Think clearly. Act well. Appreciate life.
Last month on this blog, I remarked on the cognitively dissonant revelations that sometimes break into our daily quotidian lives regarding collective, global, or cosmic concerns. I described in that post how some scholars view our efforts to manage this dissonance through personal meaning absolutely absurd, while others offer ways of countering it through personal …
As the end of the school year approaches, I typically look forward to having more free time, and, after two busy semesters, look forward to reading things of my own choosing. While I enjoy reading student papers and perusing research materials, there is something refreshing about reading things I choose to read. I may pick …
“Beauty” is an unusual term. According to Webster dictionary, beauty is defined as “the qualities of a person or a thing that give pleasure to the senses or to the mind.”1 However, pleasure is also a problematic term. Eating a tub of ice cream might bring someone pleasure, but is it beautiful? Perhaps so. Serial killers …
During the summer of 2012, shortly after Professor David Laraway had begun his doctoral coursework in Philosophy at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland, he came across popular press reports featuring a botched attempt to restore a religious fresco in Spain. A well-meaning parishioner, Cecilia Giménez, had attempted to restore the painting in a …
For some, the college admissions scandal that proliferated headlines last week was revelatory; in an unprecedented move, Federal prosecutors charged 50 people with the “largest college admissions scam ever prosecuted by the Justice Department.”1 Included among the accused are actresses Lori Loughlin and Felicity Huffman, with the details of the scandal encompassing direct cheating, bribery, and …
Two of my teenage son’s friends committed suicide this winter. Their situations were different, their challenges particular to their lives, but their deaths both came as a profound shock to me and my son. I found myself weeping for days, mourning the loss of the light that these young men took with them out of …
On my way back from a visit home to Idaho last week, I saw a billboard on the side of the freeway that caught my attention. It was a black and white picture of a little Japanese American girl sitting atop a pile of belongings, and underneath were written the words “Never Again is Now.” …
This week we are delighted to feature the experience of a number of students who have fulfilled internships at the Instituto de Estudos Brasileiros (IEB), a research institute connected to the Universidade de São Paulo. BYU has a significant relationship to the IEB thanks to the coordinating efforts of Professor James Krause and others. Students who …
Out of all television media produced within the last three years, I would be hard pressed to find a comedy show more intriguing than The Good Place. For those who haven’t seen it, The Good Place follows Eleanor Shellstrop after she dies and finds herself in “the good place,” despite knowing that she’s not meant to be …
“To act … and not to be acted upon” (2 Nephi 2:26). One of my favorite essays on the field of Brazilian Studies bears an unusual and entertaining title: “Brazilianists, God Bless ‘Em! What in the World is to be Done?”1 Written by Richard Morse, one of the most eminent scholars of Brazilian culture and history …