>> Why smart people die young. Okay, the study’s really about why smart flies die young. “Forming neuron connections may cause harmful side effects. It is also possible that genes that allow learning to develop faster and last longer may cause other changes.” The study could have ramifications for humans though: ‘Dr. Kawecki says it is worth investigating whether humans also pay hidden costs for extreme learning. “We could speculate that some diseases are a byproduct of intelligence,” he said.” Depression and suicide come to mind.
>> How the human sense of balance killed pilots. “Crashes, injuries, and deaths in aviation’s first 40 years were sometimes caused by faulty or ill-designed equipment, but a large portion were the result of pilot error: poor judgment, bad physical coordination, and, sometimes, the brain being deceived by its own senses.”
>> 50 best cult books of all time. I’ve only read 14. You? (via Utne)
>> Have people really started calling Culver City C-squared?
I’ve read 11, with another 5 on my to-read list.
And nobody real would call Culver City C-squared. Alas, there are enough easily influenced automatons out there that I’ll probably hear it, much like I sometimes people ordering MGD at bars.
Comment by Don Hosek — May 9, 2008 @ 2:33 pm
i’ve only read 11 too. but i own at least another 2. i keep thinking about how much more efficient a reader i was in grad school (i had more time for reading then too) but since my next grad school plan is to work full-time while i’m at it, i think i’ll be getting worse at reading, not better.
Comment by erin — May 10, 2008 @ 7:22 pm