Wednesday, September 30, 2020
The Perfectionists: How Precision Engineers Created the Modern World
Thursday, September 24, 2020
Julian Comstock
Sunday, September 20, 2020
Humankind: A Hopeful History
Sunday, September 13, 2020
The Cult of Smart: How Our Broken Education System Perpetuates Social Injustice
The Cult of Smart was written by an avowed Marxist, yet espouses many views that would be more commonly found in Libertarian circles. The author identifies the "blank slate" philosophy as one of the core problems with education. We assume that all students have the same ability and that a good education system can enable anyone to learn. Our fear of segregation and racism has caused us to disregard individual variation. This would be similar to saying that a good basketball coach could turn anyone into an NBA star. There may be cases where pure determination causes somebody to succeed. However, this determination is likely to also be a genetically-connected trait. People differ in their genetic abilities. Some can easily succeed at school. Some cannot.
The author takes pains to say that he is talking about only "individual variation" rather than group variation. This is probably not enough to escape the calls of racism. However, it probably also is not enough to account for effect of purely genetic population differences. There are likely to be some differences in comparing population groups. However, there will be much greater variation among individual people than in a group as a whole. Education policy will often tend to focus on the differences in the environment of groups and individuals. However, even if we were able to purely equalize the environment, the individual genetics would still remain different.
The education system's treatment of everyone as equal conflicts with the system's desire to sort students out. Grades can be absolute or relative (on the curve). Colleges and selective schools attempt to achieve an ideal mix of students through selective admissions. If a school can mold a student, why not just randomly accept any student and allow them to succeed? We also have common curriculum. Some students will struggle with individual classes that may or may not be relevant to their ultimate education and career goals.
The author proposes a number of solutions. We should allow students to drop out at a younger age. If school is not for them, they should not be required to stay. We should also be flexible in the curriculum. It is better to have a student pass statistics than to fail algebra. We can provide universal free child care and health care to improve the environment for all. Guaranteed jobs or income are also viable solutions to help provide an equal setting. Eliminating the price tag for public colleges will allow them to be more accessible for those that want to study. We should focus college on those that need it. Otherwise, jobs that do not require advanced education should be readily available.
Sunday, September 06, 2020
Enemy of All Mankind: A True Story of Piracy, Power, and History's First Global Manhunt
Every may have been an accidental pirate. He, along with others, were enlisted to sail on a ship that was just not going anywhere. They had had enough of that, and decided to mutiny and claim the ship for themselves. They were kind enough to let those that wanted to leave and return back to land.
The voyage set out to various pirates dens, such as Madagascar. They later ended up near the red sea and then started to prey on Indian ships returning from the haj to Mecca. His ship teamed with a few others and got some nice spoils from a ship. The pirates democratically divided it up, with everyone receiving their share (with the Captain receiving two.) This single victory would give pirates the equivalent of a decades' wages. However, they still wanted more.
They attacked an Indian ruler's ship. The pirates were at severe size disadvantage, however, they were extremely lucky. One of the cannons exploded on the big ship, killing many (and eliminating firepower.) Then the pirate ship hit a direct hit on one if the first shots. The leadership of the Indian ship freaked out, later arming some of the harem on board. This did not go well. The pirates ended up with great loot. There were also varying stories of what happened to the women. By some accounts, they were brutally raped, while by others they were taken as wives. The former is the most supported by facts.
In response to the attacks, the Indian leadership imprisoned the English India company officers. Since the pirates were English, they figured the India company must be also. In order to save face, the British led a global manhunt for the pirates. They also struck a deal where the British will provide protection for the Indians. This would help lead to British domination in India.
The manhunt did not succeed in finding Every. The pirates had a head start and had left the region. Many of the crew decided to leave, going abroad in places like Reunion, the Bahamas or North America. A few managed to sneak back to England. One pirate was caught with some of his plunder sewn into his jacket. A few pirates were tried for their crimes against the Indian ship. This was seen as a "show trial" to demonstrate how tough on pirates the British were. However, it backfired, with the jury finding the pirates not guilty. However, rather than set them free, they were later tried for the mutiny on the British ship. For this they were sentenced to hang. Seems like xenophobia was still strong in the day.
Every was never found. There were various rumors as to his whereabouts and future life. To the common man, he was often admired as a Robin Hood figure. To the elites, he was still a public enemy.