(Wow, the title of this post kind of rhymes! I might stick with this in future weeks.)
My week in a nutshell:
Things I read/learned from around the web:
| “Still, among experts, including those most cynical about government-funded education, almost no one argues today that intelligence can’t change or that early life experiences don’t matter. The legacy of Abecedarian, the evidence gathered over 40 years, has become undeniable—so undeniable that New York University child psychologist Clancy Blair now calls it a theory, a well-honed framework about how the stress of poverty batters child brains.” (here)
| “Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will officially announce her intention to seek the 2016 Democratic nomination for president on Sunday afternoon, ending years of speculation over her plans to pursue the Oval Office, NPR has learned.” (here)
| “In the mid-to-late 1990s, says MacKenzie, big companies ‘steered clear of [advocacy groups] like the third rail of the subway.” Now, however, there is a recognition that “just because you may not always see eye-to-eye doesn’t mean you can’t have a constructive dialogue.'” (here)
| “Saturday Night Live’s brand of humor—at its best, when it’s actually funny—captures some of the darkest and most bizarre absurdities of modern culture. But what a person finds offensive isn’t ultimately a product of the their time. It is instead deeply personal. Being offended is a way of rejecting or denying something at odds with one’s value system. Which means offense, as a state of being, isn’t so much about the thing doing the offending—a song about penises, hearing the word ‘fuck,’ the existence of Lady Gaga—but a mirror into the way a person believes the world ought to be.” (here)
| “‘Most girls aren’t into this kind of stuff.” No way, do you have the list? The list of things most girls are into? I’ve been trying to find that thing forever, can you forward it to me? You have my email. Thanks, man, you’re the best.'” (here)
Have you read anything this week that made you stop and think?
