary: E. M. (“only connect”) Forster is known for various things, including the assertion, “How do I know what I think until I see wha... Read more
Posted on 22 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Photos and Forsythia
When I was young I looked to the blossoming of forsythia as a sign of Spring. I still do. But this isn’t a post about forsythias or Spring. Read more
Posted on 22 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Scientia Salon on Sperber’s Cultural Attraction
Scientia Salon recently had a discussion of Nicolas Claidière, Thomas C. Scott-Phillips and Dan Sperber, How Darwinian is cultural evolution? Read more
Posted on 21 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Molecular Storms and the Subtleties of Matter
First links to other New Savanna posts bearing on the relationship of mind to matter: • Galen Strawson on consciousness: the problem we face is simple,... Read more
Posted on 21 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
The New Whitney in the Meat-Packing District: Blood Guts and 21st Century Art
The building was designed by Renzo Piano, a starchitect up there with Nouvel and Gehry (Flickr album). From the NYTimes, by Michael Kimmelman: From the west,... Read more
Posted on 19 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Pulp Fiction as Ring From
I watched Pulp Fiction last night – streamed it on Netflix. I couldn’t help but notice that something was funky about the timing of events. Read more
Posted on 19 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
The Universe and Time
Some more on the recent book, Roberto Mangabeira Unger (a philosopher) and Lee Smolin (a physicist), The Singular Universe and the Reality of Time: A Proposal I... Read more
Posted on 19 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Theorizing the Web 2015: The Web and the World-Wide Wall #TtW2015
My proposal didn't make the cut for Theorizing the Web 2015 (currently in its 2nd day), so I thought I'd post my abstract anyhow, along with a link to my posts... Read more
Posted on 18 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Dredging up a Forgotten Language out of One's Past
Julie Sedivy was borm in Czechoslovakia but emigrated to America as a small child. Writing at Language Log, she notes, "Like many immigrants, I’d learned my... Read more
Posted on 17 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Has Dennett Undercut His Own Position on Words as Memes?
Early in 2013 Dan Dennett had an interview posted at John Brockman’s Edge site, The Normal Well-Tempered Mind. He opened by announcing that he’d made a mistake... Read more
Posted on 15 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
The Strange Workings of Community: in the Wake of Lincoln's Assassination
From today's NYTimes: To Mattie Jackson, a runaway slave, the tidings of Lincoln’s death felt like “an electric shock to my soul.” Many refused to believe it. Read more
Posted on 14 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Art Online
Sylvain Levy at AsiaPacific Magazine: Yet most private collections are still in the “Digital Stone Age”; according to the website Larry’s List, in 2014 only 12... Read more
Posted on 12 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Glossary of Terms for Cultural Evolution
This is a short list of terms that I have come to treat as terms of art in thinking about cultural evolution. I have no idea how stable these terms and... Read more
Posted on 10 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Friday Fotos: Chicago's Millennium Park
I bought my first camera about a decade ago to take photos of Chicago's Millennium Park the summer it opened. Here are some of those photos. Read more
Posted on 10 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
In Praise of Apple's New Watch
Farhad Mangoo in the NYTimes: It was only on Day 4 that I began appreciating the ways in which the elegant $650 computer on my wrist was more than just another... Read more
Posted on 08 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Dennett on the De-Darwinizing of Culture
This recent video (talk given 19 March 2015) gathers many of Dennett's recent themes and examples. The central thread is worthwhile – Dennett's only idea on... Read more
Posted on 08 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Lewontin: There is No Niche Without an Organism
David Sloam Wilson (DSL) interviews Richard Lewontin (RL) on adaptation and evolution. They start the conversation with the classic article Lewontin... Read more
Posted on 06 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Bell Magic and Spirits at 3 Quarks Daily
My intellectual life has tended to revolve around various specific examples that I examine closely and revisit from time to time. Read more
Posted on 06 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Homeostasis: What's the Cultural Analogue?
Oliver Sacks has an essay on wellness and dis-ease that ranges over migraines and his recent cancer treatment. His opening paragraph reminded me of Dawkins on... Read more
Posted on 05 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY -
Kids: Tickle Danger, Tinker, Learn, and Grow
From a NYTimes oped by Allison Arieff: If we want to raise kids to be independent thinkers and change-makers, one of the best things we can do is give them the... Read more
Posted on 04 April 2015 CULTURE, PHILOSOPHY, SOCIETY
