February is half over — and like most of you, I feel as if time is flying by faster than usual. I use self imposed breaks and a lot of reading to slow things down, but it doesn’t seem to work. We gotta try. So here are seven of my favorite stories from this week.
- Why Public Science Is Broken: Marc Edwards, the Virigina Tech civil engineer professor who helped expose the Flint Water Pollution crisis in a very thoughtful interview points out the crisis in academia and science. [The Chronicle of Higher Education]
- The Dividends of Investing in Science: Recent Gravitational Waves discovery is a good time for the country to reasses and renew its commitment to science and keep investing in it, writes MIT president L. Rafael Reif. [The Boston Globe]
- Head Over Heels: The story of Steve Madden, one of the biggest names in women’s shoes. His rise, fall and subsequent resurgence are worthy of a television show, but for now settle for this great read from Doree Shafrir. [Buzzfeed]
- An interview with Umberto Eco: Italian writer, academic and philospher passed away this past week. To remember him, here is an interview with the master. [The Paris Review]
- Why the Establishment & Media got the Rise of Trump & Sanders Wrong: American University professor, Leonard Steinhom points out that the establishment and media never really grokked the downturn of 2008 that destroyed Americans hope & dreams. Don’t worry, this has happened before: think back to the rise of Andrew Jacksons and William Jennings Bryan. [History News Network]
- The Secret Lives of Teens on Tumblr: It would be a shame if Tumblr went away because of Yahoo’s woes, because it is unique, idiosyncratic and a world on its own, as this article explains. [The New Republic]
- A Son Rises in the West: Dezhung Rinpoche, a revered Llama died in May 1987. He has predicted that he would be reborn in Seattle. In November 1991, Sonam Wangdu was born in Seattle. Two years later he was officially recognized as Rinpoche’s reincarnation, and in 1995 he moved to Kathmandu, Nepal to study Dharma for 20 years. This story picks up that thread and focused on his mother, Carolyn Massey. [SeattleMet]
Here are some of my pieces from this past week, in case you missed them:
- Good Times, Bad Times. What Really Matters: My rumination on what investors should to be focused on during these tough economic times.
- Instagram Ads, Too Much? In its effort to monetize the service, looks like Facebook wants to sacrifice the golden goose.
- In praise of the wet shave. And why it is my favorite way to relax.
You can follow me on Instagram @Om & Twitter @om. I also share more stories everyday at Om Reads