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DAVID FOSTER WALLACE, IN HIS OWN WORDS

DAVID FOSTER WALLACE, IN HIS OWN WORDS
A cache of over 40 letters reveals the artist’s humour and imagination ... From THE ECONOMIST online When René Magritte was 13 years old, his mother drowned herself in a local river. When the body was recovered her face was found to be covered with her nightdress. He would become obsessed with the hidden. For nearly a century fans of Magritte have studied his works, determined to find hidden meanings within them. The letters, most of which are undated and not included in the collection that was published in 1994, span more than 20 years and cover a wide range of topics—artistic, literary and surreal. Magritte had met the pretty Georgette Berger when they were both schoolchildren. The artist and the poet had met three years earlier and quickly became close friends. Magritte’s letters to Colinet were recovered from his studio by Georgette after his death and sold at auction in London in 1987. In writing, Magritte is unremittingly cheery.

The future is brighter than you think Peter Diamandis says too much focus is placed on negative newsHe says the truth is that the world is poised for abundance through innovationDiamandis: Social changes have vastly increased wealth, reduced disease and violenceHe says smart phones put knowledge, tools in the hands of billions around the world Editor's note: Peter Diamandis is an expert on innovation, the author of "Abundance," and founder and chief executive of the X PRIZE Foundation, a nonprofit focused on creating large incentive prizes to drive breakthroughs. He spoke at the TED2012 conference in February. (CNN) -- I've been talking to corporate groups a lot lately about the idea that the future is going to be better than many of us think -- that we will live in a world of abundance made possible by new technology. People are getting tired of doom and gloom conversations that persist through much of mainstream America. Here are some of the things that aren't getting attention: Peter Diamandis speaks at TED2012.

Sex Diaries Editor Gets Personally Inspired by the Diarists It began with the hedge fund guy who crossed state lines for sex. When I read his sex diary, my expectations were low; they sunk to a nadir when I opened the e-mail introducing his submission: I am a loyal reader, and this diary combines a decent week sexually with an insight into a complex psyche, if I say so myself. His was the 150th diary I'd read; the other 110 or so were by women in my demographic: late twenties, child-free, with the time and inclination to respond to my ads seeking diarists, usually spending a week hanging off various Manhattan and Brooklyn chandeliers, often fueled by a combination of alcohol, cocaine, and breakup. The finance guys were also all the same: pre-dawn CNBC market check, job, home, porn, sexting with women, not enough sleep—all of which they found fascinating. Overnight bag packed. Well. My modus operandi is simple. When my egg timer dinged, I kept reading. I told my shrink that I think I am a misogynist. What this was, I still had no idea.

Peter Weyland at TED2023: I will change the world Peter Weyland has been a magnet for controversy since he announced his intent to build the first convincingly humanoid robotic system by the end of the decade. Whether challenging the ethical boundaries of medicine with nanotechnology or going toe to toe with the Vatican itself on the issue of gene-therapy sterilization, Sir Peter prides himself on his motto, “If we can, we must.” After a three year media blackout, Weyland has finally emerged to reveal where he’s heading next. Wherever that may be, we will most certainly want to follow. Conceived and designed by Ridley Scott and Damon Lindelof and directed by Luke Scott. Sir Peter Weyland was born in Mumbai, India at the turn of the Millennium. In less than a decade, Weyland Corporation became a worldwide leader in emerging technologies and launched the first privatized industrial mission to leave the planet Earth.

40 Photo-Illustrated Questions to Refocus Your Mind Asking the right questions is the answer… It’s not the answers you get from others that will help you, but the questions you ask of yourself. Here are 40 thought-provoking questions to help you refresh and refocus your thinking: Please share your thoughts with us in the comments section below. if you’re interested in reading even more inspiring, thought-provoking questions.Title photo by: Helga Weber For all other photo credits please refer to ThoughtQuestions.com Related 40 Questions Everyone is Afraid to Ask Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers. April 13, 2012 In "Aspirations" 40 Questions that Will Quiet Your Mind Judge a person by their questions, rather than their answers … because asking the right questions is the answer. August 5, 2015 In "Happiness" 25 Photo-Illustrated Reminders to Help You Find Happiness Happiness is the highest level of success.

How to run a successful research lab without having a lab At the meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Atul Butte gave a talk entitled, "Translational Medical Discoveries Through Data Transparency and Reuse." It could just as easily been called "how to run a successful research lab without having a lab." Butte, who is faculty at Stanford, was part of a panel that discussed the open sharing of data, and he used his own experience to provide a compelling case study that showed that, when researchers share their data, it enables others to drive a field forward in new ways. Butte focused on a specific type of data, generated by what are called DNA or gene chips. Because this data is entirely digital, the National Institutes of Health has entered what Butte termed "government in library keeping mode." The two major repositories now hold over 850,000 data sets between them. Butte's group has used this data to identify possible disease-drug combinations.

Guest Post: Auditing Astronomy Class I’m not sure exactly where this story begins, but maybe it’s here: Sometime this summer, my mom decided to take an astronomy class. She had taken drama and philosophy classes through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UC Berkeley and audited a history of theater course. She’d heard that this particular astronomy class was aimed at non-science majors, and that the professor, Alex Filippenko, had won all sorts of teaching awards. She emailed him to see if it was okay for her to sit in – it was – and then convinced a few friends to join her. Maybe what I should say next is that my mom has never been that interested in science. Astronomy had also gotten on her bad list. This class had no formaldehyde, just a professor who has enough astronomy-themed T-shirts to cover three afternoons a week for a whole semester without repeating a shirt. That’s how I first heard about what was going on in class. The next time I asked her about the class, I had a pen handy. “gamma ray bursts”

Top 10 Global Health Milestones in 2012 The mass atrocity event in Connecticut took place just a few miles from my own elementary school. I don’t know about you, but I am in the mood for some uplifting news right now. PSI Impact magazine, for which I am a contributor, asked its readers to nominate 10 great global health moments of the past year, then asked experts write profiles of each milestone. This list will lift your spirits. What follows is a wonderful example of humanity at its best. #1 London Summit on Family Planning Ignites $2.6 billion in Commitments– Dr. –Mark Lowcock, Permanent Secretary, UKAID #2 India Celebrates 1 Year Free of Polio–Dr. #3 Global Leaders Convene Child Survival Call to Action—Dr. #5 AIDS 2012 Focuses on an “AIDS-Free Generation”—Eric Goosby, US Global AIDS Coordinator #6 Public-Private Partnerships Thrive—Geralyn Ritter, Senior Vice President of Global Public Policy & Corporate Responsibility, Merck #8 Nutrition Movement Gets Its Turn—Anne Peniston, Nutrition Chief, USAID

10 Articles That Changed My Life | LifeReboot.com It’s easy to find a well written article. It’s not always easy to find a well written article with genuine value. That’s because the Internet has nearly limitless value — you can use it to look up the correct spelling of a word, or to translate text between languages, or even figure out “what’s the name of that guy from that movie who was in that other movie?” You can also use the Internet to go shopping while at home, or do job searching while at work, or publish blog entries while on vacation. Taking it to the next level, you can use the Internet to interact with people, make new friends around the world, or research your next dating partner. What I’ve discovered to be most surprising, though, is that the Internet contains life-altering advice. Regardless of this, most people don’t think to seek it out. For this reason, I’ve compiled the following list of articles containing value so profound that they literally changed my life. #1 – Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford Commencement Address

‘Life is not a multiple-choice test’ (www.nagb.org) (Correction: Fixing 33-year teaching degree to 33-year teaching career) I recently posted the resignation letter of Ron Maggiano, an award-winning social studies teacher at West Springfield High School in Fairfax County, after a 33-year teaching career — four years shy of full retirement. By Ron Maggiano I will never forget that day. Fortunately, my fears were unfounded. Now more than three decades later, I have just spent my last day as a teacher. It was a difficult decision, but I am confident that it was the correct one. Research shows that today’s students need to be prepared to think critically, analyze problems, weigh solutions, and work collaboratively to successfully compete in the modern work environment. More significantly, critical thinking skills and analytical problem solving have now been replaced with rote memorization and simple recall of facts, figures, names, and dates. And we are not preparing them for success at the college level or in the workplace.

Alan Watts We Are Not Separate

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