I Love Cynics!

In a recent assessment of American student achievement in science education, it was found that by 2005 only 18% of graduating seniors were considered proficient. Forty-six percent were considered below a basic achievement level. That was up 3% from 1996. How did we arrive at this situation? How did the United States go from being [...]

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Just realized that this blog turned five years old a bit over a week ago. Oddly, that doesn’t add up to a ton of posts. As many promises of “posting more” as I’ve made, you’d think there’d be more! Might as well make that promise again. I will do my best to post at least [...]

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“I’ve got billions and billions of rhymes to flex, ‘Cause I’ve got more rhymes than Carl Sagan’s got turtlenecks.” Ok. I like the Beastie Boys. The above quote is from one of their songs. The point? Carl Sagan quickly entered the realm of pop culture icons. Through his books and promotion of science via such [...]

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Wedge issues, voter myopia, corrupt politicians? What are the causes of increasing economic disparity in the United States? In his book, Unequal Democracy, Larry Bartels examines the history of increasing economic inequality since the end of World War II. Economic disparity is at its highest point since the 20′s with the top 1% income earners [...]

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Been a while since I’ve posted a book review. Recently completed the book Founding America: Documents from the Revolution to the Bill of Rights (Barnes & Noble Classics). I won’t beat around the bush, this is a difficult book to finish. It’s long, and let’s face it, standard English has changed a lot since the [...]

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Yes, I’m reviewing a four year old book. As the debate continues over evolution vs. intelligent design, and more of the fundamentalist right try to push creationism in the classroom, I decided to take a refresher course on the science of evolution. Consider it a sanity break. I read other reviews of The Ancestor’s Tale: [...]

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As may be noticed by reading my posts, I’m both a psychology nerd and a M*A*S*H fan. So when I saw Rule Number Two: Lessons I Learned in a Combat Hospital I new exactly what the title was referring to. The title is a quote from the M*A*S*H episode “Sometimes You Hear the Bullet”. A [...]

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I had typed up a nice long review of this book, and then the database server ate it. Fitting… Let’s see if I can remember what I typed. If you think you eat well, think again. Here’s an exercise for you. Go to your fridge or cupboard. Grab an item or two out at random. [...]

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The best parts of this book are the last 18 pages. No, that’s not really a slam on the book… well… you’ll see. LiViNG GREEN: A practical guide to simple sustainability is exactly what the subtitle suggests; a guide to improving sustainability in your daily life. Everything, from what you eat to what you drive, [...]

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A book review… a year after the book came out? Sure, why not? Someone has to be the voice of reason. First, let me get straight to the point. A zombie novel with some cliche elements? I suppose it goes with the territory. A zombie novel that is nothing BUT cliche? I suppose I could [...]

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